Photographers From the Philippines Team up to Raise Funds for Earthquake Devastated Islands

The Batanes group of Islands sit on the northern most tip of the Philippines. The archipelagic province is 408 miles away from the country's capital of Manila and 120 miles south of Taiwan. At 04:16 AM of July 27, 2019, Batanes was hit by a 5.4 magnitude earthquake followed by another 6.4 at 07:38AM. Almost 3000 people, 900 families have been rendered homeless on top of an 8-person death toll.

The residents have been displaced to town plazas and are in need of food, clean water, shelter, and clothing. Not to mention damaged electric and communications grid in the entire province. 

Batanes has been called an Island Paradise by many travel and landscape photographers due to its natural and cultural riches that are described to be untouched. The locals boast of their distinct architecture, iconic rolling hills, various lighthouses, and rugged waters that prove to be a haven for photographers. The entire province is in the tentative list for the UNESCO world heritage list and has consequently been gaining popularity as one of the country's best tourist destinations. 

As a way to aid the people of the islands, a group of photographers from various parts of the Philippines started an online campaign to help raise funds for the victims of the calamity by selling their prints. The project is called "Bayanihan Para sa Batanes". It is a collaborative effort by photographers to provide assistance to the victims of the earthquake. The Tagalog word "Bayanihan" is a noun that pertains to the act of working hand-in-hand to help those in need. The above photos are just some of the many works that are up for sale. You can see the entire collection of the photos and the details of the sale through this Facebook page. 

Lead photo by Mitch Miguel. All images used with permission.