Johnnyfuzzy | p h o t o g a l l e r y

2010-12-14T15:25:00.000-08:00

Guess who's back??? Me...and I brought along Gabe - from a year ago. He's walking now! Things have been pretty busy at work so photography has a taken a back seat. Look at this good lookin guy! These were taken at the beautiful Japanese gardens here.

Hello World! Meet Kahlil

2010-07-27T00:49:00.000-07:00

Not to forget Sienna who's taking tap classes

I don't think she's supposed to wear them outside.

Kahlil is Sienna's new brother. I got to hold him...I don't think I've ever held a baby that young before. I can't believe how big Sienna is now. Boy time flies, especially looking back at this blog. I messed up with the picture resizing and flickr has changed their hotlinking so this is what I came up with for now. More later :) zzzzz

Meet Alessandra!

2010-06-22T18:53:00.000-07:00

Mateus is lookin mighty handsome these days. Look at that smile!

Karen, Anand, Mateus, and now, Alessandra - turning out to be quite a handsome family going on here! If you look back at the archives I have a few pics of them when Mateus was a baby. Look at him now with his smile that brightens up the room. I'm doing my photo rounds in SoCal. Next up: a guest that's new to the world (hopefully).

Someone is a Master now!

2010-06-21T18:28:00.000-07:00

I have not updated this blog in like...forever. I'm back but without Internet for long so I'm going to post a few quickly. I can't take all the credit for this, since I took the pic but Anisa chose the layout and printed the announcement. Needless to say I am super proud :D

Bryana + Brian

2010-03-06T22:25:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of vertical shots of B+B. I've noticed that the more pictures I've taken, the less horizontal pictures I take. I love the top picture and would print it large and put it up somewhere on the wall but that's just me. I hear Costco has some good enlargements for cheap but I haven't tried it yet.

I've been renting the 70-200 lens for weddings but I'm starting to wish I had one for engagements. I'm going to have to invest in one in the future depending on my next gig or two. Unfortunately, they are super expensive and renting is not cheap either. The nice thing about lenses is that unlike cameras, they never really go obsolete. However, I am a big believer in having the right equipment. Speaking of which, this video has been circulating the photo blogs. My opinion after the video.

A lot of photographers have been siding with the photographer (naturally), but I'm going to have to go with Joe Brown with this one. I shot a few weddings using a low end Nikon d70s and go some great results with the right lenses, and Judge Brown knocks her for using entry level equipment, but bottom line is this woman isn't prepared for darker rooms. Not surprisingly, the pictures came out blurry etc. No one really cares about the equipment, true, as long as the pictures are awesome. In this case, they weren't. I don't think having professional equipment makes you take awesome pictures, but I've realized is that professional equipment is important (and expensive) because it's designed to take a beating and still work. For example, with the D3, I just focus on the pictures. I don't even think about the camera. All I know is it's going to do what I want it to do - no matter what the situation. If I drop it on concrete, I can pick it up and continue to shoot. Just my 2 cents. Also, buy insurance!

More Engagement Pics of B+B @ SD

2010-03-01T22:14:00.001-08:00

Lookin lovely

Brian was all smiles despite being exhausted from a test (he's in med school!)

B was a good sport for doing this. Brian actually had his foot on the scale but it only came out to 120! No diet necessary for the wedding, that's for sure.

This was at the end of the night

Here are a few more pics from last weekend in San Diego. I only posted a few horizontal shots because it takes several steps to post here to embed the pics. Blogger is not too great with their built-in pictures feature. The pictures come out like small thumbnails and you click to make them bigger. Also, this resizer program I use makes the pictures a little blurry but the full res ones are razor sharp. Anyway, enough technical complaints.

I was asked by my friend Ty (who I will be shooting some engagement shots as well) to participate in his wedding ... by text message! And I mean a mass text message to several people. Haha I guess this is a sign of the digital times. Hey, why not...I can quickly text him back with "busy". But...I didn't so I said yes. So in October I'll be sporting a tux again.

Back to the photos. From what I've worked on so far they have been coming out very nice. Thanks to the D3 and shooting RAW, they only need very minor retouching. Also thanks to B+B for having great teeth and skin, which makes my retouching a LOT faster. More soon...but I'll send them the stuff first so there's at least something to be surprised about. Stay tuned.

Bryana + Brian Preview

2010-02-27T14:24:00.000-08:00

Recreating this famous pose is harder than it looks!

I'm finally back and I brought along some goodies to share. I was in San Diego for a conference but luckily I managed to squeeze in some picture time with Brian and Bryana. Here is a preview of B and B's engagement pictures taken at the awesome Seaport Village in San Diego. The weather was gloomy but that's ok because the soft light made for some great pictures. I'll keep posting more soon.

Charlie

2010-01-19T20:22:00.000-08:00

Some Doggies

2010-01-05T23:51:00.000-08:00

Suzanne and Jennifer and their dogs. Charlie (chow chow) is getting up there in age so Suzy thought it would be nice to have some pictures. Being a big dog fan myself (thanks to Mochi and Cesar Millan the Dog Whisperer), I was excited to shoot these pictures. Some people seriously love their dogs - even more than other humans! Here are a few pics I've spruced up so far. It was a perfect day in Southern California to spend at the park. Then I get back to Texas and it's ccccold. There's a cold front coming in this week too. Going to be in the teens at night...yikes!

All is not bad though - I have hit the reset button so I'm ready to get back to work. I have a shiny new office (I'll take pics later) in a brand new building. The view is spectacular. I mean I can sit there and just stare. Surprisingly, I haven't gained any weight since my holiday binge. But I'm going to hit the gym again.

Lastly, big thumbs down to LAX. Monday was BUSY. I got to the airport an hour early and it was too late. The line went outside the sidewalk - I spent over an hour just getting to the security checkpoint. I had to pay $50 for a change of flight. It came with 2 "free" baggage check-ins. Whoop-dee.

Guess Who's Pregnant (again)?!!

2010-01-03T17:21:00.000-08:00

Guess who's pregnant again?!

This was Sienna's idea to sit at a bench

Someone was extremely excited about feeding ducks

Today is the last SoCal day, sniff. The weather was perfect, roughly 79 degrees, sunny and clear. Let's see...DFW, 39. Ouch. I took some doggie pics the other day too but I haven't had a chance to get to the pictures yet. So I think I'll work on a few on the plane. This is it for Sienna for the next few months.

First Post of the New Decade!

2010-01-02T11:46:00.000-08:00

This is how Sienna feeds ducks

Happy "twenty-ten" everyone! How better off to start off the new year than in sunny SoCal (73 degrees) taking pictures. And of course Sienna gets to be first...but she's about to share the attention in a few months ;) I'll post more soon. Later today I'm going to take some doggie pics. Speaking of doggie pics, you guys ever watch Dog Whisperer? Cesar Millan is awesome.

My only new years photo resolution is to take a photo trip somewhere where I round up my picture-lovin friends and head to a scenic place. That's going to be a tough task though getting everyone together. I'll try to take more pictures and be more active posting pics too.

San Francisco

2009-12-27T23:18:00.000-08:00

Fisherman's Wharf

The resizing program didn't do a good job with this one

I'm back in California this week - first a little visit to the bay area for a little break, now I'm back home in SoCal. Also, I went to watch Avatar in 3D - the 3D part was awesome...the movie itself was pretty good but way over hyped. I think my favorite movie I watched in 2009 was District 9. I'll catch Up in the Air soon. Can you believe the first decade of the 2000s is almost over??!! Insane! Coming soon, Sienna and a big surprise! I also uploaded a few more Gabey baby pics below.

More Gabey Baby!

2009-12-22T00:42:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd squeeze this post in before I take off to Cali. Next up are some more Sienna and doggies pictures. Oh, and San Francisco too!

I finally get to take a few days off. The last few months have been a marathon for me - just physically and mentally draining. I've been on a diet and doing more exercises but I haven't been sleeping as much as I should. Probably because I'm up late doing this haha.

Finally, I have been sold on shooting in RAW format. I'm not sure if I'm going to shoot a whole wedding with it, but I'm getting some razor sharp pictures right out of the camera. It takes longer to process and convert them but for small jobs I think it's the way to go...for now. I learn something new about photos every time I shoot. Much more soon - Merry Christmas everyone!

World, Meet Gabe!

2009-12-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

Mom, Dad, and Brother Ben

Move over Silas and Sienna, here comes the newest cute sensation to hit this blog, Gabe! He's only 7 weeks old and learning to smile. I wasn't going to post any pictures because I've been swamped lately but I couldn't help taking some time off for this. I'll be posting more pictures soon.

Also, this is the first time I've shot RAW (NEF) format and so far I really like it. I do notice the pictures are coming out crisp if I've done everything right. The bad news is that I don't think this lappy can hang with the 10MB pictures. I'll eventually need to get a more powerful machine with giant monitor. But that's later. Anyway, back to cute overload.

Some Christmas Family Photos

2009-12-05T21:23:00.000-08:00

Paige and Cody

Black and white version

Here's Pam (in the red) with her family plus Cody (next to her) and Maggie (the dog). This was the fastest, most freezing, photo shoot. Lasted about 5 minutes. I didn't do a good job with this shoot with the focusing and settings. A lot of pictures were blurry but it was getting pretty dark out there.

