First Day Of School

The inevitable day finally arrived after two and a half months of past your bedtime schedules and watching hours of daytime cartoons on television. The first day of school hit the Soriano family like a freight train.



Get up before sunrise, drink coffee, assemble school lunches, get the kids dressed while they complain they are still sleepy and drive through morning rush hour traffic through several school zones to get to school on time. Sound familiar? I forgot to add one more step to my morning process. Dress myself and look somewhat presentable to the other rushed parents at school!



Return to normalcy! Comparing summer vacation to World War I is quite a literary stretch, but I had to say it. Single file lunch lines and hallway lockers coin the phrase "back to school".



I am not a morning person as well as my family. Night dwellers unite! My Dunkin Donuts ground coffee from Costco is my medicine to jump start my day.



May the 2010 school year be filled with unbridled knowledge, homework, recess and fantastic field trips. My cameras are waiting patiently to capture the moment.



Irony just fills the pages of my PhotoBlog! I mentioned to my wife that she is just moving the dust around and not really removing it.



I used the Canon EOS 5D Mark II with the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 IS L lens for this shoot.
You can view more photos in my First Day Of School 2010 Gallery.

TGIF ! Toni Gonzaga In Florida

Filipina Superstar Toni Gonzaga performed in Orlando, Florida to the delight of many at the Osceola Performing Arts Center on Saturday August 7th, 2010.



Toni Gonzaga is on a United States Concert Tour from her native homeland of the Philippines with her sister Alex Gonzaga. Her next destination is Houston, Texas at the University of Houston.



My daughter enjoyed the sights and sounds of the TGIF! She especially liked the Toni and Alex Gonzaga's version of "Love Story" by Taylor Swift and "Baby" by Justin Bieber. The night was complete with an autographed CD Album Magazine "All Me" and a picture perfect photo with the sisters.



I photographed the concert with the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L II lens. I shot 1080p video with the Canon EOS 5D Mark II with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L II lens.

You can view photos and videos in my TGIF! Toni Gonzaga In Florida 2010 Gallery.



As for my audio setup for the video capture, I used two shotgun microphones. The Rode VideoMic was attached to the Canon 5D Mark II with manual audio control and the Azden SGM 1X attached to the wireless Sennheiser G2 EW100 transmitter and the wireless Sennheiser G2 EW100 receiver attached to the Canon 1D Mark IV. The wireless setup was needed for mobility because I was shooting pictures and video simultaneously. The 5D Mark II was on a Bogen 501HDV head with Manfrotto legs and the 1D Mark IV was handheld during the entire production.
You can read more post production details in my Toni Gonzaga Youtube Video.

iPhone 4 JailBreak Has Arrived !!!

Finally! iPhone 4 users are no longer prisoners of their own smartphone. iPhone 4 firmware 4.0.1 put a stronghold on current iPhone owners who wanted to break free from AT&T and Apple iTunes Store. If you go to JailBreakMe.com on your Apple device with Safari, you can download and JailBreak your iPhone 4 with a quick slide of the unlock bar.



On June 24, 2010 the iPhone 4 was released to the masses across the nation at local Apple Stores, Best Buys, AT&T Stores and other outlets. I personally waited over 4 hours in line for my pre-ordered iPhone 4. You can see the photos and videos in my iPhone 4 Unboxing at Apple Store Gallery.



Good luck and have a happy iPhone 4 JailBreak!

Tampa Bay Devil Rays Win Over New York Yankees!

Kudos to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for the 3 to 2 victory against the New York Yankees in the July 30th American League East baseball game. I witnessed Rays Matt Joyce hit a three run homer in the sixth inning. The sold out crowd at Tropicana Field roared into a frenzy as number 20 knocked the ball beyond right field granting the Rays with all their runs.



The brief moment my son unglued his eyes from his Nintendo DSi, he got into the ballgame spirit with his own personalized Devil Rays wooden bat. A black bat for my son and of course a pink bat for my daughter.



New York Yankees Alex Rodriguez strikes out. A-Rod fails his attempted 600th career homer.



Our family Friday night out would not be complete without overpriced sugary cotton candy. Nintendo DSi followed with souvenir bats and finally sugar overload to finish off the July 30th Devil Rays victory over the Yankees.



The competition is not over for the American League East. Baseball fans of Tampa Bay look forward to another Rays win and my kids are hopeful for more cotton candy.



I used a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II, 24-70mm f/2.8L and 35mm f/1.4L lenses.
You can view more in my Tampa Bay Devil Rays vs. New York Yankees American League East Baseball Game Gallery.