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Ruben Avendano

@cameraruben

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•Emmy-Nominated Cinematographer•
•Fine Art Photographer•
•Storyteller•
•🐦•

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•Phuket, Thailand•

I’ve spent the last month filming in Phuket, Thailand and it has been nothing short of magical.

The beauty of this place goes far beyond its beaches and landscapes. It lives in the people. Their kindness, generosity, and gentle way of moving through life have reminded me that there is strength in patience and peace in simply being present.

This journey gave me something I didn’t realize I needed. It slowed my spirit, opened my heart, and left me with lessons I’ll carry long after I’ve gone home.

Khàawp khun khráp. 🙏🏽🇹🇭

Music cred @fourtetkieran
Additional footage @ham_cam

#rubenavendanoart #phuket #thailand taken in Phuket, Thailand by @cameraruben

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3 months ago

The Boy at Vasquez Rock
•My Story•

When I was a young boy, I spent a part of my childhood living on a ranch in central Mexico. The ranch was in a rural part of the country, and I was very isolated and alone. The home was an unhealthy environment. I would avoid being there as much as possible.

It was during this time that I began constructing an alternate world within my imagination, a world bursting with vibrant colors and adventures.

To escape my reality, I would venture out into the vast expanse of the land, immersing myself in its breathtaking beauty. Sitting out on the open fields, I would observe the wild horses as they gracefully roamed free envisioning myself riding alongside them. I befriended the animals; I would go swimming in the rivers, and steal fruit from the old church. The nuns would act upset but looked the other way. I knew deep down that they purposefully left out the fruit, and sometimes bread, anticipating the arrival of a hungry young adventurer. I explored, I escaped.

Now, fast-forward to present day. As I drove home after taking these pictures, I was overwhelmed with emotion, and I couldn’t understand why. Suddenly, a flood of memories from my childhood washed over me, and I realized I have been escaping my entire life. From the very first moment I held a camera in my hands, my goal has been to capture the vivid world in my mind.

In that moment of reflection, I understood that my lifelong pursuit of photography was more than a hobby. It was a means to transport others, even if momentarily, to the enchanting world that had once rescued me from a bleak existence. Each photograph I take serves as a testament to the power of imagination and the enduring desire to escape the harsh realities of life, if only through the prism of art.

@canonusa
📸 #canon EOS R5
Lens: RF24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens

#shotoncanon #canon #photography #burndiary #burnmagazine #vasquezrocks #adobe #photoshop #photography
#SPiCollective #MadeWithPhotoshop #street_me_up #california
#foammagazine #burnmagazine #burndiary #art #blackandwhitephotography #bnw_captures #bnw_of_our_world #blackandwhite #bnwphoto taken in Vasquez Rocks by @cameraruben

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3 years ago

•Los Angeles•

These images were captured across Los Angeles over the past year. My hope for this video is to show the struggles residents are facing and the ways communities are pushing back. It has been a difficult year, beginning with devastating fires and followed by raids that are tearing through neighborhoods, leaving deep scars. These are dark times, but I believe Los Angeles will shine again.

Please share. Thank you. ✊🏽

Licensed music by: Rore

#CarlosMontoya #losangeles
#monrovia #macarthurpark #northhollywood #rubenavendanoart
#vannuys #downey #pacoima #lamusicfestival
#lamusicfestival2025
#hollywood

@lataco @cultura_movement taken in Los Angeles, California by @cameraruben

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a year ago

•ARM Cuauhtémoc, San Diego Bay 🇲🇽

~October 3rd, 2026

#rubenavendanoart
#cuauhtémoc #armcuauhtémoc ARM Cuauhtémoc glowing against a purple and orange twilight sky in San Diego Bay, with lights outlining the Mexican Navy tall ship’s towering masts and rigging taken in San Diego Bay, CA by @cameraruben

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4 days ago

•Before the Spell is Broken•

A four-part Renaissance Faire Photographic series

~4~

#rubenavendanoart Slow-shutter photograph of a crowded Renaissance Faire, where costumed figures in white, red and earth tones dissolve into layers of motion beneath a bright orange parasol. The intentional blur transforms the busy scene into a dreamlike impression of movement, color and celebration. taken in Irwindale by @cameraruben

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13 days ago

•Before the Spell is Broken•

A four-part Renaissance Faire Photographic series

~3~

#rubenavendanoart Blue and yellow figure
“Dreamlike motion-blur photograph at a Renaissance Faire, capturing a figure in flowing blue and yellow clothing moving through a colorful crowd. Red, blue and gold streak across the frame in an impressionistic study of movement, color and fleeting moments.” taken in Irwindale by @cameraruben

