EngelFish.Net

I only just realized that it’s been almost a month since my last post.  Slap my hand and send me to the “time out” chair.  Is there such a think as Blogomucil?  Because I am *far* from regular about my posting.  Regardless, let’s see if I can update on most of the things which happened this June.

I spent quite a few days working with Scott Dingman.  He’s a terrific commercial photographer, with 20+ years behind the camera.  I’ve been trying to keep my mouth shut and my eyes/ears open, and hopefully learn a thing or two about how to be a professional.  I know one thing for sure, I’ve learned that making a living with a camera is even more complex than I’d thought… which is saying something.  I’m indebted to Scott for so frequently hiring me for assisting jobs.  Without those opportunities, I would be making far slower progress than I am.

Speaking of slow progress, this year’s NYC Marathon is not going to include me.  Our annual running club was snubbed this year, with only 1 person, Dan, getting accepted.  We’re still going, of course, but most of us will be play the “support crew” role.  Not having the marathon to motivate me, I’m not doing as well with running as I should be.  Although Kim, David, & I make a spit-pact to work on our goals (one of the many reasons they’re laughing so hard in the photo), I have yet to really start working on my running.  There’s always tomorrow.

Another thing that is best done regularly, is cutting the grass.  That, unfortuneately, is proving a bit difficult for me.  When the inherited-with-the-house lawnmower came out of the crawlspace this spring, it was on strike.  After disassembling it and trying to reverse engineer the problem, I realized I had no clue what I was doing.  Luckily a friend of ours, Stan, is a whiz with small engines and came to my birthday party.  It took him under 60 seconds to diagnose the problem, which turned out to be a $0.75 part.  It arrived in the mail the other day, and I’m planning on rebuilding the mower before this weekend.  I hate to take away the employment of the neighborhood lawnmowing kid, but some things just gotta’ get done.

Two weekends ago was the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure here in Raleigh.  Too keep our streak up, Taryn and I both participated.  I’d like to say we ran it, but that would be stretching the truth like cheap spandex.  We enjoyed a brisk walking pace, and finished feeling pretty good.  As every year, I was amazed by the turnout.  About 28,000 participants turned out.  My first year running the NYC Marathon (2000) had 35,000 runners, and Raleigh is a damn sight smaller than NYC.

Additional June events included  seeing a few movies (The Happening, Iron Man, and The Incredible Hulk).  I thought all three were were great, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the summer movie season.  I’ve also caught up on a few films via Netflix (The Signal, Cast Away, The Gangs of New York, and City of God).  This past Saturday we helped Mary & Cristina move, which was fun since most of the Flickr Raleigh Social Group showed up to help.  We also attended a gallery night at Rebus where our friends Abby, Rob, and Tom had work showing.  All things considered, it was a pretty good month… if a bit on the hot side.

For the first time that I can remember, my birthday wasn’t on the Memorial Day holiday. I don’t know exactly why, but I missed having a three day weekend to celebrate my 40th birthday. We turned it all into a festival of sorts anyway, with at least three different functions (two dinners out, and a cookout at our place) over four days, which were all great! I don’t feel any different than I did last year or the year before, but it’s always good to take the time to appreciate all the great things happening in your life, and the great people around with whom you share it. I’m blessed with terrific friends and family, and I want you guys to know that I realize that. Thanks for being there!

IMAGE: My friend, and a damn fine photographer, Ethan Hyman at the Memorial Day Cookout Kleinstack held.

After a month long visit home to South Africa, Taryn is back.  A month is a long long time, and I am very happy to have her back.  It seems like she had a good time, and for that I’m glad.  It had been too long since she last got to see her family, so this trip was long overdue.  But now she’s back, and that is a good thing as far as I’m concerned.  I haven’t seen her pictures yet, but I’m sure she’ll share them, and the videos, on flickr sometime soon.

As for me, I’m keeping plenty busy.  There is quite a lot of consulting work to do, and I’m also quite far behind in my paperwork for the photography business.  There are invoices to be shipped, account packages to be installed, branding work (logos, fonts, etc) to be done, website updated to implement, and lots of prints and albums to complete.  There is no shortage of work to do, and time is always the limiting factor.

Healthwise, we’re both doing okay.  I’m still scrambling to line up insurance for us, but I’m more focused on losing all the weight that I’ve built up these past two years.  A couple of month ago, Taryn bought a pair of jeans for me in the size I was wearing when we met.  They don’t fit, and she offered to return them.  I said no, since that would be giving up, which I’m not prepared to do.  Now that spring is definately here, walks/runs and other outdoor activities will be the order of the day.  If I get into the NYC Marathon in November (which I’ll find out in June), I’ll have a great goal to focus on for my running.  In the meantime, it’s morning workouts, and trotting around the neighborhood with the dogs.

I was sitting in a photo seminar Tuesday, as they played a video. Ed Pierce, from Wilimington, NC, was the speaker, and we attended his presentation two years ago. He is a very funny, very dynamic speaker, and well worth the seminar’s fee.

In general, he talked about lighting, posing, gettng the most out of your equipment, and improving your workflow. He covered all that, including showing several videos. Most of them were of him demonstrating different things, or following other photographers as they work.

Then he showed a video for an organization called "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep" (NILMDTS http:\\www.nilmdts.org ). I won’t go into what they do, but it is an amazing service that they provide. I can’t imagine doing what they do, but I think it is one of the finest things that any photographer can do.