Thomas Gurnee Photography

"Young Gentlemen Explorers" at the Brothel

2011-09-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

This past week, we shot a scene for "Young Gentleman Explorers" at director Matt Snead's studio in Los Angeles. The shoot environment itself was a far cry from the 115 degree heat we endured during our hike out into the desert a couple weeks before. Although the building was cool, the atmosphere was hot due to the young ladies joining us for our "Brothel" scene. "Luckily" (cough, cough), I had my camera with me and took some very nice set shots of all the fun we had. Enjoy!

The 2011 Ronald Reagan Presidential Library GOP Debate

2011-09-08T12:47:00.000-07:00

My friend, Walter Ruskin, leads a group in San Diego called, The Ugly News Team and reports for the San Diego Community Newspaper. Somehow (lol), he got accredidation into the September 7th, Republican Presidential Debate being held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. Walter rang and asked if I could sidekick along with him and snap off some photos while we walked the grounds and interviewed in the Spin Room. After the debate, two of the candidates stopped by (Herman Cain and Rick Santorum) and Walter scored some great interviews. (And I scored some great photos!). After the interviews, we couldn't help ourselves and decided to have some other fun by making our way into the debate hall. Enjoy.

"Young Gentlemen Explorers" and the Goat Canyon Trestle

2011-08-28T15:05:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, aside from being a photographer here in Los Angeles, I'm also an actor. Lately, I've been starring in a webseries known as, "Young Gentlemen Explorers", directed by Matt Snead. On Wednesday, August 24th, we did a shoot at a place outside of San Diego in the Anza Borrego Desert called, Goat Canyon. Goat Canyon is a very special place only accessible by foot, mountain bike or railroad.

We began our drive into the desert around 7am using a Toyota Forerunner. Our drive on the dirt roads leading to the parking area, however, was not without incident, unfortunately. Our driver took a wrong turn at a fork and we ended up sinking our back wheels into some ridiculously soft sand. A terrible sight indeed, when the top of your vehicle's back wheels are at the point of level ground. After an hour of finding large enough rocks, some brush and lots of digging, we finally made it out - but still, with the assistance of our tag along friend's Ford F-150 and a small rope. One hour gone and time wasted on a day we knew was going to be hot.

We reached our parking place, grabbed our gear and started our 2 hour hike to the canyon. Ten or so years ago I had done this same hike with my father, uncle and a next door neighbor. I knew where we were going and I was bubbling with anticipation. Would it still be there? Would it look just as austere and sublime as I remembered it? I was hoping for the best.

An hour and a half into our hike, we walked around that last mountain corner and there it was off in the distance. Still standing as proud as it did the day it was finished back in 1923. At 186 feet tall and 750 feet long, the Goat Canyon Trestle still remains to this day, the longest, tallest curved wooden trestle ever built in the United States.

Named for the large, bighorn sheep that thrive here in such desert desolation, the construction of the San Diego & Arizona Eastern Railroad began during World War I in the steep-walled Carrizo Gorge near the town of Jacumba. Many people were convinced at the time that it couldn't be done, but John D. Spreckels, the "Sugar King," didn't rest until the "impossible track" was completed in November, 1919, at a cost of US $18 million. After an earthquake collapsed one of the main tunnels a few years later, the large trestle was conceived and was duly built to support the largest of freight trains. The line was closed down sometime in the 1970's but reopened again in the late 1990's for a few years. To the chagrin of those who invested in the line, it unfortunately subsequently closed again in 2004.

Lucky for us, however, we had our trestle, our cameras and our costumes for the shoot and created what will, I'm sure be, a dazzling episode for the eye to behold. I certainly hope it turns out as well as my hdr photo of it did. If you make a venture out to the trestle, be sure to bring PLENTY of water if you hike out in the summertime. By the time we left, the temperature was pegging 115.

San Diego Comic Con 2011 - The Celebs!

2011-07-31T12:26:00.000-07:00

Oh, lots of fun was had seeing some new celebrities this year. William Shatner! Jim Caviezel! Scott Bakula! Jeff Bridges!!! Dr. Who (Matt Smith!) Wow! All some of my absolute favorites.

San Diego Comic Con 2011 - The Costumes!

2011-07-31T12:07:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, the costumes were great this year. And, shooting w/ my 7D made everything just perfect. The colors, the skin tones, the sharpness. What a great CC I had.

"Nevtiri" at Comic Con in HDR

2011-07-30T12:37:00.000-07:00

This is one of the best HDR shots I've taken to date. This is a Slideshow Collectible figurine of "Nevtiri" from "AVATAR" and it just came out so well. The lines, the colors. I'm so pleased.

At the Getty Museum in Los Angeles

2011-07-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

I decided to treat myself after the treats on the 4th with a special outing to the Getty Museum here in Los Angeles. I've passed by the buildings on the hill overlooking the 405 over 100 times now and each time I said, "I have to go up there..." Well, the day came and I'm glad I took the time. Beautiful, wide open spaces within all handsomely landscaped. Very nice exhibits (though, to be honest, I was expecting to see more). Certainly, all in all, a gorgeous day to take in art and create some of my own.

Headshots for Adam D. Johnson

2011-05-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

Adam D. Johnson is a superb make-up artist and has worked on major feature films such as Pirates of the Caribbean and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Many of his friends, he has told me, say he has a very unique face and that he should give it a go in front of the camera. I have to agree. So, we set up a shoot for him and the sky is the limit for what he has to give back to the universe!

HDR at the Military Aviation Museum, Virginia Beach, VA

2011-05-08T21:06:00.000-07:00

Last June, I took this 3-shot HDR image of this beautifully restored Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk WWII Fighter at the Military Aviation Museum, Virginia Beach, VA. This particular shot came out extremely well I thought and really highlights how gorgeous these machines must have been coming off the assembly lines.

For those that are not keen on what HDR is, HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. How it works (in a nutshell), is you take 3 or 5 images of the same subject matter using different light levels on each image. For example, the 1st shot will be at normal exposure, the 2nd will be one stop above normal, the 3rd, will be one stop below, etc, etc. (see images below). These images must all be exactly lined up with the others or the after effects will not be pleasant. Hence, using a tripod is (almost) mandatory.

