Mr Doug's Travels

Quest for the Perfect Bag - Think Tank Retrospective 5 - Follow Up

2017-08-16T01:07:00.000-04:00

Well...its been awhile since I have logged in here and shared my travels.

I have been in China for the last almost 3 years, living in the Southern China city of Xiamen.
And no different than before , things like this blog, Facebook, anything Google and even other sites are blocked form internet access from China.

Anyways I thought it was time for a folloup to my Think Tank Retrospective 5 bag posting that I had done back in October 2011 - my Quest for the Perfect Bag (click to jump to that posting).

The bag has been with me, since then , if not as a camera bag, then as my day bag. Its attended concerts, shows, events, meetings, flown around the world.
Sat on the floor of planes , trains and automobiles.
Held the things I have needed to hold, yes sometimes i wish it was a little bigger, but then that just makes you carry more stuff.

With a little bit of convincing it now holds my Ipad 4 and even a thin notebook , in the back zippered pouch, and yes the zipper still works fine.

Have been far from gentle with it.
It does get thrown around, banged about.
the bag sits on my left shoulder, just always has , feels weird on right side.

The bag has performed flawlessly, honestly of al the bags I have used, this one I have no problem praising it.

These days in China, the Think Tank Retrospective 5 is my day bag , its with me everywhere.
so it does need to carry those things that I deem essential or at least what I like to have handy.

In my bag most days are the following :
- IPAD 4
- Thin notebook
- Passport (essential must have always , here in China)
- Pens
- cleaning cloth for glasses/camera/devices
- Battery pack for charging Iphone (and yes it will power IPad if needed)
- IPad charging adapter and cable
- Camera (Canon T1i with Sigma 30mm f/1.4)
- Umbrella (never used umbrella until I came to China, now its always on hand)

This bag will not be leaving my shoulder anytime soon.
Unless the strap breaks, which is most unlikely.

Think Tank offers one of the best Warranty (click to read the warranty) , Lifetime warranty
Like all warranties it does have some limitations, normal wear and tear and abuse dont qaulify.
But then as their warranty states, build products that dont need fixing.

One the most obvious places for failure on any bag is possibly velcro closures. They consist of two pieces the hooks (hard ) and what we will call the receiver (soft fuzzy stuff) . What i have seen in most bags is the the receiver fails first, it either gets matted, worn out or falls apart.
Both sides of my velcro closures are in great shape, its actually threads , hair etc in the hook side that causes it not to work so well. Simple cleaning helps that out.

Now being in Southern China, I will tell you it get hot here. Hot as in 35c to 39c on summer days, and 80% plus humidity. Simply standing for the bus finds you wet , dripping.
For me that means my bag is getting it also , strap gets wet or damp, can feel it in the shoulder strap material. Also because I have a tendency to grab the strap with my left hand , usually at the strap adjustment buckle, its actually affected the metal plating on the buckle.

Again not the fault of the bag , just the corrosive power of nature at work.
The other buckles have some color changes but then again between me, the weather, the sun all is good.
The buckle is not going to fail anytime soon.

That the other thing about this bag, it comes with a distressed look already when new, really that hasnt changed , it looks as good as Day 1.

now basic wear and tear does come into play, small things that i know are my fault.
Nothing to do with quality of the bag.

One is because of how I wear the bag on my left shoulder, I found that the bag was hitting the rivet in my jeans pocket. That caused premature wear and eventually wore away the material , exposing the nylon interior shell.

The other wear point has been just below, on the bottom corner.
This was cuased by combination of the bag rubbing against my leg and the corner of the ipad , making a wear point.
Again nothing to do with quality of the bag.

Ao yes I want to repair the bag, not sure what the best way to do it would be , but will figure it out at some point.

Of course a new bag would be kinda nice , though admit that once I spend money on something of good quality , I will hold on to it forever.

The question is of course, would I buy another ?
Without thinking the answer is yes, really well made , well constructed, great materials, good layout.

Now I wonder if Think Tank could repair this or can i find some grey canvas or some kind of material to fix those two small wear spots ????

Later......

This is later ....

2015-04-23T10:41:00.000-04:00

well back in Canada...via San Diego , California

Not sure how long I am here , there are things to be done.
Am living in a fluid state of not sure where to be or what to do.
Though I ain't complaining.

Really have to say I feel like I am living in the now.
I do have plans to be completed , goals to achieve , but really it's about right now.

While heading to the airport in San Diego, because of hotel location , they had to call a driver for me.
After we got on the highway I noticed his coffee mug.

Nothing special except being one of those " I am a travel mug, but look like a camera lens"
It of course opened the door for conversation , " are you a photographer?"
We would expect the answer.

Actually he is a painter of abstracts.
We got into discussion about , where, what and who we are.
Painting being a relatively new pursuit for him.
A desire to let out what he feels and sees.

He suffers as we all do being creative, finding that spark to do what we do.

Our discussion lead us to why we were talking and what we were talking about.

I cannot even begin to recant everything we said , but it really came down to the moment , making a connection with someone and leaving that time and space , feeling like you learned something.

After I was dropped off , while waiting in line to check in to my flight, my new friend Momo appeared. Now realize he is a mountain of a man , parked in the drop off zone, hurrying through the Departures area, a man on a mission.
To tell me that the coffee mug was mine, that sharing that , passing it on, a symbol of those moments.

Because of a simple question I have made a good friend., a fellow artist , learned something and took some of what was said to heart .

That moment was in the now, you reading and taking something away from this , is in the now

Later......

Camera Porn

2015-02-24T20:51:00.000-05:00

I read an article today from a photographer , talking about his first foray into taking pictures. Learning to work with film, learning how to actually use a camera.

Although I do have a 35mm camera, I really don't have any images from it, any I did get developed are long gone. I remember it taking great pics outside, with its 50mm f1.8 lens, that Praktica MTL 50 was cool to look at and felt great in the hands, all metal construction.

That camera forced a commitment from you, pressing that button cost money. And I spent it !!

It then sat in its bag as other things got in the way, the lure of taking it out and clicking that button went away. I had not idea what i was doing and it was just costing me money having prints developed at Shoppers Drugmart.

