Down at the dock

We were blessed to have a family return this year for a second time with their children for Spring Break. Our children and their children get along really well and have the best of times. The guests tell us they plan on coming each year to visit so it will be great fun to watch how the friendship between the kids continues to grow over the years. This is just an example of the fun times we had down at the dock. Only three of the six children are in this shot but they were all around playing and having a blast.

Panama Eco Adventure - 2011 Episode 4

Check out this video and learn a bit about the catch and release fishing available off the beach.

Upside Down Jellyfish

Cassiopea or upside down jellyfish that we find around Tranquilo Bay. You can learn more about them here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassiopea One thing that we have found different than what is explained in the wikipedia article is that we have never had anyone be stung by this species. We go snorkeling around these jellyfish on a regular basis. We find them in these large groups that resemble bouquets of flowers. The variance in color, etc. is amazing.

Books for a Better World

We all know what a difference a book can make to our own lives. Imagine if you didn't have easy access to good quality books for yourself. Would you be willing to do something about it? The local island schools down here have very limited access to books.

We have a container scheduled to deliver some goods to us in Panama in July. We know how difficult it is to acquire good quality children's literature in Spanish at reasonable prices here in Bocas del Toro. So, I contacted Books for a Better World to see about how we might be able to sponsor a library for one of the local public schools. Fortunately, Alice Finn Gartell, President of Books for a Better World thought it was a great opportunity to send books down to Panama.



We have worked out a sponsorship rate for a small 50 - 60 book library for these schools. Normally, Books for a Better World requires a $350 donation to support this size library. We were able to get a reduced amount because Tranquilo Bay will be providing the transportation from the USA and out to the individual locations to deliver the books.

You can make any contribution toward sponsoring one or more of these libraries. We will group the donations together until we reach the reduced sponsorship amount. Tranquilo Bay will be donating the transportation of up to ten of these libraries from the USA to Panama. We will work with a variety of people to deliver the books out to the individual communities. Please contact me at info @ tranquilobay (dot) com if you are interested in sponsoring one of these school libraries and I will give you the details on how to move forward.

Thank you

We want to thank the following individuals and businesses here in Bocas del Toro who helped us to make this Summer 2011 photo shoot happen. The crew was able to capture beautiful photos due to the participation of all of these people. Thank you all very much.

Artisan Stands - for allowing us to shoot in front of them

Barracuda - for dealing with us on all of our trips into town

Bocas Blended - for waking up early and allowing us to shoot on site

Bolivar Solis - for captaining the sailboat in a big rain storm

Boteros - for allowing us to shoot in front of your office

Casa Acuario - for letting us shoot on site

Casa Cayuco - for letting us shoot on site and permitting us to use your SUP for the entire shoot

Casa Max - for helping us with the vehicles

Casa Paradisio at Punta Vieja - for allowing us to shoot on site

Casa Verde at Punta Vieja - for allowing us to shoot & relax in the shade

Cayo de Agua - one of our more rustic locations, great for hiking, etc.

Christine & Michael Garcia - for helping with things at your end of Old Point

Cocomo by the Sea - for allowing us to shoot on site

Gina Senne - for having Jakob in class with the kids during the shoot

Gran Hotel Bahia - for having Holly covered in town

Hotel Palma Royale - for giving us your truck one afternoon in town

Isla Popa - another rustic location

Island Interiors - for renting us your SUP for a week

Ixa’s Bicycles - for a great bike for the whole shoot

Jeff & Faye at Old Point - thanks for the shade

James Beal - for all of your help as the man at Macca Bite and everywhere

Kentways – Vista Azul Lodge - for letting us shoot at the lodge

La Escapada Eco Lodge - for giving us road and water access, etc.

Leo Gomez - for cooking us amazing meals & dealing with special requests

Lucila Andiron - for working super hard and smiling all the time

Lula’s Bed and Breakfast - for letting us shoot on site

Macca Bite Hotel - for letting us shoot on site & housing some of the crew

Natalia Decastro Gonzalez - for helping out & taking the crew on tours

Ramon Fernandez Frances - for helping out & tours for the crew

Remegio Smith - for letting us shoot at your house again this year

Starfish Coffee - for a shoot & dealing with us on our trips to town

Super Gourmet Bocas - for letting us shoot on the steps one Sunday

The Reef - for allowing us to shoot one Sunday

Tres Kimball - for letting us use your skateboard

Tropix Surf - for the surfboards

Yohany Miranda - for working long hours and getting everything done


This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Learning to see

This crew really knows how to see. The things that they capture on camera are great. We enjoy working with them. Next week we will have a list of all of the people and businesses in Bocas that helped us to make this shoot happen. Have a great weekend.