With these 3 or 5 images, you then plug them into a software program called Photomatix Pro. Click "play", so to speak, and watch what happens. Photomatix Pro virtually merges all of these photos together for one result. That result is, an image who's dark areas have been lit up and who's bright areas have been darkened, giving you a real eye full of a picture now to look at. Once you have the Photomatix Pro result, you do a little more post processing using Photoshop and/or other various softwares out there and then voila, you get neat looking images like the one above.

Headshots for Actor and Spokesmodel, Kira Gurnee

2011-04-08T20:13:00.000-07:00

Kira Gurnee (pronounced Gur-nay, instead of Gur-knee, like I do) hired me to update her headshot portfolio. Kira is an LA actor, model and spokesperson and works for the likes of Sony, Rolls Royce, Harley Davidson, etc, etc. She's an avid outdoors girl and sports adrenaline junkie. She drives a Porsche, skis down mountains, bungee-jumps and rides her own 1100cc motorcycle fast and deep into corners. If you need an excellent spokesmodel and/or voice-over professional, let me know and I'll be sure to have her contact you!

The Abandoned House

2011-02-27T19:29:00.000-08:00

This past February, I took a trip to Basel, Switzerland, for their annual Fasnacht festival. Outside of where I was staying, I spotted this house off the road. Those who shoot HDR know that taking images of old things make for good images. I hope you like this one.

Basel, Switzerland Fasnacht!

2011-02-20T09:07:00.000-08:00

This year I took a vacation and traveled back to Basel, Switzerland, to partake in their annual Fasnacht celebration. Fasnacht is the Swiss version of Mardi Gras, though on a more family oriented basis. It's truly one of the happiest places to be on earth for the 72 hours the festival takes place. Again, it did not disappoint and again, my heartfelt thanks go out to my friend Caroline and her family and friends for showing me an absolute splendid time while I was there.

Harriett Quimby Trailer Movie Shoot

2011-01-18T19:51:00.000-08:00

My friend, Thomas Bond II, is a producer here in Hollywood and invited me out to take stills of the trailer he is making for his production of, "Harriet Quimby". Harriett Quimby, is one of America's greatest aviators and the first female ever to fly across the English Channel. Our shoot was out in Malibu, CA; not exactly the quintessential place to shoot the gray gloom of England, but we picked just the right day and wouldn't you know it, the gray clouds of England graced us with their appearance and sunny southern California turned into the English coast. The pictures came out super; actor DonnaMarie Recco (who is a spot on lookalike of Harriet's) will play the lead and I think this film will gather a lot of attention when it is released!

Dorothy Donahue's Birthday Celebration at the Integratron

2010-09-25T19:32:00.000-07:00

My dear friend, Dorothy Donahue, celebrated her birthday on September 21st by inviting a group of her pals out to a historic landmark called the Integratron. The Integratron is a little over an hour's drive east on the 10 from LA and out in the middle of the desert. It was built by Mr. George Van Tassel in the 50's as a way to communicate with extraterrestrials. The dome feature was built on an intersection of powerful geomagnetic forces that are said to, via sound therapy within, be condusive for healing the body through cell rejuvenation. All in all, it was quite an experience being there and I, for one, had some of the wildest dreams I've ever had that night...

Comic Con 2010 - The Stars!

2010-08-01T14:55:00.001-07:00

Oh, I love my staff position for Comic Con! Here are some of the stars that came into town!

From ABC's, "V":

From SyFy, "Sanctuary":

From TNT, "Leverage":

Comic Con 2010 - The Costumes!

2010-08-01T14:47:00.001-07:00

Comic Con has returned. And, yet again, the costumes were amazing. Here are just a few of what I found!

Battleship Wisconsin in HDR

2010-06-27T10:17:00.001-07:00

I recently spent a week in Norfolk/Virginia Beach, VA and Houston, TX for some R&R. I didn't know at the time I arrived, that the city of Norfolk had acquired the Battleship Wisconsin from the Navy and turned her into a static museum. I was immediately inspired to pop off some photos and using HDR, I was thrilled with the results.

Los Angeles Greetings & Actor Neil McDonough

2010-05-28T22:32:00.000-07:00

Greetings from greater Los Angeles. I'll be making my residence here for a spell and have already, fortunately, been indoctrinated into the scene. My acting coach and friend, Tom Ardavany, invited me to take some photos at his fifth gathering of "Actors on Acting" featuring well-known actor, Neil McDonough. You may not recognize the name immediately, but I'm sure you've seen him somewhere before. Neil has an IMDB list a mile long, has acted for such esteemed directors such as Clint Eastwood and Steven Spielberg and was very nice to chat with at the event. See some of his interview at Mr. Ardavany's website, www.theapproach.net.

"Hero Living" Booksigning & Author Rudy Reyes

2010-01-19T14:16:00.000-08:00

My good friend, Rudy Reyes, launched his booksigning tour here in San Diego for his first publication, "Hero Living". Rudy is a former Recon Marine and was featured as himself in the acclaimed HBO series, "Generation Kill". Rudy recently also finished a pilot TV series that was shown on the History Channel entitled, "Apocalyse Man". I was honored to have been asked to attend and take photos for this great up and coming actor and proud American.

Blue Velvet New Year's Eve Event

2010-01-19T11:36:00.000-08:00

The lounge act, Blue Velvet, needed some new photos for a magazine spread advertising their New Year's Eve gig. Kevin Cavanaugh, the band's leader, commissioned me to do the shoot for them. We took the photos in the venue where they would perform and I snapped off some great HDR style images that came out great. Very rich and vibrant colors that they loved. I was told, the gig was a big success!

Blew Print Modeling School

2010-01-19T11:10:00.000-08:00

Blew Print Modeling had a fashion show a few weeks back and the models were sporting some nifty cycling outfits. They had a few photographers come out to record the event and I snapped off a few great shots for them.

Tom Ardavany's - Actors on Acting Series with Josh Holloway

2010-01-19T10:43:00.000-08:00

My acting instructor, Tom Ardavany, has recently begun a new series entitled, "Actors on Acting" in Los Angeles and his first guest was the very successful and highly recognized, Josh Holloway. Josh, as you may know, plays "Sawyer" on ABC's hit series, "LOST" and was a student of Tom's for many years in Venice, CA. Tom was kind enough to ask me if I could shoot and document the occasion and I was happy to do so.

