Why Traveling (Internationally) Seems So Hard

by photoanthems | Jul 17, 2015 | Blog

Couple traveling in Guatemala

I get asked often about why I travel, what its like, and how I do it more times than I’d care to count. I’m amazed at how mysterious so many people think it is. But then again, I’m reminded of the fact that I used to be the exact same way. It’s not easy when you can’t speak the language. Its too expensive. I have kids or a job that won’t let me take the time off. Trust me. I had the exact same thoughts and had a few events and people in my life not helped me change that mentality, I’d still be in the same mindset.

German Art Model traveling through out Central and South America

For me, the military set the ball in motion. My first duty assignment was in Germany. I hail from Texas where being 200 miles or more from home was a rarity and most of those times I exceeded 200 miles, I was still in Texas. I turned 20 in Germany if memory serves. It was a wake-up call and was the first thing or event in my life that let me know people did things differently. During time off, I got to travel around Europe. Eventually other assignments took me to more places and I learned to be in the habit of moving a lot.

German Art Model traveling through out Central and South America

Towards the end of my military career, I stabilized in the city of my last duty station in Tennessee which is where my kids call home. I got to travel from there to Lake Tahoe with a former friend of mine who travels domestically often. I got to see that its not as expensive as I had been lead to believe to arrange flights, hotels, and car rentals if you do it wisely. The advent of the internet and online booking options really aided me in those efforts. And yet, I gradually lost the calling to seek out new life and civilizations. I got bogged down in work and making money. Through some hiking associations, I met fellow traveler, @Heather Rae Murphy of In Search of Squid.com who took off on her own to Southeast Asia for two months one summer. I couldn’t wait til she got back to talk to her about her trip. It was at this point that I realized a few things. Excuses were just that…excuses. I had already been through enough life events to realize I wasn’t going out of this life with thoughts of making more money for my employer. I was on the road WITH Heather that next following Summer in Guatemala and Belize. There was one thing in particular that I had to change in my life in order to make these things happen.

Art Model Covenant on Little Corn Island traveling throughout Central America

Priorities

Yes. Prioritizing travel was all it took really. Just making the decision to go. Go anywhere! But don’t be deluded. You ain’t going anywhere til you get that ticket. All the plans you make. All the good intentions and mean-wells do you absolutely no good until you GET THAT TICKET! So booking the flight is first. Well at some point before you go, you’re gonna have to get a passport if you don’t already have one. Plan a trip that is several months away to give yourself some time to make the arrangements. Central America has been the perfect proving grounds. One, its close. Two, its cheap. Three, it eliminates any and every excuse you might have to not travel. As many times as you’ve flown across the US for the holidays or other family events, you’ll pay less in many cases flying internationally to the Central America. So what you can’t speak the language. I’m still alive after several trips of being down there. My Spanish is getting better. But I didn’t remember much of anything outside of counting to twenty-nine in Español. Don’t be scared of that. I’d wager that 80% of all the travelers I meet do not speak the native language and yet you don’t hear of news reports of people dying because of it. But chances are your priorities are probably getting those new J’s on your feet. Or maybe trying to find a way to keep those $500 a month car payments up. Or its probably more important to have your Starbucks in the morning. You spend your money on what you are about most. If you cared about traveling, odds are you would be or will soon be traveling.

Art Model Covenant on Little Corn Island traveling throughout Central America

So you got kids

Children playing in Belize ©2012 Terrell Neasley

Yeah, my kids are grown. Is that an advantage? I won’t lie. Yes it is. However… So what?? Bring the kids!! Why not raise ’em on a good wholesome diet of culture variety? You can’t tell me how this would be a bad thing unless you are planning a trip to Syria. More likely than not, your kids will also become travelers. Why? Because they’ll be used to it and will ALREADY have passports. Many people stay put because they have never applied for a passport. I see kids on the road with their families all the time. Many get raised on sailboats with parents who circumnavigate the world. You know who I meet on the road from other countries traveling by themselves? 18 to 23 year old kids doing extended travel for a few months before they get locked down in jobs and careers. Do you think your 18 year old is ready to cross the Pacific on their own? Well they would be if you took them there before they leave home.

Is it the job?

This is probably a tough one. But then I gotta ask. How important is traveling to you? If your job doesn’t understand your need to be off more than a week a year, then…damn. I don’t want to tell you you need to find a new job. YOU need to tell you that you need to find a new job. America is one of the few countries that still don’t understand the value of time off and burn-out prevention. Traveling or not, a well-rounded lifestyle is more beneficial to your health and longevity. Expense reports are not. But honestly, who can tell you to change careers. I follow travel blogs all the time and often hear about husbands/wives, or single people quitting their jobs to follow their hearts.

