Start! Lowcountry Heart Walk - 2010

Start! Lowcountry Heart Walk, Charleston, S.C.

A few of my closest friends got up bright and early and joined me at the Heart Walk this morning. Whew...it got a little warm out there but everyone seemed to be having a great time. Adorable kids, dogs, Zumba warm up (thanks Prisca!) and I heard there was even a goat!

More photos here.

We had 695 walkers registered on our team and last I checked, had raised over $52,000 for the American heart Association. Good stuff, kids. I am so very proud of my gang of pirates. We stormed the city in style! Thanks everyone!

day 268 - moving day $

Today was moving day for my sister and brother-in-law. They moved into a beautiful new house just a few minutes from where I work. Congrats guys!



One of the best parts of the day? Smile cookies from Tim Hortons.



The best part of the day I can't show you a picture of because my sister would kill me. It was priceless. All I can say is it was AWESOME. ;) So I'll just leave you with something just kinda awesome instead: Ava and Owen having a little moment watching the clothes go round and round in my sister's new dryer.

Two Suns

Trick photography? A crafty case of photoshopping? No simply there WERE two suns this morning (reflected through the window pane!!). ;-)

Hitting My Wall

Every so often my office gets so cluttered I can't work in there. The desk is piled with paperwork. Stacks of magazines gather dust on the side table because I mean to get to pages I've dog-eared, listing a website I want to check out or an article that merits rereading. I can't open the door all the way because my yoga stuff and my weights are behind it (oh yeah, I mean to get to that, too) and the bookshelves are, shall we say, overwhelmed.

It's time to take a day to clean it out so I can get some work done.

The same becomes true of my calendar from time to time. I'm attracted to this party and that event. I want to do everything, say yes to everything, so I load up the dates. When I do, there's that word again: overwhelmed.

It's not all bad. When I get overwhelmed I give up on office tasks and do something physical. This is how the yard work gets done.

What's your trick for handling life when you're overloaded?

Beautiful....

I have loved every wedding I've gotten to photograph this year and feel so blessed to be given the opportunity to capture such a special day in two people's lives! I'm already excited for 2011's wedding season. If you know anyone who is engaged or getting engaged this fall or winter, please pass my name along! I'd love to meet your friends and family.

I can't wait to share more of the beauty of this wedding with you. But for now... have a wonderful weekend! :)

Jillian, you are gorgeous! David, you married well! :)

Apples & Silver

There is a fascinating conversation going on at one of the jewelry tables at last weekend's arts festival.

Lake Erie Boat Hammock

Lake Erie, Canada

Clearly this isn't a lowcountry scene but I must be allowed to leave the Charleston peninsula once and awhile. When I was in Canada over LaboUr day, my brother drove me through cottage country along Lake Erie to Port Dover. I made him stop to let me get a picture of these contraptions.

How about this, eh? This is how they store their boats. The boat rests in the sling and is cranked up above the water level. All I can figure is that you would have to wade out in the water to get in the boat each time but I guess they don't have to worry about tides. Pretty neato I thought!

day 267 - katy & elmo $

I grew up in the days of Like a Prayer and the infamous Pope picture ripping incident. The big news this week was that Katy Perry's Sesame Street segment with Elmo was pulled from the episode over her outfit.

I've seen the clip and I've also let my kids see it. They loved it and I found it cute and don't see the big deal. Here they are watching it on Youtube:



Here it is so you can see for yourself:



It amazes me that this is such a big deal when just last week I was watching tv and I saw this commercial air. For the record my kids have not seen this commercial. And also for the record this is one of the funniest commercials I have ever seen.

The Rising Sun

Captured rising high above the Polish countryside...the crimson glow of the mighty sun!

Wine Tasting for a Cause

Wine Tasting under the Oaks, Charleston, S.C.

I've been so busy lately, I've been tossing a few pictures on facebook instead of the blog.

It is pretty obvious I am a fierce supporter of the American Heart Association. Not sure exactly how it started but it snowballed and now I am the company leader for my health system. Looking around the people that I love, so many of them wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for advances in heart disease awareness and treatment. It makes me feel like I am on a winning team.

The Lowcountry Heart Walk is tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. starting in front of the SC Aquarium. I plan to be there with 700 people on my team and the registration site says we have raised over $50,000. Woo hoo!

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of bake sales, book sales, raffle baskets, men in red dresses, and a lovely finale last night was a wine tasting under the oak trees in the meditation garden at Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital. My friend Andre Guillet offered to host the event and the tickets flew out of our hands! It was the perfect evening. Thanks to Andre, Chris, FISH Restaurant (yummy treats!), Jimihatt, Ashley Bakery, Dianna Sheridan, Mark Dickson, Tom Gardner, Charlie Black and all my incredible volunteers. Picture me blowing kisses!

You are still welcome to join the fun! Register online and walk with us, or if you are inclined you can make a donation.

wooded road

This eucalyptus allée is above the zoo on a road that leads to Skyline Boulevard.  It was at the end of this road I found the cowboy working his horses.  This rural area is only a few minutes from a major freeway.

This is an automatic post.  I'm traveling and will likely have restricted access to computers to comment on your blogs.  Back in town on October 1.

Door, 3

This door is a bit of a flirt. With her screen slightly ajar, she says, "come hither." Yet just inside her petticoat screen there's a giant lock on her full underskirt. I guess that makes her a tease. (Door is feminine in French--la porte.)

You might say she's plain, even simple. It's true, if you judge by exteriors alone. But what delights await behind her skirts?

She's for sale, or she was when I took the photo a few weeks ago. Therefore I'll cease with the metaphor. I wouldn't want to sully la porte's reputation. Besides, that changes the whole idea. A tease is exercising power.

