ZC PUBLIC MARKET: POST 3:FACES

I really could not  imagine how the folks in the market would treat us. Definitely, we did not go there to market. We had our DSLRs hanging on our neck or held in the hand.

But, I was happy that I was greeted by cute and happy kids. They were thrilled by the thought that someone took their pictures and wanted to see the images, too. They giggled and laughed everytime they see their faces! And we know very well that they may never even have a copy!

The lady selling pancit was also very kind and was gracious enough to let us go on with what we were doing!

And the young lady washing the clothes was also so happy when I photographered her.

Where there were very happy people, there were also those who were indifferent...

And went on with their meals...

But some asked us why we were there... some asked innocently... and others, sort of doubtful and asking if we are from the media or TV stations.

And even old guys asked us to take his picture, too! This guy specifically pointed out why there was no flash!

We were taught... as much as possible do not use Flash... Better a grainy image than any picture with a flash! 

And this guy is selling these two shoes...in the area of the food!

But, even young people can also look so serious!

But it is the nice smile that makes the day!!!

Good day, everyone!

ZC PUBLIC MARKET: POST 2: FOOD HAWKERS

Actually, during our Travel Reportage seminar, we were asked to make a story in our mind and express it in pictures...

By looking at these pictures, can you imagine what I want to share about the Food Hawkers at the Zamboanga City Public Market?

Thanks, Michelle L. for the photo of this guy making coffee.. they say NITIB (Native) Coffee !

There are real people in the ZC Public Market and I was so happy to meet them and thankful that they were very nice to us!

ZC PUBLIC MARKET: POST 1: FIRST LOOK

Our Travel Reportage stint brought us to a place out of our comfort zone... the Zamboanga City Public Market!

The ZC Public Market is in the heart of Zamboanga City. The place is a bustling even if it was already a Saturday afternoon.

It was drizzling at the time we went there and we hoped it would soon stop! We could imagine the wet floors and maybe some muddy areas if the rain continued.

We were given an hour to see and feel the place and create a story in our mind while we do this. Teacher Lester Ledesma  joined us over there.

Here is the first look I had of the Zamboanga City Public Market which I would want to share with you!

I was greeted by one kid who brought his friend and later more friends came, and they wanted to have their photos taken over and over again.

I had to excuse myself from them because I had to think of our story.

Midafternoon, there was almost no more meat...but still lots of vegetables!

But, some of the vegetables were already cut up and placed in plastic bags!

We didn't go to the fish, seafood nor poultry place since our assignment was Food Hawkers.

There are food of all kinds, bread and pancit... and making native coffee!

They also make their own delicacies right in the marketplace.

Outside, we see a kid selling ice candies.

And also, we would like to thank these guys who graciously watched over us while we did our photography shoot!

A most interesting afternoon!

TRAVEL REPORTAGE WITH LESTER LEDESMA

Last weekend was one of the most exciting weekends I had! 

I attended the Travel Reportage seminar by Lester Ledesma here in Zamboanga City. 

Camera Club of Zamboanga (CCZ) President, Sixto Kwan met Lester Ledesma during the Photoworld Asia 2012 Convention held in Makati last year, where Lester Ledesma was the invited speaker on Editorial Photography and indeed this is his forte, being Smile (Cebu Pacific) magazine's photo editor, as well as a freelancer for other Asian magazines, too. 

When Sixto heard Lester was in the Philippines, he immediately took the initiative to invite Lester to Zamboanga City and he did oblige. 

Sixto told me of this seminar by the end of last year and the title itself already appealed so much to me! Travel Reportage is exactly what I want to learn. First of all, I have been traveling a lot and second, I want to share about my travel experiences through blogging. 

I know no rules in blogging. I usually say what I want to say and flood my readers with pictures so I can be more visual. I thought, here is a venue where I can learn tips from people in the know... and pick up a better way to share my stories. Why not!

So here is our teacher: The Lester Ledesma!

our teacher... cool guy!!!

This is our venue: ABC Bakery and Restaurant in Sta. Maria, Zamboanga City

They have function rooms now...

This is our class: mostly, Camera Club of Zamboanga's members

Allan Go, Felipe Lim, David Luy, FRR, Anton Lim, Marvin Macrohon,Jess AndrewYu, Sixto Kwan
Blanca Mae Sebastian, Teacher Lester Ledesma, DOT IX Director Mary June Bugante, Michelle Lim 

And here are my groupmates:

And here are the places we went to, which I will share in my next blogs...

