MANILA, Philippines?My friendship with Francis Magalona started with photography.

I met him in a concert tour for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Amsterdam in 2006. In one of the luncheons sponsored by the embassy, I noticed that he was literally shooting between meals, standing up and tinkering with his camera, shooting people around him and the scenery.

I introduced myself to him as a fellow enthusiast and invited him to join our photo club. That started our friendship and ignited his love for photography.

I was incoming president of the Camera Club of the Philippines (CCP) at that time. Francis gladly accepted my invitation to attend my induction during the annual awards night.

The master photographers of the year and winning entries were honored. Francis admitted that he was awed by the winners and roster of members.

?I might not be accepted here, Leo; I?m not yet that good in photography,? Francis quipped in Filipino.

I told him it was typical for an applicant to feel that way and assured him that the club was not just about photography but also about bonding and sharing of talent. I assured him that he would be a better photographer and learn along the way. Francis agreed to apply.

By invitation only

Membership to the 80-year-old CCP was by invitation only and one has to be a ?probee? for almost a year to get accepted.

During the one-year probationary period, the probee would be doing odd and administrative chores for members and the club. Everyone, regardless of status in life or business, underwent this process.

Francis gamely did his obligation and while some regular members felt awkward to approach him for chores, some were plainly star-struck, they got their photos taken with him for souvenir.

With his high contest scores and active participation in the club?s activities, Francis had the shortest probationary period and was awarded the club?s 2007 Probee Member of the Year.

First photo assignment

Francis? first photo contest was an out-of-town on-the-spot competition at Wawa dam in Montalban (now Rodriguez) town in Rizal province. He was bunched with seasoned and master photographers and he drove them around in his SUV. Intimidated by the veterans, he ended up shooting documentaries as he shot members in action instead of entries.

In his second on-the-spot contest at the Panagbenga festival, I rode with him to Baguio City and we stopped in towns of Tarlac and Cuyapo in Nueva Ecija province to shoot interesting rural life and scenery along the highway.

There was a problem though with popular personalities like Francis. When his subjects start recognizing him, their photo expressions changed and the crowd swelled. Most people would ask for autographs and souvenir photos with their cell phones. That would quickly end Francis? shooting spree.

In Baguio, he donned a bonnet to conceal his face to enable him to freely shoot without attracting attention, only to give up using it at high noon.

The ?sapin-sapin?

One of the earliest photos shot by Francis for the club contest was a photograph he titled ?Sapin-sapin.? It was a shot leading to abstraction of different layers, colors and texture of land in Montalban.

He asked for my opinion about it. I told him that I found it unique and different from the usual photos submitted by members which were visually striking. His photo was subdued but he liked it very much.

I told him it was a ?Jaworski??either you love it or hate it. He decided to submit the ?Jaworski? photo as his entry.

At that point, I knew that Francis? photographs went beyond what you saw. They have feelings attached to them. The ?Sapin-sapin? scored well with the judges, and that was enough to inspire Francis to shoot not only for the judges but for himself.

The collector

Francis? love for photography went beyond the hobby of shooting. It was something that every photographer at the club experienced. Every now and then, Francis would call or text me about his shoot, his photos, his MAC and, yes, his cameras.

I remembered that during the Europe concert tour, Francis pulled me from a dinner and walked me to a small camera store in Vienna just to show me his next purchase. Aside from his new digital Canons, Francis went for old film cameras?Leicas, Nikormats, Mamiyas.

He even traded his old Canon 400D body for one of my old Hasselblads. It was not a fair trade for me but I knew that he certainly would be happier acquiring his first Hasselblad.
Just like most of us at the club, he might have more than a dozen cameras in the dry box?from film to digital, from compact to SLRs to view cameras. Just lately he bought a 4x5 large format which he hand-carried from Las Vegas. He was not able to use it.
His art

Francis? works were varied, experimental but expressive and alive. His contest entries normally carried a story. He never failed to tell me, not only how he took his shots but the events and anecdotes around his photos.

Whenever he consulted me on his entries, I normally chose the one he was most emphatic about. True artists like him conveyed something deeper than what was seen. His photographs can be felt.

OTS king

Francis? forte was on-the-spot (OTS) contests where entries are unthemed (or open) and come from a limited area, shot at a limited time, normally in a day. In 2008, Francis almost bagged the 2008 OTS Photographer of the Year award.

He missed an opportunity to augment his scores when he was not able to join a contest in Macao due to his hospitalization. Francis ended up third, earning with it a Leica-inspired trophy which he proudly displayed around and blogged about.

Passion to win

Francis never failed to join the club?s monthly contests even during his hospitalization. The club has monthly photo themes and entries are judged every first Monday of the month.

Despite his busy show biz and concert schedule, Francis made it a point to shoot for the theme and he very seldom dug into his digital files or ?bodegas? of photos.

His ailment, however, did not deter him from shooting from his room. In fact, a theme last year was ?Sensuous? and this would normally require location shoots of sexy or nude women.

Francis submitted an entry showing a woman?s red luscious lips. That was the lips of Pia (his wife) that he shot from his hospital bed! It scored very well against the nudes in the judging table. Francis? passion for his art and his craft was truly admirable.

Last shot

Francis? last contest submission was the eve of his ICU confinement. Our theme for the month of March 2009 was a difficult one??Black on Black? in color print. The moment he was discharged by the hospital after his chemotherapy two weeks ago, Francis immediately planned for a shoot with Norman Black at the Ateneo de Manila University gym.

Two days later, he became too weak to attend the club?s meeting but forced himself to submit personally his entries. He scored well with his entries for the coveted Master Photographer Cup of the Club, the highest honor given to the best of the photographers of the 100-member club.

Had Francis survived his latest confinement, he is certain to be a serious and top contender to be master photographer. He may not be able to do so now but I am certain that Francis continues to shoot and continues his passion for photography.

Now he is shooting landscapes in heaven with the angels and saints as his subjects for portraits. And beside Francis, as his photo buddy, is the true Master of the Universe.

(The author is the past president of the Camera Club of the Philippines. While he lists photography as his desired employment, he is currently the president of Informatics Philippines.)