All I’m saying is this: There are options out there if you look. Plenty of them. But none of them will do you a bit of good until you make the call to prioritize travel with your money and your time. Get the ticket!

Locals in Antigua, Guatemala ©2014 Terrell Neasley

June: All About the Editing & Open to Suggestions

by photoanthems | Jul 1, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sting Rays

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Back Again… And 5 Good Things About Traveling

by photoanthems | Jun 10, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Three months is a long time to be gone from home as a traveler or tourist. I did the same thing last year dividing my time between Nicaragua (mostly) and Mexico. And much in the same fashion as then, today is much to do about catching up. Pouring over all the missed mail, unpacking all my things, doing a data dump of a half terabyte worth of imagery, and getting your house back in order takes a little bit of time. Then there’s catching up with friends and family. I got to see good friend, Pierre-Luc and his girlfriend, Katie at the theater today briefly while standing in line for movie tickets. Yes. Lot’s of movies to catch up on.

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

But I must say this was a most interesting trip. True to form, I can’t seem to come away from these things unscathed. You saw the stitches in my thumb in my “Midway Through” post, which occurred in April. May saw me with my wrist wrapped up from some sort of pinched nerve or carpel tunnel thingie. It hurt far worse than my thumb did and I still suffer from it to-date, though not as intensely as before. It prompted an early return by about two weeks. With my wrist in so much pain, it was useless to continue on further north in Nicaragua. The plan was to head upwards to the Northern border and hike Somoto Canyon. We had already decided to forego our journey further south. The heat was really pouring on and we were not going to do Costa Rica or Panama. Since I had already been in the south, the cooler north made sense. We stayed in Matagalpa for a full two weeks. After my wrist showed no signs of getting better, we checked online for ticket prices and found that ticket prices didn’t really change at any point during the month. So we booked our flight for the next available which was two days later.

And now we’re back in Vegas! I didn’t get all the shots I wanted on this trip, but I still came back with lots of goodies. It can be a bit overwhelming looking at all these shots I need to go through. Fortunately, I’m starting my edits with shots of some properties I did work for during my journey. My first gig has been waiting since the first day I arrived in country, so I need to get hot on their shots. But I still hold all the memories fresh in my head. I had dinner with some good friends today and they cooked with coconut oil. The house smelled just like the cottage we stayed in on Little Corn Island where we cooked with coconut oil as well. We ate the hell out of coconut, had fresh baked coconut bread delivered to us by our hosts, and made fruit salad, mainly of star fruit and mangoes, from the trees around the property. We spent less than $30 in total on food for a whole week! I can’t wait to get back to Little Corn and our spot on the northern end.

It feels good coming home, but I’m already missing Central America. You learn so much when you travel that I feel it definitely elevates you as a human being. I’ve had lots of people, over the years, ask what I get out of leaving my own country so much. I’ll give you 5 good reasons why you should endeavor to priorities overseas travel in your life.

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

1. Learn New Ways of Doing Things – One way to expand your horizons is to understand the American way ain’t the only way. Other people have ideas too. If there is one thing that I learned for certain is that you don’t need as much as you think you need in order to be happy. I’ve seen it with my own eyes! If you take a look at all the things you’ve accumulated in life…all the stuff…what does it do for you? Trim down the clutter in your life. Start valuing and accumulating life experiences instead of stuff. This will teach you how to be flexible when life throws you a curve ball. These experiences help you to see different solutions. Travel teaches you so much about life.

2. Tolerance for Humanity – When I travel outside the U.S., I see a different culture that has adapted to their environment, established communities, and care for one another. It may be a little different than the way we do things, but you begin to understand your fellow man a little better when you see where he has come from. When you visit his or her home and you see how important hospitality is to them, you want to do the same when they come to your country. Seeing how they live helps establish a deeper connection. And when you understand we are all connected, humanity is enriched. And don’t forget about the other people from other parts of the world you meet while traveling. You won’t learn only from the country you visit. I have standing relationships with people from all over the world. Again…we are all connected.

