Stressessee

For the first time in a long time I create a post.

I recently had to travel to Tennessee for a culinary externship. In the past I would love the travel, the drive across the country but recently I didn’t look forward to it. I just knew I had to do it and what should have been a 12 hour drive turned out to be an 18 hour drive. Let me tell you why.

Stress response. How my body reacts to stress now rather than how it did in the past. Before when I would be in a moment of excitement it would be a good rush of hormones.

Well, I want to write about how it affected me in the past, but it isn’t how its been affecting me recently. Stress has gone back to its regularly scheduled program. For the most part at least. I know there are still times when it wants to win over me but I have been able to bring it down. To target and find out where this is all coming from and how I can deal with it now. And I am dealing.

With everything from my health and heart condition to everything that is happening around me. Usually when I would have a heart thing I would go into a panic mode because I thought that it was a serious problem. Increasing my stress and stress hormones. Now when I get my heart PVC or PAC I am able to understand that it is a minor inconvenience that is going away. That as I work every day I am able to make my heart stronger and stronger and that there is a light at the end of the tunnel for this condition. Like I have in the past, the heart PAC and PVC’s will subside and go away.

I will keep working on my physical health so that my health can keep up with my lifestyle. I want to be able to eat and I want to be able to go out for a hike, or a run. I need to condition it all back to equilibrium and I will

This is more like a rant again, but I am strong. The mind is our friend that we can work in concert together.

Let this symphony ring!

Be nice to yourself

And when I mean be nice to yourself, I am talk about me. I need to be nice to myself. Sometimes I feel like I haven’t accomplished much but just recently I finished a book that I have been reading for over a year. Sure it took me a year but I actually finished the book and I am working on another. It feels good. I need to remind myself that I can feel accomplished by a lot of the things that I do and experience. I don’t have to own a house or own a restaurant or have anything of the sorts right now because I have accomplished a lot of travel and have had a lot of experiences along the way.

Be nice to yourself. Even if you put off something to the next day, don’t beat up yourself because you didn’t finish your schedule. Remind yourself that you have the capacity to do it the next day, or when you are ready. I just need to remind myself that I am better than how I feel at this moment. That there is always a chance to look back at great accomplishments regardless of how I feel at this very moment. Because just like the good time come and go, so do the bad things in life.

This is a rant to remind myself that I can be nice to myself. That I can be happy. That happiness will bring more happiness in my life.

My Peru Trip 2009

Original Post: 14AUG2018

This was the first trip that I went on as an adult that wasn’t to Orlando or Tampa. By this point I have never traveled outside of Florida let alone past the Daytona line. During this time I had anxiety. I wasn’t really sure what was triggering it. What I did know was I wasn’t comfortable in my own skin. Be it my health or what I was doing with my life, something was bothering me enough to translate into a anxious state of being. This came out in full force when I was at the airport with my mom and my sister and I couldn’t stop shaking before the plane took off. I didn’t know what I was scared of but I just didn’t feel right. Once the plane took off I was able to calm down, just enough.

When people talk about traveling it is usually pleasant and nice but for me it that wasn’t the case. At least not in the beginning. Later on did it I finally start to enjoy every part of the trip. From the Castle that we went to visit, the beaches and the bungalows, and the city of Lima. It all turned out pretty amazing. It showed me that there was a lot more world left for me to visit.

I remember we spent a lot of time with my aunts and it was all really fun to see how they lived their day to day. Just to see some life different from my own. I took the opportunity to take photographs with my film camera. I can remember most of the trip even though it has been almost 10 years since I wet. I remember the room where I stayed in, it was closet where the live-in-housekeeper usually stayed and it was different from what I knew and I found it interesting. It was small, hot during the day and cold at night. It was different from the usual AC life that I was used to. My aunt would make us fresh juice and cook us great food. I can’t forget that. We also wen’t to a lot of places to eat.

One instance where anxiety hit me was when I stayed behind while they went shopping or to run some errands. I had one of the first panic attacks I have ever felt. It felt like I was going to die right then and there and I didn’t know why. I wasn’t at my healthiest I know that for sure and when my body reacted I felt swayed by it internally. Like I would feel my heart rate elevate or my blood pressure elevate and it was a feeling that I was hyper aware of. I thought they were symptoms of my health being ready to take me to the other side. But it didn’t. I didn’t go anywhere, I just lived with that struggle internally. I didn’t tell my mom about it at the time, she just recognized that I wasn’t at my healthiest either and she made an effort to help me with that when we got back to see a physician. Which is story in on itself for another time.

