safepricker's photos

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

the circular train of life

the slow circular train of yangon, myanmar, is like a beating artery that is sustaining a nation that has just come out of a deep 50-year coma.
below are photos i took during the two-hour ride that joy, garrie and i took on one cloudy afternoon. the images were captured with a film camera on black and white.

Friday, October 17, 2014

the airport xray scanners and film

a box of new and unused iso 400 medium format films got exposed to the scanners at the airport in bangkok. reliable accounts regarding films that fog with repeated exposure to airport xray scanners are all over the internet. airport xray scanners have actually gone stronger since 9/11. and i personally saw how strong one was at a terminal abroad. i had films in a film bag that had two layers of lead that went through the scanner and i had a chance to glance at the monitor. the silhouette of the film canisters appeared on their screen. if this was a higher speed film, damage would be expected. this is the reason why i appreciate the security personnel in suvarnabumi airport for accepting the bag of films i submitted for hand inspection. checked-in baggages go through CT scans. and these are even more powerful radiation devices. fortunately, we rarely see them. below are photos that came from one of those films that went through the carry-on bag scanners. and it looks like they are unscathed.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

portraits of asia dhrra leaders (in yangon, myanmar)

yoshikuni yatani: "has modern life made living better? are the gains worth the losses?"

soetrisno kusumohadi: a grounded spirituality firms up one's commitment to serve and help the poor

bambang ismawan: focusing on rice will not help farmers improve their income and alleviate poverty.

asia dhrra was holding its 9th conference and 40th year anniversary. understandably, the delegates had a busy schedule and i am deeply grateful that these luminaries of Asia Dhrra obliged me for a few minutes of posing. the camera i used is not the easiest camera to use. it does not have a light meter. it has no batteries and it has a tricky wide angle lens that has to be focused manually by estimating distance or by using a measuring tape (or the more sophisticated laser distance sensors). the hasselblad SWC is generally used for landscapes and architecture. but i took on the idea from bill brandt who mastered the use of the camera for portraits. and, i almost forgot to mention, it is a film camera. i like the results and, now, it has become my standard portrait tool.

asia dhrra stands for Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas. (see link: https://www.agricord.org/index.php/agriagencies/asiadhrra)

wen-chi huang: agri-business management expert, immediate past-president of asiadhrra currently holding executive board membership

sustaining and promoting peasant concerns and issues

kya moo: a christian pastor in myanmar who is actively involved in peasant issues

Sunday, June 22, 2014

The Thunder Dragon's Dream photo exhibit

VISTA is holding its maiden exhibit of the 16-day cross-country photo expedition the group made of the Royal Kingdom of Bhutan on June 23 to July 6, 2014. The venue is at the lobby of the Lung Center of the Philippines. VISTA saw it fitting to launch its first exhibit at the Lung Center since one of the original team members for the trip to Bhutan lost his life to lung cancer. Bebet Gaudinez was a keen and highly skilled photographer who helped organize VISTA for the photography expedition in Bhutan with the help of Eddie Jose, a regular and highly regarded volunteer in Bhutan and a former classmate in San Beda high school. He did this already knowing that he had lung cancer. And, the group insisted that he consult Dr. Vince Balanag, one of the leading pulmonologists of Lung Center, for medical clearance. Sadly, Vince told him that he wouldn't survive the thin air of the Himalayas. Bebet naturally took this with a heavy heart. He died two weeks prior to the departure of the team. VISTA is dedicating this exhibit to Bebet -- for the hopelessly cheerful person that we remember him to be and for the great photographs he had taken of Asian countries he has seen. His photographs of Bhutan, had he been well enough to go, would surely have been a great centerpiece of this exhibit. The title of the exhibit draws its inspiration from Bebet's desire to visit Bhutan. We fulfilled that dream for him instead.

VISTA is composed of Garrie David, Ricci Jimenez, Connie Padilla, Tony Ramos, Keith Sundiang and myself.

Thursday, January 30, 2014

the think camera

is it loaded? what film? how many shots left? is it color or black and white? iso 25, 50, 100, or 400? pushing it or not? or pulling? what's the focal length of the lens? and, upon arriving at the scene, you decide on shutter speed and aperture. then you wait for the right moment, and then you focus, and then you frame it. and, make sure you didn't leave the lens cap on!

so much fussing and fiddling. so many decisions to be made. and you only have 36 (39, if you know how to scrimp) shots per roll of film. then, there is the waiting before you get to see the results. but it's fun. the results are worth the wait, with a little bit of luck.

and, of course, there is the grueling process of deciding exactly how many cameras and appropriate lenses one should bring as well as what camera bag to put them in.

of course, there is always the cellphone cam and its ilk for the other moments.