A Cool Pic from Dallas

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.

Some Architecture

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

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.

Colorful!

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 ;)

Old and Busted

Cool effect huh? It's a sepia/blue split-tone.

I've been pretty swamped lately so this blog has been a little neglected but I should be posting more pictures of actual people soon. In the meantime, check out this cool rustic wagon wheel picture I took at Craig's house from last time. I try to get some shots of cool things when I'm out taking pictures.

How to take a good picture? I really don't know but here are things that catch my eye besides good looking people:

- Good Lighting: soft natural lighting, like golden sunset time or just cool shadows and shapes.

- Vivid colors: When I see some bright vibrant color, that always gets my attention. Like buildings painting a certain color (see Jazmine's photo shoot in the archives) or flower beds etc.

- Busted up crap: Like this wagon wheel, rusty beat up stuff etc.
- Cool patterns: A row of arches or shapes and patterns are always cool to place someone in front of.

Those are just some things that catch my attention. The great thing is there are no rules. Personally I don't like to shoot too many cliche shots like sunsets. Anyway, more soon hopefully.

Hotlanta Blowout: World of Coke & Aquarium

Here's a drink kiosk with all-you-can drink stations.


There was a slow-motion coke production line that shows how they're bottled.


This was the Latin America booth, which was my favorite.


Rita having a tasty-taste - she didn't like it (she doesn't normally look like this)


Some artistic giant Coke bottles - I liked this one because it was nerdy.




These guys are cute! Penguins are my 2nd favorite animal.


Piranhas!! They looked so cool. I wanted to throw a piece of meat in there.


Here's the tunnel, which wasn't even the coolest thing there.


My buddy Andrew taking a look above at the giant tank.

I'm back and exhausted. This was a business trip but I did manage to squeeze in that day of fun. As promised, here's pictures from the World of Coke, which is worth a visit if you're in Atlanta, especially for the all you can drink Coke products from around the world. My favorite was this South American soda named Simba. Also, here are some other cool pictures from the aquarium. I had a lot of time on the plane to retouch these so I thought I'd share.

I haven't forgotten about taking portraits. Coming this weekend is a birthday party that should have lots of kids.

Update: I have joined the Georgia Aquarium Flickr group. There are tons of pictures there.

Hotlanta!

I'm in Atlanta this week for a conference and I brought my camera and a light travel lens for some pictures - Rita (who's from here originally and is here at the conference) convinced me that this is a scenic place. So hopefully Friday we're heading down to the aquarium (world's largest) and around town to snap some photos. Here's a couple of pictures of the inside of the hotel (Marriott). I'm up in the 39th floor, which isn't even the top. It opens up into a center atrium area where you can look all the way up or down, kinda like the inside of the Luxor. Pretty spectacular sight...here's a picture from outside the doorway. Cool huh? More interesting stuff soon.

A vibrant door

Yes, it's just a door but check out the cool colors. For backgrounds, I like to find places with vibrant colors. This same door was the background for Bryan'a shoot (see below). A little saturation boost and it really pops. Cool eh?