Paraiso

I have been fortunate last night, to have been able to take intimate photographs of the concert of a great Filipino composer and all around musical genius, Maestro Ryan Cayabyab. It was always one of my dreams to be able to shoot concerts or musicals up close, last night was the first step and I loved every bit of it.

It was a really great experience. The new singing group of Maestro Ryan after his previous hit group the Smokey Mountain was amazing. They are dubbed the RCS (Ryan Cayabyab Singers). Classics from the maestro, new compositions, "Kundiman", Christmas and some "APO" songs have been sung as well.


Stephanie Reese stunned the crowd with her soprano voice and dynamic performance. She starred in Miss Saigon in Germany, played Esmeralda in Disney's World premiere of "The hunchback of Notre dame" she also played the Princess Tuptim in "The King and I" in London among others.

Her journey from the spotlight of the stage, to a powerful voice for the slums of the Philippines, warms the heart.

The most important thing of course last night are the plight of my countrymen who have found new homes and rebuilt their lives through the generosity of a group called Gawad Kalinga . It is a touching tribute knowing that the private sector has more impact than the government in building homes for the poor. There is still work to be done and the best part is... we could help.

I will let Maestro Ryan's lyrics tell us the story of the plight of the homeless in the Philippines and all over the world.

Excerpt from the song Paraiso, sung by Smokey Mountain, lyrics by Ryan Cayabyab


I live in this land called paraiso,
In a house made of cardboard floors and walls.
I learned to be free in paraiso,
Free to claim anything I see.
Matching rags for my clothes,Plastic bags for the cold.
And if empty cans were all I have, what a joy.
I never fight to take someone else's coins
and live with fear like the rest of the boys.

Paraiso, help me make a stand.
Paraiso, take me by the hand
Paraiso, make the world understand
That if I could see a single bird, what a joy.
This tired and hungry land could expect
Some truth and hope and respect
From the rest of the world.






























Proud to be Pinoy!

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Photo Tip: In low light situations such as concerts, you will need a fast lens and a camera capable of producing clean images at a high ISO. So I took out my trusty 5D and my fast telephoto lens Canon's venerable 135 F2 to get the shots. I needed the fast lens and high ISO to get my shutter speed to the point that I can stop the motion of the performing artists and also to prevent camera shake from my long telephoto.

Setting: Camera set on manual f2.0 at 160/Sec ISO 1600