A late afternoon sun backlights and abstracts an enormous wreath rising above the flowers covering the graves around it. Soon twilight will fall, and thousands of candles will carry the celebration forward into the long night. To visit Mexico on The Day of The Dead is a fascinating and insightful cultural experience. And visiting San Miguel de Allende for this event is a unique and unforgettable travel experience. Photographing it was a challenge – there are so many aspects that needed to be included and somehow defined photographically. Travel photographers face similar issues when shooting any festival, holiday, or celebration. By abstracting this scene, I try to reduce the emphasis on the religious symbolism, and instead stress the commemorative and spiritual aspects of the holiday. It makes an effective closing image, because it leaves so much room for the imagination of the viewer. Ultimately, it is the human imagination that must carry the biggest load on The Day of the Dead, one of the world’s most intensely personal yet public celebrations.