andrew.stottsan.net

Salsa Verde Three Ways

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:59:37 -0600

Tonight was Salsa Verde night over here, and thanks to Rick Bayless' Authentic Mexican cookbook, I was able to whip up three tasty versions.

They're pretty similar, consisting of tomatillos, japaleno/serrano chiles, cilantro, and onion. There are a couple of twists, though — while the "original" has cooked tomatillos, version #2 uses fresh ones. #3 sticks with cooked tomatillos, but throws in an avocado to give it that guacamole consistency. I've made #1 before (and absolutely love it) but I'll never get through that book making the same things over and over...

Here are some pics of the finished products — I love how vibrant the colors are, and how different they all look. In this photo, the salsas are #1-3 clockwise, starting in the front.

Basically you blend the tomatillos (either raw or boiled for approx 8-10 minutes) with the other ingredients in a food processor — not too long, just enough to get chopped. Add some salt to taste, and throw it in the fridge for a couple hours to allow the flavors to mix. All three have the perfect balance of heat and sweetness, since everything is so fresh. #1 is a bit smokier, due to the cooked tomatillos, while #2 is a bit crisper. Of course, #3 adds the creaminess of the avocado — I can eat the whole bowl by myself.

I also whipped together the habanero sauce from Xoco, which Bayless was so kind to tweet in September: "Dry-roast 8 (3oz) habanero, 2-4 garlic cl. Blend w 2T lime, 3T water, 1/2t salt"

So freakin' spicy — seriously, do not mess around with this. You definitely can't dunk a chip in it like you can with the salsa verde... Thanks for passing along the link, Anthony, and thanks to @Rick_Bayless for being so generous!

Go pick up Authentic Mexican, and get your salsa verde on!

How to Get Into Shore Club

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:40:14 -0600

Are you going to Miami, and want to check out Shore Club, one of the hottest outdoor clubs in South Beach? Maybe you're there right now, trying to figure out how to get past the multiple layers of defense at the door? No need to sneak through, hop the fence, or slip the guys $100 — just read this and you're guaranteed to get in.

Be famous

Duh, you might say. If you were famous, you could just walk right in... Considering you're reading my blog, this tip probably doesn't apply to you. Assuming you're just a regular guy, you've still got a couple options:

Find some famous people and tag along when they go to Shore Club.
Throw a party and invite some famous people.

OK, enough kidding around — let's get to the real tips.

Bring girls

If you and your "dude posse" roll up on the door at Shore Club, you might be standing there for a while. Girls are your ticket into the clubs of South Beach, as they are in many other cities around the world. Of course, if you're light in this department, all is not lost. Keep reading...

Look the part

I cannot stress this enough: if you're scared, nervous, overwhelmed, or just a bit out of place, you will not get in. Be cool, and act like you belong. Even if you've never been to Shore Club before, act like you have. Don't be cocky, that's not what I'm getting at... Just relax, and the door guys will feel the vibe you're putting out there.

On our first night in South Beach, we played 20 questions with the door staff and were ushered through... Here's the gist of it, feel free to copy as needed.

Door: "Are you here for a party?"
Us: "No, we're just looking to have a few drinks and enjoy ourselves."

D: "Do you live in Miami?"
U: "Nope, we're in town for the weekend from Chicago."

D: "Is this your first time to Shore Club?"
U: "No, we come every time we get down to Miami."

D: "Welcome to Shore Club, have a good night."
U: "Always do, thanks!"

Wardrobe is crucial, too. Beach wear doesn't have a chance at Shore Club, but you've still got to be comfortable — you will be outside, after all. Dressing like this is a good start:

That's what we wore to Shore Club on our second night, and we got right in. No questions, either — an equally well-dressed door guy saw us coming, and dropped the rope. Booyeah.

Final thoughts

Give the above tips a shot, and let me know how it works. It's certainly worth a try, since Shore Club is hot. While you're in South Beach, too, be sure to stop by the nearby Delano Hotel — the outdoor pool beds are totally pimp and the bar inside is always hoppin'. You can skip SET Nightclub, though... That place is a complete and utter joke.

Of course, this all assumes that the Shore Club is still around by the time you show up... Looks like they've gone delinquent on their $111.5 million mortgage...

