Chilean photography enthusiast grows business in SZ

When Francisco Vergara received his first camera at the age of 10, his stories with photography began.

“Photography is what I am passionate about,” he recalled. “At the beginning I used to take pictures for everything that came out. Like I went outside, I took some pictures, I had some family meeting, I took pictures, I captured everything I could.”

Three years ago, Vergara came all the way to Shenzhen from Chile and settled here, working as a manager for a Chilean company. “I came here to manage this branch ... [of] a Chile-based retail company that mainly does trading of technology products,” he said.

You can spot such products everywhere in his office, and one of the best ones can be found in the meeting room: a 3D-printed dinosaur. Whether you are a technofreak or not, you will be fascinated.

As other businessmen do, Vergara has quite hectic schedules on workdays. “I have videocall conferences with Chile on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and usually they take three hours, and we do them at nighttime because of the time difference,” he said.

Unexpectedly, working and living in such a fast-paced city, he introduces himself as a family-oriented person. As a father of three kids, he spends almost all the leisure time with his family and fulfills his responsibility. “When I am having the conference calls, my kids are already sleeping,” he said. “So, I am not losing that much time with them. Weekends, for me, are the most precious time. I enjoyed them a lot with my kids.” With a camera in hand, he will explore the breathtaking nature of Shenzhen together with his family, and take pictures of his kids, the wildlife and the landscapes.

“One of the things that impacts me the most, and in a really good way, is the family life that we can have here. All the beautiful parks, many different places to go, and in one of the most modern cities in the world,” Vergara said.

Birds, actually, are his main focus. “In parks, you will see the birds are close to the people and not afraid of them,” he commented. “They’re beautiful and rare birds that people hardly pay attention to.” Through his lens, the hidden gems of Shenzhen’s nature are unveiled. “I usually go to different parks for birding. Usually I go at least once a week,” he said. To better capture the images of those fairy creatures, Vergara equips himself with professional lens with different ranges.

You can notice the excitement on his face when he talks about birding. “I usually go out on weekends early in the morning, because after the sun comes out, the birds are hungry because they have slept all night and they go out hunting for food,” he said.

For Vergara, Shenzhen is perfect for both work and life. “I hope to stay as much as I can,” Vergara said.