Back to the nice part of the trip.

We went to the beach area called Chorrillos and I loved it there. I took quite a few pictures. It was all new to me and I found the scenery fascinating. Especially the few pictures I am sharing now.

We went to another beach spot soon after that was a resort dedicated to the Peruvian Military including family members. Club Esmar Fuerza Aerea del Peru (it took me along time to find and remember this place from a memory almost 10 years ago) I remember getting to the beach bungalow and laying down on the bed. I don’t remember if it was night time or the evening but I passed out completely and fully on the little bed in the room. I remember waking up to the ocean breaking on the shore.

I finally felt relaxed. All my tensions seemed to have melted away at this place. With good reason. There was no noise or chatter in my brain, just peace and the sounds outside of me. The sights as well took my mind off some of it. Just take a look at these photos.

This place definitely returned peace to me. It was incredible. It was really fun to shoot film as well. I think at this time I was stagnant on my creative avenues and this was a kickstart.

We also visited Ica, Peru and on the way we stopped by Huacachina. An amazing Oasis that I would love to visit some time again with some more time. I would like to spend some time there with the other backpackers and travelers. We did the dune buggies and the sand boards down the dunes but don’t have any pictures of that time though. I must have known better that the sand was going to ruin my camera.

We made it back to Lima to hang out with my cousin Sylvanna. She drove us to Miraflores where we had dinner. Here are some of the pictures I got from that day.

This trip would have been nothing with out my family. Every member from Peru which made the trip possible from so many different areas. My sister who was there to enjoy the trip as well (We’re going to go back sis, I promise). My mother who was there for me when I was anxious. The woman who will always be there for me regardless of my situation.

Nasha Kleimann, my beautiful mother, the strongest woman I know.

I no longer had the anxiety to fly after this trip. The flight home was comfortable and every flight after that has been smooth sailing. Even the next year when I went back to Peru. “My Peru Trip 2010”

If you want to reply to my post on facebook please do. I’d love to talk about this trip some more if you have questions. Subscribe to my blog if you haven’t, sometimes I forget to post the link to my facebook. Thank you again for reading and till next time.

Measuring Success

Original Post: 12AUG2018

As much as I might have felt that I want success for myself. I realize now that I want success mostly for my family.

The end goal for my culinary career and how I will measure my success is to have a place my family can go. If I have a big home I want it to be mostly for my family. A place where my mom, dad, and sister can also call home at any given time. I want to make sure that we all spend time together for dinner and holidays. If any of them are ever in need I want to be able to support them in anything they need help in. I would love for my mom to not have to work, only work because she wants to since she loves what she does. I would love to go on holiday trips with my sister to every part of the world she has always wanted to visit with out any restrictions on time or money. I would also love to have a ranch for my father so he can finally just have his own horses instead of having to play the horses of strangers at the racetrack.

I realized that this is how I want to measure my success. Not being a celebrity and being praised by others. I just want my family to be happy and comfortable at all times. This is going to be my driving force.

Have you found your driving force? Send me a message if you agree with anything I said and if you have similar feelings yourself and your goals. I would love to hear what others feel in this regard.

Thank you for reading. Today feels like a day for writing.

Admissions Letter

Original Post: 05AUG2018

This might be a copout for the next culinary post but I wanted to share the letter I sent to the Culinary Institute of America for the admissions essay.

Enjoy

***

When I was younger I remember my father in the kitchen placing the yellow potatoes into the boiling pot of water making sure to salt it just enough. My mother added the remaining ingredients into the blender for huancaina sauce: queso fresco, ají amarillo, saltine crackers. She hit the start button. With the rice in the cooker and fries baking in the oven, my father tossed the cut tomatoes, red onion, and yellow chili into the Lomo saltado. The splash and sizzle, the aromas of the vegetables that emanated off of that pan – it was exciting for me. He added the last touches to finish the sauce and the scene started to calm down. Most kids would usually wait for the food to be done. I was always attentive in the kitchen; admiring my parents’ diligence in making something that I loved. That curiosity followed me into my adulthood.

