DCR alumnus places 2nd in ‘Neighbourhood Matters’
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— December 19,2020With a profound thought of curating a different personal narration to Pasig City, a 22 years old resident Rhay Daniel Racoma turned this long-living dream into a reality.
Racoma was placed 2nd in the recently concluded virtual exhibition ‘Neighbourhood Matters,’ a partnered event of the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2020 of the University of Glasgow by the Center for Sustainable, Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods (SHLC), last November 13.
“Noong nasabi ‘yong tungkol dito sa contest, ang mas naisip ko na ipasang entry ay ‘yong retrato na nakuha ko sa Pasig City kumpara sa retrato ng partner cities ng CeNS gawa ng mas kaya kong mabigyan ng personal touch ‘yong meaning no’ng entry,” he recalled.
His piece ‘Pasig City Mega Market’ was one of the ten (10) shortlisted entries among 35 accepted photographs from 14 different countries.
As Pasigueno itself, Racoma’s triumph mainly mirrors the situation of the Barangay Pinagbuhatan, Pasig City, in developing a sustainable community as it can adapt to healthy practices, behavior change, and building connections.
In his caption, he writes market as one of the contributing agents of change in creating a healthy physical environment.
“I think the market embodies [an] aspect of being sustainable through building healthy practices and relationships and empowering learning by bringing behavior change to the people,” he explained.
Moreover, his piece also sees the importance of how neighbourhoods reflect sustainability directly to people that soon create impactful programs for several cities and communities.
“Pinaparating nito na mahalagang nakikita ng mga tao kung paano nagre-reflect sa neighbourhoods ang konsepto ng sustainability upang mas makapagbuo tayo ng mga programa na mas kalapit sa reyalidad at mas angkop para sa mga komunidad o kapitbahayan,” he said.
At present, 50 percent estimated world’s population is in urban parts and may even seem to take its toll to 60 percent by 2050, according to SHLC.
The Communication Research graduate illustrates that combining images and other relevant data from the narratives and discussions can be a comprehensive data-gathering analysis method.
“Maari natin pagsamahin ang mga retrato at ang iba pang qualitative data mula sa mga narrative or mga discussions upang mas mapalalim at mas maging komprehensibo ang magiging analysis,” he added.
Apart from his job, Racoma considers photography as a hobby that helps balance his life all in between.
“Natutulungan ako nito para magkaroon ng work-life integration. Nililinang din nito ang aking pagiging malikhain, curious, at appreciative sa mga bagay bagay,” he said.
He also thought of collecting previous and current shots depicting everyday struggles his life crosses in years.
Racoma further compounds the importance of smartphones, as what he uses in the entry, in creative ways of conducting effectual researches.
“Maganda na paunti-unti ay maipakilala ang pagkuha ng retrato bilang malikhaing pamamaraan sa pagsasagawa ng research, lalo sa kasalukuyang panahon kung saan mas napadali ang pagkuha ng larawan dahil sa mga smartphone,” he shared.
“Makakatulong rin ito upang maiparating sa iba na ang research ay hindi nakakulong sa paggawa ng thesis at paghahanda ng mahahabang sulatin, na maari din mga pamamaraan upang ito ay maisagawa at maipahayag tulad ng pagkuha ng mga larawan,” he added.
Racoma also plans to continue taking vivid pictures amidst the threat of the pandemic in the world.
Lastly, he shares his advice to those students who have the same fondness as he has had for photography.
“Patuloy lang na kumuha nang kumuha ng retrato para mas matuto pa. Puwede [rin] tayong tumingin sa mga retrato ng ibang photographers upang mas magkaroon [pa] tayo ng ideya at inspirasyon sa kung anong klaseng retrato ang nais nating kuhanan,” he said.
“Bukod rin sa husay sa teknikal na aspeto ng pagkuha ng retrato, maigi rin kung nalilinang ng isang photographer ang kanyang abilidad na makapagbuo at mapagtibay ng istorya mula sa kanyang larawan, lalo na kung ang mga retrato na kinukuha ay naglalarawan sa buhay ng tao,” he added.
Racoma was graduated in 2019 with a special citation award from the College of Communication’s annual recognition program. Currently, he is working in the Center for Neighbourhood Studies as Neighbourhood Development Associate.
