I fell in love with coffee in college. It was a tenuous relationship at first due to a completely unexplainable phobia of hot drinks in my younger years. Gradually I began to experiment with frozen mochas, lattes, and cappuccinos until I had built up enough of an affinity to skip the sugary drinks and head straight for the natural. Now I’m experimenting with different brewing systems like a French press and Chemex to see what makes the best natural coffee.

Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all.”― David Lynch

Travel and Coffee

Coffee shops have become an important marker in major events in my life. In Birmingham, England I always visit the Ikon Café (which is apparently now Café Opus) for some joe and inspiration. While in London, there are plenty of small cafés and if I’m north of the city I always go to Tinderbox by the Angel tube station. All of these are inextricably linked with either beautiful memories or major creative moments. At Ikon Café I wrote tons of angsty poetry in many different forms about emotions that I didn't even grasp yet. The same goes for Tinderbox and sitting by the Thames with a cup of to-go coffee from a corner bakery. Each cup represented something that pushed me forward, either as an artist or a person.

In Paris you can basically find any sidewalk café and have a great cup while watching tourists fumble through the French language, as waiters act like they don’t understand them. The uncultured version of me too often visited Starbucks in France, probably in search of familiarity. When in Italy, it was espresso on the quick from basically anywhere. It is Italy after all. There's no time to savor coffee, it's utilitarian at best.

At Antidote Coffee in Houston, TX. Photo by Karen Walrond

My college java experience was dominated by The Mudhouse and Potters House while now I frequent Antidote, Paper Co., and Down House. These places are more than just coffee shops to me, they are points in time, friendship and creative fuel.

Creative Juice

I’ve also found that drinking a cup in the morning may not be the best for your energy and that beer may be better for initial creative inspiration. So, to get the best of both worlds, I bought some Real Ale Shade Grown Coffee Porter, but I usually don’t drink it in the morning. People tend to look down on that for some reason.

I’m starting to learn the economics of coffee, the second most traded commodity behind oil. I’ve put the book Java Trekker by Dean Cycon on my reading list, as well as Uncommon Grounds by Mark Pendergrast, and have started paying attention to where the beans I consume come from and how it impacts those who grow it.  I also find it very amusing that the Netherlands is the highest per capita consumer of coffee in the world and that Hawaii is the only US state that produces it.

So as you make it through Monday, maybe even on your fourth cup, take a moment and savor the smell of the beans that keep you awake, alert and almost completely dependent on its sweet, and sometimes bitter, nectar.

Part of me remembers Paris in a strictly romantic sense. Memories of walking along the Seine at 4 a.m., seeing the hulking mass of the Eiffel Tower unlit and wrapped in the cold of February's arms. Watching the sunlight slowly engulf the spires of Notre Dame as couples held hands and took in the beauty. Still, part of me remembers Paris the way it really was. Gypsies crowded around the Eiffel Tower and rats freely roaming the plaza in front of Notre Dame, looking to feast on leftovers from Asian tourists. Fights in the Metro and endless transit strikes making the morning commute nothing short of a disaster.

Somehow, both of these are correct.

I talk about Paris a lot these days. It shows up in random conversations and then slowly takes over my thoughts for the rest of the day. I can't escape my time in the City of Love.

Winter Arrival

I first came to Paris in the winter of 2009. Novelist and playwright Irwin Shaw once said "Paris in the winter is for connoisseurs of melancholy", and I'd tend to agree. The city was gray and full of unease as I rode my first metro into the heart of Montparnasse to meet the people I would be staying with. I had never endured a winter overseas before. My trips to England had been summer excursions when tourists are in full force and the rain merely washed off the streets from the constant parades and celebrations in the city. But this was different. There was sorrow and hesitance hanging in the air. It was as if someone I didn't know died each and every morning. The tourists, those who couldn't afford Paris in the spring or summer, huddled in lines, a clever ploy to keep warm and ward off the gypsies as they waited for elevators up to the Tower's observation deck.

This melancholy that Irwin talks about gripped me too. I had just left behind someone that I cared about, only to find myself enveloped in a cold and blustery facade of what I had expected. Sure, I was excited to be there and to experience a new culture, but a part of me knew I had done the wrong thing. Did the cold last forever?

