A Different View of the Extraordinary

My Photo Scholarship 2011 Entry - A Different View of the Extraordinary

Worldwide | Sunday, November 6, 2011 | 5 photos

2010, I went to our province in Roxas City, Capiz in the Philippines and a friend took me to a seaside cliff view called Ford's Point to watch the sunset. They say that a certain Mrs. Ford used to live there, now the house is abandoned. It's known for the Jesus Christ statue overlooking the sea. The place is not widely accessible since you have to go up the hill through a lot of small houses where a lot of less fortunate families live. A lot of kids saw us bringing big cameras so they followed us to the top. Excited, the kids asked us to take photos of them. Obviously they rarely see someone with these kinds of equipment. As we reached the top, the view, the horizon, the colors of the sky, every single bit till the sun set was beautiful and some of the figures there partnered with the view appear biblical.
Aside from the sunset what struck me the most are these kids. They have access to this majestic view everyday but the thing that they consider most extraordinary was the piece of plastic that I was holding which for a city grown kid like me is just ordinary, ironic.

I see people's eyes and I see stories waiting to be told, waiting to be heard. It astonishes me how each of the 7 billion of us humans differ from each other. We carry millions of stories, but we lack the opportunity to tell them. Photography gives that.

I see the world in appreciation. I see the drama but can appreciate the beauty. With that plus my skill, I can be the voice of the unheard, all I need is the opportunity.

I am John Joseph "Bom" Quiachon, 21, a nurse, a photographer, a hopeful storyteller.