Photographer of the week

Orlando Punzalan-Portrait of a nature advocate–

By YUGEL LOSORATA

Nature is considered to be a larger-than-life proof of God’s existence and excellence. This is why communing with nature is essentially talking to God.

Lensman Orly Punzalan feels the presence of the ‘Supreme Being’ each time he shoots landscapes and other mute witnesses to the ever-changing history of animal life on Earth. He shares, “The feeling I get when I am viewing the awesome beauty of nature is an incredible spiritual experience; my experiences in nature reconnect me to God. Photography is my attempt to share these images and feelings with others.”

 Capturing the planet’s beautiful God-made surroundings is basically the theme of Punzalan’s work. In one of his shots, the famed Taal Volcano went within his frame and provided the eyes a majestic view of one of the finest wonders of the country. Often he takes pictures of interesting places not in ordinary angles, but in fresher perspectives that divert from the usual. For artists like him, there’s more reward to photographing less-trodden places.

On the other hand, he is also an expert on the littlest of things. His visual artistry further goes to details as macro photography comes in. A common insect is as spectacular as the T-Rex that walked through the Jurassic Park. “It reverberates in my mind every time I go out to shoot macro that God is such an awesome Creator that he even designed these tiny objects in intricate details,” he notices.

A Christian whose interest for nature has led him into the marvels of photography, Orly’s goal has always been to incorporate that love with photography. Back in the ‘80s, he met a photographer from the Middle East and many times tagged along to the latter’s photo shoots. The guy’s wife is a husband of Orly’s churchmate who was initially observing him take pictures of other pious people. It didn’t take that long before the foreigner saw the talent in him. Encouragement to pursue photography followed through and before the couple left for the U.S., Orly knew what he was going to do.

He enrolled at FPPF’s Basic and Advance Photography Workshops in Intramuros then went on a hunt for a camera club: the Prize Photo Club. The decision gave him the venue to show what stuff he’s made of. For eight consecutive years from 2001 to 2008, he has been listed as among the Top 5 in the race for “Photographer of the Year.” FPPF saw his worth and was given the task to chair the Photoworld Cup (PWC) 2007. He even lorded over PWC as a talent, winning Photographer of the Year for 2003 and 2008.

Apart from landscapes, Orly’s ‘still life’ is another world of adventure for the eyes. He is more challenged doing black-and-white shots than colored ones because he believes it is where an individual’s talent can really be distinguished. It is truly an accomplishment for a lensman to still be appreciated even with the absence of colors. He is one who puts color when there’s none of it; shades of gray, black and white are enough to play with for a richly creative mind.

His honest personality reflects on his work. “I am not fond of doing major manipulations in my images. I welcome Photoshop with open arms but I confine myself to doing enhancements on levels, brightness and contrast, saturation, and other Photoshop functions similar to normal darkroom techniques. Mas okay sa kin yung feeling na ang nakikita ng viewers mo ay mostly straight shots and not digital cheats.”

Nature alone is beauty needing no help from Photoshop. He points out, “Photography gives me the opportunity to show to people the beauty of God’s creation and I feel happy when they are interested in my interpretation of them.”

His winnings would affirm that. He won 1st place in Konica’s Children of Asia Regional Photo Contest in January 2003, his first win in a national contest. Last July 2008, he topped Canon’s “Flora & Fauna” photo contest.

The most memorable was a simple one and came earliest when he bagged 1st place during his Basic Photography Workshop. His first ever win had him beating celebrities Ericka Fife and Mylene Dizon who were his runners up. His winning photo? A portrait of his eldest nephew looking at a candle in total darkness; he took the shot the night before the graduation proper.

As footnote to his nature’s appreciation is his affiliation to the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines and Butterfly Watchers Philippines. “It’s more gratifying to see birds and butterflies in the wild rather than see them in cages. Di lang sila makapagsalita pero how would you feel if you are in one of those cages and couldn’t freely fly?”

“I think the best thing about being a photographer is that when you’re out ‘there,’ you feel at peace with nature and with yourself,” he ends.