Since then, I have always been exploring with food. Either through my travels or eating a home cooked meal with friends and family. Never feeling like I am done learning from my parents, elders, peers, books or online recipes. My favorite times are when I take to the kitchen with no recipe in mind – just ingredients and a genuine curiosity to make something that is pleasant to share. When the dish of my imagination comes together just right I know it is time to serve. Making something that is satisfying to my taste buds is one thing; when I see the faces of the people I invite light up, that is when I know my passion translated into something tangible. Taking the love I felt when my parents made our Peruvian food and passing that on to my future restaurant guests is something to live for.

***

While I was in the Navy I enjoyed having dinner parties at my apartment at least once a week. It was a good way to bring better food to the bellies of hungry sailors like myself. Everyone gets tired of the same meals served at the galley. How many taco Tuesdays is enough before you get sick of them? On dinner party nights, I would usually make a main dish and tell everyone else to bring a supplementing dish. It was always fun and made for interesting combinations. For example, someone would always bring a fruit platter, regardless of the dish being made, and others will bring a whole roasted chicken. A crowd favorite was my Thai red curry. My roommate had me make it at least once a week. 

During these dinner parties I found it easy lead my friends in helping. I would ask them to open up a can of coconut milk, peel me a few potatoes for the pot, chop the herbs to put over the bowls. As long as I was detailed in what I was asking, they would do anything, willingly and promptly. The food was made sooner and reached stomachs quicker – everyone wins. It was also easy to share my kitchen with people that wanted to make their own food. From fancy vegan sandwiches to hearty pumpkin stews, everyone had a style and everyone worked together for our amazing nights. Managing my apartment kitchen with a house full of friends came easy to me. 

The experience I gained while I was in the Navy gave me the tools I needed to band a group together to achieve a goal greater than ourselves. As an Aviation Intelligence Operator, I learned how to be in charge of a team to create a final product that was something to be admired. In my line of duty any miniscule discrepancy can mean a product being rejected or worse; the unspeakable. Not only did I collect and analyze quality intelligence as an individual operator, I learned that the sum of my team’s collection was better than any individual piece. Otherwise you would have an unusable product, and in the case of cooking, an incomplete and tasteless dish.

***

As I put this letter together, I had my first few days of apprenticeship at Kamal Cafe in Dharamkot, India. Raji and Kush have been running Kamal Cafe for over 11 years and their experience shows in the food and in the quality of service they provide to their guests. I am grateful to have two very helpful and patient masters. I realize that to be a great leader in the kitchen you have to be a great listener. Raji accommodates Indian cooking to the taste buds of guests from all over the world. I have the utmost respect for their operation as if it was mine. I know that I am not above anything including opening, cleaning, prep work, shopping, cooking, making masala chai and closing. All kitchen aspects are encompassed in this training and I am absorbing it fully and respectfully. This is something that is solidifying my passion for the kitchen. The next few months here are going to be exciting.

If the Culinary Institute of America were to have one spot left for a student I hope it would be me because I will bring the same passion I had as a child and as an adult to CIA. I will bring my full awareness and attention to the skillful art and process of working with a team in a kitchen. Finally, I will bring my ambition to be part of an amazing community of future chefs, senior chefs and restaurant business owners. 

***

Thank you for reading if you did. This is not for granted, this is not just a step, this is my life.

First Culinary Post

Original Post: 03AUG2018

I recently applied to the Culinary Institute of America for a bachelors is Business Management with a Culinary Arts focus. Ah! I mean, what a beautiful thing. I’ve always loved cooking and if you ask some of the recent eaters of my food they would say that I love cooking as well. Especially that Thai Red Curry, right Amanda?

After weeks of yoga and refreshing the admissions website waiting to see if I got accepted to the school, the advisor finally answered the first of 200(exaggerating) calls I made to her. Being in India with 12hrs and a half of time difference really makes it difficult to communicate with anyone let alone a busy college advisor. I digress. She answered the call and tells me that I basically got accepted. That she is 99% sure that the board is going to accept me and that I will be going to the school in January. Woohoo!

In the meantime I’ll be here. In India. Learning everything I can from the amazing people that have been teaching me everything they know about cooking. Currently it is Northern Indian food in Dharamshala and in a few weeks I’ll get a taste of what is Central and South Indian food is like while I am in Varanasi. I already know it is going to be much different that what I have been eating here and I’m excited about it.