Christmas Tree Lighting @ TCU

2009-12-04T20:04:00.000-08:00

Frog fountain

This past week I fought the chilly weather and checked out the annual Christmas tree lighting at TCU. It was a big production, complete with Santa Clause coming in a carriage, reindeer, carolers, etc. This year they had it inside the courtyard area in front of the new student center. Also, our new building is nearly complete - behind the picture of the fountain. We get to move in in a few weeks, which means my trailer days are numbered.

Nat Geo Interional photo contest winners

2009-11-24T08:40:00.001-08:00

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/national_geographics_internati.html

I haven't blogged in a while but I stumbled upon these amazing pictures. I think there are probably two things that are important: being at the right place at the right time and having an "eye" or interesting perspective. Well I don't have anything new to update other than I have been very busy with my non-photo related work. I am thinking about writing something more in depth about moving from an amateur camera and lenses to pro gear and what that's like.

Thanksgiving is coming up, which means some good eating but for the life of an academic, it also means a good time for work. I'm going to catch the movie Ninja Assassin. Assassin is a funny word...anyway, enough rambling. I'll try to take some pictures of something or someone soon.

2009-10-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

"This cake is freakin good!!!"

The dance floor was bumpin to the sound of live music

Here are the reception pictures. Probably the hardest part to take pictures of because it's usually dark and you don't want to be flashing a bulb in people's faces all night long, especially when they're eating. The trick is to get the subjects well lit using your flash while not blacking out the ambient lighting. It's really cool when people use colored lights in the background. Here's where the little point and shoot cameras and cell phone cameras start to struggle. No worries though, I'm here to save the day.

On to more random stuff. I have discovered nature's crack cocaine - the highly addictive honeycrisp apple. No joke, these things are delicious. Unfortunately, I think I ate one that I might not have washed thoroughly so yesterday my upper lip was FAT from some allergic reaction. I have like 8 more, so I'm going to wash them a little better and eat them. I take that back about them being from nature, because they were actually created at the University of Minnesota using some cross mojo-nation. Anyway, they're in season so try some, seriously. Also, Halloween is almost upon us and I think I have the right costume. It will be a surprise of course (no, it is not halo or xbox related). It's more cool than funny - well I guess it could be funny if I'm wearing it. Anyway, more later.

This Picture Rules!

2009-10-15T22:14:00.000-07:00

For some reason I think this picture is one of the coolest pics I've ever taken. The retouching just worked by accident and I was like...wooahh coool! That guitar is just so cool. What's sad is as of now, the band is broken up because people are moving to different states and have other obligations etc. This was their second to last performance together. I'll post some pictures soon of the reception which includes the band.

Jeannine + Blake: Ceremony

2009-10-14T20:06:00.000-07:00

The special moment

One outside

I'm trying different Photoshop effects these days - hopefully they don't look TOO processed. I don't like it when people overdo the retouching. At the same time, when you don't do anything to the pictures, they look a bit plain. Anyway, I screwed up on one part of the wedding: I accidentally turned off the image stabilization (VR) on my lens and a lot of important pictures, like walking to the front, were blurry :( The image stabilization makes a HUGE difference. Fortunately, I blasted away a ton of shots so a few of them were in focus. I guess that's my tip - take as many pictures as you can since they're free. That's the beauty of digital photography.

Also, it looks like my camera, after 2 years of service, is no longer the top dog camera as it is being replaced by a slight upgrade, the 3Ds. It has an insane ISO of over 100,000. A lot of people are whining that the video is only 720p. Here are my thoughts on video on a DSLR: it is a good feature to have on the side. The key is, it's on the side. Personally, when I take pictures, I'm not thinking about video or anything like that. I wouldn't imagine fussing over trying to take both pictures and video. Maybe if I were the second shooter, I might. But to me, it's really not a big deal at all just because I'm not a huge fan of wedding videos. To me, the camera has to take the best pictures possible and everything else is just bonus as long as it does affect picture taking. But that's just me. Anyway, I'll probably post a couple more then find something else to post on.

The ladies of the wedding

2009-10-13T19:29:00.000-07:00

My next post are the actual ceremony, then followed by the reception.

Earlier tonight I went to a this meetup group called "the photographer's edge". It was pretty interesting. I have never been to a photography thing so it was cool chatting up photo stuff. They were talking about extension tubes and tripods - two things I never use. I just don't do that type of photography to find them useful. They brought some pretty fancy stuff there - like $700 tripods!

Also, in some super exciting news, Polaroid is bringing back their film!! One of my favorite cameras I own is a Polaroid that does instant prints. They discontinued the film - you know, the type where you shake it like a Polaroid picture - but they're bringing it back. Here's the news story

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/techchron/detail?&entry_id=49511

More soon :)

Jeannine + Blake = Married!

2009-10-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

Fall colors was the theme

Open bar all night, featuring the delicious "Blannine"

Other than a minor broccoli incident, Jeannine was all smiles

Blake hanging out with the band before getting ready

Looking good, Blake

I shot Jeannine and Blake's wedding last night at the awesome Fort Worth Community Arts Center. I have a ton of pics but here are just a few I've touched up. It's pretty awesome getting married inside a museum - my cousin had hers in the courtyard of one also. They're always so classy and not over-the-top cheesy. Last night was no exception - but it was fun also. The band was great and I was really impressed by the string musicians playing as they walked down the aisle, who were pretty much all former students of Blake's.

I haven't even scratched the surface in terms of pictures - I think there are over 2,000. I haven't even gotten them all off the memory cards yet. Check back often as the pictures trickle on to the blog. I hope they're good, I'm a little rusty taking pictures.

Lisa + Rob

2009-09-25T00:26:00.000-07:00

Lisa is about a couple weeks away from a brand new baby boy! You bet I'll be there (a la Sienna) periodically to document the many "firsts." Anyway, husband Rob is very excited also. That is going to be one brainy baby - Rob is an economist and Lisa an anthropologist.

I have been not taking pictures for a little while but hopefully I'll be back soon. October 10 is Jeannine and Blake's wedding so it won't be too long :) Hopefully it will stay bright longer but Fall is definitely creeping in. It's been pretty chilly here lately but I have a feeling Summer weather has one last heat wave before being banished.

Anyway, I've been busy with school in full swing. I'm moved in to my new place. I lost around 10-15 lbs thanks to eating less and some exercise. My little Asia trip was the fattest point in my life. Well, that's it for now..more soon.

Jeannine + Blake = Engaged

2009-07-29T20:26:00.000-07:00

Someone's pretty photogenic (also)

Slightly subtle glow effect

Last week I shot Jeannine and Blake's engagement photos at the museum district in scenic Fort Worth (Yes, it really is beautiful). The weather, which has ranging from crazy hot to warm and humid, gave us a break between the rain. The wedding will be in October and yours truly will be taking the pics :) It feels nice to take pictures of people again after all the scenic stuff.

Some Hong Kong Randomness...

2009-07-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

I snuck and took this inside the Louis Vuitton art gallery...the secret is to take the pic, plead ignorance, and apologize.

There were a lot of dog walkers near The Peak.

One of my several self portraits - the secret is a wide angle lens.

The chaos that is HK at night.

Words to describe the city are raw and untamed (I read this somewhere else and it was the perfect description). It's just a mass of humanity, for better or worse. It's not for the faint of heart, that's for sure. Compared to Singapore, it's the stark opposite. Singapore, while urban, is clean and orderly. I wouldn't go as far as to call it sterile, but it is very organized and packaged. I'll post more random pictures soon. Both places share one thing in common though, which is that if you're a photo-lover or photographer, these places are dreams. Night photography, landscape, urban, people, colors...both places have it all. I have fulfilled one of my goals to print one of my pictures, blow it up, frame it, and put it on my wall :) Also, I'll be moving very soon to my new "crib." It's a brand new, modern apartment that is in a great location and has a very urban-modern style, which I love. Very loft-like.

Also, new wedding booked. Engagement pics next week. Also Vegas pics. Much more soon.

Hong Kong Avenue of the Stars

2009-07-09T10:48:00.000-07:00

I went to the Avenue of the Stars to check out the skyline of Hong Kong Island. The skyline of course was the star, but there are lots of things there. Basically it's the Hollywood walk of fame for HK film stars, like Bruce Lee. There were a lot of stars but among them are Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. I finally found the Bruce Lee statue and also went to the Museum there, which featured Louis Vuitton stuff from his bags to architecture. Surprisingly it was really cool.

2009-07-08T12:29:00.000-07:00

Getting dark..

Darker...

That's it!

It's just one spectacular view after another these days. This is the world's greatest skyline, bar none. Of course I'm talking about the breathtaking view of Hong Kong from The Peak. Just simply amazing. I muscled my way to the absolute best location at the very edge. This was the roof of a structure that was pay-to-access. The people there had some serious photography gear, with pro cameras, lenses and tripods. I saw a Canon 5DM2 and some other really nice cameras. But I think I managed just fine without the tripod :)

Hong Kong Victoria Harbor

2009-07-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

A view of the harbor from Avenue of the Stars. There was a light and music show.

This is my panoramic shot. It's giant - I'm going to figure out how to post this.

Hong Kong is a completely different beast than Singapore. HK is a bustling jam-packed nitty-gritty city whereas Singapore is a clean, modern, sterile environment. Both have their charm (and great food). I was in awe of the skyline in HK and I went to town with the D3. I shot all this without a tripod and we caught a light/music show. There was a full moon; just the perfect evening except for the weather of course, which was hot and muggy. I'll post more tomorrow but post this one under favorites.

