Sunday Funday

So around here, every Sunday is deemed "Sunday Funday" and with that came back to back softball games starting at 8am in Santee (La Jolla of East County for those who remember the Mayor of Santee wanting to give the city a new name). By 8:30am the sun was already hot and we still had one more game to play at 9am. The "Bettys" had a win and a loss and unfortuantely, first baseman Nicole will be out for two weeks with a severe ankle sprain. After playing and cheering on my favorite team Looking to Score in 85 degree heat, it was time to go home to see what I could get into. Plans to take pictures fell through so I took one of my cameras to my favorite watering hole to see if there was anything interesting to photograph. I spent a little time on the patio and found my favorite little corner where a few of the Gossip Grill employees posed for pictures. Moe Girton is the GM of my favorite spot so it was nice to sit there and sip on a beer in between catching her talk with customers.

Bitter Sober at Anthology

After my softball games last Sunday, I went to "church" for bs and a beer. Emily was bartending and on the way out, asked me what I was doing on Monday evening. After saying nothing, Emily gave me a ticket to see her play bass with a band called Bitter Sober at Anthology. Emily suggested that I bring my cameras and since it was my day off, I saw the perfect opportunity to make some images. An added challenge is that I don't shoot concerts so I was really out of my comfort zone. Anthology is located in the historic Little Italy section of SD where one way streets are as abundant as Italian restaurants. I heard some great live (and local) music while sweating my way through Emily's set. Eight bands performed 20 minute sets and this place was packed. It was nice to see local music get some exposure and it was a nice way to start the week on an otherwise hated day. Bitter Sober was great and I love the way the patrons and employees came out to support Emily and the girls.

Today's special guest portrait is...

...Missy the "beauty on duty" bartender at Gossip Grill! I took my camera with me during happy hour(yeah, sometimes not a bright ideal) and decided to take a few of Missy before it got busy. Missy also co manages the softball team I play on during the fall and spring seasons. The patio bar with the Cruzan liquor bottles lined up gave a nice background with the daylight reflecting through them and using my 50mm lens help give me a sharp image with Missy as the main focal point. So I'm trying out a portrait a week in a weekly blog post. This exercise makes me go out and create images and gives you a small look at how I see the people I know or don't know.

Help Portrait is...

...one of the most magical ways to spend a brisk December morning in San Diego. This is my third year serving others through photography and it just gets better. This year I participated in Help-Portrait here in San Diego. Ordinarily I don't post the images because the subjects are high profile due to their personal circumstances but as that was not the case this year, I did pick out a couple to share. This year, me and 20 other people set up at the City Heights Farmer's Market. Partnered with the IRC, we took pictures of people who passed by with their children and offered a free picture of parents and their children, couples, new mothers and anyone else shopping at the market. City Heights is home to thousands of transpalnted refugees so it was nice to make pictures of people representing the different ethnicities throughout City Heights. I recommend participating in Help Portrait at least once in your life whether you are a photographer or a volunteer.

Outside The Doors of Comic-Con

I'm not the comicbook type and have always avoided downtown San Diego when Comic-Con was in town. I went out this morning and decided to make some images after seeing all the great images my fellow photographers made in the past three days. Not saying I can duplicate them because they are some of the best photographers in the county but going out today put me on day made me closer to becoming a better photographer because I got off my a$$ and made some pictures. I met up with Jerod as he was there shooting for Getty and we walked around. I got to see Jerod in action and he gave me some pointers about shooting from the hip. This was one of those times where I stepped out of my comfort zone to the unknown. One thing I love about "The Con" crowd is that they are not there to get rowdy beligerant, they are there to show off their handmade costumes and be amongst each other. Overall, I was very impressed with the behavior of the crowd. This convention has been going on for 41 years and I can see why other cities are trying to take it away from San Diego. They need to step back and recognize because Comic-Con is here to stay. At least til 2015.

Never Give Up

Because I have not been satisfied with anything I've done lately,I went out today with my camera and found some people to take quick portraits of. No flash, just available light a smile. "Will you pose for a picture?". No one denied me. I've been caught up with some things and trying to take care of myself so I decided I was going to take a couple of pictures today that I could be proud of. It took me a while to find the video of another photographer named Clay Enos who I really admire for his work with Organic Coffee Cartel and his video on street photography. I really like the way he just finds a corner, takes out the minimal amount of equipment and makes picture. Always nice to go back to the basics and remember why I love photography.

Over-the-line - 58 years and still kicking

So the weather has been really nice and I forgot what it's like to be near the water. I left this morning to watch OTL and take some pictures. I love the fact that normally only people who live in San Diego know what OTL is. OTL is short for over-the-line. This is a game that was started here in San Diego. It's like softball but there are bases to be ran and teams consist of only three people. I like going to the beach when it's not crowded so I stepped out of my comfort zone and went during the daytime. Now, I'm still dark from playing softball so I didn't spend too much time out there. That hat and sunblock didn't work. I still got too much vitamin D.