start. people. places. things. me. | island profilin'

An illustration of my life, loves and various random information
that you may or may not find the least bit useful...
all from the island of St. Simons.

Friday, December 21, 2007

Friday Foto: Some random stuff






I've been busy this week, trying to knock out the rest of the work I have for 2007. I'll be leaving my office today and not returning until 2008 and I can't wait! The above pictures are from this week. They are being used in ads for some clients of ours in the new year. I had a great time playing with the guns. I love guns.

I'm so glad today is Friday, I can't express that enough. Tonight I have a party to go to, tomorrow night I'm throwing our Holiday Soiree, part two. I'm pretty pumped, although I have a lot of house cleaning to do in preparation. I can't wait for Christmas! This is defenitly my favorite time of year, without a doubt.

Have a quick, great Friday!

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

The Sweetest Christmas Gift Ever

Before I even opened it, I knew what it was. It's obvious, the brown residue leaving it's mark, filling your nostrils and causing the dog to bark. I just couldn't figure out why it appeared to be a wrapped throw pillow.

Back story... I love to cook, always have. It seems every time I make that assertion, Kelly comes back with, "Well, if you like to cook so much, how come I'm always the one cooking dinner?" I usually respond with, "I like to cook good things," then quickly wish I had chosen a different adjective to replace 'good' with, something more like 'complex', 'detailed' or even 'big'. You can imagine the words that follow, a montage of "I'm sorry's" and "I didn't mean it that way's".

I believe it was two years ago this Christmas that I received that sweetest Christmas gift ever. Let's back step a little though. Prior to that Christmas I had hosted a large family dinner at my folks house for about 20 family members, in which I pulled out all the stops. I cooked authentic Italian food: Fresh spinach ravioli stuffed with cheeses, fresh sauces, an excellent gnocchi, tiramisu that would almost leave you dead and a lemon cello that actually did. I think it was there that my family saw just how much I enjoyed cooking. My passion for fresh ingredients and spices really shines in my dishes.

So now, back to the present. I have an Aunt that, to say is well-traveled, would be an understatement. When she is absent from an event, it's understood that she's just off in another country somewhere. Through her world travels, she has apparently found a source for fresh spices.

It was two Christmas's ago now as I sat in my Grandmother's living room clutching an awkwardly wrapped packed roughly the size of a small pillow. I shook the gift, as I always do, and noticed the brown pungent powder puff out as though a lady was powdering her cheek. I recognized the scent instantly and was brought back to the hoards of cinnamon toast I consumed as an adolescent. I unwrapped the present to reveal a plump gallon-size ziploc bag of ground cinnamon. See, here in the Galland family, we don't give tacky sweaters, ugly socks or amateurly-crafted figurines. We give bags of spice, or so we began. Little did my Aunt know what havoc that foreigner would reap to my already-non-vacant spice rack.

It started with the jumps. Cinnamon was a big boy and he wanted to play. I'd open the cabinet, he'd jump out. Every time. It's hard to keep him at bay. I'd attempt to weigh him down with the Mortons or the sugar, but that only made things worse. So, I had an idea. I'd use him. I craved some toast with cinnamon and sugar, so I broke the seal and sprinkled out the powder, and it was good.

Cinnamon's taste of freedom changed him. He wanted more. I would be cooking, he would conveniently jump out out of the rack and all over my kitchen and dish. At one point I remember my whole kitchen smelling of cinnamon. I finally was fed up and did the unthinkable. I put him in a ziplock and stored him at the back of the cabinet. Peace and quiet at last!

Well, several cinnamon-less months went by until one day I was minding my own business, plundering through the cabinet when the scent struck me clear in the face. There he was, my long-lost friend cinnamon. The love-hate relationship returned and I began to feel guilty at the lack of cinnamon my recipes and dishes called for. I made a vow to that spice that day that I would make something out of him. I would make him MY SPICE.

My first attempt was spaghetti sauce. I prepared it in manners similar to the norm, but added a little pinch of my ole' buddy. Well, that meal was short-lived, followed closely by a experiment in masonry with my new-found brick mortar.

