journal

How to be original with your photography

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To be original, you have to stop trying to be original. Don't overthink it.

Sure, don’t chase trends, don’t go to popular locations just because they are popular. But don’t become a contrarian either, someone who avoids them just to be different, because those have also fallen in the trap. They are still comparing themselves to others, attaching a meaning to their work depending on what others do or don’t do.

We should care only about whether we are staying true to ourselves, photographing what means something to us, creating the images we enjoy looking at. If that means going to Yosemite, then so be it.

But don’t limit your photography to those trips, photograph every day no matter where you are and what you are doing, even if it doesn’t seem like there’s anything to photograph. There is, there always is.

Take advantage of that that makes you unique, and make images every single day. In the long term, that is what will make your work original, unique, and true to yourself.

The sky at grocery stores

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I couldn't help but to laugh hard at this meme, because it's so true.

The reason is simple: we go to the grocery store more often than we get out to photograph, probably after work and around sunset time. Thus, more chances for incredible conditions to happen.

Want amazing skies at scenic locations? Then, go there more often, get out.

And if you can't do that, walk to the grocery store and bring your camera with you. You never know what you are going to find.

You must delete the work you are most proud of

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"Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings” - Stephen King

As photographers, we need to know if our images make us feel the way we feel because of their composition, light, subject, atmosphere... or if it's our memories of making them that are responsible instead. Because if it's the latter, if it's the context only us have as the makers, as the ones who were there, then no one else is going to feel the same way towards those images.

Interview with "Cómete el Film" (spanish)

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A few weeks ago, I had a very nice conversation with the folks from Cómete el Film, and this is the result. One of the very few times I got to talk about my work in Spanish, so it was a very welcomed change.

Hace unas semanas, tuve una conversación muy interesante con los chicos de Cómete el Film, y este es el resultado. Una de las pocas veces que he hablado sobre mi trabajo en español, un cambio que agradecí bastante.

If I could use just one lens...

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...that'd be the Tamron 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6.

I never had a super zoom lens before, and I had a lot of doubts about this one before getting it. And now I can't see myself with it. In many ways, it is the replacement of my now dead RX100VII.

I just love the range, image quality, and speed in that small package. It's also relatively affordable, especially for a full-frame lens.

Of course, it comes with some compromises, like strong vignetting (fixable in post for the most part), variable aperture (it goes down to f/3.2 by 32mm, and it reaches f/5.6 at 158mm) and, above all, it lacks stabilization - this could be a problem when shooting at long focal lengths. Personally, it wasn't a deal breaker for me.

Photography is not a competition

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Photography (and art, in general) is not a zero-sum game. The goal should never be to try to “steal” a slice of the pie from other photographers, but to help each other to make the pie bigger. The more people know about photography, the more joy they can find in art, the better for every creator out there.

That’s why we owe so much to the photographers that came before us, and to the photographers that are bringing more and more attention to this world nowadays.

Want to stand tall? Don’t wish everyone else were shorter, just take yourself to higher ground.

A bike and a camera

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I've been having a lot of fun with my bike lately. My bike and my camera, that is: almost the perfect marriage. I got to go to places where I'd never go neither by foot nor by car, and as a result, I made some new images. I got sick, though, as the temperature drops like a billion degrees when you ride a bike in cold weather. Totally worth it.

How I predict fog

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I love fog. Fog is very important for my photography, as it creates the atmosphere and the mystery I look for with my images.

As you can imagine, being able to predict (or at least have some degree of confidence) where and when fog happens can make a big difference. That’s why I always keep an eye on some key numbers that are a good indicator of possible mist.

I use an app called Clear Outside. It’s not a good one, it’s old and hasn’t been updated in years, but I love how simple it is. I can see everything I need in one quick glimpse, with no distractions.

What I look for is:

  • Wind: as little wind as possible, ideally no wind at all.
  • Rain can create its own fog, but most of the time it will leave you with images that look like they were taken on a cloudy day. Only that you got wet to make them.
  • Humidity: has it rained lately? is the ground wet? are there lakes nearby? Here where I live, fog won’t happen if humidity is below 90%.
  • Temperature: a cold night followed by a warm day can fill the air with all that humidity present on the ground.
  • Dew point: the closer to the actual temperature, the better. It is when these two values are the same that fog appears to be the thicker, at least in my experience.
  • Topology: valleys are more prone to fog, as they “trap” that humidity.

This is not an exact science, quite the opposite: predicting fog is really hard. But with the right numbers, and some knowledge about the location, you can have a rough idea of what to expect. And maybe have your camera bag ready to go, just in case.

Hiking to Lacs d'Ayous, in the french Pyrenees National Park

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One of the most beautiful hikes I've done in the Pyrenees. The lakes reminded me a lot of the Enchantments in Washington State, another of my favorite hikes.

This is a moderate hike, a 9.5mile / 16kms loop with some 2,500 feet / 800m of elevation gain. Rocky terrain, it was also a bit slippery due to the rain of the day before.

Photography wise, there are plenty of opportunities. The hike starts through a dense forest with some very beautiful trees, and then opens up once the lakes start. You get incredible views of Midi d'Ossau, and there are other peaks as well.

As always in the mountains, it's all about the light. Conditions can change quickly, especially on partly cloudy days. If you find a composition you like, it might pay off to wait a little bit to see if the light improves.