Singapore @ Night: Skyline + Happy 4th!

2009-07-05T07:45:00.000-07:00

I took a little boat ride along the river - typical tourist trap - but I didn't expect to see this! The ride intertwined through the business district, giving a spectacular sight of the buildings. It was lit up very nicely at night and the weather was much cooler. I just had a field day snapping away. I felt kinda bad for the rest of the people who had point-and-shoot cameras. They were the nice models but I could tell they were struggling while I snapped away at ISO 3200 and 6400. As you can see, the images are very clean - and I'm not even a very good landscape photographer. (People, just invest in a DSLR and a couple of nice lenses, you won't regret it!) The beautiful scenery made it a little too easy. I might just blow one of these up and hang it on my wall. Next up is Hong Kong, which I know has a breathtaking skyline - it is so on. It was definitely worth lugging around the equipment and I'm glad I brought my D3 instead of the much lighter and portable D70s - it's a great camera, but it can't really hang at night with max ISO 1600 coming out grainy.

Anyway, Singapore is great. The only bad is the weather. But oh well, can I really complain coming from Texas??!! Also, happy 4th of July everyone (albiet one day late). I did get to catch some fireworks but I don't think it was for the US holiday, just something they do on the weekends here. No fireworks pics this year on this blog unfortunately, but you can look in the archives at last year's.

More Singapore

2009-07-04T08:58:00.000-07:00

Along the river - I recommend taking the boat at night.

Hindu temple at night

Hanging outside of a Buddhist temple

Some nice colors at an outdoor market in Chinatown

One of my favorite shots from one of the temples - just a very cool angle

Inside of the temple

Our conference is over so now it's mostly vacation mode. Singapore loves their cameras. There are a TON of camera stores and Canon/Nikon advertisements on the buses. Lots of people walking around with their DSLRs and fat lenses, including yours truly - although I try to be really descrete by sticking it back in my bag quickly. The good thing is I don't look out of place with my camera. Earlier this evening I shot some awesome night shots that I can't wait to process and post. Speaking of processing, notice I haven't posted any black and whites? That's because this place is so colorful and vibrant (some may argue sterile) but it's great for scenic pictures. My only complaint is the weather, but other than that it's a very charming place. Some more pictures soon that are way better than these.

Singapore @ Night

2009-07-02T02:31:00.000-07:00

A view from the hotel pool deck. Lights reflecting off the river.

Chinatown

My baby (the D3) and I are in Singapore this week. Here are a few night shots. I will have much more later.

Put Your Own Captions

2009-06-18T00:47:00.000-07:00

"What? Pictures, noooo I'm much too shy."

"You see, bees are important by pollinating ..."

"You talkin to me? Are you talkin to me???!!"

"See, in modeling school I learned that if I pull the flowers down to my head and smile I look cuter."

I'm back in the heat of Texas. I go in my apartment and look at the termostat and it's 90 degrees (f). I head out to Singapore and Hong Kong in July, then Vegas. Busy summer, but it's for both work and play. I'll try to bring my D3 but man, lugging that thing around is a pain. It's like carrying a 7 lb bag everywhere. I still need to buy a little camera to take everywhere.

Sienna + Me (+ Susy)

2009-06-16T11:28:00.000-07:00

Sienna was all business -- until we tickled her.

These poses were all Sienna's idea

Sienna hugged my (fat) head - that's how she does it

I finally got a chance to visit Susy, Kris and Sienna yesterday before I head back to the oven. Sienna is a ball of fun and I rarely get in front of the camera but she was just too cute. When we took out the camera, she immediately went on a supermodel pose-down all over the yard. She even started directing everything and everyone, including Opus (the dog). Haha ! she is growing up way fast! I wish I were around more.

I'm going to do some international travel in July so I'll try to bring my camera.

Mochi

2009-06-12T00:58:00.000-07:00

Fort Worth Zoo + Photoshop

2009-04-29T14:23:00.000-07:00

Miniature lioness?

Toy mandrill baboon??

Nope, these are all real using a fake tilt-shift effect on photoshop I found out how to do on youtube. It's just a little lens blur effect. Anyway, these pics were taken at the Fort Worth Zoo about a month ago using my old trusty D70s. The FW Zoo by the way is awesome. I would say quality-wise, it's better than the San Diego wild animal park. I know, that's a pretty bold statement but it's a very well funded and maintained zoo. My favorite part is this aviary full of parakeets - you go in there and buy a stick with some seeds attached. The birds just flock to you and start eating the seeds standing on the stick. Just really awesome.

I Switched to Canon!

2009-04-25T16:30:00.001-07:00

Behold! I've ditched the D3 for the Canon 5d Mark II. 21 Megapixels and HD video goodness.

Just kidding! This is AC's new baby sitting in my Optima hard case and Nikon gear. No, I'm keeping my D3 for it's sheer awesomeness. He brought this over when I was in SoCal so I got a chance to play with it. My first impression is that it is incredible. The picture quality is crisp and the amount of details surpasses my D3. He got a nice vertical grip with it, along with the 16-35mm L lens and the 85 1.8 (he went shopping!).

Anyway, I haven't bought any gear yet but I did finally clean my D3 sensor and got rid of a speck of dust that was bugging me. I'm still in the lookout for a nice small camera. In the meantime, taking pictures with my ooold Canon Sd500 with a broken screen is a bummer. I don't know how I can drop thousands of dollars in professional gear but am too cheap to get a cheapy point and shoot.

Also, there is this awesome kids choir called PS22. Check them out!

Any

Holy Crap! An Update!

2009-04-22T23:29:00.000-07:00

A little blue tone for ya

*blows dust off the blog* Hi again to the one or two people who check this photo blog. Here are a couple of pictures of Anisa's brother Nason and his lady friend Emmy. This was during their annual craw-fest. My lappy was out for service (again) so I didn't have access to photoshop. I got a new HP netbook but that thing doesn't have the horsepower to do any photo editing. So now I'm back. I'll post some family pictures in a few days when I get a chance to shop em.

Update: The last picture is new :)

Boston

2009-03-16T21:59:00.000-07:00

The famous Harvard Law School.

Really awesome architecture at MIT - it was like toon town or something.

Cool reflection

This picture sums up Boston: A modern city with a lot of history

We went to see the USS Constitution and another ship next to it that was more modern.

Cool reflections

I took a little trip to Boston for work last weekend and took my busted up SD500 with me. I'm in desperate need of a little camera these days. I'll probably get either another Canon or a Casio. Anyway, I really enjoyed the city, which has a little bit of everything - history, good food, public transportation (something CA & TX needs badly), great bars etc. I'd love to go back and experience more East-coast charm. Also, I've been neglecting my blog lately but I am in CA this weekon Spring break which means I'll take a little time to shoot some stuff with my big camera.

Rate My Space!

2009-01-17T15:59:00.001-08:00

Pretty exciting day for me. After 6 long months of living in a virtually empty apartment, I have finally (semi) furnished the place. Today, Room and Board delivered my super comfy Dublin couch (my criteria was a couch I can nap on) and two chairs all the way from Minnesota. I have been trying to assemble a “classic contemporary” look with big comfy furniture and combination dark earthy colors (You can tell I’ve been watching HGTV). What you see in the picture is a leaning desk from Room and Board, a coffee table and desk chair from West Elm…and I think that’s it. Plus my bike in the living room.

What I still need is a TV of course, TV stand, bed frame, a small side table, some leaning shelves, and some accent pillows and that’s pretty much it. I don’t want to over-furnish the place to keep things nice and simple. Apparently this place will serve as the new low budget happy hour and “man cave” for some friends around here who need to escape the wife and kids.

Test Post Using Windows Live Writer

2009-01-13T21:37:00.001-08:00

I’m trying out Microsoft’s Windows Live Writer that can edit and format an the major blogs including blogger. So far I have to say that I’m impressed at the ease. I don’t need to do a 2 stage process of first uploading a pic to flickr and then embedding it using html editor on blogger. This is just a one step process that even has some cool special effects like this reflection…even a watermark. How cool is that? Thank Khiemy for the recommendation.

This picture is of Lily, my friend Chip’s daughter I took on Halloween. It’s not the most technically the best photo due to the wrong focus area. It was done on my old pal the D70s. Speaking of which, that’s the same camera Jeff got. So yup, that was really easy…so easy I almost want to post another picture. You know what, I think I will actually!Me @ the Modern Art Museum | Ft. Worth, TX Summer, 2008

*Presses the Easy button. Bam! How you like that?! Very cool. I can even crop, resize, and add some effects like sepia ton. If I didn’t have so many archived pics on Flickr I’d cancel it. But oh well… This thing can even embed video too but only low res. I’m still looking a WMV to MP4 or other HD res file compatible with Youtube’s High Quality mode. Doh! Where are the Blogger tags? I guess you can’t do it all here. Oh well still impressed….OH WAIT…they show it right before you publish. Ok this thing rules.

UPdate: ok the first picture is pixelated and I can't get it to be not pixelated. So much for being cool. Boooo!!!

2009-01-12T21:49:00.000-08:00

This picture of me and Khiemy cracks me up - we were in goofy moods. It was taken when I was back home after our group ate at Lucille's in Brea. Come to think of it...we shared the dinner...then this picture. What is going on here?!!

