Looking Back

Quite a number of people who both know me and my brother, Jonas, well often make observations about how different we are. In many ways, there is truth in their comments. As children, I would sit happily with very few friends (or even a book at times) while he would be off 'directing' most of the neighborhood kids as to what game they should play for that afternoon. My yaya, at some point, may have contemplated putting a bell around my neck just so she could tell if I was in her vicinity, while my brother's minder may have thought about plugging her ears with cotton. I was quite the young diplomat but ended up in a lot of fights with my brother because he somehow dragged me into the ones that he had already unintentionally started. Good times.

Now that we're both into our 30's, I have come to realize with each passing year how much alike we are. We both like to be among our closest friends, although their numbers may differ. We both speak up to make a point, although the volume of our words may vary. We both stand up for what we believe is right, although we've given up the use of our fists to do so.

My brother and I will always have our differences and similarities. But for me, what's important is the realization that we have shared such a wonderful relationship despite them.

Happy birthday, Jon.

Sasha — Bohemian at Busay

Carlo and I got to shoot Sasha again the last time he was home from Singapore. We initially planned for a hippie/Bohemian-themed shoot, but decided to deviate from that eventually to make use of what the location had to offer since it was quite a long way from the city. It was a warm and windy day, which did not only feel odd, but left us parched at the end. We were holding on to our lighting equipment the whole time because there was no picking it up from the foot of the mountain on the other side. All in all, it was a typical sojourn into a faraway place just to make pictures.

*You can view and comment on each picture in this set by viewing the album here.

Watching the World Go By

Getting Away. I know that the world is not bound by the divisions of my office cubicle, but the stress of the job can often make it seem that way. It often feels like places like these are too many miles away, but I have realized that they will remain that way unless I take the first step. And that the world is too beautiful and diverse a place to leave unexplored.

Speaking Up

What kind of pictures would you like to shoot?

Is the first question, I believe, that one should answer before embarking on the pursuit of photography. In fact, it should even come before deciding on what camera to get. Although I arrived at my answer to that question by trial (and a lot of ) error, I gather that I have found my place in the vast of sea of pictures that make up an ever-changing photographic tapestry.

I will reiterate that my passion and greater interest has always been shooting pictures of people, and telling their stories in the process. However, I have come to realize that if I am to sustain myself in the business of photography, then I have to exhibit some degree of versatility when it comes to the work that I can produce.

Allow me then to present a sample of how I shoot (and in most cases, light) the following subjects:

*Click on any of the images to view it larger in a light box.

Furniture

Food

Flowers

Fashion

But at end of the day, I find my home in making pictures of people where... well, allow me to quote a touching testimonial from one of my favorite subjects and best friend, Maricel —

"I can testify that you have a way of capturing images of people not in their 'usual self', but in 'what they are capable of'."

With that being said, allow me to present one of the ways by which I make pictures of

People

I am Joel. I am a photographer. 

What kind of pictures would you like me to shoot for you?

__________

If you're interested in commissioning my services, please refer to my contact details in the 'Contact/Bookings' tab under the site title above. 

The Daybreak Diaries (3)

Rebirthing Pains

Choosing a path that is altogether different from the one that you're already on is a daunting decision in itself, but I found out that it is unfortunately just the beginning. I had spent most of my energy swimming in circles in the choppy seas of an aimless life, and I now find myself struggling against the countercurrent of a past existence that I am trying to escape from. There are certainly times when I wonder whether I have the strength to see this course change through.

The path less traveled is full of doubt and nearly devoid of the very people who once populated my old life. I have also discovered that many of these persons have made the assumption that my identity is inextricably bound to the previous path that I was on. I was typecast into a role in their very own lives. And sadly for most of these people, their 'scripts' will not accept rewrites.

I played a number of roles for too long — the obedient son, the responsible brother, the dutiful nerd, the gracious doormat, the phenomenal failure, the eventual pariah — that the masks that I had swapped out for various acts had become glued to my face. Even I no longer knew who I really was before the curtains on this life went up. Prying all these masks off will be incredibly painful, and there will even be occasions where I will be tempted to put them back on.

The need for acceptance and belonging can be very compelling, but I must remind myself that I clawed myself back up from the darkest depths of my psyche and although I maybe gasping for breath, it is free air that is now sustaining my ragged soul.

If you share in similar trials, know that these can only make you stronger. And I truly believe that life will get better. Don't give up.

Watching the World Go By

The Other Side. I get so caught up on what I do not have that I become blind to what I do actually have. I become discontented, envious, and eventually unhappy. I realize that if I looked hard enough, somewhere the grass will always be greener. However, I have also come to see that verdancy cannot cover up for an unmistakable lack of character.