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miscellaneous monday 72

11.02.2009

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This episode of Miscellaneous Monday comes to you from 36,000 feet on Virgin American flight #367 from Boston Logan to LAX. In flight wi-fi is the best! I slept on the flight to Boston and didn't get a chance to use it. I imagine that a web connection will help the flight fly by. Pun intended.
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Attention clients: All of our 2009 weddings and engagement sessions have been reposting in our safe, secure online shopping cart for your holiday ordering convenience. Click here to find your event and don't forget to send an email to your folks and friends... they may want to order their holiday cards.
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I caught the Cowboy game yesterday and was also stoked that the Eagles beat the Giants. The winner of this Sunday's match up between the Eagles and Cowboys will determine first place in the NFC East and the winner will have a huge advantage during the second half of the season.
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I haven't been following the World Series, but I did manage to catch a bit of last night's game in my hotel room. I thought it was awesome when Johnny Damon stole second then just went to third because no one was covering. I still don't care who wins.
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This week's Study Hall will have Jeff Jochum, CMO at SmugMug as my guest. Tune in Thursday at 4pm PST to Study Hall. I think it'll be quite entertaining.
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I am heading to Vegas this weekend for a wedding, then Calgary the following weekend for a speaking engagement, then I am home for the year! I think I've traveling more this year than any other and while I do enjoy it, it'll be nice to be home for the holidays and relax a bit with friends and family. I plan on traveling even more in 2010.
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The Mammoth Men are at it again taking their shenanigans to the dirty south. Follow along their adventures on the blog or Twitter.
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Anyone want to let me know about any NEW iPhone apps that you are loving? Don't mention any that have been out for a while, but anything that you recently downloaded that you don't know how you've made it this far in life without it?
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What about movies? Have you seen anything that you liked so much that you feel compelled to leave a blog comment about it? I'm going to see the "Men Who Stare at Goats" this weekend. (Perhaps a Thursday lat/early Friday 12:01 am showing after the OC Smug. Anyone?)

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Tweet of the week (most my recent one, cause a bit of drama on my facebook page).
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Shout out of the week: Virgin America. I love flying this airline. So easy, so cool. I just wish they went to more cities.
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T-shirt of the week:
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iPhone shot of the week (taken just now):

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Miscellaneous monday 71

10.26.2009

OMG, Last nights U2 concert was the best ever. They are amazing! How do they keep getting better & better? That stage was spectacular, the energy was electric and the band just rocked so hard. To be honest, I haven't listened to the new album all that much, but I was blown away how good some of those songs are live. It was a great show and I can't wait to buy the Blu Ray of that performance and piss of my neighbors by rocking the surround sound for my own private concert.
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They also broadcasted the show live on YouTube and are replaying it now incase you missed it. Who knows how long it will be up, so watch it while you have the chance. Click the banner below to go straight to the page:

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Hey photographers, what lessons can you learn about your business from U2? Tune into this week's Study Hall to find out. Thursday at 4pm PST.
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Also for photographers, make sure you tune into AskDane tomorrow at 2pm PST for a special episode in which I will be joining Dane & Scott Bourne on a live panel talking about the value of photographic communities. It may not get as much traffic as the U2 on youtube broadcast, but it should be close! ;-)
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Baseball season is over for me. I TiVoed game 6 and managed to make it home from the concert without finding out the score and started watching it around 1:30am. I really thought the Angels would force a game 7 and after they got a run off of Rivera in the top of the 8th, I really liked their chances. That was until back to back errors in the bottom of the 8th game the Yanks a couple more insurance runs and sealed the deal. Mariano is the best closer of all time. I don't care who wins the World Series and I won't be watching. I hate the Phillies and don't want them to repeat (because their fan's heads will swell even more) and of course it's not possible for Yankee fan's heads to get any bigger.
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Now that the baseball season is dead to me, I can concentrate on the Cowboys. Thanks to the Arizona Cardinals beating the New York football Giants, Dallas is only a half a game out of first place.
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I am excited to head to the East Coast this week. I'll be shooting a wedding in Rhode Island on Halloween and then hanging in Boston on Sunday. Be sure to follow @thebschool for info on a potential GTG.
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Is Flash Forward worth watching? I have all the episodes on Tivo, but I haven't watched any of them. Is the show going to stick around? I watched Jericho on CBS a few years ago and got all sucked in, then they like cancelled it, but then brought it back. I never found out how it ended or what happened because I lost interest. I don't want that to happen again. Same thing happened with Surface and Invasion. I like those Mystery type dramas, but I may wait a season or so to get them on DVD or iTunes to make sure it sticks around. Thoughts?
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I don't want to make any excuses for the Angels, because the Yankees outplayed them in just about every aspect of the game, but I can't remember a post season when the umpiring was so bad. The Angels did benefit by a few blown calls as well. The umps were just so inconsistent this year which really sucks.
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What did y'all think of the family portrait of the First Family shot by Annie Leibovitz? I wasn't impressed. Looks like a snapshot with a point & shoot camera, not a masterpiece from an incredible photographer. Do you think it was a political move to make the Obama's look like "average Americans"? I would love to shoot, or I should say photograph, the Obamas. I'd bring them outside and get some nice, natural light, relaxed portraits. I'd love the first family to use one of my images for their holiday card... wouldn't that be sweet?
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I haven't been playing a lot of poker lately. I've been playing with my friends, but not so much in the casinos. It's been a busy and full summer. As wedding season winds down, poker season should heat back up. I'm excited to watch the final table of the Main Event in a couple of weeks. I am going to be in Vegas next weekend, but I am going to miss the final table by a couple of days. I hope Phil Ivey wins it.
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Halloween is this Saturday. What are y'all going as? I'm shooting, so I'll be dressed up as a suave wedding photographer. If you are stuck trying to find a costume, you can find instructions on how to make your own Michael Jackson costume by clicking the photo below:

