Carbon Market in Cebu City (Shot on Film)

Carbon Market is more than 100 years old! A few centuries younger than the first Spanish settlement in the country in the same territory during the mid-16th century. The name "Carbon" is said to have originated from the coal depot in the 1900s, which became a dumping ground of sorts before becoming a market for traders. Today, it is made up of and administered by market vendor cooperatives under the auspices of the city. Carbon Market is the central or main public (dry and wet) commodity market for both retail and wholesale in Cebu, a city that is the center for commerce, trade, industry, and education in the Visayas Region in the Philippines. It is a global hub for shipping, furniture making, business process outsourcing, heavy industry, and tourism.

The central market area is really open warehouses lined by stalls of vendors zoned by product category. As with other public markets, commodities traded here are primarily fresh produce: vegetables, spices, local and imported fruits, and cut flowers. There are also fresh meat and seafood sections where everything sold is the morning's kill. Dry goods are basic necessities: household items and everyday needs. The market is part of Cebu's old side of the city (now undergoing redevelopment), surrounded by old structures and buildings that may predate WWII. It is part of a larger low-end shopping area with its own malls and chain department stores.

True to style, the following images are the grittiest scenes I can find. All, including the cover, were shot with black-and-white and colored film using Nikon cameras. (More images to follow when I access my server).