For now I’ll keep reading my books with culinary themes, as well as magazines. Soon enough the time will come. I’ll have lived in India for three and a half months visited Hong Kong and Seoul on my way back and would have packed and drove a truck while towing my car all the way from Miami to NY. The first day of school seems far away now but I know it’ll happen sooner than I think.

No real food in this post but I wanted to share what has been happening and what is going to happen. Thanks for reading. Be sure to look out for my next post on traveling. I’m going to share my first trip to Peru in 2010 and what it felt like to be me during that time.

Olympus Stylus 120 and Friends

Original Post: 01DEC2017

As my previous posts show, I don’t usually post too many personal life images. Although as of late I look at what I have been photographing and it only makes sense that I should start adding a few.

I am still using Fuji C200 film stock. I do have some other film that I haven’t gotten to but will. I just have a large amount of C200 film that I have to run through.

The Olympus Stylus 120 is a great pocket camera with a zoom range of 38mm-120mm. The size is perfect, really, it is a small golden compact camera the size of a pack of cigarettes that fits into any pocket or jacket pocket. You do lose some quality when you zoom and you lose some of the flash range when zooming but if you use it at the 38mm mark you get great shots with and without the flash.

I only took two photos during the day with this camera, I’ll post my favorite of the two. 

The focus was on the glass of the camera and not the dog because it works off of bouncing infrared light off objects, anything behind glass will not be in focus. Still, I like the feel of this image and it makes me happy to look at it.

Now lets get into the night shots. This was what I was using this camera for mainly and as you will see, the next blog post will be the same. Maybe even the one after that…

I’m not sure if the grain in this image is due to the processing chemicals being a little over used or if it is due to the camera not being as sharp as I would like it to be. Either way, I am happy with the image. As you can see the flash fills the space perfectly and doesn’t blow out the highlights. I will have to pass another roll through the camera to make sure that the grain is coming from the C41 chemicals that I used or the camera.

I promised a personal image and here are more than I promised.

I hope you enjoyed the small glimpse of the people in my life and I. The people that have been the subject of my photography and enjoy it. A shoutout to my selfie buddy Amanda who has been here to help me develop and scan the film! We have been adding a selfie with every night out.

The feel of the film is from the emulsion but I do a little fixing up in post. The little editing I did was in Lightroom and that was just to adjust some of the highlights but since these are basically .jpeg files, there is not much I can do with out damaging the image.

Overall, I really enjoyed this camera and I look forward to using it again.

The next camera is the Ricoh TF-500. Another gem of a camera.

Until next time Paisanos,

Canon AF35M II and Epson V550 Scanner

Original Post: 18NOV2017

I’d like to start with the camera. What a champion! This Canon has a wonderful sharp lens at 38mm f/2.8. The autofocus is spot on and it is the perfect size for a jacket pocket. The only extra option I would have liked to see is a telephoto zoom like the Minolta AF-Tele. The film I used was Fuji C200 film.

Now to the pictures. I took it to Seattle a couple of times out for some nightlife time. The best part about the camera was how unintrusive it was because of its size. No one was intimidated by it and there for I didn’t get much objection when taking a picture.

The flash fills in really nicely with out blowing out the highlights and that worked great for shots like this and like the one below.

If I were to use this for strictly night life photography I would be perfectly happy doing so. Another nice feature of this camera is the fact that it uses two AA batteries. Other cameras of this time used specialty batteries and are expensive and nearly impossible to find in the first store you visit.

This would be a good project to do while partying in downtown Seattle, photographing all the people in different streetwear. So much great style out there it deserves to be documented.

Here are a couple of photos that aren’t night life related.

All these film negatives were scanned by the Epson V550. The quality of the scans are great, the software, not so good. Actually the software that comes with it is atrocious and causes the scan process that should only take 10 minutes to over 30 if you forget to move the mouse. I’m still looking for another program that will work better with the scanner.

For the next update I shot using a Olympus Stylus 120. It was quick and easy to use. The negatives look sharp. Look out for the scans in the next post.

Until then my Paisanos,

Konik C35 EF

Original Post: 07NOV2017

Update: This post was written when I was scanning with a box and my digital camera. That is the reason I talk about the images being soft.

