Last year, I traveled to Veracruz, Mexico three times within the course of a month. After the first trip for the production of WHY and HOW of WHY, returning for a project with the State of Veracruz and Jackson Kayak, the last trip was part of another exciting product launch for Nikon. This time around, it was in support of the COOLPIX S9300, Nikon’s newest addition to their point & shoot collection. The two previous trips were extremely valuable going into this project. When asked to pick a beautiful travel location for the shoot, steeped in culture, Veracruz was the obvious choice. After a few days back there with the S9300, I was sold and this is now my go-to camera during my “downtime.”
It was so liberating to travel for a week with a full kit that consisted of nothing more than a rolling bag for clothes (and room for carrying some tequila back home), an ultra lightweight Manfrotto tripod and a Lowepro Inverse 200 AW holding five point & shoots and a card wallet. This level of freedom made for a very fun project. It’s a rare trip that I can move amongst the locals without a half a dozen cases of gear to blow my cover. But don’t let the size fool you. These cameras are powerful! Full HD video, a 16 megapixel sensor, high ISO / low light sensitivity and a serious telephoto lens. Plus, a panorama mode, in-camera effects and geotaggging, all in a form factor that fits in your pocket. Check out the Nikon site for all the details.
As an added bonus, this project gave me the opportunity to work with Marcos Ferro, a Mexico City based Aurora Photos contributor and new addition to the Aurora Select roster. It’s always a pleasure to connect with more members of our global network of talented photographers. We first met during the previous trip to Mexico with the Jacksons. After seeing him work for a few days, I quickly decided to bring him on as an assistant on my return. Aside from his photo skills, his bilingual abilities were key. I’ve traveled quite a bit through Central and South America, convinced I could speak Spanish. This project, traveling closely with a native speaker proved me wrong.
