Filipino man fulfills his passion for photography after relocating to P.E.I.

By Gomathi Sridevi

Feb. 14, 2023

Robert Rolian’s world revolves around his passion - photography. (Gomathi Sridevi)

As a college graduation gift, Robert Rolian’s parents gave him a camera. It was not a DSLR but he loved the quality. He was on Cloud 9 when he received the camera. He treasured and valued it.

He found work providing technical support at a printing company. It paid the bills.

But he found real joy in taking photos with his new camera. He spent all his leisure time photographing people and streets of his hometown in the Philippines.

Rolian realized he was a right-brain guy when he was in high school. He was more into visuals than words. He didn’t enjoy reading books, preferring instead to read comics in the newspaper.

'My brain is working when there is an image,' he thought.

One day, he got an offer from his colleague.

"One of my friends told me to do their wedding photography. I was not a trained photographer and didn't have enough knowledge about it. That was my first wedding shoot."

Rolian did his research and shot the wedding. The couple loved his style and recommended him to others.

"From there, I started my photography journey."

He worked nights and did photography shoots as his side hustle. It wasn’t unusual for him to finish work at 7 a.m. and head directly to a photoshoot.

"I always find happiness in shooting weddings because I feel like I am not working but doing my passion."

After four years, Rolian wanted to focus more on his photography.

"I wanted to grow my business."

So, in 2014 he quit his job with the printing company.

But two months later he started regretting his decision. There were no weddings, no clients and no shoots.

He continued with no salary for two months. Fortunately his wife was working, but money was tight.

He recalled his mother's words:

"You shouldn't quit a job if you don't have a job."

Those two months were hard, but he didn't let it destroy his positivity. He got offers later in 2014 and travelled to Japan, Korea and Singapore to shoot weddings.

During a photoshoot in Japan, Rolian visited a park and spotted a man playing the guitar.

“I asked permission to take a photo of him and he agreed. Later, I uploaded it on my Instagram page. It was fun to walk around the streets and approach strangers for a photo.”

Rolian never uses captions for his photos. Instead he tags the person and lets others find out more about them.

"The problem is, I am not good with words. It's not my style."

People appreciated Rolian's work by booking him for more shoots. He grew his business successfully, but it came to a halt when the pandemic hit.

"I lost my drive to shoot a wedding because I got anxiety and stress. The business stopped because of the lockdown."

He decided it was time for change. He needed a job with financial security. He and his family moved from the Philippines to Canada and now he is working three part-time jobs while he searches for one full-time job. He wants to save money to open his photography business in the future. But still he finds time for his passion.

"After my interview, I try to bring my camera and shoot the streets of Charlottetown. Photography is like painting by using light. I am not using my eyes, but I use my feelings when I shoot. I need to feel something, and it's how I deliver. Portraits, for me, are powerful."

Rolian still takes photos of streets and people and posts them online. He tries to shoot only places that intrigue him and that he feels a connection with. He loves to print the photos from his phone.

"Photos are memories and will stick in mind from generation to generation. It will stay forever. A world without photography is sad."