3. Better Appreciation of How Well You Actually Live – America has long been called the Land of Opportunity. And I believe this is so. But believing this and taking advantage of it are two different things. If you spend your days bitching about how hard life is and how little you make and have, let me take you to a few spots in Guatemala where guys go to work every morning to clear fields with machetes and get pennies for it. But then go home to their families proud to put food on the table. Go ahead, bitch about you car or how bad your feet hurt after work. Those boys down there do work!

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

4. Better Appreciation for the Planet – You also get to see areas of what your planet used to look like before it was deforested and cultivated for urban sale. Want to see something beautiful? Western United States has got plenty sites. But if you wanna see something different, follow me to El Salvador and take a look at some jungle waterfalls! Let me take you out into the Caribbean and swim in some of the clearest waters you’ll find along with sting ray and barracuda! And while we’re out there, I’ll show you the dead reef areas where it has been killed off by irresponsible tourists. You will begin to understand conservation a bit better. Its like throwing garbage in your own home.

5. Broadens Out Your Scope of What’s Actually Possible – But when you visit these places, especially ones not so flourishing as the U.S., you get a chance to witness what these local people do and what they can accomplish with only a fraction of what you have. You just might return home and see possibilities in areas that looked void of hope before. You may even bring back some of those new ideas and cultivate a new attitude that inevitably serves you well at home. You want a boost in self-confidence. Hit the road. Its not near as scary as you’ve been lead to believe.

Finally Getting Down with Instagram

by photoanthems | May 23, 2015 | Blog

The inside of a chicken bus. On the way to I forget where.

I’ve been meaning to jump on the Instagram bandwagon for years and simply didn’t do it. I was one of those photogs that resisted Instagram in the beginning. I was bent on not getting hung up on every single new social media app that reared its ugly head. But over the years, I began to learn more about Instagram and see some of the benefits. However, meaning to jump on the bandwagon and actually doing it are two different things.

You can now follow me and see my activities at @photoanthems on Instagram. My friend @shmercier, got me to thinking about Instagram differently more than a year ago. I already had it on my mind to set up an account, but I didn’t see it as anything more than a FB alternative/complement. She doesn’t use Facebook at all and connects with all her friends via Instagram instead. Her reasoning intrigued me at a time when I was becoming more and more frustrated with FB. For no reason in particular, I still procrastinated on the issue until I met another young Canadian girl, @jessicaaeburke, in El Salvador, who got me refocused again and thereby causing me to make Instagram a priority. It still took me another two weeks, but I’m now active on Instagram.

Various spots in Central America Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

Along with FB, I’ve had to become accustomed to the immediacy of photos. Gone is the patient wait for my return back stateside to edit photos. No longer is there the time to formulate my images into a viable presentation to that may heighten one’s appreciation for my art. Nope. Demand is for now…quick, fast, and in a hurry. People want to see what you’re up to, what it looks like where you are, and to vicariously join you in your adventure…as it happens. Or at the latest, within hours of the event.

The desire to fill said demand, makes one compromise to some extent. Without adequate editing tools, its necessary to post images on this blog and social media in a much larger format than I would otherwise normally do. I also fail to watermark the images, as my normal workflow would insist. I work around this by choosing images that satisfy the demand without sufficient compromise as to make me lose sleep. I’ll choose images that may not be the best ones that I know I’ll save for editing later. They still satisfy two needs of my followers. They see good images, (while I save my best ones for later) and they still get a sense of where I am, what I’m doing, and how things are going. So…basically, I just have to manage the trade-off.

Various spots in Central America Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

What my hope is, however, is that photographers in general do not become so dependent on social media that they mismanage that trade-off. A couple of things can happen as of a result of this. One is that the art suffers. Less work is done in camera and the art side of photo is traded for Instagram filters. When this happens, less attention is given to craftsmanship. Photogs no longer worry about knowing their equipment or understanding light. Less attention is given to presentation, the print, or the art. In addition, photogs may have a tendency to give away their best work. In their exuberance to post quickly, filters become the new edit, and their best stuff gets published for free. Instead of hanging on a wall, the farthest potential a great shot might achieve is a 72dpi square screen-size image on a profile wall.

Various spots in Central America Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

Most of the great photogs you probably already know of don’t fall into this trap or tendency. They know better. However the aspiring, up and coming, new blood into the trade are more susceptible to such falloff. But you know who you are. And you know your tendencies. Ask yourself what’s more important. Likes and Followers or good business and a commitment to the trade?

Now you’ll excuse me while I search through my current travel archives to find some images for this post. Oh yeah…we’re presently in Matagalpa, Nicaragua.

