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The Awakening of the Grandparents
Supposedly, summer is on its way, and I say supposedly because the weather we’ve had over the past few weeks has felt more like autumn than spring. But still, supposedly, summer is coming: the days are much longer, the sun shines more intensely, and the light is far more forgiving for analog photography. So I decided to try out a fine-grain black-and-white film, albeit with lower sensitivity. The day I loaded it up was brilliantly sunny, perfect conditions. Although the film was rated at ISO 50 (Ilford PAN F+), I decided to push it to ISO 100. The first two…
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The Yesa Reservoir
The Yesa Reservoir is one of those places that pleasantly surprised me with its uniqueness and peculiar beauty. I did not know it beforehand and discovered it almost by pure chance. If I had simply driven past it on the motorway, I would probably have settled for seeing it from the comfort of the car. But thanks to a temporary detour on that stretch of road, I was able to get close enough to realise that this place is truly special and deserves as much time as possible. The first time I stepped out of the car and walked down…
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A Good Story
Our perception of photographs is very similar to the way we perceive people. When we meet someone for the first time, the first thing we notice is their appearance. It’s not about being superficial, but the visual component is the most immediate, it’s what we perceive first and what helps us form an initial impression of the person. In reality, it’s a very limited kind of knowledge, and although it can be useful at first, it can also lead to partial or biased judgments. If we truly want to get to know someone, we have to invest time and interest,…
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Tiny House in the Galician Countryside
There’s a TV show I find quite peculiar, and at the same time, a bit absurd, so I’ve only watched it a few times. It’s the one about tiny houses. Regardless of the model they’re building, the extremely reduced dimensions, or the technical features, what grabs my attention the most is the mindset of the person behind the project. Why would someone want to live in such a small space? What leads them to give up the comfort of a standard-sized home? How do you convince your family to embark on such an adventure? As an individual choice, it might…
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Timeless Childhood Memories
The first time I ever saw the inside of a mill was thanks to my godfather. Near the beach we often visited, there was one that belonged to him. It was a small stone building, hidden beneath some trees and overrun with undergrowth. It fascinated me, it looked like it held some legendary secret and felt like an impenetrable fortress. One day, as we were walking back from the beach, I asked my godfather if we could visit it. To my surprise, he offered to show it to us, and the following weekend he grabbed his huge key and took…
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Back to Reality
If there’s one animal I associate with Galicia, without a doubt, it’s the cow. I’ve been surrounded by them since early childhood. In my village, they were like any other neighbor you’d constantly bump into in the streets. Their imposing bodies, slow gait, massive tongues with a thousand shapes, piercing eyes, threatening horns, and those black hooves that somehow bear all that weight in such a small space, everything about cows is admirable. Galicia is full of cows, and without them, it simply wouldn’t be Galicia. A few weeks ago, when I reached the heights of the Ancares mountains, I…
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The Photographic Hunter
The photographer has the spirit of a hunter. You leave home with the intention of catching a good prize, and you don’t mind covering hundreds of kilometers or traveling to truly remote places just to capture unusual or striking scenes. Sometimes I research locations with potential, and a considerable number of the photographs I’ve shared have come from that kind of planning. But I have to admit, the most thrilling way to hunt for a photograph is through pure exploration, letting yourself wander, trusting your instinct, and getting lost along roads and paths you wouldn’t normally take. When you stumble…
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The Legacy of Leica
I remember that when I was younger, I was always drawn to a certain type of rangefinder camera used by some professional photographers. They were far more attractive, compact, and comfortable than the bulky SLRs of the time. Those cameras turned out to be Leica M series models, though I didn’t know it back then. When the first digital Leica M was released, I was completely smitten. To me, it was the most beautiful photographic camera on the market, but the idea of owning one felt inconceivable. It was simply out of reach. The first time I ever saw a…
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The Abandoned River
For many years, the river was my main source of photographic inspiration. On weekends, I used to take hiking routes along the Sor River, which is relatively close to home. It’s a natural area I’ve walked through hundreds of times, and I never get tired of visiting it. I owe much of my photographic experience to that place, and some of my best shots were taken there. These days, I’m in full exploration mode, and what motivates me is covering miles and discovering new places. That’s why rivers have taken a bit of a back seat, reserved for occasional moments,…
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Honorable Exceptions
When I drove the stretch of the N-120 between Logroño and Burgos, it didn’t strike me as particularly attractive, but to be fair, the day was gloomy, overcast, light rain had just begun, and I was half-asleep, so perhaps I’m not being entirely fair. Still, it’s a pleasant road with very little traffic. The landscape, though not especially varied, is agreeable, and the pilgrims walking along the roadside with their enormous backpacks add another small point of interest. Throughout those kilometers, I didn’t find much that made me want to pull over and use up more of my film. Maybe…
