Wandering Shutterbug™

LA (Downtown): 110 Freeway Redux

2013-05-13T16:18:00.001-07:00

So... on my mission to re-photograph everything and everyone with my new camera I found myself passing through downtown. I had not yet shot from this particular bridge (I shot this from one bridge over). Even after I did a lens distortion correction in PS, it still looks off. Oh well. This heat is making me too sleepy to correct it. :P

LA: Santa Monica Beach

2013-05-10T10:59:00.000-07:00

I was doing portraits around town last night. I was obviously at the beach when I snapped this test shot. Our shadows are even on the sand. hehe. I'm totally loving this camera. Whoever said equipment doesn't matter, never held one of these babies. haha.

Baking Dishes / New Camera!!!

2013-05-06T11:39:00.001-07:00

I finally received a new camera + lens (a Canon 6D with a 24-70mm f/2.8L ii lens). I'm so friggin excited to be shooting again. I definitely need to get accessories like a bigger, more secure camera bag and stuff but I can't believe I have a working camera again!!!

Travel: San Francisco - Berkeley

2013-04-18T11:26:00.001-07:00

I'm reverting to my old trip summary format. I'm leaving out a lot of stuff, but this is the crux of it. Day 1 (Friday): Since it was a last minute trip, B and I drove to SF from LA (airfare prices were in the $250/pp range already). Checked into the Hilton San Francisco (Union Square) and couldn't score a room with two queen sized beds (two conferences were going on that day). Instead got a

Travel: Las Vegas - Grand Lux Cafe

2013-04-10T10:10:00.001-07:00

I think it's mainly because we're too lazy to leave the casino the majority of the time, but we end up eating at the Grand Lux Cafe if we're staying at the Venetian or at Palazzo at least once a trip. This here is their gnocchi with asparagus and breaded chicken. It was actually rather bland. :/ Ok, for reals, this will be my last post this week. :( See you all next week!

Travel: Las Vegas - The Valley

2013-04-09T12:05:00.002-07:00

Oh, boy! This week is turning out to be eventful. I think the best part of trips is planning them and then seeing which amazing possibilities happened. Very, very busy right now with some coordination and totally excited. This may be my last post this week.

Travel: Las Vegas - Red Rock Canyon

2013-04-08T12:06:00.001-07:00

Just got back from spending a few days in Vegas. I returned to Red Rock Canyon and took a few shots which I'll be sharing this week. It was the first time I had gone during non-winter weather so there is no snow in my photos. :( I'll continue tomorrow seeing as how I'm still unpacking and resting from this weekend. :)

One Year on Google+

2013-04-03T10:02:00.002-07:00

It's kind of an off week for me in terms of weekly photo themes so I hope you enjoy the potpourri. I just wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone that's been following my work this past year and particularly those of you that have been here since the beginning. It's great to be able to stay in nice rooms around the world, take photos of pretty places, and share them with

Lamb Chops

2013-04-02T09:45:00.000-07:00

Last week, I have no idea what happened, but between Passover meals and cravings, I ended up having three different lamb dishes. I had lamb on a rack, as chops, and as a shank. The above pictures is when I made them as chops and only fried them on a pan. The ingredients were fairly simple: salt, pepper, garlic, olive oil, and rosemary. That's it. Sooo good! But I'm definitely lamb-ed out right

Easter 2013

2013-04-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

My cousin threw an enormous birthday party for his sons (one of whom is my godson), as well as an Easter feast. There was of course the obligatory Easter egg hunt, bounce house, a huge spread(!!!!), and, of course, chocolate cake. Good party over all. :)

Travel: San Diego - Harbor View

2013-03-27T10:01:00.000-07:00

Fortunately, the front desk clerk at the hotel I stayed at was incredibly helpful in informing me where the best views were in my surrounding area. Here are one of two shots from the "Top of the Hyatt." I'd never seen the back of the landmark Marriott before and was surprised to find a parking lot of yachts as well as a cute little park behind it. There was, of course, the Coronado bridge as

Travel: San Diego - Trolley Tracks

2013-03-26T11:10:00.002-07:00

Another from my walk in Downtown San Diego. I probably should have made this a black and white, but I loved the burst of purple in the upper left so much. Oh well. Maybe another day. This trolley station actually kept me up most of the night because of its proximity to the hotel that I was staying at -- and I was on the opposite end of the hotel! Had I needed it to get around, it would

Travel: San Diego - Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade

2013-03-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

Well -- this starts off my San Diego series this week. Since I grew up in San Diego, it's always tough for me to photograph something that I haven't already. But, as I was walking along the Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade, I noticed a series of small statues that spelled out the world "DREAM" in sign language (see above). I snapped a few of the letters individually because I loved the detail

Travel: Philippines - Rotation

2013-03-22T11:01:00.004-07:00

I felt like being very minimalistic and high-key today. Here are 5 planes in rotation all in one shot. Have a great weekend!

