8 Jan 2013

Discovering photography


I was anxious. That’s the word to describe how I felt today when I finally held my first “serious” camera in my hands (I'm now a Micro Four Thirds user!). I had been shooting with basic point-and-shoot cameras for a few years until now, as I travelled from country to country. The experiences had always come first, while photography had always been a distant second. “Live, and then shoot, if you have some time” was my motto as I packed my bags and moved from one place to another, the small camera buried beneath piles of clothes and books.

Do I regret not having more shots from that period? That’s a tricky question: I enjoyed every moment I spent at every place, and they stay vividly in my mind. However, memory is wilful and not always reliable: photography can help it to remain sharp, and awake. Maybe I have lost things that I could otherwise retain, had I snapped a picture back then.

That’s how I see it now: I haven’t changed priorities, joining the thousands of ramblers who seem to travel around the globe (or their neighbourhood) for the only sake of taking pictures, whatever they might be, forgetting to “live” those moments in the meantime; I have learnt that both are intertwined and cannot be separated: “live while shooting, and shoot while living” could sum it up.

And so, new walks are about to start. But this time I will always have my camera in hand, legs and hands working together, advancing, seeing, strolling, framing, running, snapping. And, along the way, along the shutter presses, multiple smiles, and talks, and surprises. I'm sure of it.

Here it begins a diary of little discoveries and walks full of images. No matter if you travel far or just around the corner, the line between routine and adventure is indeed thin. It’s up to you which side to venture into.

26 comments:

  1. Muy buenos trabajos ! Felicitaciones ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. https://www.flickr.com/photos/one_year_with_my_lumix_gm1/

    ReplyDelete
  3. hi there. ive been looking for some photo blogs then ive found your blog at a website. Just want to say I like your photographs. It added me some inspirations to start working on my own photo blog too :) God bless and wish u the best.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Jekris! Thanks for your words and glad to be a boost for your own inspiration. Happy shooting!

      Delete
  4. Hi Gonzalo
    Congrats, very nice photos and compositions and an informative blog too. I like your diary about Thailand and Myanmar very much. I have been travelling in this region a lot and looking at your photos reminds me with a big smile on some of my experiences. I was a former Nikon D90 user for many years and switched to m4/3 (E-M5 M2) recently. I am very proud of my new gear and really love to go out and shot and try new things with this small but powerful cam. However, keep going on your good work and I wish you all the best.
    Cheers! andi (Suiza)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ¡Hola Andi! Thank you for taking the time to write such nice words! It's always encouraging to hear from people following the same path as one self! Thailand and Myanmar are indeed wonderful places to photograph, though the second can be a bit sad sometimes due to its conditions, hopefully that will slowly improve over time. I never had a DSLR before, since I started in photography with P&S and jumped from there to m4/3, but one thing is for sure, I wouldn't want anything bigger than this! It's a pleasure to carry such powerful devices in a small bag, almost to the point of forgetting they are there! I wish you a happy shooting time with your EM5-II too!

      Delete
  5. Love your work, how much did you pay for the 45mm lens. How come your English is so poetic?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    2. Thank you Richard. I bought the 45mm lens llong ago for around 300€ but I don't have it any more. As for my English, I guess language and photography are 2 things that go hand in hand for me, so I try to sharpen both as much as I can!

      Delete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Gonzalo,

    I found this link from Digital Photography School and I will be traveling to Thailand in April. I am new at photography and I'm supper excited to capture photos while on vacation. I purchased a Canon 70D and have a 50mm 1.8 lens and a Canon 15-135mm. Do you think these two lens will be enough? I am afraid if I just take my 50mm I wont be able to get photos of the amazing rocks while in Ko Phi Phi. Or will I? Id like to pack as light as possible.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Courtney,
      First of all, welcome to Thailand! I'm sure you'll love it here. As for your questions, I'm an advocate myself of traveling light, so I would suggest you to carry as little as possible, so as not to let the weight of your camera bag be on the way of your enjoyment of the trip (if it's too heavy you will end up leaving something at the hotel or blaming yourself for carrying so much weight in your long walks).
      I think the 2 lenses that you mention are more than enough, you can use the zoom for most of your daylight landscape photos and swap to the 50 at night or if you wanna take some portraits, so I would not worry about losing opportunities by not carrying more gear and instead focus on what you have. Hope you have a nice time!