As the months went on, my situation began to mirror the weather. An inordinate amount of snow blanketed the city on more than one occasion only to be followed by a day of sunshine. The city was a yo-yo in the hands of a 5-year old. I lost weight due to stress and walking around 5-7 miles a day. My hair grew out to its longest point in my life. I was a person that I didn't even recognize. The letters that I had received once a week since my arrival had stopped sometime in March. My connection to home was slim and mostly through a girl that would break my heart exactly 2 years later. I was living in the greatest city in the world and slowly fading into an apparition.

Paris, My Lament

My time in Paris ruined me physically, mentally and spiritually. The thing is, I wouldn't trade that time for anything. Every morning the city tore me to shreds, punching holes into my tiny frame and inserting its philosophy, humor and heartache in small doses. Each day was a struggle to keep my head above water and paint a smile on my face. But then, drained of everything but existence, I would turn a corner and see the sun reflecting off the face of a girl reading a book in a cafe in Montmartre, or birds skimming the Seine as lovers embraced on Pont Neuf. The city forced its brilliance on me like a mother giving medicine to her child. It was worth it for these moments.

I remember Paris for a lot of things; romance, heartache, contradictions, sentiment. But most of all, I remember Paris because I have to. I am Paris, in all it's gritty glory. Beautiful, reckless and misunderstood.

*A version of this post was previously published in 2014.

Updated 09/19/16: You can check out the full review of the Vinta S Series camera/travel bag here. I've used a lot of different camera bags to carry my Nikon D750 around, but nothing I've found is more stylish than the Vinta S-Series. Recently out of Kickstarter, and already sold out of it's initial run, the S-Series combines a camera and travel bag in a small form backpack style. Available in black, grey and forest green (my preferred color) the S-Series can hold up to a 15" laptop or MacBook Pro, a full-frame DSLR or mirrorless camera along with 3-5 lenses and comes with a removable field pack that can store an extra lens or other accessories.

vinta

vinta back

I love how the S-Series comes with removable inserts for a camera and lenses, making it a more versatile bag than my Timbuk2 small camera bag. The convertible option quickly turns it into a stylish backpack for a weekend away. It's the small details on a bag that make it stand out and Vinta has those covered. Simple leather accents really draw the eye while still maintaining a minimalist look and feel. This bag definitely makes me want to take a hike and try my hand at some more nature photography.

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Other features of the S-Series include:

• Leather details & magnetic snaps
• Light-weight and durable poly fabric
• Waterproof material
• Gun metal details

Check out a video on the Vinta story here and make sure to follow them on Instagram to keep up with their adventures and travel.

The How To Make A Travel Video series looks at the different aspects of capturing travel memories on film. You’ll see great examples to inspire and learn about the gear and techniques that help make great travel videos better. You can find the rest of the series here. With powerful camera technology packed into our phones and cameras, creating beautiful videos is now as easy for the amateur as it is for the professional. Just pull out your camera, capture some moments and weave it together to show the world the amazing adventure you just had. Now that everyone can make these videos, if you want yours to stand out online, it has to be a really compelling story or something that is technically well done. My favorite way for travel videos to stand out from the crowd is by using mood.

Carpathians by Boroda Cinema

In this travel video by Boroda Cinema we see a group of people hiking the Carpathians in Eastern Europe. It's pretty straightforward story wise, just friends enjoying a holiday, but what makes it stand out is its use of color, light (or the lack of light) and sound to create a coherent mood throughout. The lush greens of the mountains are obscured by fog and rain creating an immediate tension in frame. the grayness of the opening shots, juxtaposed with the green fauna immediately sets a calm, almost still vibe. Even though the light changes and we see more bright colors, this imagery can be felt all the way through the video.

Sound As Setting

From the opening shot we hear rain and wind, adding to the grayness and seamlessly intertwining with the opening notes of "Stay Alive" by José Gonzalez. Not only does the song match the gray and green tones in its somber composition, it helps push the frames forward. The one thing that stands out the most about the sound in this video is the use of natural sounds in certain moments to help layer and give a human quality to the film. After all, these are people on an adventure and the intermittent laughing, the sound of cars and boots slogging through mud really reminds us of that.

Using natural sound in video helps draw the viewer in and make them a part of the setting.

