A photo from camping in Cajon del Maipo outside of Santiago, Chile
Showing posts with label south america. Show all posts
Showing posts with label south america. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Peruvian Man
A random photo taken in 2010 in Peru. We were somewhere between Lima and Cusco. The bus had stopped on the side of the road beside a cluster of small homes around a farm. It wasn't exactly a town or a village as it was far too small. We were given a brief glimpse of simple life in the Peruvian countryside and when the moment arose I snapped a few photos of this local looking off into the hills.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
My Photo in Lift Magazine
The 2012 issue of Lift Magazine, a Chilean ski magazine is out and it looks awesome! This is my first 2 page spread and it feels goooood. Big thanks to Juan Luis de Heeckeren for the in and Carlos Ferrer for choosing to run this image!
Monday, September 24, 2012
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
At La Parva
On the mountain at La Parva, just an 1.5 hours outside of Santiago. My friend Felipe and I were stopped by the side of the lift waiting for Clemente, a local Chilean skier, to come up on the chair lift to do some crazy flips. There was surreal atmosphere from the deep blue skies and a constant wind that blew snow around just about the ground.
Monday, August 27, 2012
View from La Parva
This last weekend was super productive and a lot of fun. I had the opportunity to shoot some talented skiers up at La Parva. It was a beautiful day with awesome conditions. Below is a photo of the view of the town and looking down the Andes towards Santiago. I got some shots I'm really excited about, but I'll only be able to post some of the outtakes as the best ones will hopefully be ending up in a Chilean ski/snowboard magazine. But we'll see!
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Stray Puppy
A stray puppy hiding behind a pile of snow at Valle Nevado ski resort outside of Santiago. He was one of eight dogs running around together. More photos of the rest coming soon!
Monday, August 20, 2012
First day at Valle Nevado
Finally, after two years of a snowless existence I have made it back to the mountains. It feels amazing to be back. I love the community centered around skiing and snowboarding because no matter where you go there is a very similar energy.
I'm in Chile now and it is certainly different from Lake Tahoe or Colorado, but when you are up at the ski resorts, other than the scenery being different, the atmosphere is quite similar. And the atmosphere is always upbeat and lively. Ski resorts are a place where people with the same passions and interests are brought together to enjoy themselves. What can be bad about that? The answer is obviously nothing.
I haven't gotten to go up to the mountains as much as I'd like to due to the fact I've got a bunch of other work going on. That, and it's kind of expensive. Without a ride from a friend or the energy to try and hitchhike, it is about $28 to get up to the mountain each day. Then if you don't have another friend to get you a half of student ticket you may be forced to pay the full price of $80 for a lift ticket. In Chile, skiing is definitely more of a sport for the rich and the tourists. Limited housing up at the mountains makes this even more of an issue.
Perhaps the biggest downside of going to the mountains from Santiago, especially for me living in Santiago Centro, is the commute. When I'm forced to take the tourist bus up I have to leave the apartment at 7am, dressed in all my gear and walk through crowded streets with my snowboard, boots and camera bag. I then have to squeeze onto a packed, rush hour metro. This usually involves waiting for 2-5 trains to pass to find an opening I can even consider fitting into.
I then have to walk another 8 blocks to the bus and wait on line with a bunch of tourists to get a seat on the next bus to the mountains. Pay $26 and then sit there sweating for another two hours up to the mountains. So a day snowboarding can cost over well over $100 and require six hours of commuting. The first time was ok, for the experience, but I can see this commute getting very old, very fast.
Once you get to the mountains it is all worth it though. July was a weak month and produced almost no snow, but fortunately they have been getting some snow the last couple weeks. It's still a little dry but better than nothing. Below are a few photos of my first day up with my friend Diego.
The road to Valle Nevado from Farellones
View of the hotel and lodge at Valle Nevado
Diego popping a little shifty into the sun
A bigger shifty
The shuttle van at dusk
Sunset over Santiago in the distance
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Photo 1 of 3 from new photo series
This is the first image in an untitled series of three that I shot for a new Chilean magazine based out of Antofagasta. It is a mini story of a woman who sees herself on the street. The other two will be posted in upcoming days.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Layover in Bogotá
Colombia is one of those countries that as an American growing up in the 80's and 90's, I was force fed a mostly negative image of. It is unfortunate that the media, popular culture and society tainted my image of a country before I really knew anything of what it was about. As I found out the other day, Colombia is way more than a country filled with cocaine dens where Americans are kidnapped the second they step from the airport. Yet, because of information forced in front of me at an earlier age I didn't know what to expect when finally getting to visit Colombia.
