journal

Brutal conditions in Snowdonia National Park, Wales

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In other circumstances, I would have waited for better weather. But this was my last chance to do some more photography in the UK before heading back to Spain, and I didn't have a lot of time to explore Snowdonia, so I had to venture in less than ideal weather. Extremely windy, and very, very rainy. A couple of very intense days that brought a couple of images I love.

Editing has always been an integral part of photography

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Richard Avedon’s markup

 

Post-processing is one of the most controversial topics in photography these days, with some even dismissing edited photos as "digital art." This argument often comes from the idea that back in the film days, photography was more honest, and editing is a new thing.

History tells us a different story, though. Some big names in photography, like Ansel Adams and Bill Brandt, knew that what happened after the shot was just as important as taking it. Clicking the shutter was just another step in the very long process of crafting a masterpiece, which often required many hours in the darkroom perfecting the final print.

Other masters would use professional printers to bring their vision to fruition. Take Richard Avedon, for example. He handed his negatives to a master printer. This person would take Avedon's incredibly detailed notes and feedback and turn them into the final print. Now, that is even better than AI!

Perhaps, part of the criticism comes from the fact that the darkroom was once reserved for the most dedicated or the ones with the most resources. Today, anyone with a smartphone can tweak their photos -and it’s easy to overdo it.

Whether you prefer the simplicity of straight-out-of-camera shots or enjoy fine-tuning your images afterward, it is you who decides what to do and how to do it. Never let anyone change that.

My office on-the-go (what’s in my backpack)

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I’ve done a few “What’s in my bag” type of posts / videos in the past, mainly focused on camera gear. However, I’ve never talked about what else I use on a daily basis to do my work.

Given the nomadic nature of my lifestyle -permanently moving between Spain and the US and spending months living in my car for photography- I try to keep it simple, light and pragmatic. I don’t have an office anywhere; my backpack is my office.

Most of the items in my backpack are at least 3 years old; some I’ve been using for over 8 years. I like to use the stuff I own until it breaks, unless they significantly hinder my life or work.

While the newest Macbooks and iPhones have very tempting features like SD card slots and USB-C ports that would greatly simplify my workflow, I can’t justify spending so much money on something I can fix with a couple extra cables and a dongle.

I don’t own an iPad anymore, and I rarely carry a wallet. Despite considering external keyboards, trackpads and monitors many times, their benefits would not make up for the added weight and cost.

So, this is all there is in my backpack right now:

  • Timbuk2 backpack - stolen from my wife, who originally got it from her former employer. A good upgrade from my previous generic Amazon backpack.
  • Macbook Air M1 (13”, 16GB, 1TB) - the best computer I have ever owned, period. Even though it’s now the oldest and least powerful of Apple’s laptops with Apple Silicon chips, 3 years in and it still excels at editing 4k video and 61-MP RAW files from my Sony A7R IV. Pair that with a battery that lasts all day and you get a winner. And yet, this laptop is not perfect: limited ports and the dongle hassle. When it’s time to retire the Air (not anytime soon!), my eye is on the (base) Macbook Pro.
  • Hyper Drive dongle - an inconvenient necessity, but still preferable to spending $2k+ on a new computer. A few extra ports and slots for SD and micro-SD cards, everything I need.
  • SanDisk 2TB Extreme SSD - upgraded from the 512GB version a few months ago. It stores my entire Lightroom catalog, every single photo in it. While I also have them backed up in the cloud, having a local copy speeds up the editing process.
  • LaCie 2TB rugged external HDD - one of the oldest items in my backpack, still going strong after 8 years of use. Currently, it stores the high-resolution versions of my YouTube videos from the last 3 years. It’s running out of space so I will need to get another one soon.
  • Seagate 5TB external HDD - used to store raw footage from my adventures in the field and a third backup copy of my Lightroom catalog.
  • Sennheiser 4.50 - exceptional headphones for the price ($100 back in 2018). I had to replace the earpads, which had worn out from the heavy use. Battery life is still great after 6 years, and I don’t see myself replacing them any time soon either. If I had to find a flaw is the MicroUSB port, one of the very few devices I have left that use such connector, forcing me to have an extra cable.
  • iPhone 12 mini - the best phone I have ever owned, one I will treasure until it breaks. I absolutely love the size, and it runs the latest version of iOS smoothly. Even though the 15’s cameras and USB-C port are tempting, they are not worth spending $1k+. I’d rather use that money on a photography trip. I’m not a big fan of phone photography, anyway.
  • AirPods 2 - initially reluctant due to the cost, they are perfect for listening to podcasts or music around the house, on a walk or a run. I also use them on-the-go for video editing, when I don’t have the Sennheiser around or it’s a hassle to use them. The AirPods got daily use for almost 4 years now, and I have no plans to replace them.
  • RAVPower 26,800mAh - I have another 2 smaller portable batteries, but this one can charge my Macbook Air through USB-C. My phone can run off this battery for a week. Ideal for road trips.
  • Apple Watch Series 6 - good enough to track my walks, runs and hikes. I also use it to set timers for my long exposures. And as a silent alarm clock: a better and more respectful way to wake up.
  • Moleskine Cahier Journal - for those moments when I want to jot down some thoughts while away from the screen. I don’t find analog note-taking practical for my lifestyle -lugging around several notebooks across the ocean is out of the question. However, I still find joy in picking up a pen and writing or drawing something on paper every once in a while.
  • Stabilo Point 88 fine 0.4 - my current favorite pen to use on the Moleskines, great feel to it. It’s a new addition so time will tell how long the ink lasts.

