Avail Your Lumina Home for 50 percent off reservation fees and more until Jan. 31!

Are you looking for the best gift to share with your family and loved ones for Valentine's Day?

Prepare it earlier by choosing a gift of a brighter future by investing with your own affordable house and lot unit by Lumina Homes!

Lumina Homes is true to its New Year's theme: "Go Beyond this 2021" and has these promos to highlight that homeownership for every Filipino can be met through affordability.

Avail these following promos when you reserve any house and lot for sale by Lumina Homes until January 31:

• Enjoy 50% off on your reservation fee for any Lumina house model in all Barangay Lumina nationwide;

• Choose any home model and avail it through Pag-IBIG Financing;

• Welcome home with a free move-in fee;

• Get your water and electricity application fees for free!

Currently, Lumina Homes has already developed over 100,000 house and lot units in key cities and municipalities across the country. This means that you have a wider range of options on the locations in which you would like to avail your own home. 

Lumina Homes have affordable house and lot for sale in Bulacan, Rizal, Bataan, Zambales, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Cagayan, La Union, Isabela, Tarlac, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, Legazpi, Sorsogon, Camarines Norte, Capiz, Camarines Norte,Cebu, Camarines Norte, Negros Occidental, Agusan del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Bukidnon, Misamis Occidental, South Cotabato, Davao del Norte, and Davao del Sur.

If you are too busy to visit any Lumina Homes site that you prefer, all you need to do is explore their 360-degree house tours to check their virtual home models in 3D.

 

You may also visit their Lumina House Tours to see actual videos of the house and lot for sale units or watch Lumina Vlogs for insightful vlogs about Lumina Homes' projects nationwide.

 

Making a home reservation has never been more comfortable and more convenient!

Have it through Lumina Homes Online, a one-stop home reservation site where you can view the available house and lot units for sale by Lumina Homes and pay the reservation fee through debit card, credit card, GCash, or over-the-counter. 

You may also reserve a unit through their Shopee store at www.shopee.ph/luminahomesofficial! Shopee enables you to choose a Lumina home model and reserve the unit via e-vouchers or digital vouchers equivalent to actual reservation fees. An e-voucher corresponds to a specific Lumina home model in your preferred Lumina Homes project.

For more information on Lumina Homes, contact (0917) 629 6523.

Visit their official website at www.lumina.com.ph and like/follow official online channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Google MyBusiness & Google Maps, Pinterest, Spotify, Viber, Telegram, Lazada, and Shopee.

An unexpected gift from above will fill the joy in our new home

Featured guest post article: 

Last year, I was so shocked to find out I was pregnant. I have been in a relationship for three years and was kinda scared to tell my boyfriend about the unexpected pregnancy. When I told him about my situation, he said that he’s happy to be a father and that we should get married and spend our lives together. His response is contagious and before I knew it, I was also excited to bring out our child to the world. 

When we told our family and friends about the situation and our plan, they were also happy and supportive of us. When my fiancé and I were talking one night, he told me that one of his friends refer him to Bellavita land corp because he asked him that we want to buy a house and lot for sale for our future family. We both looked through their website (https://bellavita.ph) and talk to one of our agents about the prospect of buying a house. They have an affordable house and lot perfect for starting family like us and then we get to see the unit models and they all match what we are looking for. 

Right now, happily married with a lovely kid to cherished, we get to experience the privacy and safety of living in bellavita. We will raise our child and future kids within this wonderful community.

The camera never lies? Or does it?

***Photo from babipur

In most cases, it seems that the taking of a photograph depends on many factors that we have little or no control over, including the subject matter, the lighting, and the timing. This is seen as a more spontaneous or journalistic form of photography and is common in the sort of opportunities that present themselves when we are on holiday or at a function or event (or just with family or friends.)

For some, this is “true” photography, where the “camera never lies” and is seen as a true representation of what occurred at the instant the shutter was released.

We have control of “the decisive moment,” where we try to capture the essence of the moment by waiting for the ideal instant when all the elements of the image are in place before we press the shutter button. Is this then a “true” record of that instant?

Many have argued that it isn’t, as we do have some influence as to timing, framing, and choice of viewpoint and focal length before we release the shutter. So, in a sense, we have manipulated the “moment” by our selection of many factors and making choices that convey “our” interpretation of the moment. Is there a real difference then between “recording” a moment or “capturing” the same moment? Either way, we have edited the moment and it is no longer a “true” record of the moment. The question begs though, does it matter? And like all open questions, the answer is it depends on the purpose of the image in the first place.

Planning the shot

Besides the “taking” of photographs, there is, of course, another side to photography that is more controlled and that allows us to “create” the image that we want.

This creative photography may take place prior to the “taking” of the photograph or after the image is taken. By planning the desired image that we want (and of course, taking into account the purpose of the image) and then arranging the elements to ensure that we get what we are aiming for, we can create a photographic image to specifications.

Most commercial and advertising images are created to suit a specific need. Take this website as an example of a commercial entity using imagery and text to play on the emotions of the viewer. This is done by presenting the elements of sea, land, and children. However, this approach also includes product, fashion, and architectural photography, etc. The photographer has full control of the scene and controls all elements including the subject matter at hand, the lighting (usually) as well as his/her interpretation of the final image.

This sort of planned image can be just as difficult to create as the more spontaneous “journalistic” images that we “record” (ask any commercial photographer.) We will touch on some aspects of the created image further along the track.

You can also create an image “after” the event, (both spontaneous or planned images) by what is called post-processing. Since the early days of photography, photographers have had the opportunity to manipulate the image before them, either in-camera or in the darkroom. Today, our “darkroom” is image processing software such as Photoshop and the like. There is almost no limit as to what can be created in terms of “photographic images”.

