How great it feels to be out exploring for the purpose of photography again! Peru is so incredible and so unique in this regard. The geographical diversity is like nowhere I’ve been, but above all, the Andean people and their culture… What I regularly see here is special.

If you’re in Peru and you want to truly enjoy nature, to have fun in it – the jungle without a doubt is where it’s at. We had some great family bonding moments here. In a jungle hot spring pool, Mia learned to swim. We made new friends, visited countless waterfalls, and swam some more.

The city itself was never our final destination, it was simply the direction in which we were heading. We looked to take as many side roads as possible. To explore and, to enjoy the warmth of the jungle and the myriad of rivers and waterfalls.

The jungle area of Peru is very different from the mostly desert coast. The distances between settlements are much shorter. There’s so much fascinating diverse geography – lakes, rivers, forest reserves…

I’d already been to many regions in Peru, but, I still had not really spent time in the jungle. So… that’s what I wanted to do. It’s what my family wanted to do after spending almost two months by the coast.

Much of the Pan-American Highway in Northern Peru is incredibly unexciting. Straight for tens of kilometers, it weaves its way through farms, desert, and some non-descript villages. But, mostly, it’s desert, and not the spectacular type, with huge sand dunes.

We spent absolutely magical few days in our little spot in the mountains with our friend Maxi. Now we would head into the desert and then to more desert on the coast.

As I said, when you find your little paradise spot, when you meet a great person or people, when things are just clicking – you gotta make the most of it. We decided to make the most of it and to delay our trip to the coast.

Over a year in the Sacred Valley… My camper and my new car finally ready... We finally left the area we called home for a longer period than anywhere else through the past 15 years. The plan?

Early March, and we were still making fun of Covid with our Belarusian friend. This whole thing was a joke we’d say, a scam to get people to buy masks and hand sanitizer. When she left back to Belarus, she said that things were turning mad in Europe.

After the mediocre New Year’s celebration, everything was going so well in 2020. In fact, I was feeling like this year was going to be one of the better years, creatively, and in terms of travel.

Unless you’ve personally experienced a war or a natural catastrophe, you’ll likely agree, for you, 2020 has been the worst year… EVER. For me - someone who’s identity has in large part been defined by travel, this has been a miserable year.

How great it was to be traveling through Peru by car. The roads go through some of the most spectacular landscapes on the planet. Along the roads, the more remote ones, you meet fascinating people who seem to belong to a different world and a different time.

We’d been on the road for almost a month. We went from the desert to the mountains again, followed the carnival celebrations from Colca Canyon to Puno and now… we were on mythical lake Titicaca.

Just a couple of weeks before all the madness with Covid-19 began, I was having the time of my life. Joined by our friend Tata, from Belarus we were traveling the mountainous regions of Peru. The carnival season was finishing, but… as we now look back at everything, it was inevitable that we’d come across some celebrations.

You see images like that all around today. And, actually, we’ve all been guilty of it.

Today the idea of limiting the number of photos you take during a photoshoot is… It doesn't make sense. Memory cards are cheap. Storage is cheap. And of course shooting more photos means more opportunities to get something special. Right? Yes. Well, kind of. It’s not as simple as that. 

Setting goals during a travel photoshoot, or any photoshoot for that matter is very important. It can really increase your chances of creating amazing images. But, travel photography is so spontaneous sometimes. You might ask “How can I set goals?” You can. You already do. However you should do it more consciously and with more purpose. I’ll tell you why. 

I’ve owned DJI drones for about 2 years. I’ve used them pretty intensely in various countries, in different conditions and for a multitude of subjects. I think it's time that I share some of my experiences with drones as travel photographer who's always on the road and tries to carry as little gear as possible. 

It’s not often that a camera changes the way that you approach your work, but, without exaggeration this is exactly what happened when I got my hands onto Panasonic Lumix cameras. In large part, this is why I wanted to have a relationship with Panasonic – because I loved what they created.

Many of us are searching for the perfect camera. We're curious about what cameras other photographers are using, in case they have the perfect bit of gear. 

A couple of months ago I posted an image of a man meditating on the banks of the Ganges in the Tips and Inspiration section. I talked about how I try to avoid clichés and doing what everyone does. There was one comment that brought up a few interesting points. It got me thinking and resulted in this blog post.