Final Approach

We had such a gorgeous sunset here yesterday. There were rain clouds and rainbows in the east and this beautiful scene to the west. I happened to catch this airline on final approach silhouetted against the clouds. So peaceful.

Find the light

There can be beautiful light almost anywhere. Even next to a crummy apartment building on a busy street. Look and you will find it.

purple fringe

I'm posting this image today in honor of my wife. She loves her some purple! Did you know that our house is purple? I'm talking the outside of our house. Purple. Hey, it makes it easy to give people directions. Come to think of it, it probably makes it easier for all our neighbors to give directions. "Yeah, we're across the street from the purple house, can't miss it." I guess it comes down to us providing a community service to all those around us. But this is not a house, it's a beautiful plant that I came across during a walk near my work. Have a great day!

The Rock

Alcatraz. I've always wanted to visit, and earlier this year I got the chance. I've posted several other pictures from visit here, here, here. I wanted this image to have a very cinematic feel and also to give a cold feeling. Cuz believe me, it was flapjackin' cold out there!

Have a great week!

Backlit rose

Agapanthus

Took my trusty iPhone out on a walk this morning, saw these beauties. Have a great day!

Marin Sunset

Happy Wednesday to you all! This image falls under the "oldie but goodie" category. I posted it earlier this year after our trip to San Francisco. I've learned a few things since then so I thought I'd have another go at it. I've given this a new crop and slightly different treatment. These are the hills of the Marin Headlands, and they are pretty spectacular. To the left, out of frame, is the Golden Gate bridge.

Striking

Look at my iPhone go! I even got some lens flare up in there. Many thanks to the Plastic Bullet app for the treatment.

Reflecting on Yosemite

This is an image I took last fall in Yosemite. It is Lower Yosemite Falls taken along the Yosemite Falls trail near John Muir's house. I miss it.

A great way to spend an evening

I took this a while back down in Santa Monica. It was such a beautiful evening. Good friends, perfect weather and not a half bad looking sunset. Good times.

I told ya!

No, not every post from now on will be about Halo. I'm just excited!! I made a short movie from a game I played last night and uploaded it to Bungie (the makers of the game) and they kindly rendered it for me so all the world can see. I'm the blue guy, bringin' the hurt. Revenge.

In case that happened a bit fast for ya, here's what it looked like the moment before impact.

Reach for the sky

Whew, busy week so far. I apologize for the lack of post-i-ness. I started on a film this week and I've been wiped out. Ok, that's not entirely true. I haven't been too tired to play the most awesomely awesome video game that came out this year. Which game is that you say? Why, Halo Reach of course. Every hardcore gamer knows that each new Halo game must be preordered, sight unseen and then picked up at 12:01 a.m. the day it comes out. So I didn't pick it up at 12:01, but I did get it right after work and proceeded to ignore everything and everyone the rest of the night. It's like wicked pie covered in awesome sauce. Why do I mention all this? Well, it actually comes down to photography. See, they (the makers of Halo) have included an awesome replay function where you can go back and watch any of your games, from any angle you want, even frame by frame. And once you find that choice frame, you can take a screenshot and upload it to their site and save it on your computer. Crazy right?! They even have a built in zoom so you can get that long lens compression. I love it.

Here's a couple of shots from a game I played last night. That's me in the blue, bringing the pain.

If anyone out there in bloggy land is on Xbox Live, friend me up! (MixaloT)

Friend

One of my very best friends in the world. Happy Birthday Joe.

Serious Business

The L.A. County Fair is serious business.

Or not.


Oh, and chocolate covered bacon is awesome!

2 Peas in, uh, Escalade

My two younger ones on a drive around the neighborhood. Yes, those speakers work.

Legos in Peril!

I'm starting what I hope will be an ongoing series of Legos in life threatening situations. This is a subject that has for too long, been covered up. I plan to expose it here, in all it's gruesome gruesomeness. Look, if you dare.

Don't look into her eyes

Here's another image courtesy of the Getty Villa. You know da place is pimp when they got faces on the light fixtures!

Light Painting

Recipe: take one awesome light-up pirate sword (preferably multi color) and combine with a long exposure. Helps if you have your six year old boy pushing the shutter and laughing hysterically.

African Beauty

My beautiful baby girl.

Sprouts

My younger son is fascinated by all things nature. We bought him some little flowers in pots so he could watch them grow. The first day they sprang up he was over the moon. I love his excitement. This is for you, boo.

Transition

Took this from my car in downtown Westwood.

Getting inspired

I'm a huge fan of David duChemin's photography and writing. If you're a photographer (or any type of creative) and you're not subscribed to his blog, do yourself a favor and head over. His mantra of "Gear is good, Vision is better" really encapsulates his approach to the creative process. This idea is born out in his images which evoke emotion and purposefulness. Seeking to bring some of that spark to my own work, I latched onto his idea of "stirring the paint". The thought here is to inject something into your life that gets the creative juices flowing. Maybe this is going to an art exhibit, or reading a book, or trying something that you've long had in the back of your mind. I decided to take my dad's old Mamiya 645 medium format film, yes film, camera and head into the great outdoors. Here's the beast.

This was intimidating. Where's the screen?! How am I supposed to know if got the shot or not? Thank goodness it had a built in light meter. Even the simple act of buying film was intimidating.

Sales Guy - What kind of film do you want?
Me - Medium format
Sales Guy - Yes, but what kind?
Me - Color?
Sales Guy - Which kind of color, flat or vivid?
Me - I like vivid, yes let's go with vivid.
Sales Guy - What speed?
Me - I have to decided that ahead of time?

Buying black and white was slightly less painful since the choices were limited, but needless to say I didn't come off as a seasoned pro.

After my dad gave me a quick test drive on the camera, I was set to go. Did I say the camera was heavy? It is. Did I say the shutter scared me the first time I took a shot? It did. It's all so, so mechanical. And I loved it! The viewfinder. Oh my. Looking through that eyepiece after using only DSLR's is like going from a porthole to a picture window. The image is so immediate and tangible. Want to know if you're in focus? All you gotta do is look in there. Autofocus? That's so 1980's. Aperture? Get your hand out there on the lens and dial it in. I found myself being so much more considered about the shots I was taking because the whole process felt so formal. My composition was more thought out, my exposure was checked more carefully and my depth of field was given great consideration. I wasn't just pointing and shooting, I was crafting images. So inspiring!

This experience didn't suddenly turn me into a film shooter who looks down his nose at digital photography. Quite to the contrary, I appreciate even more now all the awesomeness that's packed into my DSLR. I also appreciate it's speed when the situation needs it. But I also have a new appreciation for a slowed down, methodical approach to making images. That's what this was about; opening myself up to something new, something inspiring. I can't wait for my next film outing, or whatever exercise that can "stir the paint".

So, am I having my first film exhibition next month? Sadly, no. I got all those rolls of film developed (at no small cost) and I had maybe two pictures in there that I liked. But the experience was so energizing and the things I learned are starting to shape they way I see and make images.

My next car

Um, not really, but it's great to dream! Took this at the L.A. Auto Show last year. Problem with photographing cars at car shows is the backgrounds are usually less than appealing. I whipped up a little somethin' in Photoshop so as not to distract from the German made awesomeness.