Although I made a conscious effort to pull back a bit on travel to get my cash flow under control, 2023 was still a year of fun adventures and activities, and it was a year where I expanded my local 1-on-1 work with models a substantial amount.
I began my travels with my first ever trip to Jamaica in the early part of the year. Then mid-summer, I took my first ever trip to Italy, visiting primarily the Tuscany region, spending a significant amount of time in the historic city of Florence (Firenze). In the fall I squeezed in a last minute trip to Joshua Tree in the desert of southern California. I capped off my travels with a trip to the island of Bali in Indonesia, my fist time visiting that part of the world. All of these trips were built around photography events, but also provided for experiencing the culture in new parts of the world. I also made my annual trip to Colorado to see some Shakespeare, but it was a quick in and out trip.
I took 30k pictures in 4 different countries, on 3 different continents, working with 25 different models from 8 different nations. This year I had more opportunities to do 1-on-1 shoots with models who were new to me, as a number of models I had never worked with before reached out to me when they were visiting the area. I’m slowly trying to improve the set design of my shooting spaces to allow for more interesting and varied photos. I also got my first ever picture published, which has been a goal of mine. I hope to do more of that in the coming year.
I was still hoping that the theater side of my activities would return to normal this year. It did a bit, but not completely. The Livermore Shakespeare Festival and the Colorado Shakespeare Festival returned to normal seasons. Unfortunately due to upcoming facility upgrading, Colorado is going to be having a reduced season the next two years. CalShakes lost its artistic director and it’s unclear what’s happening there. I saw 7 live plays in California and Colorado, 5 of which were Shakespeare. This is down significantly from my pre-pandemic theater attendance. It was still fun, but the pull doesn’t seem to be as great. I’ll see how it goes next year. I also went and saw one more opera this year.
The highlights of the fun parts of my year include
- Visited 3 new countries (1 new continent)
- 12 1-on-1 photo shoots (10 at my house, 2 local area)
- 1 US photography retreat with models (3 different models)
- 3 international photo retreats/tours, 1-on-1 shoots with 13 different models
- shot with 25 different models, 14 of whom were new subjects for me
- 7 live plays (5 Shakespeare, 2 Contemporary)
- 1 visit to the opera
Next year I already have some travel and photography plans on the books, and I already have a 1-on-1 photo shoot lined up for January.
My battle to improve healthy aspects of my lifestyle continues. After the weight loss I accomplished in 2022, I’ve bounced back some and need to redouble my efforts this year. It’s clear that as the years pile on, keeping a focus on health is a necessity. Happily, I’m grateful that I’m still able to be active and pursue my interests to the degree I have. But I can also tell I’m not 30 years old anymore. I’m looking forward to a new year of interesting travels, creative opportunities and new friends.
I had my first ever one-on-one photo shoot with the amazing model Auroraa (formerly known as Dasha U) who I’ve known for many years as one of the co-organizers of the UTadventure tours. She is a striking Russian who has been modeling for many years, but who took a few years break from modeling, then recently had babies, but is now back on the modeling circuit. She had rented an Airbnb in the Clairmont area of the Oakland hills that had a great view. It was a mixed cloudy day with the sun poking through from time to time. It was nice working with her again and we were able to make some very nice pictures.![[o]](https://dnblog.nikkel.org/sent/2020/04/dslr20.png){kind=small}
Tonight I again joined Bob for a trip to the opera. This time to the 
