ZVCC April Top 5
This month, our talented photographers took on the challenge of capturing the essence of human presence without actually featuring humans in their shots. With the theme “No Human Element,” set against the backdrop of the Pampanga Out of Town Shoot, they embarked on a creative journey to showcase scenes, objects, and artifacts that hint at human activity. Each photographer had to submit two diptychs, making it a total of four captivating images per entrant. The real challenge was providing a 1-word caption in Filipino for each diptych! The results? Over 68 mesmerizing entries that truly push the boundaries of storytelling through photography. Get ready to dive into a world where the human touch is felt without ever being seen!
The entries were judged by 3 esteemed personalities:
Mike Alquinto
Mike is a renowned photojournalist. He is a Stringer Photographer for the Associated Press (AP) and has worked as a contract photographer for organizations such as UNICEF, UNDP, UN Philippines and the European Pressphoto Agency. He is currently a Trainor/Resource Person for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and a photographer for The Manila Times and the Delegation of the European Union to the Philippines
Ted Claudio
Ted Claudio has been an online content creator since 2012 utilizing different platforms such as Wazzup.ph, YouTube, TikTok, and the likes where he has amassed thousands of followers. He dabbles in different genres of photography including portraits, food, travel, and product shots. His latest project is a TikTok channel called “Gear Acquisition Syndrom”.
Avie Felix
Avie Felix is a versatile figure, serving as a curator, teacher, writer, and multi-disciplinary artist, advocating for gender, culture, and the environment. With a background in Art Studies and ongoing studies in Art History at the University of the Philippines, Avie has curated over 30 exhibitions since 2012 and received formal training through workshops and fellowships like the Curatorial Intensive Manila by Independent Curators International – New York. She is a prolific writer, contributing to magazines and academic journals, and is currently working on her second anthology of poems. Avie co-founded the Young Artists’ Studio, an all-age art school, in 2009, and manages vMeme Art Projects, providing opportunities for advocacy-oriented artists. Additionally, she is engaged in performing arts as an actress, choreographer, radio show host, writer, and producer.
Here are the top 5 winning entries and read the stories behind these images.
#5 “Ala-ala” by Joui Sampedro
ISO 1600, f/4.0, 1/13 sec. | ISO 800 f/5.0, 1/60 sec
“If walls could speak, they would have many interesting stories to tell.”
Growing up, we all once wished to live in our childhood home forever, only to end up packing and leaving the first chance we could. Over time, what once was a home becomes just a house, with memories of the lives lived trapped within the four corners of its walls.
With my photos, I want to capture the memory. One that you cannot see but that the heart can recall. With a sense of longing for a place that, for many now, may just be a distant memory.
#4 “Pamilya” by Dru M. Magturo
ISO 100, f/11 | ISO 800, f/4.5
Images of chairs in the garden and rocking chair in a room. Took the image of chairs in the garden around 9 in the morning when I took something in my vehicle while everybody was shooting near the lake. I have noticed and liked the play of shadows of the chairs. I can imagine a complete family gathering here. Saw the rocking chair in the room with a light coming from the window when I opened the door in the room of the old mansion of the Davids. I felt lonely when I saw this image. I can imagine an old grandmother waiting for a visit from her children. Titled the entry as “Pamilya” marami sa simula pag nagka pamilya na ang bawat isa, pwede kang mag isa.
#3 “Bilad” by Millicent San Jose
ISO 200, f/8, 1/640 sec.
“How best to show that our March OTS was held in Pampanga”? That was the running thought in my head during the second day of our OTS. With this in mind, hubby and I visited places in Pampanga that we haven’t seen yet under the backdrop of Mount Arayat. While doing so, we passed by a narrow road where unhusked rice was spread out to dry under the sun. The challenge was how to effectively compose the shot with all the vehicles plying the road at top speed plus the presence of vendors and bikers who were taking their break at both ends where the “palay” was laid. It was likewise difficult to frame Mount Arayat with all the tall weeds and garbage littering the foreground. In the end, what made the shots difficult to compose actually helped in the diptych process and Bilad was born.
#2 “And Caricatura ng (Modernisasyon)” by Ken Guanzon
ISO 250, f/11, 1/200 sec.
Venturing along the compound’s path, I stumbled upon a wall adorned with a wooden figure, a whimsical representation of a bus. As an admirer of mass transportation, the scene sparked a narrative in my mind, urging me to capture it through my lens.
But fate had more in store as we journeyed to the Bahay Pawid. There, a once-family owned jeepney sat, now forlorn, its tires deflated. At that moment, I knew I had a major puzzle piece. These two images became the essence of a larger story—the struggles of our mass transit system.
From the humble origins of the jeepney, born from military surplus after World War II, to its current state amidst modernization efforts fraught with controversy. It symbolized a transition marked by displacement and disenfranchisement, where drivers found themselves sidelined in the march towards progress.
Thus, I titled the collection:”Ang Caricatura ng (Modernasisasyon)”—a poignant reflection on the caricature of progress.
#1 “Mangyari” by Dodie Legaspi
It was our last day to shoot and I still needed 1 pair of photos. I honestly thought this was a risky photo as it is unusual from “normal” sunsets and landscapes. We walked around the hotel to look for subjects to shoot. Then I saw a worker standing outside a dilapidated house with the shovels and hanging clothes. Then the tire tracks tell me someone drove away. I liked it because my gut told me it’s going to be different from the others. Putting them together was a challenge until I saw the leading lines of the tires to help point to the shovels and clothes. The final image was improved through Lightroom editing as the time of day wasn’t really ideal.
Congratulations to all the winners for the month of April!
