threesomes is the theme...

...because 3 is an odd number. a collection of old photos from my photo archive, in which threesomes seem to be a recurring theme.

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shy guy, ayala center cebu, november 2009

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wanted: playmate, burnham park, baguio, april 2012

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wer na u? here na me, cebu business park, october 2009

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looking away, at the foot of the marcelo fernan bridge, mactan, cebu, september 2008

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it sucks to be the 3rd wheel...



especially when you have legs of stone, and you have no choice but to stay...



taken at the family park, tacloban city, leyte, february 2010

the need to feel safe

these days, even teddy bears feel the need to stay safe...



colon st., cebu city, october 2012

somewhere behind the gravestone

i found it a bit funny at first, seeing folks knock on their deceased loved one's gravestone once they arrive or just before they leave...



as if one were knocking on the door of somebody's house, or somebody's room...



but looking at it closer, you realize that knocking is a physical act



like the deceased loved one was just behind the gravestone, listening to you



as if by your simple act of knocking the dead would be made alive again, reclaiming the beloved dead from death itself, denying death its power.



at the mandaue city public cemetery, november 2012

first dibs

it's a common phenomenon: loyal customers camping out to get first dibs on the newest iProduct and such, but this has got to be pushing it to absurd levels...



sanciangko st., cebu city, october 2012

the surrogate

downtown cebu city, may 2010

to the unknown god

at san fernando rey parish church, liloan, cebu, march 2010

walking around: downtown again

taken on a walk from cebu city hall through magallanes st., to carbon, then to colon and osmena boulevard, may 2010

*****

now open for business 24 hours



at a bank



ukay2x





lechon bread



the contortionist





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you've got to marvel at the great variety of stuff that street vendors sell

... from guitars



to cigarettes and candies



cut vegetables



dried fish



even more vegetables



used shoes



to green mangoes



... yummy



fried peanuts (with a jingle to boot)



used electronics



and even a peek at your future...

keep your head on

taken at osmena boulevard, cebu city, april 2010, and mango square, cebu city, march 2010

middle class dreams: jollibee as a symbol

just speculating here... but it seems to me that jollibee has become a symbol of sorts for filipino society: that you can afford that weekly trip with the kids for a chickenjoy meal means you've broken out of poverty, that a town opening its first jollibee branch is a sign of progress...



hiway, mandaue city, november 2010

a picture a day: the best of project 365, 2010 edition

i've left this thing hanging for too long, so it's time to call this project closed. i had too many pictureless days for december, so i thought i'd just gather here some of my fave pictures from the whole project, including my best from the december set.

so with the 2010 edition of project 365 done, a few things i've learned:

1.) there are lots of good pictures out there waiting to be taken. and it can be a simple matter of opening one's eyes.

2.) corollary to no. 1, always bring your camera with you, even on the most mundane occasions. you never know what'll come falling from the sky after taking that left turn on the street.

3.) creativity requires ***a lot of work***. it can be exhausting, but ultimately, rewarding.

4.) still, it helps to be lucky... most especially in photography...

5.) i'm starting to appreciate this thoroughly postmodern notion: nothing is original.

6.) very important: things aren't always how they appear to be.

7.) empathy is useful. but so is a sense of humor.

8.) technical perfection is not the end all and be all of the photograph. it is the story.

9.) sunset photos are cliches, but one can't help taking a picture of it everytime you see one.

10.) no matter how many times it's been said, or how corny it sounds, it still rings true: the world is beautiful.

*****



2010.01.06 yesterday's news



2010.01.07 street urchin, on a jeepney from sm to ayala, mabolo, cebu city



2010.01.20 a fading portrait of my late stepfather



2010.02.10 reminds me of the matrix, with fish instead of humans, and without the cables and plugs. fish for sale outside mandaue central school, mandaue city.



2010.02.17 at the saints peter and paul church, ormoc city.



2010.02.21 sunset, ormoc bay.



2010.03.08 guardia civil driving away the children, intramuros, manila



2010.03.17 off with her head! mannequins, mango square, cebu city



2010.03.23 mascot seducing kids to go to jollibee, downtown, cebu city



2010.04.02 good friday, gethsemane church, casuntingan, mandaue city



2010.04.14 street light, f. ramos st., cebu city



2010.04.21 palm reading, near sto. nino church, cebu city



2010.04.22 my morning meds



2010.04.28 shelter, cebu city



2010.05.02 bonfire at the beach, bantayan island



2010.05.07 parhelion, cebu city



2010.05.10 waiting to vote on election day, maguikay elementary school, mandaue city



2010.05.16 near city hall, cebu city



2010.05.21 downtown, cebu city



2010.06.06 dinner time.



2010.06.19 on a trip to the mountains, sitio cantipla, baranggay tabunan, cebu city.



2010.06.26 bookshop, lahug, cebu city



2010.07.04 still life with gulay



2010.07.05 playing with my strobe again



2010.07.14 the river crossing, after an afternoon of heavy rain, talamban, cebu city



2010.07.22 rainy days don't have to be so bad, if you have somebody to share them with



2010.08.05 light and shadow: the city at night



2010.08.15 "i know that face..."



2010.08.20 the malleability of pictures: either he's repairing the jeepney, or the jeepney just ran over him, or the jeepney ran over him while he was repairing it, or ...



2010.08.24 puddles are windows, where eyes from under the ground stare at you. a rainy evening in the city.



2010.09.01 a lonely street, a quiet evening



2010.09.02 unreachable



2010.09.08 going home, after another stress filled day.



2010.09.19 let your light shine



2010.10.05 the street photo as self portrait, near tesda, lahug, cebu city



2010.10.22 a picture of my sanity, on one of the most stressful months on record



2010.10.30 hubog



2010.11.01 all saint's day, mandaue city public cemetery



2010.11.07 la nina



2010.11.16 this was supposed to be a sign saying "no tresspasseng", near tesda, lahug, cebu city



2010.11.20 2 girls



2010.12.04



2010.12.27 again, my affinity for dark lonely streets



2010.12.31 the end and the beginning

*****

for the january 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the february 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the march 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the april 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the may 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the june 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the july 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the august 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the september 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the october 2010 album of my project 365, click here.
for the november 2010 album of my project 365, click here.