Seth Green & the Adult Swim Photo Shoot

2009-09-11T14:55:00.000-07:00

The folks in New York City at P1 Marketing called me and asked if I could cover a shoot for their client, Seth Green and his Adult Swim entourage, in Los Angeles. The shoot covered a rollerskating rink tour the A.S. group was doing and we got some fun shots of Seth, his t.v. buddies, the group and a lot of excited roller skaters.

Comic Con 2009 - The Stars

2009-09-11T13:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I really, really enjoy my photography work!

Comic Con 2009

2009-09-11T12:57:00.000-07:00

Comic Con 2009 arrived again in late July and again, did not disappoint. My thanks to all those who dressed up; you make the event a wonderful, animated spectacle that is a joy for photographers!

Headshots for Actor, Monica Rojas

2009-06-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

Wonderful, new headshots for actor, Monica Rojas! Hire her! She's great!

Curtis King Surprise 40th B-day

2009-05-30T18:40:00.000-07:00

One of my best friends, Curtis King, celebrated his 40th birthday last weekend. His wife, Elizabeth, made sure it was a memorable one by making it a complete surprise for the guest of honor. Elizabeth asked that I bring my camera along to grab a few pics of the event. I was happy to do so.

Lighthouse Entertainment Media Group, LLC is born!

2009-04-30T17:14:00.000-07:00

My Hollywood producer pal, Jeanetta Dumouchel and her two business partners recently started up their own production company; Lighthouse Entertainment Media Group, LLC. They asked me if I wouldn't mind building a modern style looking website that incorporated black and white. I told them I'd see what I could do... Two weeks later, www.LEMGLLC.com was born!

Global Universal Goes Live!

2009-04-05T16:35:00.001-07:00

Hooyah! Aside from the business cards I did for Peter Liapis and his crew, they also asked that I update their website, Global Universal.com. Have a look for yourself and send me your critique! Thanks for taking a look.

Global Universal

2009-03-19T15:37:00.000-07:00

My friend, Peter Liapis, a director and producer in Hollywood commissioned me to do a few new business cards for him and his business partners. The star was a bit of a challenge; getting it just right so that the middle glow wasn't too strong, wasn't too weak. We incorporated the blue background hue and the card popped. Peter said they printed out brilliantly.

The New PurseHook Scarlets and the 10' x 8'!

2009-03-17T08:23:00.000-07:00

My friends at PurseHook.net have a new innovation in fashion design for women's handbags called the "Scarlet". Yet another cool accessory for women to have fun with and brag about. So far, the wholesalers at the shows, I'm told, are going nuts over them...

Rich, Nichole and Natacha also needed a new convention show backdrop to help display the versatility of their FUMI product. Next thing we all know, Nichole has grown to being over 8 feet tall!

San Diego Marriott HDR x 2

2009-03-08T11:06:00.000-07:00

As mentioned below, the first few months of the year here in San Diego can be quite pleasant for local photogrpahers. The clouds are out and they make for super opportunities. I took these/this shot at 6:30pm downtown (f7.1, 400ISO, 24mm w/ mid shot at 13sec exposure, other two shots one stop higher and lower respectively) and Photomatix did the rest.

HDR San Diego Downtown Marriott

2009-02-12T10:12:00.000-08:00

February and March are special months in San Diego. It actually rains sometimes and the clouds make for super photographs. I snapped this shot of the downtown Marriott from over on Coronado. After tone mapping in Photomatix, I applied Kubota's Daily Multi Vitamin and J Parker's Improved China Doll Photoshop actions to lighten up a formerly grey photo. I went in using the burn tool to highlight a few of the really grey parts of the clouds and this was the nice result.

Photomatix HDR

2009-01-29T15:08:00.000-08:00

Last month I attended a workshop that introduced HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography to our group. The instructor's name was Ben Willmore and he's a photoshop GURU. Wow, I was really impressed by the depth of this gentleman's knowledge. He showed us some of his work (which is outstanding!) and told us about the software he uses; Photomatix.

You know, you just have to love Christmas sometimes... "Thanks DAD!" Enough said. ;-)

After a couple experiments, I think I'm getting a decent handle on things.

Royal Maui Jewelers Website Goes Live

2008-11-24T20:16:00.000-08:00

It seems a while back now, but last April I did a grand opening photoshoot for Royal Maui Jewelers here in San Diego. Their newest shop in Fashion Valley Mall (right next door the Apple Store!) opened to a gala celebration. Several Rolex watches were sold that evening while the bubbly and hors d'oeuvres were enjoyed by the attendees. It's been a while, but their San Diego location website has recently gone live and a great many of my images (including the page's opening shot) may now be seen within the "Special Events" tab. As well, all of the "Fashion Valley" Showroom Gallery images were taken by me.

Comic Con Magazine Cover

2008-10-14T11:39:00.001-07:00

Sweet! My photographer buddy, Tony Amat, called today for me to come over and pick up the hot from the presses, Comic-Con 2008 Magazine Fall Issue. He said a couple of my photos made it inside from shooting the event as a staff photographer last July. "Sweet!" I said and rushed over. When I got there, he said he had an even better surprise for me. Not only did 4 of my photos make it inside the magazine, one additional made the cover! "Super sweet!"

Comic-Con Magazine is published quarterly and circulated globally. It is used to promote the event to many world-wide news and industry related organizations.

Destin Rayes Headshots

2008-09-27T20:06:00.000-07:00

I did some headshots for a new friend, Destin Rayes, a couple weeks ago. Destin is a young, cocky guy (he won't mind me saying that, lol) that plays a mean guitar and who is able to change his looks with a simple change of his hair style. I was stunned at how quickly his face seemed to change when we changed up his hair; essentially turning him from a rable rouser to an all-American hunk. The pictures must have helped, as he booked his first movie role this past Wednesday, a mere week and a half after the shoot.

California Sunsets...

2008-09-07T22:23:00.001-07:00

Sometimes you just have to sit back and say, "Wow". This photoshoot around, I was pretty stoked. Not only did I have a stunning model to photograph, Liliya Czarina, but the sunset in Malibu, was extraordinary. Tough work, but someone has to do it...

