Like any other good story, THIS started with love.
Husband and wife, Mike and Ruffa Paglalunan of Ruffa and Mike Photography, prides to capture photos that tell more than just a story, but rather, create a powerful feeling that evoke the truest essence of art, love and life. They are famous for their “epic” shots, which are actually a series of epic-worthy images that they capture during an entire wedding coverage. Why have just one “epic” shot if you could have more than that, right?
What I also love about this creative duo is that their artistic flexibility is beyond measure — they can go from high-fashion vibe one time and go rock-‘n-roll-fun the next. But whatever theme you want them to cover, one thing stays true: they deliver magazine-worthy photos that are crisp, clear, vivid and bursting with vibrant colors. Simply put, they take NO dull photos.
I asked them how Ruffa and Mike Photography all started, and Mike eagerly shares with us how it all began (you gotta read this one, I tell you, it’s quite sweet and romantic you’ll think it’s picked right out of a fairy tale) :
“Ruffa and Mike love story was born from the love of Theatre and Arts. We met each other in our school theatre group called “Tanghalang Batingaw”. I took BS ECE and Ruffa is Tourism and we both graduated from Lyceum of The Philippines University. They say it’s a bit strange that an Engineering student entered a Theatre group, but I believe you have to do what makes you happy. And I’m so thankful I joined, because if not, I will regret it for the rest of my life through this group I have found the girl I will love forever.
Everytime we had practice, I always bring my point and shoot. And since Ruffa loves to smile and pose in the camera, I had an opportunity to get close to her and a chance to talk to her. That’s how our friendship started and our love begin to bloom.
Ruffa loves to pose so much and style herself while I am obsessed in photography, so we decided to buy our first DSLR camera which is Canon 350D with 50mm 1.8, if I remember it right that was 2007. Everywhere the road takes us we always bring our Camera and Tripod. Sometimes, others laugh on us seeing Ruffa pose in public while I start focusing my camera and set the timer then run beside her while the time is ticking. We never stop doing it till we achieve the pose and emotion we want. Then we keep on posting it on our travel blog and Facebook account. Until one day, my aunt approach us if we can shoot their prenup. I was very hesitant at first and refuse to do it since I don’t have any idea how to to take prenup photos, I said I only know how to take picture of ourselves. My aunt replied, that it was exactly they like to have similar on what we have in our photos. That is where Ruffa and Mike Photography started.”
“After we post that prenup photos in our Facebook account, lots of friends are asking if we can shoot their prenup too and the most unforgettable inquiry we received is when one asked if we can cover their wedding. Honestly, I doubted myself because we know we never experienced documenting a wedding. But Ruffa is very confident and believes that we can do it, especially that we still have enough time to practice and study the flow and art on how to shoot a wedding. After that wedding day, wow! God is so good! Lots of good feedbacks appeared on our email and inquiries multiplies. This made us decide to formally enter the business and started to be a full time wedding photographers. On the first quarter of 2011, I decided to leave my day job to concentrate on our business and to focus enhancing our skills.”
Ruffa and Mike know that being in the wedding photography industry is not easy — talent is one thing, but it must be fueled with passion and determination to succeed. Ruffa explains, “We all know that being wedding photographers is not easy. You should have the right amount of passion, love and inspiration to make you produce great photos and to push your creativity to come out.”
They too had their own magical moment last Dec. 8, 2012, so it is their edge that they are fully aware of how their clients feel on the wedding day. Besides this advantage, they also use their experience with theatre to bring out the emotions for that picture-perfect shot we all want. Ruffa says, “Theater train us to effectively bring out emotions. Whenever we take photos we usually give the instruction by doing it. Mike and I will act it first and we will tell the couple to do it the way they are comfortable. Also, we ask them to internalize the feeling we want them to show, enjoy the moment and always think of happy thoughts.”
And you know what inspires them to excel more in their craft? Family. At the end of the day, after all the hard day’s work, it’s who they go home to. Ruffa lovingly shares, “Every wedding is challenging and demanding but when Mike and I reach home and see baby RM, all the sweat goes away. So we make sure that we have quality time with the whole family. As long as we are happy together, ‘big problems’ will never exist in our vocabulary.”
Now, I’m sure you’re all giddy with excitement to see how the Ruffa and Mike Photography magic works. Here are some of their best shots and photo slide shows to wow you! Enjoy! 🙂
Get in touch with Ruffa and Mike Photography through:
Cherryblossoms and Faeriewings 