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I grew up with my Lolo (Grandfather) who I admire and looked up to while I, in turn, was his
1st grandson and had his attention (from lighting matches to shaving the cat) for the most
part. My Lolo was a photo enthusiast from the beginning and took pride in his small collection
his prized possession aside from his 67’ VW Beetle. Whenever he was at work, I remember
always sneaking into his room looking for and finding them (he always hid them in a safe
place - safe from me) and just admire those shiny, intricate things.
My Lolo was diagnosed with Bone Cancer when I was in my 4th year of high school. This
was also the time that I was taking photography classes and using a Kodak 110 instamatic
camera. My Lolo called me one day to his room and took the Pentax Spotmatic from its
hiding place and handed it to me. He knew that I was taking photography classes and was
happy that I took an interest. He also jokingly said, “Now I know who had been playing with
my cameras!” He most likely noticed the smudges as he was meticulous and quite anal with
his instruments.
I sat there with the camera on my hand just staring at it. He then told me to keep it and take
care of it as he did. At 16 years old, I never really imagined owning anything of this value and
it took time for it to sink in.
Sadly, his illness turned for the worse and he needed to be hospitalized. This was a very
emotional period for me. Every time I visited him in the hospital, I would bring his favourite
root beer drink and pictures that I took to cheer him up. We looked at them one by one giving
objective comments and teaching me how to compose, etc. During this time, we also had a
photo contest at school. I took this as an opportunity as a way of thanking him and of course
to make him proud (should I win). Mind you I had never been competitive in my whole life
and practically never won anything in school. This time around I was very determined and
motivated to win though. All my money and savings were spent buying films and having
shots printed. I probably used up all my savings as I was just shooting away.
When our Science class went on a field trip to a beach, I was constantly looking for photo
opportunities - with my camera practically on my face the whole time. Walking along the
shore early in the morning (the golden hour – but I never knew that at that time), I saw a
classmate walking ahead of me to my right. She was on the shore with water up to her ankle
and was about to approach a big boulder or coral when I aimed my camera and took a shot.
She was a good subject as she had long hair, the whole scene depicting a quiet morning
walk with the subdued light coming from the morning sun, and the large coral to her left
showing scale and texture. I knew right away that I had a winning picture.
Meanwhile, my Lolo’s health was deteriorating fast and the contest was not about to end. I
wanted so much to walk to his bed, hand him my medal and show him the picture. That
never happened. He died a few weeks before the contest was concluded. I won Silver,
second place.
It was bittersweet. I never even bothered getting the medal or getting the picture back. I
guess it’s still there in that old Photo classroom collecting dust. Into college, I was still at it,
experimenting with Cokin filters, trying different lenses and dark room techniques. I also met
my future wife who of course became my favourite subject. After graduation, I got employed
and was earning enough and thought of rewarding myself with a Canon A1. I still have the
Pentax Spotmatic with me to this day and the memories that come with it.
Today, nothing escapes my camera. It has been 27 years of taking photographs of faces and
places. I have done weddings, portraits, architectural photos and photos for ad campaigns.
Unfortunately, my portfolio, photos and films collected through the years were left at our old
house when we migrated to Canada. It was disposed of by our caretaker.....
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Special Events & Occasions
Portraits
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Canvas Prints
Mounted Prints
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