The Fair

Best books I've read lately

• On Writing, by Stephen King. The guy knows how to write, I couldn't put it down.
• On the shortness of life, by Seneca. 2,000 years later and the content of these three letters is still relevant. Beautiful written, too.
• Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius. I read it as part of my study of Stoicism. Incredibly deep and humbling thoughts from the most powerful man of his time.
• The obstacle is the way, by Ryan Holiday. A good introduction to Stoicism, and an easy read. I'm currently reading his The daily stoic.
• Atomic Habits, by James Clear. Tips and tricks on how to build good habits and get rid of the bad ones. His is one of the very few newsletters I subscribe to and look forward to reading.
• Buddha: a story of enlightenment, by Deepak Chopra. A book about spiritualism written by an alternative medicine advocate is probably the last thing I'd expect myself to fall in my hands. The story of Buddha is a beautiful one and this book does a terrific job. One of my favorite reads of the last few years, hands down.
• Goodbye, things, by Fumio Sasaki. Minimalism is all the rage nowadays and I'm all on board. This was one of the first books I've read on the topic and it's still my favorite.
• Come comida real, by Carlos Ríos. This one is in Spanish. Nutrition is another topic I've been exploring during the last few months and this book does a great job at explaining why most of the "food" you find in a grocery store isn't real food at all. It also shows the benefits of eating healthy and why you shouldn't be ashamed of it (I struggled with this!).
• 10% Happier, by Dan Harris. How the author got into meditation and how it's helped improving his day-to-day life. Meditation and mental health is yet another topic I'm interested in, and this book is unique in that shows a person's experience with the practice, instead of a boring manual of things you should and should not do.
• The art of creative thinking, by Rod Junkins. Stories and lessons from famous and not so famous artists. I think one should carve their own path and not necessarily repeat what others have done in the past, but I found plenty of inspiration in this book.

What contrast is, why you need it and how to add it to your images

Contrast is one of the most important elements in photography. I'm not talking -only- about the slider in your photo editor to manipulate the tones of the image.

Contrast means difference. Creating difference between your subject and everything else, you are able to tell a story.

This can be achieved using the differences in color and luminance, but also using shapes, textures and more.

While we seek contrast between the subject and the rest of the photo, we want to minimize it within those elements - thus increasing it between them. One of my favorite techniques to achieve this is long exposure photography: smoothing out water, for example, we remove contrast from it hence increasing that contrast between the water and our subject.

I show you some examples of this and other techniques in this video:

Image of the Month, December 2019: "White Badlands"

White Badlands is the new Image of the Month for the month of December.

I made this image in the remote Badlands National Park, South Dakota, in the middle of a blizzard that brought almost a foot of snow to the park and closed all the roads around. I was probably the only visitor that day, surely the only one in that white and empty campground.

I spent most of the time in the car, waiting for a chance to get out and make some images. Eventually, I was able to get out for just a few minutes, face the freezing temperatures and do some photography. It was so worth it.

There's a video about that day, too.

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two sizes

Remember: there are two sizes to choose from, 6x6 and 8x8 (inches). In both cases, the matt and frame are 12x12 (this means a bigger margin for the 6x6 print).

shipping included

Shipping is free to the US. International shipping is a flat rate of $14.95.

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artist contract

A new image will be released every month and offered at a reduced price during that time. After 30 days, it will be sold at full price. They will never be on sale at any time in the future, the rate during the first month will be the lowest, ever.

want to know more?

You can find more information about how I create my images and all the details about pricing on The Art and Craft behind my prints.

White Badlands is available for purchase here.

Struggling to make images in beautiful Lake Lugano, Switzerland

I got to spend a few hours in Switzerland and tried to make the most of them. I hike to Monte San Giorgio where I get the best view of the trip, but I'm unable to create any images from up there.

It's about the quantity

I was wrong.

I used to believe that I should make every shot count, that I should have a higher ratio of keepers when I get back from a shooting.

Farther in my photography journey, I see now how I was limiting myself. Limitations can be good for creativity, but this one was just holding me back.

I realize now that this a process that involves many steps, every one of them as important as the previous one. I used to think all that mattered was the moment I pressed the shutter, everything had to happen then and there. Boy, was I wrong.

Today, I shoot a lot. I probably take 150 to 200 photos a day when I’m traveling, sometimes even more. Very, very few are good enough to make it through my process.