Waterman Magazine

2008-08-26T12:06:00.000-07:00

Waterman Magazine, a new SoCal Surfer magazine recently debuted. Tom Locke, the Founder and Lead Editor of the publlication and Alfonso Lopez, the Photo/Art Director found my website a couple months back and saw one of my models, Liza Schwarz there. They wrote asking about the shoot, asking about Liza, and after a few emails, voila. Publication and a new tearsheet.

Comic Con 2008 - The Celebs!

2008-08-25T13:20:00.000-07:00

This year at Comic Con, I was working as one of the event photographers. The only way to go, let me tell you. Just about full rights of passage to all the major and minor scheduled events. I worked my way into seeing great talks from the actors and producers of such hits as: Battlestar Galactica, 24, and a new ABC series coming soon called, Samurai Girl. I sat in on movie previews and talks given by the actors starring in them, ie: Keanu Reeves' new movie due out Christmas 2008, "The Day the Earth Stood Still". And I even got lucky being next to the stage when Hugh Jackman made a surprise appearance. He's a pretty big dude!

Comic Con 2008!

2008-08-25T13:12:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! Comic Con was here! Comic Con was here! Haha, after last year, I fell in love with this event. 140,000 people a day for four days. Geek heaven! Halloween in July! You just have to be awed by what shows up...

Arlington National Cemetary and Washington DC on America's Birthday

2008-08-25T11:13:00.000-07:00

Over the 4th of July holiday, I was invited to come up to photograph the internment of my best friend's grandfather at Arlington National Cemetary. The gentleman was a retired colonel in the Army and was buried on July 7th. What an amazing event. Full military honors: 21 gun salute, military band, carriage drawn funeral procession w/ riderless horse... While naturally a solomn event, it was quite riviting to see how the military honors its own.

In the days in-between, while up in Washington, we took in the sites. All I could think was, "Wow. What a great place to be on July 4th; America's capitol, Washington DC". Jim and I woke up at 0430 to get the twilight photograph you see and it came out just spectacular. On the shot, you see the Washington Monument behind the WWII Memorial. Of course, there was a July 4th parade and thankfully, George Washington the XIIIth, decided to come and please the crowd. Twenty minutes of fireworks lit up the mall brilliantly at 2145 and the crowd was huge on a semi-rainy evening. I had my camera covered by my umbrella the whole time, lol.

PurseHooks for Neiman Marcus & Bloomingdales?

2008-06-22T14:36:00.000-07:00

TOM the BUSY BEAVER!

WOW! Busy is good! The past couple months have been very good ones and work has been quite busy. From photoshoots, to web designing, to graphic designing, my time has been spent in front of the computer or behind the camera lens as of late. It's all been a lot of fun, too! A lot of hard work, mind you, but a lot of fun! Here's some of what's been going on:

PurseHooks for Neiman Marcus & Bloomingdales?

The good folks over at PurseHook.net had a couple of BIG meetings with buyers from Neiman Marcus AND Bloomingdales before they attended a show in Dallas this past Friday. For their meeting, they asked me to shoot some new hooks for them as well as put together some marketing material for the meetings. Ten flyers, 3 posters and lots of product photography shots later, voila.

PurseHook's new "SIGNATURE LINE" examples:

PurseHook's new "DIVA LINE" and new Marketing Posters:

A new concept, "FUMI", by Je'Marie PurseHook:

Tom Ardavany

2008-06-22T14:22:00.001-07:00

An acting instructor down from Los Angeles named Tom Ardavany has set up shop in San Diego. Tom has two Golden Globe and three Emmy Award winning actors as alumni and teaches a really amazing methodology he created for on-camera artists called, "The Ardavany Approach". My acting skills have jumped since studying with Tom and in-between lessons, I offered to build him a website to help find more San Diego students. He agreed and I had something up for him in literally only a day's time. I must be getting better at Dreamweaver. ;-)

Check out the site here: http://www.theapproach.net/sandiego/index.htm

Royal Maui Jewelers Grand Opening

2008-06-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

Royal Maui Jewelers had a Grand Opening of their new store in Fashion Valley Mall last month and wanted some professional photographer mementos to celebrate the occasion. I was happy to oblige and took some great shots of their invited friends coming in to try on some pretty serious jewelry. Ie, the $228,000 Breitling watch... Yes, that was $228,000 for a watch. I wonder if they take checks... All in all, it was a super little party w/ all the trimmings!

USS Midway School Programs Photoshoots

2008-06-22T13:42:00.000-07:00

The USS Midway's School Programs Office is putting together a new marketing campaign to help all of the school districts out there see what a great opportunity the Midway offers school age kids, and the office was kind enough to ask me to assist w/ their project. Three days of imaging children and young adults being taught various aspects of how the men and women of the US Navy work onboard what was once the largest aircraft carrier in the world. The Programs Office teaches the kids in classroom settings, offers many hands-on activities and is overall, a really great experience! Check it out via the Midway's website: http://www.midway.org/

Trekking to the Top of the World

2008-03-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

An acquaintence of mine, Ben Saunders, two days ago, began his solo and unsupported, world record speed try of getting to the North Pole. I'm sure he would appreciate your words of encouragement by visiting his website: http://www.bensaunders.com. You can also keep track of his progress by reading his daily posts there.

For more about Ben (copied from the blog of Simon Jones): Ben is a 31 year old Englishman who in his own words “specializes in dragging heavy objects around cold places.” He doesn’t consider himself an explorer but an athlete. “I am an explorer of limits – geographically, physically and mentally. It’s about pure human endeavour, and the way in which I can inspire others to explore their own personal potential.” He says.

In a matter of hours (weather permitting) Ben will begin his latest solo adventure unsupported and on foot from Ward Hunt Island to the Geographic North Pole. His aim is to get to the top of the world in just 30 days, thereby smashing the current record of 36 days 22 hours which was set in 2005 by a guided team using dog sleds and numerous re-supplies. The route Ben has chosen has only ever been completed once solo and unsupported, by Pen Hadow in 2003, and Ben plans to halve Hadow’s expedition time. It’s an ambitious goal which, if achieved, “will totally reset all existing North Pole records.” According to Sir Ranulph Fiennes.

Pulling a 60Kg Sledge packed full of equipment as well as all the food he’ll need for the expedition, Ben is going to walk (and at points even swim) the 478 miles to the North Pole in temperatures ranging from -50 to -5°C with the wind chill as low as -70°C. He will be completely alone in the region with 5.4 million square miles to himself, that’s a land mass larger than the entire United States of America!