Traveling around South America I met a lot of people who have spent significant amounts of time in Colombia or planned to in the future. The image you get now, from people who actually know it personally, and not just from stories you hear on the news, is extremely positive. The saying I keep hearing is that the people of Colombia really want to shed the image of being a hostile country and go out of there way to do so.
This is exactly what I found. Unfortunately, I only had one day in Bogota, so I don't have the experience of somebody with a well developed personal opinion of the country. I got the smallest taste of what life in Bogota is like and it left me wanting a whole lot more. I had more random encounters with genuinely nice people in my 16 hours in Bogota, than I did in weeks of time in other countries. The positive image I have of this city is based upon the helpful and caring people that stepped right into my life for a moment while I wandered the streets.
Nestled amongst the Andes, with thick forests all around, the city itself is beautiful and oozing with colorful character that kept me enthralled for every minute I had there. The buildings were bright and well aged, with all the cracks, holes and peeling paint adding to the aesthetic appeal. Cobblestoned streets with vibrant grass popping out between the cracks, lead through tiny alleys and up steep hills. There is ever-present street art which really brings a unique energy to the city.
All I did, all day, was walk around, sit in plazas, eat and take pictures. I headed out of the airport at 9am and ignoring the advice of the information guy at the airport, I took a bus instead of the easier, faster taxi ride ($.75 vs $10). I really had minimal idea of where I was going. I looked at a half-loaded Google map for a few minutes and figured if I just found a bus going straight on the road out of the airport I would be able to figure it out. And it all worked out quite easily. Within 30 minutes I got to La Candeleria in the Centro which is a small neighborhood in the hills of Bogota.
My first encounter was with a nice Colombian man who happened to be homeless. I was eating a massive chocolate croissant-like pastry {photo} in a park and this thin, 20-something-year-old, absolutely filthy but completely unthreatening man approached me and asked me for a piece of my bread. I had just been thinking about how it's literally too big to eat alone, especially after a breakfast of coffee, some strange, mild white cheese, eggs with ham and bread. And he popped up to alleviate the situation. There was something about this man that I immediately saw he wished he didn't have to be asking for food, but was just so desperate he had no other choice. He cupped his hands, stood about 5 feet away and asked in the least threatening way possible for a piece of bread. I couldn't say no, so I ripped a tiny bite off for myself and handed him a piece the size of my hand. He said "que bueno, gracias," about four times before devouring it. He couldn't hide his sincere gratitude if he tried.
Being from New York you get trained to ignore most, if not all, beggars. There are simply too many of them and more often than not they are ungrateful or overly annoying. But this guy was alright.
Twenty blocks later I had worked my way through a number of tiny side streets and I was crouched on the sidewalk shooting some biker making his way around a bend. An old man in his 70's with a thick white moustache stopped walking beside me to avoid getting in my way. He then proceeded to ask me how I was liking Bogota and told me about streets nearby I should check out. I got the feeling he was just walking home and saw some young foreigner half lying on the ground in his neighborhood. So why the hell not stop and talk to him? It was genuinely friendly moment between two strangers.
A few hours later I had made my way higher up into the hills. I had heard it's best not to go high up because it can get more dangerous. But everything about the day so far had been so enjoyable and I didn't feel the least bit threatened or anything less than pleasantly surprised by the people here. As I was taking photos of a window cleaner rappelling between two windows, a cop came up to me out of nowhere.
Generally when this happens I have no interest in talking to them and I assume he wants to complain about something I'm doing wrong. But this young cop came up to me just to recommend that I don't walk farther up the hill, and even around here it is better to keep the camera out of sight, just in case. We then talked about why I was in Colombia for the day and what I do in Chile. He also let me know that he would keep any eye out while I was shooting around there. He was just really damn nice. What is it with these people?
