Sea Rats Look Nice Sometimes.....

Zuma Beach - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008

If you follow my blog, you would have read about the great sushi restaurant Zuma Sushi in my post here. (Again.... yummy stuff. If you are a fan of sushi and you are in Malibu, you MUST go there.)

So, to fill in the background for the story presented there, as we discovered we were starving and we began traveling back south to find a restaurant, I was griping under my breath about not getting ANY sunset shots - which was the complete purpose of my going out that night. So my boss, who was driving, called me something along the lines of a whiner, and whipped into the Zuma Beach entrance.

We pull upto the gate - YEAH A FREAKIN GATE - and there is a guy there ready to take our money. *** Okay... an aside here. We are driving along a public beach in one of the most taxed states in the Union and they want us to pay to enter into a beach and park in a tiny parking lot? Not only that... but it was seven bucks. Aside over. *** We ask the nice attendant if we could just go in for about 10 minutes and take some pics. Promptly we are told that the regulations are that each driver must pay the fee in order to park and that he is not responsible if we decide to drive through, not pay and we get a ticket from the roaming beach cops.

So we drive through.

I'm trying to direct my boss where to park and he keeps passing inlets into the parking lot. So we all tell him where to turn on the next inlet. It was actually quite entertaining. Imagine a bunch of geeks in a car, trying to side-seat/back-seat drive while another geek is driving (fast mind you) and not really wanting to listen to anyone.

So we park... quite roughly.

And we all jump out, me with my gear, my boss and another cohort with their gear, and our fourth in his work business clothes - and we run (kind of... we ARE geeks trying to wear casual clothes) to the beach, taking up positions to catch the sun before it goes down.

I manage to get some nice sunset shots and as the sun continued to lower behind the land jut up the coast, I saw these sea rats (seagulls for you laymen) running with the tide, picking up whatever sea rats pick up. I snapped off a bundle of shots, while my injured foot is killing me (another story) and my sandals are filling up with sand. (Yeah... I should have taken them off.)

Above is the result... and SEE, searats can actually appear to be quite pretty when set in the right lighting with the right scenery.

The Calming Effect of the Sun....

Near the Cheesecake Factory - Marina Del Rey, California - August 20, 2008

You ever had that bloated feeling? Ever feel like you've eaten so much that you would explode? Has there been a time in your life where you swore you would never eat again? If you need to have one of these life-changing experiences, and I'm no saying change for the better either, then go have a meal at the Cheesecake factory.

This was the second meal I had had there during my trip to Santa Monica and I had a plan in mind: I will eat light and not feel like a beached whale after I had finished my meal. It was an admirable goal... after all, I am filled with enormous amounts of WILL POWER!

So, 1 avocado eggroll, 1 sweet corn "something", 1 spring roll, 1 buffalo chicken stuffer, and 3 corn chips with artichoke dip on them later I received my meal: the thai chicken pasta with peanut sauce. Of course I had to order something to drink besides the 5 glasses of water I consumed during the night... the tropical smoothie was my choice.

30 minutes later I remember that I wore my cargo shorts, and I was now filling them. Normally, I have to wear a belt to keep them up. Glutton is a word that comes to mind. A collegue across the table then said, "Okay gents, what's for desert!" I almost vurped.

During this period of increasing pain, I saw this palm across the small boat inlet near the restaurant and thought, "Would that make a good picture? Ow.... ow......... ow.... Do I have to move to take that picture? Ow.... ow..... ow......"

Well, above is the result - I hope it is okay.

Want to see the new Kia?

2009 Kia Soul - 3rd Street Promenade - Santa Monica, California - August 19, 2008

This past week, I was staying at the Double Tree Inn on 4th Street in Santa Monica, just over the freeway. Considering our office is located on the opposite side of the Promenade, it was some good morning exercise to walk from the hotel, carrying my backpack with my laptop and work items AND my camera gear. (I try not to go anywhere without it when I'm in Santa Monica.)

After eating breakfast at the diner at 3rd and Broadway, (eggs, hash browns, (yum), chicken sausge (not so yum... more bleh)) my boss and I trekked up 3rd street towards the office. I can't quite remember if we planned to stop at the Coffee Bean or not, but in any case we were walking on the right road.

As we walked along, we noticed people with HDV cameras filming and doing sound checks along the block. Having a few friends in the filming industry I figured they were either a) filming a commercial or b) site scouting - either one would be fun to see. At first, I thought about snapping a few photos of the crew, but then I saw this car at the end of the block.... bonus score.

So, we turned the corner and headed west toward the office and I starting undoing my equipment and switched to my Sigma 24mm f/2.8 lens for a close-up shot. The lighting wasn't great as it was early morning and it was a little hazy - or smoggy... not sure which really. Above is the resulting picture... the only one I was able to get off before being tapped on the shoulder and asked to leave the area.

Anyhow, here we have it - the 2009 Kia Soul!

A Tale of Two Restaurants...

Zuma Sushi - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008

So we were driving up the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), pretty much just gathering in the scenery, (I, of course was looking for something to photograph - but at 60 mph, it was a little difficult) and shortly after sunset, we discovered we were starving. We passed a Mexican restaurant and turned around, only to be honked at.... now why would that happen? Nevermind that our driver had just come to a semi-complete stop to make a left-hand turn on a pretty busy highway. California drivers.... so impatient.

