Journals

Beyond these fences lies a blue sky.

It is quite difficult to reach.

Projects and the ‘23 wrap

I make a point to write when I can, it declutters the brain. And most of us down here have at least 2 weeks off to enjoy the silly season, oh what better time.

Projects

I have three concurrent projects on the go; Nakakita, Waiting On and Kings X. Having concurrent projects on the go must something photographers can relate to. Writers get ‘writers block’, so having 3 concurrent projects seems to leave just enough space to breathe, but on the flip it’s not too many as to make it problematic.

Nakakita

First is Nakakita, which is the followup to my first “One day, isang araw”. This is a collection of quiet desolate spaces, lonely mornings and cold memories of the night. Needless to say, this is something I really enjoy and have been plugging away for quite some time now.

I’m an early riser and on weekends frequent lonely spaces, usually up and down the eastern and northern coast. I hope to give importance to nothing - because nothing is something to someone and beauty is in the eye of the beholder after all.

Perhaps it's the soft morning light painting hues on a window, shaping not just colours but, more crucially, infusing meaning into the dawn of a new day. Or maybe it's the unhurried, rhythmic dance of the ocean, its gentle pulses reaching the shore. It's in these moments that I find myself in the utmost state of relaxation. Zen as we photographers call it.

I am hoping to have this all completed sometime next year.

The X

The 2nd project is based around Kings Cross, a once more notorious, seedier part of Sydney. It's an attempt to breathe life into the forgotten corners from the sordid clubs, strip joints and the lively people.

The project started 3 months ago, when I was casually shooting around the X. After some thought, I recognised that there was something there, a story waiting to be told. Since then, I’ve been frequenting the area like a mad man on weekends and shooting a mix of candid, in the moment shots as well as street portraits, and more well planned, orchestrated compositions.

I’ve also been documenting empty moments and easily overlooked odds and ends. The project has become an obsession.

I have no working title yet to date and have a self imposed deadline of June 24. And it’s coming along nicely.

Waiting on.. Volume 1

The final project “Waiting On..” is a street photography zine that is pretty much complete.

I have my selects, sequence / storytelling, layout, proofread and review done. And at the final stages of print.

Speaking of which, and extending my second post on publishers, I am giving Mixam another go primarily due to the price - head and shoulders the cheapest in the market. The one thing that bothers me is that for a cheap cheerful zine, the minimum print job amount is $100 i.e. if you’re zine $20, then you must order 5 therefore meaning you can’t print a single test zine. I am more used to printing a single test, review and potentially change a few things. The onus is therefore on you to get it right the first time.

With this project, I have designed and laid out the project myself and I am almost there. Targeting to have something in March ‘24.

Signing out

And now the sign out, you have made it this far and I am quite grateful that you did. If we know each other do drop me a line and tell me what you think of the projects - and what you have in store? And if your someone that lives in Sydney and we know each other on a personal level, I hope to catch-up with you soon my friend :)

As a final farewell, here’s to the new year bringing harmony and understanding. I hope we come together and bridge the divides. Until then, let the camera be our storyteller and weave narratives that bind rather than separate.

May you enjoy this time of the year.

About photography

Photography starts with a clean and open heart.

It should start with good intent.

As a photographer, capturing moments on the street is easy when I start with these elements. And on the flip side, it becomes difficult when I don’t start here. It becomes easier to explain when shooting street, which in all honesty, I must have only been questioned a handful of times. My conscience is clear after checking my photos, however silly the results might appear to others.

My great grandfather

My great-grandfather, Papang, was an early bird. Not by choice mind you, it was circumstantial under the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II. He lived in the countryside and avoided much of the conflict. With that said, there were still a lot of dangers stepping out of the home during the daytime, and thus he had to adjust his body clock and the way he gathered food on the farm to feed his growing family. So instead of working the fields during the day, he woke up to start work around 2 - 3 am in the morning to avoid being detected. When I first read this in his memoirs, I was both amazed and inspired. Clearly, if there’s a will, there’s a way and that man’s drive was strong.