Midway Through…

by photoanthems | May 4, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Covenant, El Salvador, Unedited, iPhone 6 Plus, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

Present location? El Salvador. Or more precisely, I’m at La Tortuga Verde in El Cuco, El Salvador. I’ve got another couple days here and then it’s off to Nicaragua, or more precisely, La Tortuga Booluda in Leon, Nicaragua. [Actually, by the time of posting, I’m already in Leon.]

So we are probably mid-way through on this adventure. The mist that has been hindering some of my projects here has caught up with me in El Sal and after two months of travel, the rainy season is about to get under way here. I seriously want to challenge myself to improvise and return stateside with work that rivals my initial vision. I can’t say I’m there just yet though I have accumulate a bunch of marvelous shots…just not the shots that I feel rival my initial vision. So, I’m working on that.

Last week, we held up at a really nice spot in Juayua (pronounced “WHY-YOU-AH) called Hotel Anahuac. Well, while shooting Art Model, Covenant in some waterfalls there, I took a nasty slip and cut my right hand wide open just below the first knuckle of my thumb. Of seven waterfalls we were to visit, this incident happens just after the second one. That just about ended my shooting until I got the bleeding under control and kept my thumb compressed against my hand til the last waterfall, where I risked burning off a few more shots. Apparently, the thumb is quite an essential digit when it comes to holding things. I count myself fortunate that I didn’t drop my camera in the water, but I still got some shots.

Doc stitched me up!

Thanks Doc!

So after 2 more hours of hiking, I made it back and went to see a doctor at the local public health clinic. Doc had me sewn up in no time and they didn’t charge a thing. I got stitches, waited a week and then took my knife and some scissors and took them out. Now I just gotta take care not to open the blasted thing up again. Its not easy NOT using your thumb…especially on your dominant hand. Keeping it clean and infection free has been the utmost priority. I wash it every day because this spot is right on a Pacific coast beach. Sand can be a pain in the butt in a wound and is notorious for carrying infection when trapped under a bandage and left unchecked. So between the regular cleaning and my antibiotic, I think I’m doing well.

Art Model, Covenant, Unedited, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

I’ve still been shooting Art Model, Covenant on a regular basis. This being her first time out of country, she’s thrilled at the thought of being naked in a foreign land and doesn’t a problem shooting anywhere I get a hankering to point my camera. This is an excellent proposition because not everywhere I need to shoot is private. We’ve had the occasional spectator of course, but we’ve also had tour guests and guides privy to our endeavors. Covenant has a nice way of letting them know what we’re doing and so far nobody has objected to a woman coming up and asking if its okay if she has her boobs out or takes off her clothes.

So like I said, here for a few more days and then we’ll ferry around to Nica. Ferry? Yes, ferry. Its 6 to 7 hours by bus at a cost of about $45. Its Two and a HALF hours by boat for $75. I’m doing the boat for $30 more bucks. Actually, we do have to take another bus after that for about an hour to Leon, but I can handle that. [It was 2 and a half hours to Leon and there was no bus at the port, so we ended up taking a shuttle who had recently dropped off a group for $40. He wanted $60.] Three days in Leon, and then we’re off on a flight back to the Caribbean coast of Nica to Big Corn Island and then a half hour boat ride to Little Corn for a week’s stay at Farm Peace and Love. Hippy? Well, more like Hippy-sounding. Far as I know, we’ll be by ourselves on the Northeast corner of the island in a little cottage. By mid-May, we have no clue.

Art Model, Covenant, El Salvador Unedited, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

There are currently no exact plans, reservations, deadlines, or anything beyond mid-May. I know we want to make our way down back to my old stopping grounds in San Juan del Sur. If you recall, I almost got myself killed there a year ago scouting a coastline of cliffs and let the tide get high on me before I could make it all the way back. But there are some other stops I’d like to make as well. I didn’t get to make it to Granada or Isla de Ometepe in the South, nor Esteli or Somoto Canyon in the North. So the precarious situation I find myself in now is to decide how long I want to spend in Nicaragua.

With funds getting tight, the temptation is to spend these last two months in Nica, rather than head on down to Costa Rica and Panama where things are more expensive. Money definitely goes further in Nica. In addition to that, its usually cheaper to fly out of Managua, Nicaragua, than from either of the airports in Costa Rica or Panama. So the thought is to come back and finish CR and Panama later this year, and THEN proceed on further South into Columbia and down western South America to Argentina.

