Smart and blue

Sometimes the world takes you places you don't want to go, no matter how well you've planned the trip.

Billie Holiday

[Portrait of Billie Holiday, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Feb. 1947] (LOC), originally uploaded by The Library of Congress.

The Library of Congress has a great Golden Age of Jazz set of images available now on flickr. Great stuff!

Can't find my way back home

You've stopped praying for a better tomorrow,
you're eyes shed no more tears of sorrow....

Hope is an unemployment check,
dreams dying, the world a wreck....

Roll the dice

Chance reflected in blue...

Big Catch

This was just one of those things that I HAD to photograph. It captures the essence of the area, fish and fishing.

That'll be the day

Hard work and luck will take you further in life than talent alone...

Blue and Red

It kept us moving from place to place...

Google Chat

I've been having the oddest issue with Google Chat lately.... I can't see my chat list on my iGoogle main page. I can see it in Gmail, just not on the main page. I don't have this issue on my computer at work, just my computer at home.

As best as I can tell, this issue began when I updated Firefox (which I haven't done at work). I've posted the issue on both the Google and Firefox forums. I've yet to get an answer, but when I do, I'll share that info.

It seems like such a small issue, but I've grown to love Google Chat.... So, when it's not on my main page, it's like losing an old friend.

If anyone is having the same issue and found a solution, let me know. In the meantime, I guess I'll just keep searching for an answer and hope to resolve this soon.

Update: 8/1/2010 - for reasons unknown, my Google Chat list reappeared, and fixed itself.

Rear View

The fog was a blessing, providing some nice, soft, even light...

The best laid plans

Why is it that we must always cater to the lowest common denominator? A lot of time and effort goes into web development, which seems to be continually undermined by Microsoft and their inferior browser.... It gets infuriating.

My advice to Microsoft.... if you can't keep up, get out of the way!

There's a reason why Firefox (and others) are eating Internet Explorer for lunch....

Morning Light

Morning doesn't always bring sunshine and singing birds. Along the coast it often brings fog, especially during the summer. You just have to make due with what nature offers.

at the edge

I know that the horse is at the edge of the frame, but for some reason I really like this shot.

I was shooting at really fast shutter speeds (1/3200) to capture the action. This meant that I had to crank up the ISO to 1250. Makes for a bit of a grainy shot....

Just trying some new things, folks...

as the day begins

You just never know where events are going to take you.

Getting there

The journey is just as important as the destination.

Empty Dock

The world became suddenly still with the setting sun.

Sweet Summer Moments

Land's end and words fail the occasion.

As if nothing matters

In that moment... she was.

Wild Color

I took advantage of the opportunity to go back and shoot the cancan dancers. Even though they posed, the harsh summer sun proved too much for my fill flash.

After the recovery

It doesn't take much to see that the economy is still on the skids. As I drove around yesterday, each street had something new to offer up to the crop of businesses never to return.

Broken dreams fill nameless streets... mile after mile after mile.

They Dance

Every year there's a local French Festival (though it looks like this could be the last one) and one of the main events is dancing. Ballroom, tango, and, yep you guessed it, cancan.

The dancing takes place on a very crowded stage that is partially tented so that the audience can have some shade.

Needless to say, due to the extreme contrasts from the shade and bright July sun, the dancing is difficult to photograph.

This year I tried using flash, it helped some, but I'm not happy with the results.

Summer Clouds

It's been ages since I've been able to break out of urban captivity. Circumstances don't allow for much real freedom lately, so when the opportunity came up to spend a day in the mountains I took it.

Nature, solitude, and summer rains can do wonders. They clear the mind and stir the soul.

State of Failure

California isn't going to recover anytime soon, in fact, the state is completely ignoring the economic crisis that it created for itself.

The State has been sinking into the abyss for years. My advise to the rest of the nation, don't do as California has done.

Things are getting worse... If the State is expecting a bailout.... let's hope the answer is NO!

Obsticles

Sometimes the things in our way look harder to get around than they really are.

Strong Foundation

Our family and friends are the foundation upon which we build our lives.

Media Spin

We've become a culture that likes to punish success, and I'm tired of it. I'm not buying into the hype that the new iPhone is a faulty product and needs to be recalled.

There are over a million of these units out in the wild now, being used everyday. People are very happy with them. In fact, they love them.

I can't understand the media obsession. These things work, and they work well. End of story.

If you want to talk about failure, look no further than the old media and/or government.

It's sad when you think you make yourself important by tearing others down.

When the world makes sense

When the world makes sense,
you don't need words to explain things...

Under the Bridge

I've been swamped with distractions lately. Lots of things that need to get done, and once done should free up my time to get back to pursuing photography.

Take me away

down the back roads of my memory...

Blue Wheel

We moved through years, along roads of our own making....

Feeling Blue

You've changed so much,
your face in mine
as decades doubled,
a blurring of time,
I know not your reflection.
Roads grew bends,
that changed our direction.
Along our paths, we stumbled.

On the march

There's something about a parade the just says "Summer".

Coming Undone

I got some of my best fireworks shots ever this year, but they came at a price. A sore back.

There's no parking anywhere near the event. In fact, most of the streets are closed in the area. That means parking uptown and walking down to the place I wanted to shoot.

That's a little over a mile each way with a bunch of gear. Yours truly is no spring chicken, so I've been on the mend longer than expected.

But, really, having shots that I'm happy with make the effort worth it!

Old Ford

In this photo it's a little more obvious that I used a flash. You can actually see the driver, and detail in the wheel wells. Without the flash, those areas would be a lot darker. Now the question is: Does this improve the photo?

Big Wave

You just have to love that nice even light of an overcast day.

Red Vespa

It was very overcast during the parade, so I used my flash at full power to see if it would help with my images.

I think it did, and am glad I started using flash more. Now, I've just got to start doing off camera flash work.

Big Blast

I used the widest lens I have to shoot the fireworks. My intention was to capture the reflections of both the City and Fireworks on the water, so I started shooting horizontal.

This wasn't working out well. I felt that I had too much negative space, and they were shooting the fireworks very high in the sky. I wasn't capturing the whole display. I would soon have to switch to a vertical format to capture all of the light show.

All lies in jest

Ok, I managed to shoot another parade and fireworks display. There's only one more major event before summer is over. Time passes so quickly.

So goes the Nation

Happy Independence Day. As you can see by this photo from last year, here in California there isn't a lot interest in celebrating the founding of the nation.

I'll be photographing what I call "the parade no one goes to" and giving thanks for the freedoms we still have left to enjoy.

Lets hope the fog clears before the parade starts.

Making some noise

The parade gave me an opportunity to shoot people, an area that I need to improve in. Though you have to work quickly, the lesson is about learning to be aware of the light. What works, and what doesn't.

Light the skies

The next big challenge is photographing another parade and some fireworks.... that is if I can find a place to park...

Street Moves

I used to try and capture as little of the crowd in parade photos as I could. Unless you're in the middle of the street, this isn't an easy thing to do. My current thinking is that the crowds make a nice background and add to the context of the photo.