I would like to start by saying that this was not the best experience. I was pretty hyped up to use this camera as it was one of Andy Warhols favorites but it was really disappointing. A lots of the shots were out of soft, not sharp at all, regardless of me being at the right distance from the subject and the lens. It wants to look like a rangefinder but it is far from it. You kind of have to guess your distance to your subjects and set it on the focus ring. If the images were a little bit sharper I feel I would have loved it a lot more. Maybe I need to give it a second chance.

Here is one of the images that I would have loved if it wasn’t for it being soft.

If the image was a bit sharper you would have been able to distinguish more of the fall colors from the trees.

Here is a shot of my great friends Robert and Amy, still really soft.

I’m not too upset about it I guess. I kind of do like the softness in the sense that it gives it a certain feel. This would not fly though if I was shooting for a customer. Which I really don’t so I don’t know why I am so concerned.

I do have a select few that I do love, even if they are a bit soft.

The first one is from the same day that I went hiking with my friends.

The image appeared to be slightly better in focus around the bumper nearest to the camera and it just has this mobster kind of mood to it and I enjoy it.

Another is of a tangled mess of seaweed.

This one is Instagram worthy for me. I love the lines that lead into the braid of seaweed, even though it is a bit soft and difficult to distinguish.

Overall I would give this camera a 4/10 and maybe I will give it a second chance. But for now it will stay in its case and in the stack of other camera.

Look out for the Canon AF35MII pictures. As soon as I have another roll to develop with it I will have them ready. I also ordered a scanner which should be arriving next week. At last I will have nicer looking scans.

P.S.

Minolta AF Tele with Fuji C200

Original Post: 02NOV2017

This is a wonderful camera. The Minolta AF Tele is a 35mm point and shoot camera that be used by anyone and it was an amazing experience to use it. I want to say more but it is a really simple camera. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

I think this was expired film too, I’m not too sure. But out of the cameras I have used in the past few film rolls, this one has been my favorite. Another picture.

I just love the colors and the focus is exactly where I wanted it to be. If you can get your hands on one of these you will not be disappointed. I paid $4.00 at a goodwill. There is no losing at the price.

This is the picture I just shared on my Instagram. I noticed that I wanted to keep the full size of the image without having to crop it. One last picture.

This was a Vital in Bellingham. It was such a fun time to watch these athletes compete. The only problem was that earlier in the day I had lost the shutter release button and I had to fire the camera with a paperclip.

Over all a wonderful camera and I hope you enjoyed the pictures. I am going to try my best in making a portfolio on this website but I ran into some issues last time I did that. Hopefully I get to make it later on.

Till next time my Paisanos,

Film Developed at Home

Original Post: 29OCT2017

I have recently reintroduced myself to film photography. Well, I have been taking pictures with one film camera or another in the past 5 years and I just developed the one disposable that I have been taking around from move to move since Pensacola, FL. The first picture I want to share is the one of a beach of Pensacola, It was early morning and there isn’t much detail, but it was a moment that I wanted to capture and here it is.

After a while I forgot I even had the camera. Once I found it again here in Washington I took it around my town and captured a few pictures just to finish out the roll. Here are a couple of them now.

I have recently reintroduced myself to film photography. Well, I have been taking pictures with one film camera or another in the past 5 years and I just developed the one disposable that I have been taking around from move to move since Pensacola, FL. The first picture I want to share is the one of a beach of Pensacola, It was early morning and there isn’t much detail, but it was a moment that I wanted to capture and here it is.

The initial investment was a little costly but it is a lot better that paying $10 per roll. With this I have way more control and accessibility to do it myself.

The interesting part of how I am scanning the pictures was posted on my instagram Stories feed, but if you haven’t seen it, check this image out.

This is just the beginning. Along with the film photography that I have been working on I will also begin working on videos. Maybe tutorials on how I mixed the chemicals to develop the film to the development process. Funny skits and maybe even monologues. It will be a while before I introduce those but when I do I will let everyone know.

Look out for more of my posts on IG.

Until next time my Paisanos,

San Diego

Original Post: 03MAY2017

Hello again. As I mentioned in my previous post, today I will share some of the photographs I took while I was in San Diego, CA.

This first picture is something I would love to see printed on a really large canvas. Maybe one day I can start making prints of all my photos to see all the detail in them and have a hard copy, even give some away. Finance will be a limiting factor for the moment.

Walking around Mission Beach placed me in this angle of life guards doing their re-qualifications for the upcoming summer. For this image I edited the excess of sky that did not context to this composition.