Microsoft's Competition for Windows 7

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:39:48 -0600

Gruber, on Windows 7's competition with XP, Snow Leopard, and "apathy":

Put another way, the idea that Windows 7's quality will spur upgrades from XP is predicated on the fact that the people holding out on XP make their computing choices based on quality. But if that's the case, why exactly are they still running Windows XP? Why are they still using Internet Explorer? I think it's hard to overstate the fact that, with the explosion of the Internet as a universal communication medium, hundreds of millions of PCs have been purchased around the world by people who don't care about computers or software at all.

Read the entire article @ Daring Fireball.

Designing Obama

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:36:54 -0600

Just wanted to share this awesome project: Designing Obama, by Scott Thomas, the former Design Director of the Obama campaign. It's a 360-page, hardcover collection of art/designs from the campaign, from the campaign itself as well as from grassroots supporters. They need to raise $65,000 to pay for the first run of books, and as of this post they're about halfway there. If you enjoyed the art from the campaign, or just want a piece of history, chip in.

By the way, Kickstarter is really cool... Lots of awesome projects and good causes. Swing by, find someone in need, and help them out with some funding.

Grilled Chicken Omelette

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:44:57 -0600

Normally I don't like to eat last night's dinner leftovers for lunch — something about eating the same thing so close together... But since dinner was so freakin' tasty, I couldn't help myself today.

Elena and I made a pile of Mexican-inspired goodies: Mussels in Negra Modelo (with garlic, onion, jalapenos, cilantro) and Grilled Shrimp & Chicken Quesadillas. Tasty tasty tasty, thus explaining the extreme lack of photos. I also made some fresh salsa verde, thanks to Rick Bayless' awesome yet simple recipe in Authentic Mexican — if you don't already own this cook book, buy it ASAP.

So naturally, today I had to get creative and figure out how to put the leftover chicken and condiments to good use. Enter the Grilled Chicken Omelette with pico de gallo and salsa verde. Quick and easy, but very photogenic:

Especially when you factor in the salsa verde and some French Press'd Intelligentsia coffee...

Engagement: Laura & Charles

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 12:09:01 -0600

Two weekends ago, we spent most of Sunday roaming around Chicago with Laura and Charles, shooting their engagement photos. Lots of locations, lots of images, and lots of memories.

For images and more details, click through... And if you're reading this on Facebook, be sure to view the original post so you can see the larger images.

We started our day in Lincoln Park, and walked to the North Ave bridge for some shots on our way to the beach.

Castaways was a natural backdrop for some beach photos, and the perfect spot to grab a quick drink. Despite the wind gusts on the beach, Laura managed to hang in there and keep her hair looking spectacular! How do these two look so great without even trying?!?!

After the beach, we headed down to the Water Tower and hung out on Michigan Avenue. Once we were sheltered from the wind, the weather certainly felt warmer, so we just kept on walking and shooting.

Our timing was perfect at the Wrigley Building — love the sun just poking through!

From Michigan Ave we headed to Millennium Park, shooting on Frank Gehry's BP Bridge and in the Lurie Garden. And no trip to Millennium Park would be complete without Cloud Gate, aka "The Bean." Absolutely beautiful backdrops.

Even with the temperature dropping, Laura and Charles toughed it out so we could get shots at sunset. I think it was worth it.

Congratulations again, Laura & Charles!

Snow Leopard Upgrade Issues

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:54:51 -0600

My upgrade to Snow Leopard went pretty well this week — no major issues to speak of. There were a few annoyances, though, related to some things I use daily. These notes are mainly for my future reference, but if you experience any of these hopefully it'll be helpful to you, too.

Juniper SSL VPN (Network Connect)

Looks like the Snow Leopard installer changes some permissions on one of the Network Connect directories and removed the Frameworks directory. Running these two commands got me back up and running, without having to uninstall/reinstall NC.

sudo chmod 755 /usr/local/juniper/nc/[version]/ 

sudo mkdir '/Applications/Network Connect.app/Contents/Frameworks'

On my system, [version] was 6.3.0, so that's what the directory was. Note that these instructions, and a good discussion around them, can be found on the Juniper J-Net Community forums.

