A few days back, I had a chance to grab coffee with one of my favorite photographers, Adrian Villa. He is a software developer, who got tired of sitting behind the screen and keyboard and sought the freedom that comes from being in the open and making beautiful landscapes. Our coffee conversation was about the choices we make, not in the gear we use, but we choose to capture and how we decide to share it with others. We talked extensively about constraints in equipment and choices, and how they help improve our creativity.

As an artist, he has eschewed the latest and greatest cameras and instead has focused on creating stark, minimal, and hauntingly beautiful monochromatic images. He uses a generation old APS-C camera, in addition to lugging around his Bronica medium format camera.

In a few years, Adrian has found his voice by being incredibly obsessive about his art and practicing it as often as he can — almost daily. Today, he lives a nomadic life, with his wife (who is a digital nomad herself), splitting time between the United States and Europe.

I would suggest you follow him on Instagram or on his blog, where he shares his thoughts about photography and, of course, his photography. His vlog on YouTube is honest and straightforward. I enjoy watching his adventures when I can.