Random Thoughts and Photos » People

So, are you gonna do a blog, or WHAT ???

randomphotog — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 03:20:19 +0000

Well, that’s what I’ve been kind of asking myself lately, because YES, I want to keep updating my blog, but I’ve had quite a busy couple of months that I’ve kept pushing this update back further, and further, and all of a sudden I realize it’s been FAR too long since I’ve updated. So, as a way of apology to the couple of devoted readers of my blog (hi Mom!), here’s an update to tell you a little bit about what I’ve been up to the last month and a half.

One of the most FUN shoots I’ve had lately, and some of the coolest shots, was for a company called Three Dog Bakery. If you’ve never heard of them, just ask your dog. I’m sure he or she has heard of them. And if he or she hasn’t, then they’ve not been paying attention to the neighborhood bark-wire. It’s a great company with their headquarters here in Kansas City, and we had WAAY too much fun shooting their new line of Summer Treats! Many, many thanks to Teri and Sarah for making the stuff look (and presumably taste) great! Here’s a couple of the shots from that session, which are now in all of their stores nationwide:

Yep - all dog treats (except the flowers and ants!)

YUMMY! (yes, people can eat them too)

MARATHONS!

Here's Betty!

Lots of marathons. One darn near every weekend in different states. From Chicago, IL to Grand Rapids, MI, to Denver, CO, to Traverse City, MI and now Deadwood, SD – it’s marathon season. And I’ve photographed all of ‘em, working for Action Sports Images. Good times, lots of travel, and racking up the frequent flyer miles.

Um...yeah. Marathoner. In Denver. Mile High City. Go figure.

Speaking of speed….

Indycar

Photographed the Indy Car races at the Kansas Speedway for the Associated Press. Indy car is fun to shoot – great colors, interesting drivers, and man, do those babies fly!

And, of course Danica Patrick….’nuf said.

Danica Patrick

Also had the opportunity to photograph a former NY Mets player, who then went to the Royals, and consequently suffered a series of nearly fatal illnesses. This was an assignment for the New York Daily News. His name is Ed Hearn, and his story is really incredible. This very gentle, very friendly and accommodating gentleman is truly an inspiration for everyone, and I highly recommend reading his book and visiting his website. Thanks very much to Ed and his family for allowing me into a little part of their daily lives.

Ed and family

Ed's championship rings, worn by his son.

Also had a couple of aerial jobs lately, one of which involved both air and ground photography for an engineering firm. It was a completely gorgeous day, and perfect for flying. Here’s a couple of photos from that awesome shoot:

Brush Creek to the Plaza

Brush Creek

I’m very grateful, and it’s always a blast these last few years to be chosen as the photographer for the Great Dane Club of Kansas City’s annual show held in Kansas. I LOVE shooting these shows each year, and I get to spend the entire day (or two sometimes) around the most wonderful breed evah!! Here’s two shots from this year’s show – check out my website for more!

Best of Breed

And, of course, more Royals games – several in the last month or so. What the heck has happened to this team??? Wow…I mean, they’re not sucking as bad as previous years, but come on! We were doing sooo well. It’s like all the talent has just been drained out of ‘em. I know – it’s still a long season, so I’m hoping they’ll come back around and start the winning again. I was kind of getting used to starting to think about maybe we might have a team this year. Not completely giving up hope – yet.

Our "White Knight"?

Yeah - he was safe at home.

Academy Award material here - that pitch wasn't THAT close!

OK….this isn’t nearly ALL I’ve been up to in the last month and a half, but some of it. I wanted to share a few photos, check in, and let y’all know that I’m still around. And making a commitment to try, try, TRY to update a little more often.

Thanks for reading this RANDOM sampling of what I’ve been up to lately, and I really hope you’ll check back soon for more!

Rockin' roadtrip – Finale

randomphotog — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 01:40:14 +0000

Hangin' out at Deadhorse Point, Utah

A few more random shots from the rockin’ roadtrip, then a bunch of goofy golf shots

A look at Deadhorse Point, Utah, through a circular polarizer filter

An arch with a bird soaring through – somewhere, Utah.

Check out that form!

We actually got back from the rockin’ roadtrip on Feb 16th, but I’ve been too busy playing catch-up since then to update the blog. So, in honor of the wonderful weather, good company, and lots of miles and fun, I thought I would re-start the entries with one final one from Arizona.