My second attempt, was less inedible, at least to me. I was craving cookies. I should have stopped when the list of ingredients I did not have, far exceeded the list that I did. But hey, I told myself, I have cinnamon! For future reference, egg, flour and cinnamon does not make a good cookie. Gretsky's calling, he wants his cinnamon-flavored puck back.

By my third attempt I was determined to fulfill my promise. I made a massive pot of chili. Spent all day slaving over that dutch oven, and after adding a little bit more chili powder, heard the call of cinnamon and thought, what the hell, it's the same color. I pinched a little out. I began to put him away, when I saw the frown on his face, and I understood. It's a big pot of chili, and he didn't' feel very well represented. I pinched out a little more. I served it that night in crock-pots to all my friends and felt good. It was being eaten up. So what if the keg was floated already and it was only 10 p.m.? Drunk people will eat anything and they were eating my chili! The next morning I woke to find a good friend of mine, who in her inebriated state, wound up back at our house sometime in the middle of the night and was now plundering through my refrigerator looking for that perfect after-late-night-party-it's-early-and-i'm-extremely-hungover snack. I quickly rushed to the occasion, pulled out the pot, put it on the stove and put my old friend back to work. Chili's perfect for the occasion.

Well, she took one bite and remembered my friend too. It seems drinking did not lead to chili, but chili lead to drinking. It seems cinnamon had struck again, this time causing several casualties of both taste buds and moral.

It's been several weeks since I dare speak to cinnamon. Mabe Kelly's right. Maybe there isn't a place for cinnamon in every meal. Maybe cinnamon doesn't "taste like fall" and should therefore accompany every Fall Saturday baking session. I can't try to convince her any longer, cinnamon does not belong in marinara. It's tough, but I find help in that bible verse that refers to all season's having there turn. It won't be long before the guilt builds up again and my artistic side comes out. What should I make this time? I might try something that actually calls for cinnamon.... nah, that would be tasteless.

III


Three years ago last week I graduated college and three years ago today I married my best friend. Yeah, flog me all you guys want for being cheesy, but how often do you get to spend the rest of your life with the person you care about the most? I have a handful of friends, both male and female, that I consider best friends, but none that I can picture marrying more than her. The things I lack in life, she excels, and likewise.

This past weekend we went out for a nice dinner and spent the night out at a hotel. For the first time in probably 2 years, we escaped the BS of everyday life. It was only for an evening, but we laughed and talked like we hadn't done in years. It was more than I could ask for.

The weekend couldn't have come at a better time. I had been feeling drawn out, weary of life lately. One of my favorite authors, Jon Krakauer, wrote a book titled Into the Wild. It was recently turned into a movie and I went to see it last week. I don't really feel like going into a full movie review right now, but the general gist is this: It's the true story of a young man that goes into the wild to find himself. He learns a lot about himself, others and life and eventually dies. His quest for adventure and the thick wanderlust that saturates the story is so addictive. It left me feeling like I needed more out of life, that I was just living right now.

After this weekend, and after three years married now and out of college, I can say I don't think I am just "living". I'm "building"; a project that I'll never see completed, but can enjoy if I choose to... and I do.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Friday Foto: the countdown begins!


For me Christmas starts one week from today. For me, 2007 is over one week from today. I'll turn my computer off on the 21st and turn on my excitement for the holiday season. It will be in full swing. However, I can't guarantee that the process will be instantanious, but rather a slow demise into the holiday spirits as the week progresses. I can't wait. I can almost taste the food, almost feel the parties, almost see the friends and family. I have so much to look forward to in the upcoming weeks, I almost feel guilty.

This time of the year has always been special for Kelly and I. We will celebrate three years married on the 18th, and then Christmas a week later. Our families both run deep with Christmas traditions, and we try to pull on those in our family as well as attempting to create new ones too (that one where I wanted to open all the presents on the 22nd didn't work out so well).

I'm going to tile our spare bathroom this weekend. It will be an easy enough job, and a great improvement to the crappy vinyl flooring that is in there now. I will post up some pics for you all, so stay tuned.

Today's Friday Foto comes from my buddy's farm I went to a couple of weeks ago. I like it. What do you think? I love that bus and find a lot of inspiration in it.