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Was that too soon?
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Tweet of the week
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Shout out of the week: Goes to Bono, Edge, Adam & Larry. Great job last night. Also thank to Gary for the tickets and Tony for letting me park at his place in Pasadena to avoid the traffic nightmare surrounding the Rose Bowl.
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T-Shirt of the week:

iPhone shots of the week: Of course they are from the concert last night. It was torture being so close and only having my iPhone. I didn't even think to bring my flip or at least my point & shoot camera. I'm still going to try to shoot them at another show on this tour.

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Miscellaneous monday 70

10.19.2009

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U2 comes to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena this weekend and I finally got some tickets. I kinda slacked off on getting them, but my friend Gary hooked me up for my birthday. I've been to a plethora of U2 shows over the years and they are by far my favorite band. They are so good live and I can't wait to go. U2 will be broadcasting the concert live for you folks who can't attend.
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By the way, if anyone knows Bono, or has any connections that would allow me to photograph him for just two minutes, that would be super. I got to photograph the Popmart tour back in '97, but i'd love to just spend a couple minutes with Bono, some nice soft light and an 85mm/1.2 lens wide open.
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The Angels/Yankees series hasn't exactly gone how I was hoping so far, but I still have hope. I'm currently watching game 3 and I am hoping to go to tomorrow nights game.
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Dexter is awesome. Last nights episode gave me chills.
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What did y'all think of "Law Abiding Citizen"? I've heard good things but the critics aren't giving it very good reviews. I may go see it later tonight anyway.
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The ballon story from last week is absurd. I was at the Houston airport and saw it playing on CNN. I read the crawler and saw all the tweets about it and of course was concerned for the little kid. When I landed in the OC and heard he had been found in the attic, I knew right away it was a hoax. As far as publicity stunts go, I believe they got some publicity, so it worked on that account. And I guess they are filing charges, but nothing substantial is going to happen to them so I am sure they'll figure out a way to cash in on all of this publicity. I just wish people would ignore them and not give them any of the publicity they crave. Lets hope their 15 minutes are almost up and they don't end up on an episode of the Surreal Life or Celebrity Apprentice.
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Just think, 2010 is a mere 10.5 weeks away. Crazy huh?
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The new Verizon ads are lame. "There's a map for that" I get they are trying to copy the "There's an App for that" campaign, but who is it aimed at? As an iPhone user, I don't really care that they have better coverage. I am not giving up my iPhone for anything even though I have no love lost on AT&T. Now if the iPhone came to Verizon, then we'll chat.
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iPhone shot of the week (more from yesterday's wedding will be posted tomorrow):

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Check back Wednesday to see more from Jessica Claire's wedding.
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Two huge routs yesterday... The Doyers got spanked by the Phils 11-0 and the Pats took it to the Titans in the snow 59-0. Crazy. It was a good day for the Cowboys even though they didn't play. All of the other NFC teams lost. Thank you Saints for taking it to the G-men.
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What the heck is Google Wave and do I want it?
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Hey photo peeps, we'll be featuring some cool products & service reviews on the [ b ] School blog this week and will even have some discounts available.
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Tweet of the week
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Shout of out the week: Hi Mom!
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T-shirt of the week:

Miscellaneous monday 69

10.12.2009

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First up, if you are a photographer in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, I want to invite you to come out and see me speak at the SMUG Meeting tonight. It's free to all photographers and I am going to be speaking about "Passion & Profits". It starts at 7pm and it's at the Embassy Suites SFO in Burlingame. You can find more details here. I'll actually be down in the bar/lounge starting around 5pm to watch the Rockies vs. Phillies game as well as the Jets/Dolphons on Monday Night Football before I speak.

