journal
Less than ideal weather and some upcoming major changes in our lives led me to cut my road trip short and head back home, in the Midwest. However, the gods of photography had a very different idea in mind for me. A series of circumstances led me to Moab, Utah, where I found the best conditions (and images) of the whole trip so far.
A few years ago, I discovered an art form that transformed my approach to photography: sumi-e, or the art of Japanese Ink Painting. This ancient art taught me to capture the world in a simpler, yet more powerful way. By studying sumi-e paintings, I learned to harness the power of suggestion and simplification in my own work, inviting viewers to engage and connect on a deeper level.
This sight may fade away from your memory over time, but you will never forget the way witnessing it made you feel.
Indiana, April 2024.
Weather and chance lead me to Central Oregon, the next destination on my road trip across the American West. But this leg of the journey wasn't going to be as smooth as I was hoping for.
There, far away from everything and everyone, I fight the elements and an even more powerful enemy: my inner demons. I doubt myself, my photography, and even my purpose. An accident that resulted in a broken lens didn't make things any better; neither did a very cluttered mind after spending several days trapped inside the car.
The isolation of the desert was another unpleasant layer, but as the days went by, and with no other option but to embrace it, it became exactly the medicine I needed. It was the gift of the desert.
After years of doing this, one thing is pretty clear to me: more gear, more problems. A lesson I should’ve learned a long time ago, and yet, here we are.
During my most recent road trip across the US, despite lugging around 8-9 lenses, I did most of my photography and video work with just 2 of them. Add a couple of primes and the telephoto for those rare images that needed them, and the math tells me I’ve got 4-5 too many lenses.
But it gets worse, because of all the accessories and other gadgets cluttering up my bag: from the neglected 360 camera to the wireless mic that my phone could easily replace. It’s all excess baggage.
So, it’s time for a spring cleaning. I went through my bag (and closet) and decided to part ways with a bunch of stuff. Letting go is the easy part, though. The real challenge will be to resist the temptation to fill those now-empty spaces back up with new and shiny objects. To stay light.
Because out there, when the hike gets tough, when the weather takes a turn for the worse, when you are tired and exhausted after hours of chasing the shot... less is more. Always.
I’ve talked about the scars of war before. How cameras and lenses are meant to be used rather than left on a shelf.
This belief of mine was put to the test during my latest road trip across the West. I got snow, heavy rain, intense winds, and storms. I shot along the coast, in the rainforest, in the high desert, amidst the red landscapes of Utah, and on sand dunes. It was exhilarating at times, frustrating at others.
Twice, I dropped my cameras.
The first incident happened at the Painted Hills in Oregon. My video camera (a7iv) took a bad fall while I was recording myself on a windy late afternoon. I was rushing everything and failed to properly secure the tripod.
My heart skipped a few beats when I turned around and saw the destruction. I feared I’d lost the camera. Fortunately, it was “just” the 17-28mm lens that broke on the mount.
Now, that lens lives in my a7iv as I use it all the time for my videos. So hastily, I purchased another copy (a used one) on eBay. It turns out that was another bad, rushed decision on my part. Because once I got home a few days later, I managed to put the “broken” lens back together, and it seems to work just fine! So now, I own two 17-28mm lenses.
That wasn’t the end of my gear related accidents, though. A couple of weeks later, in the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado, I dropped my stills camera in the sand.
This was a rare accident. I don’t remember what I was doing with my video camera, but I thought that holding the a7riv between my legs was a good idea. I often do it without any trouble. However, this was a very, very windy day. I lost a bit of balance at some point and I instinctively tried to correct myself by shifting one of my legs, which made the camera fall into the sand. Thankfully, these cameras are well sealed and nothing bad happened. I cleaned it with the air blower, and that was it.
We are all one road trip older now -- my cameras and I. They bear new scars, and I probably grew some new gray hairs. We stumbled, we fell, but we stood back up. We are prepared for the next adventure. Unsure if any wiser than before, but certainly still strong enough.
A trip back in time, to the place where I fell in love with Black and White photography. The location where I made the first monochrome images... intentionally monochrome, at least. And I haven't looked back since.
With no restrictions and no boundaries, with the open road ahead of me, I decide to chase conditions instead of choosing a location. This decision will take me north, and the first stop is the enchanted forests of the Redwoods.
I go to Yosemite National Park chasing bad weather and hoping for moody conditions. The first trip since I'm back in the US, the first trip with the new car and the new camping setup.
This video is from a few days ago, but life has been really busy lately. A chapter has ended, a new one has begun.
After years of shooting in my hometown, it's hard for me to find new images. That's why I've decided to limit myself to shooting with just one lens for a few days. But not any lens, no. The least used lens in my camera bag, one that would prove to be quite the challenge in the narrow streets of town.
I forgot to share this video last week, as it went live while I was on a plane (new adventures coming soon!). Anyway, one all about fog photography, my favorite conditions to shoot in. Tips, how to compose, how to edit, camera gear and settgins, drones, and some words about safety.
I thought I had everything I needed for this trip, but I soon realized I had made some mistakes. And one of them was to underestimate the weather I was to find up in the mountains.
I visit As Catedrais beach, arguably the most beautiful beach in Galicia, to try out a new set of ND filters that the people at Kase were kind enough to send me after I destroyed mine back in Scotland. I am after an image I'd been wanting to make for a very long time, but never could. Until now.
I just sent the first newsletter in months, but it's a good one as it summarizes my recent road trip across Scotland and other parts of the UK. It includes links to all the videos and it comes with some of the best images I made.
I also updated this website's archive with those photos and even more, check it out here: scotland, england and wales.
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.
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.
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:
This one took me a while to edit. I only had a few days in the Lake District, experienced some pretty intense rain and winds, and loved every minute of it. I also love the images I was able to make in the park. A long video, but worth a watch.
My Scotland trip is coming to an end, but I couldn't leave without exploring Loch Lomond. I also got a place, after 56 nights in the car. It was quite a shock to the system, and a big change in the way I do photography.
