So, living alone is pretty weird.  I now know how to make a pretty darn good grilled cheese sandwich.  And I’m quickly learning other things!

Fortunately, I live just a couple minute’s drive away from my parent’s house, (or a ~10 minute bike ride)  …So I can return home often and be with my ~19 year old cat who misses me a lot.  (Joy is seriously allergic)

Unfortunately, my car blew a head gasket on the freeway the other day and is completely RIP.  Would cost more to fully repair than a new (used) car of the same vintage.  Sooooo, needless to say this has put a damper on things that have already been quite dampened by a very precise, tightrope walk of a pre-wedding financial situation.  Joy and I are considering what to do.  At this point it looks like we will be staying home from our Caribbean honeymoon in favor of another new (used) vehicle that we can own long-term, instead of trying to get away with a cheap “for now” car.  Joy and I are both sorta okay with this, but I’m not sure the reality of it has settled in 100% either.  We shall see.  The reality of being married and living together is already getting larger than life…  And we need to pray and read together more; we have been quite casual / negligent in our *spiritual* relationship for a while now….

Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, on-camera pop-up flash commanding off-camera SB800, fired in manual mode probably…

Here is my crowning moment from that Santa Barbara wedding a few weekends ago.  This shot was taken on EXTREME time constraint so the pose is a little simple, but I’m at least happy that I seem to have perfected the art of using infra-red wireless flash in crazy lighting conditions, while everybody else is bent on using pocket wizards / radiopoppers etc.  I REALLY need to go on eBay and pick up 2-3 more SB800′s though, so I can add fill & kicker etc. lights to portraits like these.

BTW, if ANY photographer out there is brave enough to go out with Joy & I to try and make some wedding photos like THIS on a day-after session after our wedding, I’ve decided that we REALLY would like to do so.  Scott Robert?  Skunkabilly?  Maybe Joe McNally or Chase Jarvis will be in town?  Hahaha…  I guess I should talk to my OFFICIAL photographer first and see if he’s into the whole off-camera flash stuff…

The heart is a bloom
Shoots up through the stony ground
There’s no room
No space to rent in this town

You’re out of luck
And the reason that you had to care
The traffic is stuck
And you’re not moving anywhere

You thought you’d found a friend
To take you out of this place
Someone you could lend a hand
In return for grace

It’s a beautiful day
Sky falls, you feel like
It’s a beautiful day
Don’t let it get away

You’re on the road
But you’ve got no destination
You’re in the mud
In the maze of her imagination

You love this town
Even if that doesn’t ring true
You’ve been all over
And it’s been all over you

It’s a beautiful day
Don’t let it get away
It’s a beautiful day

Touch me
Take me to that other place
Teach me
I know I’m not a hopeless case

See the world in green and blue
See China right in front of you
See the canyons broken by cloud
See the tuna fleets clearing the sea out
See the Bedouin fires at night
See the oil fields at first light
And see the bird with a leaf in her mouth
After the flood all the colors came out

It was a beautiful day
Don’t let it get away
Beautiful day

Touch me
Take me to that other place
Reach me
I know I’m not a hopeless case

What you don’t have you don’t need it now
What you don’t know you can feel it somehow
What you don’t have you don’t need it now
Don’t need it now
Was a beautiful day

Take care,
=Matt=

So, I’ve leased an apartment and have been staying there (all by my lonesome, in this amazingly comfy calking from Custom Comfort!) for the past few days.  I don’t get internet there until tomorrow, so all internet usage has been restricted to work-critical only.  I’m at my parent’s house right now and am about to go out and buy some more furniture that Joy found on Craigslist.  Yay!

Anyways, I wanted to blog this short little video made by the awesome Seth Godin.  It’s about networking, and where  TRUE VALUE lies…

This is very true of the indusry today…  While knowing a lot of people (or having a lot of people know you) is indeed valuable, the number of friends you have on Facebook or Twitter is not nearly as important as what you actually DO for people.  Just like blogging-  Blogging frequently is good for business, but not  NEARLY as good as actually HELPING people, whether it be bride tips or photographer tips, etc.  (Speaking of the wedding photography industry of course, but all businesses can relate to this…)

And this is something that I’ve really seen IN-ACTION on the [b] school.  Because of the “cover charge” of $10 per month or $100 per year, only SERIOUS people join.  (Are you serious?  Have you NOT joined yet?)  People who are SERIOUS about networking, and not just “networking” but actually HELPING.   Helping fellow photographers master their technique, know their cameras like the back of their hands, and RUN A BUSINESS!  Helping the industry grow in a positive direction.  Helping brides get the best photos they can afford on their wedding day.  HELPING.  Becker just blogged a video response to Seth’s youtube “short”, which you can check out HERE…

Alright, time for me to get back to WORK! I’ll have internet at my new apartment tomorrow.  (ATTEMPTING to try Cox cable internet to see if it is faster than my local DSL.  Any opinions, other than the known fact that they have terrible customer service?)  I’d like to get away with paying $20-$30 for something *faster* than DSL, although if the Cox proves to be un-reliable then I guess I’ll just have to consider AT&T DSL or Bell or something?)

