I went on a tour of Peru with LaloFitness and the MacaTrim team.  Below are some personal photos from the trip, with a little video at the end.

The roads were SCARY.  I thought I was going to die only about…16 times.

A kid driving a car full of ladies!  Hahaha.

I’ve always wanted to do this on a train.

Met up with some friends in the Sacred Valley. 

Lalo & Eugenio.  BFFs.

The best shrimp soup EVER!

Alpaca burger.

At Chi Cha de Gaston Acurio in Cusco.  Yum yum yum!

My favorite fruit – Granadilla!

Elevation in Puno: 12,500 feet.  Chewing on cocoa leaves to minimize altitude sickness.

The kids were selling something in a bag and said, “Vizcacha?”  We asked what Vizcacha was.  They opened the bag.  Ohhhh….

I want a pet Alpaca!

Guinea Pig – It’s what’s for dinner.

Making friends.

Here’s a short video from the road trip.  Thanks Lalo, for putting it together, and making me look “cool.” 

For more scenic photos of Peru, click here.

I’m not sure what I was thinking when I decided to bring my film camera on a rocking boat.  It made me woozy looking through the view finder attempting to manually focus (big shock), so thank you to Jana Williams and Jeremi Peck for helping take photos.  I love geeking out with other photographers. 

Photos taken with Kodak Portra 400 & Ilford Delta 400 B&W film.

I decided to change to B&W film as the fog was rolling in.

I always imagined steering a boat to be easy but it’s not!  Did you know it’s possible to lose control and have the sailboat make a 180 on you?  I learned the hard way.    #AsianDriver

How old am I again?  Oh yes, 31.  I turned 31 yesterday.

A lot of people have told me that your thirties are amazing and I see why.  I’m more sure of who I am.  Things aren’t personal.  I’m honest with myself and put that to action.  Those actions give me the results that I want in life.  Life flows easier.

Thank you to my friends and family for loving me on my birthday, and every day.

Two things I do when I get home after a long trip:  1. See my dog.  2. Eat a bowl of Pho.

That’s what I did yesterday when I arrived back in LA after weeks of traveling.  My passport is filled with 4 more stamps and I’m feeling extremely grateful.  I have the ability to see the world while at the same time, coming back to a loving home.

I look at my vision board sometimes and laugh, watching everything fall into place.  I remember years ago gluing on the different travel destinations, the work goals, the love goals.

Things didn’t happen by chance.  Anything is possible.  I’m just an ordinary person who created the life I wanted.  How empowering it is to know that you can do and have ANYTHING as long as you’re willing to focus and work for it.

It’s there for you.  Go get it!

I suck at sitting still to meditate.  During savasana in yoga class, the instructor often taps the space between my eyebrows, indicating that I am furrowing my brow.  Apparently I don’t know how to let go and do nothing.

Maybe my dog can teach me a thing or two.

What I’ve learned is that meditation doesn’t have to be sitting still with your eyes closed.  Meditation is simply getting out of your head and being in the present moment (thank you Eckhart Tolle!).  I’ve found that these 3 methods make getting out of my head much easier:

1. When you are doing something, put your full attention on it.  Washing the dishes, walking the dog, eating a meal… Whatever it is, focus on that one thing and apply all your senses to it – sight, smell, sound, taste, touch.  It’s amazing when you get into your body and out of your mind.  It makes doing anything enjoyable.

This morning I brushed my hair.  I mean I REALLY brushed my hair.  Looking in the mirror, I brushed it for 3 minutes.  It felt so good on my scalp that at some points I closed my eyes.  I didn’t want to stop.  Normally I go through the motions (quickly) and my mind is already on what I want to do next.  When you are doing something, give it your FULL attention.  :)

2. Take a (really) deep breath.  My hippie friend Jay (he’s the happy guy in the photo below) used to tell me to stop and take a breath whenever he saw I was frustrated.  He would grab me and say “Stop and just trust me !  Take a deep breath!”  I would pull away and say “No!” and continue being grumpy.  He never fought and accepted where I was.  Jay Pullano – you’ve been right all these years.  One deep conscious breath works wonders.  Thank you.  Having hippie friends has it’s benefits!