We walked up to the elevated patio (partial outdoor dining) and went to the only open door we noticed. Inside we were greeted by a very attractive blonde hostess who seated us right outside the entry and a table big enough for four hungry men. I have to say that although she was quite attractive, my wife and I would agree that there would be "no friction" - she was a little on the thin side, but not Keira Knightley thin. After the menus were brought, I was the only one excited about being there, since the menus were all over the sushi thing. Woot! Hadn't had sushi in L.A. yet, and I was hoping it was as good as the Taka House in San Diego.

The guys called the hostess over and asked if there was anything besides sushi and she indicated that the restaurant next door (which supposedly was owned by the same people) served Mexican food. BUT, they might not be happy about us sitting over on this side of the patio.... some ancient medieval war which has yet to be resolved. So our hostess went over and offered happy time with the next door cooks and brought over some menus. (Now... keep in mind, she doesn't work at that restaurant and she's just saved them a table and the trouble of having to bring us menus.)

Coral Beach Cantina - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008 (BAD Service)

I order my sushi and my mouth is already starting to water. Spicy tuna and spicy yellowtail rolls were the ticket for me that evening! The guys were still waiting on someone to come over and take their order. When my food arrived, I was happy to see a nice pile of wasabi, which I promptly started adding to my dish of soy sauce.

The sushi was FANTASTIC, although I believe the rice was slightly soft for my taste in sushi. But, overall, I'd have to say this was the best sushi I've ever had - including the Taka House, which was my favorite until now. I savored every bite and finally finished my meal, the guys STILL not having their order taken.

Needless to say, my boss called the hostess over and had her take the menus back to the oblivious people at Coral Beach Cantina in Malibu. I have no clue how the food was, considering nobody in our party was ever spoken to, served, or spit on for that matter. My advice... NEVER go there.... horrible service. (They knew we were there, as the guys has menus and placemats for that restaurant on the table and they served people next to us.)

Conclusion:

Zuma Sushi - Good - Thumb up

Coral Beach Cantina - Bad - Thumb down

Kevin - Stone Artist

Venice Beach, California - August 21, 2008
This is Kevin the Artist. He is an all-around genuine guy who is passionate about the piece of art he constructs four times each week. As my boss and I were strolling along the beach, taking pictures of various things, we happened upon what is termed the "Gilligan" boat - it's a beached boat with graffiti all over it.

As we headed toward the ocean, we noticed a couple rows of rock statues silhouetted in the descending sunlight. Of course, we had to go check it out and as we got closer we heard this voice call out from behind one of the statues on the end, "Photos are free, but I do accept donations!" He also gave us a heads up that the rocks were balanced and would fall on us if we bumped into them - be careful.

I introduced myself and the artist gave me his name, Kevin. He proceeded to tell me the story behind the statues: "These statues are the angels representing 89 lost souls on Venice Beach. Those souls were lost to senseless acts: drugs, drive-by's, violence.... Back in the day, we would gather here and have bonfires, hang out and just have a good time."

Here is what the statues looked like approaching into the sun.

Kevin had worked in the oil fields in Texas and Louisiana and now lives in Englewood, California. I didn't ask what he was doing now, but I'm sure that one of those things is keeping in shape - the guy was ripped. We talked for quite some time about how Venice has gone from a beautiful place into what it is today. He did say that it has improved and the community is trying to clean it up, but that it was nothing like it used to be.Kevin lamented that the police knock down his work every night so that people do not injure themselves on it, so he travels back to Venice and rebuilds it four times each week. Dedication at its best.

This picture gives an idea on what the piece looks like near completion.

I really enjoyed speaking with Kevin and hearing his story on this work. If any of you readers are ever in Venice Beach, ask where the Gilligan boat is (It's just NW of the grafitti wall) and walk toward the water. You'll come upon a ridge of rocks about 70 yards from the waterline at 5pm. Hopefully you can meet Kevin and give him my best.

You can see more pictures of Kevin's work at my website under the "People" category.

Testing

Testing the move of the blog.

Westward Bound

Bees on a bloom....

So Monday I venture back to the west coast on business. We are slated to have meetings with clients concerning procedures for a rollout we performed back in January. Basically soliciting suggestions for improvements on processes which changed almost completely about two months after the rollout was complete.

Warm fuzzies I must presume....

I can hear it now: boss-type person says, "Client A has suggested that we change process 1 into something more like this...." - and I reply, "Well, process 1 hasn't been like that for some time and actually runs quite well. Would you like us to change it anyway?" - to which boss-type person responds, "I'll have to get back with you on that."

On the bright side, I get to hit the pier and get some sunset shots with boats! Hopefully the weather will cooperate and I can actually take pictures of something besides the farmers market.
Now, about the shot above.

This is a water lily bloom with two very hyper bees crawling all over them. Personally, I think I was pretty lucky with this shot, but everyone has their own opinion. Taken with a Nikon D80 and a Sigma 105mm macro lens. EXIF data is retained on the file.