Thanks to an Iridium satellite phone and a satellite beacon you can keep up to date with Ben’s progress via his website. There you can also leave comments and encouragement which he’ll actually be checking in to read from time to time. He won’t be able to comment back, but he’ll no doubt appreciate knowing that there are people out there willing him on.

Model Joe B

2008-03-07T17:03:00.000-08:00

Last week I had a great photoshoot with a buddy of mine, Joe. Joe's getting into acting and modeling and so I'm setting him up with a couple headshots and modeling images to start him on his way. Wish I had his blue eyes, that's all I can say... And no, (seriously), no photo enchancement on those eyes. What you see is what you get. Lucky b#%&*#d, lol. You can see a few more photos of Joe by going to the model section of my website and/or taking a peek at the montage I set up for him by clicking on this link: http://www.thomasgurnee.com/movies/showitfolder/joeshow/joeb1/index.html
Care to hire him or any of my models? Shoot me an email and I'll put them in touch with you!

2008 USS Midway Calendar

2008-02-24T13:48:00.000-08:00

Recently, I found out that the USS Midway published 1000, 2008 special calendars given out to various VIP donors. You can imagine, how pleasantly surprised I was to hear that not one, but two, of my images made it inside. Miss January and Miss October, respectively. Naturally, it is an honor to be associated with such a hallmark of Naval history and to have my work help represent the carrier museum is that much more of a privilege.

Pursehook Advertisements

2008-02-24T13:26:00.000-08:00

It's always nice to see your creativity being used in a positive way. Here, a couple of my pursehook images are assisting in proactive marketing pieces and have made their way into "Want" magazine as advertisements.

Very positive, indeed!

New Pursehook Photos

2007-12-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

My friends at Pursehook.net decided to do a new photoshoot to help advertise how their product works. We went over to a nice restaurant over on Shelter Island that has a great view of downtown and started shooting. Well, I started snapping away while my models had the luxury of sipping on nice colorful cocktails and sampling the appetizers. Look for more of my images on their website: http://www.pursehook.net/

New Look for www.Midway.org

2007-11-19T19:47:00.000-08:00

The website for our aircraft carrier museum here in San Diego, the USS Midway, has a new look and happily, they're using a few of my images on their homepage. The static, far right side, night shot image is mine, and I counted 4 others on the image cycling middle section. I copied two of those pics here. You can click on either of the screen captures to view the images better, or, of course, just go to the Midway's website to see for yourself!

San Diego Firestorm Sadness and Relief for my Sister

2007-10-26T15:45:00.000-07:00

As many of you became aware, Sunday, Oct. 21st, Santa Ana winds, blowing at high velocity, began whipping around small fires that started in various areas around San Diego County. The first fire, which began at 0930 in the southeast portion of the county started in a community called Portrero which is near the border with Mexico. The winds belonging to the Santa Ana, had an east to west direction and were gusting upwards to 60mph in some areas of this mountainous region.

The short of it is, what you've seen on television is what many of us have seen in real life. As for me, all is well. I live in an area near downtown and this community was never in any danger whatsoever. The long of it is, my sister, unfortunately, did not fare as well and her house became a victim of the southern "Harris" fire, that, even today, 6 days later, still continues to burn in the region.

The "Harris" fire as it was now being called, became very large, very quickly. That Sunday evening at 7pm, Anne called me and I rushed over to help. I recruited a friend w/ an empty pickup but when we got to the area, we were turned back by the authorities at road closures. We were a mere 4 miles away. At that time (8:30pm), the wind was insane - gusting to 60mph, and we saw fire lines on two separate ridges off in the distance. As I was speaking to Anne on my cell, a border patrol truck came to tell them to immediately get out. They were only able to take 14 small boxes of photos and knickknacks of my little nephew's, the 2 dogs and their one rooster. John grabbed his desktop, laptop and one small monitor. In the commotion, they remembered to grab the essential documents, but did not grab any clothing and poor Anne even forgot her purse.

Monday was spent watching the t.v. and praying the winds would somehow blow the fire by the house. Tuesday morning at 11am I got a call from Anne. A volunteer fireman that lives in the area (whose house also perished) walked up Anne's driveway and rang her and John with the news. The house was gone. All the work they had done to help fireproof the home (the home had cement shingles, a stucco exterior. They even had an interior fire sprinkler system) was all for not. John and I were finally able to go up and inspect the area and I was able to snap off a few pictures while I was there. Before you take a look, if you would like to make a donation to the family to help them back onto their feet during this awful transition in their lives, please feel free to write a check to:

Anne Gurnee
c/o Jane Clifton
4885 Coronado Ave
San Diego, CA 92107

Jane is Anne's mother-in-law and with whom the family is residing at the moment.

While insured, the adjuster isn't able to go in until they "officially" open the area up. Also, John is now scrambling to find a new space to set up, get cranking and this also takes time. Your assitance will help stave off the many costs that are now mounting. If you'd like to make a donation that will go towards all of the fire victims in general, you can do so here: https://secure4.salvationarmy.org/donations.nsf/donate?openform&t=US_USC*USE*USS*USW