Sometimes when I’m having an emotional breakdown, I find it is harder to focus.  The thoughts keep coming and I feel stuck in this story that this and that happened, and I feel like shit.  The only thing I feel compelled to do is tell it to my friends, over and over.

3.  What I have found that works really well is to STOP talking about it because that only keeps me in the same place.  If I want to vent, once is enough.  After that I want to make the conscious decision to move forward.

If you are in a place like this, sit down with a friend and ask, “Can we talk about you? What’s going on with you?”  People always have stuff going on, and if it’s a problem, even better.  When you listen to someone else’s problems, it’s easier to recognize that everyone has silly stories, and ultimately it’s all kind of funny.  (Have you ever laughed when you saw someone was pissed off over something you thought was trivial?).  It also makes you realize how selfish you are being when you are upset about something, because all you are thinking about is how everything is affecting YOU.  It’s a big world and there is a lot going on besides whatever is going on in your head.  ;)

What are some of your techniques for getting out of your head?  I would love to hear!

Every time I travel, I like to reflect and think – how has this experience changed my life?  What did I learn?  It makes me feel wholesome.  :)

5 Takeaways from my trip to Vietnam last week:

1.  Life functioned fine before cell phones.  The Saigon airport is like any other airport in Asia – a freaking zoo.  My uncle came to pick us up.  I didn’t have access to my cell phone the entire trip.  As we walked out of the airport, all I could think was - It took us an hour to get through customs.  Is he really here?  How is he going to find us among this sea of 2000 people?… We found each other within a few minutes which confirmed to me once again, that life functioned fine before cell phones.  Better actually, because people have more integrity without them.

2.  Vietnamese people are gangsta.  Just one of MANY examples I witnessed – You know the 50’s style diners where the waiters roller skate to bring you food?  They have that in Vietnam but instead of burgers and fries, they are serving hot pot and Pho.  Carrying boiling hot liquid on roller skates . . . GANGSTA.

3. The traffic situation in Vietnam is like my brain.  The streets are filled with hundreds of thousands of scooters.  No one uses turn signals or yields.  You can drive on the sidewalk, through the grass, against traffic, diagonally with the traffic, with how ever many people you can physically fit on your bike (the most I saw on this trip was a family of 6).  It’s a cluster f*ck, but somehow it still works.

4.  A warm welcome.  The whole family (Vietnamese families entail 15+ people) will go to the airport to send one person off.  It’s lovely.  What a great feeling to be sent off or greeted upon arrival with that much love!  My friends and I try our best to create this here in LA.  Every time one of us needs to be picked up from the airport, whoever is available in our “friend family” will get together and pick that one person up.  We greet each other with love and then all go out for boba after.  I like that tradition.  :)

5. Hot humid weather will make you relax whether you like it or not.  Being in Vietnam during March and April is like being in a steam room 24/7.  You WILL slow down both physically and mentally.  It forces you to relax, which is great for people who find it hard to relax (I think that is most of us!).

This was my second trip to Vietnam.  It remains one of the most amazing countries I’ve ever been to!  I will share some travel photos soon.  :)

Day four of my trip to Vietnam and I’ve been eating Pho, Bun Bo Hue, and drinking coconuts galore.  Vietnamese food is my FAVORITE cuisine of all time but I’ll admit – what I’m really craving right now is a Mocha Frappuccino from Starbucks.

As much as I want to be this worldly person, I AM the person who will visit a Starbucks in another country.  It isn’t even all that good.  I’ve been to many coffee houses that taste way better, so why do I want Starbucks?  I’ll tell you why.

1.) It’s convenient.  2.) I know what I’m going to get.

Convenience and consistency are two things that every business owner should think about.  Some things you can consider for your business:

Convenience:

How quick is it for someone to know what I’m about?  Is it easy for people to access/contact me?  Is my company name easy to remember?  Easy to spell?   Is my website easy to navigate?