Date night is coming!

This Friday, our son has been invited to a birthday party / sleepover, which leaves us able to have "date night." Being that we have only lived here a little less than a year, these have been few in number as we don't know as many people as we did in our previous home town. Those we've had have been fun and I've been looking forward to the day when the "artist" would have several friends and thus many sleepovers.

So, now we are trying to find a couple to do something with as we miss that type of interaction as well. I've touched base with a guy I know who brought his wife to our marguarita party two weekends ago. Hopefully something will pan out.

If not, then we'll have a nice cozy evening somewhere, doing something. Regardless, it will be nice to have "date night" back again.

Turmoil Emerging...

I believe no matter what job you have, there is always that one person who seems "untouchable," "made of teflon," or "just plain slick." It almost makes you wonder if there is any justice in the world. How could such a person make it so far and have the ability to snow so many people while rising to the top like thick cream. I've been through several of those types of situations and I've always wanted to be there when the poo hit the rotary.

This time I might actually get to see it. (No details, just enjoy the fact that someone might actually get to witness what you and I know we always want to witness.)

So, in order to properly commemorate this possibility, I post the above picture of a wasp emerging from its hive - something I've also always wanted to see, but have never been in the right place at the right time. I've been there before it's happened, and after... until now.

So, I hope my luck in photography this time actually transfers to my workplace luck.

Time will tell... and so will I.

Up, Up and Awayyyyy......

CTBA - Lighter Than Air!
Lake Travis - Austin, Texas
August 2, 2008

I was scouring web sites for "something" and I ran across this announcement about the annual hot air balloon launch over Lake Travis, which happens to be here in Austin, so I started doing some research. After finding tons of articles about last year's even, I finally found a link to the CTBA main site and there, big as a bull, was the announcement for this years even - two weeks out.

After reading about it, reviewing the map and trying to figure out where it was, (keep in mind, I've only lived here a year) I made plans to go and have some fun. About three days after, I asked Roy (my photo partner in crime) if he had heard about it, which he had not, but he was just as excited as I and we decided to go together and make a morning out of it.

Saturday, August 2 arrives and Roy shows up in my driveway around 5:40 am and we head out to Mansfield Park on the dam. After a briskly breezy and hazy week, it was a surprisingly clear and calm morning.... YAY for us! We arrived at the park around 6:00 am to see that it was already becoming crowded with onlookers and there had yet to be anyone unpacking or setting up balloons. It was still pretty dark, but I had expected people to be preparing for the sunrise lift-off.

Anyhow, I found this tree and the sun was rising, so I took a few shots. (See previous blog picture.) Told Roy to come get a few shots and his turned out better in my opinion. I'm still pretty green with my equipment - it's nothing like what I'm used to, but I do like the instant notification that your shot sucked. (It's called an LCD display.) In the "old" days, I had to bracket the crap out of my photos and hope everything worked. (my meter, my battery, my shutter, my brain.... you know.. the essentials)

Well, the ballooners started prepping equipment so I started crawling all over, finding whatever vantage point I could for a good shot. Now comes a funny story (in my opinion).

I'm always very conscious of others when I'm shooting. I make every attempt to ensure that I'm not screwing someone else's shot. So, prepping is being done, and I see some guy standing off to the side of a basket with his arms crossed. He has no camera. So I move over, nod my head at him and proceed to take a shot of the ballooners checking their equipment. He promptly says, "Great, just step in front of me while I'm taking a picture," uncrossing his arms to show the point-and-shoot mini camera he had under his left arm. I apologized and said to please take his shot ahd he replied, "Nope... the shot's gone... it's just gone." I had to chuckle.... the basket was still there... and the sun doesn't change much in lighting over the period of 10 seconds.

That situation aside, I met a ton of photographers, and one really nice fellow had an old-school Leica, of which I was quite envious. We talked about my former darkroom (no basements in Austin) and he told me about his, which was set up in his laundry room. (And, no... I would not be able to do that.)

So, this shot was one of the latter ballons in the event. I just happened upon them filling it up and the basket was in the right position for a center-on shot. The flame tender was not in the frame and it turned out perfect. (In my humble opinion) We took a few more of the last balloons floating away and headed back to Round Rock for some breakfast tacos... oh my, they were great!

You can see more of these photographs at my website under the "Events / CTBA" tag.

The Calm of the Morning

There is nothing more calming to me than watching the sun rise. Something about the fantastic colors which are produced just encourage me to sit, veg and watch in wonder.

So, Roy and I traveled early to Lake Travis to get a good parking spot and vantage point for the annual CTBA Lighter Than Air hot air balloon launch over Lake Travis here in Austin. As you can tell by the picture, we arrived much earlier than necessary. BUT, I think there was a purpose for this - we were supposed to experience this sunrise.

As the orange started to build on the horizon, I walked up to the top of this rock "hill" and found this tree, standing there beckoning me to come over. Approaching the tree, I began to see this picture form and just had to snap off about 15 shots. This was by far one of the better pictures, considering I had to hand hold the shot at a fairly low shutter speed.

Well worth it, though, and I was then able to just sit and watch.....