SUBSCRIBEBenjamin Lowy and Marvi Lacar photo open forum
What a day! I never regreted filing a leave of absence just to attend a photo event that the husband and wife team of Benjamin Lowy (Corbis) and Marvi Lacar (Getty) conducted at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP): an open forum, slide show of their work and a portfolio review. Both photojournalists, he, having covered Darfur, Iraq, Haiti, to cite a few and she, a series of documentary work, the tandem are US based and is just here for three weeks (probably, a short vacation for Marvi, who is originally from Iligan).
Having first announced by Kat Palasi in one yahoogroup forum, I was rather interested with the portfolio review, considering that its not that widely practiced here in the country. And thus, for last minute preparations, I selected 15 photos from my Semana Santa series, did it in black and white and burned to CD-R. But that, not after having suffered a major virus infestation that I was only able to sleep at 0400H early this morning and woke up at 0700H to finish it! Whew!
There were just a handful of participants and I should say that the inputs, critique as well comments from Ben, who handled my portfolio review were very much useful, important and very much needed. I didn’t realize that I had redundant photos and another that doesn’t seem to add to the story of the series that I’m presenting.
Its such a very good learning experience that not even through reading books can one gain from. To mention, there were other photojournalists who were present notably Bahaghari who’s work I admire after seeing his Quiapo set during the Nazareno feast, his Cordillera portraits as inspired by Masferre, and those that I’ve viewed, on exhibit, at the Shangri-la Mall, his latest Japan travel and documentary work.