Then the digital revolution , hit in a big way , digital cameras were readily available , though expensive at the local big box stores. You could have course gone to a number of smaller shops, some local some national, but pricing was always better at places like Future Shop (now owned/operated by Best Buy)

I was fortunate enough, to have a great Employee Purchase plan at the time. We could buy any computer or digital type device and spread the payments over 39 pay periods with no interest. How could I resist !!

So i marched down to Future Shop with credit card in hand, and checked them out.
That day I made a conscious decision to buy something that would be cool but also have some real functionality. My choice was the Canon Powershot s-40.

All 4 mpix of happiness, and with a dial that I would find out later would become something that I would recognize and experience later on.

Why did I pick this camera over all the others available at that time ?
That dial was the deciding factor, those markings Tv, Av and M. Being able to set my own settings, a minimal form of manual control of the camera.
That all came at a price, to the tune of $799 plus taxes.

That camera took this pic of London skyline at sunset, from the 23rd floor of the Colborne Apartments at Colborne and York St, London

Need to add pic here !!!!

That camera served me well, and was on a few trips, Cuba , California and Florida. It did great in outdoor, good lighting and suffered if using the flash or low light situations, like most Point and Shoots. I learned how to play the settings, not really understanding but getting some great pics along the way.
I was hooked !!!

A few years go by, Digital SLR (Single Lens Reflex) suddenly becomes obtainable for the common man, like me. Though affordable considering its big brothers the Canon XTI , at $1000 (depending where you bought). For your hard earned coin, you got a 10mpix DSLR with an 18-55mm f/4.0-5.6 lens. This is an APC sized sensor about 40% smaller than a 35mm piece of film or its professional counterparts.

I was fortunate enough that Santa dropped this off, Xmas of 2007.
I took what I learned on the S-40 and started with the XTI. First thing I learned, was that i knew nothing. Later the Canon 50mm f1/8 and the Battery Grip were added
What ever pics I got with this camera seemed like pure luck, with no idea what I was doing (still) I managed to grab some images that to me are still my favorites.

like this one from the Don Valley Brick Works in 2008

It was all just luck and really I was unable to get predictable results when I took out that camera for anything. I suffered like I did with that 35mm, except now I could take 100's of high resolution really bad pictures.
Then I answered and ad in www.kijiji.ca , a professional photography PT Potter, Burlington,ON had advertised to offer basically seminar for taking portraits, with a model, only criteria being the requirement to have a DSLR camera or equivalent. Cost $150 for 6 hours of hands on, small class of 6 people, in studio with lighting.

My little camera with some coaching and great lighting, suddenly pumped out images i could not believe were from me pushing the button. Ok the lights were all setup and really i was just pushing the button, though it showed me that those 10mpix when stroked the right way, knew what to do.

Now all I had to do was figure out how to start replicating what i experienced, was time for some flashes.
I later returned for another seminar/class , this one to be natural light, which could teach me some more valuable lessons.
Again the results happened, I was listening this time.

Ok so I was excited now, I was getting some where , time to practice practice practice.
I started to get repeatable results, started to be able to dial in settings and see it happen.

So if 10mpix is good 15 mpix should be better , right ???

A search on Ebay found a Canon t1i, from Henry's store. 15mpx of happiness, should make for even better images right ?

Canon T1i - 15mpix with Sigma 30mm f/1.4

Wrong.
Just meant even higher resolution, bigger file size images of crap - haha
Back to square one
I had fooled myself, so I send the warning to everyone, mega pixel size means nothing if you dont know what your doing. In fact when i looked back, I had been getting good results from its predecessors, just to stupid to realize it.

More struggle, more learning, bought a budget flash unit, played , played.

Finally decided I was getting somewhere and responded to an advertisement, young guy looking to get some pics for his modeling portfolio. My first real photo session, and Trade for CD.

Juan Pablo Montoya - allowed me to be one of the first to take his pic - considering my lack of experience, I got pretty lucky.

Form there I started trying to find others to take pics of. Luckily my good friend from Brazil trusted me enough to take pics of her daugther, Vicky - my first super model !!

Actually have been able to take pics of Vicky a few times of the last years. Watching her grow up from that young teenager.

From there I started scouring the ads in Kijiji, seeing if I could find others that wanted pics so I could keep working on honing my skills.

I found Miss Eden Skye through Kijiji.

And fellow photographer and model , Katie

I felt ready for the big time !! Gear lust was on , time for an upgrade, to the next level - FULL FRAME

But the prices yikes !! And not all my lens will work from the XTI and T1i.
Its like at candy through the window of the Candy Store.

I scoured the listings in Kijiji once again.

Canon 5D Mk I - released in 2004 , 10mpix , Full Frame , pixels the size of rain drops. Lucky find , included battery grip , and Canon 24-105mm 4L series lens and a Lowerpro bag (not another camera bag - I give them away !)I got all of that for the price of the lens new, $1500

Which makes me sidetrack for a moment, about buying gear.
buying used is ok ! especially if just getting started, not sure what you are doing or where you will take it.
Would i purchase on Ebay ? Maybe not , most people to far away, you dont know what you are getting and its kinda like , you bought it you own it. Their are reliable sellers on Ebay and lots of real stores, but this type of purchase , you need to touch hold and try. So i do recommend Kijiji (well at least in Canada) you can find people close by , driving distance, meet at a coffee shop. I have met on side of the road, at peoples houses and even outside Walmart.
Point is I saved alot of money doing this. anyways back to my story.....

Here I was back to square one !!!
A camera 3yrs older than my first DSLR and same 10mpix , an even worse screen on the back , zero ability in low light. Heavy and slow. During the day great camera , but soon as the sun went down , then no use at all. Use some flash and it came to life.

Getting Connected

2015-01-28T07:14:00.002-05:00

Lots to write about.

but lots of time to do it.

For now just a quick update , some pics from the last weekend.

Living in Xiamen, China, southern part of the country , just across the water from Taiwan.
Been here since end of November and getting settled, though easier said than done sometimes.

Did get my first volunteer experience here, got to take photos for the Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chia Foundation.

They were distributing basic personal items (tooth brushes, soap etc) and food (rice, oil, noodles) to the Elderly and disabled living in one apartment complex on Gu Lang Yu, an island off of Xiamen.

The island has no cars or bicycles and one of the top tourist places in China, though there are about 20,000 people living here.

We were only in one place for the day and left after all the residents had come to get the donations.

