There and Back Again. A Photobbits Tale

Art Model, Emma Copyright 2013 Terrell Neasley

Ha! I like that title. Thought of it myself. Yep. Just came to me.

So I'm back. The name of the game now is CATCH-UP! I clocked about 3 months on the road this time, yet I'm still amazed at the perpetual travelers who are gone for a year or more. I read about travel bloggers who have been at this for a decade and can only marvel at how they organize their lives. I feel slightly overwhelmed at being back, catching up on mail and home responsibilities. My situation was slightly exasperated in the fact that I relocated only a week prior to hitting the road, so upon returning, I came back to my new home with all my things still boxed up. Things were made a bit easier....well, I should say a whole lot easier in the fact that my new landlords are friends of mine. It would have taken me weeks to get settled in, yet Susan had completely unpacked and put away my things in a few hours, while I helped Jerry install some new appliances and do a few adjustments to the place which now feels like a home. Thanks Susan.

I had been back for two weeks and then headed out to Mexico for a week. I just got back from there two days ago and now I can better concentrate on getting pics edited. I still need to get my high speed internet installed next week and set up my computer network again. I'm sure there are some updates to Adobe that I need to install to handle all the RAW shots I did using the new Fujifilm XE-2 camera that I bought just prior to leaving and the updates were not available then. Right now, I can see the images, but cannot get metadata appended to the new Fuji RAW format. Hopefully that issue will be resolved when I get internet and get my home network set up again.

Art Model, Emma Copyright 2013 Terrell Neasley

So yeah. I'm finally back and the priorities are getting back to work, finding new and interesting photography gigs, lining up more one on one teaching projects (for my 2-week training course), and pushing myself to the next level in my art nudes. My goal in that regard is conceptual work that is new and original. When I say push myself, that's entirely what I mean. I want my art nudes to develop and evolve into something different and I think my approach will be more provocative and bold and less conservative. I want to be less concerned with societal norms and just play "what if". So I'll be looking to work with models and women who are less inhibited and are willing to give me creative liberties the freedom to explore, experiment, and push myself. This will also push the model as well, but I still want collaborative relationship. There will be times when I have something specific in mind, of course, but most models who work with me understand I like to shoot what is given to me and value model input. And when I say models, I'm also welcoming first-timers and women who have never done anything like this before. I don't want someone reading this who might have ideas, but then keep it to themselves because they don't consider themselves to be a "model". A large percentage of the women I work with every year are have never been naked in front of a photographer before. I've been criticized about promoting first-times/non-pro models before, but those people can go kick rocks. I like working with who I like working with.

So I'll still be shooting nudes that have been consistent with what I've always been doing, but I will definitely be on the lookout for 5 or 6 models this year that have some of the same goals in mind as I do. I can't even articulate as to the specifics just yet. I'm still searching this thing out. Now that I'm back, I can start thinking about how I want this new conceptual style to develop and am open to any ideas you guys might be willing to throw at me, especially potential models who have had something cooking in the back of their minds but just have been too...I don't wanna use the word "afraid", but it does seem to fit.... to do. Or maybe not "afraid", but rather simply have't had the right circumstances or photographer to pull it off. I'll be looking for different body types or body features in models. I like "different". I embrace it. I've been called different all my life. I never enjoyed that term growing up, but I hug it like a lover now.

Art Model, Emma Copyright 2013 Terrell Neasley

My next travel plans/goals aren't til the summer. I'd like to head to South America this time and catch up with a model I shot in Nicaragua. She's still traveling right now and should be in Peru and Bolivia by July. It might be cool to catch up with her there and finish what we started a few months ago. I'm also contemplating on bringing a model with me. I'd so love to do that, but its not so easy and I'm not sure my money will allow it. I just learned this week that I might be expected in Tennessee and Texas soon and I have some other considerations that might make traveling with a model on my dime tougher. An ideal situation would be coordinating with another traveler who wants to be travel buddies and doesn't mind getting naked along the way either. How cool would that be! Or better yet, a client contracting me to follow them around with a camera doing nudes in South America! Hey...I can dream, can't I? I definitely want to do more travel work with clients and if they wanna get naked as well, I'm game. But in the meantime, I got lots to figure out and catch up on, yet still keep it in mind that we're only talking about this being 3 months away. I can't let time slip on me and next thing I know, we're in mid-August and I suddenly remember I forgot about everything. That would not be good.