So, on the Jeep front. It's been a good week. The jeep is running better than ever. I installed the new radiator last weekend and have not had a single problem. Now I can fully enjoy all the work and upgrades that I have put into it over the last three months. Is it better you might ask? Oh yeah. I used to get 11 mpg around town, now I'm getting 14.5. Not too shabby huh? It's more efficient, stronger, quicker and reliable (kelly would debate that one). This week has been warm, so the doors are off. I love it for that reason, but hate it for all others. It's December 14, it's supposed to be cold.

So anyway, as a little treat to you readers, I am going to post several times between now and Christmas. I would set a schedule, but I know if I fall off it, I will get chastised by at least one of you. So, check back often. I have some photos, some funny stories, some meager attempts at insightful writing, and much more. Happy early Christmas!

Monday, December 03, 2007

love/hate


This weekend was to be my Jeep's first, long road trip. Everything was ready. The bed was packed to the brim with camping equipment, coolers, guns, rods and sleeping bags. I had spent all last week "priming" her: reinstalled the rear seat facing back, installed new backup lights, had the engine tuned perfectly, everything was set up, ready to do. I didn't sleep at all on Friday night with anticipation of the farm camping, bass fishing and beer drinking that was going to take place Saturday night at my buddy's farm in Dublin, GA (about 180 miles from where I live). I picked up my friend at 6:30am Saturday morning, hit the back roads and watched the sunrise over coastal Georgia as I smiled from ear to ear... This is what my Jeep is made for.

30 miles outside of St. Simons, my eyes started watering. At first, I thought I was so happy I was tearing up. No. 15 seconds later I realized it was smoke and steam causing my eyes to burn and then the steam just billowed out from under the hood.

I guess it's a Jeep thing, but it seems you always know exactly what is that it my radiator. It blew a nice size crack under the upper hose fitting. Nothing could fix that except a new radiator. Of course no auto parts store in SE GA had one, I called them all. "Replace the Radiator" moved rapidly up to the top of the Jeep to-do list.

So, I had it towed back to the house, picked up my buddies Tacoma, threw all the stuff in the back; no more neat packing like previously performed. No more back roads to take. We jumped on the interstate, hauled a*s up to the farm and cracked my first beer just shy of noon. I had sorrows to drink away now.

Caught three largemouths and cooked some dang-good meat, so the weekend wasn't a total loss, but man... what a bummer. I ordered a 3-row radiator last night, so hopefully that'll get in this week and I'll be back to rolling soon. Above is a pic of the farm, enjoy.

Friday, November 30, 2007

Friday Foto: peek-a-boo


Good morning, I'm back. I bet you missed me huh? Today's foto comes from the last wedding I shot. Like a lot of wedding/event photography, you have to be in the right place at the right time. I was just outside of the chapel while the family was processing into the church. The bride stood anxiously inside the bridal room waiting Pachelbel's Canon in D. I love it. It really sums up the bride's joyous anxiety.

So how have I been? Busy. We hosted our annual two-part Soiree last week. Our Holiday Soiree on the day after Thanksgiving was fun. We had a good turn out. However this year lacked a feeling that previous soiree's exuded. Maybe it was the absence of random cameos by long-lost friends, or maybe the absence and tardiness of other not-so-long-lost friends that led to the overall ho-hum-ness that was coupled with the familiar headache come Saturday morning. Oh well, we have December 22 to look forward to and improve upon our effort to produce that super Soiree sensation. Tacky Christmas sweaters welcome.

This weekend could come at a better time. I'm going to my friend's farmland in Dublin Saturday morning to spend the night under the stars. I'll drink, fish, eat and probably drive through a lot of mud. It will be a much needed recharge session for Kelly and I. The arrival of Christmas season is always an anticipated and dreaded time for us. Christmas holds a special place in our hearts, having gotten married a week before. But the looming receipts acquired always bring tension. It often requires us to take a little break. I go camping, she goes shopping. Go figure. (I love you.)

