Baja is mysterious, beautiful, brooding. Over the years I’ve learned it’s the perfect place to do some soul searching.

Well, sort of.

Truth of the matter is I needed an excuse to cut together some of the footage we’ve been shooting here in Loreto, Baja over the past week. This short “Soul Searching Baja” is the result.

I’ve been running around town, and across Loreto Bay, shooting like a mad man with the (brilliant) new Canon 70D (though I hear Blackmagic calling my name). Problem is, the internet upload speed here is, well, just slightly faster than a cactus. So I can really only publish short 60-90 second videos (they take 3-4 hours to upload!). Also, I’m editing on my mobile setup which is just slightly faster than Baja tumbleweed (actually I’ve been told by Jane here at the local El Corazon cafe in Loreto Bay that it is slower than the tumbleweed). This 2010 MacBook Pro can run Premiere Pro. But it’s not a speed demon. Rendering these short vids, with a few effects layers, can take about an hour or so. Still, I’m just happy to be able to edit on the go. When I finally successfully get them up to Vimeo and YouTube I jig, and pop open some Tisdale Chard (thoughts on Baja wine).

The full Stark Insider TV episodes from the Baja won’t come out for a while; not until I get back to the i7 and the full-on, firebreathing edit bay back home in Silicon Valley. Meantime I’ve assembled some of my favorite footage that we’ve shot in the town of Loreto, Baja California Sur. Of course my self-indulgence would sadly stop short of absolute vanity if I didn’t at least include multiple shots of Loni Stark touring the town. “Act melancholy!” I told her. “Stop laughing!”

Loreto landmarks and locations in “Soul Searching” include: downtown Loreto, El Rey del Taco (the best taco in the world!), City Hall, the Malecon and Sea of Cortez, and the Misión Nuestra Señora de Loreto (Baja’s first mission). My thanks again to Loni Stark for trying to adhere to my adhoc “directing.” Soon, we will have full episodes. For now, here’s my (silly) short.

STARK INSIDER TV: “Soul Searching Baja”

“Soul Searching” in Loreto, Baja from Stark Insider on Vimeo.

More Videos from Loreto, Baja, Mexico

Farmer’s Market

Loreto Bay Construction Update

The Artist Diaries: ‘Among Giants’ – Painting the Sierra de la Giganta mountain range