Second Month in Nicaragua

Cultural Night in Masaya, Nicaragua

San Juan del Sur has definitely been an adventure. Spanish classes are still kicking my butt, but I am learning, albeit slowly. I love my host family with Doña Lucia and her large family. They help me learn outside of the school, at Spanish Ya. My teacher is prob the best of a sufficiently large crew of teachers, if not at least the best for me. Principally, because of her patience and ability to stay with my pace without become frustrated at me. I think it helps that I keep her laughing, but she doesn't try to move on to the next subject before I understand the present task. She's tough enough to keep giving me homework, I tell you that. At possibly under 5 foot, and outweighing her by more than double, I hate disappointing her.

You can see the cave in the distance. The challenge was walking back over these rocks with waves pushing you up against the side of that wall there...and not get tumbled back into said rocks. Nice, huh?

But yes, an adventure, nonetheless. On just my second day here, I devolved into a 5 year old child with no supervision. I walked down the coastline and got curious when I saw a cave about a 700 meters in the distance. I HAD to check it out.  

A view of my room. 

I was able to find a great model while here as well. We've done 3 shoots so far. I got robbed on my second outing with her. Some sneaky bastard made off with my bag when we weren't looking. My fault. Didn't think anyone was around. Let my shit unguarded. Lost a lens, cash, my iPhone, and a few other peripheries. Hated loosing all of it, but I wish I could get back my spare battery and the pics off my phone. The bastards also took our water, meaning we had a long up and downhill walk back for a good hour and a half. Fortunately, some Canadians along the route back had a house up in the hills. They helped us with water and juice and then gave us a ride back to town. We would not have made it back as late as it was without water. And I do feel fortunate, they did not take my model's clothes. That would have been a bitch, because that would have meant I would have had to give up my clothes and walk back naked for at least 2 miles to the Canadian's place. So there's an upside to everything, I guess.

Main Street into San Juan del Sur

I'm finishing up my last week here in San Juan del Sur, but I've still got a bit more traveling to do. I'll stay here in Nicaragua trying to find my shot instead of heading further South into Costa Rica and Panama. I got to see my college buddy, Bruce who just left the Army and is riding a motorcycle from North Carolina to as far South in Argentina as he can get. It was so great to hang out with him again. As long as I have been here, there has been a trio of myself, Marlene...an Italian/Austrian girl who was here one week less than myself. She just left this past weekend. And there there's Simone, a tall Czech Republic youngster who should probably be modeling somewhere. He's here for another week longer than me. I have to keep him from putting drinks in my hand when we're out. Its so cheap to drink here, its dangerous. Rumor has it that cokes are more expensive than the rum, but it ain't so. That Flor de Caña, the 7-year, is some smooth stuff and a half liter of it is only $8. You can't get a single Rum & Coke for that in Vegas. 

And I can't forget the two German friends who arrived a couple weeks after Simone and I. Lena and Roy are two friends traveling together for about 7 or 8 months. Wow. I'm tempted to go home, make some more money and meet up with them again in South America where they will finish up in Peru before heading back to Germany. I'll get to see them twice more on this trip as our itineraries coincide for practically the rest of this month over 2 of the 3 locations I plan to visit. And there are so many more I've met along the way. You make friends from all over. I don't think there is anyone in Holland right now. They are all over here! Canadians are coming here in droves. Several Swiss travels have been through. And I know there are some I am forgetting at the moment. I love being around travelers. Sometimes they simply get it and other times they can be quite inspiring.

Most of the pics will be up and posted after I get back and have edited them. These are some shots I've already posted on Facebook. The newer ones I had ready for this blog post are gone now that my phone got stolen. Bastards. Be back soon.

All I Ask is a Tall Ship...

(One of my favorite quotes of all time...)

"There are three perfect shapes in the world … the hull of a boat, a violin, and a woman's body."    —Charis Wilson quoting Varda

Art Model, Dana © 2007 Terrell Neasley

"Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made."   

