There is so much to write that I can't possibly write it all now. That's the problem with blogging. You need time, lots of time, to sit down and do it. Down here in Venezuela, I haven't had a moment to myself for more than ten minutes. Now that's not a bad thing. In fact, that's why I have so much to say. But even now my new uncle-in-law is strumming a cuatro and dancing around the living room of Lena's family house while her brother plays the mirachas and whenever I look up at them they beckon me to join in. Alba, my mother-in-law, just walked in with two of my new cousins and Lenhart, my father-in-law, is on the way home from a business trip to the tiny country of Curacao. When he arrives, we're all going to pack into the Chevy and head for the beach, a four-hour trip. It's already 6PM. Write, Stephen, write fast.

Lena and I packed the bags two days ago. This is my last night in the Saldivia household, which is sad. I've come to call this place home, I've come to call the people in it my family, and they have come to call me one of their own. I've never been so honored in my entire life.

It's been an exciting ride, too, if a bit bumpy at times. My Spanish is only OK, good enough to count past 1000 and speak a few verbs in the past tense, but not good enough to converse. More on that in a later post. Also, for the past four days I've played host to a gifted virus, which has been delighting in my completely unexperienced intestines. I've been to the restroom, lets see, six times today already. The country also has insecurity problems, as the police are merely window-dressing and violent crime is as common as palm trees. All in all, these have been minor issues when compared to the complete experience, but strangely I find tragedy easier to twist into comedy than simply making comedy itself.

The only other country I've spent a considerable amount of time in was Korea, and be prepared for a lot of comparisons. The hallmark of Korea was a culture that emphasized order and control, a country with nearly zero crime and high security imposed by a crushing unwritten social contract. Venezuela the opposite. Venezuela is a free-wheeling culture that emphasizes friendliness, brotherhood and the power of friendship. Perfect strangers can become best friends in seconds here. In Korea, if they didn't know you, it was like you didn't exist.

Both cultures emphasize the family, and in Venezuela I have been immersed in it, and thus my cultural experience here has been much, much richer than any other international trip I have ever made. And my life here is just beginning. Even now Lena and I are talking about how we can make a life here.

Well, that's it. Lenhart is almost home. It won't be five seconds through the door before he starts pushing everyone to get back into the car and head strait for the beach where he can rent a small boat and do what Lenhart does best: Fish!

Notes

Well, looks like Sokonotes the photo blog is about to transform itself into Sokonotes the travel blog...Again. Yes, for those of you new viewers, Sokonotes was originally my travel diary in Korea where I worked for a year in 2005-06. Ever wanted to see what I look like as God, Santa Claus, or (most shocking) an English teacher? Now you can! Just click on those archives on the left side of your page.

My second year in business has come to a close. My first year living on my own in Atlanta has come to a close. Probably the greatest year of my life is quickly nearing it's spectacular finale. Thus, I thought I'd keep everyone in the know.

I'm just over an hour away from boarding a jet headed to Caracas, Venezuela where Lena and I will get married before nearly 300 of her closest friends and family. Luckily we've been practicing. We've already had two weddings: The official one in April and the Jones family reception in September. This third wedding is the Big Enchilada. Lena has been in Barquisimeto for the last two weeks already, planning, buying and working to pull the event together. Her secretario is on the next flight!

It's raining outside Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International airport. People of many nationalities walk the concourse in front of a garishly lit "On The Border" mexican joint. My ears record a host of different languages being spoken: Korean, Japanese, German, French, and yes, Spanish. But the it's the thick-accented, sharp-witted Venezuelan Spanish that is the most distinct, and I grin when I recognize it. It makes me think of Lena. I miss her a lot.

I'm so happy to be traveling again, even if it's somewhere dangerous. I still remember my trip to Korea, a trip that started with a road trip through Wyoming with Wes, then a three-day stop in sunny San Francisco followed by a trans-pacific flight to Seoul where I caught a high-speed train to Busan. This is a much easier four hour non-stop flight, but to a much more mysterious place; a place filled with danger and beauty as well as a new family to get to know. It's altogether exciting, though this time I have to make a serious attempt at learning the language, not just how to ask for kimchi.

I'm also really happy to be finished working. I haven't had a single day off in months. Even today I was up at 7 in the morning preparing images for GSU. Then I took my lens to the repair shop, bought some fishing gloves for my father-in-law, delivered an album, made my last deposit, had lunch with my friends and delivered my car and keys to my sister. I can't wait to be sitting on some crystalline beach in Venezuela, a martini in one hand and my sweet baby Lena in the other. We deserve this.