The next photo includes my favorite subject. People! People will always be a main focus of mine. Everywhere around the world all people have their own essence that brings out the area they live in.

This is my example of people in the city streets of Chula Vista – San Diego. The gentleman was snack vendor who ventured into an area that wasn’t really too occupied. I did not have to crop this image in post production. I was happy with the composition when I took the photograph.

Textures are really fun. As I was walking around I noticed a gift bag next to a Lincoln car. The reflection off the of tire rim was something that really caught my eye and did not pass up. Something about this was very pleasing to me. While I was editing the photograph I noticed that I took too much of the picture. I had the tires in the view as well as the bag but what I really wanted to capture was only the texture off of the rim.

These were the three images I wanted to share from San Diego. Three completely different styles of photographs but equally intriguing to me. I may post a few more on my Instagram page. I will also include some of my editing techniques from now on. Something that I get asked when I show my photos to friends.

Until then.

Enjoy!

Landscapes

Original Post: 02MAY2017

It has been a while since my last post. Many months actually but here is my latest.

I have been working on landscapes. Only a few but I have been working on technique that will make the images pop. It isn’t a new concept. I’m talking HDR. Not like the iPhone HDR or those really over cooked HDR photos.

This image was a stack of three pictures. The first one was taken to get the highlights of the sky, the second was taken to gather all the mid tones of the building and boats and the last one was to get all the shadows.

I like to use Lightroom to edit and stack the photographs. I didn’t do much editing to this photograph. I kind of just stacked them and called it a day. I could have made more adjustments but I wanted to keep the natural feel that I captured with my eyes.

Below is another stacked image.

This was a shot that I took while I was in San Diego. This was the first image that I stacked and gave me the motivation to keep trying to take more landscape photos.

In my next post I will show some of the images from my recent trip to San Diego, CA.

I will also be on a trip to Greece and some locations in between. Look out for those.

Enjoy!

Oak Harbor Music Festival

Original Post: 26SEP2016

It’s funny that I didn’t take pictures of any of the artists for the Oak Harbor Music Festival, just the guests. I had a great time and interacted a lot with the people I photographed. I usually just take candid photos but this day everyone knew I was photographing them.

I also used a film camera but I don’t know if the first roll actually took to the reel. I just remember the counter getting up to 34 or something like that and there are only 24 exposures to each roll. Oh well, I guess I’ll find out when the rolls get developed.

This next photo is of a group of young adults that had a great time having their photograph taken. We must have taken 15-20 shots together but this was the one that stood out and gave me the most of them.

I love that the Oak Harbor community does things like this. It really brings out the different characters of the city. At first I thought that it was going to be boring to photograph in my town. I just wanted to go to Seattle and take pictures there but in reality I don’t have to go to far at all. I can just go to the local events and take photos of the people who inhabit the town that I once thought was boring and uninteresting. Now, I know better.

Just one last photo for the day.

I was recently in Guam and I didn’t find it nearly as interesting as I do find this town. I believe I got a few pictures but nothing significant. I’ll go through them and post them when I get a chance.

Enjoy.

-Franco Pisano

Some More from Japan, 28mm

Original Post: 11SEP2016

I want to share some more from Japan tonight. These were taking with the 28mm lens. This is a great lens because you really have to get close to the person. You really have to get into their personal space and almost be part of their life for that split moment. Especially if it is a candid photo.

I usually shoot with the 50mm lens where you can stand a little further away. But with this wider angle you can really get more information other than the subject. Here are a few examples.

On this last one, I had to get in the way of the man and take the picture. He really didn’t seem too bothered about it. Which gives me confidence to keep shooting like that.

All in all, like I have said before. Japan was my favorite place to shoot, and to develop my style because the language barrier. Because of that language barrier I could give them my best broken Japanese to ask for forgiveness or permission.

Next, I will be showing some more pictures from Washington. Maybe I will post them tonight as well.

-Franco Pisano

Landscapes & Still Life

Original Post: 30JUL2016

Like any true photographer you sometimes become stagnant on shooting your style. And by you, I mean me. Not because I was lazy, but because it is really difficult to photograph the same people in the same small town. I need to travel to the big cities a lot more frequently.

In the mean time I needed to try something different, I needed to try to take some landscape photos.

