THERE IS NOTHING REMARKABLE ABOUT THIS PLACE - ISSUE 15
5 Questions With Photographer Ariela Badenas
Housekeeping
It’s my fav time of the week, it’s Friday, which means the weekend is fast approaching and it also means I get to send my newsletter out to all you lovely people! This week we have a featured photographer and all round total legend, Ariela Badenas, who has recently put together a beautiful zine that I have sitting right next to me on my desk.
I was interested to know a little more about Ariela as a person and photographer and also thought she could share some valuable tips on zine making as she recently did a workshop at the C41 coffee shop in Vancouver, Canada. Her zine is still available for purchase and I cannot recommend it enough! Now let’s get into the interview. Be sure to let me know in the comments if you are planning a zine for 2023 I would love to hear about it!
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
My name is Ariela and I’m a photographer based in Vancouver, Canada. I was born and raised in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. I enjoy film photography a lot and I have been photographing for as long as I can remember. I am a chemist by training, a food scientist and an entrepreneur by profession, but my first love has always been the camera. I grew up taking sneaky selfies with my parents’ point-and-shoot, and I even remember saving up for my first plastic camera during the golden age of Lomography c. 2010. At that point, it was mostly snapshot photography that I enjoyed: family vacations, dinner parties, and random moments with my friends.
Photography only became a more serious hobby in 2019 after I got my first film SLR. Then the pandemic happened: while everyone was making sourdough and building raised garden beds, I was out and about burning through film and polishing up old cameras. Since then, I’ve amassed a collection of cameras in all formats (I shoot 4x5 now too!), and I also do all my development and scanning myself. This year, I’ve decided to take a creative sabbatical of sorts. I travelled a lot, found an art studio, and started working in the darkroom as well. Film photography to me really is the perfect combination of science and art, and I’m very lucky that I have the time and space to pursue it now.
2. Your latest zine "There is nothing remarkable about this place" is so beautiful and really well put together. Can you talk about the process? What did you enjoy and what did you find tedious?
Thank you for thinking that and that you enjoyed the book! ☺ I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, given the many, many versions that I’ve made. At one point, I thought I was going to make two zines because of the sequencing and how I couldn’t narrow it down any further. Out of 500-ish photos, it came down to the final 40. Thankfully, I had the help of my friend and amazing editor Octavia Sharp who held my hand through the process. She really pushed me to think of a story I wanted to tell with the book. Is it really just a compilation of images thrown together or is there something more that you wanted to say? She encouraged me to write about it by answering questions like:
What made you press the shutter when you took this photo?
What were you thinking and feeling at the time?
What do you want your audience to take away from this book?This was probably the most challenging part: just trying to make it make sense. Shooting the photos, done. Developing 17 rolls of film by myself, easy. Scanning over 500 images, check. But how do you piece things together in a way where your audience will see meaning? It took a very long time because I would work on it in waves. I would get the bulk of the work done, but I also needed to walk away from it and let it “marinade”. I go back to it with fresh eyes after some time has passed, and that also really helped in sequencing, otherwise, I would just obsess with it and just want to get it finished right away. These things take time, and as easy and straightforward as it sounds, you really can’t rush it. It is as difficult as it is incredibly rewarding.
3. What advice would you give other photographers who are wanting to create a body of work, a project or even a zine?
In my experience, it happens very organically… I went to Saskatoon without the intention of making something out of the photos I took. The best advice I can really give is to keep taking photographs. The ideas will come with more time and more inspiration from others as you grow in your photographic journey.
I started collecting photo books last year, and while my collection is still very small in comparison to others, I want to say that really inspired me to travel more and put my work in printed form too. Earlier this year, I also started a photo book club within the Vancouver Street Photographers’ Collective and sharing books with my peers is such a neat way to discover new work. Photography has been around for centuries. There’s so much to learn from, and I always leave feeling super inspired!
Seeing what is out there, learning from others, and experimenting with new things. I think people get scared of being unoriginal and doing something that hasn’t been done. I think the saying goes, good artists copy, great artists steal. Don’t be too insulated (unless that is your approach, don’t let me tell you otherwise haha) and see where things will lead you.
4. You recently did an in person workshop at the C41 Coffee Shop on how to make a zine, congrats! How was that experience for you and for the patrons?
It was really fun! I’m so happy that the local photography community here in Vancouver is extremely supportive, and I really couldn’t have done it without their support. The biggest shout-out goes to Andy who owns C41 Coffee Shop and sponsored the event. It came at no cost to anyone, and I want to make it as accessible as possible to anyone who is interested in learning. I’m no professional bookmaker but I wanted to make the process a little less intimidating.
Like everyone else, I started from the same place, and I wanted to at least equip people with the same set of information I had when I started this project. I’m a hobbyist just like you and we do this for the pure enjoyment of something we are passionate about. But what people also miss sometimes is that art is labour. We have to be smart about it and treat it like so. I come from a background in manufacturing and small business ownership, so that is probably my unique twist to the event. The process of making a zine is one thing, but I think a lot of people also miss considering raising money, coming up with budgets, talking to printers and finding creative ways for marketing and distribution. Understandably, this can all easily become overwhelming, and that’s where I really wanted to help.
I’m hoping to host another one in the near future. And my greatest hope is that more people will be empowered to make more zines!
5. What can we expect from you in 2023? Any exciting projects coming up?
I’m currently doing more darkroom work, especially now that it’s winter here in Vancouver. I’m still shooting but at a much slower pace, which is great, because it really gives me a chance to review my work and spend more time with my negatives. I plan to focus on printing and archiving my rolls from 2022 until the spring, which is when I plan on travelling again. Then I’ll be photographing more work in the summer, and hopefully, fingers crossed, making more zines in 2023. I don’t want to be too ambitious, but I definitely want to make at least one more next year … Maybe even three ;-)
Connect With Ariela!
Instagram: Go follow Ariela and be sure to say hello, she is so lovely and approachable!
Website: Be sure to check out her work via her website as well and get in touch via email at hi@arielab.ca
If you would like to purchase a copy of the zine, you can grab it here! (There are still a few copies left!)
If you want to support Ariela’s work and her commitment to film photography and the community, consider donating to her Ko-Fi page and buying her a roll of film.
A huge thank you to you Ariela for taking the time to do this interview and sharing your beautiful story and work with us all. Zines are an integral part of so many sub cultures and communities and I am so proud to own a copy of yours. There might not be anything remarkable about Saskatoon, but there is certainly something remarkable about you Ariela Badenas! Thank you :)