keeping up

It's not easy keeping up with kids at a birthday party. Even harder is shooting the party with a manual focus lens and no automatic exposure settings! I recently did this over the weekend but still came out with some great shots. I guess I still have a little edge over people with all automatic cameras. I wouldn't want to shoot like this all the time but it was a fun challenge.

my valentine

cutie pie

puzzle pro

my guys at work

a new lease on life

Not only did I get my camera back but I have been playing around with all the other lenses I have. It's amazing how going back to old stuff can give you a new perspective. I have always loved going back through old images to gain a new view on what images I first thought were outtakes. However, I've never gone back to old camera equipment (except maybe the 4x5 or my old Yashika Mat). I pulled out an old manual focus 50mm 1.8 lens and have been having a blast.


merrik's toys








baby girl clothes!

epic camera story

So, I finally got my camera back, fixed and in working order. It has been a long road of craziness. When I first dropped off my camera to be checked at Aperture Camera in Dana Point I had a bad feeling about things. A huge red flag was waving in front of me and I ignored it. Walking into the place I felt like I was back in the 80's. They even still had their Christmas card samples up!?
I waited 10 minutes in this tiny shop and called out for help to no avail. After 15 minutes or so of another customer and I waiting for help, someone else came in and went behind the counter to tell the owner we were there. He was sitting back there the whole time without a peep! Weird.
Then, 2 weeks later when I called about picking up my unfixed camera (after 3 follow up calls to just get the estimate), the owner yelled at me that he had crashed his car, had pneumonia and needed a break just before hanging up on me. Well, I am sympathetic to his pain but if you are in business, then you need to have someone fill in for you if you are sick and can't handle it any more. I finally got my camera back by plotting with the third party repairman to meet at Aperture and do the swap. I ended up taking my camera to Arcade Camera in San Clemente and everything was quick and smooth. A reminder to listen to your inner voice about those big red flags!!

a reason for everything

I finally figured out why I have been tortured lately by having my camera out of commission. The last week+ brought to light a lot of things I had been neglecting. Both my guys have been sick and it has given me the time to sit (literally sit holding Merrik in the chair for hours on end) and think about what it is about photography that keeps me coming back to it over and over for the last 20+ years. I also was forced to find new inspiration in the post production work which is my absolute favorite part of photography. The excitement has been like stepping back into the darkroom. I found some amazing ways to post process my work that has rejuvenated my existing work. My favorite thing is that I can reprocess images differently each time! Therein lies the real reason I could never be a commercial photographer or technician. I just can't bare the thought of reproducing the same image in the exact same way over and over! Here are a couple of ways I've given new life to my existing work...

original



reprocessed


original


reprocessed