Good to see people trying to make a difference, in a place that has a tendency to bypass and forget those who are in need or not able to make do for themselves.

This is definitely a place I would like to come and spend a day or more walking around, it does have quite a history. Of course there are enough people walking the streets to attract the camera

And no lack of color in peoples fashion choices

later....

Shanghai Bound

2014-11-28T13:21:00.000-05:00

Shanghai bound , once again.

Even though just got back at the end of July and it's been 4 months back in Canada, it feels like it was yesterday.

This trip will be a little longer.
Visa good for 90 days multiple entry, which is something new.
Last visa was only 60 days and 2 entries and I had to leave every 30 days.

There is more work and things to do.
New things to see and new things to learn.

Later...

Getting Back into it !

2014-05-03T08:13:00.001-04:00

Was not back a few days, barely had my head back on and was out taking pics.

Friday night was the fabulous Irene Toress and the SugarDevils.

This girl could sing !!

And the band was not bad either.
The drummer is actually local session guy, Ted Peacock, who filled in for the night - was hard to believe , he was tight and on the mark, all night

Gotta like big electric hollow bodies !

Got those out of the camera and then got an invite from my #1 customer at Chanel , The Bay Masonville, tho grab some shots from the Gala on the 26th that happened all day .

Nice to see some girls all dressed up and out enjoying the day !
These two girls were in all decked out and looking good.

Gotta like the shoes.
Of course we know how the Canon loves red.

The Anita Norris Model Agency was out , doing a fashion show with their lovely models and The Bay fashions.

Not bad for first weekend back.

Admitting it is tough getting back into the swing of things when away for so long, and yes 25 days away is a long time not taking photos.

More to come as always.

later....

Back home !

2014-04-26T10:51:00.000-04:00

Made back home !

Got things to write about but still getting my head back on straight

this trip kicked me good
Sleepless nights,
Endless moving around

Will catch my breath
and get back in gear shortly

and speaking of gears !!
Another Lambourghini in VIP parking at Mall of The Emirates

later...

been awhile....

2014-04-20T07:18:00.004-04:00

Been awhile since I have done any kind of update.
Feel like i will be repeating myself , though I do have a couple reviews that I want to post and small updates to make.

Am sitting in Dubai after a whirl wind tour of Bangladesh and India.

Kind of last minute trip.
So last minute, I received my passport back from getting required Visa's on Mar 28th , the morning of my flight to Bangladesh.
Cutting it close was not the word for that one.

Saying that if you are looking at applying for a VISA to travel anywhere , check out VisaHQ , these guys were awesome at managing the whole experience, and even let me apply for two VISAs required in one easy step, saved me a few bucks and best of all monitored my passport as it moved around.

Will do something more unsubstantial as the mood strikes me.
Right now need some rest and relaxation , this was a real ball breaker of a trip !!

Stopped at Mall of the Emirates to have a Venti Americano and some food.

You know your in Dubai when ......
You see Maserati and Ferrari at the Mall !!
and lets not forget the Bentley that pulled in as I was leaving
quick snaps with ipad

later

India all done - headed home

2013-09-27T05:12:00.001-04:00

Two weeks in India , quickly passed.

I think I have the words Maruti Suzuki (very popular small cars in India) firmly imprinted on my butt.
Couple of 10 hour drives into the back roads of India will do that to you !!

Will write some more once am rested and relaxed.
I spent a lot of sleepless nights this trip, waking up early, way to early.
And Indian food does get to me after awhile, as much as i enjoy some of the flavors and tastes, the style does not cooperate.
My stomach has been in constant state of turmoil since landing haha (but not sick)

Did have one free day in Delhi and managed a small adventure.

Have managed to conquer 2 of the 7 wonders of the world. Go figure
If you had asked me a few years ago, if I would ever see these places would have said no, yet here I was

later....

Waiting for flight once again !

2013-09-14T12:15:00.003-04:00

Sitting in Dubai Airport

Its 8pm local time or 12pm at home.

next flight at 22:30
then 8hrs in Mumbai
then another flight at 14:00 to Ahmadabad, India

and of course little sleep while flying

later.....

Hard to leave here

2013-08-07T14:09:00.003-04:00

Have been blogging here for just over 3 years
Some times more than others, I leave come back , startup , go away

Guess depends if I have something to say

as of today August 7th , 2013 I have had over 20,000 views
hard to say I will move this over to my web page.
The content is all there

find me at www.dtaylor.ca/blog

Doug

Moving

2013-05-15T13:07:00.000-04:00

Folks, friends, followers....

Will be moving this blog over to my website in the next week or so.
Next update will be form there with a blast of pics from last few months.

Here are a handful

Ending Tyranny at The Brunswick Tavern, courtesy of Almighty Promotions

Make Haste To Mutiny - Brunswick Tavern courtesy of Almighty Promotions

Doghouse Rose at London Music Club

Northlane (from Australia) at Rum Runners, London Music Hall shot for VR Magazine

Sweet Leaf Garrett at Eastsides , shot for Local Live

And for something completely different ,

Garden Club of London at Springbank Park Greenhouses

ok thats it for now - next update from new blog setup

later...

Run down of my weekends !!

2013-04-26T11:16:00.000-04:00

Yes I have ben lax at updating this Blog .

new website being built so am keeping posts here to a minimum.

But to help explain the lack of typing , I did a count of groups I have shot in the last few months :

Tortured Saint
Devine Right of Kings
Make Haste To Mutiny
Transcend The Skies
Skynet
Wind Cries Mary
Between Breathing
Through These Words
Great White Shark
Party Cat
Violent Decline
Unlimited
Machines
Abide
Aurus
Geoff Masse Band
Tommy Solo
Dennis Pederson
Sound As People
The Wrecks
Dave's Not Here
Blackwing
Walls of This Chamber
Anotomist
Beastmode
Door to Door Human Gore
Ending Tyranny

And of course the guys that started it all for me : Hurtin Merv

April 11th I took my first "Pro" shots for YES at Massey Hall, Toronto. to be posted once cleared by my editor at www.velvetropemagazine.com

And last night my first local show , with I Mother Earth at the London Concert Theatre

more updates to come, pics of course and other news.

later....

Ok some updates and still lots to say

2013-04-15T15:01:00.000-04:00

Sorry folks I have been a blur of activity lately.

But just to give you some idea of whats kept me from updating.