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

San Diego Firestorm Sadness and Relief for my Sister - The Images

2007-10-26T13:52:00.000-07:00

Coming up Honey Springs Rd from the 94. Void of traffic except emergency vehicles
Spot fire still burning
Miles of scorched earth.
Another large spot fire burning.
A very large fire burning from where Anne's front door looked out towards. This was being attacked from the air by two-fixed wing aircraft and one helicopter when we arrived.
Same large fire off to the east, different looks.
First view of house coming up driveway. There's suppose to be a house attached to the garage awning. A large eucalyptus tree branch fell across the driveway. The propane tank is intact.
Next view of house coming around corner of garage awning.
John walking past what use to be the front door towards his office. Our first real look at the damage.
View from corner of garage area looking towards front of house. Large pile up is respectively where the kitchen was located. Mangled piping was the interior fire sprinkler system. The gazeebo stairs led to a second story, side of the house, hallway entrance.
Total destruction of the home. View from opposite side of home, further down the driveway. Stairs to left led to a jacuzzi area situated in-between boulders. Notice how the stucco walls collapsed inwards. Cement shingles from atop dining room area. Second story stairway leading to gazeebo ripped from house.
More images from corner where dining room use to be. Off to the left, the white refrigerator. Just to the right of the stairs you can see the fireplace. Just above cement bags, again notice how the dining room window and front walls collapsed inwards.
View of house from boulders above. This is the photo that gets me everytime.
View of area from boulders above. On left, (down the front door slope) a neighbors house is also in ruins. Another neighbor's house, in front of 2 parked cars...also gone. Fire the aircraft were working on before is now extinguished.
Fire continued racing upwards through the walkways between the boulders and continued climbing behind the house, burning everything in its path. The three verticle "sticks" use to be trees on the property of the neighbor up above.
View of what's left of neighbor's home, behind Anne's. Chimney and portion of wall still stand, but empty on the rest of the foundation. Interestingly, the tree to the right is mostly secure, while others on the left are torched. Area directly behind the home is 50% burned.
Back to front of house, a view of Anne & John's sloping front "yard". John's Q-hut office is seen at end of driveway. Tree in foreground only 30% burned. Indications of fast and furious fire?
View from John's office down driveway. The only saving grace was his office being unburned and mostly secure.
Some of Trajan's Tonka toys not making it through the heat. Bizarre how the bottom two in the first picture are totally gone, while the top, larger toy only has a partial melted wheel and bumper.
As we were about to depart, a Calfire helicopter flies overhead. Unfortunately, a few days late.
One last look at the carnage before our departure.
Border Patrol tape on the mailbox marks that the residents were warned of mandatory evacuation orders. Melted white fencing lays horizontal on burned ground.
More melted white fencing laying on the road.
On our way out, we saw our local ABC channel 7 reporting from a burned home on Honey Springs Rd.
We departed the area via Otay Lakes Rd. off the 94 after exiting Honey Springs Rd. You can see vehicles on the 94 seen across scorched land.

Marlise and "Tabloid Prodigy" Still Going Strong

2007-08-29T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sweet! My pictures of Marlise are still making their rounds. I just found out the magazine put out by an organization Marlise and I belong to has printed a feature on her and ran a couple of my images. What a privilege! Wish I could post the link here for you to read it, but the homepage comes up and you need to be a member to get in. Sorry! Perhaps my posting of the screensaved copy will do. Enjoy!

Welcome Home John C. Stennis - USS CVN 74

2007-08-28T14:35:00.000-07:00

The John C. Stennis returned home yesterday after an 8 month deployment (actually, she arrived 3 days ago and then went back out to sea to have all the vips come onboard for the grand entrance - you can see them lined up on the bow) and since I had some free time I thought I'd head out to Pt. Loma to catch her coming in the harbor. It was a great sight to see all the sailors lined up around her deck and the tug fireboat escorts giving her a big welcome home all the way in.

Welcome home 74!

Pursehook.net Going Strong

2007-08-24T15:19:00.000-07:00

My friend Rich over at Pursehook.net gave me a ring on Friday saying they got a new shipment of hooks in and needed some shots of the new line for their upcoming gig in Vegas this weekend. They're headed to the MAGIC convention; the largest accessory trade show in the U.S.

Their new line is pretty cool, too, I have to admit. "The Mighty Jungle" they call it and they're designed with a crazy clay set up. Don't ask me how they get a tiger's face out of a ball of clay, but somehow they do. Rich needed some flyers drawn up so I did those as well. You can see some of my work below and be sure to check out their site for all of their goodies.

Comic Con San Diego - July 26-29, 2007

2007-08-05T18:36:00.000-07:00

I was hired to take photos at Comic Con this year by a marketing solutions company out of New York City. Phase1 Marketing was hired by Ted Turner's online broadband gaming site, "Gametap" to help with it's online gaming promotions. Phase1's marketing strategy with Gametap had me meeting and taking photographs of various (mostly costumed) people at the event and then introducing them to Gametap by offering the subjects an invitation to come online to Gametap's site and download their images for free. Gametap afterwards, is then able to interact and stay connected with their new consumers in a large scale way even after Comic Con ends. At the moment, you can see some of my images being touted on Phase1's website:

Of all the images I took at the event, here are some of my favorites:

(Sorry for Gametap's weak image resolution!)

Of course, It wouldn't have been as much fun without participating in it myself a little...

If you'd like to see more, please visit Gametap's website at www.gametap.com/photo, enter your information, select San Diego as the city choice and enjoy! I am designated as photographer number 3, so all of the images you see there will be mine!

Deneva S.

2007-07-26T22:23:00.000-07:00

Ack! Wow, it's been wonderfully busy lately with a few design projects for new clients and more shooting for Pursehook.net, that I've unfortunately gotten away from updating the Blogzone. July is always a bit of a hectic month with me as the 4th comes along right before my birthday on the 5th, which is right before my nephew's birthday on the 14th. My mother usually flys in for that event which means lots of shuttling to and from from San Diego over to Jamul (where my sister lives) and back. My best friend, Jim B, was sent here on a work assignment on the 8th and since I hadn't seen him in 3 years we had some catching up to do.

The 4th was indeed fun, as I spent it working out on Iron Mtn. Peak up in Poway. Awesome hike that is, but phew, it was hot that day. I didn't bring enough water; thought a mere cantine would be enough and almost had to bail on the climb. I kept on though and was glad I did with a successful venture to the top and back. The evening was spent on the Midway and I got some great shots of the bay's fireworks from the flightdeck.

The evening of my birthday on the 5th, was joyfully spent at The
Belly Up in Solana Beach watching The English Beat perform in concert. Awesome show! I just can't get enough of bands whose performers are so comfortable playing on stage and doing so with such passion for their art. They played for 3 hours! We had the best seats as well; literally stage left, sitting first row. It was a great concert.

Bastille Day was spent at the Knott's Water Park in Chula Vista having fun with my nephew and his birthday guests. Thank God for suntan lotion, that's all I can say...

Last Friday, I had a shoot with a beautiful woman named Deneva. We met in the grocery store of all things; I was walking out as she was walking in and I had to turn around and introduce myself. I gave her my card and very kindly she called the next day. We set up her shoot and I can only say, I wish I had her amazing blue eyes. Deneva has never modeled before and for the life of me I can't understand why... She's 5' 9", slender and just has that natural, wholesome, gorgeous look about her. I'm the lucky one for meeting her and I think you can see why:

Today was spent over at Comic Con, as I have been commissioned to shoot for a New York Promotion Firm's client all throughout the convention. It was a lot of fun today, taking pictures of mostly all the costumed guests and I'll be uploading a few of those images later. Until then, thanks for stopping by and I'll keep you posted!

