journal

Getting ready for the photography to come

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Being in good physical shape is a usually overlooked skill in a photographer, especially those who do most of their work outdoors.

The 3-month-long road trip across Norway I embarked on last year definitely took a toll on me, as I went from walking / running more than 10 miles a day to sitting in a car most of the time.

Even though I do a lot of road side photography, being in good shape means more stamina and mental clarity. Something I've clearly been lacking during the last few weeks.

This is hard to measure objectively, but I have noticed that I tend to make better images while on some training program, or immediately after. When I let myself go for a bit, the quality of my work eventually follows by going down.

While this winter hasn't brought as much snow as I was hoping for here in Indiana, I've been working hard on other aspects of my photography (like my contact sheets and my upcoming book "Memorias na néboa"). And that includes getting my body ready.

It's been just a few weeks of training; outside and, when the weather is too nasty, on the treadmill facing an empty wall. As weird as it might sound, I'm convinced those hours spent staring at nothing in the garage will translate into good images in the months to come.

Remember: photography is something you have to do every day, and that doesn't always means taking pictures.

I made two books with the contact sheets of a whole year of photography

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During 2022, I dedicated some time to create contact sheets of all the photographs I was taken. Including the terrible, bad ones. I wanted to preserve them as a brand new way to look at my work. Focusing less on individual photos and outings, taking a bird's eye view of my work as a whole. And I loved it.

The result is two thick volumes, more than 700 pages and more than 14,000 photographs.

In this video, I'll tell you why I decided to do it, why you might want to do the same, and how to do it.

Cheap long exposure photography using welding glass

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When life gives you welding glass, you take long exposures! After breaking my last ND filter, I headed to a hardware store to purchase another kind of dark glass, one that I use when I was getting started with long exposure photography years ago. And you know what? It's even better than I remembered. A totally viable option for low budget long exposure photography.

When photography is frustrating

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Photography is not always fun. In fact, it can be really frustrating at times. That's what makes it so challenging but at the same time so rewarding, you have to work hard to get the results you want, and there's guarantee you'll succeed.

Even when we get something, like I did in this video from Pacifica, something else can happen. This day, I lost my only surviving ND filter.

Thank you for 2022

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Time flies, and 2022 is already in the rear mirror. What a year this was for my photography! It started relatively slow, with tons of local photography, but it brought a crazy second half with tons and tons of traveling. These were the highlights and best images of the year.

Thank you so much for following along and for all your support. I couldn't do this without you.

Inspiration is contagious

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If you've ever felt an urge to grab your camera and start taking photos after seeing a great image from another photographer, this one is for you.

I keep a folder -aptly named "Inspiration"- in the Notes app on my phone with a collection of images that, for whatever reason, inspire me. Most are from photographers I admire, some are random online finds.

Sometimes, when I'm not feeling it, I open that folder and start scrolling through those images. More often than not, this simple act puts me in the right mood and I start seeing.

Perhaps, this is something you want to try yourself.

Inspiration can spread like wildfire.

What "Black Friday" can teach us about ourselves

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Camera companies don't sell cameras, or lenses; they are trying to sell us an idea, a hope: buy this piece of equipment and you will become someone else, an adventurer, an explorer; finally being able to make the images you've always wanted to make.

We take the bait, and it feels good for a few hours, or a few days. Photography feels exciting again! But of course, nothing lasts forever, the hedonic treadmill works its magic and we are back to base one, feeling uninspired, until another sale tries to convince us once again that we can get there by purchasing yet something else.

Camera companies, like every retailer during this time of the year, are playing with our feelings of dissatisfaction. Perhaps with our own work, or something else. A feeling we can easily get rid of with just a quick and easy purchase.

As a photographer, I've been and I am there. I too feel dissatisfied, and spend way too much time thinking of camera gear and other easy ways to battle those feelings.

Even during this road trip across Norway I'm on, whenever I felt uninspired and couldn't find any images, I started to fantasize with what other places I should visit next. Almost wishing I was somewhere else. Imagine that, being in Norway and thinking that way!

I speak only from my personal experience, but I believe that these feelings are normal and natural to us. Perhaps, even the source of our creativity. The desire to create something new, the urge to keep getting out, the itch to explore and discover the world.

I think this is our curse, something we will experience as long as we are still growing. I believe that the moment we stop having these feelings, we will have stopped improving. And that'll probably be a sad moment.

So, be aware of this. We feel dissatisfied because we are still growing as photographers, as artists. Recognize that feeling for what it is. Look at it from a distance. Try to accept it. Don't let it define you. Be kind to yourself.

And then, grab your camera and go out make some pictures. That's still the best remedy I've found to put these feelings down.