- Robert N. Rose

I'm gonna double up here for a bit and catch you up on a couple of points. Well, maybe actually THREE!

My good friend John Kompare, another accomplished photog, sent me an email that has me wondering about my some of my future priorities. You can catch John's blog at this link. He forwarded me a newsletter to a sailing club offering to train you up on basic sailing and cruising at a really good deal. I want so badly to take advantage. I'm sure I mentioned this before, but maybe I didn't. At some point in 2014, I want my travels to hit the water. I want to be on my own boat sailing the South Pacific starting from Chile, to Easter Island and then heading out West. I still have to learn to sail and then I need to get a good boat. Trying to balance that with some of my land-loving travel plans may be problematic on my time table. I am heading back to Central America this year and plan to tour South America next year along with a short stint in Israel. All that doesn't leave a lot of time nor money for sailing. So I have to better organize my thoughts and priorities.

"A lot of people ask me if I were shipwrecked, and could only have one book, what would it be? I always say 'How to Build a Boat' "    

- Stephen Wright

Art Model, Dana © 2007 Terrell Neasley

This also ties in with my second topic. Two nights ago, I got to hang out at the Hard Rock with some really good friends. I won't even get started on the party we had the week before. I was a mess. This week however was a bit more civilized and all I had was coke. But my bud Pierre-Luc is an aerialist here in Vegas with one of the Cirque shows. He and I were talking about travel and he mentioned that he's traveled world-wide quite often over the last few years, taking extensive trips in Europe and Southeast Asia at least 7 times. He's a young man. I asked him why he's made traveling so important in his life. What was his answer? Just that...LIFE! This is a man who spends exhilarating hours in the air performing up to 5 or 6 nights a week, doing two shows a night. His skill has to be impeccable. His timing must be absolutely perfect and his rigging has to be without even the slightest defect. A simple slip, to be off in his timing, or faulty rigging can prove disastrous in his profession.

Art Model, Anonymous © 2007 Terrell Neasley

"Bad cooking is responsible for more trouble at sea than all other things put together."

- Thomas Fleming Day

Art Model, Anonymous © 2007 Terrell Neasley

But this is exactly what happened just a few years ago around the time we were first introduced. Faulty rigging resulted in a 30 foot fall onto his head. This is why he travels. He has since healed and is back in the air. And now he takes some time to experience the world. Keep in mind we're not talking about an accountant or marketing executive. We are speaking to a man who's already living life on the edge and he's talking about experiencing life. How many of the rest of us live life making future promises? How many of us are saving up for that life experience that we never make time for beyond a trip to Disneyland? Ever notice how that savings account keeps getting tapped into because "something else came up"? Something will always come up. Sometimes it might take a significant emotional experience to give us that bump we need to get out of our normal routines and do the stuff we dream of doing. I'm not saying you need to build a bucket list. I'm just saying I wish more of us were actually doing the things that make us happy and not putting off these things til the kids leave the house, or until you get that next promotion. There is a big difference between living life and just being alive. To truly live is more than simply surviving. I'm not saying travel is YOUR answer. You may hate traveling, but there IS something you love to do which is that "thing" that you've always talked and dreamed about. Find a way. Make your path. Do this. Now.

I'll save my third thing for later.

So What's Next?

More of Faerie from some shots I'm just now getting to edit

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'."

- Erma Bombeck

That is a good question. The goal is to definitely implement travel into my business and integrate it into my lifestyle. I already mentioned my desire to head back to Guatemala with a model for two weeks. But beyond that, I'm not certain. I can't say that I feel done with Central America just yet. There are 7 countries there and I've only visited 2. I'd think Honduras would be a priority. Can't say I'm feeling Costa Rica has been on my mind to do some volunteering. El Salvador and Nicaragua would be next. I've been to Panama already, but only from a military perspective.

I think of everywhere I could travel, Central and South America appeal to me most. I need to get serious about learning Spanish. I mean, dang. I was raised in Texas. I've been in Las Vegas for 5 years. How is it that I don't already speak the language? You'd think just from hearing it so often you'd learn it like a baby. I even got German down fairly well while I was there for almost 4 years. Wait...let me take that back. I could order food and tell a cab driver where I wanted to go. But I was getting it down. Don't ask me anything in German now, though. That was 20 years ago. But back to my point, I need to make a more concerted effort to prioritize my language skills. And why stop with just Spanish?

