journal
Create everyday, no matter how small, and your portfolio will end up being impressive.
Be consistent, stay healthy, and put the effort.
Results to our hard work are often delayed; in photography, they can be delayed years in the future. But they will come.
Keep shooting.
A couple of years ago, the furthest I was able to run was around a hundred feet. On a good day, I might have been able to do a couple of push ups. A 5-mile hike felt like a huge achievement, deserving of a few beers and a week of rest.
Back then, those were my limits - I had never pushed my body to go beyond them. I thought running, push ups and long hikes were for somebody else, athletes, people who had had better luck than me in the DNA lottery. Nothing I could about it.
Thankfully, at some point I realized there was a lot I could do. I was never going to make it to the Olympics, but I wanted to see how far I'd be able to go.
Today, I know I can run 10 miles without much problem (I expect to run my first half-marathon this week). I know I can do 100 push ups every day... because I do them. After the Camino, I also know I can hike for 25 miles a day for a whole week.
Nothing impressive, but I'm very proud of my progression in the last couple of years. I'm in a much better shape now at 38 than when I was 20 - and I can't wait to see how much further I can go from here.
They say we are stronger than we think - we are. But we can get even stronger. Limits aren't fixed, they can be pushed further away, wherever you might be right now.
This can be applied to almost everything in our lives. There are so many limits we haven't tested yet - they can be pushed as well. This is how we grow.
I love reading physical books.
Most of them, though, only serve their purpose for a few days. Once I'm done with them, they become both a waste and a burden (my semi-nomadic life means I can't bring them with me). Reselling or donating them is the only option -if you can find anyone who wants them, that is.
This is why the vast majority of books I read are electronic: there's no waste and bringing them along is not an issue. But I miss the paper...
Libraries are the answer to this problem. In general, libraries here in the US work so much better than the ones I've used in Spain. Even though you might have to wait a few days (or even a few weeks if the book is popular), you get access to a huge catalog of physical and electronic books, plus a big collection of audiobooks.
One of the first things I did once my quarantine was over was to visit my local library and renew my membership. I also grabbed a few books, of course. And I have a few more on hold that should be on my way from other branches all over Indiana.
This way, I get to read and enjoy the paper version of the book, and return it for someone else's enjoyment. There's no waste, and no need for more storage.
If I like the book, I can buy the electronic version to keep as reference / for future readings.
We are back in the US. This was our experience traveling during a pandemic.
I had big plans for 2020. Like everyone, I suppose.
As fate would have it, we were supposed to leave for Ireland the same day the lockdown happened in Spain. That trip to Iceland and the UK got cancelled, as did the trips to the Alps and all the hiking I was planning on doing in the American West.
Life goes on, though, and after spending months of lockdowns and big restrictions in Spain, it was time for us to come back to the US. Officially, we live here, so we had to. Also, we hadn't seen our family here in months. Airports opened again and we were able to book a flight - who knows how long this window will remain open, if things get worse it might have been our only chance to come back.
Traveling felt weird, very weird. Our first flight was packed, and being around so many people for the first time in months was an experience. Seeing Heathrow so empty was chilling. But boarding a big Boeing 787 on an intercontinental flight with just other 20 passengers was something else.
Anyway, we are back.
Planning the rest of the year is challenging. We will stick to the US and there will be no flying involved. We are looking for a used car that we can take on a trip to the West in a few weeks. I'm hoping to be back in Oregon / Washington for a couple months during hiking season, then down to Southern California / Arizona in the fall, and back to the Midwest by late fall or early winter. I do look forward to photographing the snow and frozen lakes.
All of this can change overnight if the pandemic goes out of control again and states start to restrict movement. That's why I will need to be even more flexible this time around and plan only a few weeks ahead of time.
I'm excited, though. I miss my family, the dogs and farm life, of course, but I can't wait to hit the road again.
What a beautiful day of photography at the coast! It was so packed and productive that I learned 7 lessons I want to share with you.
Many times, while I photograph, I lose track of time. I forget where I am. I don't even realize until later how cold it was, or how wet my clothes were from the rain.
It's when this happens that photography feels like meditation. It's not a mystical experience -rather, it's about being fully aware of your surroundings and focusing on the present moment. Forgetting about what time it is, which day of the week it is, why you are even there. You feel at peace.
“The greatest events are not our noisiest but our stillest hours” - Friedrich Nietzsche
In meditation, the breath is the anchor to the present moment. In photography, it's composing an image. For a few moments, nothing else matters - I hold my breath, I'm alone, I can feel what I'm doing, I can see the image.
Photography done this way encourages mindfulness, you can find a quiet state of mind by surrendering to the process. Through patience, photography compels you to see, not just look.
And it's then, when we see, that magic can happen.
A chilly and foggy morning spent in the woods. I love having this weather in mid-June!
"The unseen is what fuels the imagination" - Om Malik
Have you ever wondered why readers who like a book usually dislike the movie version of the same story? In most cases, this is because no matter how good the author is and how many words they use to describe the characters and the places, a book is a non visual medium and in the end it relies on the reader's imagination to fill the gaps. Every reader will live the story in a unique way, making it more engaging and personal. On the other hand, the movie gives up almost everything with its visuals, every person watching it will see the same, there's not so much room for imagination.
Even though photography -like films- is a visual medium, there are some ways we can spark the imagination of the viewer. This will make them stop while scrolling down on their Instagram feed, or stare at the image a bit longer in an exhibition. When we get that kind of attention, that means the image works.
Black and white, removing details from the shadows and highlights, using the weather to your advantage, shooting at night... are just some of the techniques we can use to make our images a bit more obscure. In the video above, I show you an example.
Try to create intentional gaps in your images, so the viewer has to use their imagination to fill them in. By making some things go unseen, you'll be adding more to the image.
Related: Hint, don't show, 5 ideas to make images in the fog.
“Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work” - Chuck Close
I've said it many times, but it's worth repeating it every once in a while: we don't take photos because we are inspired, we become inspired because we take photos.
It's by acting and doing that we get motivated and inspired to create meaningful art. Some times, that means we have to push ourselves a little bit to get out and work. While it might sound hard at first, it's always worth it.
I love compact cameras. If you can fit it in your pocket, you can bring it everywhere with you, and that means more chances to shoot, thus better images.
Andrew from Frozenwaste.land and I sat down (virtually) and had a chat about photography, my new book, and other stuff. Check it out: Becoming an American: Adrian Otero Vila (aows).
In this video, I share a couple of projects that are still "work in progress".
I just went through the images I made almost exactly one year ago at the beautiful Palacio da Pena, in Sintra, Portugal. I'd been to the place many times in the past, but this was my first time as a photographer.
A short video of me editing 5 of my most recent images in Adobe Lightroom CC.
I had a little chat with Sam from The Unrecovering Photography Addict, the result is the interview 30 questions with photographer Adrian Vila. I hope you enjoy it!
I'm a big advocate of new technologies, but also very aware of the dangers of smartphones and always-connected devices in general. While they can be tools of empowerment for artists, they can also be the source of distraction.
A distracted mind can’t take photos. Let’s see how reading can rebuild our capacity to focus and increase our attention span, and how that affects our photography.
Read MoreA little short movie made on a few rainy days.
