JUAN RENE PEREZOCANA

Photography, Stories, and Gems

Born and raised in Visalia, California, I grew up with books and National Geographic and have wanted to write and take photographs of the world ever since. I joined the United States Marine Corps out of high school where my travels began and I got paid to see the world and hold a rifle in my hands. I then obtained a degree in Geology at the University of Washington (UW) where countless hours studying made that diploma hard won, but it helped to walk through their emerald city and forests and through their snowy cherry blossom mountain mornings, if only, it was, to chase the sun. Oh, in UW I also boxed. Afterwards, I went to Carlsbad, California to be certified as a Graduate Gemologist from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), where I fell in love with the beach and waters, which were always by my shoulder’s side. There, I studied gems because, although we’re all pretty rocks and pretty people, looking at the shiny ones never hurt no one. From there I took off to New York for work and to look at all the diamonds fallen from the sky. I’ve met good friends and good people, all along the way, some I’ll see again, most I know I won’t, but all of whom I have nothing but cherished memories of beers, bars, laughs, and good times. Now its time I found myself back home.

My love for this earth and everything in it has only grown through the trials and tribulations of life and my sincere hope is that I can capture for you, even a small portion of what I feel, from what we were gifted to see.

I believe we are something more, and my want is to show this world how much of that is true.