I hope to get some fun photos this weekend out at the farm and will definitely share them with you upon my return. Hope you all have a great weekend and can spend a little time "recharging" before you begin the world-wind season of Christmas. It's here, don't try to deny it. Kenny and Dolly's White Christmas is in my CD player. Watch out!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Friday Foto: Fall Upon Us

Man, am I so glad it's Friday. This week was short, Monday was Veteran's Day and I was driving back from our cabin in Blue Ridge, but this week was a horrible one for me. I was sick the first half and had a lot of crap going on at work the later half. It's all coming to a close thankfully; I feel better too.

I'm pretty excited about this weekend. Kelly and I and another couple are going to the Land Trust Oyster Roast. It's one of my highlights of the fall season. Great food, good people and all at night out at Ft. Frederica. It's a rare treat that we get to hang out at night over at the fort.... it's so neat.

So last weekend was great. We went to our cabin in Blue Ridge Friday night and then skipped up to Nashville to watch Kel's brother play (tightend for Vandy) against Kentucky. We lost, but Jake had his first career touchdown, and it was awesome... 30 yds! We got back up to the cabin around Sunday afternoon and I spend some time in the fall foliage shooting. It was pretty nice. Hope you guys enjoy the montage of fall photos.

By the way, I hope all of yall are prepping... Fall Soiree is now ONE week away!








Friday, November 02, 2007

Friday Foto: Not much new...


Happy Friday, and how happy I am. I'm so glad it's Friday. Today's Foto is fresh out of the camera, I like it OK. I took a lot of photos this morning and this is the first one I processed so I could get it out there for all your hungry eyes. Hope you like it...

So not much is new. My Jeep is back to running, I'm happy. November is here, which means Thanksgiving, but more importantly, SOIREE TIME!!! Who's excited? Evites will be going out soon.

I don't have much going on this weekend. A little dinner party on Saturday night and that's about it. I plan on playing with my Jeep, working on the house and hanging out with the wifey... perfect weekend, don't be jealous.

Hope all is well!

Friday, October 26, 2007

Frida Foto: New stuff








So I thought I would post some of my recent work here. I need to update my web site, but haven't found the time yet, so until then, here's some of the recent pics I'm proud of for one reason or another. These are ones I've taken at various weddings and portrait sessions going back to the middle of the summer just about.

So this weekend is GA/FLA. How fun. The island is overrun with greek-tastic college kids. It doesn't bother me though. Some are very annoying, and the ultimate example of everything I loathe, but most just appear that way, and are decent people underneath.

I don't have big plans this weekend. My jeep is still not running, it's been dead for a little over a week now. It's heart-breaking really. I've been troubleshooting with the help of my online Scrambler friends, and I think I've found the culprit, the distributor, and have one on order. Should arrive any day now. I've replaced so much in the engine compartment already, so when Margaret gets back and running, it's going to be AMAZING!!! So, that's it folks.

Friday, October 19, 2007

Friday Foto: from archives


I like this photo, I don't necessarily know why. Maybe because this dilapidated bus reminds me of the bus that Alex dies in in the book Into the Wild. They have made it into a movie and it is playing around the country right now. Unfortunately, it's not down here yet, which pisses me off. We have Tyler Perry's movie, but not Sean Penn's? Come on! Don't get me wrong, I love Tyler Perry, but let's actually think what will sell better here guys...

Anyway, this bus was located at my friend Whit's farm in Dublin, GA. It's a cool bus you say. Well, you only know the half of it. This bus, my friend, is the WC. Yep, it's the can, complete with a flushing toilet (utilizing a 5-gallon bucket of water from the pond). That kind of taints the photo now doesn't it? The best thing about this photo is the detail, which you really can't get the full effect here on the computer screen.

Anyway, I have a wedding to shoot this weekend and a Jeep to get running again. So, that's what I'm doing. Hope y'all have a great weekend!

Friday, October 12, 2007

Friday Foto: only in Tennessee


I love today's Friday Foto. We were up at our cabin last weekend, which was awesome. We had a great time, weather was nice, it was perfect. Our cabin is in Epworth, GA, which is right outside of Blueridge, GA, just south of Tennessee. It's actually easier to get to Tennessee, a quick drive for beer on Sunday. While on said excursion, we passed a general store right off the main road in McCaysville, TN where, framed amongst the fall decor of hay and pumpkins, rested this sign. Obviously I had to take a photo. Really, what kind of person stills cow crap? Wow.

