Smile — I just might take your photo and write your story

People & Places

Hello Valencia County! I am the newest member of your beloved Valencia County New-Bulletin, and I am excited to learn about what makes this area so exceptional.

I currently live in Albuquerque with my beautiful wife, my 5-year-old son and our dog. My son will be going into kindergarten this fall.

I am a recent graduate of the University of New Mexico, where I received the second of my bachelor’s degrees. My first bachelor’s degree was in University Studies with an emphasis in photojournalism. Bachelor’s No. 2 is in multimedia journalism with a minor in art/art history.

I decided to go back to school and start a new career for a few reasons. The first was to prove to myself I could do it. I also wanted a career that made me happy and hopefully will make my son proud of me in the future.

After graduation, I was accepted as a fellow into the N.M. Local News Fund Fellowship. I was one of seven graduates selected for the program.

The N.M. Local News Fund is a program that matches recent journalism graduates from UNM, NMSU and ENMU with news organizations located all over the Land of Enchantment. I was lucky enough to be matched here.

The program received $125,000 in state funding this year after they partnered with New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions.

I grew up in the northern New Mexican village of Pecos. The Pecos wilderness is where I developed my love for everything outdoors. My love for photography flourished in high school when I took my first photo class.

That love blossomed when I got to UNM for my first bachelor’s degree and discovered the world of photojournalism and all the world class photographers that have come out of New Mexico.

My second go around at UNM was where I learned how to be a well-rounded journalist and write a story rather than just being a visual storyteller. At UNM, I was fortunate enough to take a variety of journalism classes. Video journalism, podcasting and graphic design all contributed to my expanding knowledge of the art of reporting.

I have not spent much time in Valencia County until now and, boy, the communities are some of the most beautiful places in the state. I cannot wait to see how amazing it is here when the seasons change.

Prior to my new career in journalism, I spent nearly 20 years working at a family-owned pizzeria. I worked my way up from delivery driver to production manager. Working at the restaurant gave me the freedom to pursue photography. My specialty is photojournalism, but I also enjoy shooting almost anything, including landscapes, food and portraits.

When it was time to move on from the pizzeria, I started working at a local portrait photography company that specialized in high school senior and family portraits, as well as in school photography. That’s right, I was the school photo guy. Smile!

Some of my favorite activities have to do with sports. I love watching and playing most types of sports and can’t wait to help cover some of the area’s local high school events.

I’m also trying to learn to play golf, it’s not the cheapest hobby but man, I am loving it …most of the time at least. If I have time, I’d love to check out the local course here.

One of my favorite hobbies is to play fantasy sports, fantasy baseball and football are my favorite. Most people know what fantasy sports are but if you have never been introduced, shoot me an email, I’d love to talk about it with you.

Fantasy sports can be played by anyone, from the age of 6 to 106. Besides the popular versions of baseball and football, there are countless other versions of fantasy sports.

Everything from soccer, basketball, hockey and even golf, you can even play fantasy politics or fantasy box office.

Please feel free to email me at [email protected] or check out my personal photography website at jessejonesphotography.com.