John Neil

I have this hobby. It’s kind of a strange one.

My friends and I own trucks that we’ve strapped and bolted a bunch of equipment to: tents, water jugs, air pumps… that kinda thing.

Then, we take these trucks and we drive them down roads with big rocks, to places where vehicles don’t really belong. The goal, mostly, is just to get away from civilization. To enjoy the outdoors.

However, since I was abroad for a few months—and also because Southern California is tire-meltingly hot in summer—we hadn’t really done any trips in a while. So, long overdue for some camping, we packed up said trucks and hit the road in search of altitude, epic views, and slightly cooler weather.

Northern-ish Arizona is where we ended up.

On the morning of day one we found ourselves in Sedona. But as the temperatures climbed in the early hours we all agreed to head further north since we definitely didn’t want to spend the day driving around in the heat. So, what happened next?

We spent most of the day driving around in the heat and the crushingly intense Sedona sun. Poorly executed plans, terrible weather, and badly timed decisions are all common threads with our little trifecta.

It’s kinda what we do.

Couldn’t help it though, the area was gorgeous, and Zach discovered he could legally fly his drone, which costs two thousand dollars and apparently can hardly be used anywhere in the United States of America. So, we endured.

As late afternoon rolled around, we rambled our way off the trail, ate some sad burritos, and began our trek further north and up above 7,000 ft.

After a few hours of hunting we found a campsite near a meadow. I hit my gas tank on a rock, and Danny and Zach threw a frisbee while I lazily watched in a chair. Pretty standard drill for our party. They can never get me to join activities; I don’t like activities. Unfortunately, I didn’t take many photos at this location, which I regret because it was quite pretty.

I do this a lot: I sit in a chair looking around at my incredible surroundings while thinking about how I should take some photos. Then I continue to sit in the chair.

Not all was lost though, from that chair I got a photo of Zach and his dog in another chair—score.

The next day we decided to look for a camp spot with a view, but Zach and I were feeling a bit lazy from the long drive the day before. Danny (who is obsessed with his maps made of paper) found a potential location and promised me/us it was only 15 miles and about an hour or so of driving. Danny makes lots of these kinds of promises. We’ve learned become skeptics.

I would like to hold what turned out to be a three hour drive against him, but the spot he found was by far the coolest place I have ever camped. So he was redeemed. Not that he cared one way or another. Danny is very secure in himself.

At this location, we got all setup and I took a nap while Zach and Danny went on a hike. Because I don’t do activities.

I did make some time for an Instagram-style selfie though. It may look as if I am contemplating the gorge, but I am not. Instead, I am wondering if I am standing in a way that looks weird in this frame, because I am not a model, no one is manning this camera, and I can’t be motivated to go back and forth and review the shots over and over.

When my friends returned we were assaulted by two things: mosquitoes and a brilliant sunset. The mosquitoes are why my friends are dressed like actors from Monty Python and The Holy Grail. The sunset is why I ended up getting a bunch of photographs I am really happy with from our trip.

More drones were flown. Beers were consumed, and we spent the evening having a nice chat by the fire. Eventually, we wandered off to bed in our tents. Naturally, I wondering if a bear might attack me in the night, as I always do in these kinds of places. But per the usual, that never materialized. Instead, we awoke in the morning without fanfare, and made the 8 hour trip home. Another beautiful drive.

We had a fantastic time, an epic trip, and some good experiences with some great friends.

I don’t really know how to end this story, so I’ll just leave you the way we started. With a photo.

Well, I have been back in the U.S. for about a week now. Finally got some time to go over all of the images I shot in Berlin. So, I figured it was time for a post.

Not much to say except that Berlin is a visual mess for someone like me. I tend to gravitate towards a lot of simplicity and subject isolation in my photos. That was very difficult to achieve there. Consequently, I felt like I had to adapt my style a bit.

In a way, this happens anywhere you go with a camera. Every city, person and landscape presents different challenges.

Berlin just has a lot going on, pretty much everywhere you look.

In the end, I got a few images that I am happy with, but nothing that ranks among my subjective best. I had a very pleasant time regardless, and appreciated the creative challenge.

Headed to Colorado Springs this week to check out an RV, then finally back to LA. Hope you all are well.

Did you know that’s an urban legend. JFK never said that. Well, he said he was a Berliner, but that was indeed the correct way of putting it. I guess it was quite a few years later that the story ran suggesting he had called himself a donut. Which he did not actually do.

This is not really in any way relevant, except that I am in Berlin. Which has been a fascinating experience.

Initially, I booked a flight here because I was on the way to Turkey, and there were no direct flights to Istanbul. When I travel, I very much prefer direct flights. It’s just too exhausting to be switching planes and countries all day (not to mention the COVID trickery). So, if I can’t find one, I just add the intermediary city to the trip.

One week in Berlin turned into two. Two weeks turned into: I’m going home. Ha ha ha.

Not for any specific reason really. I like it here. But I woke up a few mornings ago, made an espresso, sat down to look out my hotel window and just realized I was done. Booked a flight back to Chicago shortly after that; I have four more days here.

This trip has been remarkable, and exactly what I needed. The fact that I have the luxury of spending a month in Iceland, then a few weeks in Germany (at my leisure) is not lost on me—trust me.

However, I’ve made some pretty major lifestyle choices about home, and I’m ready to put those into action.

In terms of photography, I’ve shot quite a bit here. I have a whole other photo post I will do, but wanted to update you all on the current situation. Let me say though, that photography here is very challenging, Berlin is so eclectic. Every scene has a kind of insane mix of bicycles, classical and modern architecture, and graffiti. In addition, there are lots of rules about when people can and cannot be in your photos. Which I find a bit absurd. It’s been very difficult environment for me, but probably a good creative exercise.

Anyway, more on that later. Hope you all are well.