Nobody really knows, but hey, you've found one! I'm Chris, and this...is my photo blog. But you already knew that. How about some stuff you didn't know:
I split time between my full-time job, part-time seminary studies, whenever-time photography gigs, and all-the-time husband and father life. Can you guess which one's my favorite? Seriously though, my fantastic wife Karen manages to keep me silly and sane through it all, and nothing beats being a daddy. Cliche? Sure. True? No doubt.
I'm horrible at sports, but love baseball. I not-so-secretly wish I could be a big league pitcher. Don't laugh too hard if you go bowling with me - you can sometimes tell from my routine that I'd rather be an ace on the mound.
And maybe I should have studied design or at least some form of liberal arts back in college. I love a well-designed poster, picture, sign, car, pair of scissors, you name it. In fact, one of my quirkier characteristics is the instant frown you'll get from me when a perfect, clean, new cardboard box gets its first dented corner. Ok, so maybe that's more my weirdness than a sense of art or design.
When I was younger, I loved making photographs but was horribly shy about it. However, my glamorous career in high school journalism (take that, JV chess team!) introduced me to fabulous gear I couldn't afford and a license to snap photos when nobody asked for one. Capturing moments that'll never come again ignited a passion in me that has yet to wane.
Actually, capturing the beauty of the moment is what photography is all about for me. It's fantastic, really. We live through an almost infinite number of moments in our lives, each never to be repeated exactly the same way. Photos help us remember those moments - special or seemingly mundane - even while our own memories tend to fade out as time goes by. They help us to remember our own finiteness, and in turn, be thankful for the grace of every breath.
Had a nice time out shooting some promo spots as a favor to my dad for Team Bayer, as they prepare for the MS Waves to Wine ride in September. I am not a sports photographer, and boy do I have respect for those guys now more than ever. Taking portraits is a fun challenge in itself, but snagging the shot you had in mind of relatively quick moving targets is something else!
the team
it’s easy when nobody’s moving
over the bay
lining up
flyby
Speaking of cycling, I’d better get off my butt and get back on track with training…
Well, here we are. Nine pictures down and one left. I have to say, it’s been fun looking back at some of my favorite pictures from the last few years and thinking over the circumstances that brought them to be. And for number one, I couldn’t be happier with the memory it brings.
one year later
Does it show? Haha. I know, I know – it’s not fair that I chose a shot that I’m a part of to be my favorite. But who could blame me? Our first anniversary and a fun, moody shot! Frankly, some of the effect came from poor planning on my part. I had intended on taking a picture before we went off to dinner, but things just didn’t work out that way. Once we came back home, the sun had already been down for an hour or so. So, you work with the light that you have on hand. I set up some remote flashes and experimented, but nothing looked quite right. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something was just not working. The final product that you see came from a realization that a lot could be said in a picture that didn’t show off our faces well. It’s all about body language! So I just used our doorstep overhead light. What you see matches what the natural eye would get. Even better, the high contrast and warm, tungsten light help make this picture look and feel like a memory – exactly what it’s meant to be as a portrait of “our first anniversary”.
Well, I hope you enjoyed my informal little countdown. Time to look forward to exciting things yet to come! Pay attention right here to continue to see what the latest is, hear about fun opportunities, and more…
Back from the deep, dark, abyss of the non-internet world! Hah! The reports of my demise were greatly exaggerated.
Seriously, though, it’s good to get back into the swing of things and tend to my poor, neglected (but never forgotten!) blog. Plus, with only two photos left in my original top ten of the past countdown, we’ve got some business to finish. It’s been a busy start to the summer, but I’m looking forward to the second half of the year and all that’s to come. Some exciting stuff on the horizon including free stuff! More to come…
So, on to number 2! For those of you who have kept up with me over the past 3 or so years, this one will come as no surprise:
waiting
This shot, in a way, started it all. I was helping out at a friend’s wedding, doing some audio-visual technical stuff and lugging my camera along for whatever opportunities jumped out at me. At this point, I had only begun to be serious about taking photos and had limited gear and experience (thank you, high school journalism – pah!). While I was fiddling around with some computer issues, the lovely bride and official photographers popped into the room to take some shots nearby an open window. They chose a spot to pose, and while an assistant helped set her dress just right, I looked up and noticed the awesome soft lighting the photographer had wisely spotted. More than that, I noticed that the wall she was standing next to was creating a great, seamless backdrop – like the kind you’d use in an actual studio. And to top it off, there was a beautiful grace to this “prep” moment that begged to be captured. So in the midst of preparing to take a posed shot, I fired off a few frames to grab the candid. So while the picture looks posed, it’s actually very much not. The bride’s position? She’s looking down at the person who’s fixing her dress.
Taking a look at this after the fact, I was overjoyed to see the results and felt spurred on to keep at it. Even better – I was humbled to share this with my friend (the groom), and hear his total delight. Is it a perfect picture? No. Room for improvement? Always. But encapsulating beauty in a moment that would never come again and would have probably otherwise been quickly forgotten – that’s just fantastic. It’s what I love about photography and it’s the kind of thing I’m always on the hunt for! For that reason, this one will always be high on my list. 🙂
Busy time up ahead, folks, so I will be on a bit of hiatus until mid-summer (hopefully before August)! I’ll still be available via email though if you need to contact me – just no blog posts in the mean time.
Ahhhhhh, Hawaii. What can be said? I’m not sure there’s more than a handful of people who have ever had anything less than a wonderful time there. Good weather, good food, good sights…what more are you looking for? Karen and I spent 7 beautiful days in Kaanapali, Maui followed by 3 quick days in Waikiki to wrap it all up. Not all was ideal, though. I had some paper writing to finish up for the end of the semester which put a slight damper on our first few days, but once that was fully out of the way it was relaxation-city!
our condo’s view
This was, I think, my fourth time to Maui and maybe eighth time to the islands in general. Not much new, but you really don’t need “new” out there. I’ll take it unchanged and familiar any day. We did take an excursion to Lanai, however, that was a first and a highlight of the trip. This little island, previously made up of mostly pineapple plantations, only has about 3000 residents and is dominated by the two resorts run by Four Seasons. There’s one town and basically one main street. Anything you want to see out toward the shores (other than where the ferry comes in) requires traveling on rocky trails in a 4×4 vehicle. Here’s our Jeep, pulled to the side of the Polihua trail as we passed through the “garden of the gods”:
I think we averaged about 10 mph through the trail. The ride’s well worth it though…at the end you get this beauty:
polihua
That’s 1.5 miles of pristine white beach, baby. No footprints, no trash, no people. Somebody build me a villa there, please.
Closer to town you see a bit more of the resorts’ influences…we stopped on our way back to say hi to the folks living at Kō’ele stables:
Kō’ele residents
Our few days in Oahu went by quickly, but we managed to take in a few sights including the Pearl Harbor Historic Sites…I hadn’t been there in over a decade!
Ford Island
Arizona
Plus, a little visit to a historic site with family ties! Check it out…my great-great-great-grandfather!
Afong Villa
Good times! Oh, and can I share anything about Hawaii and not mention killer food? I think the images speak for themselves.
blue ginger loco
leilani filet
zippy’s mix
da kitchen loco (this…was the best)
Incredibly blessed to have been over there 4 times in 4 years…what a way to be spoiled! Until next time, Hawaii!