Page credits:

CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
YT_TheCamera_DLange - Ali Edwards Yesterday & Today Class
bio_P365_0810w32b - Oscraps Biografitti
mle-PAAP-Paper11 - Port Au Prince Special

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Average Day

Part of the crew left the day after shooting was complete. The remainder of the crew had to pack up and prepare to head out of the country. Once they finished up with those chores, they were able to get outside and have some fun. The team was scheduled for an afternoon flight the day after the packing day based upon the flights out of Panama so they also had an opportunity to steal a few fun times the next morning. It was wonderful to see them all have a bit of a break after working so hard during the shoot.


Page credits:

AEdwards_WonderfullyOrdinaryAverageDay - Designer Digitals
ASO_TexturedCardstock_Magenta_Mag3 - Scrapgirls
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0810w33b - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0810w31b - Oscraps Biografitti

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Enjoy the journey - the last day shooting

On the last day of shooting, there was one shot that required five participants. Here are the crews getting together to take that shot. The next round of photos are from dinner the last night the entire crew was together. One of the photographers put together a slideshow of the whole trip. It was a kick.




Page credits:

ASO_APrincessColl_12x12_GreenCanvas - Scrapgirls
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0710w30b - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0710w29b - Oscraps Biografitti
kd_ModernMarvel_Brush4 - unknown


This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Time Spent Outside

The crew spends so much time outside during one of these shoots. As such, they learn to keep out of the sun and whatever other weather they might encounter as much as is feasible. Sometimes cover is under the shade of a building and other times it is a grove of trees. What I really like about the shots in Bocas town is that there are friendships within that one would never see directly. The skateboard that Katie is using belongs to Tres. He agreed to let the crew use it because of the friendships he has developed with all of them over the past two years. Rachel bringing down a bunch of Jakob's Star War's toys that he had outgrown might have also sweetened the deal. In the other photos the crew is just doing what they need to do to help each other out - improving the light, etc.



Page credits:

AEdwards_TheSimpleBeautyOfTimeSpentOutside - Designer Digitals
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
bemine_pp2 - unknown
bio_P365_0610w22b - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0610w24a - Oscraps Biografitti

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Capturing & Celebrating Everyday Life

One of the things that was different about this shoot was the use of electronics by the Athleta team. Each of the creative team members had an iPad that they were using to keep track of the details of the shots, etc. It has been one of the things that cracks me up when I look at these photos. There is a photo with the team looking over the photography tech's shoulder to see some photos. In that shot you see Linda's iPad all lit up. Below you can see Beth working on hers at the beach. The photographers would load up the shots they captured the night before and the team would download them to their iPads. It was like an electronic version of last year's board. Pretty cool. And as with life, there were moments of utter silliness.



Page credits:

AEdwards_6x4_CapturingAndCelebrating - Designer Digitals
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
Paper_Waves_GinaCabrera
bio_P365_0610w26a - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0610w23a - Oscraps Biografitti

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Sun and Rain in the Rainforest

Doing a photo shoot in January in the rainforest of Bocas del Toro means that you are going to encounter both sun and rain. Bocas' rainy season is different than the rest of the country. Panama has so many different microclimates that you need to consider each one when you are planning a trip down here. There are months you can visit Bocas and you could pass the entire trip without any rain. January is not one of those months. So one needs to be prepared. As you can see in the first page, we had some glorious days. Coconut water was the drink of choice when it was available. Then there were a few rain storms. We had a day to scout for locations for the next set of shots. So, many of the crew had this day off. They got into the water and checked out some of our beautiful kayaking and snorkeling. Others went to check out locations. The group went to town to determine what might work. Then when they got back (and put on dry clothes) we went over to see our neighbors. The crew was dressed appropriately. I chose not to take my rain jacket. In my defense Jim had borrowed it for someone else so I didn't know where it was - but still foolish. We went to visit the neighbors and the rain just started pouring down. My neighbors insisted that I put on a trash bag. As you can see, I was quite fashionable. Next time, I will make sure i have the proper gear.