Fast forward to 15 years back when I picked up the books on my way to finishing my masters, I ran into the challenges of having to balance work-life and studies. My son was quite young at that stage and it was unfair on him for me to come home and hit the books and so what I used to do was come home and spend time with him before putting him to bed before 9 (which didn’t always work). I went through the routine of picking up the books after that and trying my best to digest the information, but half the time the information would not commit to memory. And half the time I would fall asleep. Something had to change. It was then that I read my grandfather’s memoirs and got inspired to wake up early instead of doing some studies. I started around 5:30 am at first but slowly worked my way to 3 am to smash through assignments and readings. There was even a period during the home stretch when I would do all-nighters with no sleep but I would not recommend this to anyone. Here’s what I learned from my early mornings though; it was my most productive time of the day. My mind was clear at that time and the environment was conducive to writing, the silence was only broken by the occasional passing car. I absorbed information more and was able to produce better work.

There is obviously a downside to waking up this early. At first, I really struggled in the afternoons. I’d get by with a shot of coffee. But the shot would only take you so far and my body would pull me to bed right after early dinner.

The other adjustment I made was to keep a regular exercise routine, something I introduced just after the morning study but before breakfast. The morning exercise meant a balanced mind and body.

More than sharpness

Dear me,

Here’s a reminder that sharpness isn’t everything. The eye-level photo isn’t everything, nor is it the well-lit scene, or the perfectly aligned photo. Photography is more than just having the latest gear and it’s more than an adjustment to camera settings. It is all of this but at the same time, much more than this so here’s a little checklist of things to consider when taking photos.

Focus

Be in the moment, shoot on instinct, and don’t feel bad if you missed focus. Share the shots that have a feeling to them, particularly if it’s captured the spirit of the moment. It’s ok, life is fleeting and short. These shots will form part of your memory and you will thank yourself in the future for taking these shots.

Angle

Take that shot up high, or get down on the ground. Take it slightly to the side, and position the subject off-center. Dutch. These should all come naturally and you shouldn’t take even a millisecond to compose half the time. That’s right, don’t think, fire. Keep it spontaneous and fresh it will be more compelling in the long run.

A quick note on post

It’s ok to be in the minority of keeping post-process short. You don’t have to take hours on end to process your photos. You don’t even have to take an hour to process 36 shots. Best keep your edits to around a minute per photo and move on to the next. It’s better to be in the act of shooting than to be in the act of editing. You don’t have the luxury of time that others may have to do edits and it’s far better to spend time taking more photos than less. And being in the moment of taking photos is a lot more fun.

So, do you want to be a photographer or a photo editor?

Dear me, photography is more than just sharpness, megapixels, ruler-straight horizontal lines, manicured and photoshopped models, eye-level photos, nicely lit scenes, and so forth. Photography should capture what is in front of you no matter how ugly or pretty it may seem. With that said, here’s my new year resolution to you.

Focus

Share those out of focus shots. Don’t like, you have some blurry images in there and you have others where it looks downright weird — but that’s ok, you don’t have to have all ‘banger’ shots in your album.  

Wide shots, close up shots

Angle

Please please please make sure not to only take eye level photos. Mix the fucker up and take some at low angle, high above, at a dutch 45 degrees etc. The more you mix it up the better. 

Meter

Not all shots can be properly exposed particularly if you’re doing it on the fly and want to grab the moment before it passes. Some can even be purposely be under exposed (but please don’t go over too much). 

Frame

This is more than composition, always try to look for a little more context by framing your main subject with the surrounds. I know you know what I mean. 

Layers

Try to look for layers, foreground middle, and back. Better still, try to find the ones that are kept 

Aperture

All In, bokeh

Reflections

Shutter

slow blur, pan across, up and down, zoom in and out tele

follow subject, subject stationery

Double exposure

Motion Emotion

Universal signs

I usually shoot early weekend mornings from sunrise to midday, that’s the time that works for me and the family. I’m the most productive at this time when my is fresh, jumpstarted by coffee, and the clutter of the day hasn’t had an opportunity to work its way in.

The biggest benefit of shooting at this time is that one has less variability to contend with; places are quiet and there’s not a lot of people around and the chaos that come with it. Even the journey to your shooting spot is peaceful.

Without distraction, one can focus on the morning light, the tones, and texture of objects. The feeling of places and spaces is easier to capture and communicate. The photos as a result tend to be sparingly minimal, which is just the way I want it.

One of the biggest bugbears I faced is consuming vs producing,