Jazzman...

In the studio this week, David Cooley of the David Cooley Band. I have to see this guy in concert, he had us all movin' to his music (thank heavens for auto-focus :o) Lots of Van Morrison, my fave. Even got to sing a little "Ain't No Sunshine" with him while I shot!

Father's Day at the Track...

Didn't even think about the significance of Father's Day, my Dad & auto racing, until I met this guy and his son, celebrating the day by taking in their first race together. They declined my offer to take their picture (a total stranger :o !) but I felt compelled. Thoughts of you, Dad!

Talked shop with this friendly photographer from Bridgestone Tires while waiting for the race to start.

Think the McDonald's crew actually eats McDonald's food?

For some more cool race-action photos and some humorously accurate commentary, check out my friend Ted Miller's blog.

Happy Father's Day...

To my brothers, who both showed me how to be dads, and especially to Bob Hunsicker, Fred Boshers and George Mirabelli, who made the effort and helped a kid from Jersey keep his head on straight.
Family portraits in the studio today~

Champ Cars In Town...

Last year's Series Champ, Sebastian Bourdais, got to hang out with Miss B at the local McDonalds, his sponsor. She even brought him an Otter Pop, and, world traveller that he is, he'd never had one before! She offered to show him how to eat one (push up from the bottom) and he was as cool as can be, not nerdy at all like the media likes to portray him. Go to the track on Sunday, Portland and enjoy the race!

Nailing it...

Shot a Milwaukee Midget Tournament on Saturday and I had this shot in my mind as the one I wanted to make as I walked from my van to the field . Many sports photos lose context when the ball is missing from the shot, so I thought if I could frame the ball within the pitcher's body, it would make a killer image. I removed the lens hood and wrapped my hand around the lens barrel to line it up, and shot through a hole in the chain link fence. After a few attempts I realized I wasn't in the right position so I just watched and moved around for a few pitches, trying to line up the pitcher and the pitched ball. I finally found a spot that would work but it was really tight and meant shooting right over the catcher's head with the batter to one side, the ump to the other. After a few pitches too soon or too late, I got this one. I always try to go into shoots with an open mind, allowing images to happen or come together in the process. Rarely do I have an exact shot in mind and force reality into creating it. The nice thing about digital photgraphy is to immediately know that you nailed the shot you saw in your mind's eye.

Prom Night in Portland...

Received a last minute phone call to do prom pictures last night for Trillium Charter School's "Midsummer Night's Dream" and got a chance to try out my new background from Pro Photo Supply at the same time. Between the fog machine, disco balls & lights, pulsating hip-hop music and my strobes flashing, it was, like, sensory overload! The staff was great, the kids were terrific, and a lot of the poses resembled this one. I love all the personalities in this shot, just starting to bloom into their adult lives.

Recent Work...

Tired of those pyrotechnic palm trees, already? I've heard from a few of you to post some recent work so here's a few. The track meet photos are from Western Oregon University and the dental office exterior is from Vancouver, WA. For the dental office shots, I wanted to test the limits of a new Canon 580EX flash I just bought. I used it in conjunction with a much stronger Lumedyne unit outfitted with radio slaves and colored gels. The intent was to make the strip mall office look more dramatic against a twilight sky. Arrived just in time but the orientation of the sky prohibited a sunset background. Probably not the best situation to judge the flash's performance, but it's always fun to play with a new toy! As always, let me know your thoughts!

Palm Trees in Portland...

Wow, what a night! Tonight kicked off the Rose Festival here in Portland with a fireworks display over the Willamette River, and the family all went down for some riverside viewing. Had a blast with G & B and got to make a few images. This one's my favorite so far.