Namsayin “Time Well Spent” Showcase 3.5.23

It’s pretty clear by now with who Namsayin is and what they do. They bring the community together and show support for one another. Whether it’s car enthusiasts, artists, small businesses, or people that have a passion for something they’re genuinely proud of, the love is spread out and their work ensures it gets noticed & appreciated. A little over a month ago, Walter Franco first introduced me about this project he wanted to put together. An automotive photo showcase involving photographers representing the Pacific Northwest. A gathering that’s focused on the artists who capture the car culture and tell their stories. I immediately mentioned that it was about time someone hosted one up here since I’ve seen a few similar events that occurred around SoCal. I was pretty thrilled that Walter asked me to be a part of this show since I never participated in one before. At first, I was getting a bit nervous with what I was going to present to the community. But after a little bit of time I just had to keep it chill like my normal self and go back to my roots. I wanted to show who/what helped boost my connections within the automotive industry and why I still do what I do today. It’s safe to say it was a success since I had a lot of interest with the photos I displayed.

The whole night of the event was super active and I couldn’t capture that much photos since I was too busy interacting with quite a few people I haven’t met and chopping it up with loved ones. I’m not gonna lie it was super overwhelming, but in the best way possible. Nonetheless, the show was an amazing time and a lot of memories were created. Big shoutout to Walter & Al Michael Franco for always holding it down and bringing us together for another style of their “Community Connections”. Much thanks to all of my family & friends who came to support my automotive photography passion, and another thanks to the people I met coming across my exhibit for the dope convos. This truly was “Time Well Spent”.

The night before the event, we all met up at the location to pre-plan and set up our stations. Shoutout to Mr. Detail Auto Salon for holding the event! Also salamat to Walter and Manang Cheryl Flo for providing dinner!

Patrick brought his awesome French Bulldogs to keep us company.

My OCD was getting the best out of me, but after a solid 2 hours of decent measurements and eyeballing I finally finished my station lol. They say a picture speaks a thousand words, and best believe I have a lot more than that. Each photo represents so much about not just the cars, but the owners & people who built them. Over the next x amount of time, I’ll post throwbacks about these cars and tell their stories.

For the event, each photographer was asked to bring in a couple cars that we either shot or best respresented us. The first person that came to mind was my bro My Pham with his ‘62 Impala. A close friend who pretty much got me into lowriders. I have so many great things to say about this man, but I’ll save that for another blog post.

If you know me well, you should know that I have a major soft spot for slightly older Toyotas/Lexus’. Another car I brought in was Josh Velasco’s widebody IS300 SportCross. The last time Josh came out was when he first debuted the car at Wekfest Seattle ‘21. He opted to run an aggressive set of Luminous Pink Gram Lights 57DR wheels that originally came from Jazzy Jeff. The wagon definitely popped in a great way.

This thing looks so sick from all angles. When I first talked to Josh about the event, he actually mentioned that he was thinking about selling the car. I told him that if he brought the car to the show, it would attract a lot of interested buyers. And what do you know? A homie was very interested in purchasing it, and I knew it would be this specific person. I won’t mention who it is, but hopefully the transaction goes through sooner or later 👀

The homies from Alphabet Vodka were one of the vendors at the event offering some of their amazing spirits. I didn’t get a photo of them, but I did chat with Kyle Kestle who brought his LS swapped 240SX drift car. This was the first time I’ve seen it in person and it’s pretty damn sick! He had a unfortunate mishap a few years ago that caused some damage to the car, but that didn’t ruin his attitude. It gave him a reason to enjoy the car even more on the track.

Dan Pham pulled up in his super sleek F80 M3 fitted with a Laptorr lip and bronze TE’s. I managed to meet him and totally forgot that he’s related to some of my close homies Mike & Johnson Bui aka Just P’s Garage.

Not only did Ernie Ventenilla participate in the showcase, but he showed out his 2023 Integra A-Spec on Titan 7 wheels.

Tony Besabe and his awesome corgi chatting up with the guru, Sam Fu.

Linh Nguyen’s DA Integra looks great equipped with JDM one piece headlights, JDP Engineering lip, and Sprint Hart CP-R’s. He’s actually the same guy that won the Backyard Boogie raffle for the STATUS seats at Wekfest Seattle 2021.

Very cool ‘77 Datsun 280Z on Epsilon Mesh wheels owned by Maith Kong. I like how the carbon front lip flows right with the carbon overfenders.