Take care,
=Matt=

Do you ever browse other photographer’s websites and all of a sudden have an attack of “why do I even bother trying to get better?  I’ll never be THAT good…”

Zack Arias (www.zarias.com) put VERY WELL this seasonal cycle, this mental process, this battle of self-worth…

If any of this rings true with YOU, whatever kind of artist you may be, I think you really ought to write down your thoughts somewhere.  Do it here, or on Zack’s site, or on Scott Kelby’s site.  (Zack did the video as a guest blog for Scott, another photography and photoshop industry guru.)  …Just so long as you LET IT really sink in…

=Matt=

 

So yeah, sorry for going out of order with these wedding photos.  I’m just blogging them in the order in which they catch my eye, I guess.  Here’s some ladies getting ready.  And then there’s Eric “getting ready”…

JPG capture, in-camera B&W, couple presets / clicks in Bridge CS3.  D300, 50-150, you know the drill.  Oh and bounced flash!

Take care,
=Matt=

Every now and then you take a blurry shot and it just works.  Spur of the moment, shoot from the hip, and usually a grainy B&W…  *shrug*

…In other news, I’m getting ready to drop some serious coin on all the various expenses that a wedding involves.  Pretty exciting and scary and sobering all at the same time.  I’ve never been this “responsible” for another human being.  I’ve been in love with Joy for years already, but soon she’s going to actually BE mine…  *tear…*

Am I allowed to be male and be this sappy?  Okay.  I just bought a fridge today.  How’s that for boring? 

=Matt=

Spent all day today doing busywork at my desk, making calls and then around sunset I went out and stopped by the only bare hillside in Irvine for a quick suburban landscape with Saddleback mountain doing it’s absolute best to look majestic haha…

This would be a really awesome spot for a little photo get-together!

Nikon D300  -  Sigma 50-150 2.8  -  150mm  -  f/8  -  2 sec.  -  ISO 200
RAW image in Bridge CS3 + automatic iPod & blog action.

=Matt=

Take care,
=Matt=

Hey, it’s the weekend, so I’m gonna GLANCE at some more photos from Sevilla…

As I mentioned before, my trip to Seville REALLY helped me come to appreciate street photography and “the decisive moment” as Henri Cartier Bresson called it.  Scott Robert has taught me how critical it is to be a master at posing, but I also learned that my *own* style as a photographer is deeply rooted in the art of ANTICIPATION and REACTION.

In other news, I also am still in love with “that film look” and the in-camera JPG settings + Bridge preset.  This preset I’ve dubbed “T-MAX PUSHED”.  …Do you like it???

Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, JPG with in-camera B&W settings…

Alright now I’m gonna do some work before bed.  Even though it’s the weekend…

Take care,
=Matt=

I’m making a few tweaks to my blog right now.  I’m back as a premium subscriber, because I couldn’t stand to see those randomly generated Google ads that were advertising for scam companies selling cameras with bait-and-switch tactics.  (No fault of Xanga, 100% Google’s fault…)

Ironically, I was also recently contacted by a B&H representative because my blog traffic is noticeable enough for them to have a vested interest in me joining  their affiliate program, so that’s why you STILL have to see “advertising” on my blog.  But I’ve spent thousands of my own dollars at B&H, and I feel like I’m doing passers-by a service by replacing the scam links with links  to a reputable, trustworthy store that *deserves* your business.

(I also buy lots of gear from ADORAMA, but have not taken the time to sign up for an affiliate program there yet.  Sooner or later!)

At any rate, I’m interested in some feedback on the slightly different look in general.  I’m also wondering if anybody knows the CSS code that might help me get some space in between the text of my blog entries and the orange border around each entry.  It likes to go *right* against the orange border and I wish I could give it just a few pixels of space.  But that’s not the end of the world, to be sure.  Xanga still rocks.  It’s like the Showit Sites of blogs, almost…

Anywho.  I wanna pay tribute to some of the AWESOME photographers I’m meeting these days.  First up of course is my newest partner in crime, Hanssie Trainor.  She’s a local wedding photographer.  (by moonlight, for now…)  She takes awesome pictures.  Don’t believe me?  Check this out…  (Then click that link, and check out the rest of her blogged images from that Salton Sea trip from this week!)

(Canon 5D mk2, 24-105 f/4, I think…)

Yes, as much as I like to chill with my Nikon peeps, (we have an exclusive Nikon club in the [b] school) …I AM friendly towards Canon shooters!

At any rate Stephen, Hanssie and I are hoping to *finally* put together a regular schedule for photo shoots.  You know, all those shoots I’ve been promising for years?  Anyways, we are finally going to harness the power of FACEBOOK, and come together.  Now I know there might be some people out there who follow my blog and don’t have facebook, and I hate to do this to you but if you want to get in on our events then you’ll have to sign on up.  It just just simpler that way…  Anyways we’re currently making efforts to plan a small, 10-person shootout in the coming month or so…  If you’re on facebook and don’t have a secret group invite in your inbox, drop me a message and I’ll invite you!

Alright take care all.  I’m off to be with Joy…
=Matt=

Click HERE and view the image larger!!!
Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, hand-held, 3 images stitched with Photomerge in CS3.  “The Echo” RAW preset.

Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, Sigma circular polarizer, tripod.
RAW image processed in Bridge CS3 with a slight graduated (gradient) curves adjustment.

Click HERE to check out fellow [b] schooler Gregg Shaw’s image of me capturing this shot!
Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, Sigma circular polarizer, tripod.
RAW image processed in Bridge CS3.

Nikon D300, Nikon 17-55, Sigma circular polarizer, tripod.
RAW image processed in Bridge CS3.

I’m hoping that I can begin to spice up my landscape photography compositional skills soon.  Gotta get the creative juices flowing, gotta get out more!

Take care,
=Matt=