While sitting down in a restaurant for lunch I asked the waiter what he recommended because I didn't know anything about Colombian food. He recommended trout with some sort of mushroom sauce. He came back to ask how my food was, and when I told him it was very good, he immediately flashed a smile. He was no doubt feeling proud that he made a good selection. Again, genuinely nice.
Getting a bus back to the airport proved to be a little bit of a hassle. Traffic here in the Centro at rush hour was chaotic. There was an endless stream of buses coughing out black exhaust, sitting in gridlock traffic across massive roads with no real lanes. The buses don't really have designated stops and just hit the brakes for whoever waves at them, where ever they are. That, or it passes them by for no apparent reason.
After 25 minutes of confusion and realizing this location wasn't going to work. I headed to another mass of people on the side of a busy street and finally crammed my way onto a bus that was well over capacity. What I found fascinating is that people would hop on through the backdoor and to my surprise, every single person would pass money through a packed bus of strangers to the driver up front. The driver would then send their change back and it would pass through a dozen hands before returning. Somehow it would all make it back, every time.
I had several other encounters with nice Colombians throughout the day and it just left me feeling really good inside. It was refreshing to have so many strangers treating an outsider like family and experiencing an environment unlike a majority of cities I've been to. I don't know if all of Colombia is like this or if I just happened to stumble upon an uncharacteristically nice chain of events. But either way my first impressions are overwhelmingly positive and I can't wait to go back.
Traveling around South America I met a lot of people who have spent significant amounts of time in Colombia or planned to in the future. The image you get now, from people who actually know it personally, and not just from stories you hear on the news, is extremely positive. The saying I keep hearing is that the people of Colombia really want to shed the image of being a hostile country and go out of there way to do so.
This is exactly what I found. Unfortunately, I only had one day in Bogota, so I don't have the experience of somebody with a well developed personal opinion of the country. I got the smallest taste of what life in Bogota is like and it left me wanting a whole lot more. I had more random encounters with genuinely nice people in my 16 hours in Bogota, than I did in weeks of time in other countries. The positive image I have of this city is based upon the helpful and caring people that stepped right into my life for a moment while I wandered the streets.
Nestled amongst the Andes, with thick forests all around, the city itself is beautiful and oozing with colorful character that kept me enthralled for every minute I had there. The buildings were bright and well aged, with all the cracks, holes and peeling paint adding to the aesthetic appeal. Cobblestoned streets with vibrant grass popping out between the cracks, lead through tiny alleys and up steep hills. There is ever-present street art which really brings a unique energy to the city.
All I did, all day, was walk around, sit in plazas, eat and take pictures. I headed out of the airport at 9am and ignoring the advice of the information guy at the airport, I took a bus instead of the easier, faster taxi ride ($.75 vs $10). I really had minimal idea of where I was going. I looked at a half-loaded Google map for a few minutes and figured if I just found a bus going straight on the road out of the airport I would be able to figure it out. And it all worked out quite easily. Within 30 minutes I got to La Candeleria in the Centro which is a small neighborhood in the hills of Bogota.
My first encounter was with a nice Colombian man who happened to be homeless. I was eating a massive chocolate croissant-like pastry {photo} in a park and this thin, 20-something-year-old, absolutely filthy but completely unthreatening man approached me and asked me for a piece of my bread. I had just been thinking about how it's literally too big to eat alone, especially after a breakfast of coffee, some strange, mild white cheese, eggs with ham and bread. And he popped up to alleviate the situation. There was something about this man that I immediately saw he wished he didn't have to be asking for food, but was just so desperate he had no other choice. He cupped his hands, stood about 5 feet away and asked in the least threatening way possible for a piece of bread. I couldn't say no, so I ripped a tiny bite off for myself and handed him a piece the size of my hand. He said "que bueno, gracias," about four times before devouring it. He couldn't hide his sincere gratitude if he tried.
This looked even more appetizing before it was stuffed into a plastic bag, smearing all the chocolate drizzle on top.
Being from New York you get trained to ignore most, if not all, beggars. There are simply too many of them and more often than not they are ungrateful or overly annoying. But this guy was alright.
