Downtown Gazette and Discovery Channel....

If you're in Long Beach, pick up an issue of the Downtown Gazette (I'm still in Oregon as I write this). They did a quick story about an episode of G Word I'll be appearing on!

Read the article here.

If you have TIVO and can send me a copy, let me know! It should air at around 3pm today PST.

Some more pics...

Fall Festival is over. We broke down the canopy quickly and hauled it all away without leaving a trace. A few more pics from our bike circus.

Our Corvallis bike circus...

Well, I'm alive and well in Corvallis, OR. The train ride was long but pleasant. Yesterday, we spent the day assembling Laura's booth for Fall Festival. She was on the front page of the local paper yesterday which is pretty cool.

We decided to move everything to the park via bike. It was a bit of an adventure. Taking my cargo bike, a BOB trailer and another trailer with a canoe extension. It actually worked out rather well. I carried two cement blocks (100lbs), Matt on the canoe trailer carried the 10 foot poles and Laura carried the hardware to put it all together. Here are some pics!

Oregon-bound...

Hopping the train in the AM tomorrow and heading for Oregon! I have a job shooting some food up there and will document the whole thing! Stay tuned.

Dream Assignment....

Things have been a little slow. Keeping busy, but the volume isn't as much as I'd like. Is it the economy? AIG? I'm hoping the profile in Momentum and the soon to be aired G-Word episode will bring some calls. The free time that I've had has given me some time to ruminate about what would be my dream gig.

I have a few scenarios playing out in my head, I suppose. The biggest one would be to be hired by Oprah to do a portrait for O Magazine. I would pack up all my gear and ride my bike to Chicago, taking photos of environmentalists and people in the bike industry along the way. The check would be big enough to support a multi-week trip to Chicago. Anyone with Oprah leads?



Another dream assignment would be to be hired by someone in the bike industry (clothing or bike manufacturing themselves) to shoot a photo story following the daily routines of some bicycle tourists or randonnneurs, capturing not only the riding but the camp life as well. I want to shoot the cycling equivalent of the rock climbing images in Patagonia catalogs.

Just throwing it out there for the universe and internets to hear.

New webpage....

Did a quick redesign on the website and made a new slideshow highlighting some recent portraits...

Some portraits...

A few portraits the last few weeks...

One is of a tenant that was wrongly forced to leave an apartment complex. Shot it dramatic with some hard light, over-powering the ambient, some PS to cool off the colors and make it gritty...



Another is an available light portrait. A lot lighter in tone of the owner of Portfolio's Coffee at her new mini-venue by the Art Theater.

Momentum Magazine Profile!

Issue 35 of Momentum Magazine is out and they have a profile on me! Grab a copy. Or two. And mail me one :) I can't think of anywhere here in So. Cal. that has them (if you know drop me an email).

Here's the link to the online version of article.



Thanks to Richard Masoner for the interview.

Video montage of our recent tour!

Some video from my mini vacation...

Also trying out a new video host rather than YouTube that tends to uglify video.

Happy Hour!

Not quite Speilberg with the Flip just yet, but a fun little test. Editing is a touch rough, but hey, I'm using iMovie and not Avid. Anyway, a little bit of bike and beer fun for the weekend.

Making tea on the road...

I put a little post about the Trangia stove I use on Epicurean Cyclist.

This is vaguely insulting...

Was promising for the first few seconds....

Twine Stuff...

Another video I posted on Epicurean Cyclist...having lots of fun with the Flip!

First Video Review...and introducing Epicurean Cyclist

Here's my first video review using the Flip. Still learning to work around it's foibles. Also, I'm starting a new site called Epicurean Cyclist that will focus on "Wool, Twine and all Things Fine" with respect to bike touring :)

Enjoy.

What the Flip?!

I've been toying with the idea of getting into video for a while, but haven't been willing to drop the serious dollars for a proper rig yet. However, I am willing to drop a few dollars for something that will let me experiment. Enter the Filp Ultra!



A small pocketable video camera that shoots up to 60 minutes of web-grade video that you can slip into your pocket! Awesome. Exactly the kind of thing I would like to use on my bike tours to make mini videos. And you know what, the quality isn't half-bad....all things considered.

Take a look at this link. A documentary film maker literally tapes a Flip camera to his more expensive pro rig and edits the video the same way. The verdict, it's pretty darn impressive given its limitations.

The more I get into my different passions (photography, bicycling, etc.,) I'm learning that skill trumps technology. A cheap plastic Holga in the hands of a skilled photographer will make more compelling images than a Nikon D3 in the hands of a hack. We, too often, want to believe that technology will make us better photographers/artists/cyclists/younameit, but that isn't the case. True, it makes certain tasks easier or sexier, but technology will never replace skill.

So look for some video (shot on the cheap!) real soon.

(Note: The Rivendell video below was shot with a Flip)

How to mount a tire/tube Rivendell style!

Rivendell is now making videos on YouTube! (surely this is one of the signs of the apocalypse). It's a simple and funny video and in true Riv. fashion they manage to somehow make an online video tutorial on Youtube seem low-tech and personal. Gotta love it!

Not just a pretty face...

Here she is, my new touring bike. A Surly LHT powdered coated coffee tan and built with some choice components (XTR, XT, Velocity Aeroheat, Tektro, Brooks, dynamo hub, Tubus rear rack, Nitto front rack, Ostrich bags, etc.,). As pretty as it is, it's also a stout touring bike. I just took it on a three day tour and she performed wonderfully!! More pictures to come.

(EDIT: Quick map of the route I took.)

Yay...it's done....

Shot the last of the restaurants I was assigned for the food guide. The final restaurant was a real nice one, Tracht's in Long Beach. It was a mix of exterior shots, food and a portrait. I photographed the sommelier in their "wine vault", this really cool looking plexiglass, climate controlled room in the restaurant.

Beer and BBQ for Breakfast...

Is 11:30am too early for a nice craft beer?

I think not.

Got assigned to shoot Beachwood BBQ in Seal Beach again. One of my favorite places to eat of all time. I shot the ribs again but did a little more styling. I had them cut the ribs to show a good cross section, then I drizzled on some BBQ sauce with a spoon (it comes dry rubbed and you add your own sauce). I think it came out great! The highlights on the sauce and asparagus make it really enticing. I get hungry just looking at the photo.