Art Model, Covenant,  Belize Unedited, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

Another option is to take a break from Latin America and visit Southeast Asia. I really have no idea. All I know is that I suck at video. Like that transition? That was another one of my objectives here…get used to and do better video. I do learn from my mistakes though. Recently, I tried shooting with a more narrow the field of view. After an hour and a half of footage, I think I got my subject in the frame maybe 40% of the time. That’s working with the GoPro. The Sony mirrorless don’t have that issue since I can see what I’m shooting on the back of the LCD screen. I can even use the wireless feature on my Sony Action Cam to see my perspective on my iPhone. I guess I should have picked up the LCD back for the GoPro, but those things use up battery even faster than it already does. So yeah…more work to be done there. No worries. Not giving up.

BTW, its been almost 2 weeks since the cut on my hand. All’s well and healing just fine. No more bandages, but still sensitive. I should be good to go in the next week or so. Next stop…Little Corn Island and Farm Peace and Love!

Trials and Tribulations, Central America 2015

by photoanthems | Apr 16, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Covenant, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley, unedited

I don’t think I’ve gone a full month without a blog post in a while, but hey…stuff happens.

So, Its been about 6 weeks since my last post and that is the amount of time I have been traveling through Central America with Art Model, Covenant. We flew into Guatemala City and stayed over night before catching the next plane out heading north to Flores. So we spent our first 10 days or so in Flores and El Remate at opposite ends of Lake Peten. From there it was on to Belize. 4 days on Tobacco Caye, 3 days in Hopkins, and 4 days in Punta Gorda. We left Belize and re-entered Guatemala in the little river town of Livingston for 5 days before doing a 10 hour chicken bus ride to Copan Ruinas, Honduras. The goal was to head to Gracias, Honduras,  but we ended up getting stuck in Copan. That turned out to be a good thing,  but I’ll get into that a bit in a future post, maybe. Five days in Copan ended in a 6 hour bus ride BACK to Guatemala, where we stayed in Antigua for four days. I am presently at a hotel on Lake Atitlan getting ready to leave after a one week stay. Tomorrow I head back to Antigua and then another spot nearby to live in a tree house for a few days before heading to El Salvador.

Art Model, Covenant, Jungle Resort Punta Gorda, Belize Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

So that’s how things have gone travel-wise. We have hit some budget spots for the most part. Some of these budget spots have been better experiences than the more upscale properties. I think the way we are traveling suits us just fine. We’ve made plans to economize everything with the exception of one really nice location per month. Its definitely good to take a break and treat yourself to some of the better places. But at the same time, you will also learn that some of these so-called budget places can be just as accommodating as the bigger places. I’m definitely a fan of Chaltunha located on the peninsula from the lake island of Flores. Its a 5 minute lancha ride for under a dollar. Trust you me, I have a lot of good things to say about Casa del Mundo here at Lake Atitlan, but for 9 times the amount I spent at Chaltunha, I can’t say that the stay was 9 times the experience.

Art Model, Covenant Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

I’ve also run into some difficulties here that have posed significant challenges to my photo plans while I’ve been here. This is an excellent time of year to travel. But I’m starting to see that many of the spots have not been as ideal as I would have imagined for photography. Don’t get me wrong. I still have made some great shots, but some of my primary objectives for night time work have still been elusive. The skies have been quite cloudy so far on this venture. Its been either that or light pollution has been problematic when I need total darkness. I’m currently on the north end of Lake Atitlan facing south which is exactly where I need to be positioned to shoot the Milky Way. However, there is so much mist and cloud cover, I can’t even see the volcanoes on the other side of the lake.

But no worries. Chances are, El Salvador will be a bit better for photo work in terms of what I need. And it will be later in the season so I expect the skies to clear up. Other than being here, I’m not sure there are any books, or reference materials that could have prepared me for that. There aren’t any “best time of year to shoot Central America” books out there, that I know of and even if there were, it will still depend on what conditions you need for a specific purpose or subject. There’s not anything I ever read that said this time of year would be cloudy and misty in this region of the world. But thankfully, I’m not even close to half way though this trip! So I definitely have time to make up what I’ve missed thus far. So I’m not worried. For the time being, I’m planning different shots and working with what I have. Mistakes…? Well aside from not being able to anticipate the environmental aspects that have hindered me, I think the only think I’d have wished to change would be NOT forgetting sensor cleaning kits and here’s why:

Me and Art Model, Covenant, Tobacco Caye, Belize Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

