Travel Feature | Yosemite National Park

September 20, 2022

This national park holds a special place in my heart. Not only was Yosemite National Park where I proposed to my now wife, it’s also where we got married!

Easily one of the top 3 national parks in the world, Yosemite features beautiful landscapes and a plethora of stunning wildlife. It’s the perfect destination for nature enthusiasts, avid hikers and mountain climbers. This massive park covers an area of 748,436 acres and sits in 4 counties. With so much more to adventure, the video below barely scratches the surface of what you will see when traveling through the park.

While visiting the park we stayed at Rush Creek Lodge which is located outside the park. HIGHLY recommend this location though as it has an amazing spa and great food. They also have a nice little shop to get snacks at before you go out and traverse the wilderness. If you really want great park access to maximize your time there are several AirBnB options as well. Of course, if you’re a REAL adventurer then camping out is certainly an option.

This video features landscapes visuals from the locations below:

Yosemite Valley
Tenaya Lake
Taft Point
Glacier Point
Bridal Veil Falls
Half Dome
El Capitan
An array of beautiful sequoias

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Some wildlife we spotted while venturing through the wilderness:

American Black Bear
Stellar's Jay
Common Raven
Mule Deer
Golden-mantled ground squirrel
Douglas squirrel
A variety of picidae

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Photo Blog | Va Bene in Italy

September 18, 2022

After nearly a year and a half of marriage, my wife and I finally seized the opportunity to escape Los Angeles for our honeymoon and explore the beautiful landscape of Italy. In this blog, I will take you on our adventure from the Amalfi Coast to the Chianti region, culminating in Florence. Sit back, relax, and enjoy our journey through one of my favorite lenses…

A quick sunset snap while In transit from Naples to Positano

For this journey, I brought along my trusty companion, the Fujifilm XT-3, and acquired a new lens - the Fujifilm XF 27mm f/2.8 R WR. I decided to do something daring and take only this lens! Why this one in particular? Its compact, inconspicuous form offered the perfect setup for portability and quick shots (try saying that five times fast...). It's also incredibly lightweight! My visual focus for this trip was primarily on street photography, and I aimed to challenge myself by learning new techniques. This particular lens proved to be highly versatile for various purposes. To keep everything safe and secure, I packed my gear in a Peak Design 3L Sling, which accommodated a couple of extra batteries, a strap, my wallet, and sunglasses, all neatly organized.

Our trip began in Naples, and we immediately embarked on the swift, winding route to Positano. Located off the Amalfi Coast, Positano delights visitors with scrumptious food and breathtaking views of pastel-painted architecture, leaving you yearning to don linen attire and cruise around Capri (true story).

Making our way from Positano to the Chianti region was nothing short of an adventure. We rented a car after a transfer to Salerno and made our way north. Along our way we stopped in Orvieto (rumored home of Pinocchio), a charming small town located in Umbria. Golden hour provided the perfect lighting for some moodier shots of the town.

A few hours later…with a quick stop at a grocery store where we bought as much as we would have at Whole Foods and spent a fraction of the cost, we finally arrived in at our AirBnB - Massetto in Chianti. With a sigh of relief that this would be home for the next few days, we sat back, sipped some prosecco, and enjoyed the sun setting behind the rolling green waves of vineyards and olive trees.

The next few days we got overambitious and struck several towns surrounding where we stayed stopping in Radda, Sienna, San Gimignano, and Castellina in Chianti. Each town had its own charm and unique features, but they all had one thing in common…they had GELATO!

We ate our fill, making sure to stop wherever we wanted, whenever we wanted - no town was safe! Most of the time, we simply enjoyed the views the cities provided as we gently strolled the cobblestone laid streets between tall buildings, towers, and churches.

I have to give a shout out to the good men down at Cum Quibus in San Gimignano. Their food and service, charm of the environment, the food…the service! We were treated like family as the chef came out with his hands grasping a bundle of mushrooms that only grew 2 weeks out of the year, passionately wanting to create a special dish with gnocchi, asparagus, and his flavourful funghi. When asked to add truffle, they exuberantly complied shaving half a truffle the size of your fist onto the plate. They made such a memorable experience for my wife and I, it truly created an unforgettable romantic moment in our lives.

Around the grounds of the AirBnB there were gorgeous vineyards and olive trees surrounding the property that you could freely wander. If you were feeling really adventurous you could take a hike into nature onto one of the rolling hills of Chianti. As a wild deer and fox crossed my path - my only regret was not having my 100-400mm on hand to capture some more of nature’s beauty. Some moments are just meant for you to enjoy.

After dropping off my sweet whip and grabbing a cab we arrived at our hotel in Florence - right next to the Ponte Vecchio. It was a stark contrast from the calmness of Chianti as we were thrust into a bustling city-life. To step away from the crowd we made our way to the Bardini Garden which offered an several stunning views of The Duomo.

Because it was our last night in Italy, we made sure to hit all the best spots for pizza (Ciro & Sons), gelato (La Strega Nocciola Gelateria Artigianale) and pasta (Osteria Pastella)!

Italy gave us everything we wanted out of our honeymoon and more. The memories and stories behind the experience will last our lifetime and certainly have inspired friends and family to tap into their own wanderlust to this beautiful and culture-rich country.

Wildlife Feature | Allen's Hummingbird

June 18, 2021

Undeniably enjoyable to observe, hummingbirds are easy to identify as they announce their presence with a trill while flying. Over the past few years, I've taken numerous photos of Allen's Hummingbirds in particular. My wonderful in-laws have a beautiful garden with feeders hung throughout, where these birds zip around, constantly feeding. I decided to switch my camera to video mode to finally capture these captivating creatures both inside and outside the garden. Take a moment to appreciate these swift, nectar-seeking birds as they dart from flower to flower in the video below.

This time around instead of going the standard 60fps video and slow down in post route, for the majority of this video I decided to switch Fujifilm’s X-T3 to the FullHD 120fps 5x slow motion mode. This setting provided the opportunity to get a more intimate look at how these beautiful birds flutter about.

Female in Flight

This female Allen’s Hummingbird uses precise aiming to access nectar from a feeder.

For the shoot location, I luckily stumbled on a place that had these beautiful pink and yellow flowers identified as Lantana “Pink Huff” and vibrant deep red Anigozanthos rufus Backdraft that the hummingbirds were absolutely obsessing over. These flower provided a perfect background to watch how the birds interacted. It was so beautiful that I actually came back the second day at the exact same time to capture more footage.

Check out some of the my favorite Allen’s Hummingbird photos taken of these particular birds over the past few years with the X-T3.