This change in mindset has made me a better and more aware photographer: if I’m waiting for the perfect moment to get my camera out and shoot, I tend to become distracted and disengage from the environment; if I’m constantly shooting, I’m focused, I’m working, I’m in the zone, if you will. This is why I take the first photo early on.

Yes, going through hundreds of photos to select just a few takes time and effort. But it’s supposed to! It’s not something I want to avoid anymore, but embrace.

We are impossible

Space

During these past few weeks, I spent quite some time staring at the mountains in the distance. They fascinate me. At night, I'd look up and see the shadows of those giants, just a few miles away. I'd imagine how cold it was up there, how windy, how deathly.

Not only we live in the only planet capable of hosting us, but it is within a very thin section of Earth that we live in: barely 3 miles from sea level to the highest settlement.

Time

If you were to spin a roulette of time, with numbers from the beginning of the Universe until its end, what are the chances that the ball would fall on your lifetime? Beyond impossible.

Existence

What about our own existence? If our parents had sex a mere seconds earlier or later, we wouldn't be here. The odds of our parents to exist and meet were even lower. It keeps getting less and less likely the higher you go.

Today is impossible

We live in an impossible part of the Universe, at an impossible time, and we are the product of an impossible chain of events.

Today is impossible and yet, it's happening.

PS: I'm working on a project about these issues and I think a lot about it.

Un Po D'Italia

A short movie with some clips and images from our time in Verona, Venice and Trento.

Lago di Garda

A short movie with some of the highlights of my time at beautiful Lago di Garda, in northern Italy.

Hint, don't show

I try to add as much mystery as I can in my images. I want them to be on the edge between reality and dreams, if you will: the viewer decides what they are looking at.

I often wonder if by sharing so much of my process (YouTube, Instagram stories...) I might be destroying part of that mystery.

Should I retreat into the shadows and share only the final image? Or should I keep sharing my journey as a way to inspire others?

I believe there's a balance to be found here as well: hint, don't show; inspire, don't keep it to yourself. You'll find me out there, looking for such harmony.

Meaning is in the eyes of the beholder

Woman getting up and waving to the Sun
Gym advertisement poster
Spirit emerging
Woman against a tsunami
Nuclear apocalypse
Ghost with big eyes trapped in the light
First steps after death
Hopeless look into the abyss
Swimming towards a wave
Fly trapped in insecticide
Dancer's dream
About to commit suicide
Caterpillar becoming butterfly
Double street light
Cobra threatening to attack
Origin of life
Apocalypse
Evolution

My mom has been fascinated by this image of mine since I posted it on Instagram a couple of days ago. Apparently, she's been looking for some meaning behind it. Those above are just some of the titles she's suggested.

I had no meaning in mind when I created it.

That's the beauty of photography and art, we can create for the sake of creating and the viewer can give it a meaning, if they wish to do so.

Photography isn't a recipe

f/64, 1/12,500sec, ISO 12.

One of the things I loved the most from Austria was the tirolean dumplings. So, so good! We want to make them ourselves, so we've been looking for some recipes online.

The list of ingredients only tell part of the story, the instructions of how to make them is what matters. Usually, we can get away with replacing some of the ingredients and still get a delicious meal, maybe even better than the original!

Ilford HP4, pushed 1 stop with Ilfosol diluted under a full moon.

Photography isn't very different.

We still like to share our settings and equipment used, but forget to mention what really matters when it comes to make a great image: why we were there at that moment and what we were trying to create -if anything at all.

RX100VII first impressions

My first hours with the Sony RX100VII, just in time to photograph a beautiful snowstorm in Innsbruck, Austria.

The mountains were calling

Hello from Arco, Italy,

Sadly, we had to leave Austria one week earlier than anticipated due to bad weather. Snow and ice prevented me from doing many of the things I wanted to do there, but it was those same conditions that gifted me with a magical day that made me miss the mountains.

I lived in Portland, OR, for 5 years. While the city might not get snow every winter (we got one big snowstorm in all of those years), the mountains around it are covered in white powder for several months a year. It's easy to find snow even during the summer, if you hike high enough. I absolutely loved it.

I find snow fascinating. I grew up in a place that barely gets any: flurries are scarce, seeing the snow stick on the ground is a once-in-a-lifetime-event. The nearby mountains do get snow but it's short-lived as the warmer temperatures melt it away rather quickly.

Innsbruck got pummeled with snow last Wednesday. The locals might have found it annoying for their commutes, but it was a gift for me: unable to reach the snowy mountains, they came to me.