*The Zamboanga City Public Market

It was drizzling when we went there.... expecting muddy floors!

*The Layag-Layag mangrove community off Talon-Talon, Zamboanga City

our own Cultural immersion!

Most of all, I'd like to share more about our teacher, Lester Ledesma and his impressive career!

Taken from the Skylight Images website:www.skylightimages.info/

Lester V Ledesma lives and breathes for his two passions - travel writing and photography - so much so that he has made it his purpose in life. Fresh out of college in Manila, he went freelance in 1999 and documented the Philippines, his work earning him accolades such as Kalakbay Travel Writer of the Year Award. He travels the world, shooting and writing stories for magazines like Prestige, Silverkris, COLORS Benetton, Mabuhay, Smile and Asian Geographic.  

Lester is based in Singapore, but feels more at home in Bangkok, Rome, and his native Manila.

Lester maybe contacted at lledesma@skylightimages.info

Singapore photographer photojournalist writer  

Awards Received:  

• 2009 Pacific-Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Award for Travel Photography
• 2007 Pacific-Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Award for Travel Photography
• 2006 Asia Travel and Tourism Creative Awards (ATTA) Silver Medal for Travel Photography
• 2002 ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA) Award for Excellence in Photography
• 2001 Kalakbay Travel Writer of the Year (Philippines).

 Exhibits:  

• 2009, South of East (Royal Plaza on Scotts, Singapore)
• 2008, Seeing Elvis, Singapore International Photography Awards (Old School, Singapore)
• 2006, The Ring, Chobimela IV (Dhaka, Bangladesh)
• 2006, Passage Through Europe (Filipinas Heritage Library, Philippines)
• 2005, Pilipinas: Travel Photographs by Lester V. Ledesma (Singapore Arts Museum, Singapore)
• 2004, Pilipinas: The Travel Photography of Lester V. Ledesma (The Photographers’ Gallery, Singapore)
• 2004, Pilipinas: Travel Photography by Lester V. Ledesma (Brunei)
• 2003, Bone and Stone: Unearthing the Bombon Ruins (Filipinas Heritage Library, Philippines)
• 2002, Nayong Pilipino: A Last Look (Filipinas Heritage Library, Philippines)

And this is the cover of his website, Skylight Images:
www.skylightimages.info/

If you see this, you got the right page! 
Those who are interested in getting him for projects or join activities which he organizes can contact him through this website.

Lester has a special project this March and is an open invitation to everyone and anyone interested...PhotoTreks: Bali on March 16 to 19, 2013! 

To learn more about Photo Trekking, you can check out this Facebook page: Photo Treks with Smile magazine & Lester Ledesma.http://www.facebook.com/PhotoTreks 

If you are off for a vacation, why not try Phototrekking!

Lester has scheduled it based on how he does a shoot, so that you can be in the place when it is most picturesque... whether it is sunrise or sunset or even at night!
A value added activity is Cultural Immersion where you can stay with a Balinese family or ride the traditional boat in Halong Bay in Vietnam or a temple experience in Bangkok! 
So check out his website if any of these activities intrigue you!

Well, as I said, we had a challenging and exciting Travel Reportage seminar with no less than THE LESTER LEDESMA, the cool guy! 
Aside from the Pearls he taught us during the seminar, I also learned these:
* Frame the story in your mind even before the shoot.
* Don't underrate your pictures.
* Don't confuse yourself with worrying about technical quality.
* Choose the pictures which touch your heart most... don't use two of the same!
* This isn't learned overnight!
I hope I wouldn't disappoint my teacher with my future outputs!!! 

Also, I hope you can experience him as a mentor by joining one of his intriguing Asian PhotoTreks!!!

AERIAL VIEW OF ZAMBOANGA CITY: BEFORE (2005) AND AFTER (2012)!

I really just want to revisit this post done in September 2012 because this story (and pictures) are special to me. But, I also added some new points!

I haven't had the chance of "flying" over Zamboanga City again, but when I saw the really beautiful aerial pictures of my friend, Sixto Kwan (Six2K), I asked him if I can use his photos in this blog!

I'd like to compare Zamboanga City, before (circa 2005) and after (circa 2012) but of course, the angulations would be different considering the different photographers and more so, different chopper pilots!!!

