Burdeos, Quezon

Our trip to Burdeos (part of Pililio Island) in Quezon was my first beach backpacking trip with my newly upgraded Fujifil X-T10 (from Nikon D3200). Managing my expectations, I did not really thought much about this trip. It's just the normal "go to the beach, relax, tinker with the camera and shoot" kind of weekend. Never did I thought that it has surprises hidden behind its sleeves.

Let's just skip to the daylight beach and island life. Let me show you what this island has in store for us as the sun went down.

Let's count to three.

#1. Thor's day at the beach

There are numerous islands at this part of Burdeos, but we chose to camp at Pandanan Island. I chose to hang my hammock on a small open hut facing the seashore. As I prepared to go for a shut eye, I set up my tripod, focused my camera at the stilted house by the sea and set its interval shooting at one shot per 30 seconds with 30 seconds exposure each for a total of 15 shots (with 30 seconds gap per shot). 

f/5, 30 sec., ISO 1600, 52mm (5/14/2016 8:29 PM)

It was starting to drizzle that night and I just slid inside my hammock and took a nap. The roaring thunder and occasional lightning woke me up then I realized I left my camera on interval. I scanned through the shots and as it turned out, I got this one - my first time to capture lightning! 

#2. Moonset

What do you do when you are sleeping then you realize there's a spotlight beaming at your face? You wake up. And I woke up to this.

f/3.6, 10 sec., ISO 1600, 19mm (5/15/2016 12:32 AM)

What I though was a spotlight is actually the moon setting at the horizon. This was my first time to see a moon set, and it does not really go out silently into the night - it bursts into a sun-like orange glow! Just as I thought the eyegasmic experience is already about to end, I looked up at the opposite side of the sky and...

#3. Yehey Milkyway!

There it was, the magnificent Milkyway. Actually, this is the reason why I really want to venture into the outdoors with my camera. It opens you up to a lot of eye candies, which the city can deprive you of - like this one. At this part of the Philippines, the light pollution is very minimal that you can actually see it with the naked eye.

f/3.5, 30 sec., ISO 5000, 8mm, (5/15/16 1:47 AM)

As the moon finally sets, the Milkyway finally took the stage for a great feast for the eyes. It was not the first time that I was able to capture the Milkyway, but it has never failed to amaze me every time. One of the primary reasons why I finally decided to upgrade my camera after 3 years was because of the Milkyway actually. My DSLR's sensor limitation can no longer clearly capture the Milkyway and that it can only operate at a decent noise levels up to ISO 1600. But as what they say, it's never about the tools, it's about the artisan who wields it.

Go out and enjoy the outdoors, your 5 Billion-Star accommodation is waiting for you!