Yup, I was going back to Newfoundland. Was I upset by this? Hell, no. I couldn’t wait and this time it was to be for three whole weeks, not two as in the previous year. And my passport was still current.
While I had to do a lot of research and planning for the first trip, this would be easier to implement. All that remained to plan was to map out where I wanted to go shoot since I now knew what the core of the story was to be.
During the first trip while I had learned about the fishing industry being decimated and its’ inestimable damage, I hadn’t realized then that that was the story, the core for which I was looking. Now, armed with that knowledge, I was better prepared to shoot with a lot more intention and focus.
Returning to one of the original “crime scenes” of my first trip (visiting with my Newfoundland photographer friend Randy), I was able to map out precisely where I needed to go. I also determined that I needed to spend more time in fewer locations to get better steeped in that particular area. With Randy’s guidance, I would be spending most of my time on two islands – one on the north coast, the other on the south coast. Travel time itself on the island would cost me a minimum of four days including ferry travel. This would be different indeed from my first journey there.
During this upcoming trip, I would become more intimately familiar with the legendary Newfoundland hospitality and generosity, homemade wine, moose burgers, and kitchen parties. And it wouldn’t stop there.
Bruce Meisterman 