Warm thoughts of Italy - Lake Como

Warm thoughts of Italy - Lake Como, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving." - Lao Tzu

In my typical haphazard way of bumbling about Europe, its actually a miracle that I eventually made it to my destination here on the lake. One wrong train and bamb, your 5 hours off track. Well, like I have said before, its all about the journey.......so that of course, I embraced it :)

In an effort to cut back on my usual HDR style posts, I decided to present a few tamer shots. Its a nice change actually. Hope you enjoy!

An evening on the Seine in Paris - and a really cool project from Pat Metheny

An evening on the Seine in Paris, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I've always been fascinated with artistic pioneers. Those who plunge forward with a vision of their art, reguardless of the critiques, naysayers, and acceptence of the masses. When in Paris, of course, its hard not to feel and embrace the the presence of the early masters of impressionism.

Similarly, a musician I have followed for sometime now and a pioneer in his own right was my inspiration as I worked on this image tonight. Check out his new creation below!

Colorado Rockies National Park

Colorado Rockies National Park, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Nothing earth-shattering to report. Just taking the day to get caught up, clean up, and rest up for the up and coming slaughter this week. Having 8 events in one week is a little bit of a juggle, but all systems are go. More on that as the week progresses!

And for now.....yes, its time to take down the tree...the CHRISTMAS TREE that is. Yes, on February 21st, its time to say goodbye to this crispy little fire hazard!

Focus (and a site recomendation of www.philosophersnotes.com)

Focus (and a site recomendation of www.philosophersnotes.com), originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Its not often that I take the time to pass on a link that has inspired me. That being said, I think it might be time for a change.

In my recent and deliberately chosen path of self growth, education, and personal discovery, I happened to stumble upon this site. Imagine condensing 100 of the top books on positive energy, law of attraction, and business wisdom into a concentrated package. Well, Brian Johnson has done an amazing job at just that in his program called "Philosophers Notes"

If your the least bit interested in improving your life by design, this is absolutely worth a peek. Poke around on the site and definitely check out the TV tab for a few short video on what he is creating. There is a lot of free info to check out. I am definitely a fan and student! People helping people.....a great way to live life :)

Check it out!

Link to Philosophers Notes

Chasing God Beams in Iceland

Chasing God Beams in Iceland, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

"Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest of chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey." - Pat Conroy

There are a few pieces of musical art that trigger a memory, a flashback to a time and place when all I could do was consume the beauty in front of me. I treasure the acute cinematic experiences I have allowed music to help create for me while exploring parts of this beautiful world. My travels in Iceland were no exception. I was introduced to an artist called Jami Sieber by Trey from Stuck in Customs. Her incredible blend of drama and mystery created with the electric cello was a great travel companion for me as I explored this vast and unique landscape. Thanks for helping me to see this new place with a cinematic pair of eyes Jami! Check out a link to some of her sounds below:

End of the Christmas Day (and a little reflection)

End of the Christmas Day (and a little reflection), originally uploaded by Photomike07.

So here we are.....the end of another day. Not just any day, but Christmas Day, a day meant to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Seems like the real meaning has been a bit watered down over the past 2009 years, don't ya think? Guess I tend to be the a bit forgetful myself. I was reminded of this as I clicked thru the library of images of a few cathedrals on my laptop this evening. I posted a few below. I have so often just kinda blazed into these houses of worship in hopes of capturing the details but yet, never really stopping to feel the presence of the one that the house is built for. With that in mind, it feels good to have allowed myself to do just that last night!

Merry CHRISTmas everyone :)

Sunset in Sebastion - larger than life

Sunset in Sebastion - larger than life, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

So often, many a great photographer has set out for the golden hour. Those warm and wonderful precious few moments of light have often found this photographer without a great location! Every once in a while however, these two come together in luminescent harmony. (Geez, did that sound stupid!) Sometimes its a crapshoot. You prep the gear, load up, and headout...or if your slightly insane, you do this in the morning. I must say, I do love starting the day this way...it's just a bit hard to actually get started. Yeah, my sunset shots far outnumber those sunrise ones, thats for sure! (Again, quite a lame sentence there.....)

Anyway, while bumbling about the coast here one afternoon in Florida, was quite lucky to be as they say "at the right place at the right time!"

A colorful day on the way to Key West

A colorful day on the way to Key West, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Hmmmm, I was gonna drone on about some reference to color and how life is all about the perception you choose to embrace this wonderful colorful world with and what it has to offer, and wouldn't ya know it.....I lost my train of thought......LOL.....

to be continued, I guess....