Just to mention photos - I've noticed that more and more people are buying some nice DSLR cameras, which is great. They usually ask me which one to buy and my answer is:

1. Stick with Canon or Nikon because there are a huge selection of lenses and accessories that are easily available, ranging from beginner's stuff to high end fancy stuff.

2. If your budget is under $1000, get a Canon Rebel __. It has great picture quality and is compatible with all the new Canon lenses. The Nikons D40/60 can't use older mechanical lenses.

3. If your budget is between $1000-$2000, get a Nikon. Big high resolution screens and manual controls built for serious photographers will allow you to learn your camera, making the next step up very easy. I was very comfortable with the D3 after the D70s.

4. $2000 and up - either brand is great. At this point, it's really your own skill rather than the camera that's limiting you.

Finally, I will say that the camera only matters so much and having a nice one makes your life a little easier. Unfortunately, having the best camera without the knowledge or artistic sense will lead to boring pictures, even if they are sharp. The best pictures technically don't necessarily mean good pictures. Some of my favorite pics are grainy, a little out of focus...it's ok as long as people find it interesting. Anyway, that's my 2 cents! More soon.

Retouching

2009-01-07T22:40:00.000-08:00

Someone's mom was asking where her picture was so I had to throw one in there. But to make things interesting, this is a little before and after action. What I did was a little cross processing, added a border, and sharpened a little. I was going for a cooler look. There are many ways to make a picture have that special look. Images coming out of Nikon cameras tend to underexpose a little bit and under-sharpen. This allows me to tweak these things and bring out the detail. For variety, I like to do some photos in black and white, with a bluish tint, sepia etc. Lots of photo purists don't appreciate the photoshop work but I definitely support it as long as it's not overdone.

Anyway, I'm back at the ranch and I noticed that I'm constantly missing being at the other place. When I was back in Socal I missed Texas believe it or not and vice versa. I really need to make some time to get the photo stuff started here...that'll be my project for the next month.

A Trip to the P-A-R-K with Sienna

2009-01-05T01:27:00.000-08:00

Someone has been taking a lot of pictures while I was away.

Sienna has grown quite a bit since I last took some pics of her. This time she's running around, jibba jabba'in away, climbing on stuff and just being all around hyper. We took a quick trip to the park to play and she was workin the camera by smiling on que. Looks like back to Texas in a couple days which shows a freezing rain advisory right now :( But I do miss the folks over there so it'll be nice to get back.

Happy 2009 Everybody!

2009-01-04T11:50:00.000-08:00

My friend Neha was pregnant! She's due in 6 weeks.

AC, me, and Jenny (AC's official girlfriend)

Me hanging out with the Pinoys Phil and Jeff.

Me, Mochi, 3 months without a haircut, and a week without shaving.

Anisa visiting the stockyards - that's a real longhorn.

I've been gone for a while and judging from the number of posts I posted in 2007 versus 2008, I'm down around 50% - which is not good. Anyway, last night I attended Elisa's wedding (Yes, I'm back in California) and it was very strange seeing all the people I've lost touch with in college. Everyone was looking great - but it reinforced a couple of things: I am getting old and I have a fat face and double chin. As the cliche goes, it's back to the gym for this year's resolution. Also, these were taken with my good ol broken screen Canon SD500. People don't realize how important the LCD screen is - one time I went a whole day taking pictures to only realize afterward that I didn't put a memory card in there :(. Plus it's a guessing game on how much battery you have left and frankly, it's quite embarassing handing it off to people to take pictures because they can only aim it in the general direction. So definitately a new camera in 2009 - I'm looking at the black SD990 but I need to save up first.

A little look back on 2008

The Good: I had an excellent year rebounding from 2007, which was the worst year ever. Finally graduating, getting a job and moving to Texas, getting the D3 and shooting a wedding, gaining new friends, my friends are all doing well, no one that I know is sick, getting a great deal on a washer/dryer....probably more.

The Bad: Moving to Texas and missing home and all my people, fewer blog posts...hmmm nothing major, so yea...2008 ftw!

The Ugly: Stepping on my glasses and continuing to wear them with tape nerd style for a couple of months. (See pic above)

I'm heading over to Sienna's house later today so definitely more pictures soon.

Merry Christmas and Barb Extravaggannzzzaaa!!!!

2008-12-25T22:36:00.000-08:00

This is an old timey effect.

Getting the vows ready.

I really love this relaxed pic.

Merry Christmas everybody! I'm back in So Cal for a couple weeks after a whirlwind of last minute work...which is still ongoing, a lot of it. Like Vanilla Ice so eloquently asked: Will it ever stop? Yo, I don't know. During the plane ride back I finished some work early so I spent a little time fixing up some pics, so far I have around 75 retouched. Anyway, here are some more pictures of Barb - I hope she's not sick of seeing herself. I must apologize to Mike, Barb got most of the attention that day :)

I missed being back .. I brought my big camera back so I'll be making my rounds while I'm back and if I'm not too busy. Also exciting news - I have some fast Internet again thanks to AT&T DSL back at my apartment. Shhh...I'm supposed to have crappy DirecPath cable which is sloooooow. I mean 56k modem slow. Also, I'm finally buying furniture while I'm back and having it shipped to the ranch - a couch, couple of chairs, couple of shelves maybe. After I get that paid off, then it's TV time :) I'm hoping to have the "man cave" completed before I post some pictures of it. Well that's my life for now without going into detail.

More pics (that's not of Barb+Mike) soon.

2008-12-03T22:16:00.000-08:00

Today was the lighting of the Christmas tree here at TCU - which is a HUGE deal. A few hundred people showed up in the cold (it drops into the upper 30s at night this week) and were treated a cool lighting complete with music and light show. TCU loves celebrating being TCU. Anyway, just a couple of quick snaps. It was way too crowded and cold to get anything that great or to tweak camera settings. I can't believe this year is almost over!!

Ray Bradbury's All Summer in a Day

2008-11-30T21:03:00.000-08:00

Part 1 of 3

Part 2 of 3

Part 3 of 3

I stumbled across this Ray Bradbury short story "All Summer in a Day" short film that I watched in grade school. I've been looking for it for a long time. These are the 3 parts that are incredible and definitely something you should add to your cultural literacy.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving - I was stuffed. I went over to my chair's house for some turkey dinner with all the fixins. I fixed up a few more shots of the wedding and I should be posting that very shortly. Also, it is beautiful here in Texas - believe it or not - there are a lot of fall colors and nice leaves. I might have to take my camera out this week.

2008-11-24T23:14:00.000-08:00

Awesome decor. Very classy.

Lake Arrowhead was absolutely beautiful that day.

A few more shots trickling in. I've been super busy and out of town last week but I'm looking forward to thanksgiving. I shoot all my reception shots using just one lens: The 16-35mm 2.8 which gives me a great wide angle when used on the D3. What I really want to get are some pocket wizards to do some remote lighting shots. Nikon's Creative Lighting System simply does not have the range to do what I want so I end up hauling my light stand setup for unreliable shots.

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm going to take some new shots soon - there are a few cute little girls here I have to shoot.

Wedding Weekend Edition

2008-11-01T00:36:00.000-07:00

Lake Arrowhead Spa and Resort all decked out

Mike waiting for his new wife

A little black and white artsy action

Christine, Barb and Dana all dolled up.

Beatrice, Barb's sister getting ready.

I hope Barb doesn't mind me posting of pic of her in rollers.

Trick or treat!!??!! Anyway, more pictures as I spend a little time each day fixing up a few. These are just in random order. I just pick out whatever catches my eye. I'll post some before and after shots soon so you can see what a big difference some digital retouching can make, especially with the colors and that "wow" factor that I strive for. It's going to be a few days for the next update because I got a lot of stuff to do this weekend that's non-photo related. More then.

Oooo La La

2008-10-28T22:46:00.000-07:00

Dana requested VERY little makeup in the morning from the makeup artist Jeanne. I asked her why and she said that's not her thing - she's not very fussy. I can see why, she doesn't need any!

Barb looking incredible.

I love the lighting in this shot. File this under Johnny's favorites.

I'm back from Houston, which is a great city but reminded me of LA in terms of traffic. I went to the River Oaks Country Club for a meeting and that place and the surrounding area is RICH. I'm talking about mansions and estates that were built in the late 1800s/early 1900s. They look like something out of Casablanca. I can imagine looking out on the 3rd floor "green room" seeing a plantation outside.

Anyway, here are some more pictures. I often think after a shoot that I nailed it then I'll look at the pictures afterward on my computer and think they're pretty terrible...then after a few more looks I'll pick out a few with potential ones I can work with. Then I'll start liking them again...then I'll find some gems I missed earlier. These are it. Again, it's really easy when you have good looking people like Barb and Dana, a beautiful place like Lake Tahoe, and some perfect evening lighting with perfect weather conditions :)

More Wedding Pictures

2008-10-25T09:27:00.000-07:00

A view from the DJ booth - Kyle Brown of Good Time Entertainment

The picture-perfect Lake Arrowhead backdrop. The weather was perfect.

Ring time. This was an old-timey faded effect.

Here comes the bride!

Mike with best man Travis.