Intentional Framing

The rule of thirds is undoubtedly something that should be followed in film and photography, but when shooting handheld travel video, don't be afraid to mix up the framing for interesting shots. In Carpathinas you'll see a mix of people walking center frame, leading the camera forward and then quick cuts to people middle-left or middle-right, this intentional mix of framing keeps the viewers eyes on the screen because the action is not clearly focused in one spot. A balance of shots in the center, middle-left and middle-right can make even the most mundane video easy on the eyes.

Oh That Glorious Light

What I love about travel photography and video is that you normally don't have a light setup with you and you're at the mercy of the sun. It's a humbling place to be if you're used to studio work and can really create some beautiful images. As I touched on before, the opening shots of Carpathians use the lack of direct light to create a calming mood. When you're traveling, don't be afraid to play around with under or over-exposing your images, as long as you can weave together a balanced  mood throughout. Even though we have a mix of gray and bright images in the video above, the filmmakers helped bridge the two light sources by gradually bringing in the light. There's no jarring black to white jumps, but a casual stroll into the light. Use different light sources to your advantage to create a journey.

Creating a travel video is about capturing memories and helping draw others in your adventure. Using light, sound, framing and color you can really pull viewers into the world you just experienced, possibly sparking their interest in visiting the same place. Regardless of the quality of your equipment, Boroda Cinema used a Sony A7s II, these simple storytelling techniques can make your travel video stand out from all the rest.

Every photographer has their favorite. I have good friends that swear by their Fujifilm mirrorless setups (of which I now own this little beauty) and some that are loyal only to a single brand, which usually makes buying lenses a lot easier. For me, as soon as I picked up the Nikon D750, I was at home. The body fit perfectly into my hand and even though I was just delving into hardcore photography, I felt like I knew how to work most everything on it. I already owned some Nikon lenses so it was natural that I didn't have to start from scratch, although some serious upgrading was necessary.  

Nikon D750

Landing right in the middle of Nikon's full-frame format cameras, the D750 was the perfect mixture of style and substance for me. I shoot a lot of video at work and the ability of the D750 to handle aperture changes in live-view mode made it an easy choice over the D610 but at a lower price point than the D810. Coupled with an aftermarket battery grip, I can shoot photo and video for hours. The tilting view screen makes it easy to shoot via a tripod at higher or lower angles while still being able to see what is on screen.

Nikkor 24-120mm VR Lens

With the step up to the full-frame sensor, a new lens was necessary to get the full range of the D750. In stepped the Nikkor 24-120mm VR lens. It's not the fastest of lenses and is quite heavy, but when shooting at an event, the extra zoom is really helpful and it's crystal clear images never disappoint. When shooting video during the day (once again, not the fastest) the 24-120mm has pulled down some seriously crisp footage that rivals anything I've seen from a prime lens. A little heavy for a travel setup, the 24-120mm is ideally situated for short photo outings when you know you won't be able to get super close to your subject. At f/4 you can still get some nice bokeh, which is helpful.

Nikkor 50mm 1.8g Lens

The Nikkor 50mm 1.8g lens is the workhorse of my photo and video setup. Still not the fastest 50mm in the Nikon lineup, the 50mm 1.8g is consistently my go to lens for pretty much everything; video, photo, portrait, travel, you name it. On my recent trip to Paris and Amsterdam it was the only lens that I packed due to its versatility and small footprint. You can check out some of the images I shot on that trip here. The cheapest lens in my setup and yet the one that I use the most. If you have a Nikon camera and don't have one of these, go get one right now.

Peak Design Strap Pack

I have an unhealthy fear of dropping my camera in a large crowd while everyone laughs, so my first purchase after buying a new camera was to invest in a low profile strap that was suited to quick changes. Peak Design's strap pack that includes their leash and cuff was exactly what i needed. Featuring theirAnchor Link Quick-Connection System, the leash and cuff are perfect for any working photographer that has to change to tripod or monopod mounted video quickly without having a strap hanging down and making noise. I've even got an anchor attached to the bottom of my battery grip so that the D750 can hang sideways on my waist without the screen scratching up against my belt.

There's plenty of other gear that I'd love, like my newly acquired Nikkor 85mm 1.8D (or a 1.4g if anyone wants to gift it) and an Atomos Ninja-2 video recorder, but for now the smaller the setup the better. After all, my Tenba DNA 15 can only hold so much at one time.