One Thing *Not* to do in Moab
We rode Flat Pass (a grueling ride south of Moab) and then shuttled up to north and rode a big chunk of the Sovereign Trail again (rode it yesterday for the first time, I have not stopped smiling since). A bunch of buddies from Seattle arrived late last night and this was our chance to hook up with them for a big ride. We had some mechanicals (broken crank, broken chain, torn tire - all happening to the same guy) but things went well and no real injuries (a few spectacular crashes but nothing dangerous - thank goodness).
Tomorrow we ride Porcupine Rim again. What a way to go out. I head for home that evening, sunburned, wind-whipped, with chapped lips and a big grin. Man I love the biking.
Oh, the thing not to do? Leave your camera on the top of the car and drive off after the ride. Next thing I see - said camera falling off the back end of the car at 60 mph - luckily it was just my Panasonic LX2 point/shoot and not one of my other cameras.
And it survived. Or so it appears. It was in a small digi-pouch, which seemed to take the brunt of the fall. The camera still turns on, focuses and things look normal, other than a small ding where it hit the tarmac. Guess I'll have to put it thru some tests.
That and it might just provide the excuse to get the Canon G9...
In Moab this Week
We've been riding all the great trails. Yesterday was Porcupine Rim (*****) (see video of Porcupine Rim) and today we spent hours on Sovereign (*****)(see a video of Sovereign), the latter which has replaced the former as my all time favorite trail. What a ride. It has great climbs, great descents and loads of beautiful, swoopy singletrack that just makes you grin. My bro-in-law commented on my perma-grin after one long section of particularly pleasing trai.
I did, of course, manage to put a huge ding in my bike. Fell backwards off a small ledge and, while I managed to stay upright, put a nice little nick on my Elllsworth Moment - argh. Them's the prices you pay for riding in a place that is all dirt, rock and sand.
Wouldn't be anywhere else in the world. Man, did I mention I love Moab?
Yeehaw...
* the videos are just gleaned from YouTube. But they
give you a good idea of the experience. Just factor in
speed and potential broken things...
Funnin' Around
Of course, that only encouraged the studio denizens to get silly on me. To good ends, I might add...
In what can only be
considered as an ode to a long-ago decade (you know,
the one I grew up in, the one they were not even alive
for) they hammed it up with all the silliness they
could muster. Still working on the official picts for
the night, but these two struck me as quite fun.
I was also in the studio to shoot pictures of my
daughter for stock. Got a few hundred exposures and and
my daughter (and model) informed me she wasn't feeling
so good. Time to pack it all up and try again another
time. In looking back at the images, there is still
some great images for the intended target. I'll be
working on those next.
As an aside, I'll be out of town next week, riding
mountain bikes with "da boyz" in southern Utah. Look
forward to big hit bikes, sun (hopefully) and lots of
smiling men enjoying "not work". Here In fact, here I
am, last October "not working".
I'm giddy with anticipation...
Cheers!
Shooting Stock
It began innocently enough - a way to familiarize myself with the process this group of photographers go thru to prepare and submit images. But as I've grown my stock collection, I've found that it has become a part of what I do as a photographer. I've added it to the repertoire, as it were.
Furthermore, I've quite enjoyed the process - editing specifically for stock, adding metadata, uploading, submitting and finally getting those images live. It is a time consuming process (as expected) and hopefully one that will bear some fruit going forward. I've been contributing to two big sites so far: Alamy and Photoshelter Collection. I have the largest set on the latter, and I've just added a link to said photos in the sidebar:
Initially, shooting stock was a very different way of thinking. I find that I'll shoot somethings differently knowing it will be directed to stock rather than the more traditional fine art world I've worked in for years. That isn't necessarily bad, and as with most things, its teaching me something new that I can use. Good things come to those who take the time to immerse themselves and learn.
Today I was reviewing the big hit search terms on one site and realized I'm in a unique position to fill one specific niche that is in high demand: dance/dancers/stretching. I've been shooting dance for the past couple of years, and I'm going to spend some time in the next week or so to do a couple of shoots (in studio) specifically targeting this area. Of course, I'll be using my daughter as a model - she's such a joy to work with - one can't ask for a better young model.
Better yet, she exudes a love of dance in her every move. Lovely.
Stay tuned.
Have a great day.
The Bun
BTw, I love having the lights and backdrop always up ready to use in my office. A few quick shots with the Leica and Canon f1.2 and she was gone.
The stiches are healing
quite nicely (see yesterday's blog) and I'm well on my
way to a permanent scar on my forehead. Very hardcore.
I'll tell people I was in a knife fight. Unless they
know me, and then they'll just laugh.
Have a great day...
On a Roll
Had some kids visit, so we stuck up the seamless and shot a few pictures.
Julianne Kost has some
great new tutorials on her website for Lightroom (both
1.4.1 and the 2.0 beta):
For those of you have have not attended any of
Julianne's sessions at the various conferences, she's
highly entertaining and does a great job of getting the
info across in a way that people seem to just love.
Highly recommended. Go Julianne!
Also, the Lightroom 2 Beta has two expiration dates. If
you are a current 1.0 owner, its longer. There is a
chance to extend it if you know a 1.0 owner.
Read more here on how to extend it on
the Lightroom Journal
Have a good day.
Portraits
Canon Delivers
As I've mentioned several times here, I've had lots of
issues with my Canon gear. I bought into the Canon
system after using consumer Nikon gear for years. I
needed a fast body with AF for some work I do.
Immediately things bugged me. So, in the first month I
sent several lenses and bodies back. I took loads of
pictures and then winced when they were brought into
Lightroom. I finally got really angry and ordered a
D300, thinking that maybe Nikon could make me happier.
I mentioned this to a good friend and fellow Canon
shooter, and he suggested that before I do this
crazy switch dance, that I give Canon the chance to
make it right. So I did. I called, they were great
to work with and I sent my stuff in.
Well, they arrived back at my house about 8 days after
sending them in.
Things look much better. The 24-70L lens had a faulty
mechanical chassis (whatever that is) replaced. The
70-200L needed adjustment as it was back focusing. The
40D also needed some adjustment - AF was off on
occasion. You're telling me. Like 98% of the time.
I was anxious as I took the camera out and mounted the
lenses. A few test shots showed promise.
The only lingering issue in my mind:
I bought three Canon products. All three were faulty.
Anyone who has taken a basic stats class will recognize
the probability there. And yet they still managed to
place three faulty items into my hands. 100% crap rate.
Boy does that suck or what.
One has to question the kind of QA do they have at
Canon? I will have to admit that the service was
*almost* great, but I am still out $75 just to
ship/insure it. Thats $75 I had to spend to get decent
Canon gear.
Kinda makes me angry - but having a camera/lens combo
that focuses makes me feel a bit better.
Of course, the much-maligned Leica M8 with my
collection of old lenses (ranging from 10 to 50 years
in age) has never had problems. Ironic.
Interesting.