Transforming the mundane from behind the lens

SEAFARERS are said to be many things rolled into one. They can be navigators at the same time that they can be doctors, security personnel, engineers, mechanics, scientists, marine biologists, cooks, construction men, psychologists and counselors.

For the past decade, another profession was added to this long list of seafaring skills photography.

The photo titled A woman in action, shows a beaming woman seafarer gearing the vessel with barbed wires before entering the pirate-infested waters of the Indian Ocean. The photo won first place in the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) 2022 Photo Competition. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

As compared to professional photographers, however, the majority of seafarers did not attend formal schooling to hone their craft. Whatever good is caught by their lens is a product of an eye for art and the instinct for the profound.

Such is the case for sea cadet Israel Garbo. His usual photos depict the daily life aboard ships the vast oceans, dramatic sunrise and sunsets, and seafarers going about their everyday toil.

"I started photography with nothing but a mere cellphone with a camera; it was the first android phone I owned," Garbo recalled.

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The limitations of his equipment never stopped Garbo from capturing moments that only seafarers can see.

One day, as his vessel transited the waters between A....