I am Ubo Pakes and I am a Dutch who moved to the Philippines in 2008 and photography became my way of getting more acquainted with the many different aspects of Philippine culture and the many differences between my home country and the Philippines. Observing the world around me through my camera is a great way to remain curious of the area where I now live.
Living and working in a big metropolitan area like Cebu has directed my focus on the people who are working and living a big part of their lives on the streets of the City. For me, photography turned out to be a great way to be in contact with society, learning parts of the language and the customs of the big city and surrounding province. My interests are mainly in documenting the lives of ordinary people in all facets of daily life, but I do love to travel.
On this site you can find some of my work in the form of individual photos in the blog below. Please have a look also at the photo essays for longer observations and photo series. You can find them here
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If you like my work, some of my photos are for sale here. If you can’t find what you like, please drop me a line and maybe we can make it possible
Photo stories
Serendipity; the power of chance encounters in photography
Photography for me is as much about the process as it is about the outcome. I love the change encounters I may have on the streets. The waiting in front of a nice background to have an interesting character walking into the frame to make it complete.
A fascination with fighting cocks
A short story on last weeks photo in which a rooster plays a prominent place..
A rural workshop
Just one photo this time. Usually I build my stories around a theme or a series of photos, but I really like this one. Last weekend, I had some to roam around Minglanilla town, a suburb of Cebu and usually we only pass through going south. This time, my wife was giving a presentation and…
Ubo Pakes Images 
It’s almost summer now so I’ll be back in the Philippines again very soon. See you in Palawan!
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I love Cebu, El Nido, Boracay and Bohol. When I retire, I will be living on one of these beautiful islands.
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I’ve never been to Boracay, although it is supposed to lovely after the cleanup effort. I vote for Bohol.. beautiful, quiet and just a short ferry ride to Cebu!
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Me too. I think Boracay is a bit overrated and apart from that, I like a bit more the quieter beaches and also interior Bohol is beautiful
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