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16 days ago

•Before the Spell is Broken•

A four-part Renaissance Faire Photographic series

~2~

#rubenavendanoart taken in Irwindale by @cameraruben

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18 days ago

•Before the Spell Is Broken•

A four-part Renaissance Faire photographic series

~1 ~

#rubenavendanoart Blue dress: A figure in a deep blue Renaissance-style dress moves through a crowded faire, photographed with intentional motion blur that makes the dress and surrounding people appear dreamlike and fluid. taken in Irwindale by @cameraruben

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20 days ago

•Photo Awards•

In 2020, while documenting the BLM protests, I got jumped and had my camera stolen. I was embarrassed. I was angry. For a while, I thought I was done with photography.

A few months passed, but something inside me started to change. The anger didn’t disappear. It became fuel. I had lost my camera, but I wasn’t willing to lose the reason I carried one in the first place.

One night, deep in thought, something came over me with incredible clarity. It felt almost like a vision, as if something inside me was telling me exactly what I needed to do next.

For years, I had looked up to photographers like Ansel Adams, Saul Leiter, Ernst Haas, and Gordon Parks. I studied their photographs and admired what they had created, but somewhere along the way I had convinced myself that they existed on a level I could never reach.

That night, I asked myself a simple question.

Why not me?

Not why should it be me. Not that I deserved anything. Just, why couldn’t I give myself permission to try?

I started thinking about what that would actually require. Take photographs constantly. Become better at my craft. Build a website. Enter competitions. Put my work in front of people. Get into galleries. Accept rejection. Keep going.

The mission became simple.

Do the work and see how far you can take the dream.

So I did.

And I’m still doing it.

Today, one of my photographs received 1st Place in the category of “Event, Other” at the International Photography Awards. @iphotoawards

When I share an award, an exhibition, or some milestone along the way, it isn’t about saying, look what I’ve done. For me, these moments are reminders of that night and of the promise I made to myself when I decided to pick up a camera again.

There is still so much work to do and so much further I want to go. But every once in a while, it feels good to stop and look back at the distance traveled.

I lost a camera that day in 2020.

But I found a reason to keep going.

Do the work. Keep chasing the dream. And see just how far it can take you.

#rubenavendanoart

“ARTWASH” instillation by @alicoop_art taken in Los Angeles, California by @cameraruben

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a month ago

•I Used to Be Funny•

For a long time, I thought life was supposed to move fast.

I chased the next job, the next city, the next night, the next version of myself. I became good at walking into strange rooms and finding my place. Good at making people laugh. Good at staying out late. Good at disappearing without ever leaving.

There was always another drink waiting somewhere.

Alcohol gave me a mask I didn’t know I was wearing. Behind it, the edges of life softened. Fear became easier to ignore. Sadness could be postponed. Loneliness could sit across the bar from me, and I wouldn’t have to look it in the eye.

But you can’t numb just one thing. You numb everything.

I didn’t understand that then.

I do now.

These days, I’m trying to pay better attention. There are things in ordinary life that reveal themselves only when you stop moving long enough to see them.

I still miss plenty, but I’m getting better at noticing. And the more I notice, the more I feel.

That is the bargain.

Without the mask, sadness hurts more. Fear has sharper edges. The past asks harder questions. But beauty feels different too. So does love. So does gratitude.

Maybe I’m not as much fun as I used to be. Maybe I’m not as funny either. And that’s okay. I leave earlier now. I listen more. I care about things I once would have walked past.

And somehow, I feel more alive because of it.

I want to feel my life while it’s happening, before the moment becomes a memory.

For the first time in a long time, I think I’m seeing things clearly.

Today, I am four years sober.

#rubenavendanoart Black-and-white street photograph of a lone figure walking across an urban bridge beneath a vast open sky. Deep shadows, geometric lines, and negative space create a feeling of solitude and movement through Los Angeles taken in Home by @cameraruben

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2 months ago

•Thailand•

A four part photo collection.
~Part 4

#rubenavendanoart #thailand #phuket A family of four rides together through the streets of Thailand as the world streaks by in a wash of color and motion. The blur turns an everyday commute into a portrait of movement, resilience, and ordinary taken in Phuket, Thailand by @cameraruben

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3 months ago

•Thailand•

A four part photo collection.
~Part 3

#rubenavendanoart #thailand #phuket Colorful longtail boats rest beside a floating dock as towering limestone islands rise across calm water beneath large tropical clouds. taken in Thailand by @cameraruben

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3 months ago