      Delete
    2. Thank you!! I cant wait...

      Delete
  8. Hi Gonzalo,
    I found your blog by chance and I am glad I did. I have been practicing photography since 1992 when I bought my first M6 and lenses from a shop in the Rastro de Madrid where I lived for 6 years. Lucky for me the peseta, remember that?, was at an all time low to the dollar and I received a tax rebate so I got into the M rather "cheaply". Since Spain I have lived in 7 countries taking whatever time possible to walk the streets or countryside taking photos. I now share my home between Shanghai and Bangkok. I prefer Bangkok although the beauty of China's geography is undeniable. I have been walking the streets of Bangkok using my film M at times yet my primary camera is a Ricoh GR2. I just wanted to say that I reviewed your galleries and you really make the Panasonic sing. You have a great eye for light which is not easy in the harsh sunlight of BKK.I struggle with the light daily yet you have found a beautiful subtlety in finding its gentle places for rendering your photos. I am uncertain of your post processing work yet the subtle gradations of tonality are notable. Thanks for sharing your photos, I have bookmarked your blog, and I certainly hope for a chance to meet you on the streets of BKK.

    All the best,

    Jess

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Jess. I really appreciate your kind and affectionate words, I'm glad that you stumbled upon my blog and found it interesting! It's always motivating to discover other fellow photographers that roam the streets in our same cities, it brings a feeling of camaraderie, doesn't it? I have never been to Shanghai, but China, at one point, will be in my travel list, as I'm sure it has plenty of beautiful things to offer. As for Bangkok, well, you know it well, nothing much I can add, it's a great place to live in and to photograph, despite the harsh tropical light, as you say; it's always a challenge looking for good light and good subjects that complement each other, but that's the game!
      Hopefully you will find more interesting things in my future posts in the coming months. All the best to you too and see you on the streets!

      Delete
  9. Hey Gonzalo. I am stunned by your photography. It inspires me! Especially the photographs with the Nocticron are so... near and somewhat alive. Punchy... I can't really explain :) Just Awesome! Is there a possibility to see how you edit your photographs? Thanks a lot and keep on traveling! Tim

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you very much Tim. I always shoot RAW and edit my pictures individually in Lightroom but I try to keep things as minimal as possible, so I generally apply a very subtle increase in clarity and contrast and then I apply some specific masks to emphasise certain areas of the image. Depending on the image, I also apply a slight tone curve to boost the overall contrast, but whatever I do, I always follow the principle of "less is more" and I never resort to default presets, I work the pictures one by one since they are all different and deserve individual care. Hope this helps, but if you have more particular questions, feel free to send me an e-mail.
      Cheers!

      Delete
    2. Yeah Gonzalo, thank you very much for your time! I was wondering, if it was "only" Lightroom or something "specific" - so this helped a lot:) Your blog is really a pleasure to look at and read. Until next time! Cheers

      Delete
    3. Glad to be a source of inspiration, and happy shooting!

      Delete
  10. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hello Gonzalo, these are great photographs. I thinking of upgrading from my Sony NEX6 with kit lens to the GX80. Have you any images that I can see from the GX80 at full resolution? Thanks in advance.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Alan. I have never used a Sony camera before so I can't compare to the GX80. The images you se in the blog are all exported at 800px on the long side, if you want to see any particular image at full size, please send me an e-mail. Cheers!

      Delete
  12. Well you can use my alan.ferdman@gmail address. Hope you can choose to block this to prevent more spam. Thanks again. Alan

    ReplyDelete
  13. you blog is cool nice work man!

    ReplyDelete