Portraits: Revisted

The challenge to return to the essence of our craft is game-changing. Inasmuch as mastering our craft entails coming home to the fundamentals of the art we pursue with the lenses we’ve developed throughout our creative journey, the pursuit of our passion constantly calls us back to the heart behind the art. But more often than not, the creative life is discouraging. The photographs we take are hazy portraits of reality, the screen is occupied by nothing more than a blinking cursor, and the artist is uninspired and exhausted. See, artists aren't wizards who wave their hands around to instantaneously produce art. They are patient and persevering collaborators of fleeting Inspiration, constantly finding balance between passion and necessity. The creative life isn't as magical as it seems, but that's why we need to go back to the essence of our craft.

After months of mindless creation, I've found joy in creating once again. What I've realized is that humans are natural storytellers and the pursuit of the creative life may simply be our reconciliation with that part of who we are. The moments I capture in photographs and the ideas I breathe to life with words are glimpses into the life I live and the experiences I’ve had. Maybe, that’s why I love marrying the two. Photography and writing are two different expressions of the same passion — storytelling. In the busyness of our pursuit, we can easily be discouraged and lose sight of that passion. But there is no greater encouragement to keep living creatively than to remember why you’re doing it in the first place. Coming home to the heart behind my art, I find myself renewed and eager to tell stories once again.

Photography by Luis Abesamis

Modeling by Monica Horca, Troy Angeles, Paola Menguito, and Jae Kim

Collaborate with me! Send me an email at 📩 whatdoesluissay@gmail.com 📩

Rediscovering Singapore

Last month, I had the opportunity of flying back to Singapore for a quick family vacation. Years have passed since I was last there so I was definitely excited to be back. I brought my camera with me with the hopes of capturing even just a glimpse of what I knew would be an amazing trip. Having been the reason why I fell in love with photography in the first place, I knew exploring with my camera would heighten the experience of rediscovering a place I haven't been to in such a long time.

These photos are markers of moments shared and memories made in the short but sweet time I was in Singapore. Coming back to these photos brings joy to my heart and so as you look at them, I hope you find yourself where I was and experience Singapore through my eyes.

Welcome to Singapore.

July Favorites

There are only a couple of days left in August. The past few weeks of the month saw me return to university life with a semester full of new opportunities to learn and explore the field of human behavior. While I am hopeful that August will end on a high note, I can't help but look back at the month that came before.

Thanks to my best friends, July was filled with finds that turned into favorites that I am excited to share with all of you! Every single one of these favorites I still use and would without a doubt add to the favorites post for August because I absolutely love all of them. Whether you're looking for a new TV show to watch or just hoping to find something new to try out, I hope this month's favorites will pique your interests!

Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

This summer, I challenged myself to rebuild that habit of reading books and after weeks of searching, one of my best friends recommended I read Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda. I absolutely loved the movie adaptation Love, Simon and thought that I would give reading a chance again with this book. The book is a coming-of-age story about a closeted teenager who has to face the struggles of coming out and being outed. This was the first novel centered around a queer character that I have read and I am over the moon with how the topics on the queer experience were tackled. The struggle of hiding who you are, the internal conflict of wanting to open up to the people around, the risk and reality of being hurt physically, emotionally, and mentally by those you open up to, and the journey of loving and being loved in return -- Albertalli progressively tackles all these topics so beautifully without compromising the weight of these relevant narratives by simply telling a story about the reality of being young and queer.

Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda is a beautiful book that I absolutely recommend especially to those who want to understand the queer experience. While the book tackles one of many narratives within the LGBTQ+ community, Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda is a great place to start for young people like me who want to do more for the community.

Queer Eye

These past few months, while scrolling through my Twitter feed, I've been noticing the people I follow tweet about this new show on Netflix called Queer Eye. Not knowing anything about it, I wasn't too keen to check it out. But last month, my best friend persuaded me to check out the show, saying that I would absolutely love it. I took a chance and found myself obsessed with the show! 

Queer Eye is a reality makeover show hosted by five queer men called the Fab 5 who help people bring out the best versions of themselves. Each member of the Fab 5 are responsible for different aspects of the makeover; Karamo Brown is the resident life and culture guru who makes sure your life is in check. Food connoisseur Antoni Porowski takes charge in teaching the ins and outs of cooking, food selection, and diet. The grooming and hygiene needs are taken care of by hairstylist Jonathan Van Ness. Bobby Berk transforms the house into a home within days with his knowledge and experience in interior design. To elevate your sense of fashion, Tan France recommends the "french tuck" and a catalogue of tips and tricks for your daily fashion needs.

