Shooting Ms. Cuba: Arianna Barouk

It was a day of fashion overdose again as I held Trish (my cam) and met a few other photographers for this particular shoot. I was so excited because luck has been going my way and true enough I got hold of a very gorgeous model. Arianna Barouk, a statuesque cuban lady from the Ms. Earth competition made my day so great I was smiling from ear to ear while shooting. It was one of the best to say the least. Here's the part where we went to the abandoned house that we chose to be the location. It wasn't the best but it was quite a remarkable photoshoot.

Check this out!



You got to see a glimpse of what actually goes on in one of my shoots. This was actually pretty small compared to what I was doing in the past. What made it special was it was more intimate and I got to talk to her a whole lot more! Oooh if you only knew how much I liked the short talks we had in between I was in bliss! Thanks for making this possible and to show you how much I liked this... check out this shot I got processed after that!

Ooh it was so nice to get to shoot gorgeous ladies like her. I want to shoot more Brazilians, Russians, Cubans, or just any Caucasian. There is something special with them that I can't point out. Aside from being flawless and less post processing needed, I just love how they look. It's different if you compare shooting Filipino models huh! I love Arianna too because she wasn't too grossed out about the location like some other models I know. She's so professional! Can I marry her? LOL

The Importance of Branding

Branding can make or break a product; and I have been engaged in the industry for several years now. Making each part of a manufactured product feel like something at the back of your hand is one of the key goals in making a successful marketing campaign. This calls for a major information overload, brainstorming and logo designing activities so if they see it visually they would recognize your brand immediately. This has been done by a lot of successful corporations and why wouldn't we be part of that success right?! Making all the effort to have that name recall each time your product is needed indicates success among other things. I would love to do the same to all my sites too. I've had quite a few running now.

With little technical knowhow on design and aesthetics it would be proper to have someone make it for me. I've seen quite a lot and one of them out there like LOGOMOJO.COM that makes these things professionally. Imagine how easy it is to whip up a logo of my own and get all the rest settled in. There are a lot of them out there but those who definitely stick to your memory are the unique and good ones. Branding takes a lot of stuff which also includes having images to represent you and your planned organization. I'm so glad things like these are easier since there are professionals who can do it pretty much every day of the week. Have you branded your sites? What is the single thing that you would want to get your sign recognized with? Have you ever planned something spontaneous like a marketing strategy like this?! Let me know!

California Berry's Ice Ice Baby Launch!

When you hear Ice Ice Baby you only think of Vanilla Ice and those old 80's tunnel pants that you still have in the closet. I'm a frozen yogurt lover so when the buzz around town traveled my way that California Berry's going to have their first ever bloggers event I hurriedly signed up for it; and boy was I in for a great thing to do that afternoon with the guys!


Here's a sneak peek at their prices which are all relatively cheaper than the other Froyo stores. They've got lots more in store too because where else would you find pasta and coffee to go along with your favorite frozen yogurt. I love their signature frozen yogurt creations together with huge chunks of seasonal fruits that are so healthy and perfect for diet fanatics like me!

Look at some of the images inside the store and you'll feel like you're in heaven! Aren't these so cute and adorable!

You won't go wrong with any of the toppings that they offer from jelly beans to chocolate bits they've got it all under one roof!

I wanted to open up each container and put them all on my frozen yogurt so I could taste all of you at one bite! I'd like to stay fruity this time though rather than going all out on nuts! That's a good second serving idea though! =)

For those who need to perk up in the morning they've got lots of coffee offerings also. You don't have to go for those expensive ones that are pretty much just all fancy coffee. For the same price you would probably get one and a half of what they've got in the store. It was strong and good for me since I needed to go to work right after the event.

They've got smoothies available too so if you plan to have just those fruits you love, they can make it in a jiffy! It's fresh and so easy for you to try out! Not too sweet, perfect for those who would want to stay away from too much sugar intake and diabetics. Ask the sugar water to be removed and they'll gladly oblige!

For the hungry ones, they also have pasta that can fill you up in minutes. Hot and so scrumptious you'll be tempted to take some of it home too! I tasted the lasagna and that was just pure bliss! Cheese over cheese over pasta... the only thing you think about when you're hungry!

Lasagna... which topped my list of favorite foods there was so nice. It was highly recommended by the staff and the people who organized the event. I like the cheesy top layer most which in my books should be the requirement of any Italian dish!

Seafood Carbonara for the health conscious and another serving of frozen yogurt after that wouldn't hurt your diet plans since its nonfat froyo! This one packs a punch but if you are allergic to seafood like I am you can go with the other meaty choices instead!

Spaghetti Bolognese that tastes a little tangy and meaty should be the perfect tummy filler before you get desert from the same store.

Here's my first bite at the Lasagna which is first on the list of Garfield and me! =) It was really nice and great for the budget. Only a few pesos for a serving pack you can reheat in the microwave. So good!

Next up was Mango Bango which I actually loved because it is not too sweet. You won't get too much sugar rush when drinking this one. The perfect way to beat the summer heat!

The Very Berry Strawberry was nice and you can still taste a little bit of those fruit chunks they prepare for you just like the yogurt flavors they have.

This was soft and tasted like you were eating pillows or clouds. Those ice cream shavings was pretty good. I wasn't fond of the ice cream and could have sticked to the frozen yogurt but they gave it away for me for free. Wish there was something to rave about but I was so preoccupied with the games they let us play. It was nice though because I got to enjoy my time with the other bloggers present at the event! I love Ice Ice Baby! Glad to have tasted it mmmm!!!!

I'd give California Berry another visit soon on their Tomas Morato Branch. They've got more of em around Metro Manila and major cities in the Philippines too!



Congratulations to young owners Kyle Yu and Kirk Wang for a successful launch! I wouldn't be surprised if there were more girls eating at your store because let's face it... you are handsome just like me! LOL! Again congratulations!

Effective Marketing Strategies

It is doubly hard to sell something these days. There are different strategies laid out by multinational corporations in order to still get consumers to purchase their product. If a niche market does not respond anymore to the latest offers and promotions; you have to definitely try other avenues to sell your ware. People who tend to shop on line are the ones who couldn't go to malls and designer stores. If a normal billboard or TV advertisement doesn't work you can go through a more intimate path like email direct marketing. This particular medium has been tried and tested because you can get the complete information sent directly to the consumer without having to go through the logistics of just a few words in an advertisement. It's been practiced by a lot of marketing firms and deemed very effective in catching a market. The age of utilizing email as an avenue for this purpose has done wonders in the past economic crunch. This will help a lot of businesses to survive together with government interventions. This is definitely a time tested marketing tool.

If you imagine the demographics you can get from this kind of marketing strategy it would be pretty wide. Children have access to it too and so does the teens and working class. It wouldn't be a good thing though if you are going to be classified as SPAM because that might end up in the trash without the actual person reading it. Sending information about cameras and lenses to a photographer for example... it would answer a lot of questions before he gets to purchase the device. Wouldn't that be something you would like to do? To give the necessary information to the person directly interested in your products is like giving chocolate bars or marshmallow to a kid. The more tempting it is, the more chances of them getting it!