moxi @ home part 2

a few more images to add to the summer of fur collection. i hope to photograph moxi and lucy together again soon-and will bring the tripod and cookies too! keep in mind i resize all of my images for this blog and anything i post on the web-so they are compressed and lose a lot data and fine detail! the originals are always shot in raw format(9-10mb each!) and are impossible to load that high res of a file. iso 400, 1/500, f2.8, fl=14mm(varies). i want to shoot a portrait of lucy with moxi in different poses. this is a good head start!

quote of the week

i ran across this photography website called virtualphotographystudio.com/photographyblog/and there is a fantastic quote in this fantastic article. all this information from here is truly inspiring me! Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you are right.” it's all about your attitude. i don't care where you work. positive outlooks make a difference-and how about smiling more often huh?

razzi

ras/blackberry aka razzi is quite a character. she was shy at first-squinted her poor eyes at me every time i aimed the camera at her. but with some soft and gentle kind words and a lot of stick interaction she trusted me to photograph her. she is truly in her element in the great outdoors. that is where she seems to feels safe-and playful. lucy chapman adopted her from friends who 'moved away'-i don't get that. to me that is selfish and how in the world could you just let her go? she is special and beautiful oozes with charm. these images show that unique personality that she has. the orange bath mat is a fantastic idea for a prop-(lucy is probably scratching her head-why did i bring a bath mat outside again?) i will aquire items like these for future reference. the colors worked well for a black kitty. i'm okay with the blurry tongue photo-it does'nt have to be razor sharp perfect-it's imperfectness makes it suited for this story. and boy does she love sticks. imagine jerky sticks. iso 800, 1/500, f2.8, fl=14mm.

moxi @ home

moxi is the most codependent doggie i've met so far. she loves her mommy sooo much and cannot take her eyes off of her for one second. her mommy is the wonderful and devine busy bee local radio talk show host of kfab lucy chapman. i should suggest she build a doghouse attatched to her desk at work-course she would have to keep her silent most of the time so maybe she could wear a papoose-problem solved! now that sounds snuggley moxi! this is part one of the images i took of her and her fantastic looking black cat razzi. (more images will be posted next!) i love the image of her sweet and sincere eyes looking up-she semi trusts me and was pretty camera shy-i need to bribe her with more soft and warm treats. iv'e also got to get a grip on the clutter issue. note to self-remove all background clutter! in fact maybe next time i'll bring interesting colors and textures of blankies and rugs. oh and i'll shoot with the tripod. i know it's useful-and next time he'll tag along. i get the chance to photograph lucy again when she is more relaxed and cleaned up. she was a grubby mess doin yardwork. and then possibly moxi will be relaxed and more in her element-with her mommyby her side. iso 800, 1/400, f2.8, fl=14mm.

peony park

remember those hot sticky summer days in omaha when the feeling of school being out and you can stay up late to play kick the can in the neighborhood (til past 10 at least) and then maybe you were lucky to take a friday night with your best buds and pile in mom and dad's station wagon to take a trip to peony park? the smells. the sights. the sounds of the ticking and clacking of the galaxy roller coaster ride! sweeet! well this image unfortunately represents the demise of that wonderful childhood experience. it's a postcard from the day of the auction and i had it laying around for years. so i loved peony park. i miss peony park. i wish leia could've experienced peony park. i chose to let go of this so someone else could treasure it in their own sort of way. sold it on ebay for $36 bucks. the pocket change is nice. but it's certainly a nicer feeling to know someone will cherish it forever.

quote of the week

now and then i will post an awesome quote that i stumble across. words of wisdom are a good thing. 'the biggest mistake people make in life is not trying to make a living at doing what they most enjoy.'-malcolm forbes. amen to that baby.

happy father's day

one summer when i was 9 i signed up to deliver a paper route with the neighborhood boy up the street. it required me to wake up at the 'crack of dawn 4 in the birds are barely chirping morning' oooo that's a rough feeling you know? my dad came in to my room and woke my up. he had no problem with this-it's what parents are supposed to do-he sat at the foot of my bed until i was ready. he knew i had obligations to fulfill and was there to help me along. he made sure i ate a decent breakfast called lucky charms and hurried my tired paws out the door. i turned to him smiling and watched him watch me walk up the street to gather my newspapers. it was a good and warm feeling to know that he was there to take care of me. my dad worked alot at his business all the time and there are few sweet memories i have of him. he's been gone for 30 years now and i am grateful i still carry this memory tucked in my noggin. this one might seem plain and simple to some but to me it is vivid and sweet and kind and i will cherish it forever. happy father's day dad.

my pinkies

furby is such an awesome model for pet portraits. i know their are some dogs out there that are just as calm and mellow as him. it will be a delight to shoot them. this lens is fabulous for out door shots. the time of day was 8:15pm-sunset-full shade. perfect conditions with no distractions and i was careful with no background clutter! i like the similarities and the differences in both images. shooting in raw makes the 'raw' image dingy and gray so you pump it up and add clarity and vibrance and voila! (levels and sharpening in iphoto) color shot:1/500, 2.8, iso 800 and focal length at 14mm. black and white shot: 1/250, 2.8, iso 400 and focal length at 14mm. supurb furb!