MySQL

The Snow Leopard upgrade installs a new version of MySQL in /usr/local/mysql-5.1.37-osx10.5-x86 and removes the old /usr/local/mysql directory. Fortunately the upgrade migrates your old data, but it's still a bit of a pain to clean up. Here are the steps I took to get MySQL sorted...

First, I downloaded and installed the latest 64-bit version of MySQL direct from the horse's mouth. The new MySQL install will be in /usr/local/mysql, which is right where I want it. I also installed the MySQL Preference Pane (from the download), but I didn't start MySQL yet. Before you can start, you have to migrate your old data to the new install location:

sudo mv /usr/local/mysql/data /usr/local/mysql/data.default  

sudo mv /usr/local/mysql-5.1.37-osx10.5-x86/data /usr/local/mysql/data

At this point, I could start MySQL and access it using my old credentials. Voila, all my databases, all my data.

Finally, since I'm doing Ruby on Rails development on my Mac, I had to fix the mysql gem... To do this, uninstall the old gem and install it again, being sure to specify the 64-bit arch flag.

sudo gem uninstall mysql  

sudo env ARCHFLAGS="-arch x86_64" gem install mysql -- --with-mysql-config=/usr/local/mysql/bin/mysql_config

Now all my RoR apps worked again, and tests stopped complaining.

Color Profiles

I switched to a 13" MacBook Pro a few weeks ago, and I've been happy with the standard Color LCD profile. That's not surprising, since the out-of-the-box profile on my old 15" MacBook Pro was spot on. The new glossy display took some getting used to, but to my eye the colors were fairly accurate.

After the Snow Leopard upgrade, though, the colors got a bit wonky. I know 10.6 changed to a 2.2 gamma, but the new Color LCD profile had other issues. Accurate color is nice for just surfing and doing email, but it's absolutely critical when I'm processing images. That's the cause of the delay in posting Laura & Charles' engagement photos — I wasn't confident in the color accuracy.

Luckily, the X-Rite Eye-One (i1) Display LT works with Snow Leopard and my glossy display. After a quick 5-minute profiling session, I was up and running with accurate colors again, and could finish out those engagement photos...

That's it for now... If I come across any issues I'll update this post and document the fixes.

Engagement Sneak Peak: Laura & Charles

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 23:21:22 -0600

Just a quick preview from Laura & Charles' engagement shoot this weekend... Even though the weather was a little cool, we wound up having a fantastic time traipsing around Chicago!

More photos to come soon.

Update: Here are some bonus behind-the-scenes shots for you... Elena was a perfect assistant!

Canada 2009

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 15:46:41 -0600

For this year's Big Trip™, Elena and I stowed away on my parents' RV and headed up to Canada in July. If you remember, last year we flew down to Memphis and met my parents there for a long weekend on the RV. This time around, we wanted to spend some actual time on the road, so we planned a week-long trip to Montreal and Quebec City.

This post serves two purposes, really. One: to share my experiences with you guys. Two: to write it all down so I can recover these memories myself in the future...

The trip started off smoothly, leaving from Chicago early in the morning on Sunday, July 5th. Indiana and Ohio flew by, thanks to coffee, I-PASS, and my Dad's expert driving. Pretty soon we were in Austinburg, OH, where we spent the night at a Flying J truck stop. Nice and clean, plus the buffet had pretty good food — all in all a good spot to rest up.

Next stop was Niagara Falls, just north of Buffalo, NY. I hadn't seen it since I was a kid, and Elena had never been...

Unfortunately, it's not as easy to get to Niagara Falls in an RV as it is in a car. After crossing the bridge, we took the Robert Moses Parkway exit ramp, and quickly found ourselves faced with a 12' bridge clearance sign. With a 12'4" RV, that's not something you want to see. Of course, there wasn't any warning, and since it's impossible to back an RV towing a Suburban up a ramp, we were kind of stuck.

As I waved traffic around us and my Mom closely watched the top of the RV, my Dad tried to gauge the real hight of the bridge. Once a Prevost tour bus flew by us, and didn't hit anything, we knew we were in good shape. Guess someone figured labeling the bridge 12' when it was more 12'6" was good for some particular reason...