First up , got connected to Velvet Rope Magazine as a photogrpaher , for London and area. though have access to shows in Toronto also.
Got to shoot my first big show , YES at Massey Hall. Sorry no pics yet until released back to me ( I have ownership)

Then found out about Local Live Entertainment here in London, a great place offering a complete host of services to the music sector. Live rehearsal space, digital recording studio, Live Streaming to web and everything else that any musician would want. Pics to come. Am now Photographer for them and helping design their future.

And learning about video.

All of this has kept me busy most weekends.
Happy to get to work on Monday so I can rest and relax.

Lots of pics to post , so be patient they are coming

later...

My new girlfriend

2013-03-22T15:22:00.001-04:00

Want to introduce everyone to my new girlfriend

She is from Japan, new to the country , just seeing what goes on in this part of the world.

She speaks English, and has all the right parts in all the right places.

I know she will challenge me

I know she will dissapoint me

But if I learn about her, spend my time with her and not give up when she confuses me

All will be good

Updates to Come

2013-03-21T08:24:00.000-04:00

Yes have been a little slow on the updates lately.
Been a busy boy !!

Have something good going on photography wise, and that's going to add to my busy starting next week.

As they say all good things come to those that wait !

Meanwhile for weird coincidences.

In 2011 I attended the Gathering on the Green , in Wortley Village, located in the centre of London,ON
Walked around for a an hour or so , took some pictures (of course) stored them away.

Well a few weeks ago I hooked up with Forest City Sites and Blake Strategies, to collaborate with them and trade services. And as part of that did some photo's for a local business downtown and while there noticed some dolls or figures on top of a shelf that made me think of something I had taken pics of.

Turns out the owner of the business I was at also has a hand in another business, hand making and selling, these. When I showed her this pic, she taken back , wondering where I got it.

These were taken in a tent at Gathering on the Green , in 2011 and sitting on my hard drive waiting for something to do

Imagine waking up and finding this staring at you from you bed room dresser !!

More to come on that as I see opportunity.
That is when i have a spare moment to get there.

On tap in the next little while , pics for Chanel Cosmetics event at The Bay, Masonville Mall, a show at London Music Hall for a music artist Classified , and at Call The Office for Sinclaire.

Yes kind of a music theme going on in pics this month

updates to come about what has been going on all of March

later....

Another month passes us by....

2013-02-25T13:27:00.001-05:00

Seems the days and weeks pass by faster than we want to.

Was not that long ago ( well at least in my mind ) I was out shooting pics in a dark bar, with a group of Metallurgists playing fast and loud.

Metallurgists for you that don't know, are not just guys concerned about the physical and chemical behavior of metals. Wikipedia Description http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallurgy.

It is how I describe players of heavy metal , though am sure I am not using the right term for these guys.
Though a Facebook connection (as much as loath Facebook) I was abel to go out and take pics of 5 bands playing at the Brunswick Tavern , St Thomas , ON. Been awhile since I had seen some original acts, and was worth the ear splitting decibels and less than favourable lighting conditions (like most bars).

Shout out to Jordan Chatten , of Almighty Promotions, for letting me have the privilege of having access to the show.

Jordan as well as being the promoter and organizer of these shows, bringing groups together, is also guitar player with Make Haste to Mutiny, local St Thomas band.
he has Rock pose#5 down to a T

Highlight of the night for me was the dueling guitars of Transcend The Skies.

7 string Schecters !

Of course pics are not complete without at least one bass guitar shot, and some low B bending action.

That was a Friday night, got home , ears ringing. Note to self , purchase ear plugs.
Monday was not far away, along with a 09pm flight out of Pearson International on my way to Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Flying emirates again, means taking that same flight as the last times I traveled that way , the 9pm put of Pearson headed to Dubai.
Did stop for a snack at a place in Pearson, called Heirloom Bakery and Cafe. All the seats have an Ipad and power for charging. so after you use the Ipad to make your order, you can either use their device to browse the web or plug inyour laoptop to charge and use the airport free internet service.

Very nice setup, great service and of course usual overboard airport prices , as to be expected.
Food was great , had the salmon sandwich.

Well on the plane we go , 13hrs to Dubai, 8 hr wait and then 5 hrs to Dhaka. Yippee !!!!

For you chocolate lovers out there, Toberlone happiness at the Duty Free shop in Dubai aiport.

Finally after losing 2 days of my life in airplanes, I arrived in Dhaka.
First impression was looking out the hotel shuttle (we use that term loosely) to see the hordes standing at the gate.

Life is a little rough for some here in Bangladesh. Hate to say but i have a new appreciation for India.

things you notice
Dont see to many nice cars here, most are small and have a few miles on them.
The bus here looking like they have all been in a Nascar , bump and grind , for awhile.

Next to the hotel, was a local Police station. Seems this car had been there for awhile under investigation.

Of course it might have been only a few weeks.
One thing you really notice here is the amount of dust and pollution in the air. Each morning I would look out the restaurant window. you could barely see the past a few blocks as the smog and dust of the night settling on the city.
Bad pic through dirty window, but really can see the smog hanging over the city.

Everything is covered in dirt and grime.

Seeing those things you see in movies, like this shot of just about ever wire on the street converging.

saying that of course there are always thos splashes of color that show up or seeing something you dont see to often.
Like this guy, peeling and carving carrots on the side of the road , for sale, quick snack.

or the flower vendor, offering some brightness to the day.

A host from the hotel roof at the end of the day when the sun has had a chacne to burn away that cloud of dirt over the city.

all that craziness aside, the hotel was great. A local place called the Dhaka Regency Resort and Spa. It hads comfortable beds , good restaurant and even a roof top grill/bar. and yes they serve alcohol, except on Fridays which is a religious day of prayer.

At one point we ended up out of the city and after crossing a river , you notice the brick yards , running along the banks of the river.

That is at least 8 brick kilns seen here. Might explain the haze that hangs over the city, as I noticed it was all blowing towards Dhaka.
Things you see on the side of the road, like these stainless steel head boards , waiting for anxious customers.

or if wood is more your thing, nad built and carved headboards available. Next time will find out the cost.

LIke a lot of things on this side of the world, why pay for a truck when a guy with a bike can pump that load of paper across town.