Art Model, Faerie

In the meantime, what's next is getting back to work and building my photography business with the core and staple services I known for. I need to push myself in ways that go beyond the typical and outside my comfort zone. Granted, I believe I've been doing that, but in the process I got comfortable again, so its time for another evolution. I still feel behind for the year. I missed the first 4 months of the year. I did a teaching assignment for a month in May and had about 4 projects or so between mid-April til I left in July for Central America. From an artistic perspective, I talked a few months back about doing more self-portraits. I need to work some nudes in there too. We're in month 9 of this year and I think I've only done a single nude project with a model. Make that two. I got to work with Panda a week after my surgery in January, just before all the real pain started kicking in. I only did 7 nudes all of last year, which is the least amount of projects I've ever done since I first began shooting nudes. So between now and the end of the year, I need to get at least 10 more.

"I have a simple philosophy: Fill what's empty. Empty what's full. Scratch where it itches."

- Alice Roosevelt Longworth

Art Model, Faerie

What else is next? Outside of travel, doing my art, and working my business... nothing. That's where all my concentration is for now and I've got lots more to do. There's enough on my plate to keep me occupied and gainfully-employed if I can just handle those aforementioned taskings. Maybe I can add in there objectives to maintain my sanity and minimize the disturbance to my calm. I think better that way and thus increase creativeness, efficiency, and productivity. Oh, I guess I can add in there getting healthy. The knee surgery didn't pan out as well as hoped and now I have some rotator cuff issues in my right shoulder. I hate being slowed down this much, but I am trying not to push it. Too look at me, you'd never be able to tell I am so broken. Just last night, talking to a couple at a bar, they commented that I obviously must work out. Yeah, right. At the moment I'm running off a lifestyle of strenuous physical activity, genetics, and God's Grace. But all that ain't going to hold up if I don't get fixed and get back to my regular activities soon. So I guess I had better add that onto the list of priorities. Be cool. Get healthy. Oh and also get the iPhone 5. Yeah, that's all.

A Few More Points on Central America

Standing in front of the main waterfall at Seven Altars, Guatemala

Midnight shot, Hopkins, Belize

I can spend the rest of the year talking about Central America. I've got so many pics and videos to keep content fresh for the next six months. But that's not all that this blog is about. However, let me just say a few more things. In all the beautiful surroundings that is Guatemala and Belize, there were three things that were nonetheless heartbreaking to see. First and foremost was the disparity of wealth. Now let me predicate this with the fact that I admit this was my first visit and I did not see all of the country. I have not done an national economic study on any of the countries to back up my opinion with discrete facts. That being said, I didn't see, nor did I have the impression, that there was a large middle class. This means that I'm thinking the majority the people will fall on the outlying edges of the economic scale. The distribution of wealth seemed to me to be heavily skewed towards the right side of the bell curve. On one side of the river you find elaborate boat houses and on the opposite side, I'll just say it can be pathetic. I even began to consider weather or not my presence as a tourist in some way exploited the poor of the region. Make no mistake, this is the system. I'll be back. I'll be more educated, more informed, and better prepared upon my return.

“Nakedness reveals itself. Nudity is placed on display. The nude is condemned to never being naked. Nudity is a form of dress.”

 - John Berger 

Kids playing just off the Rio Dulce

The second thing has to do with the poor condition of dogs in just about every city I visited. Sometimes conditions were so deplorable that you can see rotting flesh on some of these animals. Heather and I were almost attacked a couple of times by a pack of dogs, once in San Miguel and once in Finca Ixobel, though the Finca Ixobel dogs were owned by a tourist family. I was very pleased to see Ismael, who manages Casa Rosada in Livingston who has taken it upon himself to launch a tremendous effort to bring in Veterinarians from the U.S. to volunteer to come help heal, cure, spay, and neuter the animals, and educate the local population and owners of the importance of taking better care of their pets. Ismael is volunteering to host these Vets with free lodging and food for their services. This man is such a great guy!