Page credits:

AEdwards_GoOutsideAndPlay - Designer Digitals
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
EHI_AJoyfulSeason_12x12_Solid-LtGreen - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0310w13a - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0310w12b - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0310w12b - Oscraps Biografitti
mterasawa-ei-feb1-pp2 - Designer Digitals
photo by Linda Vegher
photo by Lori Adamski Peek
photo by Steve Nohara
AEdwards_CapturingMoments - Designer Digitals
bio_P365_0310w12b - Oscraps Biografitti

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Finding the beauty in moments

Rachel brought her son, Jakob with her this trip. Our kids really enjoyed having him around for two weeks. Jakob got to experience school in the jungle among a variety of other treats. Watching the kids interacting was a special experience for all of us. There were many other moments to savor as well. Take a peek.




Page credits:

ASO_Euphoria_12x12_Paper_Spcl - Scrapgirls
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0310w11a - Oscraps Biografitti
photo by Steve Nohara
AEdwards_BeautyInMoments - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0310w10b - Oscraps Biografitti


This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

When Jim really wants a photo

Amber knew last year that Jim likes to snap photos, but this year she learned quickly that Jim will follow you until he gets the photo he wants. Even if it keeps you from doing your thing. Several other members on the crew learned that using the TRX training equipment is a real workout. Rachel was watching Jim catch it all on film with a little smile on her face.




Page credits:

AE_LessonLearned - Designer Digitals
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
SG_Dec2009_Set2_Paper_TYO_Green - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0310w10a - Oscraps Biografitti
bio_P365_0310w11b - Oscraps Biografitti

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Friendship Focus

I have been thinking for a while about how to give you a behind the scenes look at our second Athleta photo shoot for some time now. As I reviewed the photos and looked for the best way to convey what happens during such a two-week period, I decided to focus on one thing - the friendships that have emerged as part of this process.

The same core group of people has worked together for an extended period of time. They travel to different parts of the world taking photos and making books with these photos. There are so many people involved in this process. Each person contributes a special skill to make the final product. The friendships develop throughout the process amongst the group of people. It is at these intersections where the core group expands to bring in a new member. The new member may be a temporary part of the team but he or she is a contributor to the whole. Each member interacts with the other members and the whole differently.

For some inclusion in the group is natural, for others it takes an effort, however, all must be a part of this group for at least a period of time. Some members of the group emerge as friends for life. Others have memories only of the specific project that may fade over time. And then there are those who fall somewhere in between the two extremes.

I personally have friends that I believe I will have for the rest of my life. I have other friends who may come and go and I have those who I enjoyed spending some time with during their stay but I may never cross paths with them again. Everyone on this photo shoot has people who fall within each of these categories. So rather than give details this year, I am capturing the moments where you see true friendship emerge.




Page Credits:

Arial
bio_P365_0310w12a - Oscraps Biografitti
biograffiti_ibd12_wed - Oscraps Biografitti
biograffiti_ibd_staple - Oscraps Biografitti
ASO_TexturedCardstock_Magenta_Mag3 - Scrapgirls
CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
bio_P365_0610w23b - Oscraps Biografitti
photo by Steve Nohara



This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Athleta Summer 2011 Catalog Photo Shoot

This past January, we hosted the crew shooting a large part of the Athleta Summer 2011 Catalog Series. This was our second year to host the group. It is a lot of fun. It is also a lot of work. Last year, I put together a series of blog posts that went through the details of the shoot itself. This year, we are doing things a bit differently.

We have a large number of businesses and people to thank for allowing us to impose upon them during the photo shoot. I will have a list of names and links at the end of this series so that you will know what a large group it takes to pull something like this off. We are greatly appreciative of the opportunity as well as the support we received from our community in making it happen.

I have written a few blog posts for Athleta's blog- Chi - which will be posted over a period time as they see fit. I have also done another series of photos, but they have a different feel to them this year. We are focusing on the friendship we have found with all of the people on the crew. We hope you enjoy it all.



Page credits:

CVA_SSTools_Scripts_SupplyTracker - Scrapgirls
KPertiet_Quote8308 - Designer Digitals
bio_P365_0310w12a color - Oscraps Biografitti
mle-PAAP-Paper11 - Port A Prince Special Kit
tayloredpg8 - Oscraps Taylor Made

This post is in our Behind the Scenes series for the Athleta Photo Shoot for their Summer 2011 catalogs shot here in Bocas del Toro in January 2011. It was both an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of this process.

Panama Wildlife - 2011 Episode 2

Jim added the Spanish names of some of the animals on this one. It is fun to see the names for each of the different wildlife in both English and Spanish. Enjoy!