I really miss the clean crisp mountain air of Lake Arrowhead. It was just a picture perfect day - just a week earlier it was foggy and overcast. The resort itself, Lake Arrowhead Resort and Spa, reminded me of the California Grand Hotel in Disneyland. It was woodsy and warm while modern and luxurious. Just an awesome place. Anyway, it was just a fun day and personally, I think the pictures turned out great thanks to some good lookin people in a beautiful place. I need to get the ball rolling in Texas and start booking some weddings here. Once I'm done with these photos, I'll put together a little video slideshow for the blog. More soon.

Update: http://goodtime.ca/testimonials/MichaelandBarbaraHeyman/

Check out this linky link. It's Barb and Mike's wedding page from the DJ Kyle. It's got a great song sang by their friend Molly Gutman that was recorded live at the wedding. Very cool.

B+M Wedding - More Pics

2008-10-22T21:27:00.000-07:00

Awesome soft natural lighting during my favorite time of the day to shoot.

The train.

Barb changed into a red Chinese dress for the reception. This was the first dance.

I frequently peruse through wedding photography sites and blogs looking for some good tips and styles but I would say over half of the stuff out there is borderline crap, very expensive crap. Personally, I think anything associated with weddings is a ripoff and that includes the pictures.

Anyway, enough of my rant. I must give credit to the D3 which was an absolute pleasure to work with (besides the weight). It worked like a champ in low light and I love the colors. I haven't shot a wedding with it before but I was very confident the pictures would turn out nice and if it didn't, I can't blame the camera. Even though it makes my life a lot easier, I still have a lot to learn about photography. I'll trickle more pictures soon.

B + M: Part 2

2008-10-20T20:48:00.000-07:00

Barb looking radiant.

Believe it or not, Mike doesn't think he looks good in pictures.

Just a very cool spy shot and effect reminicent of Gene Hackman's "The Conversation"

On to the ceremony. Emotions were running high - in the high resolution picture you can see tears...notice the tissue ready for Barb...just in case.

My absolute favorite shot of the entire wedding. I love the fall colors.

The moment.

Yep...it's official.

Some alone time after the ceremony.

It was party time after dinner.

*out of breath* I'm back in Texas. Congrats to Mike and Barb who have been together for 11 years??!! It was nice to get some fresh air up in the mountains and to bust out my camera for once. Hopefully these pictures captured the mood because both Mike and Barb and a lot of guests were just overwhelmed by emotion. It was incredible. Also, during the reception - I've never seen a wedding people party so hard! They even had drinking games! Awesome. Anyway, more pictures to come when I get time to fix some more up. There's a huge problem: I have waaaay too many picture (itchy trigger finger + 9fps sports camera = ??? GBs of pics)

Barb + Mike = Married !! (Part 1)

2008-10-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

She was definitely having a good hair day thanks to Jeanne San Diego of Sexy Graffiti Hair and Makeup

Some detail shots.

A quick glimpse of the bride.

Mike was looking great.

This is a tiny preview of Barb and Mike's wedding yesterday. It was a gorgeous day in Lake Arrowhead, California. Speaking of gorgeous, Barb was looking incredible and so was Mike as you can see by the pictures. I have a TON of pictures to get through before I can even think about retouching them. These were some that caught my attention that I wanted to spruce up. I'm pretty busy these days so the pictures will be trickling to the blog. Stay tuned - the blog drought is over.

My Yearbook Photos

2008-10-12T21:15:00.000-07:00

This was the 1990s. It was good time in my life. I was listening to Vanilla Ice and NKOTB, wearing Cross Colors T-shirts with my Cavaricci pants and rockin the step cut. 90210 was my favorite show...fo sho.

I gained a little weight in the 1980s. It wasn't cool to love computers back then but you know me, I'm always a rebel.

The 1970s were a time I was trying out different styles, something a little more flamboyant.

This is kind of how I look now. Going for that real professional look like back in the 50s.

Anyway everyone, sorry about the haitus. Things are just getting settled here with my new job, new apartment, new everything pretty much. I haven't had time to devote to photography but that will end next week when I shoot Barb and Mike's wedding. So that means a quick trip back to So Cal. While I love it here in Fort Worth, I do miss some of the good cultural eats. Once I get settled and create my "man cave," I'll post some pictures. I still need a couch, TV, TV stand, bed frame, washer and dryer...the list goes on.

Thanks to Tu for discovering this awesome yearbook thing - I almost died laughing. I might have to pick one for my Facebook page. I can't believe how much time I spent on this post. This is ridiculous.

A TON of new pictures next week after the wedding. It's gonna be sweet.

More Dallas Pics

2008-08-31T20:33:00.000-07:00

So I went out with my Texas friends, Michael and his wife Tu to Dallas yesterday at the Kennedy Memorial District in the Historic West End. I brought my camera and snapped a few pictures. Using my old D70s was having some problems focusing with water in front so I got a lot of blurry pics. We ended up at an anime convention at this hotel lobby which was awesome. There were so many people in cosplay but my favorite was Arcee from transformers - coolest cosplay ever.

A Cool Pic from Dallas

2008-08-31T00:16:00.000-07:00

I've been bad with the picture taking but I've been very busy with non-photo related stuff. I got a chance to go to Dallas earlier today so I brought along my trusty D70s. I took more pictures than this but I must say, I've been spoiled by the incredible results of the D3 so it took a little more retouching to get them up to standard. I can't believe I shot a wedding with the D70s and got some good results. It's definitely showing its age with the noise level and dynamic range. More soon when I fixed them up.

Big News!

2008-08-13T00:13:00.000-07:00

Ok forget the picture, I just threw that in there for the heck of it. As most of my friends know, I've relocated to Fort Worth, Texas (you may have noticed on my sidebar -->) I have put down the camera (for now) to attend to some pressing matters in my new job at TCU. I even got my own office and everything. Speaking of places, I got my own sweet crib - I'll post some pictures when it gets a little more furnished. It's a bit bare right now.

Well, I do miss California...A LOT, but this place is really charming. It was a very tough decision moving to Texas since I had some options in California, but TCU won me over. My only gripe - huge gripe - is the heat. I can't say I'm used to it but I try to stay indoors with the AC. Anyway, I'll have a bigger update later but I felt like this blog has been neglected. No worries, I'll be snapping away soon. Most of all, I really miss everyone at home but the good news is, this job allows me to have 4 months off during the year - where I'll be back in SoCal. Ill need to find some new people to shoot out here. More soon.

Evelyn and Kirk part 2

2008-07-27T18:41:00.000-07:00

Some pics taken at the San Gabriel Mission (a very popular place for pictures, but a little overrated). Once again, some awesome warm sunset lighting. The D3's focus tracking system worked flawlessly when they were walking. Anyway, this is my last post from Southern California.

2008-07-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

I love this shot.

The Science Library @ UCI

Barb sent me an email saying I'm too much of a tease with the photos. Yes, it's true, I've been purposely holding back posting all the photos I've retouched. Well, I hate to keep her in suspense, so as of this minute, these are all the photos I've done so far. More soon, but probably not tomorrow. (You aint from Russia, so why you Rushin?! :D I got that line from a cheesy someone - these take time people!)

B&M Engagement

2008-07-24T10:46:00.000-07:00

UCI

Engagement Part 3

2008-07-23T00:04:00.000-07:00

These 4 photos came out awesome. Mike threw in some attitude but ultimately gave in.

Mike wanted to make sure I did some black and white shots...happy to oblige - although this is more of a sepia/blue split tone.

Here's part 3 of B and M. My goal was to get a wide variety of shots in different locations and keep things from getting boring. We found a lot of great places around the UCI campus and Balboa island. The obvious places are just flowers and plants at UCI and the water and boats at Balboa - but all the good spots are hidden away. The trick is to look for these little places and spot something interesting. I'll post that tomorrow. :) Check in daily for fresh shots.

More Pics

2008-07-22T00:07:00.000-07:00

This is a fun series of photos. I chose this background obviously because of the cool looking colors. It took Mike everything to TRY to be romantic. *cough* like Kris *cough* I'll trickle more photos over the next few days, so check in every day! Barb, who hates all her pics, is liking these...so far.

Preview of Barb and Mike's Engagement

2008-07-21T14:32:00.000-07:00

Just a sneak peak at Barb and Mike's e-session. They're UCI alumni so we shot there for the first half of the evening and Balboa Island the second half. I'll have more in the next few days.

Beef and Evelyn Part 2

2008-07-21T00:37:00.000-07:00

More pics from K&E's picture set. Check back tomorrow for some new pictures of a Barb and Mike.

Kirk and Evelyn

2008-07-19T23:38:00.000-07:00

Some awesome sunset lighting.

A little more processing for the cool cross-process effect.

File this one under Johnny's Favorites.

This one too.

Something a little different.

One of my best friends Kirk AKA "Beef" and his wife Evelyn got married a few months ago, so they're doing things backwards by finally taking some pictures. I took the D3 out for a spin and it did pretty awesome. All these pictures were taken locally in Alhambra. I spoted this gym for a while now and always wanted to shoot there because of the colors. This goes to show you that you don't have to go to a fancy romantic place to get some awesome pictures. It's all about lighting and angles. I am absolutely loving the colors and sharpness coming out of the D3. These have been retouched a bit but nothing like the D70s, which required some heavy processing.

I've been super busy so pictures have not been my priority. But...this is a double header...tomorrow (Sunday) is an engagement shoot with Barbara and Mike. So check back soon!