As you already know, I’ve switched from DSLR to full mirrorless systems, namely the Sony A7s and the newer A7MarkII. Excellent cameras to be sure and I’m getting great stuff with them. Granted, I’ve somehow cracked the LCD screen on the MKII somehow, but its minor. Nonetheless, these systems, speaking with reference to Mirrorless, not just Sony Mirrorless, operate from an open shutter. This means that when you take the lens off, you are staring at the sensor. There is no mirror in front of it, nor a closed shutter to protect it as you change lenses. So switching lenses in the open air can lead to crap getting on the sensor fairly easily. So basically, you just have to be extra careful when making a lens change. Where it still factors in with me is that I spent a lot of time on the Caribbean coastline. Sea salt is in the air! And of course salt is NEVER a friend to an image sensor. So yeah, I’m wishing I hadn’t forgotten to pick up a sensor cleaning kit, just to be safe.

Misty day at Atitlan Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley

One thing I’m glad I did pick up were extra batteries! Good grief! These cameras will suck some juice! But when you consider that EVERYTHING on this camera is electronic and no matter what you do, it requires a block of energy, its no wonder that this will be a trade-off. I have 3 batteries per camera and I picked up an extra charger for the A7MarkII. The A7s came with an external charger already, plus an extra battery. Thanks Sony for that foresight. All in all, the duplicity of travel is that yes…I’m glad I still have 3 or 4 more months left. But at the same time, I suuuure want to get back and edit!!

Three Objectives for Central America

by photoanthems | Feb 28, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley, A7MkII

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Covenant ©2015 Terrell Neasley

Going Forward with Sony

by photoanthems | Feb 26, 2015 | Blog

Art Model Kristi C. ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sony A7s

So here’s what I like about the Sony system.

I did a post a while back on why I went with Fuji a year ago over Sony. I was highly impressed with the Fuji system for 3 reasons. They have damn excellent lenses and already had a plethora of glass when Sony had maybe 3 at the time for full frame cams. Second, they have an excellent reputation for doing firmware upgrades that actually improve your cameras as opposed to just fixing bugs and adding new languages. Also, Fuji listens to their customer base better than any other camera manufacture that I’ve seen or heard of.

Art Model Kristi C. ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sony A7s

But Sony is still head and shoulders above them all right now. As far as camera systems go, there is only one company in the business that comes to mind when you think of innovation. Its as if they are willing to listen to any crazy idea, throw money at it, develop it, and see what happens. Granted, they are not as haphazard as that, I’m sure. Canon has used the term “game-changer” with reference to their 70D in their marketing campaigns. I’m here to tell you that Sony is definitely changing the business model of the photographic industry. The top camera manufactures make camera models in varying grades of features, quality, and durability. Sony’s top mirrorless system makes one pro camera system and then varies the model based on NEED. If you need a general pro-level system, get the A7MarkII. If you need high resolution, get the A7r. Low-light sensitivity? Get the A7s. A photog can effectively have a need for all 3 systems. Not so, with Nikon or Canon. If you want a second body, you either get a duplicate camera to the main system, or get one of lower quality and ability. So what makes Sony’s mirrorless system different from the standard DSLR?

First, there’s no need for a mirror. DSLR’s are going to have to change. There’s no getting around that. I’ve even said before that somebody is going to make a shutterless system at some point which will take the top off the speed limit of 1/8000ths of a second. Sensor tech is such that turning it on and off will suffice. Shutter speed will become a historic title much the same as how we still call a shutter beyond 30 seconds, “bulb” mode. In a few years, shutter speeds will rival the effective shutter speeds of flash at its shortest duration which is 1/40,000ths of a second with several of today’s speedlites. Or at least half that, for now.

Art Model Kristi C. ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sony A7s

Taking out the mirror has the advantage of making the overall camera smaller and lighter. This has been the trend for the last decade and is probably the number one or possibly the second largest catalyst for more female photographers into the industry. I experienced this the first time I took my D800e to Guatemala for a month. The weight of the camera and lenses was a bit more than I preferred. Presently, I can take two Sony bodies and 3 lenses and not even feel it. Do I sacrifice quality or durability. No. Speed? Not at all. I can do whatever a DSLR does plus some, with the exception of shoot 14 frames/second like Canon’s 1Dx. I can match Nikon’s 11 fps or Canon’s 7DMarkII with Sony’s a6000, even though it is a crop sensor camera.