Put it in perspective, the average 500sheet package of paper weighs around 5lbs, so quick counts says he has 340+ lbs running on that side of his cart. It was about 3 wide , so he was pedaling a good 1000lbs down the street.

Remember that next time you think you are working 'hard' for a living.

After all that fun it was time to head back.

5 hr flight from Dhaka to Dubai, so I can sit for 8 hours waiting for the next bus to Canada.

There are worse airports in the world than this one that's for sure.

Just about anything you can imagine is available to drink or eat.

And if you need some relax time you can go stare at the fish.

or of you have the urge to shop and spend money , then how about a new Chanel watch for a little over $5k !

All that happy came to and end , when after 12 hrs in the air, we arrived in Toronto at 3pm to find out we could not land. Winter storm had wind speeds up above the planes capability. Detour to Washington DC for fuel and to kill some time. Then back to Toronto another hour waiting to land , then another hour waiting for them to clean the snow from the driveway so we could park.
Should have been home by 7pm Friday night, by the time the smoke cleared and I was home it was 3am Saturday.

Ya, international travel is boatloads of fun !!

later....

The Noise !

2013-01-24T10:50:00.001-05:00

The month of broken resolutions is almost over. You can breathe a sigh of relief.

As it nears, and I get ready to head out to the other side of the world again, I reflect on the past year. Reflect on the many conversations I have had, the ideas , good , bad and ridiculous. Threads of ideas that continually weave through the words, interjected with comedy, tangents taken.

I just read a blog posting by photographer, Zack Arias (www.zackarias.com) and a short video: Signal and Noise produced for scottkelby.com.

http://scottkelby.com/2013/its-guest-blog-wednesday-featuring-zack-arias-2/

Watch it , understand what it means.

We are all subject to the noise.

The noise slows us down, gets in our head, stops the thinking, distracts us, gets in the way, impedes us from learning something new, blocks our creativity, halts us from moving forward.

The noise is all around us.

It’s the web page that attempts to interject itself into our life, so that we can know each intricate detail of someone’s daily existence. We no longer ask for a phone number or email address, things that allow us to interact with each other, instead we prefer to leer and peak into peoples lives anonymously. We let that noise get in the way of establishing real relationships.

The noise is being “liked” and using that as the basis for what we do.

The noise is talking about some questionably talented performer , famous for being “liked “ a billion times.

The noise is worrying about what label we wear, or how much it cost.

The noise is not letting your feelings out and letting others affect how you feel.

The noise is you stopping yourself

Your challenge is filtering out that noise. Pushing it away from you, lifting it off your shoulders, getting it off your back.

Replace it with Signal

Replace it with something that will move you forward, something that will allow you to grow, use it to push you past where you are, who you are.

Signal is taking a picture everyday. Signal is looking at that picture and thinking about how you will do it next time.

All those conversations that I mentioned above, as meaningless as some of them can be (hey the humor is always welcome) they do have moments of clarity.

One of those conversations was with one of my camera subjects, talking about their challenges with what they were doing and attempting to do.

A moment of clarity and I blurted out “the only thing stopping you , is you”.

Search the web you will find plenty of references, I didn’t make it up, every self-help guru has some twist or flavor of that handful of words.

It made me look at myself. Realized that what has stopped me is me, no one else.

Stopped myself from taking that picture, stopped myself from pushing that button, stopped myself from taking that chance. That “Noise” has been around me my whole life, has interjected itself, cut me off.

The challenge of course is to change that, filter out the noise, turn up the signal.

Easy to say , harder to do ?

Oh wait that’s noise again, interfering.

We start slow. Hey we all handle things our own way. For me I have to change 50 years of behaviour. And yes it is our behavior, its not who we are. All of us are the same, and barring cultural and questionable lifestyles, we are all good people. Our behaviour (our noise) gets in the way and shapes who we are and how we appear to others.

Stop thinking about that latest Canon camera - start taking more pictures

Stop being “tired” - go to the gym three times per week.

Stop letting the “likes” decide what you like - read more, learn more, know more

What is your noise ?

Some art on Richmond Street, London,ON taken with G12

Count Down Once Again....

2013-01-21T07:13:00.000-05:00

Count down is on to blast off to Bangladesh.

Headed out Jan 28th for 10 day whirlwind tour, based from Dhaka.
Seems like I just go back from India !!

Another trip after that in planning stages, something interesting and not the usual travel destination.

While waiting I do manage to find some time to take photo's, though as usual lack of inspiration slows me down. Did manage to bump into my Brazilian Super Model , Vicky

so will see what we can do when I am back.

Spent the last week, doing my volunteer piece for Heart and Stroke Foundation , as they prepare for Heart Month - February.

They have over 2000 canvassers knocking at doors in the month of February , so when they do please take a moment , give few dollars, help make a difference.

While at one event , spotted this rendition of an iconic National Geographic Photo , done by one of the students at Wilfred Laurier Secondary School.

The original photo taken by Steve Mcmurray for National Geographic June 1985 cover , an Afghan girl, who was in a Pakistan refugee camp.

Its portraits like that , that keep me pressing the button, trying to find my elusive "wow" pic, one day, maybe it will happen.

Also had a great night out, thank you to the ladies from Lotus Thai Restaurant, as their event photographer, for the London Wine and Food Show. Though after a few rounds through the venue with Pom or her sisters and i was starting to see double. You know what they say, dont drink and take pictures hehe

Pom seems to know everyone, which is great when your out sampling food and drink !!

She and her fiance Gary are tying the knot June 22nd , I think she's working me to get best price for wedding pics !!

Then she turned me loose with sister Cindy (right) and good friend Judy.

Am getting to old for this haha

Fresh roll happiness !

The things I do for Food !

Got to go in the back kitchen where the various booths were doing prep work and cooking before heading out to the floor.

And yes somehow samples of everything magically appeared in front of me, go figure.

The Other Side of the World.....again

2012-12-31T10:47:00.000-05:00

Wow !

This last trip took it out of me.
A week at a Tradeshow for 10hrs a day, late hotel arrivals, early flights, early car rides, more late hotel arrivals (again).

Just before I left a new plant had been purchased for the office, this pic taken Nov 20th - more on this one later.

Obligatory airport terminal seating picture, Pearson Terminal 1 Gate 37

Actually if you were thinking about going to India to be a tourist, this would be the time of year to do it.