Needless to say, Niagara Falls is a breathtaking sight. It's impossible to describe, in words, the raw power of all the water cascading over the edge. I was actually a bit surprised that we were able to get so close to the falls. After exploring up top, Elena and I decided to check out the Cave of the Winds, which included an elevator trip to the bottom of the falls. To be honest, we were a bit disappointed that it wasn't a guided tour — instead they just let us off the elevator and we were on our own. It was still quite an experience to feel the power of the water, but some history would've been a nice touch.

For our second night on the road, we chose another Flying J, this time in Pembroke, NY, about 20 miles east of Buffalo. Since we'd spent most of the day at Niagara Falls, my Mom suggested staying close so we could get a good parking spot — these truck stops fill up quickly! It stormed a bit, but luckily we had a warm RV filled with food, wine, and DirecTV.

On our third day, we headed for the border. Instead of crossing into Canada at Detroit or Niagara Falls, my parents opted to do it at Thousand Islands, in upstate NY. With the RV, a single crossing is much preferable, just on the off chance that a border agent wants to do a thorough search... So after a few questions about drugs, guns, and our schedule, we were welcomed into Ontario!

Montreal was our first stop in Canada, and we planned on spending three days there exploring the city. Fortunately, my parents' friends Barbara and Jean-Claude had scheduled their RV trip to coincide with ours. Considering Jean-Claude used to live in Montreal and Quebec, we were in fantastic hands!

We stayed at the Parc Mont Laval RV park, just outside downtown Montreal, which let us hook up to water, electric, and sewer. Home sweet home! The park proved to be a great base, since it was close to restaurants and shops. We even spent some time at Marche 440, a nearby market. Best smoked meat in Quebec! And, while I'm talking about food, I have to mention St. Hubert's chicken — holy crap that's good. I bought some sauce packets home, so if anyone is in the mood for St. Hubert's in Chicago, just let me know...

Highlights in Montreal included L'Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal (Saint Joseph's Oratory), Notre Dame, and Galerie Place Ville Marie. We were also able to take a day trip up to Saint-Sauveur and Mont Tremblant — absolutely beautiful.

As fantastic as Montreal was, Quebec City really won me over. The culture, the history, and the photo ops were just what I was looking for. We stayed at a KOA RV park just outside Quebec, which again was pretty close to the city. Good hookups and free Wi-Fi, so we could make free phone calls on the BlackBerry and save on our international rates! Highlights in Quebec City included the still-intact city wall, the Citadel, the Château Frontenac, the Parliament building, and all the street performers/artists. To top it all off, the Quebec City Summer Festival (Le Festival d'été de Québec) was in town the same weekend! I managed to grab some shots of Matisyahu warming up, thanks to my 70-200 lens.

Unfortunately, our time in Canada had to come to an end... Even though we wanted to continue on up to Gaspé with my parents and Barbara & Jean-Claude, Elena and I both had work to get back to. After a week on the road, Elena and I flew back from Quebec City direct to O'Hare on United. The flight was quick and painless — perfect end to a perfect trip!

Thanks again to my parents (and Barbara & Jean-Claude) for letting us tag along, and to being such fantastic tour guides! Can't wait until next year!

P.S. All photos from the trip are available on Flickr. Enjoy!

Wedding: Sarah & Phil

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:02:58 -0600

A couple weeks ago, our friends Sarah & Phil were married in a beautiful outdoor ceremony at The Grove in Glenview, IL.

The reception was also held at The Grove, and the rain stayed away just long enough to provide a wonderful outdoor dinner service. After dinner, we moved inside to take advantage of an air-conditioned dance floor and some liberally-pouring bartenders. Of course, we didn't stop there, hosting a small hotel after-party complete with a late-night, monsoon-soaked booze run... It was a great night with great friends — thanks to the happy couple for inviting us, and for throwing an awesome party!

Click through for some images... The rest are up on Flickr.

The rest of the photos are available up on Flickr.

Wedding: Kristen & Tony

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:08:23 -0600

On Memorial Day weekend, I had the pleasure of shooting Kristen and Tony's wedding at A New Leaf in Chicago. It was a wonderful event all around: from a beautiful bride, to a gorgeous space, to fantastic summer weather, there were plenty of memories to capture.

For images and more details, click through...

As you can see, Kristen looked fantastic — she made my job incredibly easy! And how about those shoes?!?!

The ceremony was very intimate, and the candle treatment created a very romantic mood — just what Kristen and Tony were looking for.