I have a gargae cleaning project planned for this weekend. I'm excited to acquire my "man space" back; kicking out the hodgepodge of 10-year-old cloths and plastic kitchen utensils will make more room for the JEEP! Man I love the weather, love riding around in my jeep right now. It's perfect. Y'all have a great weekend.

Friday, October 05, 2007

Friday Foto: 17 minutes at Lewis Island



I love these photos. I've been experimenting a lot lately with long exposure photography. So much of what you get in the final photo is unpredictable. So many things happen that are unseen by the eye and can only be shown through photography. I think it's amazing that one can take a photograph of something that is unseen to the natural senses. Anyway, enjoy.

I'm going to my cabin this weekend. I'm pretty pumped. We are going with a group of couples from here... I can't wait to hang out and do NOTHING. We have off for Columbus Day so we get to return on Monday, which is always nice. I'll be taking plenty photos of the fall foliage, so be prepared to see some new pics upon my return. Have a great weekend.

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Lewis Island camping

Here are some photos from my recent camping trip to Lewis Island, off the Altamaha River in Georgia. One of my favorite places to go and camp. Accessible only by boat. We had a great time. Weather was perfect, 66 Sunday morning. Nice and breezy and no rain. We fed the fish Sunday morning. I feel it was a successful photography, beer drinking, camping, boating experience. Tune in on Friday for The Friday Foto, where my favorite image from this trip will be displayed. Enjoy.







Friday, September 21, 2007

Friday Foto: Stormy...


I know, I'm late at getting the post up this morning. Sorry, I was busy getting this week's foto for you. I took it this morning... I like it. It's a stormy scene, yet has that bit of hope for good weather in the air. What do y'all think?

So, what's new... well, Kelly is now the proud owner of an iPhone too. No longer can she knock it or reprimand me for having one, she LOVES it. She didn't like the phone we got her when she signed on with AT&T. We wound up selling it, and with that money, some rebate money, my $100 back from Apple and a little cash, we wound up buying one of the 4GB iPhones that they are selling on clearance until supplies run out. If you're thinking of getting one, now's the time people!

Both weddings went great last weekend. When I have some of the photos processed I'll post a couple of them here for you to see.

Not much is going on this weekend. I'm going to a high school football game tonight, which should be alright. Tomorrow night I hope to have a good time eating some hamburgers and watching Georgia kick some Alabama ass (although don't know if that's going to happen, and to tell you the truth, only really care because if UGA looses, then all my obsessed friends will be in foul moods). So, that's all I got for now. Have a great weekend.

Friday, September 14, 2007

Friday Foto: Old made new...


Today's photo is about a year old. I needed a photo to submit to a charity auction in McIntosh County and I thought of this one. I took it on the way through Darien one evening and never really looked at it until the other day. I'm pretty happy with the way it came out, I love the colors and the sharpness (which you probably can't see on the computer, only on the print). Anyway, I though you guys might like to see it...

So nothing is new on my end. I've been swamped at work and will be for awhile. I have two weddings this weekend to shoot, which I'm pretty pumped about. That will take up most of my day on Saturday, so I have very little plans for the weekend other than relaxing...

Guys, that's all I got right now. Sorry for the short post. Have a great weekend!

Friday, September 07, 2007

Friday Foto: Funguy and the Falling Waters




Ha... it's a punk rock band's name. Get it? I hate stupid punk rock (and other genre's for that matter) band names. I like to makeup ones to amuse myself.

Anyway, these photos were taken last Saturday around the Tocoa River in Blue Ridge, GA. I was up at my cabin and we went for a short little hike around the river. I like them so I thought I would share them with you.

Not much is new on my end. I have NOTHING planned this weekend, which is so nice. I plan on taking part in major R&R pretty much all weekend. I will definitely work on my jeep, work on some photos, maybe go kayaking and without a doubt, drink some beer. Sounds perfect right? Don't hate me cause you ain't me...

