One of the things that I’ve discovered over the years is that once you stop doing something that you used to do on a regular basis, it becomes more difficult to do it as more time has passed, as inertia can set in fast. Whether it’s exercising or reading, you’ve got to get back to doing it quickly, because it becomes a monumental task to do it later.
Writing is another thing that can be difficult to get back to. Just look at my blog here. The last time I made a posting was on December 12 of last year – a full three months ago. Did I plan to go that long running silent? No. Did it still happen? Yes. I had planned to make a post in late December highlighting the things I had done last year – the busiest year I have ever had photographically – but I was away for much of the month and was busy catching up on things late in the month. Then I went away on a trip in early in the new year. Then I went away again – and again.
Indecision was another reason, which is another way of saying that paralysis can set in when you can’t decide what to do. It seemed to be too late for a 2025 review, but then what should I write about? Photos from last year? Newer photos from this year? Ultimately, finally, I decided that those new things can wait, and despite it being almost two and a half months into the new, a review of 2025 still seems worthwhile given the depth of my activity.
January to April
January and April were months when I stayed home but I was active with my camera the other two months. In early February, I visited Spain for the first time, though not on the mainland, but by attending a photo event on Tenerife in the Canary Islands.
Then, later in February and into early March, I returned to Venice, Italy, to photograph the annual Carnevale for the second consecutive year.
While in Italy, I also photographed art model Sofia.
Later in March, I returned to Spain – this time on the mainland in Andalucia – to photograph model Shira NuBallet for a couple of days.
I then continued my trip and headed south to visit Morocco for the first time, attending two photo events in that country, in Marrakech and near Essaouira.
After returning to Marrakech, I then stayed a few extra days to photograph the city on my own.
May to August
These months were certainly the busiest for me. I began my travels by visiting Stockholm, Sweden, for a week with a friend in early May.
I then began my model photography in mid-May by attending a photo event in France.
From there, I flew south to Portugal, where I photographed models V Wild Art and Kayla for several days in the Algarve region.
The next stop was Berlin, Germany, where I also photographed model Sophie La Sage one morning.
Continuing on, I traveled east by train, making my first ever visit to Poland at an event near the city of Poznan.
Next it was back to the air, flying to Latvia for another photo event.
The trip finally ended by visiting Spain for the third time, this time at an event outside of Barcelona in Catalonia.
Overall, the trip beginning in May and ending in June lasted for four weeks, and saw me visiting six different countries. However, there was not much rest for the weary, as a few days later, I hit the road again to attend a photography event in Iceland.
Making a big change, I then went from the cold and wind of Iceland to the heat of the south of France, with a photo event there.
That brought the month of June to an end, but I continued on into July with a photo event in and near Prague in the nation of Czechia (aka Czech Republic).
I also photographed a local model, Vikencia, in the streets of Prague one morning.
This particular trip lasted two weeks and saw me visiting three countries, but of course, that didn’t end things for July, as a few weeks later, I put a pause to my model photography and went on a three week tour of Peru, going to the Amazon River region, the Sacred Valley and Machu Pic-chu, the high plateau of the Lake Titicaca region and the capital city of Lima. This was not only my first visit to South America, but my first time going to the Southern Hemisphere, as well.
September to December
Things finally began to slow down with my art and travel photography, but not immediately, as I once again went to Poland to attend a photo event, this time near the city of Wroclaw.
As with my earlier trip to Poland, I also combined this one with a visit to Berlin, where I again photographed Sophie La Sage.
I ended up my model photography for the year in late November and early December by making my first ever trip to New Zealand for an event.
Although I did not do any art or travel photography from mid-September to late November, I was still busy traveling by car around the northeast to continue doing my sports photography (football and volleyball) for my old school, Yale University. I even traveled to a game by air for the first time, following the football team to Bozeman, Montana, where it played against eventual national FCS champion Montana State.
Overall, for my fine art photography, I attended 13 model photo events, photographed several models individually and visited 13 different countries – including five for the first time. If you’re wondering why I did all of this (stretching my budget to the limit), one reason is that I retired two and a half years ago and having the time to travel as I would like is still the “new toy” that I have to play with before I put it down.
However, the primary reason was that last year was the 30th year of my doing art model photography, and I traveled outside the United States to add to my international portfolio for my 30 year book project – and hopefully I will have the time soon to begin working on that project. However, as it will take a while, with plenty of digital images to still edit and lots of negatives to scan and edit, it will certainly end up being a “30+ year” project.
As always, stay tuned.
Figures of Grace 
