Photo stories via slideshows as well as the accompanying free and downloadable photo ebooks are now posted at Pagtu-o site. Click the images below to go to the individual stories.

My new photo portfolio subsite where stories focused on faith and spirituality are posted through slideshows

Since 2005, I’ve been documenting Filipino Catholic religious events and activities. Over the years, I have amassed several images that have lain in my DVD backups and hardrive with some finding their way into my other blogs on travel, a photoblog and a few, into this portfolio site.

Why am I documenting these? Two reasons:

• It’s an attempt to record age old practices that are in danger of disappearing or changing in the future or architectural treasures that are constantly being disregarded and altered. I had this concern that in a few years time, we will lose this rich cultural heritage.
• I’m trying to look deep into myself, into my faith and try to find why I seem to be losing it due to questions and doubts.

Regarding the first reason, I may not be an anthropologist but I want to contribute through an approach that I know best: documentary photography. From 2005 to the present, the type of stories I have been doing are limited to religious events.

As early as last year, I was already looking for something to do as my personal long term project but was concerned that the religious stories I have are mainly seasonal. Then came my “A Ritual of Faith” work, my main portfolio for my Diploma in Photojournalism course. Doing this story was sort of liberating. It was quite fulfilling and made me realize that faith is not only limited to specific times of the year or events but is a daily occurence or practice that can be documented on a regular basis!

I felt inspired and it was during this state of mind that I thought of putting into one section, specifically a subsite to my photography portfolio a repository of the stories that I have done or is continually doing. In this way, I can keep track of this Pagtu-o or Faith project.

Right now, I’m going over my images and preparing photo stories that I will then post later. Over at the Pagtu-o site are now four photo stories with free and downloadable ebooks. More to come.

I will be posting soon at my other blog the details of the concept and design as well as some technical aspect of the blog that is used as a portfolio site.

A student visitor of the WPP 09 exhibit at the MOA during one of the guided tours

My ID as an exhibition guide for students

After three weeks in the country, the World Press Photo 2009 exhibition in Manila ended last Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia. For me, it’s also a break from the weekly ingress and egress as we setup and transferred the exhibit from one venue to another as well as the five days, all weekends, of doing the guided tours for high school campus journalists. While tiring, it’s one of the most fulfilling activities I have in the past few months. Partaking one’s knowledge as well as impressing young minds about photojournalism and photography is just so cool.

I was editing some images for my photo portfolio subsite and looking at the available images, I realized, why not do a diptych of some portraits that I have?

Lucito Avellaneda, Infanta, Quezon

Willard Ramos, Infanta, Quezon

Jai Alai player, Quezon City, Metro Manila

My dedicated Faith photo portfolio subsite which is currently in development. The site uses wordpress in tandem with slideshowpro to deliver the slideshows. I am still refining the site.