a great lunch... an embarrassing lunch

So, I just had one of those lunches today that you walk a way from feeling like it could have some major impacts on your life. The kind of lunch you find yourself changing outfits a couple of times before cause you want everything to go just right. Well, today’s lunch was with a local photographer that I have admired for years, a photographer who really shapes much of the wedding market in Lancaster and Central PA, and well, to be honest his studio has an impact on the entire Northeast. Through some crazy events we met, he offered lunch, and I gladly offered to pay. It was great… I’m excited about the possibility of the things I’m dreaming about coming true. We'll just have to wait and see... ohhh the drama.

But here’s the embarrassing part. He went to check out my blog, which I was not expecting cause I thought we’d look at my laptop if he even wanted to see pictures, and what I realized as he was scrolling through the pages is that I haven’t updated in weeks. I’m currently looking at seven, yes 7, blog entries needing to be written.

So in good embarrassment fashion, I’m going to get my blogs up to date. Starting NOW.

or after I get back form running an errand for my wife, and going to class in philly, and... well I'll hopefully catch up tomorrow, yeah, I'll do it tomorrow.

so until then, here's a couple of teaser pics of things to come.

a really cool workshop and a really long shot.

So think of your hero.

Ok, I'm not talking about your dad or grandmother... although both of those really could be your hero (and secretly they'd be mine as well, and of course my amazing Mom would fall in there too), but what I'm talking about are those people who are in the same profession as you, and you find yourself watching what they're doing. Observing them, copying them, learning from them... secretly wanting to be them. Well, one photographer I look up to and love looking at her work and style and put a lot of weight on what she says and does is Jasmine Star, so if I ever wanted to be a west coast chick with a small dog, it'd be her...Ok, that may have been a little too much.

Anyway. Jasmine is doing a killer hands on workshop in New Zealand, yeah that's right New Zealand, and she's offering to give a way a seat. All you had to do was take a self portrait with a "star" in the picture, get it? Jasmine Star, a star in the picture... oh well never mind.

So here's my entry for a trip to New Zealand. I'll admit it's not the worlds most creative picture, but for having only an hour window to snap a self portrait, which was harder then I had planned on, it was what I was able to do. Pearl said I looked a little holocaustish... I think that means she liked the picture?

So one last crazy idea just to throw it out there, you know for kicks and giggles, if I don't win this thing... I guess I could let one you get it for me for Christmas, you know it's "only' a little trip to New Zealand, I hear plan tickets fit nicely in stockings, elbow elbow wink wink.






ps - I think I was only suppose to submit one image for the contest, so Jasmine I guess I'd use the top one, but if you like one of the other ones better feel free to use that one instead. Seriously, I'm ok with you doing that.

A happy heart…

So I find myself editing like a mad man today. I’m learning what the priceless words of “Time management” mean and can give you first hand examples of what it doesn’t mean. Basically I scheduled more shoots then I was able to turn around in my target edit time and I literally found myself looking at close to 15,000 photos needing to be narrowed down, color corrected, fine tuned, fixed, and to have zits and the like removed. So for 7 hours or so today I’ve edited, deleted, and edited some more.

But here’s the strange thing.

I’ve found myself strangely smiling. Not stocker looking at your family photos strangely smiling, but a true from the heart, no from my soul, smile. A joy or happiness that seems to seep out as I look at beautiful pictures of families being beautiful together. Of what love looks like, of what acceptance looks like, of what it means to have a safe place and caring home, and shoulder to cry on, for little boys to be fully boys and turn every stick around them into a sword, and then for “little boys” to grow up into dads who then play with their kids. To see what a family was meant to be.

So to the family who are loving and living as family’s should, live on. And may the love you live continue to ooze over to those around you, and may Pearl and I know that love, show that love, and wrap our family (no we’re not pregnant, but someday, hopefully not soon, but someday) in that some love.

I-85...

During a recent trip to Georgia to visit family I found myself in the passenger seat of my dad's jeep rolling down I-85. We were taking my Nephew to his bi-weekly enzyme treatment for Gaucher Disease (pronounced Go-shaa). If you've never heard of it don't feel bad only around 10,000 people in the world have been diagnosed with it, so it's not extremely common to hear about. Anyway, back to the jeep, I-85 and me in the passenger seat. I found myself during this particular trip holding my camera (surprise surprise me with a camera) as I was working on compiling some images to help retell Gabe's journey with Gaucher. Well, as I was editing the pictures from that morning I discovered these pics that had been snapped along the way and thought I'd share them. There's something about them that makes me like em. Something about the heaven's colliding with the rough oddity of man. Or the simplicity of curves, or the contrast of the colors, or something. Needless to say, I like the pics, and I hope you do as well

one sweet trip...

