Before the pandemic, cosplay events were a regular thing in the city and a cause for excitement among young and old avid dressers. I’m just glad the hype is slowly getting back in the malls. I didn’t bring my usual gears, though. Instead I brought an old camera just for fun.
I went out and headed to Poblacion today, which held the Mindanao Art Exhibit 2021, a gathering of talented artists all over Mindanao. Stunning artworks to view all over two floors.
I wanted to delve back into that world that cradled us when we were young enough to still touch it, when trolls lived under creek bridges, faeries fluttered under mushroom caps, and the Tooth Fairy only came once you were truly sleeping.
The famous Shibuya Crossing is a very large pedestrian area outside Shibuya Station, considered to be one of the busiest in the world. The Shibuya Scramble, as it is popularly called, is a must-try in your bucket list when you visit Tokyo.
There is no such thing as fashion overstatement, being out of style, underdressed or over the top in Takeshita Shopping Street (Takeshita-Dori),
Model Belinda Suaco-Tan in a bridal gown she has designed, and wore for my Index Salon wedding shoot.
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” ― Lao Tzu
“Once in awhile, right in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairy tale.” —Unknown
“There is freedom waiting for you,
On the breezes of the sky,
And you ask “What if I fall?”
Oh but my darling,
What if you fly?”
― Erin Hanson
Launched on April 10 of this year at the Tapas Bar of the Makati Shangri-La Manila hotel, the first travel coffee table book of its kind with a quirky and confident title of The Best of the Best of the Philippines was recently unveiled to the public.
“Do not stop thinking of life as an adventure. You have no security unless you can live bravely, excitingly, imaginatively; unless you can choose a challenge instead of competence.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
“It’s a battered old suitcase and a hotel someplace and a wound that will never heal.” – Tom Waits
A little treat to myself by having nail art which I have never done before because I have small, short fingernails and in my line of work, the nail polish won’t last long. Lots of art designs to choose from! A little pampering doesn’t hurt, especially their new Organic Foot Spa.
“Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.” ~ Gail Devers Zsaharah in the forest Loleng’s Resort, Davao City © Jojie Alcantara //
“We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they’re called memories. Some take us forward, they’re called dreams.” ~ Jeremy Irons, British actor I love looking at old photos, especially in our family albums. It transports me back to my happy childhood. Last year, a severe flood in our vicinity literally washed away most of my nostalgic possessions and memories of yellowed prints and moldy negatives. I was left with a few scattered digitally scanned remnants of my sepia childhood. Rather than feel depressed about this loss, I try to recreate my new images into vintage photographs instead. Using this style takes me happily back in time. At least, for a while. Model: Teresa Kae Photo treatment: Vintage tones using Photoshop © Jojie Alcantara, 2012 More of these in my RETROGRAPHS gallery
In this weaving house built for them, the gentle and colorful T’boli (ti bo lee) women weave the most sought after beautiful t’nalak (woven abaca fibers in radiant colors). The cloth, culled from tie-dyed abaca fibers of distinct red and black tones, originates from the roots and leaves of trees. Then comes the arduous process of days to weeks of stripping, boiling, soaking, drying, rubbing with wax and shells to produce the final fabric of such intense, lasting colors.
“You are innately designed to use your personal power. When you don’t, you experience a sense of helplessness, paralysis, and depression-which is your clue that something is not working as it could. You, like all of us, deserve everything that is wonderful and exciting in life. And those feelings emerge only when you get in touch with your powerful self.” ~ Susan Jeffers Karina was one of Davao’s popular models a few years back before she successfully ventured into greener pastures to pursue a modeling career in Manila. This was one of my early shoots with her back then. What else can I say, she got in touch with her powerful self. 🙂 View more of my portrait shoot with Karina
“All men and women are born, live suffer and die; what distinguishes us one from another is our dreams, whether they be dreams about worldly or unworldly things, and what we do to make them come about… We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time and conditions of our death. But within this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we live.” ~ Joseph Epstein
The Scene Stealer 