SAN ANTONIO -- “This is almost too easy,” said aspiring photographer Anthony Garcia.
- Member of band that originated in San Antonio in 2013
- Self-taught with a modern DSLR camera
- Full-time job with UPS
It does seem that way for the 49-year-old Garcia.
On a recent Sunday afternoon, in a backroom studio inside Brick at the Blue Star Arts Complex in Southtown, the musician now seems to be striking the right notes with a digital camera.
“I’m kinda winging it. But it's working," said the San Antonio native.
Garcia is self-taught with a modern DSLR camera. His photos reveal he's a natural in the field he is immersing himself in.
"I'm just totally digging it," Garcia said with a charming look in his eye.
His love for documenting moments one frame at a time began in high school with lesser cameras.
“The point and shoots really. It was more 'gotcha' kind of stuff. I didn’t even care what the end result of the picture looked like the picture was. It was more of the ‘haha, sucka!’ then run out of the room,” Garcia said.
Years later, as a full-time UPS driver while on his routes, Garcia practiced his picture-taking skills.
“As I am making a delivery, I can be their friend with a couple of snacks. Then I started taking pictures of them and realized I really like taking pictures of dogs.”
A photo of a dog behind a fence taken by Anthony Garcia (Courtesy: Anthony Garcia)
He still enjoys photographing canines on his Sunday shoots, but it’s the photographer’s love of people that flashes as bright as the gregarious man’s personality.
His raw talent as a student in this medium is evident in every frame he snaps when visitors at Blue Star stumble into his rented studio.
Somehow with his career gig at UPS - Garcia is planning to retire in two years--the budding photographer finds time for his other side hustle. In spirited fashion, Garcia reminds us of his band--La Chichada!
La Chichada has been a San Antonio mainstay on the San Antonio music scene since 2013. You can check out the music listings if you want to see Garcia sings his songs at a venue near you--or stop by Brick any Sunday afternoon.
There you can choose to have your image transmitted inside Garcia's lens to become a permanent part of the current buzz swirling around the Blue Star Arts Complex.