Pull up a chair and have a bowl - Shanghai surprise!

Pull up a chair and have a bowl - Shanghai surprise!, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I gotta tell ya, I love a good bowl of soup like the next guy. And a great conversation with a complete stranger in back alley Shanghai? Count me in for sure! A stomach of steel might be needed here though, waddya think. The more I look at this, I'm not really sure where the line between food containers and vessels of mystery fluid begins and ends. Good grief!

I gotta few more from this little back alley adventure. Look for a few more to come.....oh, enjoy your meal :) .... try a little from the sawed off 55 gallon drum on the right if ya dare!

The Louvre

The Louvre, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Ah yes....Paris, at night, with camera,........ wandering about in the city of light......nuff said really. :)

The colors of Provence

The colors of Provence, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

My post this evening was somewhat inspired by a pretty cool show that was on this evening. I don't frequently slow down enough to allow my mind to absorb the mindless chatter of TV, but when I do, there is one show I do enjoy. Anthony Bourdain and the No Reservations crew were in Provence, France this evening. Having spent a little time there this past summer, it was time to dig around in Lightroom and see what I had from there. Not exactly the flavor that the geniuses behind that show so cinematically displayed, but a few images non the less.

Enjoy :)

A pretty cool event in Miami (and more to follow soon)

A pretty cool event in Miami (and more to follow soon), originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Just a little taste of things to come. Here in South Florida, we have been hopping a bit providing lighting for some pretty cool events. Although the season isn't breaking any records, there are still a few events keeping us busy. I plan to roll out a few multi image posts of some of these events when I get a few moments to process a few from the files. Looks like that time might come as early as next week, so stay tuned! I'm actually looking forward to working on these as the details, as always with our incredible clients, have been quite stunning!

This is a sneak peak from a show we did for the Food Network in Miami Beach during the Food and Wine Show in February. Ken Ryan and company created a rather cool and ingenious custom water screen that was suspended over the pool when the guests arrived. We then rear projected a video graphics loop onto the water fall. Awesome work Kenny!

More soon....

Lobby in the Driskill-reverse and repeat

Lobby in the Driskill-reverse and repeat, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I've been pretty luck to have gotten to stay in some pretty cool spaces over the years in my travels. Having never been to Austin (surprisingly) before, I was pretty excited to experience it. During Trey Ratcliff's....aka Stuck in Customs...aka, the grandfather and top dog of all things HDR......aka, a pretty cool cat.....(all right Mike, we got it)....

All right, what was I saying?...... oh yeah....

During a workshop in Austin in January, I got a chance to explore about the hotel I was staying at. A pretty cool place called the Driskill Hotel in downtown Austin. Definitely a place to check out when you are in Austin. I hear the Christmas tree is awesome there by the way.

Hope ya like the effect I decided to apply. I kinda like it :)

Boca Resort Lobby - wandering about in the late evening

Boca Resort Lobby - wandering about in the late evening, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Sure I get a lot of strange looks from the late night staff, but there's nothing like wandering about a hotel like this at 2 in the morning with a monster size camera and set of sticks. After a nice long 20 hour day lighting an event, I can think of not a better way to relax and chill (other that of course, sleep!) LOL......

Anyway, enjoy :)

Kinda strange that those 2 columns are different now that I think about it. Hmmm....

Worth waking up early for!

Worth waking up early for!, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Catching and photographing a great sunrise for me now is like shooting fish in a barrel, or perhaps like hunting deer from the house (don't laugh, my brother actually did that once. Actually, I think he shot a deer FROM INSIDE the house. Don't quote me on that one though. LOL)

Anyway, every once in a while, those conditions are just right and magic appears in the sky. It was nice to be able to roll outta bed to catch this one. And no Dave, I didn't see any dear wandering downtown!

Somewhere in Cali

Somewhere in Cali, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

Wow, I'm kinda wondering why I didn't just roll down the hill, bounce off the grass, and frolic among the tide pools when I was here. Looks like there were a million areas I could have...., well....., frolicked. (how does one frolic by the way.....and how weird would that have been?)

Yeeuuup, dats about it....tide pools, frolic, hill....I think I've covered it all.....

Along the Oregon Coast

Along the Oregon Coast, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

I took so many images on that trek up the coast that I faintly remember this one. I will tell you however, it was not the traditional multi exposure HDR creation that I tend to be known for. This was created and processed with one single raw image with several techniques painted in to create more drama, contrast, detail, and color to the scene. This artistic endeavor took place during a few commercials of this evenings new season premier of the Apprentice of course. A TV head I am not, but that's one or two hours I am gonna try and catch every week. And speaking of weeks, have a great one. Create a magical one as you are the artist of your own life canvas! (Geez, that sounded corny didn't it?!)

An explosion of color at the Tampa Convention Center

An explosion of color at the Tampa Convention Center, originally uploaded by Photomike07.

While on an action packed week of events for AOPA in Tampa this past November, I had to stop for a few moments to capture the energy and color of the night. Over looking the Bay, the opening night was an appreciation party for the vendors about to welcome the conference attendees for the week long program.