Who would imagine just three days before their wedding, this couple would still go an adventure just to have their photoshoot together with a carabao? Yes, we were on a hunt of our pambansang hayop from Tagaytay to Mt. Pinatubo and it was really really worth it!

It started with Annette’s idea of wanting to pose with a carabao. I find the idea quirky unique (since I haven’t met someone who would do such thing). Imagine the contrast of uber-talented-crazy-beautiful couple against rugged-mud-smelly-hard-working monster. I started to sketch some pose mentally and I told myself this photoshoot will be a blast. We went to Tagaytay hoping to find one but we weren’t blessed that day. So the couple suggested we’d go somewhere north — Mt. Pinatubo. Luckily I had no other engagement the following day so it went smoothly as planned.

It had been a decade since I last went there. I remember it was so barren after Mt. Pinatubo erupted– a ghost town covered in gray ashes. Amazingly after Mt. Pinatubo’s rage, nature sculpted a landscape that will definitely take your breath away — it took ours.

The magic started when Annette naturally posed infront of the camera – just like any model would do. And for Stuart, the malumanay-non-keme Brit tags around his fiancée. During the shoot, I would usually call them as match made in heaven since they’re so perfect with each other. Honestly of all the photo shoots I did, I rarely see sincerity and calmness in a relationship. With them they have this knowing stare, intimate glimpses and perky grins. I couldn’t just believe how this couple maintained smiling faces the entire day – and they just didn’t smile they laugh a lot. As in makwela talaga lalo na nung sa kuha nila sa palayan while Annette was holding a scythe. Of course wala pa rin tatalo sa kalabaw. Ang dakilang kalbaw na nakita namin on the way sa trekking site towards Mt. Pinatubo’s crater.

Nakita ko talaga sa face ni Annette ang galak nang nakita nya ang kalabaw. Kaya dali-dali syang nagpakuha. After the kalabaw photoshoot, we trekked around 45 minutes going to Mt. Pinatubo’s crater. Doon ko naalala ang pelikula ni Brooke Shields na Blue Lagoon. Panalo ang view. Ibang klase ang tubig. Parang photo-manipulated sa mga mata ko; parang nasa isang dimension ako.

The couple’s wit and humour really brought life to the pictures, at sobrang ginanahan ako magshoot. Sila mismo nagsasuggest kung ano gusto nila – which I really prefer because there’s really involvement on their part. (I like it when couples know what they want kasi napapadali at napapasaya ang shoot.)

Yeeaah, rak en rol!