Valentines Day in Austin

I had a client meeting in Austin, TX scheduled for the day after Valentine's Day so Jen and I decided to make it a little live-music vacation. Austin is calls itself the live music capital of the world. With four bands a night in every bar, it's easy to believe. For Valentine's Day, we had dinner at the South Congress Cafe, just down the street from our hotel, the Hotel San Jose. The Cafe serves amazing food - I've yet to have anything that was less than to die for. Can't recommend it enough.



We couldn't miss an opportunity for some Texas BBQ so on our second night, we checked out the County Line Bar-B-Q. I ordered an appetizer plate that came stacked with pork and beef ribs, brisquet, sausage, and turkey. That was more than enough - I can't imagine eating an actual dinner plate. I couldn't pass up the photo op - and no that's not a giant turd. (I think it's a rib.)



Here's some shots from our walk around Town Lake. Austin kind of reminds me of San Diego; instead of a bay, Austin's got a small downtown right on a lake.







John

Four Careers of Two Photographers: APA Slide Show/Talk

I thought I'd follow up on my earler post about my talk and slide show for the Advertising Photographers of America/San Diego with LA advertising and wedding photographer Todd Johnson. The entire event went off really well and ended up being a lot of fun. There were some amazing photographers in the crowd and it was a full house so it was a little intimidating - but everyone ended up being really supportive and engaged.

Even though this was an advertising photographer event, there were more wedding photographers in the crowd. Lots of great questions. It was great seeing Todd's work and hearing about how he works. Although our work is complementary, our approach is different. The crowd really got to hear from two sides to the same coin.

Here's a view from the audience at Bil Zelman's and Janis Foley's studio in San Diego:



And one of me answering questions afterward:



Thanks to John Durant for the pix.

John

Paloma's Birthday Party

This time of year, there's not too many weddings going on and things tend to be a little slower photographically speaking. So instead, you get to see some family photos. It was one of my niece's fourth birthday and, as usual, Uncle John had his camera out.

Here's the birthday girl. Such a cutie.



As a joke, I suggested bobbing for apples. The kids jumped at the idea so I cleaned out a bucket, added water and tossed in some apples.



The way they were going at it, you'd think it was carmel covered gold they were going after. The apples were too big for them but they kept at it.



Finally, one of them decided that they needed a snorkeling mask to really get into the water. It just doesn't get any better than this.



Even dad, my brother, got into the act.



Finally, success. (Although I don't know if getting one by the stem counts.)



John

Billy Crystal - 700 Sundays

Okay, this isn't a photo related post, but last night I went to see 700 Sundays, a one man performance by Billy Crystal at the Wilshire Theater in LA. Amazing. I've seen some great performances and will no doubt see many other great performances, but I doubt that I will ever see a better performance than what I saw last night. I laughed so hard that I was crying and couldn't breathe - and in the next moment I cried from the sadness in his story.

Basically, the play is a memoir centered on the fact that his father died when he was fifteen. He calculated that he spent 700 Sundays with him when he was alive. The show has been playing to sold out audiences, but do what you have to get tickets to see this amazingly funny guy doing the performance of a lifetime.

John

The Salton Sea

Nothing like a little adventure. Kanani, John (my clients) and I took a little road trip to the Salton Sea (located about 45 minutes south of Palm Springs) for their engagement shoot. After driving around and getting a little lost, we ended up at the abandoned "Aces and Spades" nightclub. Talk about something straight out of a sci-fi horror movie set. The surreal nightclub and abandoned motel across the street gave the images a very cinematic feel. At sunset, the Salton Sea made for a sublime backdrop.



This is probably my favorite from the shoot. It's subtle but at the same time a little dramatic.







John