Right now, my work and camera needs demand smaller sizes, superior low-light performances, and an all around general use system. The A7s will do natively, ISO 50-409,600. But its not always about high ISO’s. People may balk at the low pixel count, but I can attest to how over-rated people can depend on that stat. The A7s gives me the ability to shoot at the lowest ISO’s in the dark and still freeze people moving around. My Nikon D800e or the Fuji XE-2 could do low light photography, but my subject would have to be absolutely still and I’d need higher ISO’s. I can now get 1/30th of a shutter at low ISO’s whereas I’d be using a half second shutter at high ISO’s with either my Nikon or Fuji. That’s the benefit of the larger full-frame pixels and Sony’s Bionz-X processor.

Art Model Kristi C. ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sony A7s

Weaknesses? Well, yeah. Every camera system will have compromises, and Sony is no different. From the short time I’ve been shooting, I know that I won’t use my A7s as much where lots of detail is necessary or doing environmental portraits from a distance. I may be a bit biased in this regard because I am used to the 36MP sensor detail of the Nikon D800e. I’ve also noticed that my sensor is already in need of cleaning on the A7MkII after a recent shoot in the desert during inclement weather conditions and lens changes. Mirrorless systems operate from an open shutter position, which means as soon as you pull off the lens, the sensor is RIGHT there, 17mm back from the lens. This just means you have to be a bit more careful when removing and switching lenses. Battery life is also going to be a compromise. EVERYTHING about Sony Mirrorless systems use juice if the camera is on. Even if you don’t use the LCD to compose, the viewfinder is electronic, so you’re still using juice for that. The solution, buy friggin more batteries! It takes me all of 4 seconds to replace a battery. Problem solved.

Art Model Kristi C. ©2015 Terrell Neasley Sony A7s

Finally, as far as this post is concerned… the price-point is superb! I can’t really find a good reason to spend what I used to on DSLRs when I have another option in what I feel to be a better camera anyway. I’ll put my A7MarkII up against a Canon 5DMarkIII any day for pure picture quality. And this is what I’m saying. If you’re getting just as good a shot in a smaller package for a lower price, why would you not do that? Having a hard time letting go of all that Canon or Nikon glass? Guess what, get a Metabones adapter and keep it to use with the Sony. Boom. I just made your world better.
***Drops Mic to the floor***

The Muse and the Model – Panda’s Influence

by photoanthems | Feb 10, 2015 | Blog

Art Model, Panda © 2014 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Panda © 2014 Terrell Neasley

To date, I haven’t spent more time shooting any one person more than I have with the phenomenon you all know as Panda. She hasn’t lived in Vegas since almost a year now and I gotta say I miss me some Panda. Its not easy to simply find or hire a muse as any artist will attest to. Every now and again, you get a few that stick with you, inspire you, and inevitably make you evolve your style, your craft, and your self as a person. Having one, must less two at any given time is tough. If the chemistry ain’t there with the non-verbal cues, then that muse relationship may not develop. You don’t identify a muse by her name badge. She doesn’t answer a craigslist ad looking for a muse. That relationship isn’t usually established right off the bat, but some are and it was my honor to have that with Panda. 

Art Model, Panda © 2014 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Panda © 2012 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Panda © 2013 Terrell Neasley

Art Model, Panda © 2013 Terrell Neasley

What’s in Central America That Keeps Me Going Back

by photoanthems | Jan 21, 2015 | Blog

Tikal, Guatemala

I get asked that question a lot these days as I prepare for my next adventure down South. And the basic answer is that I’m not done with the place yet. THIS particular excursion will take me to all 7 countries revisiting a few spots, but mainly checking out new ones. I’ll visit the Caribbean and Pacific sides of just about every country I visit. Belize only has a Caribbean side, but I’ll be working my way around both sides of it, nonetheless. Most of my time will be spent in Guatemala and Nicaragua, two countries I am already familiar with. So why the affinity for such places in the world…? Well, I’ll tell you.

First, its because of Panama. I spent some time there while in the military. Twice, for jungle training and we got sent down there on another occasion. It was the first place in the world that was absolutely totally different from all I had known. I grew up in Texas and RARELY left the state and hardly traveled more than 200 miles from home. Germany was my first duty station after my enlistment. Germany was different, yes. But I still understood the urban landscape, about catching a cab, the weather was a bit cooler most times, and the people were not entirely different from my home with the exception of the language.