I usually look at landscape photography as something anyone can do. Anyone with a point and shoot and a beautiful scene. There are hundreds of those online, a quick google search can show you all of them. All the sunsets and all the mountain sides, beaches and sunrises. And they are beautiful. I love them. But it is something that I don’t want to photograph particularly. What am I to do?

I go ahead and test out some landscape photography…

For this particular shot I was driving back from Bellingham, WA after shopping at the farmers market and visiting vintage thrift and second hand shops. Yes, I am that person. As I was driving, I was on the phone with my mom (hands free!) and immediately had to tell her that I would call her back. “Mom, I got to go, there is something I need to photograph!” Click.

I got out of the car, posted up my flimsy tripod and started to take shots. I realized that shooting landscapes is a little more of a challenge. I took several photos. I shot with my 50mm and I didn’t like how they came out. So I reframed and moved some. I switched to the 85mm and moved some more then I nailed this shot.

It was a rewarding feeling when I got to look at the photo in post processing. Choosing the right one from many taken is always a difficult and long process. Editing is another, but, it gets easier because you find a style that matches you and you go with it. For this one particular picture, the contrast was so perfect that I looked its best in black and white.

Then there is still life…

“Still life” is slightly different from landscape in the sense that, for me, it is almost close to being street photography. It is something that is happening at one moment in time and you happen to be around to take a shot of it. The only difference is that there aren’t any people in the picture to consider it street in my terms.  But a person wouldn’t have made a different to this picture. In the end it might have taken away the impact of this one. It would have take the focus away, of this beautiful abandoned grill.

So far you have seen photos of Japan and on this post you have seen some from Washington. I plan on showing more of my other travels and my other projects separate from street, still, and landscape photography.

-Franco Pisano

P.S.

Shop Owner of Okinawa

Original Post: 27JUL2016

Some of my favorite people to photograph while I was in Okinawa were the shop owners of the area.

The capital city of Naha, Okinawa was liveliest place with plenty of people in the form of tourism. From local Okinawan to main land Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese, even as far away as South Korean visitors came to the area. Kokusai-dōri was mostly for nicknacks and gimmicky gifts along with plenty of bars and restaurants. Of which an Irish bar that was hidden out in a back alley was a favorited bar and my preference for food would have to be restaurants that sell local Okinawan dishes.

Heiwadori Market area was just an alley that split off further into Naha and away from the major tourist street. There you can find niche markets of exotic fruit, exotic seafood, as well as plenty of clothing shops and musical instruments shops selling Sanshin, the Okinawan 3 string guitar like instrument.

This shop owner in particular I must have photographed 3 times in different occasions. The other two are just as good, but they convey a different message than this one does. He was deep in testing this instrument and all he could do when I took the picture was glance at me and continue tuning the instrument. I remembered it clearly because after I shot the photo I approached a little closer and gave my signature “head nod and smile” in appreciation and he continued to tune the instrument.

Other shop owners would not get much patronage. So they will do things that would keep them busy otherwise. Like reading, organizing the shop, stocking the shelfs, sleeping… and my favorite, staring off into no where in particular.

Here I saw this man waiting for a customer to approach him. In Heiwadori where there are at least 10 more fruit markets like his own, it’s not easy to stay competitive. I lingered there for a moment in the essence of what it was to be him. He was so into his thoughts that he didn’t even notice me taking the shot and he stayed that way for a little while longer until he was actually approached by a customer.

It was early spring, and maybe the tourists weren’t looking for what the sleepy and pensive shop owners had for sale at the time. Regardless, the strong willed shop owners would open day after day. If you stay long enough you get to see the shop owners, proud of what they own, wind down. Then you were granted a backstage pass of what it was to be them. Selling the last few items at a discounted price, packing up their displays, and brining in all the merchandise into their shed.

It was all amazingly beautiful to live in the life of these shop owners. Equally as beautiful was being able to save a piece of it.

-Franco Pisano

P.S.

Photographers Metamorphosis

Original Post: 23JUL2016

Today I finally show you what I have been working on. Like I have mentioned I am still honing in my skill in the art of Street Photography. I am by no means a “Pro” not at least until I am considered one by some of the best in the scene. I really started shooting again this spring in Japan.

