With a blink of a shutter, photographs are their own form of magic by capturing a person, place, or event in time. On Nov. 14, AB Photography (AB-PHOTO) graduating students opened their thesis exhibit Continuum Frames, which takes its audience into their captured shots frozen behind the lens.
Photo by Nina Cudal
Upon entering the venue, viewers are greeted by warm lighting and a rustic ambiance complementing each individual photo series.
Behind the concepts vary from an adrenaline-fueled focus of a heated football match, to the dark, whimsical world of Philippine folklore—portraying comical to literal idioms, and everything in between.
Photo by Nina Cudal
The exhibit features 10 students namely Antonio Gabriel Bautista, Mona Elisa Belmonte, Jeremy Carreon, Danielle Isabelle Catahay, Jacob Co, Marlon Maro Jr., Korina Segaya, Dhanyl Serato, Yusuke Tamazaki, and Ricardo Cruz Yan II.
In an interview with The Benildean, Jacob Co‘s photo series, Before Departure, is a comparative piece on his present life with familiar places and people he call “home.” With plans of moving abroad after graduation, Co explained that conceptualizing the exhibit theme was a challenge before realizing that time tied the group’s concepts altogether.
“We used photography to express time, using it as a tool for time travel. Each of us is explaining what time is to us,” Co said.
Every display from Continuum Frames is rooted in the photographer’s personal cache of memories and moments they want to immortalize.
Mona Elisa Belmonte showcased a heartwarming collection of photographs titled Tatay Calling by saying, “Any form of communication is considered making memories. And that’s what I’m doing.” Screenshots of Belmonte’s video calls with her father is mundane at first glance, but conveys a powerful message about the bonds formed despite distance. 
Photo by Nina Cudal
Self-discovery is one of the realizations through time. In Innocent Desire series, Ricardo Cruz Yan II was able to explore this process through his unconventional childhood fascinations. From men’s underwear packaging to intense black-and-white stills of the male body, Yan explained that it made him understand his younger self in relation to his present self in relief.
“It’s like I met my younger self and found answers to the questions that I had then,” he said. 
Photo by Nina Cudal
Furthermore, the exhibit theme not only sets it apart from before, but also the venue.
“The previous exhibits were in a gallery. Now, we’re in a mall. [This shows that] exhibits are not confined to a gallery space,” Yan added.
Photo by Nina Cudal
Continuum Frames is a fresh, bold collection of photographs capturing various aspects of human perception to immortalization.
From mundane to magical, catch this must-see exhibit until Nov. 22 at the MET Live, Bay Area CBD, Pasay City.
