Let me give you a clear caveat: I do not suggest taking my experience at all to business-oriented photographers or individuals, unless you are dying for a spontaneous adventure. Joshua Tree National Park was the perfect example of just going with the (creative) flow.
Yesterday (July, 12, 2022) I had an emotional trap on what can I do with my travel photography during the summer. Sure: that season screams for vacation especially for those who traditionally have kids out of school and are on their lengthy break. Personally, I dislike venturing into areas that ask for over-the-top crowdedness. As a highly sensitive introvert this is too chaotic for my work environment unless I can securely plan a week of absolute vacation.
Living in Southern California I am blessed to be around different geographical places where I do not have to spend more than 3 hours with traffic involved. The Palm Springs region was one I keep eyeing on since my last visit there was in 2016. Additionally, I made an educated guess that desert heat may not be welcoming to beach-hungry visitors, let alone traveling on a Tuesday. So I spontaneously and luckily booked a cute AirBnb stay -- low price and it had the private stay which I heavily preferred -- and 6 hours later I was a little over 100 miles east of my home.
Even with the spontaneity primarily taking role there was a small portion of planning I needed to employ. Right after my booked AirBnb stay I looked at Google Maps and noticed that Joshua Tree National Park was about an hour drive from my one-night retreat. I was more drawn to visit this U.S. and California treasure than to scout at Palm Springs (especially when over 110 degrees Fahrenheit was on the weather forecast). I thus plugged this national spot into my quickly written itinerary and eventually made the visit happen at about 5 in the morning the next day.
I got the shots I needed and craved for. However, the unrelenting attraction of bees towards me and my white-colored sedan forced my time to cut shorter than I wanted, which was a blessing in disguise. The rising sun would pose a photographic challenge between the trees and the rocky mountains since this trip was short and spontaneous, while the temperature continued to climb. I then left the Palm Springs area around the time I needed to check out AirBnb anyway.
I am beyond appreciative and lucky to experience Joshua Tree National Park and the Palm Springs area in a short and mostly unplanned period of time. At the same time, I learned from this trip that planning -- especially long-term -- is still a crucial and essential part of both business and life.
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