leave it

my latest and greatest of dear kenobi. it's so authentic. he truly wants the treat and knows that permission won't be granted until i say so. his eyes say it all. oh please! oh please! oh please may i have it nooooow? northern exposere natural light is the ultimate. and those catch lights in his eyes? priceless. iso 800, 1/60, f2.8 and focal length at 14mm.

bfff's

best furry friends forever is my picture if the day. quite a challenge to get 2 dogs properly exposed in the same picture. the longer lens works best. did a bit too much editing i think but i had no choice. kenobi was under exposed and furby was over exposed. not razor sharp enough either. that and there is some noise/grain that maybe i could get used to. uuuggghhh. why can't they just be the same fuzzy neutral color? the vintage look is nice with the different textures and tones-but i truly dig the black and white. it's just plain timeless. so i did the best i could with this image. i'll keep at it. it's also part of a new book project i'm working on at the moment. can't wait til it's final! iso 800, 1/40, f4.6, focal length at 70mm.

new front page

this new front page template is much better than the last one. it's nicely updated with a little more impact in the title. classic and simple and less complicated. i want the images to stand out. so the gray stays. i am not posting an image today but instead i came across this quote that sticks in my mind. it's a good thing to refer back to this now and then. here goes: emptiness is a symptom that you are not living creatively. you either have no goal that is important enough to you, or you are not using your talents and effort in striving toward an important goal. -maxwell maltz 1899-1975. this is one of my favorite quotes right now! love it!

leia

i think this is quite an interesting image of my little leia. the wacky sense of humor in a 15 year old is priceless. shot with canon happysnap. in oslo, norway. it's a strange feeling to see snow in this image and look outside my window to see that it's 80 degrees currently. i enjoy different seasons and don't think i could live with one season all year long. today she departed to florida for a week to spend time with her dear friend. 6 days in disneyworld. what a life. she has been gone for 2 hours and i miss her like crazy. i know this is a perfectly normal way to feel. and now i can't wait until she comes home!

frogner freeze

this vaca would not be complete without a trip to frognerparken. terribly bitter of a day it was. yukk. leia was not happy. i was able to only get a few good images of that day. i like the abstract, geometric style of the rod iron. it's totally cool and classic. mr. vigeland was way ahead of his time. after the exausting walk through the frigidness, we ended up at this amazing restaurant in majorstua-across from the colluseum theater. when i come up with the name i will post it later. seems to slip my mind-this place has been here for over 100 years and it rocked! i even googled it and no results. it must be a secret. fiske suppe and a coke. man that was the life. and leia was truly satisfied. first image of leia: iso 200, f8, 1/160, focal length 35mm. close up of gate iso 200, f8, 1/160, focal length 54mm. gate image iso 200, f8, 1/60, f5.6, focal length 14mm. the last 3 shots of leia and gagamomo at the restaurant are taken with the canon happysnap high iso, f2.8 for max light and a slow shutter. you can tell there is quite a lot of noise. it was dark and had great atmosphere.

one year anniversary!

my how time flies when you are having fun! and boy am i having a good time! i'd like to take this opportunity and post something that is truly what it all boils down to in my life (apart from leia of course) and that is the pets. introducing rolf. i had a chance to shoot this neighborhood kitty back home in oslo norway in march. he is quite a charmer. he oozes with sweetness and confidence. boy does he rule 'idrettsvn'!! (am i right mom?) he is the king of all who is cat in the hood. something i would have done differently and that is my settings. here's the deal. minimum shutter speed must be 1/320-1/500. whenever it is overcast outside iso must be at 400-800. these shots were at iso 200. 1/250. f2.8 (perfect) and focal length for wide angle effect 14mm. i could have doubled the amount of light and increased the speed 2 times if only i had thought clearly!! oh well, it is what it is and i am satisfied with thase shots. next time! my personal fave is the final shot of rolf giving us the tongue. he's like: whatever-i am soo done with this primpy girly stuff-see ya. am i right or what! oh and he does not prefer to be held. he is loving but not a holding kinda cat-maybe his owners have a different relationship with him, but can't you just see the look in his eyes and his paws pushing away from us stinky humans. we are just ghastly to him! he seems to tolerate it. but that is it! thanks again mom for allowing me to shoot this precious of a cat rolf! and thanks to the andersen family for introducing rolf to us. he was a blast!!!

belle

belle thinks she is something other than a dog. although now that she has finally gotten the taste of a juicy nylabone, some dogness is becoming her. chillin' on the foldy chair. a comfy spot is ideal. iso 400,f 5.6, 1/500 and focal length at 150mm. i paid attention to the back ground this time and making it my new habit. it is equally important as the settings on my camera. the black and white simple image of her is another goody. just look at how innocent she appears. i like the contrast grass. it's perfect for a white dog, who is btw extremely challenging to shoot from the start. iso 400, f 2.8, 1/1250 and focal length at 14mm.

iris morning

these are located right down the street from me at the neighborhood park. there is whole mess of them and they are all lemon yellow. taken with my telephoto 40-150mm iso 800, f5.6, 1/320, focal length at 150mm. these guys are just stunning. i think the subject is amazing but the comp is so so. i could have included some more interesting colors. anyway, it's an okay photo. look at how their faces glow with joy. aaahhhh lovely.