#tkdiary

[taekwondiary]

Two weeks ago I was in Orlando shooting photos for the Panama team at the US Open. Here’s a few :)

[taekwondiary]

Hope everyone is staying safe. Here’s a little throwback :)

Also thinking of streaming a live Q&A, if interested send me a DM with questions

[taekwondiary]

Tell us what makes a good photograph when the subject is a martial art? Conversely, what makes a bad photo?

To answer this question I’ve written a blog post all about it:

How I Take My Taekwondo Photos

Hey everyone! So today I'll be covering something that I've been asked a few times: How do you take the perfect taekwondo photo?

Let me know if this answers your questions!

[taekwondiary]

Heheh so after losing my files to a corrupt memory card, i finally recovered them (after realizing only yesterday that copies were sitting on my google drive smh)

Part Two of my trip to La Loma in July is up :)

Please don’t kill me

[taekwondiary]

Can you do a draw my life? I’m interested to hear your story

Ahh I could. Is this something you guys would like to see?

[taekwondiary]

Success isn't something that happens overnight. It takes time. Years and years of blood, sweat, and tears all put forward to one goal, one dream. But you have to want that success with your heart. Every fibre of your being needs to cling to it. Every morning you have to wake up and tell yourself "I am a champion", over and over and over until you believe you are one. Until those words echo in your head all day long. Until they throb in your mind while you train, forcing you to kick faster, hit harder, train better. Until those words become the words spoken out of the ones who doubted you, who you proved wrong just by being a champion. Until those words repeat themselves in your dreams. Until those words scare away your nightmares. Yes you will fail. Yes you will get hurt, discouraged, beaten. But what you do with those experiences is what makes you a champion. Train with your heart, and success is inevitable. And when you know you've given your all in that one fight, that you've put every piece of you into that final point, you will collapse in exhaustion for you know that you have succeeded, and that you have proven to yourself that heart is what wins battles, regardless of the outcome of the match. Heart is what pushes us. Heart is what gives us the strength to fight when all of our energy is spent. You have to want it with your heart. You must want it with your heart.

[taekwondiary]

It's always interesting for me to think back to my first tournament ever. It reminds me of how I started, the obstacles I've overcome, and how hard I've worked to get this far. I've got a long road ahead of me. I took two years off from competing and training because I got hurt. I got scared. But I'm back and my results may not be the best, but that's ok. It's okay to fail. It's also okay to fall. There's nothing wrong with being an underdog. It's what you do with those experiences that makes you who you are. If I were to treat all my losses negatively, I would've quit years ago. And I did quit, but I came back. I'm not the best right now. Im far from it. But I can do it, and that's all that matters. Having the mental grit to push through your darkest fears, to rise above what others think of you, that is pure satisfaction. To know that every loss is a lesson in the right direction, and every win is a humbling experience, it really shapes who I am. I'm not the best. I may be the worst in my division, but that's ok. Because while my opponents are focused on the best people, I can slip in through their blindspots and take the wins. They don't know me, but I know them. The last two tournaments have proved that I can improve. I have the Mexican training camp coming up in two weeks. Then I have the Canadian National Championships. I have a long road ahead of me, but I won't stray from my path. I am strong, no matter what anybody says. You are strong, even if you don't believe it.