Throughout much of my life I have been a documentarian of the human condition, seeking out experiences and stories to tell outside of my own. I have found photography to be a powerful tool to share these stories with the world.
As a young boy I was already hungry to see the world beyond our front porch. I’d spend hours watching nature documentaries alongside my grandma Magda, sharing a bag of sunflower seeds and I’d do my best to translate the English narration into Spanish. My grandmother dearly loved nature documentaries and because of her, I too grew to love the art medium.
As I grew older, I began to seek out experiences on my own. I’d make friends with the “weird kid” just to know his story. I’d insert myself into situations (sometimes to my own detriment) just to have gone through the experience. I was bound and determined to make sure my biography would be a long read.
It wasn’t until my late thirties that I discovered photography and the way it happened literally fell into my lap. I was working for a tech startup in Atlanta and had found myself in the good graces of our charismatic CEO. I was offered a once in a lifetime opportunity to travel to Sydney, AUS for work and to sweeten the deal he loaned me his Canon 7D with a 17-40 mm lens. It’s laughable how little I knew abut photography then.
I’d end up spending 16 days in Sydney and in those 16 days I’d completely fall in love with the camera. From the moment I woke up till the moment I got back to my AirBnB, I was living and breathing photography. It was during that trip I realized the importance of veering off the path and hanging in the fringes. It was during this trip that I realized I could capture a moment and tell an entire story all at once.
I’ve been asked many times if I have a favorite photo and to this day, I will always love this moment the most. I was coming down the escalator at the Central train station when I saw this scene unfolding. I had just unlocked the puzzle that is the “Exposure Triangle”, and had to rush to ensure that my settings were right for the situation. Dodging pedestrians, changing camera settings, applying my focus, then releasing the shutter. Click. Click. Click. Wow… what a rush that was. I was hooked on that feeling and like a junkie have been chasing that ever since.