And thirdly, I learned for the first time about the importance of saving our coral reefs. Admittedly, any time I have heard about it before, I didn't really put much care into the notion. However, upon seeing the dead field of reefs while snorkeling a half mile off Tobacco Caye, it became suddenly a disparaging sight. It was awe-inspiring to witness the life amongst the corals as I swam around sting-rays and barracuda. The water was crystal clear, the marine life was so colorful and beautiful... and then everything turns gray and looks devoid of life. I'm a fan of coral reefs now. Please be conscious of your actions when swimming through or over them and help protect our reefs.

"The first time I added the art nude to my landscape photography it was as if I had added a soul, they took on a life and became much more than the sum of each. I was looking over the images after a photo shoot, I could hardly believe my own eyes and the beauty I had captured."  - David Winge

Canoeing through mangroves, just off the Rio Dulce

I'm not sure when I'll get back to Guatemala. I'd like to say I'll be back in November. I've got one thing holding me up though. I feel like I need a model. It may be pathetic of me to say, but I think I'm having a more difficult time appreciating how gorgeous some of the areas I visit is when I don't have a nude model to accompany me. During this last trip, I could not shake that notion from my mind. Yes, its beautiful to see. Yes, the waterfalls are gorgeous. I know the rivers, jungles, and cabins are precious to witness. But I need a nude model. Gotta have it. Can't get around it. It must be done. The perfect situation? A new client hires me to accompany and follow her around to do just this and defers to my creative expertise and gives me complete artistic liberties to produce a collaborative work of art for the ages!

Yeah, so I thought it might also be cool to post a short video interview of Heather Rae upon our arrival in Hopkins, Belize. I had to reduce the quality to get it within Blogger's size requirements, so I'll need to work around that next time. Check it out. You just might learn something. BTW, the place we are staying here in Hopkins is the Lebeha Drumming Center & Cabanas. And more on her discussion of the History of the Garifuna people.

Central America Part II

Attack life, it's going to kill you anyway. 

- Steven Coallier

Chillin' on my cabin deck,  Tabacco Caye

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” – Tim Cahill

(And this is the pivotal principle that I learned was most important on my trip.)

I'm back!

Central America was quite the experience and you know what? I think I have to go back and visit again, possibly in November. Guatemala to be specific. Traveling like this has its own unique challenges. I was gone for a month but it seemed so much longer. Re-acclimating to being back stateside was another challenge in itself. Stepping back into your regular life and catching up on mail, missed phone calls, and ongoing life issues is not an easy task.

Volcán de Fuego, Antigua, Guatemala

In the last blog post, I wrote from San Miguel in Guatemala. That was maybe the halfway point my trip. I had visited Semuc Champey and Tikal, but then the next stop was Finca Ixobel which was a couple days of not-so-much-fun. From our initial arrival it was bad. We were going to be there for 4 nights, but we were informed that the hotel had given away our rooms for the last two nights due to a larger group coming in. There was no sense of remorse. No discounts for the two nights they did give us... not even an apology. Nothing about the two nights we stayed there was satisfactory.

Things did improve at Casa Rosada in Livingston, Guatemala. Ismael was so helpful and accommodating that we stayed extra time there before heading to Belize. I had quite the experience there on more than one occasion. In fact, I was invited back for special accommodations. So yes, this is one of the reasons I need to return.

Pier, Islaverde Hotel, Lake Atitlan, Guatemala

“I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.” – Mark Twain

We took a boat from Livingston, Guatemala to Punta Gorda, Belize. From there we bused to Hopkins, a coastal city with surprising accomodations considering the appearance. Hopkins isn't a wealthy town by any means. The bus drops you off 4 miles outside of town and we literally had to hitchhike in. We were fortunate because it has just started to rain and a guy in a truck picked us up. Its actually a common thing. They pull over and we throw our bags in the back and hop in. They city looks like it could use a little fixing up, but you won't find a better pork chop on the planet that will compete with the ones you get at Frog's Point. A half mile on up the road we found the   Lebeha Drumming Center & Cabanas where we met Dorthy who showed us our cabanas located on a private beach. The North end of the town is definitely the preferred stay as its less busy and less populated. I'd definitely recommend renting bikes to get to and fro the restaurants on the South end. After only 2 nights I was sorry to leave. But we were on our way to Tobacco Caye, a 5 acre island about an hour off the coast.