We played 4 rounds of golf in three days – then had to shoot the Lost Dutchman marathon the day after the last round. The weather was just incredible the entire time we were there in Arizona – perfect for some golf, so golf we did!

Yep – that one went in. Too many of ‘em didn’t, or at least not soon enough! I can’t really say that I embarrassed myself with my game, but could’ve played better.

That one went in ‘da hole’ too.

Never gonna find that one...

Unfortunately, I also spent a fair amount of my time on the course like this:

Da beach

and this

Ignore the golfer - look at the mountains!

But, overall, we had an awesome time – great courses, great weather, and some good times.

Being a full-time freelance photographer, I spend the majority of my time behind the lens, and rarely post photos of myself. I thought it might be kind of fun to post a few of my bad golf form on here, and open it up for any of the comments and criticisms that may show up if any golfers are reading. Mainly, though, I wanted to share with you all some of the really beautiful scenery on these courses we played on. The view on some of the holes just basically took your breath away. They were awesome.

Big thanks to my best buddy Mark Coffey from ActionSportsImages for really making the trip possible, and to my friend Aaron Lindberg for (wisely) deciding to not play and just shoot photos of us so we can really see how goofy we look!

Thanks for looking, and more blog updates to come soon of some recent shoots, and some cool places I’d like to tell you about!

An amazing, historic day

randomphotog — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 04:42:10 +0000

What an awesome day for our country today was. I have to admit my emotions ran the gamut today, but for the most part there was simply hope and joy. Hope for the future of our nation, and joy that we as a nation have finally risen above ignorance and bias that we’ve labored under for so long. Does this mean everything will magically mend overnight? When we all wake up tomorrow, will President Obama be able to solve all of the problems this country faces, both here and abroad? No, absolutely not. But the hope that he’s inspired in many of us, I belive, will linger after all of the ceremonies have finished. He has inspired this nation to believe that change is possible, and that we all need to do our part in helping bring that change about.

I was proud to be a part of the celebration at the historic Gem Theater at 18th and Vine today in the Kansas City Jazz District. Here’s a few shots from today, and more can be seen on my website. Overall, an awesome day. One that made me proud to be an American.

The Day He Won KC

randomphotog — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 20:21:27 +0000

This was a project envisioned and created by Kevin Morris, who owns Obsidian Publishing here in Kansas City. I was honored to have an opportunity to be involved with this project that took place this past Election Day, and even more excited that several of my images were selected to be included in both the commemorative calendar and book that is being printed.

The project itself is way cool – 10 local professional photographers were chosen to basically “shoot the day” all around Kansas City. We essentially got to shoot anything we found interesting, exciting, or just plain cool that day, then submit our best work to the project. I also had the opportunity to appear on local television station KCTV5 Sunday, Jan 11th to talk about the project with Kevin. Also appearing with us was Megan Birdsall, who is a very, very talented jazz vocal artist, and produced and recorded a CD of her work that will be included with the commemoritive book. It was pretty cool, and for any of those that saw it, I hope I didn’t sound like a doof.
There will also be a huge event on Inauguration Day happening at the Gem Theater around 18th and Vine streets in Kansas City. All people attending the event on that day will receive a copy of the commemorative calendar, get the opportunity to meet with a lot of the photographers and people involved with the project, and just join in the celebration on this historic day for our country. I hope all of you reading this can plan on attending – it’ll be awesome!

Orders are being taken now for the calendar either in person at the American Jazz Museum on 18th and Vine, or online on the website TheDayHeWonKC.com, and a portion of all sales from the items will go to the Jazz Museum. A few of my images that were selected for the project are below, and more of them can be found on my website here. Take a look at them, please plan on joining us for the celebration on Jan 20th, and thanks for looking!

***UPDATE!!***

Ive just found out that local tv station KCTV5 will be there covering the event at the Gem next Tuesday, so that will be awesome! Here’s a link to the article on their website regarding it, and a little ‘blurb’ from Kevin Morris:

http://www.kctv5.com/politics/18480027/detail.html

My favorite subject

randomphotog — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 22:03:13 +0000

Got an opportunity to shoot some photos of my daughter last night in my studio. Good times! Here are some of my favorites from the shoot.

Thanks for looking!