Growth is hard, but so rewarding

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Scotland has been quite a challenging place to photograph, to say the least. For most of my time here, the rain and wind made my job incredibly difficult.

My gear took some damage (exhibit 1, 2 and 3), but I also had to endure the elements myself.

And yet, these challenges made me a better photographer. Scotland pushed me, but it did so in a very positive way. I had to work hard, really hard, but without being overwhelmed by impossible conditions, even though I did face some of those moments.

I feel like I've grown as a photographer more in the last 2 months than in the entire past year, since I went on a similar adventure across Norway. It was tough, even painful at times, but I cherished every minute of it.

Testing our limits, wherever they may lie, is key to growth and progression. Photography is no exception.

Who are you creating for?

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Most watched videos on my YouTube Channel

 

From my experience, a photographer's audience is comprised of mainly two groups: people who enjoy their images; and other photographers.

The latter is a much larger group than the former, and that's why many photographers seem to be creating for others like them.

Take a look at the screenshot above showing the most watched videos on my YouTube channel: many more people want to hear about an 8-year-old camera that is not being made anymore, than to see what can be done with it.

Photography is such an accessible medium (everyone with a smartphone is a photographer!), that most people will come at it from the perspective of a photographer rather than a passive viewer.

Everyone wants to become a better photographer, the faster the better. That's why talking about camera gear sells, or why arguments over ISO values are a thing.

Some photographers have had so much success with this approach that they all but stopped taking pictures. They've become extremely knowledgeable about cameras and lenses, but they might have forgotten how to use them.

However, I'm not here to shame anyone --that expertise is extremely valuable, and we should consider ourselves lucky enough to have it available out there, mostly for free.

But I doubt this was what most of us had envisioned when we first picked up a camera. This is simply a reminder to everyone out there -including myself- to never forget why we started taking pictures in the first place, and who we are creating for.

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Sometimes, I'll rewatch some of my older videos. I love the work I did in the Great Salt Lake, or in the beautiful Lofoten Islands, among many others. But I have never, ever, rewatched any of my top 10 most viewed videos -- the ones focused on camera gear or the technical aspects of photography. And I think that speaks volumes.

Still, the reality of photography is what it is, and that's one of the reasons why I decided to create a second channel a few months ago. I haven't uploaded any video for a while there, but I'm about to start very soon. That is "content" aimed to photographers and nothing else. The main channel will become a sort of sacred place where I shall talk less and less about photography, and more about the why we create.

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Update: I expand on this a bit more in this video.