Psycho Flight Attendant---NicoDerm Commercial

2007-06-22T10:09:00.001-07:00

For those of you who remember my days with United, you'll understand why I think this is one of the funniest commercials I've ever seen.

Tabloid Prodigy Revisited

2007-06-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

Looks like my photo of Marlise is making its rounds along with her on her current book tour. Marlise emailed this update to me last night and I was jazzed. She mentioned she's received a lot of compliments on this image during her travels; "It's so natural and alive," others say. Looks like the book publishing folks up in New York know good photography when they see it.

You can see the full article online here: http://www.malakye.com/asp/front/CMSPage.asp?TYP_ID=4&ID=960

Pursehook.net Revisited

2007-06-16T10:35:00.000-07:00

The good folks over at http://www.pursehook.net/ gave me a ring a week and a half ago and asked if I could do some closeups of some new product they have. I said, "Absolutely!" They've begun to incorporate fusion glass into their hook designs and they look pretty darn good. These nice closeups will undoubtedly help their customers see these new hooks in their best light and hopefully increase their internet sales with their new product.

"Am I Blue?" - The Movie

2007-06-02T20:36:00.000-07:00

This past week I've been taking still images on the film set of, "Am I Blue?". "Am I Blue?", is the brainchild of Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell; two amazing individuals with super personalities and driven spirits.

(From the film's outline:) The mockumentary feature film explores the issues of race and cultural sensitivity by following an interracial wedding between a bride from a white middle class family and a groom from a fictitious race of blue-skinned ‘Polar Americans’ from Antarctica. The entire movie is unfolded through the video camera of the groom's best friend who follows the two families around as they get ready for the big day. All in all, think, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" meets "The Office".

It was great fun following around all those who were following the families around and snapping off keepsake images for the movie's dvd. As luck would have it, another photographer that was suppose to play the part of the 'Wedding Photographer' couldn't show, so the film's directors kindly asked me to step in. Acting and taking pictures at the same time! Doesn't get any better than that. Hopefully, you'll see your's truly with a few cameo shots playing the role of said, 'Wedding Photographer' - all the while I was literally playing a real one firing off pic after pic for the production.

Click here to see the slideshow I created for this project and to see just how much fun this movie will be to watch in the future!

Tabloid Prodigy

2007-05-20T11:57:00.000-07:00

As previously mentioned, my friend Marlise Kast had her book, "Tabloid Prodigy", recently published. You can now find it in most major bookstores. Last night, she hosted her book signing party at her house in Carlsbad. We all had a great time partaking of homemade Sangria, eating strawberries dipped in chocolate from the chocolate fountain and watching taped television interviews done with her.

Later in the evening, Marlise introduced her publisher, Sharlene Martin (Martin Literary Management http://www.martinliterarymanagement.com/) who made an introductory statement regarding the book and offered her congratulations to Marlise and thanks for everyone coming out to help celebrate. Marlise was then kind enough to do a small book reading thereafter and offered up a few more, behind the scene tidbits that entertained the crowd.

What I later found out from Marlise, was that she literally held the book from going to press because she noticed I had not been given credit for the black and white photo I took of her that was being used on the back cover. ( ! ) I was stunned to hear such a confession! Truly, what can you say - to and about someone - who does the right thing by their friends except thank you from the bottom of my heart.

While Marlise's book dishes the dirt on how she obtained and wrote over 200 headlining stories with The Globe, it's sense and purpose is to tell how she came face-to-face with her conscience and earned redemption with her soul. Marlise's example of staying true to her word about kindly giving me credit for the photo, is a pure example of that saved personal honor. You can see my name as the last two words on the Copyright/Library of Congress page of Marlise's book.

Thanks Marlise.

Heroes on the Harbor

2007-05-13T10:29:00.000-07:00

The USS Midway is having a big party on their deck to honor our wounded American warriors on Friday, June 15th. Some rocking bands will be taking the stage to entertain the crowd, hors d'Oeuvres, wine and chocolate will be served and a fireworks celebration will highlight the evening. You can get ticket information on their website: www.heroesontheharbor.com. Why do I mention this party here? Because they're using one of the great night shots I took of the Midway in their ad!

Pursehook.net, or, "The Secret" in action

2007-05-03T10:43:00.000-07:00

You know, "The Secret" works in mysterious ways...

I recently met a couple having dinner and during our greetings I commented on what an interesting item the woman was using to hang her purse. "It's a pursehook," she said, "They've been around since the 1950's and now we're trying to revive the idea by making and selling our own." "They keep my purse next to me so I don't have to put it on a dirty carpet or worry about it getting stolen." Curiously, I asked if they had a website and they handed me their card. "We're just getting started and it's a new website. Right now we're looking for a photographer to help with some product photography we want done..."

"Oh?" :-)

I handed them my card and as I was parting their nice company I mentioned it was the "Law of Attraction" in action. Jeanette said, "Oh my! You've seen "The Secret", too?" I said I had watched it over 10 times already. "Amazing how it works! We've been thinking how nice it would be to find a great photographer and now we've met!"

Last Sunday I went and did a little shoot for them. Here's a couple of photos that show what a great product they have going for them:

Feel free to browse their hand-crafted purse hooks at their website: www.pursehook.net

Jeff & Elena's Wedding

2007-05-03T10:29:00.000-07:00

Well, Jeff & Elena's wedding on April 13th was a blast. What a great party they put on and it was really super meeting their family members. With Elena's family being of Russian decent, it was a good time for me to brush up a bit on my Russian!

My friend, Allana Taranto, helped me out as my second shooter for the wedding. All in all, we shot a bit over 2000 images. I'm already deep into the editing process. Here's a couple of nice ones from the wedding...

Jeff & Elena's Engagement Session

2007-03-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

Wow. How cool is it to shoot a really cool couple that's just ga-ga over each other? Very cool. Makes my job soooooo easy...

See for yourself by checking out their new slideshow: http://www.thomasgurnee.com/movies/showitfolder/jeff_elena/index.html

Boy, does that black & white (image #25) ROCK, or what? I LOVE IT when my art experiments go crazy like that! The couple's wedding is next month and I can't wait! If there's anything I can do for you, happy reader, just shoot me an email!