After the ceremony I stole Kristen and Tony for a few minutes to get some quick portraits. The weather was perfect, so we were able to take advantage of A New Leaf's outdoor garden area. I mainly let the newlyweds be themselves and snapped away.

The reception was a blast, too. It's not too often that you see a real DJ at a wedding reception, but Kristen and Tony opted to have one spinning late into the night. And I'm not sure how Kristen found the time, but she personally made some tasty cupcakes for dessert — yum!

A New Leaf served as a wonderful backdrop throughout the evening — I now know why it's such a popular space for events!

Thanks again to Kristen and Tony for letting me be a part of their special day! If you attended the wedding, you can check out the photos here. Just ask Kristen and Tony for the password.

Launch: Andrew Stott Photography

Sat, 23 May 2009 12:12:59 -0600

Just a quick note to announce the launch of Andrew Stott Photography. It's got all you need in a good photo portfolio site: photos, photos, and more photos. Plus a bio, contact information, and a newsletter — just in case anyone is interested...

Swing by and check it out, and let me know what you think!

Have a great holiday weekend, everyone!

1000th Flickr photo!

Sun, 17 May 2009 01:40:57 -0600

Tonight I uploaded my 1000th photo to Flickr...

It shows a fan holding a W banner over the Wrigley Field upper deck, and was taken just after the Cubs defeated the Padres on May 12, 2009.

Nikon D200 and 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S for sale!

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:44:18 -0600

The time has finally come — I'm selling my trusty Nikon D200 and 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S DX lens in order to upgrade...

I still love this combo, and it has served me well over the past few years. I'm only upgrading because the Nikon D700 exists, and it's what I'm currently looking for in a camera. To say it plainly, if it wasn't for the D700, I would honestly hold on to the D200 for at least another couple years.

If you're just looking for price info, you can jump to the end of this post. If you'd like some background on the equipment, and the "why" behind my upgrade, please read on...

There are a few reasons why an upgrade to the D700 is "right" for me at this point in time:

The FX full-frame sensor is hot, and has amazing low-light (aka high ISO) performance.
The D700 is a much cheaper, and IMHO better, version of the D3
The AF system is top-notch (same as D3)
It has some great advanced features, like Auto ADR (Adaptive D-Lighting), that will come in handy

Normally, I would just upgrade my camera body and keep my lens. This time around, though, the full-frame FX sensor of the D700 comes with one major drawback: it requires an FX lens to make full use of the sensor's size. Thus, my 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S DX just won't cut it anymore. Honestly, I'm sad to let it go, but I can't justify keeping a lens that won't take full advantage of the new D700 body. Of course, the flip side is that I'll get to enjoy a brand new 24-70mm f/2.8 lens instead, which I've been lusting over for a while.

Now to what you're really looking for: price and condition.

I'm selling the D200 for $500, and the 17-55mm f/2.8 AF-S for $1000.

The camera includes the original box/documentation and the various accessories (body cap, cables, battery, charger, & LCD screen cover). The lens includes the original box/documentation, caps, the monster lens hood, and the soft lens case.

Both are in excellent condition, and have no visible or functional defects. I have kept the body and the lens in tip top shape since I bought them both new in 2006. Most of the photographs posted on this website made after April 2006 are shot with this combo, since I rarely take the 17-55mm off of the D200, so you can check out the outstanding image quality. And, yes, both of them are Nikon USA versions — no gray market for me.

A final note: I'm posting this info here, on my blog, to give you all a sneak peak. If I don't get any bites in the next few weeks, I'll probably post on Craigslist and call it a done deal.

Please let me know if you have any questions, or if there is any additional information that I can provide. Of course, feel free to pass along this post's URL to anyone that you think might be interested.

Thanks much!

Best. Office. Ever.

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:51:55 -0600

Did anyone else notice that the rich guy's office in tonight's Law & Order ("Anchors Away") looked familiar?

Well, it seems they shot at the same location as Flight of the Conchords did, for the Season 2 premiere where Murray was working at the record label ("A Good Opportunity")! Not sure if it's a real office or a set, but replace a little bit of mirror with marble, and you too can be a hotshot hedge fund manager!

Check out the screencaps after the jump, and sorry for the bad quality — the first was from funnyordie.com and the second was from my Slingbox.