Sun, Sand and Guilt: A PHOTOGRAPHER’S TRIP TO MEXICO
Recently, I took a vacation with my husband to a small village in Mexico. After a busy few months of work I was looking forward to spending time with him, eating my body weight in tacos, sipping on margaritas and, of course, taking photos. After all, this was a place we’d never been before so I was stoked at the thought of a new location to photograph. I diligently packed my gear, all the while imagining the sunrise shoots, astro sessions, jungle hikes and underwater photography I would do.
What actually ended up happening? Well, I did eat all of the tacos. So many tacos. I did drink margaritas and fresh mango smoothies. I spent quality time with my husband.
I did not, however, get up for each sunrise. Instead, we fell into an easy routine of coffee in bed, blissfully free of alarms (unless you count the neighbour’s three roosters). I did not make it out for a single astro session. Instead, our nights consisted of sitting on benches in the main plaza integrating with the community and watching village life unfold. We did not go on a single jungle hike. It was really stinking hot and, well, that seemed like a lot of effort. I did not do any underwater photography. The location wasn’t great for it so instead I read a book in the shade while my husband went beach fishing.
Photo by Sara Kempner
At the end of each day, I would have a wave of guilt and think “ok, tomorrow I’ll get serious about taking photos.” This went on for the first week. But the intrinsic drive just wasn’t there. Turns out I was happy to *gasp* relax! Without a camera in hand.
In the second week, however, I did start to let go of the photographic expectations I’d preconceived. With this, I also started to indulge the photography that I actually felt like doing. I threw a camera and one lens in my beach bag and took some street scenes while we were out exploring, leaving my bulky camera backpack behind. I photographed the Day of the Dead festival at the local elementary school. I hand-held a few longer exposures of the waves, leaving my heavy tripod at the house. I brought my camera to the village centre at night to document the children playing soccer. I took photos of my cousin at her new casita where we were staying. I volunteered taking photos at the local turtle release program.
None of these photos were what I expected to take. None of them are portfolio worthy and I don't have a fresh crop of Insta-worthy landscape posts. But as a body of work they tell the story of our trip on a personal level. And I enjoyed taking all of them. So next time you find yourself feeling the photographer's guilt while on vacation, order another margarita and cut yourself some slack. Let inspiration come to you naturally, even if it's not what you expected.
Sara Kempner is a freelance photographer based on Vancouver Island, B.C.
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