(hope you are having a great weekend!)

Moonlight along the Oregon Coast

Moonlight along the Oregon Coast, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

My post this evening finds me with a bit of a backlog of shots I either have been wanting to post, have perviously talked about posting, or promised others that I would post soon. So, with all that being said, I'm not really sure why I put the headphones on and dove deep into the drive to find a blank palette to paint on. I guess it has a little to do with the afternoon I had. I decided to take a wee bit of a break and goofed off for a while today. This afternoon, I took my daughter to see The Christmas Carol with Jim Carrey in 3d IMAX. Definitely a must see!!! What a buffet of visual inspiration. It's hard to figure out what is animated, generated, and real. I guess when it all works, it really doesn't matter. What was even cooler was the opportunity to discuss the movie in a rather philosophical way with a 9 year old over dinner afterwards. Indeed, my life is good :)

A quick shout out to www.flickr.com/photos/skeletalmess/ for his cool textures that I was able to use to paint with tonight. Check out his stream!

Musical inspiration I used for the edit

Boston building street art

Boston building street art, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

In my ever continuing quest to express myself, my recent trip in Boston was a great opportunity to wander about the city looking for a fresh perspective. Capturing architectural details eventually led to a new perspective for me......

So, what's that have to do with Greensboro Mike? I thought you were gonna post from the event you are on in North Carolina?

Oh yeah, sorry, a bit side tracked!

No real art to post yet, but I have been twittering though throughout the day. Follow me at:

twitter.com/MDSimages

(I just started this silly twittering nonsense, so, take it for what it's worth!)

More images from the event to follow this week, along with a timelapse Tuesday tomorrow, so stay tuned :)

Boston street art

Boston street art, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I had a few things in mind when exploring the streets of downtown Boston, and was able to test out some of these ideas today. I know I've said it many times, but I love to travel.....most of us do I am sure. For me, there is nothing that quite feeds the artistic and inquisitive mind than a complete change of scenery. In a constant journey to attempt to expand my portfolio of work in this visual arts medium, I find my brain wandering quite frequently about how to express myself. Although, this is not the original vision I had when I woke up, I like how it turned out.

Night reflections in Boston (and heading there in the AM to work there this week!)

Night reflections in Boston (and heading there in the AM to work there this week!), originally uploaded by Photomike07.

On my last visit to Boston, I had a few opportunities to wander about the city (I love that bumbling about feeling) searching for reflections after the rain. As I take a quick break in my packing for my trip there in the morning, I just realized....I better double check the weather!

This time, I am on an event all week and working with a few cool cats.....a few of them fellow photogs I might add.......should be a nice week :)

More on all this later.....5AM is gonna sneak up fast!

A break in the sky over the West Palm Beach, Florida intracoastal

A break in the sky over the West Palm Beach, Florida intracoastal, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I just love to watch how the sun and clouds position themselves in this delicate dance we call a sunset. Just a couple of nights ago, as the sun was disappearing below the horizon, its warmth was reflected and bounced all over the sky in a somewhat random haphazard way. The thick canopy of storm clouds up camera right seemed to be happy to throw back all the lumens they could, reflecting a warm and soothing but yet eerie orange glow. Like I have said before, its a hit or miss light show here quite often, but this night was definitely a winner!

A mad dash out the door

A mad dash out the door, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Our unpredictable South Florida sky's have actually been rewarding the flexible photographers down here with some sporadic opportunities to capture and display nature at its finest. I have personally been monitoring the evening cloud patterns almost daily (remember, I'm not much of a morning person) for breaks at the prime times in the evening. On those evenings when I don't have the little one with me, I mentally prepare myself to be able to jet out the door with my gear faster than an EMT to a 3 alarm fire! And this shot was taken on just one of those emergency calls :)

Hanging onto the day

Hanging onto the day, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

So, after putting the finishing touches on the lighting we were doing for a wedding tonight, I said goodbye to my lighting director for the evening and my client, and headed out the door in hopes of catching a cool sunset. Well, we have some fickle weather here in South Florida. I eventually did catch some unusual color down by the new city piers, but that will have to wait for another post someday. This is a little peek at the color that I love to catch though.....captured a couple of months ago just off of one of the bridges to Palm Beach.