Most likely, I'll be grabbing a late bite with [ b ] Schoolers afterwards, so stay tuned to the [ b ] School Twitter feed for details.
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Second... How 'bout them Angels! What a great game yesterday! It was one of the best baseball games I've ever seen. They just do not give up. Boston has owned the Angels in the post season the last few years and it was so nice to get the monkey off of their back. I knew going into this series that it was going to be different this year. Boston was just so cocky. The media also seemed to just want to give the series to the Sox. I am so sick of Peter Gammons. He's such a homer... he's so biased towards Boston it's disgusting.

I was pretty confident that the Angels would beat them this year. I figured it would take them 4 games though. They were clearly the better team this year. Better pitching, better hitting, better defense, better coaching.

5 runs in the last two innings yesterday. The lit up Papel-blown. Good call on walking Hunter to pitch to Vlad. Thanks Terry... we owe you one!

Nice try Boston on bringing Dave Henderson out for the first pitch.

I'm sure the media is going to be picking the Yankees to win the next series. That's fine with me. I like when the Angels are the underdogs. Never mind that the only team to have a winning record against the Yankees since 1996 is the Angels. I just hope it's a good series. I hope it goes 7 games (as long as the Angels win game 7). Game 1 is this Friday on my birthday. Can you guess what I'll be wishing for when I blow out the candles?
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Speaking of my birthday, I am not counting them any more. Let's just say I'll be 30-something. Wanna get me a present? Just sign up for the [ b ] School if you are a photographer. Already a member? Then go ahead and send an amazon.com gift certificate on over! ;-)
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How 'bout the Cowboys. Even though they won, they are looking quite sad. I can't figure them out. They have so much potential. I just pray the squeak into the playoffs and hit their stride in January.
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I'm dying to share more images of Jessica Claire's wedding, but she's still on her honeymoon for a few more days. I heard the ditched Hawaii because it was boring and went to Vegas and she won a poker tournament at Caesars. Awesome! Stay tuned for more images once Jessica has a chance to check them out.
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I'm going to Miami tomorrow to teach a workshop with some of my favorite photo friends. Should be a fun day. I think it sold out, but they may have added a seat or two if you are in the hood and want to have an outstanding learning experience.
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I've never been a fan of Southwest Airlines as I hate fighting for a seat, but they are looking better and better these days for the simple fact that bags fly free. I think it's so lame that airlines are charging for bags now. I know the industry is hurting, but why not just charge $10 or $15 more per ticket, and get the baggage fee upfront, included in the price of the ticket? I hate feeling nickel and dimed. I do like the new Southwest TV commercials and will seriously look into them the next time I fly.
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iPhone shot of the week: The one and only Jessica Claire. Shot with my iPhone, processed in Best Camera:

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Tweet of the week. Sorry Boston fans, I just thought this video deserved a replay.
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Shout out of the week goes to Social Weddings on Facebook as I just booked another 2010 wedding from it!
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T-shirt of the week:

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Wine tasting in Napa Valley

10.06.2009

Sorry there was no Miscellaneous Monday post yesterday and I am not going to be posting last weekend's wedding photos until Thursday this week. I've been too busy enjoying my friends as we help celebrate Jessica Claire & Jeff's wedding and related activities. I'll have more on the wedding and events surrounding it in a future blog post, but for now, I busted out some impromptu portraits during an afternoon of wine tasting yesterday.

For those who know me, I am not a drinker and I especially do not enjoy wine, so I just sat around and watched everyone drink. It was actually quite a beautiful day in Napa Valley so I just enjoyed socializing with my friends... an taking their photos.

First off, I want to thank Jasmine Star for getting this nice shot of Keats & I:

Then I want to thank Keats for being so cute:

This is Victor Sizemore & his lovely wife Rachel:

Braeden Flynn and his lovely wife Lindsay with their new little guy Declan:

There are some single people that are attending the wedding so we made them do an awkward prom pose. From left to right it's Tony, Beth, Renee & Mike:

Thanks to JD & J* for laughing at my jokes:

And special thanks to Jasmine for her priceless expressions:

Regis brought his new Prada shades to the wedding as his date. Don't they look very happy together?:

Check back tomorrow for a very special post!