So, a thanks goes out to the close to half dozen of you that called or emailed me yesterday to tell me about Apple, Inc. issuing a $100 credit to all early adopters of the iPhone. Of course, I knew the minute the press release was out, but the gesture was very thoughtful. I don't know what I'll do with a 100 bucks credit to the Apple store, but I'm sure I can find some use for it. Also, my iPhone was bought on a credit card. A lot of credit cards offer price protection, which protects (and refunds) the buyer on purchases of items that have lowered in price after purchase. So, with any luck, I might be able to get $200 back, and if I'm lucky, still get the $100 from Apple... we'll see how lucky I am. But, regardless of all that, I still love my iPhone. It's amazing.

That's all I got.... hope all is well. Have a great weekend.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Friday Foto: It's ME!


Yep, so this is the first Friday Foto to ever feature another photographer.... my wife. I stumbled upon this photo last night while looking for something and decided to show this photo to go along with something I've been wanting to talk about for awhile.

What makes a good photographer? A lot of people will have different things to say about this, and I, by no means, expect to answer that question in a single post. Some of it's the eye... being able to see a moment that wields a good photograph. Some of it's the skill... being able to know how to capture that moment to best represent the feeling and portray it correctly to a viewer. Some of it's the luck... having both of the aforementioned traits line up and thus, magic happens. Of course, there is also equipment, composition, experience (which I believe is slightly different than just talent/knowledge). See, one can know the ins and outs of the f-stop/shutter speed continuum, but knowing what works best in a split second is more than just knowledge.

So why this picture? I like it. Always have. Maybe a little bit because it's me. But it reflects a time in my life that I can look back on and really grab to. There I sat, on the rocks in Cinque Terre, on the coast of Italy drinking a beer in the afternoon. I was tired, hot, and hadn't showered in two days. I was traveling with six girls and was just about fed up. Kelly snapped this photo, not really knowing what she was doing, but saw the moment... and that is key. Some photographs need just the moment, nothing more.

Now, I'm gonna step on my soap box for a second. I, being a lover of photography, see loads of photos. What bothers me the MOST in the photographic world is the self-proclaimed photographer who claims to be an artist, yet doesn't understand the previously mentioned points. No, I am not saying I am better and there is no room for our "point and shooters". Point and shoot away, I do often as well. I guess what I am lamenting is the poor quality of "art" that swarms the masses and dirties the blood of the true profession.

And finally, saying all that, is there no place for photos like the above? Of course there is, it's a great shot, I love it, like I said. But it's a great shot to me for sentimental reasons. I guess my point of view is this: I'm striving to produce more work that I can proudly say and feel that is true art. This means I will, no doubt, produce less quantities, but hopefully higher quality. Of course there will always be a place and need for photographs of the non-art quality, ie: day to day work, etc. But for now, I'm focusing on honing my skill I reckon.

That's all I got. I'm heading to the mountains this weekend for the labor day break. I'll be up at my cabin, and of course, will shoot some... pics to come. Happy Friday.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Scramblin' avec Hardtop





Saturday morning I set out bright and early with a buddy down to Daytona Beach, FL to pick up a half-hard top for my Jeep. It was in surprisingly good shape for a used top. One of the previous owners installed a sunroof, that can either be vented in the back, or completely removed. I washed it out, and painted the interior white and rolled on a bedliner material on the outside. It looks great! I'm really happy with it. It will be easy enough to remove, but not something I would do just for the day. With no doors and the sunroof off, it's surprising ventilated inside as well. I really enjoy it. I love the look. Enjoy the photos!

Friday, August 24, 2007

Friday Foto: IR begginings


IR stands for Infra-Red. Back in the ole film days, photographers used to experiment with IR film. It was film sensitive to IR rays, not just light (in a sense). Things that are 'cool' (radiating little light reflection) are portrayed as darks (like the dark blue sky at the top, it's black). Things that are 'hot', reflecting lots of light (including photosynthesis) show up as light... the marsh in this scene is close to white. Now, acheiving this is best done in camera (versus post process), with either a film camera and IR film or a digital camera that has been converted to shoot in IR. Once you convert a digital camera to IR (a manual procedure that requires hacking into your camera) you can't undo it. This shot was done in photoshop, originally taken in color. It's a semi-accurate portrayal of an IR shot, however it is not exact. The clouds should be brighter and I bet the marsh would be whiter. However, it's a start. I love IR photography, it's like B&W on steroids... super-charged. More to come, I'm experimenting with this.

