On September 11, 2001, the world changed for every person inhabiting it. When the Twin Towers collapsed, Zoraida Diaz was in New York City. She had been a photographic journalist for Reuters for thirteen years. But on that day, she wasn’t “on the clock” in the Big Apple; on the contrary, she was giving birth to her son. It’s ironic that she was at the epicenter of this infamous day, yet unable to capture it with her cameras. Nonetheless, the events permanently changed her life, too. In search of a kinder, gentler habitation, she gave up her job with one of the biggest news agencies in the world and moved with her family to Costa Rica. She became enamored by Sugar Beach and Playa Potrero. In a short amount of time, she teamed with Ralph Nicholson to form the weekly newspaper The Beach Times.

Thus began a love affair between Ms. Diaz and, in her words, “all things Guanacastecan.” As this passion blossomed, Zoraida realized that it, too, needed a home. From this inspiration, she culled through nearly a thousand photos to choose the ones to best represent the unique culture of this area. The result is her new book, “Guanacaste: Retratos de Vida / Life Portraits”.

There are currently several quality photo journals with Guanacaste as their subject matter. What sets Ms. Diaz’ project apart is that while the earlier books deal almost exclusively in landscapes, Zoraida allows the camera to focus on the people. Make no mistake: there are spectacular Guanacaste landscape photos in “Life Portraits”, but the heart of this project is the inhabitants, the pulse of the area.

Working with a group of editor/friends, Diaz was able to whittle her choices down to “only” four hundred photographs. She then applied a little family mojo by getting her seven year old son’s input and reduced the number by a hundred. She turned to Horatio Villalobos, director of the European Photo Agency in Paris, who helped her establish the one hundred eighty shots that made the final cut. The result is a stunning collection, a montage of color and black & white photos that embrace the personality of Guanacaste.

Ms. Diaz turned to other friends for written contributions. “Life Portraits” is divided into four segments, with simpatico introductions by journalist Jose Manuel Pena and the folklorist Carlos Arauz for the “Plains” section, marine biologist Giovanni Bassey describing the Pacific shoreline, songwriter Balo Gomez reflecting on the people and songwriter Guadalupe Urbina with her thoughts on Guanacaste traditions. The forward by the poet Miguel Fajardo Korea is a touching introduction, a nice opening to segue into the project.

I asked Ms. Diaz about the difference between taking these photos and the ones for Reuters. She said she had never met a photographer who could divorce themselves from the subject matter. “Robert Capa used to say that if a picture wasn’t good enough, it was because the photographer hadn’t gotten close enough,” she explained.

Looking at the photographs in “Guanacaste: Retratos de Vida / Life Portraits”, it is clear that Zoraida Diaz has gotten close enough to her subjects. You can almost touch them. Or let them touch you.

Marie’s in Playa Flamingo will host a wine tasting and book signing for Ms. Diaz on 13 December. “Life Portraits” is also available at Jaime Peligro in Playa Tamarindo.