Breaking Into Your Own Apartment

With trash in hand I headed out of my apartment this morning.  BANG!  The door slams shut.  At that instant I realize I didn't have my keys.  My roommate was away for the next 16 hours.  A locksmith would probably run way more than I was willing to fork out for my stupidity.  My balcony door was open and although two stories up, it can be reached by ladder...  a ladder I don't have.  I didn't want to inconvenience anyone to bring me one... one reason being consideration, the other being my pride.

So one act of stupidity deserves another.

I'll just break down the door!  Brilliant!

I looked around to see if the neighbors were watching.  That alone must have made me look like a burglar.  With a couple strong shoulder-pushes the doorframe came loose.  Three more and I was in.  I knew quite well whatever destruction caused by my super strength would need to be repaired.  No problem.  I'm good at building things (or rebuilding for that matter).  After a trip to the hardware store I returned with a bottle of wood glue, nails, and a bag of Skittles.  Total cost: $4.86

I must say, there's nothing that makes you feel more manly than breaking down a door then breaking out the tools to put it back together.

Prius

So some lady decided that it's not really important to pay attention as she pulled out onto Santa Monica Blvd. resulting in my car needing $1k in body work. She admitted fault so I shouldn't have to pay anything. But there's still the inconvenience of dealing with the insurance companies, the body shop, and the car rental. I had two choices for a car this week. First was a bright red Toyota Prius. I hesitated. Sure it gets good gas mileage but is that really the car for me? Then, after a favorable price negotiation, my second option was a BMW 328i. I'd have to pay about $25 more/day but at least it would be worth driving back and forth to work. As I was sitting in the car, testing out the feel of the leather...I asked the question, "Does this thing have a governor?"

Sales guy: "Umm....yeah."

Me: "I'll take the Prius."

Why pay for a car that's not as fun to drive as it could be. At least the Prius would be cheap on gas and not cost me a dime since my insurance pays the first $50/day.

I didn't consider the downside to driving a Prius: It's a Prius.

The only reason I haven't done the switch for the BMW is the fact that I'd rather not rent a car better than mine. That way when I pick it up from the shop tomorrow, I'll be excited and not envious of my times behind the wheel of a nicer vehicle.



And now for something completely unreleated...

People usually don't believe me when I say the best way to force a potential sneeze is to look at a bright light..... booya. If it's on Wikipedia it must be true.

Photic sneeze reflex in yo face, bitch!

A Little Railroad Town in Nevada

Here are a few of the images from the week spent in Las Vegas.

Who says there's no modesty in Vegas?

"No, I don't want a hooker. But I'll take your photo!"

Too many people come to Vegas to get married. Not just in the quickie-drive-thru-by-Elvis kind of wedding but nicer ones. Sure, there are beautiful places in Vegas to get married. The canals in The Venetian, The Bellagio, Hooters Casino...but everything there is a fake. The facades, decor, lakes, and streams. It's all fake or put there by man. What does that say about the marriage? Is it real? Will it last longer than a Las Vegas landmark? Will it implode or will it flourish? Will it become more elegant with time or turn cheap and tacky? I would prefer a smaller wedding at the real resort on Lake Como than the fake one near Lake Mead. But that's just me.

Yes, they have dolphins in the desert. Who knew?!

And finally, as we ventured up the escalator L says, "that girl's not wearing underwear!" Being the male that I am my ear perked up like a startled dog and quickly scanned my surroundings...nature at its best. Then I saw what she was talking about, but the artist in me also saw a perfect framing of people and had to grab this frame. Does this make me perverted? Do I care? I think it's a nice photo... regardless of the subject matter.

Cinefex

Cinefex magazine, the visual effects industry trade publication, recently did an article about the upcoming film Get Smart. My company, Digital Dimension, was the primary facility on the show and handled many shots throughout the film but primarily the end chase sequence featuring a computer generated Cessna flying over Los Angeles. At the end of the sequence the airplane lands in front of the Disney Hall in downtown LA.

While my name (or any of the artists) was not mentioned specifically in the article, I did have a frame from one of my shots printed. This is basically the equivalent of an artists having his work published in a magazine. Ok, it's not the equivalent...it's basically what it is. I like to consider what I do more an art than anything else. And I don't want to sound pretentious or "artsy" but I think it's a pretty big deal. We work so far behind the scenes and all we can hope for is our name flying by in the credits...and that doesn't always happen. So I'm happy and proud to have had this image published and honored to have worked on such a great team!

people

Everyday we encounter people. Most go by without ever catching the focus of our vision. Each person has a story to tell, interesting or not (interest is subjective). Sometimes, if I'm lucky, I'll have my camera at my side and am able to snap a frame of a person I find interesting...for whatever reason. Thwaap!...in a fraction of a second the shutter opens to expose the camera's sensor burning a person's likeness into millions of tiny pixels.

In most cases the people I'm lucky enough to capture I have never met before, and will never run into again. I don't know their stories. I don't know where they've been, or where they'll go. This mystery is what draws me to capture their image. There are many emotions that these images bring out. I would like to share some of the people I've been lucky enough to encounter and even luckier to record.


All I could think of is the line, "These are not the droids you're looking for".



Typical scene at the Hollywood & Highland intersection.



She was standing outside the Armani-Exchange on a cool night, hoping to get a couple bucks. As the shoppers stroll by without a glance they know she's there. They feel her presence. But they intentionally look a different direction. But not my lens. I usually don't shoot images of the homeless. Artistically it's way overdone. But also there something inside that tells me to move on. Is it invading their privacy? How is that different than invading the privacy of every other person I shoot? But the economical contrast of this scene was too much to ignore. I'm glad I captured it. Oh, and I slipped her a five.









While waiting for a table at the CPK in Hollywood, I noticed this girl who looked lost, confused, and a little bored. I took this shot and ended up really liking it. After posting it on an art website it got a comment from none other than the girl herself. Hannah. I was happy to find out that she really liked the image. But I was even more happy to hear her side of the story. She interviews bands and was following some Japanese group around the world. She just arrived from NYC and was supposed to meet them but it turns out she was at the wrong place.



This shot was taken at the Warped Tour '06 in Charleston, SC. I obtained a press pass to photograph the event and had just finished shooting from the photo pit (security area between the stage and the crowd) and wanted to get some shots from the crowd. The kids were body surfing and I noticed this girl would get lifted above the crowd and ride her way to the stage where security would intercept. And not two minutes later she'd be at it again, and each time her skirt would fly up. I noticed the redneck security guards were catching on and when she was lifted above the crowd they would leave their posts to gather to her destination. The excitement and anticipation in their eyes was priceless. I wanted to capture this but couldn't get a good angle from where I was. So I lifted the camera above my head and snapped the shutter. I love the eyelines of the men.



Foggy evening in downtown San Francisco. Timing is everything in photography. Right place, right time, right exposure.



This shot was taken at The Venetian hotel in Las Vegas. She's a performer taking a break between shows. I was walking by, pretty quickly, but stopped for two seconds. I snapped this frame, smiled, and walked away. Like so many subject of my images I wish I would have found out more about her. Especially being a Sin City local. I'm really interested in the people who help make that city what it is.



This last one is just too funny....how could I not post it?!


Thanks for viewing.

New Blog! (well, sort of)

So... I signed up for this blog almost exactly one year ago. I have other places where I've posted updates on my life (DeviantArt.com, Uber.com, MySpace) but have neglected this blog.

I've decided to start posting here finally. The desired format will be a photoblog documenting my life routines and experiences through photographs. Hopefully when I get one of these....


....it will be easier to keep this page up to date.