And my disclamier up front. I had no free time while here this time, so all the pics you see are from behind car windows, so quality is less than I would like.

Its winter here, temperatures are running between 25c-29c (77f to 85f) across the country. Compared to my last trip in May when it was running 35c to 45c with the sun burning a hole in your retina's.

Go figure though the day I arrived Mumbai had recorded it lowest overnight temperature of 15c (60f)

I saw people with winter coats and toques ! If only they new what it was like else where.
That afternoon as I was sitting on the patio at +29c and chatting to a friend in Kazhistan where it was -29c

The show was as Tradeshows go , long days , lots of waiting , lots of talking, hurry up and go kinda thing.
Deals being made, connections, meeting new customers and greeting ones I have met on previous visits, all in all a good time.

This trip was different than the others. Had time to meet people and spend time talking, beyond the product or what someone is pitching. Was also a time to finally get a handle on the food and find some foods I enjoy and can find elsewhere.

Weridness - Guns and Roses playing Mumbai ?? Go figure

At the Sun n Sand, the Kabob Hut is worth trying, if not for the Shish Kabob , Combo Platter (all meet for the protein lovers), then just sit out on the patio and feel the breeze from the ocean.

The next night I branched out and took a chance on something new and discovered Chicken Buryani.

Basically Chicken and Rice cooked in a clay pot, the top being covered by a piece of bread. If large enough this is something that would be cooked overnight.

I saw other variations of this done with Lamb. Was moist and with some great little zing of spice to it.
Will have to see if I can find this in London and see how it compares.

One thing I do recommend to anyone traveling to this part of the world (or even others) , if staying in a good hotel, take advantage of breakfast !! India has lots of fresh fruit available. I had watermelon, small banana's and pineapple, just about every day. The pineapple is awesome.

Mumbai seems to be going through major growth as the old is taken away and new os popping up.

The International Airport has been under construction since I was here in 2010 with no signs of progress. And now a Metro system is in process, so big construction adding to the already chaotic traffic.

Things you see, like this Royal Enfield motorcycle, kinda like India's Harley Davidson. This one all done up military style in khaki and black. Wonder what it would take to import these into Canada ? Have to check costs.

Laundry out to dry along the overhead highway running through Mumbai.

After a week of Mumbai and my favourite hotel the Sun n Sand, it was time to start the travel and customer visits part of my trip, the real reason we make these journeys.
An early morning flight and found myself in Ahmadabad, at Le Meridien Hotel. I had stayed here once before and of all the places I stay, this is the least expensive and probaly the highest level of service.

My local contact Dharmendra or Poncho as I call him, showed me his Vespa scooter before we parted ways. He has been driving it since 1985 when he purchased it brand spanking new.

Sorry about the quality of the pic, the camera had been stuck inside the bowels of some machine and got a little spray on it - I was to tired to care haha.

That scooter started up like it was just off the show room floor, though lights dont work anymore (wiring issues) and the speedometer conked out long ago , and now covered by a yogurt container lid. He has all the parts at home, just like every other tech guy has not taken the time to do the work on his own gear. Haha

After a day of running around, it was Saturday night. Yes when here we are working 6 days per week to take advantage of our time.
I had to crash early as I had to be at the airport just after 5am to catch my 6am flight to Coimbatore.

Well what started as a "I should be in the hotel by 11am" turned into a 9 hour journey as we were unable to land in Bangalore (a stop along the way) due to low ceiling. An hour in a holding pattern then diverted to Chennai for fuel, another hour or so sitting on the tarmac then once again to Bangalore and finally Coimbatore.

So much for my day off to catch my breath and rest a bit.

The only consolation about that hectic Sunday was arriving at The Residency Hotel , Coimbatore.
I had stayed here once before in 2010, I dont even remember the room as we arrived after 11pm and left the next day around 7am. That trip was mostly a blur !!

It was nice to find out they had been renovating since my last visit, and I was lucky recipient of a freshly renovated room !!
Rooms here run around 6500r or about $125/night. By western standards a great deal and very good value for the money. Including a really great buffet, remember having good food is important part of traveling this part of the world. NOt only for your health but also your sanity.

I was quote taken back knowing I would be here for a few nights.
Along with nice comfy chair for lounging in while watching bad tv and surfing the web

For my Mountain Dew drinking good friend down south, local brew.

Another cool feature that I had never seen before was this wall unit between the beds. Just about every connection you can imagine available, though I think that IPad/Iphone connection is all wrong. That all hooked up to the big screen across the room.

Well after running around the comfort was welcome

for the moment........

we headed out on the happy highway to visit customers and help pay for all that luxury happiness.

Coimbatore has a road works project on the go, upgrading the hidden systems of the city to meet the growing demands of modern society.

Except as we have experienced, things do not go as planned here. Well they do go as planned just takes awhile to get the plan going.
Evident from the posters glued to these culverts, lining the roads, patiently waiting to be installed.

Then my gracious hosts, thinking I would not want to drive back to Coimbatore from our day long trip booked me at a local hotel in Salem area.

All I can say is after the luxury of the Residency, I was ready to suffer the 2-3 hr ride back to Coimbatore.

It was clean but rough and the roof top , romantic patio restaurant was definitely not on my list of places to eat. Ya I will admit I need some pampering when traveling. My hosts got the hint and got me back to my favourite place the next night.

Things you notice when your not the driver, when you have a chance to look out the window.

Splashes of color

Just to bad they are taken through the car window while doing 80km/hr

Might be time to be a tourist in India next time I visit. Get a chanceto get out of the car and wander around.
At the show I had a chance to chit chat with one of the girls working the booth, the lovely Miss Rosario.

Next time in Mumbai she graciously offered to spend a day or two with me and show me all the sites and hopefully some places off the beaten path in Mumbai. Really nice girl, smart funny and obviously beautiful young Indian woman.

This part I enjoy , making connections with people. If you know me, I don't make connections with everyone, am selective, wait to see who they are, what they think.

Like my new friend, Bhalpreet from Chandigarh, Engineer, Entrepreneur, tinkerer. He showed me pictures of places in Northern India, where he goes fly fishing and told me about his desire to build a fly rod from bamboo all DIY and hand built. More about the challenge of doing it.
I know this passion. Means I have someone else to visit, another part of India to learn about, not just what I see from the car but to actually touch it, feel it.

