Iceland - Landscapes forever!

Iceland - Landscapes forever!, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

My evening scan of images has me a bit in a reflective state. I guess the usual punch of color and screaming detail I usually present via HDR can take a back seat for a night or 2.

Iceland, wow...

I was chatting a bit with a long time client and friend today about our awesome opportunity to make it over there last year. For me, anytime I get a chance to actually leave the country is in essence, a license to unplug from any real responsibility. I guess I have a bit of a split personality. Although I am an entrepreneur and need to be running my own ship for most of the time, it sure is nice to jump of the gang plank and abandon ship. I can remember bumbling about Europe a few years ago during one of my first trips over there. Just before leaving, I let Carl (the guy I left in charge) know that I would check in often. Well, 3 weeks later, I finally got around to checking in. I kinda miss those days without internet and cel phone. Kinda hard to REALLY escape these days. There's must be some place thats virtually unreachable on this planet. Guess I gotta do a little more work finding that place perhaps....LOL!

Ah yes, the feeling of wanderlust....

The images below were from just one of those kinda trips. Unplugged, exploring, and loving it in Iceland!

A perfect night for a new beginning - Wedding at Turnberry

A perfect night for a new beginning - Wedding at Turnberry, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

As I type this post while glancing out at the deluge of rain we are getting here in South Florida, I am reminded of the risk one takes in planning an outdoor event here. On a great night however, there is nothing quite as special as a wedding outdoors. This one we worked on a few months ago was for a long time clients daughter. Just another from the stack of files I have yet to get to! I am often asked just after the event if I can forward my images. Sounds easy, but its really not. I shoot them, but its not really my gig. When I eventually get around to digging back thru to process them, its easy to get a bit overwhelmed. Take this one for instance. After merging 9 exposures in photomatix, I set the clock. After merging, tonemapping, cropping, blending in layers in photoshop, painting in a few sky textures, adjusting curves, and sharpening...well, about an hour passed. Yeah.....hold on a second.....I'll get to those images from your event soon....hang in there... LOL!

Just before the sky's opened up over Reykjavik

Just before the sky's opened up over Reykjavik, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

About 2 seconds after the image here was captured, like outta no where.....instant waterage. (My gosh Mike, what kinda sentence is that, yikes!)

Actually, I'm sure that it wasn't really "outta no where - am I spelling that wrong?." There's no real telling where my head is whilst in hot pursuit of a cool HDR setup.

On a completely different note, I was lucky to have one of my images chosen for a travel book showcasing the Palm Beach County area. Front Page of the book! Kinda cool. I saw a mock up and it looks awesome! They may use an image on the back of the book as well.

On a completely different unrelated other note (there he goes again!)....

I get alot of email about how I finish off my images. First off, I welcome those. I know when I was learning, there were alot of people I looked up to, learned from, and cherished the mentoring that I received. With that in mind, I hope to ramp up my site soon with a new look and a little bit of a tutorial section, perhaps with videos as well. Can't promise when as I have a few irons in the fire, but stay tuned for that.

More on all of this later :)

Austin sunset

Austin sunset, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Dabbling a bit with textures, my intent was to create a more painterly effect on this image. I posted a different variation of this a while back, but I kinda like the linear motion in this one.

Wow, feels like a Sunday evening to me as I just arrive back home after a rockin weekend in San Diego. So, here's to an awesome week! I'll leave you with this quote:

"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow." - Lon Yutang

Tracks in San Diego

Tracks in San Diego, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Wearing headphones is indeed not the most intelligent thing to do while hanging out on the tracks during a time exposure, but it helps make the time go buy. After another day chock full o' education, inspiration, and motivation, I took a couple of hours to wander the city of San Diego to clear the mind and take a break from the ballroom. It was indeed a cool experience to be in the room with like minded investors as well as being a part of the launch of a really awesome application called Freedomsoft. More on that soon!

Cameo on the streets of San Diego

Cameo on the streets of San Diego, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

After what ended up being a 10 hour day packed full of so much information I thought my head was about to explode, it was time to head out....camera and sticks in tow, and clear the mind while searching for the light. As always, I like to set a cinematic mood via the Ipod, and tonight was no different. After packing the memory card shots from several locations, on the way back to the hotel I had this idea in my head of what I thought was gonna be a cool cameo of your truly sneaking into the shot kinda Hitchcock style. Well, this is what I got LOL!

More from the evenings outing in weeks to come :)

A view from the room - San Diego

A view from the room - San Diego, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Upon checkin, the usual question that seems to be the first to be asked is would you prefer a king or 2 double beds? I say screw it, give me a beanbag chair, as long as I can get a cool view. And a cool view I was able to get!

My morning routine this morning had me in a bit of a confused state. While anticipating the excitement for todays session, I actually found myself sitting by the window in a relaxed state during sunrise, attempting to meditate whilst catching a glimpse of the rising San Diego sun painting the morning cityscape, while at the same time......and get this.....stretching, tweeting, checking emails, and chugging down a cup o' joe. Yeah, a little too much to actually focus on the meditation. LOL. Lets see how tomorrow goes!

A walk about the harbor - San Diego

A walk about the harbor - San Diego, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

After a slightly uncomfortable flight across the country sandwiched between 2 overweight passengers, I decided it was time for an attitude adjustment. A late lunch of sushi down by the water, a 90 minute massage at the spa, and a trek about the marina around sunset was indeed just what the doctor ordered!

Nightfall on the Lake at Varenna

Nightfall on the Lake at Varenna, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Bleary eyed and scrambling to pack a few things for a trip I am leaving for in the AM, I decided to take a few minutes and post an image. Now for the hard part.....verbage. That moment of realization that I have no real information to pass on, no morsel of guidance, and no insightful words of creative description for what this image means or why I even picked it! Geez, this blog seems to be heading down like the Titanic! LOL.....

Yeah, I know, the posts have been quite lame haven't they? Sorry bout that....

I fully intend to get a bit caught up with the goodies soon.

We have been quite a bit busy around here in the event lighting world. When the smoke clears and I take a few minutes to sort thru the images, I promise to post a few. Till then, well, its a grab bag!

I realize lately that my attention has shifted a bit. My spare time has me laser focused on a goal and mission that really has nothing at all to do with lighting, travel, digital imaging, or what I originally intended this blog to be about. With that in mind, I hope to take a few little outings while I am in San Diego to do just that. Clear the mind, chase the light, and focus on the art of the image again. As far as the other opportunities I am focusing on? Well, more on that some day soon :)

Warm night under the banyon tree

Warm night under the banyon tree, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Wow, what a nice little blog break that was! Our events schedule this past week made it virtually impossible to live anything close to a normal life, but thats ok. Those who know me best understand that I kinda like a random and somewhat chaotic schedule. My only regret, especially after taking a peek at the closing ceremonies tonight, was that I didn't get to watch the Olympics more. Oh well, there's alway 2014.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a fantastic week. I have a lot to drone on about, but I'm a little beat now......so more on all this later.

I hope to post a couple later in the week from a couple of the events that I was able to capture. Until then......