As I was driving back from the wedding setup, I was thinking about a couple of things. First, if you really think about it, even if there is total overcast and clouds, above all that is a beautiful sunset in hiding. Kind of a stupid thought actually. Second, and a little more comical, is the following scenario. Imagine a drunk relative at a wedding (hmmm, that always seems to happen doesn't it?) lets call him uncle Ted, who's profession is a divorce attorney. There is a pretty good chance that if intoxicated enough, he could consider slipping either the bride or groom a business card. Hey, 50% failure rate, the odds are pretty good for locking in a future client, right?

(Geeeez, Mike, was that necessary?)

LOL....Enjoy the weekend :)

Afterglow Mausoleum in Friday Harbor

Afterglow Mausoleum in Friday Harbor, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

So after cruising thru a few images I have ready to regurgitate into the online world, I decided on this one. I have a couple like this that I might throw out there over the next couple of days. Images that I worked on, but have no real remembrance to what it was I was actually photographing. I kinda like that though. I seem to get a little carried away looking for compositions, color, details, and all that stuff and seem to, well, just bypass the real information like what the hell I am photographing!

While up in the San Juan Islands on a little photo workshop last year, I happened to stumble across this kinda bizarre little memorial of sorts out in the woods. I remember some very unique and strange details....like 7 columns, one column incomplete, 6 chairs....I am sure it all had some sort of signifigance. Also, the fact that it was in the middle of the forest added to the mystery. I bet it's pretty spooky at night actually! Anyway, thanks to the internet, here a little more, or shall we say ALOT more, about the site.

Real actual information about the location!

Somewhere in Denver

Somewhere in Denver, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Having not taken any shots lately shy of the few I took today from my motorcycle, I think I'm due for a "clean out the ready to file" week. So, to start out, here's one from....uumm, well, Denver. Where in Denver you ask? Haven't a clue. You see, for me, this little hobby or extreme passion of mine is approached in a somewhat haphazardly fashion. At times, there seems to be no system in place for the gathering of pertinent information. In this case, some of that information might start with, ole......how about maybe the name of the church?

I love church interiors like this, always have. I must admit that I feel kinda weird bustin' in there with the old tripod though. I have never been approached and asked questions about what I am doing, but I'm sure that day will come!

So, as you know, the fisheye lense is one to be used in moderation. Not a very flattering portrait lense for sure.....unless having a nose that appears to be larger that your whole head is the look you are after.......

Pyramid at the Society of the Four Arts - Palm Beach

Pyramid at the Society of the Four Arts - Palm Beach, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I don't know much about this sculpture. You think I would by now. Every photographer has their special locations, you know.....the fall back ones, the ones that are close-by that you scramble to when the light is just right. This evening was no different. Just over the bridge from where I live is Palm Beach....a winter playground for a fortunate few. This sliver of land boasts some of the most unique, expensive, and exclusive real estate in the country! Anyway, just over the Center bridge as we locals call it is home to the Society of the Four Arts and also the home of this sculpture. With the wonderful light that was painting the sky at the time, the only challenge for me was to find yet another unique perspective!

At the top of Gullfoss Falls in Iceland (and a website update)

At the top of Gullfoss Falls in Iceland (and a website update), originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Sometimes, the timing is such that I am fortunate to be able to mentally attach a particular musical piece to a location or shoot. Before I left for Iceland, I was introduced to the wonderful music of Jami Sieber from a little experimental video that Trey Ratcliff worked on. Her cinematic melodies struck a deep cord in me and have been the creative background music I have since enjoyed while processing images lately. I also enjoyed this wonderful music as I traveled about Iceland last month. Knowing that her music has somewhat been a creative soundtrack for my recent work, I was quite excited when she gave me permission to use it on my website!

I have recently taken the time to update a few galleries on my site at www.mdsimages.com I hope you get a chance to check it out as there are a few images that I have not posted here yet. In the music credits, I have a link through to her site as well. Also, if interested, her music is available on Itunes.....just search for Jami Sieber.

Thanks for stopping by :)

If Walt Disney himself could paint the sky

If Walt Disney himself could paint the sky, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

For me, there is nothing that gets the heart pumping more than racing along and seeing a colorful light show about to burst in the sky. (except for of course, jogging with a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich......but thats a post for another day!) On this late Florida afternoon, while driving home from the West coast, the only real challenge was where to pull off and grab a vantage point and a quick subject if possible. Days come and go, quite quickly it seems lately, so its nice to just slam on the brakes sometimes and enjoy the moment :)