Happy 4th of July Everyone!

2008-07-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

No tripod necessary for these - set a slow shutter speed (maybe 1/20 second) with 2.8 aperture and bump up the ISO a little bit. No noise removal :)

Chairs: Photo of the Week

2008-06-19T00:12:00.000-07:00

I can't take credit for this cool shot but I supplied the camera and lens :)

A few things to chat about:

I had an interview with a writer at Boston Magazine who's writing for Consumer Reports and the topic: retail computer service repair companies...like Geek Squad from Best Buy. Shout outs to Phil, Randy and the rest of the former techs at BB. Anyway, I told the guy it wasn't Geek Squad when I worked there but he said it was fine. Hopefully I'll spot this at the news stands when it comes out and maybe I'll get a quote in there. If you google my name you'll see that I've been interviewed before for videogames. Geeky, I know.

Also, everyone needs to go to Costco, buy a watermelon, cut it into pieces and stick it in the fridge. It is hot and the watermelon helps a lot! The way you choose them is you pick them up and smack them a few times to look for the hollow sound.

We're narrowing down a date to shoot Barb and Mike's engagement within a month.

Finally, AVOID HP COMPUTERS. They have friendly service but SLOOOOOW. It's going to take around a month for a laptop repair even with an extended warranty. I'm not messing around from now on, I'm buying Lenovo/IBM brand only. However, I didn't have a choice for a new desktop which is HP, but I do get a 24" monitor :) Oh well...long winded this post but more soon.

Some Dinner Pics

2008-06-15T22:59:00.000-07:00

Alea, UCI undergraduate Class of 2008!

B - I just threw her in there cuz this was a nice pic.

Khiemy and Ty - who I owe a refund for the red envelope. I actually owe Johnny Lam one too, but he got me a gift certificate. I'll have to figure out a way to pursuade them to accept their refunds.

I have been patiently awaiting my more powerful lappy computer which is in for repair to do some retouching so pictures have been trickling out veeerrry slowly. Here are a few more guests who only attended the dinner portion (which was probably the smarter thing to do). Also, congrats to my former research assistant Alea, who graduated Magna Cum Laude from UCI and attending Hastings Law School! There was a lot of brain power in that room come to think of it.

Also, on the Sienna front - that little girl might be getting an agent so hopefully I can get in on the action for pictures. The talent scout really liked her and my "professional" looking photos :) Anyway, these photos were snapped by me just for fun. (I only shot a handful that day). I notice that photo newbies tend to shoot horizontal shots a lot. I guess it feels more natural. I suggest changing things up - go vertical, try shooting upward from below, and even ... do I dare go there??....TILT the camera. But please use sparingly at non extreme angles (just my opinion).

Hey Jeff, I know you have 2 kids and a wife to get out of, but we need to get together soon!

A Few More from Graduation

2008-06-13T02:36:00.000-07:00

Me & Kris - Susy and Sienna were in El Salvador.

Beef and his wife Evelyn.

Jenny, AC

Joleen, Lori, Lyndsay, Lynn, Rita, and Phil

Johnny, San, Ann, Sandy, Howard

My hood.

John D

Me and Bryana

Anisa and her parents (Ramin and Brenda)

My sister, my parents.

Here are the obligatory family/friends pictures after the ceremony. Nothing was really taken for the purpose of "photography" or getting anything artsy, just good ol fashioned everyone say cheese shots. I got these printed to include with some 'Thank you' cards.

After the LONG ceremony, we headed over to Sumo restaurant in Irvine where I met up with a few more people for some seafood buffet action and the manager there Jay was really cool and gave me a discount and we chatted about photography for a while.

Anyway, I'm not technically finished yet - some last edits on my dissertation so no new pics just yet, although I do have an engagement shoot that needs to be shot. More pics and news soon.

UC Irvine Graduate Class of 2008

2008-06-08T23:41:00.000-07:00

There was a sea of people.

Here's me being hooded by John Dombrink.

This is an INCREDIBLE shot!

Saturday was my day to be on the other end of the camera. I'd like to thank all my family and friends for coming out on my big day. I got some wonderful gifts (some a little TOO good) and I'll be sending everyone individual thank-you cards soon but for now, this blog post will have to do. Thank you for all your support through so many years. Yes, I do feel bad for the ceremony part, which was extremely long and dare I say it - boring!!

Here are a few snaps thanks to Anisa, who received a serious crash course on how to use a DLSR but she had a little bit of help thanks to the incredible Nikon D3 - which didn't break a sweat going up to ISO 6400. I'll have a review of the camera soon. I'll also be showing a lot more pictures from that day and talk about my future plans in life in addition to photography.

Class of 2008...Almost

2008-05-26T00:28:00.000-07:00

Kindergarten Commencements
Yes, I chose the rainbow belt and clip-on polka dot tie.

UCI 2000

As most of you know, in a couple weeks I'll be finally graduating. I've been busy trying to wrap things up so I haven't taken too many pictures. These are two olden shots of me during graduation. The first one is when I graduated from kindergarten. The second is when I graduated as an undergrad.

The funny thing is I spent around half an hour searching for the picture files thinking I lost my undergrad pictures until I realized...they were in FILM! So I poked around the photo albums and found them. Sheesh I feel old. I tried to spruce them up a little with photoshop but they're just old pictures. What I've noticed with pictures is that the ones you once thought were good aren't really that great when you go back and re-visit them. Sometimes your memory ties them with the good times in your life and you remember them as better than they actually were. So, going by that, never go back and eat the candy you ate when you were a kid. A few years ago,I bought a fun dip and tried to eat it. It was like eating pure sugar - gross. But I loved them as a kid.

Anyway, for my 2008 commencement, I'm going to try to get some awesome pictures. I've already got a few volunteer friends playing paparazzi that day with some nice cameras so hopefully they'll turn out nice. Guys - bring your 200mm lenses and make sure to crank up the ISO since it's going to be indoors :) I'll be gone the later half of the week for a quick out-of-state trip but more pictures and exciting news soon !

Notice Something Different?

2008-05-21T23:54:00.000-07:00

I know I said no more Sienna pics for a while but this young lady was scouted by a TriStar rep and has a meeting in a few weeks!! So she needs some more current headshots so I was happy to oblige. Plus it game me a chance to give my new camera a test run. What do you think? The best way I describe the images from the new camera is creamy goodness The colors are just incredible, sharp and the blur is crazy good. Unfortunately, I was trying to save some memory and shoot at jpg normal when I should've shot at fine mode. Regardless, it's safe to say it blows away my old camera.

I'm blogging this on my ooooold PC - all I gotta say is processing a 12 megapixel image in photoshop CS2 on a Pentium III 500Mhz machine is like watching videos using a 56k modem. I'll have a big camera review post coming soon - that's why I don't want to say which camera I got yet.

Wine

2008-05-12T23:56:00.000-07:00

This pic was of a wine rack was taken in Atlanta last year. It was the front of a restaurant in the hotel. I've been tasting a buncha wine in the past year just to try to develop my palette. Check out Gary Vay-Ner-Chuk on the link to the right if you've never seen it. This was taken with the D70s and the cheapy kit lens that came with the camera (I wasn't about to bring expensive lenses to a conference for a few days), which you can produce some really nice pictures with if you know what you're doing.

I bought a new camera last week but it had 11 dead pixels in live view mode so I had to send it back for a replacement :( I've just been trying to get familiar with the controls and testing it out indoors and haven't even taken it out for a shoot yet. I'll talk more about it once I actually get it for good. It should be arriving some time next week so I can't wait! I'll have a full review once I give it a good go but so far from what I can tell the controls are very intuitive having only shot with the Nikon D70s/D50 at length. Anyway, stay tuned for that and some more photo tips too.

Transitioning Out of the Nikon D70s

2008-05-07T18:16:00.001-07:00

My wedding setup - the D70s, 70-200 2.8 (rented), 50 1.4, and 17-35 2.8.

When I frist considered buying a dSLR camera, the decision was between the Nikon D70s and the Canon D30. Both were good cameras, with the Canon being generally a better camera (bigger LCD, faster) but more expensive. So I went with Nikon knowing that the Nikon system was just as good if I ever want to do something more serious. At the time I was just wanted to take some nice pics in lower light - something a point and shoot little camera can't quite do. I've been pretty content with it until I started taking better pictures and ran into the limitations of the camera:

- Viewfinder is too small (the part where you look into)
- Too few focus points (only 5) which is annoying when I started wanting to focus on things not in the center.
- A little grainy in low light with difficulty focusing.
- Not enough dynamic range (shooting in the bright washes out the details easily)
- And lately, not enough megapixels for a big album (I found this out recently).

However, it was a great camera to learn from. It wasn't watered down in terms of manual controls and with a 50mm 1.8 lens, you can learn everything you need to know about taking pictures. Even though this is classified as an "amateur" camera, as you can see from all the photos from this blog, it can definitely hold it own in terms of cranking out "professional" looking pictures. In fact, I'll take any picture I've shot from this blog with the camera and take the Pepsi challenge. But...with the album requirements and low-light requirements for weddings, I've "maxed" out the utility of this little guy. More soon on transitioning into a new camera.

A Quick Update

2008-05-04T22:42:00.000-07:00

When I go too long without updating this blog I'm always afraid it'll fade into Internet oblivion so I try to dig up some old pictures that I find interesting and worth sharing and just to ramble on about something. This terribly underexposed picture taken months ago. They're just stacks of paper that took months to complete for the purpose of __________ .... to be explained at a later date.