Old & New

The round courtyard design frames the President's Cafe in the Culinary Arts wing of the new high school. I like the contrast of the blue sky and red brick. Happy Skywatch Friday.

There are no plans or funds to demolish the old high school you see in the background.

day 266 - britney $

Today Ava wore the back to school outfit that she picked out herself. She spotted it and she really, really wanted it. It's a cute little plaid skirt and cardigan with a fooler dress shirt underneath and it's adorable. It's very Britney Spears-ish.



Me: Smile and say Britney!!!!
Ava: BRITNEY!!!!
Me: Do you even know who Britney is?
Ava: Yes I know who Britney is! She's in my class. She's in JK.

Generation gap: 1
Mommy: 0




Here's one more shot for today - Ethan watching from the front door while I take pictures of Ava.

Toruń for Half Price!

Starting today at 12pm and running until 10pm on Sunday 26th September...it is TORUŃ ZA PÓŁ CENY...an exiciting event when many local restaurants, hotels, cafes, museums, etc are offering discounted prices (some as low as 50%!). So grab your coats, leave your homes and hurry into town to experience Toruń for a fraction of the cost! Not that Poland is that expensive in the first place! ;-)
St

Adam Murray - Routes 1

'Routes 1'
Adam Murray
Book
40 Pages / Glossy Cover
Edition of 75
20cm x 30cm
£8 + postage

"This is the first in a new 'Routes' series from PPP that features photography from small and large, town and cities explored using specific routes. 'Routes 1' began by plotting routes that I regularly take around Preston including my walk to work, trip to the park and the number 31 bus. These routes were then used to explore Paris."

website/to order

Imagery Update - Week of September 20th

Our latest imagery update is now live and ready for your viewing pleasure. This time around we’ve included high-resolution imagery of locations from more than one hundred countries! Check out some of my favorites from our latest batch below:

The Fountain of Diana the Huntress, one of the most representative sculptures of Mexican art, and main parade route location for the recent bicentennial celebration in Mexico City, Mexico.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

The recently completed Raleigh Convention Center and site of this weekend’s Mojo Musical Supply Southeastern Guitar & Amp Show in Raleigh, North Carolina. Turn it up to 11!

High Resolution Aerial Updates:
USA: Cincinnati, Denver, Greensboro, Raleigh, Miami, Monterey (CA), Portland (OR), San Diego, San Francisco, Sioux Falls (SD)
Mexico: Mexico City
Brazil: Rio De Jeaneiro
Sweden: Skara

Countries receiving High Resolution Satellite Updates:
Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, People's Republic of the Congo, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

These updates are currently only available in Google Earth, but they'll also be in Google Maps soon. To get a complete picture of where we updated imagery, download this KML for viewing in Google Earth.

Posted by Eric Kolb, Geo Data Strategist

Salvador Olguin - On the Life of Plants | Sobre la vida de las plantas

Title On the Life of Plants | Sobre la vida de las plantas
Artist: Salvador Olguin
Additional contributors: Rebeca Olguin (design)
Artist book
32 pages / 5.5 x 4.2 inches.
Edition size: 100 limited artisan edition (all signed by the artist)
Printed Digitally

Price: 10 USD plus shipping.

This book was inspired in some ideas about the psychic life of plants first written down by German philosopher Max Scheler in his book The Human Place in the Cosmos. It contains a series of polaroids created by the author by means of experimenting with a set of new polaroid photo films, light and puncturing techniques to create plant like shapes and colors.

website/to order

Superfluous Details: Home

I suppose I should define what I mean by a "superfluous detail."

I think of it as a detail on a building's exterior for which there is no structural necessity; it exists simply for the sake of beauty. Generally it's an architectural detail, but in today's example the homeowner added it--just because it's pretty.

It's not unusual to do that. We all love to decorate our homes. This added detail is very much to my taste.

Even if it were artificial flowers and plastic flamingos, which are not to my taste, it's better to at least try than to let the yard fill up with garbage, broken toys and dying bushes, right? (Before you say anything, just know I've been weeding the back yard.)

day 265 - the super harvest moon that wasn't $

There are only two things that could make me leave my house with the kids after dinner when bedtime is so close I can taste it: A. our house is on fire or B. super harvest moon. ;)

Shortly before dinner Photojojo put out the word that there was going to be a "super harvest moon" that was supposed to be amazing and impressive. As the sun went down the moon would be rising and they would meet to create a beautiful 360 degree twilight. There would also be an optical illusion that would take place and the moon would look massive. I should have pulled out the bullshit card and slammed it down on the table right then and there.

Anyway...enough jumping ahead in my story. I figured the best way to see this gigantic moon and get an awesome shot of it was to get out in the open. What better spot than a hayfield? I jotted down my little notes on what settings to use and Ava and I packed up the tripod and a blanket and headed out. We hiked out into the field to see this:

 

The same damn moon I've seen a million times before.

I'll give them one thing. The 360 twilight was pretty nice. Here's Ava while it was going on. She had the sun setting behind her and the moon was in front of her. Under normal circumstances her face would be dark from the shadow cast by her body. Not today. Today she was facing the moon and it was bright.

But as far as the whole optical illusion thing goes? I give it an F because it was non-existent. The moon was the same size it usually is.

We took a few shots while we were out there and I really enjoyed spending the time with Ava and seeing her run around with your camera but the moon was really disappointing.

Here's one of Ava's shots. Look at Miss Sunflare. Now she's just showing off.



A conversation walking back:

Me: Ava you took some amazing pictures. Way better than my pictures.
Ava: Yeah, your pictures are terrible.