Travel: Philippines - Close Up

2013-03-21T10:49:00.001-07:00

Another cool formation from the Breitling Jet Team! Moments like this I wish I had one of those mega, super duper long lenses on a tripod. The bottom of the jets actually have the word "Breitling" written on them. I definitely could have done a better job processing, I think, but I'm in a rush. So TTFN. I'll return to close out this series tomorrow.

Travel - Philippines: Upside Down

2013-03-20T10:06:00.001-07:00

Another shot from the 18th Annual Philippine Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. Ugh. I'm torn between going to New York City or Zurich and Rome again later this year. Can't decide, can't decide...

Travel: Philippines - Near Miss

2013-03-19T12:16:00.000-07:00

One of the things you don't see from this photograph is how absolutely hot it was watching this airshow. I stood in the comfort of a tent's shade, but had there not been a breeze as well, as amazing as the show was, I don't think I would've been able to take these photos. On another note, my Vegas trip was rescheduled to the near future. Besides, I'm still unpacking from San Diego this past

Travel: Philippines - Fighter Jets

2013-03-18T10:37:00.000-07:00

This is another shot from the air show in Angeles City back in February 2013 -- but this time it's fighter jets! I was fortunate enough to watch the Breitling Jet Team perform their precise, synchronized stunts! I hope to share more of their photos this week. Right now its just a matter of getting over St. Patty's Day and figuring out if I'm going to Las Vegas tonight (for a spontaneous trip!).

Travel: Philippines - Vanilla Sky

2013-03-14T10:41:00.003-07:00

So this will be the last of my hot air balloon pictures for now. Next week will be fighter jets! hehe. I think I played with the white balance on this one or it was the sunrise. I'm not sure. I hope everyone has a fantastic St. Patty's Day this weekend. See you all next week!

Travel: Philippines - B&W Balloon

2013-03-13T10:49:00.003-07:00

I just felt like playing around in Photoshop. This reminds me of a puzzle I assembled and now hangs in my parent's house. Now that I'm seeing this on white, I should have probably photoshopped out that cloud on the left. :( On a totally unrelated note, I'm trying to get my travel schedule for the upcoming months sorted. So much is up in the air (ha ha -- pun not intended). If only North Korea

Travel: Philippines - Hot Air

2013-03-12T10:49:00.001-07:00

So I did get one of the flames firing up a balloon as it rose to the sky. Too bad the sun was already rising, it would have made for a cool night shot. In other news, this whole daylight savings time thing seems to have gotten rid of my jet lag. I guess time change on top of time change equals the correct time. Yay! And just when I finished watching "House of Cards," too (which is amazing,

Travel: Philippines - Hot Air Balloons

2013-03-11T10:22:00.002-07:00

As I promised yesterday, this is the beginning of my coverage of the Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. This was one of several dozen balloons that I watched get inflated in the wee hours of the morning near the Clark Air Force base in the Philippines. They had several non-traditional looking hot air balloons such as an upside down man, a space shuttle, and (here) a bunch of

Travel: Philippines - Sunrise

2013-03-10T22:44:00.001-07:00

Since I was waking up at 5am every morning while in the Philippines (oh the glories of jet lag in the opposite direction), I saw the sun rise everyday. It was awesome because in America I can hardly wake up before 10am on a normal day. On this particular morning, however, I woke up at 2am to leave at 3am to go to the Clark Freeport Zone to see the 18th annual Philippine International Hot Air

Travel: Philippines - Blur

2013-03-09T13:58:00.000-08:00

I shot this while on my way to my home in the Philippines. I just liked it for some reason. I remember one night while I was in the Philippines during this last trip, we went clubbing in Manila and drove home at 4am. It was all a blur but so much fun. Lesson learned that night: wearing 4 inch heels makes me taller than a lot of guys. lol.

Travel: Philippines - Boat Station 1

2013-03-08T10:46:00.000-08:00

Probably the last of my Boracay shots for now. It's been a long week. Just relaxing today. Beginning my weekend early. :)