A New Lens

By Alex Tsukahara | He/Him/His
California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo Graduate
Mountain View Buddhist Temple 

Dear YBE Community,
My name is Alex Tsukahara. I just graduated from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo and now live in Saratoga, CA. I grew up at the Mountain View Buddhist Temple and continue to be involved in the great community present there. During my junior year of high school, I began my journey into the creative world of photography and videography. I’ve always enjoyed the idea of capturing moments and being able to reminisce on memories, but I never felt the need to expand past using my phone. Once I made the decision of learning how to use a camera, I never looked back. The quality is noticeable and high quality photographs is something anyone can enjoy. There is a saying that a photograph says a thousand words, and over time I’ve come to the realization that this cliche phrase is true. Photography is a powerful tool and it has become something I excel at. This hobby of mine developed into a true passion and in certain cases a source of income. It’s taken many hours of researching how to edit and refining my photography techniques to get to where I am at today, but the hard work has definitely changed everything about my photos. I’ve also found that photoshoots are a great socially distanced activity. Overall, I’m glad that I made the decision to take up photography because it really changed how I view everything.