Twenty blocks later I had worked my way through a number of tiny side streets and I was crouched on the sidewalk shooting some biker making his way around a bend. An old man in his 70's with a thick white moustache stopped walking beside me to avoid getting in my way. He then proceeded to ask me how I was liking Bogota and told me about streets nearby I should check out. I got the feeling he was just walking home and saw some young foreigner half lying on the ground in his neighborhood. So why the hell not stop and talk to him? It was genuinely friendly moment between two strangers.
A few hours later I had made my way higher up into the hills. I had heard it's best not to go high up because it can get more dangerous. But everything about the day so far had been so enjoyable and I didn't feel the least bit threatened or anything less than pleasantly surprised by the people here. As I was taking photos of a window cleaner rappelling between two windows, a cop came up to me out of nowhere.
Generally when this happens I have no interest in talking to them and I assume he wants to complain about something I'm doing wrong. But this young cop came up to me just to recommend that I don't walk farther up the hill, and even around here it is better to keep the camera out of sight, just in case. We then talked about why I was in Colombia for the day and what I do in Chile. He also let me know that he would keep any eye out while I was shooting around there. He was just really damn nice. What is it with these people?
While sitting down in a restaurant for lunch I asked the waiter what he recommended because I didn't know anything about Colombian food. He recommended trout with some sort of mushroom sauce. He came back to ask how my food was, and when I told him it was very good, he immediately flashed a smile. He was no doubt feeling proud that he made a good selection. Again, genuinely nice.
Getting a bus back to the airport proved to be a little bit of a hassle. Traffic here in the Centro at rush hour was chaotic. There was an endless stream of buses coughing out black exhaust, sitting in gridlock traffic across massive roads with no real lanes. The buses don't really have designated stops and just hit the brakes for whoever waves at them, where ever they are. That, or it passes them by for no apparent reason.
After 25 minutes of confusion and realizing this location wasn't going to work. I headed to another mass of people on the side of a busy street and finally crammed my way onto a bus that was well over capacity. What I found fascinating is that people would hop on through the backdoor and to my surprise, every single person would pass money through a packed bus of strangers to the driver up front. The driver would then send their change back and it would pass through a dozen hands before returning. Somehow it would all make it back, every time.
I had several other encounters with nice Colombians throughout the day and it just left me feeling really good inside. It was refreshing to have so many strangers treating an outsider like family and experiencing an environment unlike a majority of cities I've been to. I don't know if all of Colombia is like this or if I just happened to stumble upon an uncharacteristically nice chain of events. But either way my first impressions are overwhelmingly positive and I can't wait to go back.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Random Photo - Santiago Centro
This is a photo taken from Cerro Santa Lucia looking west towards Santiago Centro.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Santiago Student Protest Aftermath
Yesterday, mostly due to the fact that the Student Protest was crazier than usual and therefor broken up quickly, I completely missed it. I had a prior obligation but thought I'd get to see the end of it, which is when all the rioting goes down and things really get exciting. But no. The crowds of over 100,000 were broken up fairly quickly apparently.
I did however get to see the aftermath. The broken glass, the torn down street signs, the upset store owners whose businesses were destroyed and looted, and the rocks and debris filling the streets that were used as projectiles. It felt mildly like a warzone, but one where nobody even blinks at it because it is fairly standard. I personally don't understand the need for excessive violence during a protest, but I suppose it is more eventful to photograph than your average daily street life.
I did however get to see the aftermath. The broken glass, the torn down street signs, the upset store owners whose businesses were destroyed and looted, and the rocks and debris filling the streets that were used as projectiles. It felt mildly like a warzone, but one where nobody even blinks at it because it is fairly standard. I personally don't understand the need for excessive violence during a protest, but I suppose it is more eventful to photograph than your average daily street life.
A large group of students forced the front gate open, smashed the windows and looted this pharmacy
A large frame for advertisements lies on the side of the street while clean up crews tend to all the broken glass and debris
Riot police stand on guard in case any protestors return
Waiting for the bus amongst the mess
This bus map has seen better days
Nobody even cares about walking through broken glass
This cell phone store, Claro, was completely destroyed and looted. The inside was almost entirely empty besides some overturned desks and shelves.