Pearl and I are just in from one of the sweetest trips to Georgia I think I’ve ever had. My family has started the tradition of taking a collection of photos from our little mini vacations together and creating a little coffee table book of our time. As we wrapped up the creation of the book together I was asked to write the section of text that would open up the book. I felt like this pretty well captures my view of this trip.

“a Celebration... of a year of life... of time together... of long hugs... of evening walks... of deep laughs... and of a family who is defined by it’s love…

Celebration was the reason for these delightful days of time well spent together. We gathered together to publicly celebrate Garrett’s first birthday, but truth be told it was also a celebration of our family. Of being able to see each other for another time, to laugh at each other’s funny moments, to share the stories that tell the collection of our days, and to see the joy glisten in each others eyes as time is simply being well spent together.

These are the images that filled our days, but many other images now rest in the recesses our memories and excitement builds as we now turn from this celebration of being together to the next.”

Here are a couple of the images that marked the highlights of our time.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

one man's junk is... well... let's be honest, another man's junk

Was unpacking clothes from our recent trip to Georgia. It seems like I always have a couple of extra items to put up when I return from being with my family… well specifically my mom. Her love language is gifts and she loves the gift of clothing the most. So whenever the opportunity arises for her to buy a new shirt, pair of pants, or even just underwear and socks she get’s all excited and starts pulling out her credit card. Once again I’m not saying this is a good or bad thing, it’s just my mom’s thing. I hate spending money on clothes, so I think it’s a good thing for me.

Well, I’ve been trying to limit how many unnecessary clothes I keep in my closet, to limit the excessive unused clothing that will ultimately rot from simply sitting and try to pass these unwanted articles to a needy soul that might just actually use them.

So upon the unpacking of this trips new bounty I decided a fall closet cleaning was in order.

I started with the dress pants and shirts, then quickly moved to the shorts, then shirts and pants, then over to the sock stash, and finally found myself sitting in the middle of a pile of shoes asking which ones would make the cut and which ones… well would be quickly finding a new home.

I easily tossed a couple of ratty pairs out, then a pair I never really liked to begin with, but then I picked one pair and thought

“wow I haven’t warn these in years, they still have a lot of life in them, practically new… maybe I should keep em.”

At this moment a wave of embarrassment landed on me as I realized the stupidity of my comment. See, the holey ratty pairs where tossed into the “good will” pile with out a second thought, but when a pair that I haven’t warn in literally over a year but still looked new came into question I paused, and thought about hording the good ones to myself. Give away the junk but keep the nice.

We’ve all said “one man’s junk is another’s treasure” well I think we use that line of thinking to pass off our junk that really is just another man’s junk.

I long for the day when I naturally think about not just giving away my junk, but graciously and excitedly give the things that still have value and are worth using. To not simply pass my junk off to someone else and feel like I’ve done a good deed, but to pass along things of value and usefulness, that may be “excess or unusable” to me, but actually treasures to someone else.


On a side note – I’ve not decided to never buy another hanger, if clothes come in… well then clothes need to go out. May be knowing I’ll have to give up something will keep me from buying unneeded items, and when new items are blessed my way, I can bless good items to someone else.

Country table Commercial and a great steak

A couple of weeks ago I was asked to be a part of a pretty cool project. A local restaurant was putting together a television commercial that was part video, part still images; and I was asked to take the photos for the project. If I was honest I would say my favorite part was not taking the photos, or even seeing the final video, although I was very pleased with both, but in helping to solve a major problem. See, the steak we had worked with it couldn’t be served to customers and it would have simply been wrong to throw it away… so I did a real noble thing and offered to eat it so it wouldn’t go to waste. Mom would have been proud of me for not allow food to go to waste, someone had to do, and I’m just glad I was able to help out.

Last thing. I was asked to clarify that the coupons that are being talked about in the video are $50 coupons being sold for $30… I’m not a math major but I think that’s a pretty good deal.

a trash walk...

The other day I went for a walk around my neighborhood. You know type of walk where you really have no destination or purpose in mind other then simply enjoying the bright leaves and breathing the crisp fall air as deeply as you can. I don't do this enough, it's good for my soul. I've come to the realization that I'm very "plugged in" to technology, the internet, facebook, twitter, etc. and I don't especially like that, so these walks are becoming a high priority for me.

Well, on this walk I noticed a cigarette butt, and then a chips bag, and then a bottle, and then somehow I found myself laying on the sidewalk taking pictures of these random pieces of trash. Yes, you would have passed a grown adult male laying on sidewalk with camera in hand intensely focusing on a piece of trash, and I'm sure some folks driving by wanted to take my picture at this awkward sight.

Well, above is a little collection of what I saw and as I look at it makes me to wonder what if I started picking up instead of just walking by... who knows, it might in a small way to change my block, my city, our world.

So next time you pass an adult male laying on the side walk with a camera in hand intensely focusing on a piece of trash, look to see if he also has a small trash bag with him, if so it might just be me.

till next time...