Did our fair share of driving of course as sometimes its juts the better way to travel.
Of course driving the highways on India can be quite the experience.

Like looking ahead and realizing we are already on the shoulder and there are 2 trucks and a bus headed our way.

Then getting back on the Major Highway. multi lane speeding with construction to slow you down.

your zipping along at 100km/hr - high speed here haha

And notice the bus ahead

Yes that's right, at 100km/hr with little regard for safety or anything these jokers hanging on to grab handles enjoying the trip.

I know as per newspaper reports they are starting t crack down on this, as speeds increase ont he highway and the amount of traffic increases.

But then road safety is not everyone's concern !!

Then not much farther down the road your blinded by this spectacular building, a unviersoty in what seems to be the middle of no where.

This part of India (south) is having big issues with Gas, Water and Electricity supplies. Most of this is being diverted to the North where all the major industries are. In fact the state of Tamil Nadu is in conflict with its northern cousin Kamataka, with border protests happening as Tamil Nadu fights to get water. The electricity regularly went out while sitting in hotels or even at customers.Some have had to install portable power generators, like this one in the back of a bus.

Smaller business's have had to run with wood fired boilers, to be able to generate steam pressure required to run machines.

Next stop Bangalore
Well after a 4 hr bus ride - my first in India. But cant complain was a Volvo Multi-Axle cruiser with assigned seating , air conditioning and movies on board.
The movie was Eega (Fly) about a young man who is killed by some rich guy, who wants his girl, the young guy comes back reincarnated as a Fly to seek his revenge, laugh out loud funny, even without english or subtitles.

The bus stand was next to the Car Wash, where this young guy was getting his bikeall shined up for hot date am sure.

of course this place was next to someones house, goats and chickens included.

We arrived in Bangalore around 10pm, to find that the bus stop had changed to just on the edge of the city, no taxi's waiting. Our choice was wait another 30 minutes for a car to show up or grab a Tut-Tut.
Proceeded to blast across the city , 3 of us jammed in the back with bags.

We pulled into Le Meridien Bangalore, me in my Tut-tut aurrounded byb Mercedes and BMW's haha
Its the contrasts that make it fun, when your running around with little sleep and craving a real meal you need these to put a smile on your face , make you laugh and shake your head.

Bad Iphone pic of the Main Entrance of the hotel, they dont build this kind of place anymore.

Le Meridien Bangalore , like the one in Ahmadabad, is an older hotel that has managed to maintain its extravagant look and feel while attracting international customers, evident from the crowd at breakfast that this hotel has wide clientele and would be on my list of places to stay any time here. A little on the high end of hotels to stay for a night at $130 plus taxes, but worth it.

Its the small touches that add to your stay, that make you want to come back , that make you feel like a valued guest.

I saw this cup sitting in the room, Tata is a name you see all over India.

The Tata Group of companies is everything from this simple coffee cup to Chemical Industries, Mobile Phone networks , the Taj line of hotels and even Landrover Jaguar. Far reaching scope of products and services and not one we hear of here in Canada or North America.

Another day of customer visits, another day of running around, a 4 hour wait in the airport and I was headed back to Mumbai, for another late night arrival to Sun n Sand, my home base in India.

next day up and at em, 6am !! Last day of customer visits about 2 hrs from Mumbai, followed by another late night back to the hotel. So tired !!

My one day off without any plans or need to travel. Its Sunday I am not doing anything or going anywhere. This trip has worn me out.

Last night when i arrived a wedding reception was in progress.

Actually every Friday, Saturday and Sunday I have been at the Sun n Sand there has been a wedding reception in one form or another.

Its all about being poolside, small venue, sound of the ocean behind you. One of the popular places in Mumbai for this.

Last day here !
Day of rest though I cant seem to get my sleep. If you know me you know I have issues sleeping on a good day, so I get nothing for sleep when travelling.

Was hard coming home from +25c temps to winter back in Canada

Oh remember that plant at the start of this taken Nov 20th.
this is what it looked like Dec 20th after I go tback. Its called an Amarillis.

Well Xmas is over and done with.
New Year will be upon us at the end of today.

To those of you out there who read this , I wish you a Happy New Year and all the best to come.

for now I rest , find my sleep as I have Bangladesh coming up at the end of January

later....

Last Sunset

2012-12-16T11:28:00.001-05:00

Last sunset in India from the 3rd floor of the Sun n Sand , Mumbai

Update to come about it all sometime this week, was a long and fast 20 days here

later......

12 12 12

2012-12-11T23:11:00.001-05:00

It's already 12 12 12 here where I am this morning, Tamilnadu, India.

The world has not ended

Yet !!!!

Hey no people in this pic I took out my hotel window....

later.....

What it takes

2012-11-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

Had a comment from someone today , saying how much they enjoyed reading my updates, from this my little slice of the worldwide interweb.

As I start writing my thought out here, I realized there are friends of mine, in other countries that don't have the freedom to read what I write, see what I see and share in some of the places I go.
This people rely on me to make an alternate version that I craft in an email that I have to insert each picture into , hoping that email won't be to large for Yahoo or Hotmail or Gmail.
In most cases I have to resize all the pictures and put it all together, painful at times, especially on large postings.

Count yourself lucky that you can at your convenience, press a button and do as you wish, in this thing called the Internet that continues to develop and grow daily.

Anyways back to my thought.

All of you out there that read my blog and many others like it (or not like it) I usually get the same comments or feedback, about my creativity , the pictures and the writing or lack thereof.

Know that none of it comes easily !!!

My posts are seldom when I am not inspired, either by the pictures I am taking or what is going on around me at the time.
That writing out your thoughts in detail and trying to express yourself without repeating the same catch prhrases or starting every new sentence with "So....." is brutal at times.

The words flow from the pictures, from what I see, my experiences, the people I meet.

And honestly there are times when I cant find the words, I struggle with that sentence to describe what I feel or how I felt.
The pictures speak for themselves.

Not sure what this one says but from a color and wow point of view , I really like it. some toy I found sitting outside the Budweiser Gardens (formerly John Labatt Center)

And it all starts with the pictures, my great challenge in life.

I have been fortunate enough to have met some really great people this last year, all of which are photographers, all with different eyes, all with different skills.
All these people force me to look at myself and the pictures I take.
They also have made me realize that the sharing of our combined experiences and our skills is the greatest part of that black box that can spit out images at 4 to 10 frames per second.

