My two passions in life are off-shore fishing and photography. MG has a dramatic impact my ability to fish and pursue my photography.

We fish the Monterrey Bay for Salmon and Albacore Tuna, among other things. Both can be as big as 35 pounds or more, but usually 12 to 18 pounds. The Monterrey Bay is not a gentle body of water. Sometime we go 50 miles off the coast of Monterrey after the tuna. The Bay is almost always overcast, and the wind and waves make navigation tricky. Just holding oneself in position in the boat for 12 to 36 hours is stressful and fatiguing on the mussels.

Factor in the effort to get the boat, set it up, transport it to the harbor, and launch the boat, repeating the process at the end of the trip. I can barely type the concept, let alone physically execute it.

If I should hook a big tuna or salmon, one that might take over an hour to land, I do not have the upper body strength to reel them into the boat. I no longer have the physical ability to do this. I miss being on the water.

Photography too is a very physical activity. I have professional studio equipment that I transport in my van. The equipment is not kept in the van, but rather in my apartment. When I get an assignment I load the equipment from the apartment to the van and transport it to the location. I then setup the studio. I carry 150 bounds of sandbags alone, in 5 pound, 10 pound, and 25 pound bags, to archer light stands, background stands, and booms. After the shoot I break down and load the equipment back into the apartment.

I simply do not have the strength to do this any more. I could hire an assistant to do the manual work, but shooting is also a physical activity. It is also tricky accepting a future assignments. I don't know if it is going to be a good MG day or a bad MG day. How can I accept a wedding job months in advance with the uncertainty of my physical ability on the day of the shoot.

-Mark-