Since I got no photos of the action taking place you feel free to check out this site for some photos of the protest and riot. The second gallery has all the rioting photos. Protest photos
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Santiago Student Protests
Chileans know how to protest. The excitement, energy and sheer strength of upwards of 50,000 driven individuals is captivating. The students in Chile, especially in Santiago, seem genuinely passionate about making their voices heard. As an outsider the issues are beyond my realm of true interest. I do hope they make progress in their fight for a new framework for education in Chile, but it obviously isn't something I'm emotionally invested in. For me it is an opportunity to experience and document the raw energy and unity that only a protest can evoke in complete strangers. Americans protest every once in a while, but never with a strength comparable to a classic Santiago student protest. There is another huge protest planned for today so I'm about to head over and check it out. Below are a few images from one last month.
More photos to come from today's protest so check back!
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Loving La Vega
There are few things in Latin culture I'm more drawn to than the markets. For many people most, if not all, of their food is purchased in local mercados. I happen to live a short walk from La Vega, which is one of the biggest mercados in Chile. It really is massive, made up of hundreds of vendors selling nearly everything edible you could ever want and expect to find in Chile.
Living in Santiago Centro with Bella Artes, Bellavista and Providencia in walking distance it is easy to forget what the rest of Chile is like. These neighborhoods are full of a smaller population of more modern, cosmopolitan and artsy Chileans. Fortunately all it takes is a 10 minute walk north, past Rio Mapocho to La Vega and the surrounding neighborhood of Patronato to get a glimpse of a more typical Chilean community. It is more gritty, colorful and full of the sketchy character that I am constantly drawn to. It is wildly different from where I grew up in NY to say the least.
Sitting in the middle of it is La Vega which is certainly the center of life in this barrio. The streets are always packed with trucks, push-carts and mobile vendors transporting seemingly endless supplies of fresh produce. Sidewalks are packed with locals selling anything from used clothes to TV antenas and batteries. And of course pedestrians heading to and from the market are littered throughout the streets and sidewalks.
The first few times visiting La Vega was a little intimidating. I ended up walking around looking at everything for nearly an hour before even purchasing anything. After a couple months of weekly trips I am getting pretty efficient. I can be in and out in twenty minutes and know which vendors have the best and cheapest selections. And cheap it is. Every single time I walk away from this place I have a smile ear to ear and feel as if I just happened to hit a 75% off everything sale. But no, this place is cheap all day, everyday.
This is an example of what $11 of groceries looks like from La Vega.
For whatever reason I really enjoy the lack of order and chaotic nature of places like this. It is messy, smelly (sometimes good, sometimes bad), unruly and a little dangerous. It just feels so authentic. It isn't even uncommon to see cars or motorcycles for some reason navigating these tiny aisles. Everybody is yelling, bargaining, throwing things, running around and keeping the energy level abnormally high. The bottom line is, it is a very interesting place to spend an hour or two wandering around and highly recommend it to anybody visiting Santiago. I plan on doing a more formal photo essay in the future about La Vega, so for now I only have a couple photos I shot this morning while shopping.
Check out an older post about the market in Cusco, Peru here!
Living in Santiago Centro with Bella Artes, Bellavista and Providencia in walking distance it is easy to forget what the rest of Chile is like. These neighborhoods are full of a smaller population of more modern, cosmopolitan and artsy Chileans. Fortunately all it takes is a 10 minute walk north, past Rio Mapocho to La Vega and the surrounding neighborhood of Patronato to get a glimpse of a more typical Chilean community. It is more gritty, colorful and full of the sketchy character that I am constantly drawn to. It is wildly different from where I grew up in NY to say the least.
The first few times visiting La Vega was a little intimidating. I ended up walking around looking at everything for nearly an hour before even purchasing anything. After a couple months of weekly trips I am getting pretty efficient. I can be in and out in twenty minutes and know which vendors have the best and cheapest selections. And cheap it is. Every single time I walk away from this place I have a smile ear to ear and feel as if I just happened to hit a 75% off everything sale. But no, this place is cheap all day, everyday.
This is an example of what $11 of groceries looks like from La Vega.