That black box is an extension of yourself.
And that although the technology fails me at times it constantly reminds me, that I have yet to master it.

Taking the pictures, writing this blog and sharing with whoever wishes to read, gives me some sense of having a small piece of the world. Though reality is this is all vapour wear, does not really exist, it is only 1's and 0's on the electronic network covering this earth.

Then one day you find you are part of reality, you exist, of course realization and reality can sometimes clash.

My reality is I exist , there to seen by anyone that passes.
Again the pictures speak for themselves.

and yes that's a real sign in some undisclosed part of the world

later......

Ready to Roll

2012-11-17T18:25:00.000-05:00

Folk, its travel time again.....

Destination Mumbai !!

Hello my favorite hotel in the world , Sun and Sand Mumbai !!

If you remember this place from a few postings ago, this particular hotel located on Juhu Beach, and one of Mumbai's oldest hotels.
If you end up on this side of the world this is where you want to stay.

Updates to come

Last month has been the usual blur.
Though did spend a Saturday afternoon with a great group pf fellow photographers, sharing about flash photography.
The lovely Vicky was able to attend, nothing like a beautiful Model to peek everyones interest in learning, sharing and taking a few pics.

Also one thing that has grabbed my attention lately are pics of food, either with the Iphone , some Sesame Chicken from Swiss Chalet

or with a real camera and some natural light. This one from One Diva and Cupcake here in London.

To Beef Souvlaki from the Gainsborough Restaurant.

later.....

Been awhile

2012-10-09T12:42:00.003-04:00

Month of August and September passed by way to quick.
Seems like suddenly summer was over. am trying to remember what I did or didn't do.

As usual I look through the pics and remember.

back in August was Tough Mudder held in Barrie, ON, if you remember an early posting i had talked about his a shared a video link.

I headed out crack of dawn, August 18th , thinking I would have more than enough time to get onsite and meet up with some people I knew were doing the course.

All was well till I hit the exit for the event - traffic was backed up on the should of the road for a few kilometers - this put me behind at least 45 minutes getting in.

Then a 20km bus ride form parking to the site, Mount St Louis Ski Resort.
Got there in time to see a start to a group of participants.

There was over 4000 people on the course on Saturday and just as many spectators.

Its all about finishing and nothing to do with how fast or what place you come in. Completing the course , getting past all the obstacles and challenges is what the goal is.

Like this one, dont look like much. Jump in the murky water, swim down and under the wall and back up the other side. Easy enough.

Until you realize they are dumping ice into that there water, keeping it at ice cold temperature. Per reports by the time you got under that wall your head was numb.

Over coming your fears, taking that leap off the edge. That's probably the biggest message I got from this event. None of the obstacles are insurmountable, all with team work or assistance from others can be overcome. The course and ideas came from Special Forces training, training men to overcome and work as a team to reach the goal - not about the individual.

Of course there is some fun along the way, taking 100ft or so slide down the mountain.

Throw in some belly crawl under electric fence wires hanging down. Even though you as a person must push yourself through, team mates and spectators were on hand to cheer and encourage.

And yes there are serious injuries happening. Even as a spectator I had to sign a waiver for my own safety and not hold them accountable.

Last obstacle of the day, and there were over 18 of them, is walk or run through electric fence wire hanging down This guy walked through and took it all.

And once you all done and need a scrub down, Samsung was sponsoring the bubble bath at the end of it all.

This girl was on the bus headed back to the parking lots. She and her friends were all pretty chatty for 15 or so minutes and then it got quiet. Fatigue kicked in , the adrenaline gone.

There are other events scheduled for next year. There are other events similar but none compare to Tough Mudder. Question is could I do it ?

Of course what event is not complete without a Girl With Camera moment.

Did the last of Heart and Stroke Big Bike event in London. Two days and it was all done. The bike loaded up and headed out until next year.

That day also spotted the ongoing growth of high end sport cars here in London.

Have seen this one a few times just never had camera pointed in that direction.

Did a few other charity events.
Parkinsons Society Walk through Springbank Park here in London. My good friend The Hun invited me along. Was nice day considering it had threatened rain.

met Mckeena out shooting with a friends Nikon (we forgive her) .
She was our Girl With Camera for the day.

Also this past month was CIBC Run For The Cure held in Victoria Park. They say they had about 4000 participants for the day. Looked like it !

Pink was the color of the day as you can see in the pic above, so lots of teams and people decked out in their finest pink !!

some ran - awesome catching a runner with feet off the ground as they sprint into the finish.

This t-shirt says it all !!

Chances are you know someone or have a family member suffering through, in remission or taken by cancer - do your part to donate your time or money as you can.

This year between the various events I donated over 100 hrs of camera time to various charities.
I encourage any fellow photographers to do the same.

During all that I managed to be involved in a house renovation project, ripped out and reinstalled a new Ikea kitchen.

Took this mess...

And turned it into this - a lot of measuring and this and that to finally take one day to get all the cabinets installed.

Got an invite to attend the Mid-Autum Festival show held at the West Park Church on Gainsborough Rd, wow talk about a facility !!

Full stage - lighting sound - video production - did not know this place even existed.
Would make a great venue for music.

If you know me, then you know I enjoy food, enjoy cooking (but never for myself)
The last month have been making an effort to eat a little better, do a little more home cooking.

Got a lesson in dumpling construction, and produced my first batch of home made dumplings, these ones done with chicken and fixings. the mangled looking ones are mine haha

Got my cooking on one day and made butternut squash soup.

Another Charty drive was Bender's 2nd Annual Musicians Ball, hosted by Barb and Jim McCormick. Donations and proceeds went to Salthaven Wildlife Sanctuary. I encourage any musician who has not attended to make it out for next year. The date is already set for Saturday, August 24th , 2013.

This is one of the beneficiaries of the sanctuary and now a full time resident.

Small shout out to Wendy Queen and Pat Crawford, ace music photographers. You can find either one of them at Hurtin Merv or Bender shows around the city.

They shoot Nikon but we forgive them

At the end of it all a rainbow.

Taken from my balcony.

Am not one for landscape or nature pics but managed to capture one this past weekend while out in Springbank Park.

anyways , small little update, some pics.
now in planning stages for the next trip to India.

later....