Canon Photomarathon 2011: An Exhausting, Humbling First Time

November 12, 2011

I woke up unusually early (5:00 am), not to run, but to make my way to PTTC in Pasay City for the Canon Photomarathon 2011 (Manila leg). Not much to say about the early hours of the event, except for enthusiastic crowds, pretty faces, lots of L lenses, and a sea of red t-shirts. LOL

I guess everyone in their decent mind who entered the Photomarathon had, even if only the slightest, wish of winning - or at least bagging one of the top three prizes. With Canon Philippines giving away prizes like a Canon 5D Mark II kit, who wouldn’t give their best? Being the realistic person that I am, I knew that the odds were against me one way or another. Still, I began shooting for the first theme with my gameface on. Reality set in pretty quickly, however. The three-and-a-half hours given for each theme felt so much shorter, especially with the sweltering heat drying up the handful of ideas I had to begin with. My attitude eventually changed from competitive to just-plain-having-fun.

To me, Canon Photomarathon primarily involved street photography; finding juxtapositions and patterns within otherwise-ordinary scenes in the metro. (I do not claim to possess adequate/extensive knowledge on street photography.) Although we were encouraged to “think outside of the box”, simplicity seemed to work best for capturing a downloadable shot. From this premise, I believe that the Photomarathon’s difficulty (for me, at least) should not have come as a surprise. I’ve never been too fond of candid street shooting; perhaps it’s really just not in me. This was the humbling moment of the day, and I’m thankful. It’s moments like these that keep my feet on the ground, and then some. (kidding)

For those who weren’t there, these were the given themes:

1. In the concrete jungle of our nation, find the beauty of your own imagination. Use your creative passion to showcase this beautiful creation.
2. In this city of wonderful people, different lifestyles, we venture a mirror of our colorful culture truly preserved for our future.

I think I take more pleasure in the unpredictability of nature; waiting for it to display breathtaking light - over the seemingly-predictable nature of individuals or crowds on the street, who turn out to be unpredictable anyway. A lot of our potential locations failed to bear the kind of people, or their actions, that we expected to see and shoot.

But don’t get me wrong. As ‘negative’ as this entry may seem, I must say that the Canon Photomarathon experience was great! Maybe I’m just tired, and it’s already past 1 in the morning as I’m rushing to type all my thoughts into this entry. The pressure was a nice departure from my comfort zone of scheduled, planned shoots and relaxed events.

Great, great job Canon Philippines! I hope to take part again next year - and hopefully have my picture taken with Ms. Sara Black. hihihi