Anyway, I still love the iPhone, so nothing is new. I'm heading down to Florida tomorrow to go pick up a hardtop for my Scrambler. Yeah, it's been awhile since I mentioned Margaret on here. Don't worry, I'll post some pics with Margaret with her top on and off soon (hehehe... couldn't resist). I'm pretty excited.

That's it. Hope everyone has a great weekend. I know I will!!!

Thursday, August 23, 2007

posting from my iPhone

This is my first post via my iPhone. Just giving if a shot. Pretty easy to do actually. Tune in tomorrow for the new installment of "The Friday Foto".

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

I heart Apple (and my wife)

I have an iPhone. Yes, sooner than expected, I am the proud owner of a 4GB model. My birthday (the big 25, half way to 30 as my wife would say) is next week. Kelly and I already decided that I was going to wait until Christmas to get an iPhone. After all, I've waited for Apple to come out with a cell phone for close to six years now, what's another couple of months right? Well, she did some conspiring and twisting of the system (in a style that she could have only learned from moi!) and low and behold, I have an iPhone. She got it in and couldn't wait to the 29th to give it to me. I'm thrilled. It's amazing, and I know you expect to hear that from me, being an Apple fanboy, but as a consumer, it's a piece of work... really sleek.

My love for Apple doesn't stop there though... Sunday evening I also helped setup my father-in-law's new PC. He just got an HP laptop, wasn't even out of the box. I unpacked it, having to put all the pieces together, turned it on, went through 38 minutes of startup in which it asked me several questions and tried to get me to try several programs and softwares. Finally, after the setup was complete, I was on the desktop for all of 45 seconds when a bubble popped up and told me my computer was seriously at risk and I should do such-in-such! How do you people STAND PCs? On a Mac, you open it up, plug it in, start it up, put your name in and within 3 minutes the computer is up and running sans crash alerts.... No annoying little bubbles popping up all over the bottom right-hand corner of the screen telling me to wipe my butt.

Anyway, that's all I got. I can blog and post photos from my iPhone... so be on the lookout for some moblogging. Adios!

Friday, August 17, 2007

Friday Foto: Starry, Starry night...



The first line from Don McLean's lesser know song Vincent (his best known being American Pie). I always have this song stuck in my head when I shoot the night sky. I like shooting at night. Nothing is certain. I love digital; it enables you to see almost immediately what you have and how to correct. However, I have a setting on my camera that reduces digital noise (graininess and specks) when taking long exposures. With this setting switched on, I have found that it takes twice as long to write the image, meaning twice as long until you see it. So, for the first image, taken last night on the dock at the end of German Village, I exposed the night sky for 12 minutes at f4.5, meaning I didn't get to see the photo (to see if it was good) until 24 minutes later. This was my last shot of the night and I was half way home before I could review it. I like it. It's a point-of-view shot; a picture taken from the point of view of a person. Imagine laying down on this dock gazing up at the stars. This is the view you see. No, those are not shooting stars. When the shutter is left open on a camera for a length of time, you get start trails. The earth spins, causing the starts to appear to streak across the night sky in the picture.

The second image is looking the other way. You can see shorter star trails, exposed for only 3.5 minutes. I used a maglite to "paint" in the the dock, an interesting technique in which you use a auxiliary source of light to color in what you want to show up in the photo.

I'm going to get back into black and white film photography. It's been awhile and I feel like I could learn a good bit from it. Plus, it's very cathartic to me, being in the darkroom. I have almost everything I need to finish my darkroom.

Anyway, I hope you like the photos. Y'all have a great weekend. I'm so glad it's Friday. I have no major plans, hope to get some R&R in (maybe a beer or two).

Friday, August 10, 2007

Friday Foto: turning pages...