Well, it's 4:10 and people are starting to fill in the empty blue seats of the terminal gateway. You can always tell international travelers when they are leaving America: Giant carry-on bags packed with everything they can fit in them crouch like leathery trolls next to their masters. It's Christmas, too. The pilot probably needs to strap on another engine.

Venezuela, here I come!

Lena and I are about to leave the country for our Venezuelan wedding! Yes, that's right...Wedding numero tres. Well, actually Lena is already there spending time with her family and preparing. I think this is the last wedding for a while. Might get bored and do it again thirty years from now. Who knows.

Anyway, I just finished my last shoot, a maternity portrait session here at the apartment. Maternity is a relatively new market for us, and this is the second couple we've photographed in 2008. It's tricky, in part because you must strike a balance between your vision, people's tastes and posing limitations. Some people like to be nude (these people don't normally sign our model release) and others are more conservative, such as this couple. Check these photos out.

















I was somewhat limited in what I could shoot by the space available in my apartment. I think we have completely outgrown the space, actually. Although it's very large for a living room, and the ceilings are really high, this last shoot really reinforced that fact that we need a space twice as large if we are going to get serious about studio-style portraiture. One of our goals for 2009 is to purchase a property with the correct dimensions. Until then, our highly successful location work should suffice.

Speaking of which, the following three photos are of the two technology teachers who own and run the consulting firm, Tech Matters, out of Marietta. Tech Matters helps introduce middle school students to the world of technology and software design. They partner with Southern Polytechnic University in Marietta, who provides them with the computers, instructors and space they need to help the next generation move into the IT economy. The photo is for a brochure put out by the Kennesaw State University Small Business Development Center. These are my three favorites.

Hello Everyone! Lena and I are wrapping up 2008 in preparation for our journey to Venezuela for our third and final wedding as well as a much-needed and much-deserved break. Neither of us has had a single day off in over a month. We barely have had a moment with each other that isn't work related. We both love running this business, and the rate at which it's growing is staggering, but jeez...We need a vacation!

November has brought us many blessings, including a bevy of new clients and 2009 weddings. We're also re-evaluating our business, drawing up marketing plans and switching out of Pictage for the incomparably better PickPic online-gallery solution.

November has also brought with it a few really interesting assignments, including this one: A portrait session with the Alpha Team Search and Rescue K-9 unit, whom I know through one of their members, Paul Rusczcyk. Paul invited me to take pictures of the team as they practiced near Covington, Georgia. Here are a few of my favorite photos:

Er, we got married, too. Here are our photos. Scroll down to the bottom to read about the event.
























Lena and I set out to get married oh, fives months ago. I could honestly say we're a lot closer. Our reception for our parents was a lot of fun. September 20th will live forever in my mind as the day I danced as Hector Lavoe, the famous Puerto Rican salsa virtuoso, in front of my parents. Yes, friends. It was quite an event.

The entire point was to give my extended family a chance to celebrate the marriage. And celebrate they did. I still have the pony keg I picked up with my uncle Lanny that morning. It's squatting in the work room, probably totally foam.

Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning, Katy, mom, Sara, Bina, Mindy, Deivis, Pat and Lena brought baskets of food and transformed our modest apartment all-electric wannabe kitchen into a living thing that ate flour and spit out delicious treats.

The food was better than good. It was made by the hands of the people who love us. And everyone pitched in to make the evening entertaining. Our friend Deivis brought his Venezuelan cuatro and my dad brought his guitar. They tried to strike a deal between the harp-like four-string cuatro and the deep, slow pluck of the guitar, but in the end they parted amiably and played samples from both American and Venezuelan traditions. Deivis had the benefit of a choir of female tenors (Linda, Lena, Liz Beth and Sandy) singing along all their might. Dad had me, and I had been drinking. Still, we managed to pull off The Boxer and Bob Dylan's dream, my personal favorite.

The Boxer is special, too, as that was the song dad tried to teach me back in high school. I can still remember a few chords.

