Finding A Home Yet Unknown
If you had told me 3 years ago that I’d be living in Mexico; I’d say your’e absolutely bonkers. Little did I know that spending a week in Oaxaca would change my life. My roommate Gostavo Romero, an editorial photographer came to the kitchen as I was making pancakes and said, “Bro your’e coming to Mexico…it’s paid for…and you’ll be surrounded with professionals photographers…and its Dia De Los Muertos.” At the time I had only used my camera as a means to an end. Not once would I just go outside and grab my camera to take photos for the fun of it. It was a tool for me to create content for a business I owned and nothing more…product shots and models wearing the goods. I was hesitant to say yes, but I caved. We drove to a little coffeeshop in Long Beach to pick up six bottles of Tequila and get a debriefing from the brand. Gostavo had it all planned out being that this was his second time traveling to Mexico and he had a plug that would take us to all the locations; I just came along for the journey.
Dumdumdummm we missed our flight…achem…thanks Gos. We landed within a couple of hours, got our Uber and I was immediately hit with nostalgia. Growing up, I traveled to Israel to visit my grandparents and this city had reminded me of those summer days. I was like a dog in a car, my head stuck out of the window and every building, every human that walked by, my head would turn again and again. I was mesmerized by the pastel yellows on the buildings, the vendors on the streets, the smells that tickled my nose. This to me was raw, what life was all about. I had my little meet and greet with the other three photographers and off we went. It was like clockwork; these people grabbed their weapon of choice, slapped on the lens, packed their camera bag with all their extra artillery and we headed out to the streets. This was completely new for me…what should I shoot? I was perplexed and I felt out of my element. The noob of the group.
The busy streets, the noises, the different language…I was so overwhelmed when we arrived to the center. I had no idea what to do, but I took out my camera with my 35mm lens attached and started taking pictures of the people in our group. It was so new to me, I felt intrusive to take the photo of some random stranger on the street. So I did what I thought felt right…let me be sneaky and use the backs of my friends to get the shots I wanted; I could always crop later. Let me use this wall over here to get some cover and snipe away. Stealth mode…hours went by of this and our stomachs began to rumble so we found a spot to eat at. Tlayudas and chapulines. Basically a handmade dish traditional to Oaxacan cuisine, consisting of a crunchy toasted tortilla covered with beans, lettuce, avocado, melted cheese, salsa, and a choice of meat. Chapulines..crickets…meh ( couldn’t get over the feeling of bits of bugs stuck between my teeth…before you knock on me…I gave it a go more than just once..not a fan). I started showing my photos off to Gos for the critique and he told me to be less afraid. Don’t get the backs of people, if your’e going to take a photo of them take a photo of them. We went back to the Airbnb and each one of us had our laptops out; cleaned out our memory cards and were ready for the following day.
Waking up during the golden hour never was a thing for me prior to this trip…I now get it. The early bird gets that worm; If you want that crispy gradient; get up for it. The itinerary consisted of two Mezcalerías (the place where they make mezcal…mmm smokey goodness). The first spot we got to see how the spirit was made. Got to meet a burro putting in that manual labor and tasted three types of mezcal. Took a boat load of product shots and got some good portraits in. The other spot was a field of agave plants…not the friendliest of plants (I made the mistake of trying place the bottle of tequila inside one…sharp f*ckers). We got the photos we wanted for the brand and headed back to town for a night street photography session. Kids running around with painted faces, loud music, copal burning in the air; the energy of Oaxaca is unimaginable.
One of the most epic nights of the trip started off with us arriving to a cemetery at 4am. You can’t go to Mexico during Dia De Los Muertos and not go to a cemetery. If you haven’t seen Coco yet, I dare you, and most definitely put it in Spanish with some English subtitles. I felt so much this day from drinking warm Atole , laughing with my new found photographer friends, and capturing some of the sickest shots I ever have to this day. I even have two of them framed in my office for some inspiration. We stayed at the cemetery until sunrise and were invited to have breakfast; mole con pollo with complete strangers. This is where I fell in love with photography.
Without this trip; I would’ve never made the move out to Mexico City. Mexico is not just Tijuana or Cabos; this place is filled with culture, art, and good vibes. Its a hidden gem on the map and when I meet people visiting, I warn them about the great powers of this magical land. Mexico will consume your heart and eventually you’ll just feel the need to sell all your belongings during a crazy pandemic and make you wish you had done this sooner.