Seven Altars, Livingston, Guatemala

The first time I got off the plane in Panama, I could barely breathe! The humidity in East Texas can get pretty damn muggy. The humidity in Panama required GILLS! And the HEAT! Training was restricted to mornings and afternoons. It was forbidden to do anything requiring exertion  in the middle of the day. I could eat a brat from anywhere in Germany. The first time I burst open a coconut in Panama, I had the runs for two days. EVERYTHING took acclamation.

But it was BEAUTIFUL!!

I recall being on patrol once and as lead element, I halted the formation upon coming to a clearing of the biggest tree I had ever laid eyes on. I had seen taller trees before, but this one was bigger around than a house. A few hundred meters of more machete bush-wacking and I rolled up on another one TWICE as big. One tree you DIDN’T want to have a close encounter with was Black Palm. This tree is the inevitable offspring between a palm tree and a porcupine. The spines that stick out will penetrate damn near anything, but break off with the slightest upward or downward pressure. And then there were also things in the jungle that could kill you. Simply by the grace of God, I avoided a face strike by the countries deadliest snake, the Fer-de-Lance, with its neurotoxic venom. Had it been the more aggressive bushmaster, I’d likely be dead. And oh my God, the last thing you would ever want would be to get held up in the jungle after sunset. We had a squad that was so unfortunate as to experience this. I did not get their story. But I saw the evidence in their demurred stature and swollen/bumpy bodies. I didn’t need to know anything else. I simply wasn’t going to have my ass in the jungle at night.

Hostel Dorm, Livingston, Guatemala

A few times, we got opportunities to visit the nearby city. I stayed close to the base (on one of my visits) at Fort Sherman’s Jungle Operations Training Center, but some of us spent time getting into trouble in Colon. I rarely went further than the closest place to get food or see a movie. The times I did get out and about, what I recall most are the women and what I now know were “chicken” buses. If you are an ass-man, you will love Panama. And these buses reminded me of how the homies did their cars with a lot of custom flashy work, but just in a more colorful fashion. I promised myself that I would come back and visit this country again as a civilian without the restrictions I had as a soldier.

Typical Nica breakfast prepared by my host, Dona Lucia!

Another reason is that its CHEAP! Good gracious! My ticket to Guatemala City was listed at $202 one-way. I did some seat upgrades that brought it up to almost twice that, but a round trip ticket can be had for $365 to several places in Central America. I usually have to fly one-way because I’m never certain when I start a trip, when or from where I’ll return. Accommodations are also inexpensive. Sure you can pay $100 or more a night in plenty of places. But you can also stay for $20 a night and do VERY well, in some of the most gorgeous spots on the planet. Food can be had for $10 a day and you get FULL. Catch a bus for an 8-hour road trip for $10. If I wasn’t moving around so much, I’d probably just rent a residence for a few months for a few hundred or maybe house-sit for nothing. Deals abound! I’ll be in at least 20 spots staying in one place for no longer than 4 or 5 days in most cases. I’ll be on Little Corn Island for a week in Nicaragua in my own little cottage on the beach. I will even be in a dog-gone treehouse with a queen size bed and hot water shower in Guatemala!

But its also the experiences that keep me returning. I get to better understand new and various cultures. They may be of the same ethnicity, but highland people do it differently than those by the coast. And the Garifuna do it differently than everybody.  Then there are the fellow travelers who come from all over the world just to cross your path. I made many new friends that I still talk to today. And some, not so much. The pics I come back with are some of my best artwork and they make me money. That should be reason enough. And I get better every time I go there. I always come back with great stories. Okay, so I almost got killed a couple times on my last visit. BUT I DIDN’T DIE! And it was mainly my fault. I’ll def be more careful this time around. My girl with be with me on this trip so I know I can’t take chances like I did on the last one. I love the people. I love the land. What can I say? It keeps me coming back.

Tobacco Caye, Belize

What’s next? Well that all depends. I could get a wild hair and keep on after Panama into Colombia and keep skirting South down the Pacific. I’ll do that then or on my next excursion, but South America may as well be the next itinerary item, mainly Columbia, Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. I can break it up and do Brazil and Argentina later. If I don’t do South America right off, then Southeast Asia will be the next priority. Now, I’m talking extended visits for the most part. I still want to make my way over to Iceland for a few weeks, but I’m not counting that in my “gone for a while” excursions. I estimate 3 months for this trip in March, but its looking more like a few weeks more if not right at 4. So who knows? Tomorrow is not promised to me. I’ll stay focused on the event ahead of me for now.