EDWIN S. LOYOLA'S BEYOND PASSION

by Wallei Bautista Trinidad

Passion is something taken from the core of one’s heart. To bring passion to what you are doing, you actually put a soul into it and it becomes magical.

With a modest arsenal of Canon equipment, a bounty of intuition and his self-proclaimed obsession with natural light, Edwin takes great pleasure in capturing the kind of images that reminds us that the world we live in is full of wonderful things and life is beautiful.

Loyola is synonymous to passion. He brings something that is peculiar no one has ever imagined in all of his images. He has a collection of amazing and brilliant photographs which are products of his creative imagination. He is regarded as one of the most celebrated photographer-artists in the Philippines.

For Edwin S. Loyola, it is not only about selecting a subject and shooting it; it is about a particular compassion, responsiveness, even a perception for scale, balance, proportion, and all the other elements of art that makes his photographs an art and not just mere photos. 

His passion to present wonderful display of acuity, of expressions, of a dominion of contemplative photography is a constant interpretation of emotions. It his indeed his passion to provide images that are made beautiful by how it will be interpreted by the people who could see. The images he presents are poetry that touch the heart of the viewer and unfold thousand and one stories that awaken the soul.


LEAP OF FATE

Loyola did not stop pursuing his passion to create and inspire even he has to change the course of his life when he got his petition from his father in 2008. This gave him an opportunity to enrich his skills and ignite the fire of his craft even he has to keep his personal endeavors. He set up a shop in California and started to retain clients working as photographer for different events. He made regular trips and documented it by his remarkable photographs. The most noteworthy trips he had are those in Yosemite in 2008 where he took a photo on the precise spot where Ansel Adams also stood; trips to Mono Lake and the ghost town of Bodie in 2010.

PHILANTHROPIC UNDERTAKING
Mission: Save Kids with Cancer is a humble wish to help the kids with cancer and the establishment of this mission made people to start to show their concern and finally made things possible through pledges and charitable projects. This is one special thing he left behind in the Philippines before departing to America. He actually established the mission to benefit children with cancer that belong to impoverished families.

The proceeds that were collected from those who proposed to buy his photographs and has taken interests go to the kids' treatment and medicines. To further help the kids even while he is thousands of miles away, Loyola is working on completing the final drafts to his project to benefit "Save Kids With Cancer". The project involves a series of coffee table books featuring the work of over 200 photographers rounded up from all over the world.
Most of the competitions that he is joining got just one aim: to gather funds for the mission to continuously provide financial aid to the beneficiaries.

PRACTICAL PHOTOGRAPHER
Loyola is a self-proclaimed non-gear-headed-person. Most of his works were all taken with available light. He finds joy in shooting an object from various angles and using available lighting. He prefers to shoot ordinary things that no one would ever dare to shoot. His images are mostly experimental and shot spontaneously. No props needed and not even making any pre-planning procedures. 

He has also started to explore using only iPhone4 and made fabulous images. DSLR for him are just for the big events. Because of the gadget's functionality, practicality and portability, his creativity and artistry is moving him to the next level where eventually and with anticipation, he will be able to fulfill his dream as a cinematographer and filmmaker. 

AWARDS and EXHIBITIONS
PIXOTO.COM No.1 Photograper of the World for 2011
National Geographic Channel Photo Contest 2004
Fuji & Gift Gate Photo Contest 2004Kodak & Cotton USA Photo Contest 1995
Kodak's Mahal Na Araw 1994
Hundred Islands On-The-Spot Photo Competition
Epson Color Imaging Contest 2005
Ritz Camera's 'Capture Your World' Big Print Photo Contest
Adobe International Digital Imaging Contest
The 1st IdN Club Philippines Extreme Digital Explosion 07
Sandiks Interantional Photo Contest 2005 'Extreme'
Coca Cola Photo Contest 1996 


SOLO EXHIBIT:
2000 Edwin Loyola Photographs / Dela Salle University Gallery
2000 Edwin Loyola Images / Philamlife Lobby
2003 Loyola@10 /Philamlife Lobby
2005 The Last Leaf / Mla Docs Oct 1-15 / Philamlife Lobby Oct 17-30
2005 Light for Life Photo Exhibit/ Philamlife Lobby Dec 8 2005
2006 Light for Life Photo Exhibit/Philamlife II Lobby May 24, 2006 
2008 The Gifts - Edwin S Loyola One Man Show / Philamlife Dec 2008-Feb 2009

Group Exhibit
2003- Framed Shots 'Handog' Rockwell, Makati
2004- eArt Philippines - Philippine Art Festival, Greenhills
2004- eArt Philippines - Graphic Expo 2004, Philtrade
2004 -eArt Philippines- Slimmer's World Great Bodies, Shangrila Hotel
2005- eArt Philippines - Digital Brushes / Philamlife Lobby
2005 -eArt Philippines - Graphic Expo 2005, Philtrade
2005 -eArt Philippines - 2nd Quarter Exhibit / Philamlife Lobby
2005 -Framed Shots - 11th Anniversary Exhibit Landscape/Still Life/Philam Lobby
2008 -The Gifts Photography Exhibition - March 28, 2oo8
2008 - Tony Roma's Dine In Gallery - May 9 to June 9, 2008
2011 – Manila Bulletin Mother’s Day Exhibit / Ayala Malls – May 2011


Others (too many to mention)


This content was published in the pilot issue of FullFrame Magazine the first and only Filipino Photography Magazine in UAE.