A Year in Photographs 2023 — A Journey's End

A Year in Photographs

365 Days, 12 Themes, 1 Creative Journey

Museo Soumaya — Day 98

I started writing this entry with some grand idea that there was a lot to say, stories to tell, and great insight I learned. While I do have many stories, evolved creatively, pushed myself hard to achieve this tremendous goal, and want to share so much of my journey, I didn’t find that I could completely convey what #AYearinPhotographs has meant to me nor engage it all in just a few paragraphs.

Instead, I intend to keep this short because, perhaps, minimalism is a certain type of valor. A photograph every day for a year is an undertaking. One sets out, like every journey, with the first footstep and from there, the Universe leads one on. Simply put, it is a lot of work. Sometimes hours spent crafting one photo—it is easy, and it is hard. One is excited to do it and one will be tired.

Then it is all over and there is pride, sadness, love, and even bewilderment. And it is absolutely something that I recommend everyone should do—whether it be photography, writing, music, art, cooking, fitness, or whatever your passion may be. Do it. Journal it. Blog it. Share it.

It is a wave that washes over you and you’ll either ride it great distances or it will stay your feet, and you will be left behind. It is a commitment that if you hesitate for merely a day, you can never draw level. But when you reach the end of every day, every week, month, and the year, you have an accomplishment that only those who have traveled this path can truly appreciate.

Over 11,000 photos, 365 days, 12 themes, thousands of kilometers, two continents, four countries, and one singularly fantastic camera later, #AYearinPhotographs comes to close.

Here’s to the journey’s beginning, the path, the light, the shadow, and to the journey’s end.

Until next time.

A Year in Photographs 2023

“Go out and shoot!”

— Adrian’s Life Rule #56

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Shot on FujiFilm X-T5

Bee House Teapot in Noble Black

I’m not much of a coffee person. In fact, I think I can count how many cups of coffee I’ve ever drunk. But I am a tea person. I drink a lot of tea and have many types. At any given time, I usually have more than a dozen loose leaf teas: green, oolong, black, some flavored. As one might also expect, I also have an affinity toward a nice teapot.

Bee House is made by Zero Japan, a Japanese company, and it is one on fine teapot. Little do many people know, it is possible to be excited about a teapot. This really falls under my love of design. Bee House's minimalistic teapots are made out of high grade ceramic and come in many wonderful colors. Being the minimalist I am, I went with the 26oz noble black—a matte black finish that reminds me of carbon fiber than pottery.

Smooth to the touch, it not only looks fantastic, it feels great too. While functionally a teapot can do it job really well, part of good design, especially when it is something one will touch, the tactility of said object is very important. It not only adds comfort to an already ergonomic design but also one wants to use it—keep it clean, functional, and share it with others. And, tea, after all, is meant to be shared so should the experience of tea serving.

The top is metal and clips on. Easy to remove, one can clean it and the pot itself separately. Inside, a metal, mesh basket allows steeping of loose leaf teas.

I have found that this particular ceramic holds heat very well. My old tea pot, also ceramic, would cool much more quickly. One tip, due tot he heat capacity of the pot itself, I tend to steep tea far less time. I use to keep tea in the old pot for hours and never had my tea get too strong. In my Bee House, black teas I rarely steep for more than three minutes, and green or oolong, for five minutes if the water is at the proper temperature. 

It has become a favorite kitchen item of mine. It is not only beautiful and functional but part of my daily life. There are thousands of teapots out there but ever since I saw these round globes at Argo Tea, I’ve loved them. And seeing the noble black in person, I loved them even more. One knows something is great when opening the box and softly saying, “wow.”

Price: $35

Blloc, Smartphone Minimalism

Stunning in Black and White

If black and white photography was a smartphone, it would look like Blloc.

Only a few weeks ago I wrote a short article on how impressed and inspired I was by the Light Phone 2. It’s not a smart phone, not a feature phone, but a phone to help you connect with your friends and family by just being present—no FaceBook, no Instagram, no one thousand and one notifications.

I recently stumbled on another similar device but it captures my imagination and, ultimately, my deep passion for minimalism even more so. Like much of my photography, I prefer simplicity to complexity, black and white to color, and this particular device is not only stunning looking but I also really love the direction that they are taking and the philosophy behind their user interface.

This new device, not yet available, is called BllocZero18. Blloc's design, attention to detail, and minimalism really caught my attention. The screen is monochrome—white objects and text against a black background on a black device. It’s pretty stunning in photos. It focuses on communication, messages, rideshare, news, weather, and other apps but organized in a very different way.

The operating system is based on Android 8.1 but this isn't what one likely expects from an Android device. Rather than the traditional home screen with an ocean of icons, Blloc is engineered around a home screen based on information. They call it the Root but this is not what you expect from android device. It does not have the traditional home screen with an ocean of icons but a home screen based on information. They call it the Root.

“The lost, forgotten and scattered information is now gathered in one place, a simple timeline which facilitates speedy and effective conversations, while Blloc anticipates your needs through learning.”

— Blloc Team

From Root, you have access to your every day functions like news and weather in a messaging app like interface. I'm very curious to see this I action. I can imagine some of the function and how it will behave but I also expect that have some very slick features not seen.

It somewhat reminded me of iMessage for Business and Blackberry Hub, but with a touch of Pebble OS interface from the extinct smartwatch.

While the majority of one's time is viewing the devices interface in black and white, clearly one would want to see some things, images for example, in color. The OS is smart and will display things that 'should' be color, in color.

I really want to put my money in on Blloc just so I can play with it. It is a beautiful design, inspiring and innovative user interface, and really speaks to my minimalistic nature. Perhaps they will be gracious enough to lend me a review version. I would love to give this device a test.

I encourage you to visit their site and take a look for yourself. It is really something—down right sexy if you ask me.

Blloc

Price: €359 (≈$425)

Photos courtesy of Blloc