Daychua Cha’s tracked out E92 M3.

Mikey Legaspi didn’t bring any of his cars to the event, so he drove in Al-Michael’s GS-R for him.

I don’t know much about Porsches, but I gotta say this 911 was perfect inside & out. Not a single flaw on this car.

Each of us did a little presentation to each other about our photos we displayed. I went first and I’m pretty confident to say my presentation sucked compared to everyone else LOL.

Chris Riley moved from Chicago not long ago, and he made sure to rep it hard judging from his top. Although he does capture the PNW car scene very well. He seems to be all about that Mopar life, and I’m all for it.

I met Sam Fu a few ago through Namsayin, and I gotta say he’s a real down to earth guy. He shoots pretty much anything whether it’s cars, portraits, or fire food. Whenever he isn’t shooting, he’s simply kicking it with homies and smeezing through the dance floor.

I wasn’t aware of Dhanel Arellano’s work until about a year ago, but it’s amazing to see what he was able to accomplish ever since. He produced a lot of quality content at a very consistent pace. Dhanel continues to grow himself and does whatever it takes to cover the community. People will proudly say, “OMG” about his photos just like his favorite song.

Ernie Ventenilla stays active going all across the country shooting a ton of track sessions and big time races like Indy 500, Daytona, Formula D, and so many more! He decided to do a slideshow consisting some of his amazing work throughout the years.

Patrick Nguyen actually participated last minute to the event. Even though he’s more known for weddings and portraiture, his automotive shots are fire! I’m glad he stepped up and joined us because he definitely deserved the exposure.

Mike Vu is the true definition of underrated. His photos represent more towards “Living in the moment” than “Posing for the camera”. He displayed a huge collage with countless memories. I respect him a lot because he prints his own photos as well.

Dereck Chinn has been a local favorite throughout the years. I came across his work a couple years ago when he shot Walter’s BRZ, but never met him until like last fall. Real chill guy, and his photos are very inspiring to many photographers all over.

The man himself, Walter Franco, had a very meaningful display. He put up original photos of his old team, first cars, himself & his bro working on cars, etc. from the 90s! Talk about priceless memories. Walter has done so much for our community, and I’m glad to have connected with him years ago. Shoutout to my bro Jason Rivera for introducing us to each other!

It was an honor to work alongside all these heavy hitting creatives. This event really helped us engage with each other more comfortably.

My mom had just got back from her vacation in the Philippines a few days before the event, and my sis & I definitely missed her presence. The Top 2 women in my life came through and was able to witness what I was about. They seen what I was capable of doing, and it’s safe to say they’re proud of me 🥰

My other 2 “sisters”, Lisa & Mel, pulled up as well along with my dope Godson, Raynen. I had more family members that showed up, but my ass got too distracted to take a photo with everyone. My bad!

Some close friends & Day 1 supporters from Backyard Boogie and Big Buto Crew pulled up & showed support like always.

Once things calmed down, I finally managed to get an overlooked photo of the space. There was a moment where it was so packed in the building that it was pretty tough to walk around the cars.

Alex Tran’s perfectly executed E36 M3 always gets the spotlight. His car was one of the photos I used to display. I was going to bring him in to display for the show, but Dereck already beat me to it LOL. It’s all good though. Alex was bound to show up regardless haha!

Local celebrity, Vinh Tran, came out with a V2 of his Supra equipped with a Sayber Design kit, EVS Tuning mirros, and bronze ZE40s. This looks so badass, and he already his next phase all planned out and ready to send it once everything comes in. Definitely one of the best A90’s in the PNW. Vinh has been killing it with the reels and became a big influencer from his dope, yet hilarious videos.

I finally witnessed one of Thomas Hatcher’s infamous burnouts lol. Even though it was raining, that didn’t stop from causing a nice fat cloud on the streets. You’ll see in the upcoming vlog.

Did a mini photoshoot of the cars I brought in with my display once most attendees left. It’s pretty obvious I love white cars and that was the theme I was going for. I originally had a 3rd car I was going to roll in, but a sudden hiccup occurred the day before. Definitely gonna be using it for a future gathering 👀

Super grateful for these two being able to show out their fire whips for the one time. True OG’s in the scene, and I’m blessed to be friends with them.

Like I mentioned earlier that my coverage wasn’t that great. There’s a big difference between attending and being part of an event, but hey I did my best and hope you enjoyed this lol. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the vlog!