Llamas In The Mist

This is one of my favorite photos I have ever taken. The story behind it is rather fortuitous. Photographers just get lucky sometimes! I was looking for a place to use the bathroom around 5:30 a.m., and I found a beautiful rock to go behind. As I started doing my business, I looked up and was blown away by the lighting and llamas peacefully resting in front of me. I dashed back through the soggy field and grabbed my camera knowing I had almost zero battery life left. I quickly dialed in my settings and hoped it worked knowing I would only get 2 or 3 shots before the battery crapped out. Then I checked my LCD screen after taking the shot and saw that I luckily had captured a bit of the magic and spirit of the Peruvian Andes

Apurimac Canyon

Such a special place that recharge the soul and reminds you of the important things in life. Taking in the sunset above the Apurimac Canyon had us all in a beautiful trance. Watching the Condors catch the thermals as the sun descended piercing through the layered cliffs.

Pachamama's Masterpiece

The stunning lakes near Pacchanta, Peru on the Ausangate circuit. Pachamama, or Mother Earth sure knows how to leave me humbled and inspired.

Basking Lllamas

Llamas basking in the late afternoon light in Pacchanta as a storm clears off.

Chonta Rays

No amount of poetic prose will encapsulate how incredible the Apurimac Canyon in the late afternoon. It's a masterpiece only nature could produce through millions of years using water as it's paintbrush to carve through the Andes. This canyon is one of the deepest on earth with depths roughly at 10,000...twice as much as the Grand Canyon. This particular spot is unique to view condors catching the thermals as they use their senses to scavenge

Chasing Rainbows

Chasing Rainbows. Cusco. Having just returned on our flight back from the rainforest, we dropped our crew off at their hotel and headed home to rest for a couple hours. I never made it to the front door. I saw this storm shaping up and decided to head up the nearest mountain. Literally...over 50 dogs tried to tear my legs off along the way. Not such a fun experience having to throw rocks and keep back 4-5 large dogs at a time snarling and charging showing teeth. Not trying to make this sound bravado, just setting the scene. I consider myself lucky that a few folks from the neighborhood stepped in to help fend them off. Finally, I make it past and head up the steep farm foot paths. I wait for an hour and a half as the rainbow gradually grew extending across the sky becoming more brilliant by the minute. I head down in the dark ( a different route), and then catch a taxi back up to meet the group for dinner. Experiences and photography pull at me even when the easy route is to just go home and rest. Often, I'm asked how I am always in the right place...and my answer is....you have to seek these right places out. You must go that extra mile or 2 or 10 and oftentimes work hard and have an abundance of patience. Realistically...many times the scene never shapes up how you wanted it to. Through it all, it teaches me to listen to the world and appreciate the before and after moments. Sure, the rainbow is the climax of sorts, but the experience behind the photo really is equally important. It's not just a press of a shutter. It's a dedication, an insatiable curiosity, a willingness to battle the elements and environment, patience and feeling the world around you. It will continually teach me about true gratitude and presence for the rest of my life. Always seeking.

Herders at Work

Two dogs at work high in the Andes. Their job is to herd but they also make time to be sweet and wonderful companions during long days out by yourself.

Dog Days

A dog taking a siesta in Misminay after herding the sheep in the early morning up to the grazing grounds. Not a bad lookout.

Salineras Gold

Before gold was so expensive, salt was the main source of currency. These salt pools were worth more than any pot of gold. Salt enabled people to preserve food which made it highly valuable.

In Their Element

Llamas running in their terrain beneath the glaciers of Ausungate.

Fire in the Sky

This one was published by National Geographic online. It was taken from camp Upis on the Ausangate trek. A storm had just started to clear as sunset dawned. It left this remarkable "fire in the sky"

Illampu Waters

Glacial water flows from the glaciers of Illampu in Northeast Bolivia

We're Llaman

Llamas going about their daily business near Pacchanta, Peru. They are integrated into the landscape and paramount to rural life in the Andes. These cameloids serve as pack and meat animals as well as providing wool for textiles, blankets and clothing. They first appeared in the North America plains 40 million years ago, and subsequently migrated to Asia and South America roughly 3 million years ago. They are herbivores, highly social and particularly intelligent. Truly remarkable animals!

Layered Canyon

Sun descending in the late afternoon highlighting all of the beautiful mountains of the Apurimac Canyon

Pacchanta

Cascading glaciel streams tumble in the community of Pacchanta at the base of Apu Ausangate, the highest and most sacred mountain in the Cusco region. A very special place for me that always grounds me and provides space to really offer gratitude for a place that has given me so much.

Urubamba Market

One of best ways to experience a place....visit the market. Urubamba market in the Sacred Valley.

Afternoon at Salineras

The salt mine pools in Maras come alive in the afternoon light.

Willka Weqe

Veronica, or Willka Weqe in Quechua is a sacred deity or apu that rises drastically above the Sacred Valley in the Peruvian Andes. You can see why the Andean people view the mountains as god. They are stunning cathedrals created by Mother Nature or Pachamama

Llama Territory

Alpenglow

My good friend and local guide Lucio and I hiked up from Cedros Valley before sunset, so I could try and get some shots of the famed Alpamayo. Clouds lingered, obscuring a significant part of the pyramid, so I turned my attention, eyes and camera on the nearby glaciers above as alpenglow danced across thick snow and ice rendering it a ethereal pink as the sun dipped below the horizon. As I clicked the shutter, Lucio turned to view the image on my camera LCD screen and gasped, "Awowwwww". Esta es buenisimo! Mi Favorito! Mi corazon! Qué pasión tenemos para las montañas!" To share a sunset with a dear friend who has spent over 30 years working in the region, and for him to get as excited as the he surely was the first time had me smiling smile ear to ear and filling overloaded with gratitude. It was a special moment. I gave him a big hug , genuinely thanked him for joining me on a little excursion that I usually take in solo, and we headed down to the tents for dinner,

Spiraling

Beauty comes in all forms. I was wandering the streets of Huaraz, Peru focusing a bit on the market but I looked to the sky and noticed this beautiful staircase with a beautiful blue sky backdrop. It spoke to me. It had a visceral feel that in my mind composition wise and artistically would resonate with others. The stories these steps could tell.

Morning Reminders

Hard to beat a better wake up call. view....it's as if nature is sending a friendly reminder to get out there and live. Each day I wake up, I tell myself to be kind, vulnerable and love deeply. I tell myself to remain passionate. I tell myself to listen to the world because it has so much to say. I tell myself to push my comfort zone. I tell myself to appreciate the grandiose and more nuanced beauty offered up to us daily. I tell myself to never ignore the hardship that so many suffer daily. I tell myself to confront and contemplate my privilege. Lastly, I tell myself to be curious and compassionate. Life is a perpetual work in progress and a story of discovery that we all must navigate. I will never take for granted the opportunities and love I have been afforded. Through my photography, I hope to capture a bit of these raw emotions. I don't want to merely press the shutter...I want to feel the world with my entire soul.

Morning in Pilcopata

A moody and misty sunrise in Pilcopata.