Embracing Cuba by Byron Motley

Intrigued by tales of his parents' long-ago journey to the pre-revolutionary "Pearl of the Antilles," award-winning photographer Byron Motley traveled to Cuba more than a decade ago and instantly fell in love. Year after year he has returned with his camera to explore its vistas, its people, and its spirit.

Byron Motley is a modern day Renaissance man. He is an accomplished singer/ songwriter/filmmaker/lecturer/author and photographer. As a performer Byron has worked on Broadway and performed and recorded with such luminaries as Natalie Cole, Dionne Warwick, Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow, Kelly Clarkson, John Legend and the Boston Pops Orchestra. Byron's recently published photographic book, Embracing Cuba (University Press of Florida), contains nearly 200 color images (with essays) exploring the richness of the island.

His photography has also been featured in Vanity Fair, The Advocate, New York Daily News, LA Times, and have shown in galleries, boutiques and museums in the United States, Europe and Cuba. With diverse interests and talents, Byron is currently producing a television documentary about the Negro Baseball League. In a separate film project, acclaimed Producer/Director Penny Marshall is attached to produce and a direct a screenplay Byron co-wrote entitled EFFA, a biopic about Negro Baseball League team owner Effa Manley. An avid baseball fan, Byron co-authored his father's memoir Ruling Over Monarchs, Giants & Stars: True Tales of Breaking Barriers, Umpiring Baseball Legends, and Wild Adventures in the Negro Leagues" (Sports Publishing, LLC). The book chronicles his father's journey growing up in a segregated America to becoming one of the first African-American Marines to his experiences in Negro baseball. Byron's latest CD "Jazz & Cocktails" (Cocoa Blu Records) has garnered impressive reviews and received attention both stateside and internationally.