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Mike Matas's Travel Videos

In addition to working at Facebook and formerly gigging at Apple, Mike Matas is one hell of a photographer. And thanks to this trio of videos he's made of three pretty serious treks across parts of the globe, we all get to revel in his work. And as a webby kind of guy, he's organized things so that we see these still images at DSL speed. Like 4000 in the span of three minutes. You'd think that this pace would be too disorienting to confer any meaning, and that's part of the point, but when little eddies of calm momentarily repel the crushing tide, there's little more elating. Here are three videos from his Vimeo site, including a new one dedicated to a trip he took to Japan.
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One Week In Japan from Mike Matas on Vimeo.

I also quite like an earlier version of the same idea, Matas's trip to Morocco and Spain, again comprised of 4,000 photos. I wonder how sequential the photos are, if they're a real-time, chronological account of his journey, or are edited for maximum effect. Within the frenetic pace of the flashing imagery it's perpetually arresting when flickers of continuity emerge. Whether train tracks, an elephant lolling about, or an extended moment of stillness, Matas has found a way to offer a visual refuge in the visual strobe.

 

Morocco & Spain from Mike Matas on Vimeo.

Here's another cool one of a journey through India that begins with a tour in an auto rickshaw and ends up on the train. Hypnotic stuff.

 

Journey Across India from Mike Matas on Vimeo.

Aaron Britt
Aaron writes the men's style column "The Pocket Square" for the San Francisco Chronicle and has written for the New York Times, the Times Magazine, Newsweek, National Geographic and others.

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