Recently, Sony invited me to join a panel of speakers at PhotoImage Brazil. The PhotoImage convention is the largest photography and image expo in Latin America, showcasing top photography-related gear and unveiling innovative new technologies. Over 30,000 attendees turned out at this year’s show, held August 14-16 in São Paulo.

Saglimbeni3D post-production supervisor Joyce Park joined me on our Brazilian adventure, and we gave two presentations at the Sony booth on the latest advances in 3D photography. I had the pleasure of meeting and working with a brilliant group of photographers, including digital pioneer Pedro Meyer, National Geographic photojournalist Reza Deghati, and UK-based rising-stars Palmer & Pavel and Andrew Scriven. We also met many aspiring photographers in the audience, several of whom came out to see us after we announced our appearance on Twitter and Facebook.

After the convention ended, Joyce and I headed north to Rio de Janeiro for some beach time and to see the sights. I fell completely in love with the city within minutes of arrival. Beaches surrounded by lush jungles are my version of paradise, and the preponderance of fruit markets and natural juice bars made me feel instantly at home. We walked the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema on Friday night only to discover what a physically active city Rio is: the bike lanes were filled with night-joggers and rollerbladers, and the sand was packed with locals running obstacle courses, slacklining (you’ve got to see it to believe it) and playing midnight beach volleyball. On Saturday we made our way to the top of Sugarloaf mountain to take in the jaw-dropping views of the coast. Far too short a trip for such a vast and beautiful country, but a perfect introduction to all that Brazil has to offer.

My sincerest thanks go out to Sony Brasil and creative director Astrid Merget of the World Photography Organization for inviting us to spend time amongst such esteemed company. I will never forget the sights we saw, the friendships we made, nor the wisdom we picked up along the way. I also cannot wait to get back to Rio. Vou sentir saudade, Brasil!

CREDITS: Photos by Nick Saglimbeni & Joyce Park 

TOP A: The stunning view of Rio from atop Sugarloaf mountain. Note the Cristo Rendentor (Christ the Redeemer) statue illuminating the sky from the mountaintop in the distance.
TOP B:  (Left to right) Pedro Meyer, Astrid Merget, Nick Saglimbeni, Joyce Park, Reza Deghati, Jared Palmer, Pavel Vizner, Andrew Scriven