For whatever reason I really enjoy the lack of order and chaotic nature of places like this. It is messy, smelly (sometimes good, sometimes bad), unruly and a little dangerous. It just feels so authentic. It isn't even uncommon to see cars or motorcycles for some reason navigating these tiny aisles. Everybody is yelling, bargaining, throwing things, running around and keeping the energy level abnormally high. The bottom line is, it is a very interesting place to spend an hour or two wandering around and highly recommend it to anybody visiting Santiago. I plan on doing a more formal photo essay in the future about La Vega, so for now I only have a couple photos I shot this morning while shopping.
Check out an older post about the market in Cusco, Peru here!
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
The Lows of Finding Photography Work in Chile
Being in a new country with no work connections, I have been forced to get creative and look far and wide for potential opportunities. The results from my online efforts have so far been less than satisfying, but I have learned a few things.
One being that using job posting sites to find photography opportunities in Chile is basically useless. There are few listings and the ones that do come up are basically rapists who have minimal value for the products they are attempting to sell. Nearly all of them specifically look for students and beginning photographers who "have a dSLR, but no experience necessary!" so that they can pay little to nothing because they know that most of these photographers are desperate or don't know any better.
Moments ago I just read one that stood out more than most. The employer was looking for students with professional cameras and professional studio lights to photograph kitchen products with the quality being "identical or better to those on Sur la Table's website." This employer very bluntly states that they expect quality that is equal or better to those who produce some of the highest quality product shots in the industry. But they intend on paying little to nothing for it. Certainly nowhere near the $1,000+ day rates that the photographer who shot the Sur la Table products got. But, the quality should still be better, obviously.
Other ads here follow a similar pattern with the majority of them being extremely vague. "Big company needs photographer for 600+ photos. Email us your rates. Beginning photographers with highest quality equipment encouraged." How are we supposed to send rates if we don't know what we are shooting, where the photos will be used or any other details? I do contact these listings and inquire about the details of the shoot, but I never receive a reply. Most likely because somebody else proposed something so insanely low they couldn't pass it up and apparently if you have a great dSLR that automatically means you can take great photos.
Now, I know the photography industry in Chile just recently beginning to develop and it's not yet widely accepted as something that deserves decent pay rates. I try to understand this as a cultural difference but sometimes it can be a little frustrating. Just like anybody looking for a job anywhere knows. I am also aware this isn't NY and I can't expect similar rates, but when companies set out with the lowest standards possible I don't even stand a chance. Not because I'm that good, just because I have self respect and know the work I produce has value. What all of these ads tell me is that there are a lot of companies out there that either don't understand what good photography is and can do for the product they just put so much capital into, or they just have no value for their product. But then again, the best opportunities aren't found in ads online anyway. All this means is that a whole lot more effort needs to be put in to find clients who do value a photographers abilities.
There aren't too many interesting photos I can post relating to job searching, so as a breath of fresh air I will post a couple beach photos instead.
One being that using job posting sites to find photography opportunities in Chile is basically useless. There are few listings and the ones that do come up are basically rapists who have minimal value for the products they are attempting to sell. Nearly all of them specifically look for students and beginning photographers who "have a dSLR, but no experience necessary!" so that they can pay little to nothing because they know that most of these photographers are desperate or don't know any better.
Moments ago I just read one that stood out more than most. The employer was looking for students with professional cameras and professional studio lights to photograph kitchen products with the quality being "identical or better to those on Sur la Table's website." This employer very bluntly states that they expect quality that is equal or better to those who produce some of the highest quality product shots in the industry. But they intend on paying little to nothing for it. Certainly nowhere near the $1,000+ day rates that the photographer who shot the Sur la Table products got. But, the quality should still be better, obviously.
Other ads here follow a similar pattern with the majority of them being extremely vague. "Big company needs photographer for 600+ photos. Email us your rates. Beginning photographers with highest quality equipment encouraged." How are we supposed to send rates if we don't know what we are shooting, where the photos will be used or any other details? I do contact these listings and inquire about the details of the shoot, but I never receive a reply. Most likely because somebody else proposed something so insanely low they couldn't pass it up and apparently if you have a great dSLR that automatically means you can take great photos.