Placed among giants, it was easy for me to reach high altitudes by simply walking from our place near downtown Innsbruck. I walked in the snow for hours, going as high on the mountain as I could. I knew it wasn't going to last (it's still November, after all) and I wanted to take it all in.

When I left the city behind and reached the forest, it was like being back in the mountains of Oregon. I was once again walking into magical scenes from a fairy tale.

I loved my time in Innsbruck, definitely on top of my list of places to go back to. Next time, hopefully, better prepared for the winter.

New addition to the family: RX100VII

I just doubled down on my approach to go compact with the purchase of the newest RX100, the mark VII.

The combo mark II + VA is near perfect for what I do. There were two main problems, though:

• The mark II is falling apart, and I'm afraid it'll stop to work at any moment.
• The lack of mic input in the VA has proven to be more painful than I initially thought, making my video workflow much more complicated.

The mark VII feels familiar in every sense, slightly bigger but the same camera. The mic input and the 200mm alone might be worth the huge price tag.

It's already been in the rain and heavy snow since I got it a couple of days ago, and it behaved like a champ. I'll share my final thoughts on this camera very soon for those who are on the fence.

The Church in Mösern

A couple of days ago and while driving around Mösern, I stumbled upon a church located in an incredible vantage point. Surrounded by mountains, it seems as though a photographer placed it there.

As the forecast was predicting quite a bit of snow up there for the next few days, I knew yesterday would be my only chance to photograph it again. So I went back.

This is the contact sheet. As you can see, I worked the scene from different angles and at different focal lengths. They require some more work, but I love two of those shots.

Ditch the viewfinder

Update: I've published a video where I talk about this.

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Daido Moriyama explains why he doesn't like SLR cameras in his documentary "Near Equal" (10:02):

"If you use a SLR, you see things like this (through the viewfinder)
[...]
and when you do this, you want to have perfect focus"

I've been shooting compact cameras for a few weeks now and I have to agree with Daido.

Viewfinders put you inside your image. Using the LCD screen keeps you in the present, aware of your environment. You don't see the fine details, only the big picture of what you are trying to create. You don't worry as much about the exposure or the focus.

All of this makes for a more spontaneous photography, and creates imagery that comes from the gut.

I've been trying to apply street photography principles to landscape and fine art, as opposed to the more meditative and slower process that is usually involved in the making of this kind of images. Instead of adjusting my composition and settings to perfection, I take in my surroundings: the sounds, the smells, the textures, the colors. And then I shoot what feels right.

I don't think either approach is better or worse than the other, and images might not be that different after all. I do enjoy the process more this way, though, and in that sense it's been liberating.

I'd encourage you to give this a try: ditch the viewfinder and embrace the LCD screen for a distraction-free photography.

Building momentum

As photographers, we often have to deal with resistance. As Steven Pressfield puts it, resistance "is a force that will stop an individual's creative activity through any means necessary", including "rationalizing, inspiring fear and anxiety".

After a long trip through Spain, France and Germany, I took a break for 3 days. It was a short one, but enough to "break the momentum" I had.

In this video, I face that resistance and try build momentum again. From beautiful Innsbruck, Austria.

How to shoot everyday

I need to photograph everyday.

A day without taking pictures is a sad day for me. No matter where I am or what I am doing, I always bring my camera with me and shoot, a lot. Most of these photographs never become an image.

Don't forget: motivation comes after action. When we do something, we get motivated and the wheel starts moving. Even on days when I can’t get out as much as I want, I still try to photograph: taking photos of myself, documenting what I do and what I have around me.

There doesn’t have to be a grandiose purpose or a life changing project, these are images for our inner artist, because we need to create.

These are some tips and ideas to help you stay motivated to shoot everyday:

• Start your day by accomplishing something, no matter how small that can be.
• Wake up and get out early, as often as you can. As Pablo Picasso put it, “inspiration exists, but it has to find you working”
• Daily walk and / or run with no destination in mind, do it for the sake of it. No matter where you live, you should be able to do this.
• Always, always, always bring a camera with you. It can be your phone, it can be a GoPro. Whatever.
• Just take that first photo. It'll get your creativity flowing and it'll build momentum.
• There's always an image to be made, keep your mind open and pay close attention. If you see anything interesting, capture it.
• Travel. Josef Koudelka said that he needs to move to a different place every few months because he gets used to places and stops seeing. That's why I travel and also how I got started in photography: when I moved to the US, everything was new to me, I started to see.