The show is light-hearted and encouraging redefining what reality makeover shows do by highlighting the best qualities of the person and improving where they can rather than changing the person completely. But their makeovers are not without the emotional moments where the transformation brings reconciliation between parent and child or the rediscovery of one's self hidden beneath layers of doubt. Queer Eye shows that though people are more than just their sexuality, a person's sexuality is important and should not be overlooked. What Queer Eye brings to the table is more than just light-hearted makeovers, but a change in the way we view queer people. Much can be learned from just one episode of this Netflix series, so if you are looking for a new show to watch, I would recommend Queer Eye!

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

My best friend has been recommending anime for me to watch. He’s been recommending Fullmetal Alchemist to me for awhile now and I have been putting it off because growing up, anime wasn’t really my thing. But after I enjoyed Food Wars, I decided to give this one a schance. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is about two boys, who have the capability of transmuting matter, on a mission to discover the secrets of the Philosopher’s Stone after committing a taboo transmutation that costs them their bodies. Tackling topics like guilt, death, responsibility, and politics, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood reflects the reality of life without breaking the youthful atmosphere of the show by balancing the action sequences and emotional scenes with light-hearted and comical characters and dialogue.

What I like about Fullmetal Alchemist is that each episode is around 20 minutes, which is just enough time to enjoy the episodes without getting overwhelmed with the plot. Each season has around 12 episodes and I’m excited to be getting into the second season. I usually watch two to three episodes a day, but I think I’ll be saving them for days when I need a quick break from all the school work. If there’s an anime you need to catch up on, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is what I recommend!

Youngblood (Deluxe) by 5 Seconds of Summer

5 Seconds of Summer released their third studio album a few months ago and I have been completely obsessed with it! Back in high school, I remember enjoying their music but I easily grew out of it. This time around their music showcases a different kind of 5 Seconds of Summer. Youngblood brings a mature 5 Seconds of Summer into the scene. With this album, 5 Seconds of Summer brings music that is fresh and dynamic that you can easily get hooked into without having to worry about them being repetitive and exhausting.

Youngblood reminds me of the work of other artists like Imagine Dragons, Harry Styles, and even Arctic Monkeys who I all love and listen to. Whenever I'm driving or working in a coffee shop, Youngblood is one of my go-to albums! The range of the album makes you dance and stomp your feet on the ground one second then enter that sweet state of chill where you're just vibing and softly bopping to each song. If you're looking for something new to listen to, Youngblood is my music recommendation for this month!

Reese's Spreads Peanut Butter Chocolate Spread

Last month, I had some of my friends over at my place for an afternoon catch up over sandwiches. One of them tried the Reese's spread my family must have bought on one of their trips to the grocery. Growing up, I remember choosing any kind of spread for my sandwich over chocolate. For me, chocolate spreads were too sweet. That's why I wasn't too keen to try the Reese's Spread out. But boy, was I missing out!

Reese's Spreads Peanut Butter Chocolate Spread is the perfect balance of peanut butter and chocolate spread on your sandwich. The spread is rich and the texture smooth, but in spite of the peanut butter component, the spread doesn't stick to the roof of your mouth. In my opinion, the spread is not overwhelmingly sweet, which is great for me! The spread is a pricey, but a small jar should be enough to satisfy your cravings for something sweet!

Portraits Vol. 8

Pursuing my passions has been difficult lately. Having exhausted all my creative juices on all things academic and ministry, my passion projects have been left to collect dust while I recover from the demands of the past few months. For awhile, I thought I would never bounce back from this creative block. But God is gracious and faithful.

He sends people who find joy in our passions and speaks through them. He restores us with  encouragement from those around us. He creates opportunities for us to return to creation and as it is with salvation, reconnecting with one's creative nature is a beautiful, transformative process. My fears of being unable to create like I used to was pacified by the revelation that I don't need to create like I used to because I can create differently but still beautifully and purposefully. Because of that, I find myself renewed and ready to begin creating once again.

Thank you, Ian, for being one of the people who continually support my passions. This collaboration has been a blessing and working with you has been nothing short of fun. Until next time!