On the picture front, lots of news and I'm only giving some crumbs but I'm planning on doing an updated shoot of this guy:

Some Architecture

2008-04-26T19:12:00.000-07:00

This is one last artsy picture for now. It is so hot today - up in the 90s here and I'm not a person who enjoys hot weather. I don't know how I'm going to survive this summer...

Anyway, I'm getting ready to step up to the big leagues now that I actually need a new camera (megapixels do matter when it comes to albums). My trusty old D70s has served me well and I've learned a ton while producing some lovely pictures. Still a great camera but I need something with 12 megapixels and since I shoot Nikon, that leaves me 2 choices: The monster D3 or the D300 junior version?? The D3 (the one I drool over) has an incredible full-frame sensor that just works extremely well in low light and it shoots like a machine-gun but it'll be a while before I pay that off. I've been asking around and getting different opinions and I know it's not about the gear, it's about the person shooting but I want to have something that will last me and not buy a new camera every 2 years (like with my last one) .. decisions decisions.

Some Cool Art

2008-04-23T19:12:00.000-07:00

This colorful photo is a close-up of a yellow sculpture near Scott's restaurant in Costa Mesa. I took it scoping out cool shooting locations but we ended up not having enough time.

Sumu and Brian's Wedding Reception Part 2

2008-04-21T16:16:00.000-07:00

Brian having fun.

Nothing too fancy, just a cute little cake.

Sumu workin the camera.

It was also Sumu's dad's birthday so everyone sang 'Happy birthday' really out of tune.

The lovely young ladies.

Here are a few more pictures from the wedding reception. Karen was also there with Anand but didn't bring Mateus.

Also, I signed up for twitter so I'm a little more Web 2.0 up in here. Basically it posts whatever you're doing at the moment and can even be updated using SMS text messaging. There was this American reporter the other day who got out of Egyptian prison the other day because he let his friends know he got arrested through a twitter update. It posted a little link on the blogger sidebar on what I'm up to.

Sumu and Brian's Wedding Reception Part 1

2008-04-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I shot Sumu and Brian's wedding reception at Scott's Seafood Restaurant in Costa Mesa, CA - across the street from South Coast Plaza (I didn't get to shoot the actual wedding, which was last Thursday). It was a very small and intimate reception for family and close friends. There wasn't a lot of hoopla but it was very romantic. When I saw Brian come up in a tux I thought it was going to be very formal and no-nonsense, but I was absolutely wrong. They were completely into each other and absolutely adore each other. Brian was full of fun photo ideas like laying on Sumu's lap, dipping, and plenty of smooching. Here are some images we took before the guests arrived. Plenty more in the next few days.

Since we're talking about weddings, I went to check out Laguna Ablums and was very impressed. So now, I'm in the process of selecting pictures to put together a couple of sample albums and will be able to offer some awesome and affordable wedding packages.

Before | After

2008-04-15T01:56:00.000-07:00

I was talking to Shari today about photos and retouching so I gave her a quick demo. The first pic is straight out of the camera and the second shot is retouched. As you can see, it makes a big difference. My philisophy on this is just to do enough to enhance the picture a little bit - don't go nuts. The trick is a good shot to begin with. Some people can perform miracles with Photoshop but I can't. I love the lighting in this shot, giving her the famous "glow."

What I've done is enhance the color saturation and contrast and boosted the light a little. Some people might not like the color or that you can't see the beach but I like the warm tones on this one - the effect I was going for, it's all a matter of taste. Also notice she's not facing the sun. But you do it I bet either the flash goes off or the person is too dark. How did I do this?

1. You need a DSLR (you can get one for pretty cheap these days, don't anything fancy)
2. Spot meter on the face (make sure your camera has this)
3. Adjust your camera settings to it and make some adjustments. (I use manual mode)

How did I learn this? Reading photography sites with tips like this one and practicing ;) I'm just passing along the info.

Feel free to leave questions in the comments or share your photo tips.

Last Couple of Wedding Pictures

2008-04-09T21:26:00.000-07:00

Not my best cake shot, I admit.

I had to throw this one in.

The next upcoming event is a mini wedding reception in a couple weeks but hopefully I'll shoot something before that. Stay tuned.

Photo of the Week

2008-04-02T21:00:00.000-07:00

This flower was taken at AC's church last weekend. I didn't use any sort of color or brightness retouching, just sized, sharpened, and framed for the blog. I don't know if the camera was off - my Nikon tends to be thrown off by intense reds, but this is just ridiculously vibrant. I noticed a ton of blooming wildflowers at UCI on Tuesday and riding my bike around the neighborhood. It looks like Spring is in full swing. This is a great time to take lots of pictures.

A Few More Photos

2008-03-31T12:23:00.000-07:00

She was definitely working the camera.

Let me talk about why weddings are difficult to shoot. When conditions are less than perfect, like indoors in a dark church, it can be very tricky. Aperture mode and auto white balance on the camera get easily fooled because of the white dress and dark tux. Most of the time you can't use flash, which means you have to have really good lenses and you have to really know your camera. You generally have to shoot in manual mode and you have to be fast adjusting your settings.

In this case, what really drove the camera nuts was the mix of natural, incandescent, and florescent lighting. You'll get half the person really cool (blue) and the other half warm (yellow). One sign a wedding photographer isn't good is if a majority (or all) of his or her indoor and night shots are in black and white.

Randy & Victoria's Wedding

2008-03-30T01:19:00.000-07:00

I love the veil blowing in the wind.

This is a cool shot for some reason.

I assisted AC today at a wedding. Technically Randy and Victoria renewed their vows after 17 years of marriage and 2 kids. Pretty incredible this day and age if you ask me. Here are some of my favorite pictures from today. The ceremony was simple yet beautiful. Then we went to Cascades Park in Monterey Park to shoot some photos before the reception, typical wedding place that everyone goes to. Hopefully it didn't turn out cheesy - I don't think it did. I didn't do my usual several thousand shots today since the pressure was on AC. I just snapped away casually but I think I got some nice shots. A few more pictures when I get the chance to fix them up then send the whole thing over to AC to edit the rest however he likes.

The 70-200 2.8 is an absolute must for any wedding. AC borrowed the Canon 70-200 2.8 IS lens. That thing is a solid piece of metal that's shorter and thicker than the Nikon equivalent I used for Lynn and Donovan's wedding - but equally as expensive. It was a pretty spectacular lens. I didn't have it and missed a lot of important shots. I stuck to my 50 1.4 most of the day and used my 17-35 2.8 for the wider shots. I didn't use too much flash much so I can't really review the flash diffuser I bought. Instead, I cranked up the ISO to 1600 and things looked fine. People complain too much about graininess but it's really not a big deal. Things used to be even more grainy with film so I think they're just looking for excuses for poor shot selection.

Shari @ Santa Monica

2008-03-28T01:38:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week Shari and I met up in Santa Monica for some food and hanging out. I had my camera with me so we snapped a few photos. She spotted a great location on the pier and the lighting was perfect.

So what's the best way to light a person with sunlight? There are a couple of ways to go about this. A lot of people face the sun, but all you get are squints and it looks harsh. Some people will have the sun to the back but it'll come out dark or you'll have to use a flash, which isn't flattering. My favorite is to have the sun at an angle - notice the nice glow :) This can only be done during specific times.

So what's the best time to shoot? Ideally, I like to shoot during dusk, about 30 minutes before the sun sets. The worst time is probably high noon, when the sun is bright which casts harsh shadows. It can be easily fixed by just going in the shade - but if you do make sure you have a good fast lens.

That's my way of shooting, there is really no right or wrong way but this way produces the more flattering pictures in my opinion and it's just my style of lighting. Some people love it and some might hate it.

Saturday I'll get a chance to shoot with AC so hopefully I'll have some nice pictures to show.

A Birthday with Crawdads

2008-03-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

I had a tasty cholesterol-filled treat this past weekend at Anisa's birthday crawdad extravaganza. This is the second year I've done this so I'm a pro at this now - the trick is not to eat the meat and suck the head but you gotta peal the head back to scrape the head fat (the best part). Yes, it sounds gross but true crawdad fans know what I'm talkin about. The next birthday coming up in my good friend "Prince" Howard's this weekend (see the post where I was a groomsman at his wedding).

Anyway, here are a couple of my portraits shot with awesome sunset lighting and my favorite 1.4 lens. I'm going to post another golden sunset lighting picture soon that I shot at Santa Monica.

Also, looks like I'm going to be assisting AC this weekend to shoot a wedding so that should be fun. A lot more pictures soon.

Sienna The Slideshow

2008-03-16T01:12:00.000-07:00

Ok this is the last Sienna post for a long while, as I am only documenting the first year of her life. It's a good thing Kris has a nice camera so he can take over from here. It's amazing to see someone grow up so fast. She's developing quite the personality as you can tell by the pictures. She's got a split personality, so goes back and forth between all-business like dad and silly/funny like mom with her own goofy style added in. My regular blog readers have shared this experience with me. If you like the pics you can see most of them in the archives. Enjoy :)

Sienna's Birthday Part 2

2008-03-15T00:39:00.000-07:00

Polo shoes?!

How to entertain a kid without exerting much energy? Ans: Bubbles.