Now, I know the photography industry in Chile just recently beginning to develop and it's not yet widely accepted as something that deserves decent pay rates. I try to understand this as a cultural difference but sometimes it can be a little frustrating. Just like anybody looking for a job anywhere knows. I am also aware this isn't NY and I can't expect similar rates, but when companies set out with the lowest standards possible I don't even stand a chance. Not because I'm that good, just because I have self respect and know the work I produce has value. What all of these ads tell me is that there are a lot of companies out there that either don't understand what good photography is and can do for the product they just put so much capital into, or they just have no value for their product. But then again, the best opportunities aren't found in ads online anyway. All this means is that a whole lot more effort needs to be put in to find clients who do value a photographers abilities.
There aren't too many interesting photos I can post relating to job searching, so as a breath of fresh air I will post a couple beach photos instead.
Iquique
Juan Lopez
Monday, June 18, 2012
Smoggy Santiago from Cerro San Cristóbal
Today I decided it was time to get up to Cerro San Cristobal for the first time this year. It had been raining all weekend and stopped late last night. Being Santiago is smog central during the winter and the only relief comes after rain, I knew I had to get up there while I had the chance.
Santiago suffers from thermal inversion which ensures there is almost always a heavy blanket of pollution just overhead. This sounds horrible, and in a way it is, but here in Santiago Centro I don't see it effecting my life like people in blogs all over the web complain about. Sure it's unsightly and probably doing some silent damage to my lungs, but if it's not in my face crappy, I just forget about it. I find it much easier that way than obsessing and worrying over something that isn't going to change and I certainly can't control.
Anyway, I woke up nice and early and ran the approximately 8km from my apartment to the top of Cerro San Cristobal. For those who don't know, it is the hill in view from most of Northern Santiago with The Virgin Mary perched atop. Aside from spectacular views of the city, the mountains and miles and miles of smog, it also offers some decent hiking trails and momentary escapes into nature.
Heading up the dirt trails on the western side of the hill I almost felt like I was truly in nature, as long as I ignored the views of urban sprawl off to one side of the trail. Chile has an incredibly diverse number of trees and plants and even hiking up Cerro San Cristobal you are reminded of what is out there. The smells alone are overpowering (in an entirely good way). It reminded me of being in the hills of northern California during the spring. It was easy to temporarily forget about the pollution and grime of city life. Then you arrive to the top for expansive views and the slowly forming smog. Getting there quite early I did get to see farther and cleaner views than usual. But while sitting up there for about 30 minutes I did notice the smog forming over certain areas and thickening by the minute. It is less than ideal, but this is just how it is here in Santiago, so deal with it I say.
This photo is entirely unrelated to smog, but I just took it from my little balcony and figured I'd throw it in because a blog post with only one photo is a little boring eh?
Santiago suffers from thermal inversion which ensures there is almost always a heavy blanket of pollution just overhead. This sounds horrible, and in a way it is, but here in Santiago Centro I don't see it effecting my life like people in blogs all over the web complain about. Sure it's unsightly and probably doing some silent damage to my lungs, but if it's not in my face crappy, I just forget about it. I find it much easier that way than obsessing and worrying over something that isn't going to change and I certainly can't control.
A photo from 2009. The view was better today.
Heading up the dirt trails on the western side of the hill I almost felt like I was truly in nature, as long as I ignored the views of urban sprawl off to one side of the trail. Chile has an incredibly diverse number of trees and plants and even hiking up Cerro San Cristobal you are reminded of what is out there. The smells alone are overpowering (in an entirely good way). It reminded me of being in the hills of northern California during the spring. It was easy to temporarily forget about the pollution and grime of city life. Then you arrive to the top for expansive views and the slowly forming smog. Getting there quite early I did get to see farther and cleaner views than usual. But while sitting up there for about 30 minutes I did notice the smog forming over certain areas and thickening by the minute. It is less than ideal, but this is just how it is here in Santiago, so deal with it I say.
This photo is entirely unrelated to smog, but I just took it from my little balcony and figured I'd throw it in because a blog post with only one photo is a little boring eh?
An old man waiting for the bus
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