Over the course of three hours in the desert southeast of Deming, New Mexico covering over 50 miles, many of it dirt road, I was treated to various views of both Rockhound State Park and the Florida Mountains. These have unusual names, but perhaps because of their unusual rock formations. I was actually being paid to enjoy these views as I actually in the midst of a six location rural land real estate photo shoot. Even though it was of course hot, the weather was otherwise near ideal for day time landscape photography with plenty of clouds and mountains on the horizon in most directions. I was quite busy driving to all these locations, but I did take time to pause, and realize the amazing desert environment I was all out all alone in.
Bobby called me up asking if I could do a live photoshoot of him proposing to his girlfriend. I said yes, I could, and I have actually done this very thing before back on a beach in Florida. Now there are a lot of variables that go into any outside, on location photoshoot, and even more for a live shoot. Luckily, with as much preparation and planning as we could do beforehand, everything worked well for the live shoot! I casually pretended to be photographing the mountains while Bobby put bowties on the dogs and got the ring out.
Being part of a community is pretty important for an entrepreneur. There is no better community for an entrepreneur to be a part of in Albuquerque, New Mexico than 1 Million Cups. I have been going nearly every Wednesday for 8 months straight and enjoy listening to the stories of the presenters about how they started their business, and the challenges they are currently facing. The presenter asks the audience for feedback and with any needs they have. This benefits all in attendance at the event. I always take away one nugget or thought to keep in mind as I go home to work on my photography and drone business. Today it is about keeping my work space even tidier than I normally do per the advice of Feng Shui with Connie K. There are also free donuts and coffee each week too, if that appeals to you!
If are a subscriber to my business Facebook Page, then you see my regular Facebook Live videos from the many rural land real estate shoots I am on in remote northwest Rio Rancho and the unique views that area offers. Through the eye of my telephoto lens, you can see nearly all of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho sprawled out at the feet of the Sandia Mountains.
Instantly the highlight of my trip to San Diego, California became a quick drive up the coast to La Jolla to spend time with all the sea lions there. I have only seen seals from distance in Monterey before. I heard in La Jolla you can get much closer, and that certainly was true! Most of these photos were made with just a Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens on a Nikon D7200. That’s only 300mm of effective focal length and I was able to get shots as up close as these.
In La Jolla, California I was pleasantly surprised to have the opportunity to do bird photography. I knew there would be a chance for seal photos, but having birds also was great. I miss the bird photography I could do almost anywhere in Florida. Check out this anhinga for example. What makes a good bird photograph (or any photograph) assuming you have a good looking bird as the subject? Then for a bird photo to stand out it is a matter of having good light (it was only so-so in this shot) and having a good background. The latter made up for the former in the above shot with the creamy bokeh created by my Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens. The blue in the bokeh is the Pacific Ocean.
Yelp ABQ along with the Hispano Chamber of Commerce have been putting on a series of events this summer called Go Behind the Dream featuring immigrant owned businesses from around Albuquerque, New Mexico. I was somewhat familiar with the story of Tahir Gauba and how he built up Donut Mart in ABQ, but through this event I really learned his family's story of moving from Pakistan and becoming a strong member of the community halfway across the world. I lived abroad for 9 years in Asia, but always knew some day I would return to the U.S. When you find some place that feels right, you can call it home permanently though!