I think I'm beginning to turn a page in my photographic thinking. I watched a very interesting documentary the other night on PBS that outlined the life of five Cuban photographers. Their photos felt raw, unscathed, well thought out, simply beautiful. I envy, sometimes, the nostalgic and aesthetic feeling that I get from looking at really good analog (non-digitally captured) prints, both black and white and color. There is something about it, not necessarily the film, but the talent (maybe) or something... I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe it's just because I saw it on the boob tube.

Anyway, I'm using this wave of emotion, along with a series of thoughts and feelings I've been having, to migrate my photography to the next level. We'll see where it takes me.

Today's foto doesn't necessarily represent the aforementioned feelings, it's just the one I had lined up for this week (However, I will let you know when I have something born from this new ideology, in hope of your input). It's a row boat at the marina in Captiva. I saw it when I first arrived and knew I wanted to get this photo. I like it OK.

This should be a good weekend. I'm going to a lake house on Lake Sinclair in Milledgville this weekend, just for Saturday night. I'm excited. If you didn't catch earlier, I'm starting to post more, so check out the last post (for all those who got accustomed to me posting once a week and not reading any further than this post). Hope y'all have a great weekend! Thanks for reading.

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

I'm posting, and it's not Friday!

I've been feeling blogger's neglect. I started this blog a little over two years ago now in an attempt to enlighten you, the reader and me, the writer in matters that I find interesting. I love writing and usually have plenty to say (read: ramble), it's just that I get caught up in work flow, etc and wind up only blogging on Friday Morning for the weekly installment of The Friday Foto (my favorite part of the week really). So, without further ado, I present this resolution to you: I will blog more, so you can enjoy, I can purge and we both can procrastinate.


It's been hot. Hot is an understatement. When you can see that heat outside, in the form of foggy haze that makes me start questioning my recent LASIK surgery, you know it's hot. Not everywhere though. I spoke to my cousin last night in beautiful San Diego who was wearing pants in the 72 degree weather. Looser.

If you are in the market for a new computer, now is better than ever to make the switch to a Mac. They just released newer and cheaper iMacs, their flagship personal, do-everything computer. I would buy one in a heartbeat. Macs are great. The new iPhone is amazing. I'm working on a way to get one, hopefully by Christmas.

A'ight, quick shout-out to my friend Sarah (aka 'Goat' on this blog). She is now engaged. Congratulations Goat... we are all excited for you.

Have a great day.

Friday, August 03, 2007

I'm back!



Did you miss me? Sorry I didn't post last week. Friday morning Kelly and I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to get in the car and drive 7.5 hours to Captiva (an Island on the Gulf Coast of Florida) where we had a little vacation. It was great. We went out in the boat everyday, fished, ate and drank. Couldn't ask for more out of a vacation huh? Today's two fotos show a little bit of the area. We stayed at a Jensens, a little place tucked in between two high rises. It's like how Captiva probably was back in the 60s; untouched and unmauled by ever-changing society. It's a nice place. Anyway, the first foto is of their marina at night. I like taking long night shots and this is one of my favorites from my time there, clocking in at 170 seconds.

The second photo is kind of funny. I was walking on the beach one night watching the sun set. I walked up ankle deep into the water to get some photos of the waves crashing against the sand. I saw a family playing in the distance and went to compose my shot... not paying attention to the waves anymore. Well a nice swell came right up and soaked me causing me to fall over in mid shot... I thought the shot was ruined. But after processing it and reviewing it further, I kind of like it. Let me hear what you think.

So, I've been working on my people photography, as you may or may not know. I've been working on "airbrushing", all though I don't like to call it that. I prefer, photo enhancing or something along that line... I don't really believe in doing a ton of work to a photo, like a cover shot for Cosmo, it's sooooo worked on and fake. We wonder why so many woman are unhappy with their body... look at the media. Anyway, despite my dislike for what it has done, I like the skill and have been working on it in hopes to be able to use it (to a certain extent) for certain portraits and brides. My latest is linked here. You see the after photo and by rolling your mouse over the photo, you will see the before. Let me know what you think.

Anyway, that's all I got. I have a wedding to shoot this weekend and we are also throwing Kelly and our friend Jennifer a joint birthday party... should be LOADS of fun. I'm pretty excited. Hope you guys have a great weekend!