Modeling by Ian Lao

Photography by Luis Abesamis

Collaborate with me! Send me an email at 📩 whatdoesluissay@gmail.com 📩

Selah

Despite not being the biggest fan of the beach, I recently found myself 3 hours away from Manila laying on a beach chair on the shores of Anvaya Cove. Coming out of an exhausting and demanding semester, I knew I needed to recharge. For the past few weeks, I've been sleeping in and binge-watching TV series which is the dream if I'm being completely honest. But for some reason, I felt quite adventurous and decided that a day trip to Bataan would help satisfy my unusual need to be at the beach. There was something about having sand underneath my feet and the salty sea breeze blowing in my face that felt inviting. 

Usually, I would have gone out of my way to take hundreds of photos of the beach. But after twenty minutes of trying to figure out which camera settings worked best under the scorching heat of the sun, I realized I wanted to reflect and let my stream of consciousness flow. While all my friends were swimming in the sea, I found myself enjoying the comfort of the beach chair and the company of my thoughts.

Here were some of my thoughts:

• Sleep is a beautiful gift from God that I should cherish more often.
• There exists a healthy balance between staying in our comfort zones and going out of it and I need to find that balance.
• There's nothing more relaxing than being with friends.
• My health is a priority and a non-negotiable when it comes to commitments.
• I need to be honest about my situation before I can improve it.
• Uncomfortable conversations are beautiful and important. I should value them more.
• The beach is not as bad as I thought.

Coming home to my bed, my body wanted to collapse and hibernate for the next five months. But I felt restored. Having had that time to reflect and meditate on life, I felt like I could finally breath again. With each exhale, I felt the weight of doubt and worry leave me. After months of feeling burnt out and empty, I finally began to enjoy living again. While there will definitely be some time before I find myself at the beach again, returning then will be much more exciting knowing the beach holds more than just sand and the sea.

Return, O my soul, to your rest;

for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. 

Psalm 116:7 (ESV)

Portraits Vol. 7

Sean and I have known each other for around six years now and since meeting him back in our first year of high school, our friendship has grown into something that has gone beyond timezones. He and I got to know each other in our third year of high school, talking about fitness and our support for each other's endeavors -- his racing and my blogging.

Since Sean began studying in the United Kingdom, meeting up whenever he came home became a tradition for us. Although he and I regularly talk online, there's nothing like seeing your friend face to face. Our conversations are always fun and interesting, but never without it being inspiring and encouraging. If you know Sean, you'll know how passionate and invested he can be with his hobbies. Talking to him about his passions has always been inspiring, reminding me that my passions are worth pursuing.

Thanks for letting me take your portraits, Sean. You were an absolute joy to shoot! I am beyond grateful for the incredible blessing of calling you a friend. Let's do this again some time!

Modeling by Sean Smith
Photography and Post-processing by Luis Abesamis

Collaborate with me! Drop me an email at: 📩 whatdoesluissay@gmail.com 📩

The Manila Adventures: Seaside Dampa

Welcome to The Manila Adventures!

Manila is diverse in its culture and history and I have been planning for awhile now on going on an adventure with the sole mission of discovering and truly experiencing the place I call home. Today, I share the first entry of this series.

Last week, my family and I went on a quick trip to the famous Seaside Dampa. At whatever time of the day, Seaside Dampa is alive bustling with customers waiting to get a taste of the fresh seafood available at the wet market within its premises. From the market straight to the kitchen, the seafood is  served by restaurants that serve seafood in a variety of ways. If you're looking for a place that serves amazing seafood, Seaside Dampa is the place to go!

Here are a couple of photographs I took during my quick trip there.

BehSciyad 2018

Last Friday, my university department hosted the annual showcase of Behavioral Sciences students called BehSciyad, named as such because "BehSci" the shortened word of our degree program and "Sciyad" is a play on the word sayad, which loosely means that something is wrong in the one's thinking.

The performances highlighted and promoted the different rights that so many of our countrymen are fighting for right now -- education, life, equality, and property. Through wit and skill and music and talent, the performances brought to light the plight of the Filipino people. Needless to say, the performances were incredible.

There were crowned champions, but the true champions in my opinion were the people whose stories were amplified and given a platform last Friday. Important messages were conveyed and pressing stories were told. To me, that is what is most fulfilling about the blur that was BehSciyad.

There's nothing like seeing people let go and be free. As a photographer, I am grateful I get to capture those moments when people, even for just a moment, are free from whatever is holding them back and become someone completely different from who they are. Today, I share some of my favorite moments captured in photographs from last Friday's event.