Here's part 2 of Sienna's first birthday. She's having a party this Saturday so I'm still debating on whether or not to go to that. I also have a video that I'll be posting soon based on pictures of her first year.

On the photo front...I did receive a tax refund so what new toy should I buy? The 70-200 lens??? *scratches chin*

Someone Just Turned 1 !!!

2008-03-14T02:43:00.000-07:00

Guess who can walk now!?! It's not Sienna because she doesn't walk, she struts. Check out the bounce and her snappin those fingers - which can only be described as FIERCE!! (Project Runway fans know what I'm talkin about). Some more pictures when I get to them.

Howard + Sandy + Nikon F4

2008-03-03T00:38:00.000-08:00

Nikon F4 with the fat 17-35mm 2.8.

Howard and Sandy came up to visit today for some lunch (See history for their wedding). Sandy brought her Nikon F4 film camera, which was the top-of-the-line Nikon back in the day. Actually, Howard's dad owns the camera and it's been sitting in storage in mint condition for ages. She's taking a photography class. Attached to it is the 85 1.8 lens ...yummy (did I tell you how much I think prime lenses rule???). Unfortunately for me, I have an old Canon EOS Rebel S film camera that isn't compatible with my Nikon lenses. Two gear posts...what's going on here??!!

The good news is that there are some birthdays coming up in March, which means some pictures of people coming soon.

Update: New Poll (Which camera brand do you use) on the right as well as a link to Sandy's blog -->>

Photo Gear Talk

2008-02-29T16:31:00.000-08:00

I finally broke down and now I'm going to talk about the photo equipment I use. Some people are more interested in gear more than others like me, who like looking at and talking about the photos more.

So here's what I own and use:

Nikon D70s
18-70mm 3.5-4.5 (came with my camera)
50mm 1.4
17-35mm 2.8
SB600 flash
SB800 flash
Flash diffuser
Photoflex softbox
Manfrotto light stand (not pictured)

I also use Photoshop for retouching - on a PC running Vista. As said earlier, if you own a dSLR, you probably have a better camera than I do. The D70s is a few years old and is by no means a "professional" camera. Part of the reason why I don't like focusing too much on the equipment is that it really doesn't matter too much what you use as long as it's fast and reliable and does what you want. Having a better camera won't make your pictures look great overnight, it takes a little bit of practice and having a good feel for what the final pics will look like. Here are some things I've learned so far:

- Go light: Carry what you need in a small bag and don't lug around all your equipment if it's not necessary. I have a "murse" I carry 1 lens and a extra battery and a couple of small things. The bigger the bag, the more cumbersome and heavy.
- People look good smiling: "say cheese" is very cliche but smiling is still great especially when it's a genuine smile.
- Light first: Before the background, always check out the lighting - if it's harsh, etc. Don't mix harsh sun with shadow because you'll get some really dark areas and areas that are too bright, especially if there are bits of sun in people's faces. Just be in all shade or all sun.
- Don't be self conscious about your equipment: I've had big lenses on my camera, I've had small cheapy lenses on my camera. Heck, I could've been shooting with a shoebox with a hole cut out, no one ever asked me about it. They're only interested in the pictures.
- Tripods are a pain: I've tried it once when I was shooting in Dana Point and it was the most cumbersome, slow, and ineffective device for shooting people. Instead, use high ISO and fast lenses.
- Lens caps and camera straps are a pain: I can't count how many times I've tried to take a picture with the cap still on. The straps seem to always be in the way but if you must, neoprene ones make things seem lighter.
- Use flash sparingly: It's a pain to get the lighting just right and it makes people look not so good. I always prefer natural lighting.

- Prime lenses rule them all: You can't zoom but the pictures are incredible when used right.
- Stuff looks awesome printed: Don't forget to print your pictures and blow them up. Even pictures that look a little blurry and grainy come out great in print.
- Ditch the inkjet: Go to Target, order your prints at a kiosk, walk around for 15 minutes and pick up your photos. Buying ink is a ripoff and it doesn't look as nice.
- Photography equipment is expensive: Duh.
- Learn from others: Choose some pictures you really like and mimic them to learn how they were shot. Then apply those techniques to your own style of shooting. Or just ask around or use Google.
- Get up close: Don't be shy, get up close. Get on your knees...get on your stomach. Try new angles. Stuff like this makes it more interesting.

Almost everyone I know either has a Nikon or Canon. It's quite divided - more on this later.

Slow Period ... Old Photos

2008-02-26T02:31:00.001-08:00

I haven't updated this blog in a while and well...I haven't been taking any pictures lately. So, the next best thing is to dig up some old ones and fix them up. Here are a couple of pictures of me (top) and AC (bottom) taking pictures during our trip to Lake Tahoe last year. Seeing these pictures makes me miss the fresh air and relaxation.

Let's see...what else is new in my photo world. I bought a new flash bounce card which I haven't tried out yet. I am looking to buy at 70-200 lens - I was so impressed at Lynn's wedding and if I have the money, a new camera. I know it's not the camera that produces the nice pictures but the person taking it but I've outgrown my little camera. I'm looking for something with better low-light capabilities and faster/more reliable focusing. If you are reading this blog and have a DSLR camera, chances are your camera is > than mine...but that's ok :) What I will buy first is a little point and shoot camera. I'm deciding between the soon to be released Canon SD1100 or the Nikon S600. Personally I hate using the little cameras because they're so slow. What to do???

If I don't take any more interesting pictures soon I'm going to post a 'What Gear do I Use' post.

Before and After

2008-02-10T23:23:00.001-08:00

Out of camera picture resized for the blog.

Picture processed with Photoshop - brighten, sharpened, contrast.

The trick to using Photoshop or any other type of photo processing program is simply starting with a good photo. I don't mean good looking photo, but good in terms of lighting, focus, color balance etc. A great smile doesn't hurt either. This way, all you have to do is tweak it a little bit. The key is a little bit, you definitely don't want to go overboard and make it look unnatural and weird (unless that's the style you're going for). If you do it right, it's like those Claritin D commercials where the cloudy film is lifted off revealing a vibrant picture. It's actually pretty fun, but you have to have a good photo to begin with. If you want to do it the simple way, use Photoshop Lightroom with the presets and just turn it down a little bit. Here's a picture of Sienna and you can see the differences are subtle, which means that the picture was taken with proper exposure.

A more dramatic example can be found HERE (which is what I have as my desktop background, that's how much I like it).

A Day in the Life of Sienna...Part 2

2008-02-02T21:05:00.000-08:00

This wasn't a posed shot, she's just a curious little girl.

Here are a few more pictures from Sienna's day out. What's funny about her is one minute she's all business (like Dad) and the next she's got a silly grin or smile. She likes to point at things and say Papa. It's pretty amazing to see someone grow up before your very eyes.

A Day in the Life of Sienna...

2008-02-01T12:20:00.000-08:00

Dr. Summers checking out Sienna's cough. Haha that expression.

Susy and Sienna

They referred to her as "Eyelash girl" at the doctor's office. They're real.

File this one under Johnny's Favorites.

If you haven't noticed by now, Sienna is pretty much the star of this blog. This shoot is for the invitations for Sienna's upcoming first birthday party and part of a photo book. Unfortunately she has had a little cough so we went to the doctor's office (she's perfectly fine) then off to UCI for some pictures. I knew it was going to be a cute shoot but this is ridiculous - this is up there with my first post with Silas.

Update for the photo geeks: This was all shot with my 50mm 1.4 (my favorite) lens with no cropping. I used Photoshop to give it a little more spunk by boosting the contrast and color/B&W.

Colorful!

2008-01-30T00:46:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted any pictures for a while so I thought I'd look in my archives and find something interesting to share. Here are some colors and patters from my Atlanta visit to the World of Coke. The good news is I'll have some pictures soon of little miss sassy, AKA Sienna this Thursday.

It's weird to see wedding planning ramping up because my blog has been hit with a lot of inquiries about the Huntington Beach Hyatt, which I did a post for my friend Howard's wedding. Here's my advice for selecting a photographer:

- The Ultimate Photography Litmus Test

1. Women are the most critical of pictures of themselves. Evidence: they tend to look at group photos and focus in on themselves first and determine whether they like a pic on how they look. Usually, it's ewww I hate this picture.

2. If a photographer can get a woman/girl to truly like a picture of themselves, then he/she is a good photographer. Evidence: They not only like their picture but show it off. It's cheesy but posting on a social network such as facebook is a for sure sign.

This sounds silly but it's harder than you think. Try it out and see ;)

A Couple More PIx and the King

2008-01-22T13:47:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of more pics but I really just wanted to post this Burger King video. Being a former BK employee back in high school, this was especially cool. You've seen the commercials but this video is a must see. My body still can't handle The Whopper but this commercial is making me want to give it another try.

Coming up this week is another Sienna shoot :)

2008-01-19T00:09:00.000-08:00

A couple of shots from my recent adventures across country. The first one is the snow in a small town in Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh - kinda like Scranton, PA in The Office. It was beautiful and I was completely messmerized by the postcard-like Winter. The second is a beautiful Atlantic sunrise outside of my hotel window in Florida. It was weird seeing the sun rise over the Ocean but very cool...and cold. This was shot with a camera phone so the quality wasn't all that great. Too bad I didn't bring a real camera, but pretty cool nevertheless.