Consistency:

As a photographer, do my photos have a distinct style?  Are my photos edited consistently?  If my style is “vibrant” and “energized”, is that consistent across ALL my branding (from my website colors to the way my photos look to the way I pick up the phone)?

When I get back to the states (or maybe during the 17-hour plane ride home), I am going to reevaluate convenience and consistency as they apply to my own business.

Starbucks doesn’t exist in the countryside of Vietnam, but I did find something else that hit the spot.  Only $7 for this thing!

P.S.  The first photo is at the Red Sand Dunes of Mui Ne.

P.P.S.  Yes, the $7 is in US Dollars.

My mom always took a lot of photos of us growing up.  I’m glad she did.

That is a big reason why I’m so sentimental with photography.  I love looking at a picture that sparks a specific memory.  Good photos aren’t purely visual.  They make you right back to the moment, causing you to remember the tastes, the smells, the sounds, and the feeling.

Eating bologne with sis.

Going to the Chinese New Year fair in SF and being excited when dad won us a big stuffed animal (he was always so good at those games).

Eating a hot dog on the beach in Hawaii.  The bun was grilled slightly crispy, and it was freaking delicious.  And yes, I’m having a slight clothing malfunction.

The warm light coming into the kitchen as the sun was setting.

When I photograph a wedding, portraits, or anything for the matter, I always keep in mind that I want the pictures to bring the person right back to the moment. 

Every year, over 16,000 professional and aspiring photographers flock to Las Vegas to attend WPPI – the biggest photo convention of the year.  It is super resourceful and I love going.  It’s almost as much fun as Disneyland! 

My biggest takeaway from attending WPPI 2013:  The Photography Industry is changing at a crazy rapid pace.  With the convenience of digital, everyone is a photographer, down to simply using your phone to take pictures.

Someone emailed me the other day and asked if I think it’s a good idea to enter the photography industry because it seems like everyone has a dSLR.  I think that if you love it enough, it is something you should absolutely pursue!  Just know that it’s going to take a lot of WORK.  The market is over saturated so you’ll have to put in 200% to mastering your craft.  Otherwise someone who wants it more will GLADLY step in and take your place, with the blink of an eye.

The good news is that there is a lot of mediocrity out there, so it’s pretty much guaranteed that if you strive to be the best, you will be successful at anything you want to do (photography related or not).  Good work ethic + talent = success.  You also have to remember to be patient (I have to remind myself this alllllllll the time).  I’ve been photographing weddings for 7 years now and in many ways I’m still considered a newbie.  It takes time to build everything, but if you really want it, it’s there for you!

It was great to see old friends and meet new ones at this year’s conference!  I also picked up some sweet new gear for some upcoming adventure travels next month.  Can’t wait to use them!

My new Brenthaven camera bag. 

In West LA there is a “Little Tokyo” on Sawtelle Blvd., so my friends Mark, Jess, Rob and I came up with the genius idea of doing a sushi crawl.  We stuffed our faces at 8 locations including Bar Hayama, Sushi Stop, Hide Sushi, Nijiya Market, Beard Papa, Yogurtland, The Buttercup, and Coco Boba.

If you’ve never done this before, I highly recommend it!

Kampai.  Let’s get this show on the road.

Mark schooling us on the different options at Beard Papa.

We literally spent 10 minutes deciding what kind of Mochi to get, squeezing them to see how soft they were.  The softer the better.  Like implants.

Our original plan was to get free samples at Yogurtland and bail, but I ended up buying a little something.  There was no one else in the store to distract the employees.  Boo.

On our way out of Hide Sushi, I really wanted the sushi chefs to look up, so I asked my friends to do something to make them look up.  I’m not going to say what they did. Haha.

These macaroons are actually fake, but I still wanted to eat them.

Trendy chocolate.  The ramen one is really good.  Komforte Chockolates makes some really interesting flavors!

Last stop.  Boba!!!!

THE END.