GO BUCS!!!

Go Bucs!  Wooohoooo!  9-3

Watch out G-men!

I apologize for this post...I grew up in Tampa (sorry Jax fan) and we celebrate as much as possible when they are winning...we once suffered 14 straight seasons with losing records!

My childhood best friend and I used to go to the backyard and impersonate the Bucs...we constantly dropped passes and had Vinny Testaverde throw plenty of interceptions...so now we must celebrate!!!

Darcy & Matt & Anna!

I have been so blessed...every person, family, or couple that I have had the opportunity to fotograph have been totally awesome...they are the coolest people on earth...same is true for Darcy, Matt, and Anna - they are the coolest!  

I met them today at Willow Branch Park in Riverside...I hung out with them, took some candids of them and their daughter playing, hanging out... and just being family...

Darcy is an associate with a local law firm...Matt is a reporter for the Florida Times-Union...and Anna is the lucky one...she doesn't have to go to work!!!  Oh...Darcy, Matt, and Anna or good friends with Casey, Michael, and Mariah - also the coolest people on earth!

Enjoy

Jennifer & Tim teaser!

Back in June when I was doing a little shoot for Ron Rodriguez, my phone rang...I answered it...and Jennifer was on the other line...she was helping her friend, Andrea book a wedding photographer...this is how I met Jennifer...

I shot Andrea & Carlos' wedding...and I got a few fotos with Jennifer and Tim...Jennifer was doing Andrea's hair and Tim was being cool with the guys...

Now they asked me to do a foto shoot for their one year wedding anniversary!

Here's a few...teasers...

Thanks Jennifer and Tim...and God for giving us 77 degree weather in the end of November!!!

Obradovich Family!

Today was awesome...the weather was near perfect...and to top it off, I was given the honor to photograph the Obradovich Family.  The Obradovich Family is originally from Peru...the family moved to South Florida over 25 years ago!  Mark, their son, who scheduled the shoot, lives here in Jacksonville...he's in the Navy...

Enjoy and thanks Mark...your family is awesome...ciao!

VEGAN Thanksgiving!

Here's what a Vegan Thanksgiving might look like...Tofurkey...it disturbingly looks a lot like meat?

Elizabeth & Jonathan's Wedding Video!!!

Alright...so I finally finished the short version of Elizabeth & Jonathan's Wedding Video! This is the wedding that I did double duty...photographing and video. It's not perfect, but considering it was our first try, I think Garry and I did a pretty damn good job...we did learn from our mistakes...definitely need to use a "steady cam" next time...and keep a tripod handy for some shots...but other than that, I'm satisfied...the visual quality isn't the best...it has something to do with the way I had to compress it for the web...

Again, thanks to Elizabeth and Jonathan for letting us shoot your wedding for my class project...enjoy everyone...

Despair...

Ok...so I've been thinking about this for a while...

Studies have shown that LOVE heals...yup...what a surprise...We really do know this...nurturing & caring - LOVE...yes, this good stuff heals everything...physiologically heals!  Love gets rid of physical sickness...Love soothes mental health problems...Love is the cure...Love mends friendships...Love makes enemies friends...Love makes people whole and wholesome!  

So what's my point in this rant...well, it has been scientifically proven that Love heals...yet not one politician mentioned LOVE as a part of their campaign (well, Ron Paul did...)...regardless, the others didn't...our country and this whole world is in disarray due to a serious lack of LOVE...so why don't these politicians talk about LOVE...they have these super high IQs, but all they seem to talk about is bail-outs, economic woes, wars, banks, car industries, oil, axis of evil, taxes, etc...but no mention of love.  And American politics aren't the only ones guilty of this...when was the last time you heard a Prime Minister, King, Emperor, Czar, or Dictator talk about LOVE???  Maybe there afraid they'll sound too much like hippies?  

LOVE is the foundation of our existence...without it, we're lost...hopeless...desolate....like these houses...people use to live in these houses...I know...I saw it with my own two eyes...something terrible happened here...something that lacked LOVE...damn...

Cool Collages...

Here's some collages I used on my main website...figured I would just share...

Long Live Buck...

Ok, so today I got to do something I have never done before (this happens quite often).  

Let me preface...I have always had this attitude that when your pet passes away...he/she passes away...you move on...it's not like a family member passing...

My perspective on this started changing not too long ago...see, I have this cat...sofia...she's been in the household for 8 years!  She was a gift for my wife's birthday from her sister...little did sister-in-law know that I was allergic to cats!  But what are you going to do?  Pull her out of the closet when the sister-in-law comes to visit?

Anyway, sofia might as well have been my gift...ever since she came into the house, she's clung on to me...when I would get ready for work, she used to jump up my pant legs trying to grab my belt as I was putting it on.  She sleeps on me...see used to "knead" my socks...she's just always gravitated to me...thank the Creator above for taking away my allergies.........now 8 years later, I have to say, sofia is my buddy...and when she has to leave this world, I will be very sad...

So back to what I got to do today, that I have never done before...my friend (and co-worker from my rat race job) has this dog...Buck...she's had him since he was a little pup...she showed me pictures of him when he was tiny...when he ran with buffalo...and got to hang-out in his Colorado backyard with his buddies...well, unfortunately, Buck has developed a malignant tumor...and he's terminal...so Alison, his mother, had to make a very hard decision...Buck will soon be experiencing much pain and discomfort with no hope ahead...so Alison decided to put him to sleep before the inevitable occurs...in this coming week, Buck will be put to sleep and sent on his way to "doggie heaven", nirvana, paradise, or whatever you want to call it...but he'll be there...

So, what did I do...I took pictures of him so Alison can treasure forever...

This was the first time I have ever met Buck...he was cool...mellow...maybe introspective...I'm going to miss him too...hmmm...

Jessie's foto shoot!

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to help update Jessie's portfolio.  Thanks to Rico, a friend and fellow photographer, I was able to use his studio.  Here's a collage of some Jessie's shots...I got this idea from another photographer...I hope you dig it...

Madness & Furniture

Last weekend I provided video coverage for a wedding...this weekend we shot a music video...

This was another class project.  We shot the music video for Ron Rodriguez (yup...the same Ron that got married in August!).  The name of the song is Madness & Furniture.   Garry was also on the project again.  When the project is done, I'll check with Ron to see if we can post it on the blog...

In the meantime, here's a few stills from the video shoot.

Cast:

Steven (with the brief case)

Daniel - the Alcoholic (sorry...at least you didn't have to play the bum)

Jeremy & Katie (the fighting couple...can barely see them in the last foto)

Me -  the bum...definitely no fotos!!!

Take care...oh, and go BUCS!!!

  

TOFU!

Ok...so a few weeks ago I was rationing contact fluid and lacking the vegan essential - tofu...well, not anymore...those days of recession/economic crisis are over with...here's the evidence...

Mmmmm....Tofu!!!  

My Prof. and friend, Marc Boese has one of these - Tofu Head...Boese's vegan too....go check out his cool videos....I have helped with some of these - www.vimeo.com/boese

More Dawn!

Here's a few more from Dawn's shoot a couple of weekends ago...