I actually want to share the changes in Zamboanga City topography rather than compare picture quality!

Here goes:

Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (MCIC)

2005

Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (MCIC) in 2005

2012

Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (MCIC) in 2012

The two pictures are shown in different angulations: the 2005 picture viewing Mindpro mall (white box-like building on our left side) while the 2012 picture viewing Ateneo De Zamboanga University.
Can't really figure out if there are obvious new buildings in the Pueblo area. I am not expecting any big change, though, since this was a congested area in the first place.

What I can say was that the Immaculate Conception Cathedral was much newer then...and of course, the new belfry, too, with the Carillon bells!
But, the rooftops across the MCIC look better in 2012!

Fort Pilar

2005

Fort Pilar in 2005

2012

Fort Pilar in 2012

I guess the position of the photos are similar.
So much has changed since Paseo Del Mar and Plaza Del Pilar did not yet exist around Fort Pilar in 2005.

Inside Fort Pilar, the green shrubs are now taller.
In Fort Pilar, the fountain and the Carillon bells are now seen. The plants are now taller and more green.
Across the Fort Pilar Shrine and across the National Museum, there are very many adobe-roofed stalls lining the area.
And on the right side (our right) of Fort Pilar is another set of adobe-roofed stalls, the Plaza Del Pilar which did not exist then.
It is nice to see the huge acacia trees still in the area of the the plaza Del Pilar. since they add beautiful rustic and vintage character to the area.
Also, I can identify the new Bangko Sentral building in Zamboanga City, in our right upper hand corner near Lantaka Hotel, and across Paseo Del Mar!

Paseo Del Mar
2005

Fort Pilar in 2005

circa 2005: view of back part of Fort Pilar  (Real Fuerza de Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza (Royal Fort of Our Lady of the Pillar of Zaragoza) 
in honor of the patron virgin of Spain, Our Lady of the Pillar.

2012

there are now many structures within the Paseo Del Mar but the grandiose dancing and musical fountain, but still maintained a huge park ground to stroll around!

We didn't focus the picture in the Paseo Del Mar area before because it was just a vacant lot.
Paseo Del Mar now has a beautiful musical and dancing fountain as the main attraction and of course, all the food stalls and restaurants which has enlivened the place. You'll now find Tony's Papaitan and Kape Zambo in the new building near the fountain aside from the line of restaurants in the original side like Barcode, Mano-Mano, Alavar's and many others.
All kinds of people come over =  families, couples, friends, get togethers, meet ups and of course, where we bring our visitors and guests from other places.

Nuñez Extension
(now Mayor Vitaliano Agan Avenue)

2005

viewing Ciudad Medical Zamboanga: Nunez Ext. directed to Ateneo De Zamboanga University 

viewing Ciudad Medical Zamboanga in Nunez Ext. with "lakeside view"
otherwise known as kangkong fields.

2012

viewing Ciudad Medical Zamboanga with Nunez Ext. directed to Camins St. .. CMZ can still have a  mountain or "lakeside" view with the kangkong field still present close to it! This is so because Nunez Extension was opened in the early 2000s

viewing Ciudad Medical Zamboanga with Nunez Ext. directed to Camins St. ... see far beyond to the mountains and see Mt. Pulong Bato and Muruk on our right hand side! By the way, Nunez Extension is now called Mayor Vitaliano Agan Avenue!!!

Nunez Extension was an almost empty street in 2005 with few establishments other than Ciudad Medical Zamboanga. 

By the way, did you know that Nunez Extension is now called Mayor Vitaliano Agan Avenue?
Yes, it is!
Here is the link:http://www.zamboanga.gov.ph/files/2009/ORD/reg353.pdf

353

AN ORDINANCE "NAMING THE NUÑEZ EXTENSION ROAD" AS "MAYOR VITALIANO D. AGAN AVENUE"

Enacted: 19 Aug 2009 Approved: 26 Aug 2009

The road was named after him because it was in his term as Mayor (1988 to 1998) that they proposed the "Opening of the Nunez Extension Road".
That is why even if the Mayor Agan Avenue (Nunez Extension) is in the center of the City, it is still a relatively new road which opened in the early 2000s.

Well, Zamboanga City has grown to be a more beautiful, slightly urban center.

P.S. 

Thanks Six2K for the new pictures (with watermark).

The older pictures were taken by me in 2005