I went to Okinawa for what seemed like the perfect amount of time. Just enough to enjoy the area and get to know the people that live and work in Okinawa, Japan. At the time I was watching a lot of videos on youtube on cameras and such because I was interested in maybe getting a new one. As I watched DigitalRev TV’s YouTube channel I started to notice when they review cameras it was usually outdoors. It was in the city, the streets, deep in lives of the people. The host of the show was usually in peoples faces and for the most part the people didn’t really care that they were being photographed. I found it amazing how easy it was for him to do it. When they showed what the shots looked like, that is when I felt a deep connection with the art.

Anyone who knows me knows, I love people. I like to get to know them all. The who aspect of who they are, what they are doing at that very moment. That is what I like capturing in a photo.

When I look back at my first few photographs I noticed a trend… that I shot the photos from far away.

And that I captured people in unobtrusive angles.

Things that didn’t really take away from the photograph, but it didn’t really make them stand out in the way that I wanted them to stand out.

The previous two were shot using a Nikon D3100 and a 50mm lens. The camera I have had for a really long time. About 5 years actually and I love it. I took it everywhere and it was a trooper through and through. I noticed that the camera was a little underpowered for what I wanted really. Maybe because I was still scared of approaching people and I wanted something that was full frame so that I may crop a photo if I really needed to with out loosing too much detail in the process. The only problem with that is when you crop too much you still notice the detail loss and well, what am I to do?

So I did what I always do and I impulse bought the camera anyways. Now I shoot with a Nikon D810 with the 50mm practically married to the lens. I rarely shoot with any other lens unless I am going for a different style of photo and I will share that later in the future.

I had to change my approach and start shooting like a street photographer  and begin to approach people with out any barriers. Language, language was a barrier, but I over came with my broken Japanese.

I rarely take more than one maybe two photographs. Mainly because I really dislike editing. It just takes so much time and can get annoying and frustrating. Maybe I can hire someone in the future, or maybe someone or some company can hire me.

Another reason is that when I had film I was restricted to shooting a limited amount of times. I had to get it right the first time and be happy with what I shot.

I had to get comfortable with people knowing that I am taking a picture of them. Below is the first picture that I took with the person noticing. He really didn’t mind it. After I took the picture he went on with his business.

Then I started to talk to them and photograph them.

They really didn’t mind that I didn’t speak Japanese that well. They must have sensed something about me that looked like I knew what I was doing and I continued to do so through out my stay in Japan.

With out giving too many pictures away in one post I am going to end it here. As you saw I developed something in me that changed how I photograph people. Till this day I am discovering new things about myself and that is all part of the fun.

Stay posted for my next entry.

-Franco Pisano

P.S. Here are some additional photographs.

Florida Blur

Original Post: 20 August 2016

I was in Florida recently and aside from visiting friends and family I managed to get a few shots off here and there.

The first destination was the Florida keys, and although I took many pictures, there was this one that stood out to me the most. It isn’t sharp, it isn’t blur free. It just feels natural, and I loved it because of that.

Recently the trend of what is a “good photograph” is determined by the sharpest image with the steadiest hands. But that is not how life is. At times it is at a stand still and you can capture that stillness, and other times it goes by so fast that if you’re not quick you may miss it. What I like about those times is that they may not be remembered clearly or full of detail, but it will be remembered. The special moments.

The next one was taken at “Second Saturday” in Wynwood art district.

Sometimes you have a lot going on in a photo. It can usually take a way from the subject, but when the different aspects of it converge to create a unified subject you end up with photos like this one. Thank you 9ieband.

There are a few more from Florida, but these are the ones that I wanted to share today. Hope you enjoyed a mini trip through my quick blurred Florida trip.

-Franco Pisano

P.S. Here are additional favorites from that time.

Candid vs Posed

Original date: 15AUG2016

Here I have a couple of examples of candid vs “posed” shots. I use the quotations marks because they already knew I was going to take the picture, I snapped a few off while they weren’t looking and then I asked if I can take a few more.

This shot was actually the first of the day.

At first I thought I didn’t like that he smiled, but it turned out to be more than I wanted. It gave me the reason to think of the smile project, of getting people to smile while I portrait shoot them. I have several of those and I put them to the side because I didn’t like them at the time. I think for my next post I will be bringing in on the begging stages of the “Smile” Project.

This is the candid shot…

This is the candid shot of the day. It shows a much different emotion.

This is what I am working on, and I have many more from previous shots that I have to add as well and I will be doing that within the next few days.

Also I participated in a wedding photoshoot and a family portrait shoot. Maybe I will share a few of those.

-Franco Pisano