Tabacco Caye was the most relaxing place I visited during the entire trip. We stayed there for 4 nights, but after the 2nd day, you're hunting for something to do because you began to feel guilty for sleeping so much. It simply can't be helped. You just want to lay down and doze off. Our huts were over the water, so you heard the constant crashing of waves on the shoreline under you. The hammock on the back deck overlooking the clear water was astonishing. All sorts of marine life would swim just below your feet.

Midnight shot off Main Pier, Tabacco Caye

We traded this smallest island in the South for the largest island in the North, Ambergris Caye. The place was a bit too touristy for my taste. The first thing you notice was all the people with roller luggage instead of backpacks. After we got to our rooms we ventured out and found some guys who took our deposit for some tours for the next two days. Sailing, snorkeling, zip-lining, and cave-tubing were now on schedule. Yes, there were hurricane warnings but these guys were certain, we could get these tours in before the rain started. That night, our hotel told us to get packed up and prepared to leave the island the next morning because orders were given to evacuate because of Hurricane Ernesto. Our 100% totally refundable deposit was gone. The trick now was to get the hell off the island and find another place to stay. However with so many people now looking for rooms, Heather Rae and I elected to simply cut the trip short and head back stateside. It took some considerable effort, but we got up early the next morning, made the boat out and got to the airport taking the 2nd flight out of the country. Obviously, we made it out of there. I spent some time traveling to visit family in Tennessee and Texas before finally returning to Las Vegas. Now may challenge is simply to assemble and edit all these pics and videos!

See it in FULL LIFE

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

I guess I will have to ask for your forgiveness and apologize for that rant in the last post. I'm myself and again and once more have full and sole retention of my cognitive faculties. I'm a very passionate person. I've got my own goals and aspirations as well as problems and challenges. But pain, as I so eloquently put it in the last post, can be a bitch. That's what makes torture so long-lived.

“A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu

I'm still in the same predicament, only the agonizing, debilitating pain has become less pronounced. A good analogy might be that I've been thrown back into my prison cell after cruel attempts to "get me to talk". I'm still limited in my mobility and have to really concentrate on taking it easy for a bit longer. So I try not to go anywhere unless I absolutely have to. All this past week, I left the house twice. I think I shall go visit my pals at B&C Camera and talk photography and gear with some of the regulars. It'll be good to see Joe and the crew again. Outside of that, I'll root myself again in my computer chair and bed.

“The first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it.” – Rudyard Kipling

But this is still all for the best. I had this surgery because I hated dealing with the aching pain and weakness that interfered with my ability to live life to the fullest. I talked about this last April in a post, describing how I had met with a doctor who felt he could refer me to an Orthopedist with some answers to get me back on the trails and to eventually start up on the Appalachian Trail. So now, I'm at least getting started on that fix. I've had the surgery. Now I just need to let it heal. Plans are in place to take me abroad later this year, which will be the first of many quests that I set out on, not to "find myself", but rather just to start living life to the fullest. That may mean different things to different people. For me, it means to experience other cultures and see new lands. As a kid, I hardly ever left a 200 mile circumference from my home in East Texas. I used to wonder what might lie beyond in other countries and relied on the TV and World Book Encyclopedia to show me. As good as those sources were, I learned from my military travels that they just didn't do it justice.

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

My first military tour of duty was Germany. Spend 18 years with 200 miles of one place in Texas and then you find yourself on the far side of the Atlantic. It was glorious. I don't recall exactly what church it was, but I remember looking at a building in either Mainz or Frankfurt that I could recall from pictures from school studies. And now, I was standing in front of it looking at it in full LIFE. Being a photographer now, my desire to see more things in full life has taken its toll on my future agendas. Everything I do now is in preparation for that. I hope to become a better photographer and also one who is more fulfilled in his work. Those of you who can't, won't, or don't believe you too can do this can live vicariously through me. I'll be blogging and posting pics of my experiences and escapades. I can't wait. Its what keeps me going while I am incarcerated waiting to heal fully.