One of my best friends, Josh, jumped into his truck in The far northwest corner of Georgia and rocketed into the night with his girlfriend just to be there. My friends Bina and Sarah Epting showed up and kept themselves entertained by marveling at how fast Bina and my sisters' fruit tarts got snarfed. Jennifer took control of the video camera and made history. BTW, she is also a master of dog hair removal, treasure hunting, rollerblading, tropical flower cultiviation and, in case you aren't sold, she gives life-altering back massages. Do I have good friends or what?

Lena's friends added their spice and charisma to the party. Rosario and Jeff sat stylishly on the couch while Liz Beth and her beau chatted in the sofa adjacent. My uncle Lanny grabbed a scotch and joked around with anyone who sat on his arm rest. My engaging, wise aunt Katy met and proceeded to know everyone and like everyone and they all liked her, too. Lena kept the music distinctly mixed, and when some tambore began to play, she encouraged everyone to shake their ass, including me.

Shake I did. I need to learn. The next party is in Venezuela and could last a long time and involve a lot more gluteal input. So I need to practice. I'm getting ready like Rocky. I wake and I practice Spanish every mañana, 7AM via my Rosetta Stone software. I now know EXACTLY what a montaña is and EXACTLY how to wear it, thank you very much. I've also been taking careful notes about Venezuelan culture and slang. I'm up to date on the political state of the country, it's relations to the U.S., Russia and itself. Mr. Chavez, I beg to differ: Shankees are NOT mierrrrrrrrrrda!

Anyway, the party was starting to die down a little, and there was still a lot of food to eat, and I needed people to stay and eat it. so I took action. I jumped into a white nylon suit with a rainbow big-collar suit adorned in gold chains and leapt into the party as a strutting, microphone-wielding Hector Lavoe (special thanks go to my cousin Chad Maness for providing the John Ra-volta costume). It worked. And although now I feel my strategy a little extreme and just slightly embarrassing, for some reason it worked perfectly and no one batted an eye. I love my family.

Ah, the next day...

NOTE: To all prospective brides in the middle of planning your wedding, the true purpose of catoring isn't the food. Anyone can or has family who can cook. It's the fact that the caterer also cleans and packs up everything and takes it away. Another lesson learned the hard way.

So here we are, Lena and I, swimming in the roiling economic seas. We still have work coming in, but there have been cancelations, too. Luckily, we've booked three weddings already for 2009 with a few more decisions in the air. Good times or bad, love reigns, people fall in love and some marry under the warm smiles of the ones they love. I know, it's happened to me. Twice. We enjoy making photographs for these happy people. If you are once of them, please give us a call. www.saldiviajones.com or 404.228.9739. Peace.

Notes

Congrats to Jill and Chris!

The happy couple is (as of this writing) enjoying their honeymoon in Italy, and Lena is extremely jealous. Lena did three tours of Italy during the course of her life thus far, and loved every single trip, particularly the north of Italy. I haven't had the opportunity to travel to Europe, but from talking to Lena, Italy is near the top of the list when we eventually go. If you wish to read more about the wedding, scroll to the bottom of the update.

































The wedding was held at The Swan House in The Atlanta History Center grounds near Buckhead. It was an absolutely stunning location, the only caveat being a complete lack of power to all the most photogenic areas of the grounds.

Note to Self: Purchase better battery-operated lighting system.

Not that it would have mattered. There was little time to fool with. The bride had eight bridesmaids and the groom had his own tuxedo-clad platoon in tow. Add to that a massive, camera-equipped family and we had quite a handful before the wedding. Luckily for us, Lena got some one-on-one time with the bride in the Swan House just before the ceremony and nailed some dynamite portraits.

The next week we went to a Pictage User Group meeting where two of California's best wedding photographers, Michael and Anna Costa, talked at length about how they became successful. Needless to say, my pen nearly went dry I wrote so many notes. A few points stuck out in my mind, particularly along the lines of client relations and marketing. This couple outsourced almost every aspect of their business. All they had to do was shoot the weddings and rub elbows with clients.

Mike and Anna made sure first of all that they only worked for clients who made a point of setting aside ALOT of time for pictures and stuck to that schedule. That way they had the room to scout, plan and execute some of the best portraits I have ever seen, period. Also, they pinpointed the people they wanted to work for by working closely with vendors and planners they respected. They had a pretty killer website, too, which Saldivia-Jones needs to invest in as well.

Lena and I came away from the meeting charged and inspired. We met lots of other photographers from the Atlanta area, many of whom are amazing shooters. We'll probably be going to a lot more of these meetings as out business develops.