Photographer's Profile:.

Mr. Sami De Leon is currently a Graphic Artist for NET 25 Television. He formed Highlights Photo-Imaging Group in late 1998 which is affiliated with the Philippine Photographers Foundation (FPPF). He has received several national and international photography and digital art awards.

At present, he's actively showcasing Philippine digital art in cyberspace and wishes to publish a coffee-table-book on the subject in the future. His digital works can be seen at www.geocities.com/sami_deleon and www.worldecho.com.

Do you remember what exactly that inspired you to get into photography?

I don't remember a single thing or event that got me into photography, except that when I first got into it by accident, it's capability of freezing a moment in time and finally bringing that moment back in a still photograph made a huge impact in my image making as an art enthusiast.

When did you first pick up a camera and start exploring the medium? Please describe some of your earliest photographs?

I got my first camera in High School - a Kodak 126 instamatic and took pictures of our family back then. My earliest photographs are pictures of simple things around me - my pet, flowers, and others that beginners took pictures of. I began exploring when I realized that I am very limited with an instamatic camera and tried to get hold of an SLR. I tried to learn by myself from second hand magazines available then in Recto Avenue in Manila.

What type of camera do you use to take most of your pictures? How important is the role of the equipment used in capturing a beautiful image?

I photograph with a high-end digital camera model nowadays but digital or not, high-end or low-end, I don't believe the quality of equipment is of utmost relevance. I'm not saying that good tools are unimportant but the primary thing is how you "see" and capture photo subjects and present it to the audience with some sort of impact.

What are some of your favorite subjects? Why?

I don't have any favourite subject. Any ordinary thing that presents itself in a way that captures my fancy in which I believe will make a good image may be a candidate for a worthwhile subject.

How do you capture a moment without altering it with your presence?

In the contrary, I almost always strive to alter a moment in a photograph. Close contact with my subject, knowing as much as I can about what I am to photograph is what I believe in. I never try to just "document" a moment. I try to "create" a moment or emotions within my images.

What are some of your memorable photos? Please describe to us why it is memorable to you.

Every photo or image I made which I shared with an audience is memorable to me. Everyone of them has a story behind them which forces me to go back in time at the moment I tried to "re-create" them which I try to relay to my images' audience.

What defines a good photograph?

To me a good photograph is simply an image that in which the viewer is "touched". For in its presence, the photographer has relayed his message successfully, whatever it may be.

What advice do you have for people who don't have an eye for photography?

It's not just photography but art in general. When asked by friends, I always advise them to look at things in different ways. Ordinary things in different perspectives - not just angles, not just lighting, nor just framing. It how you present things to anyone wherein you feel your audience will interact in your aimed direction.

What are some tips one should remember in taking photographs?

1. Try to learn the equipment you are taking pictures with.
2. "Focus" solely on your subject/s.
3. Learn as much as you can about your subject, whoever or whatever it is.
4. Respect your subjects, unless when its impossible to respect them
5. Cover as much "angles" as you can. You may never have a chance to take it again.
6. If possible, try to process the images yourself so as to control the end product.
7. Create your own "style". Don't copy what the others are doing. Look at their work so as to get away from them.
8. Be aware of what's happening inside the "frame". Unwanted elements in your image may take way that message you wanted in your photo.
9. When you photograph, try to visualize the end product.
10. Learn the "rules" and try to break them as often as you could! Sometimes those pictures will "make" you stand above the rest.

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