Purists may argue that this image processing (or manipulation) is no longer “photography”, but it can be said that the digital process used today is no different as it was “back in the old days”, except that the tools have changed (and require a lesser degree of skill to achieve good results).

Early photographers had the ability to create multi-exposure images, employ darkroom cropping and exposure manipulation as well as other more subtle techniques like airbrushing (the former Soviet Union used this technique routinely to remove undesirables who just “disappeared” – also see this article) to “enhance” an image. 

The four elements

With regards to “The Journey,” I believe that there are Four Elements that need to be considered when trying to take/create an image/moment that is more than a “snapshot.”

They are:

The Photographer (Wind)
The Subject (Water)
The Composition (Fire)

The Technique (Earth)

The Photographer

Like “Wind,” you, as the photographer, ultimately provide the intangible. The purpose and reason for the photograph, the intellect, the vision, the timing and the interpretation of what is before you, i.e. The Subject.

***Photo from wallpapercave

The Subject

Like “Water,” the subject of a photograph is everywhere and can be flowing or still. It can be a spontaneous scene that is happening before you or a carefully crafted scene that has been planned to the last detail. It may involve people or places or inanimate objects. You may or may not have control of the subject and you will have to adapt as required. Sometimes, it is difficult to decide what it is you are trying to photograph, especially when the scene is full of possible subjects. Understanding what the actual subject of the photo you want and deciding how best to photograph it, will help greatly as you try to manage “The Composition.”

The Composition

The Composition of a photograph is the “Fire” of an image. It is the key element in creating images that make people look and appreciate an image. So what exactly IS composition? One definition for composition states that it is “The combining of different parts to make a whole” (also see this Wikipedia entry for a more comprehensive explanation from an artistic perspective). There are some “rules” and many aspects to the “combining of different parts” in the composition that has evolved over many years, particularly in relation to the field of painting. Ideally, the various elements and rules in a composition should create an emotional response in the viewer (just like music). Having said that, these “rules” should be seen more like guidelines that work but can (and should) be broken when it is appropriate. However, good composition with poor technical execution will still lead to a poor image.

The Technique
Like “Earth”, there are foundations that all creative work needs to be based on. There are techniques that need to be understood and mastered (or at least controlled). In photography, these include understanding all aspects of your hardware and software (you may not need to master them all, but at least know what your equipment is capable of). You need to understand how exposure works, including shutter speed and ISO settings. Be aware of the effect of different aperture settings on the focus (or more accurately, depth-of-field). Know when to use different focal lengths of lenses (or zoom) for controlling perspective. If you are planning on using artificial lights, experiment with different lighting setups and light modifiers. 

Picture perfect

If you are going to “enhance” your images using image editing software, take the time to learn how to get the best out of them. As boring as it may be, a thorough understanding of the “technical stuff” is required, in addition to the other three elements, to produce outstanding images.

Lookna - Level up your marketing game today

Search engine advertising is said to be the number one marketing trend this year and marketing experts agree that this trend will continue beyond 2017.

In fact, Google - the number one search engine- has continuously improved their platform to accommodate search engine advertisers. Notice how search queries result in providing business entities on the top of Google’s pages? Yes, marketing businesses and brands are taking a giant step forward by using search engine platforms to target local markets.

However, there are cons to search engine marketing and especially Google paid ads and the number one downside to paid advertising is the risk of click fraud. This happens when an advertiser is charged per click-through although algorithms are in place to combat this if you want peace of mind you could look around for some sort of AdWords management service to help protect your investment.

Click fraud is when a business competitor creates a team designated to click on the competition’s link without the intention of taking action once taken on their website. The idea is to deplete the competition’s advertising budget and ultimately, to lessen the chances of reaching a wider audience base.

Other fraudulent activities include the advertisement of non-verified businesses that scam or rip-off unsuspecting customers. An example of how such scams happen is when a phishing website poses as an online shop and capture sensitive information entered by the client. Credit card details, social security number, and other such information are used in illegal and unauthorized activities and this is more commonly known as identity theft.

So how do you avoid getting scammed?

Whether you are an advertiser or a search engine user, it is important to find a hyperlocal search engine that is reliable, secure and legit.

One of these is Lookna.com

Lookna’s platform is created with the best interest of both advertiser and searcher in mind.

For advertisers, Lookna’s security features are seamless. All data entered in upon sign up are encrypted and stored in a database inaccessible to third-party partners. Moreover, the system boasts of fair ads distribution because it doesn’t charge its advertisers per click through. In fact, Lookna is offering its advertising services for free in the meantime and when it’s time to charge fees, subscribers will be informed ahead of time to provide them the option to continue with their subscription or to cease. Once fees are finalized, Lookna assures subscribers/advertisers that the package plans are affordable and are at a fixed monthly price. Again, Lookna will never charge its advertisers per click through to avoid click fraud.

For searchers, Lookna devised a verification method that all signups must complete to get listed on the website. This process ensures that all businesses and service providers advertised on the website are indeed legit. If a searcher is looking for a party planner through Lookna, rest assured that all party planner businesses that will come up on the page are real people providing party planning services and not just some scammer looking for someone to victimize.

Lookna’s system is a win-win for both searcher and advertiser and we’re happy to see small-scale businesses getting a fair chance at gaining online visibility for a minimal to zero cost.

If you are a startup or a small scale business looking for an option to level up your marketing game this year, Lookna is the best option for you. The hyperlocal search engine tool is available in 200 countries worldwide and is looking forward to becoming available all over the globe in the coming months.