Hassen Salum: Visual Storytelling.

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Kayaking Under Stars, Chakambakam, Mexico
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After the night shot at San Juanico, I’m excited to show you guys the #StarShot of my experience with The Explorean Hotels. This is easily one of my favourite photos!
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When my guide, Daniel, described the activity to me I got a bit nervous. One of the highlights of the tour was staying still in the middle of the lake, listening to the sounds of Nature and enjoying a beautiful starry sky. How could I capture that… in the dark… on a kayak???
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I asked Daniel if the lake was shallow enough to put a tripod in the water and the look on his face wasn’t very reassuring, haha. For a moment I thought it wasn’t even worthwhile to carry the tripod with me on the kayak, but my gut told me to bring it anyways, so I strapped it in the back just in case.
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After enjoying a beautiful sunset while paddling we came to a stop in the dark and I positioned myself where the ideal angle would be. I sunk the paddle to test for depth and immediately lost all hope for the photo. I decided to just let go and enjoy the moment with the team.
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After a few minutes we carried on and, soon after, Daniel spotted fireflies in the nearby forest, so he stopped the group again to enjoy the show. One of the guests asked how deep it was in here, so Daniel sunk his paddle and proved it was actually quite shallow in this area. I couldn’t help but smile and paddled fast to the ideal angle of the photo. I sunk my paddle and cheered internally. I frenetically started to unstrap the tripod from behind me, careful not to flip my kayak. Daniel noticed this and kept the group entertained while I prepared.
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When I was ready he helped me get the group still enough to pull off a long exposure and voilá! Surprisingly, it only took about three exposures to get this. Thanks, Daniel and @theexploreankohunlich, for your help in getting this new favourite of a photo!

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Point 3. San Juanico, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
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Before the #StarShot of my days at The Explorean Kohunlich I want to share this photo from last night, both because it serves as a sort of intro to that special shot and because I really liked this place!
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San Juanico is small fishing village on the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur. For years it was a secret location frequented by the few surfers who had discovered it, but little by little it’s been gaining some prestige for its waves.
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It’s known for its very long wave of about 2km, and a local surfer who works at the @scorpionbayhotel explained to us that it’s actually several points with waves and as you master each, and with the proper swell, you could connect points 3 to 1 for a fantastically long ride! I’m not much of a surfer, to be honest, but just imagining the feeling makes me want to learn. I may have found a New Year’s resolution there!
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This picture is by the lighthouse on point 3. This was the first spot we stopped in when arriving to San Juanico, where I shot a small video of a friend as he walked next to the cliff. Later in the night, as I was reviewing my phone shots, I realized there was a great spot, an almost-full moon and a clear sky out there. I couldn’t let it go, so I convinced Jaime to not call it a day after all and he was pretty cool to stand in that spot for a while to make the photo of the trip. Thanks, bro!

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‘The World’s Inspiring Places: Sierra Gorda’ short film is out now!!
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Sierra Gorda is not only a magical destination, but also a great example of things done right. Check out the feature documentary of two guys adventuring through its beautiful scenery as they meet the local heroes and people who have worked so hard to turn this biosphere reserve into an inspiring model of conservation! Link in bio!

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