Best,

TG

Marlise Kast

2007-03-11T12:33:00.000-07:00

YEA BABY! My friend Marlise Kast just emailed to let me know a photo I took of her will be used on the back of her new book!! Sweet! I knew it was a great photo from the moment that I saw it in the camera's display. Photos like these; that really capture the individual's energy and vitality and personal charisma make it all worth it. That's why photographers take so many pictures - to come across that ONE great picture. But, boy, when you get it, it just shines and speaks volumes! Doesn't she have a great smile?!

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Marlise and I met from an advertisement I posted looking for female surfers. I really lucked out when Marlise answered my ad. We had a fantastic shoot over at La Jolla Cove and it was here where I got her great shot. My work is so easy with models that are so natural and full of life.

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Honing her passion for writing, Marlise's career took off when at the ripe age of 21, she became the youngest tabloid journalist "The Globe" newspaper ever hired. She quickly became one of the LA industry's top celebrity writers and became notorious for successfully finding information on anything and everything she was tasked to exploit. After a few years, however, her conscious began to gnaw at her and she left.

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With the public's insatiable appetite for news and gossip on celebrities being what it is, Marlise approached a publisher with her idea of writing about her years behind the scenes of it all. The idea soon blossomed into a manuscript and quickly thereafter into print. The release of her book comes this May and is sure to become a best seller! You'll be amazed at all of the things she was able to accomplish!

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Marlise's bio and portfolio can be found on her website: www.marlisekast.com

USS Midway

2007-03-06T10:48:00.000-08:00

I love freelance shooting for the aircraft carrier museum we have here in San Diego; the USS Midway. This past Friday, they had me shoot some photos of the boat for them from the water side. What a great day it was to be out on the water taking pictures! Using my new 24-105L lens, I nailed it. These are a few of the rejects. Wish I could show you the good stuff!

Basel Fasnacht

2007-02-27T19:45:00.000-08:00

This is an amazing time of year in those countries that celebrate Christianity. Celebrations of Carnival abound and one of my favorites is in Basel, Switzerland. At this very moment, thousands of people are dressed in new costumes representing all sorts of imaginative creations from the past and present. They are aimlessly marching in the streets of Basel; some playing their piccolos, some drumming their drums, some playing musical instruments and some throwing all sorts of goodies to the huge crowds that adorn the sidewalks to see them. To be there right now would alight your inner spirit with a renewed sense of joy, happiness and positive energy toward this thing we call life. To witness Basel Fasnacht in person, is to be in the perfect place, at the perfect moment in time.

While I'm here in San Diego w-i-s-h-i-n-g so hard I was in Basel right now, at least my heart is with my friends there.

If you ever, ever, get the opportunity to visit Basel for this carnival celebration, you must do so. It will be one of the happiest times of your life.

The Fong Lightsphere

2007-02-23T14:20:00.000-08:00

Hoorah! My Fong dongs & diaphrams arrived today! Ha ha, those are the nicknames given to Gary Fong's Lightshpere flash system that came in the mail today, woohoo! As you see, (if you choose to look at Gary's website and invention: www.garyfong.com), the cup portion was quickly called the "dong" when it first came out. Later, with his "dome" innovation, it was given the nickname of "diaphram". I wonder if it had anything to with its shape...

Anyhow, here's my little experiment: all shots taken on program mode, w/ 24-105 lens, iso 200. Flash fired at 1/60 at aperture 4.5 from a distance of about 6-7 feet from subject (guess who) that posed nicely and never moved. What a great assistant, yea?

1) Shot w/ Canon 420EX with flash pointed directly towards subject.
2) Shot w/ Canon 420EX with bounce flash off low ceiling.

3) Shot w/ Canon 420EX, bounce flash with Gary Fong Cloud Lightsphere.

4) Shot w/ Canon 420EX, bounce flash with Lumiquest Ultrabounce diffuser.

Looks like the Lightsphere works as described. While the Lumiquest performed up to the task, you can see it leaves a reddish tint on the image. The Lightsphere captures a more realistic color, adds sufficient light to the subject (opposed to image 1) and does not give off shadows from the direct bounce light (image 2). Sweet!

Of course, this is not a plug for the Lightsphere (Gary's not paying me to post this nor do I think he'll refund my money), but I've always been one to give praise where praise is due and I think his invention deserves a favorable review. Hmm, I wonder if I can take the Lumiquest back...

Ok! Time to find some more models and some future brides!

Shooting From the Hip

2007-02-22T19:00:00.000-08:00

Well, hopefully I'm doing a decent job keeping you kind e-readers out there somewhat entertained. I thought that I'd take a quick moment to share a few notions, links, what have you to get this blog filled up a bit more. So here you go - and who knows, maybe there's a link or two you might be able to use or a quick little quip you might chuckle at:

As most of you know, I'm a graduate of Texas A&M University ("Whoop!"). This past December the Aggie football team was unfortunately kind enough to get outscored in just enough games to have them receive an invite from the San Diego Holiday Bowl commission and bless their souls, the Aggies came with all the hoot and holler that you'd expect a raucous state of Texas team to bring. As it was, however, after a successful yell practice held underground (the 1st ever, according to the Yell Leaders) in San Diego's Convention Center parking structure the midnight before, our beloved Aggies didn't quite show up for the game and essentially had their you-know-whats handed to them on a plate. Bugger, I know.

Essentially, it all lead me to conjure and ponder a question about the current state of the world: Has the world not turned totally upside down when the Aggie Football Team is ranked lower in the polls than the Aggie Basketball Team?? Have you seen those guys play? They're freaking awesome! Final 4, baby, yea!

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Traveling internationally anytime soon? Here's a couple links to help you out:

*http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/............What time is it there? *http://www.xe.com/ucc/..................................Currency exchange link
*http://translation2.paralink.com/........................What did they say? Free online translating.
*http://www.eurorailways.com/...........................Everything you ever needed to know about riding the European railways.
*http://www.liveabroad.com/links.html..................Network w/ the ExPats!

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Everybody has a few saved funny photos they've collected from whereever:

The last one was taken in Peru last February. Perhaps more about this trek into the Peruvian Amazon a bit later.

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Gotta love being Numero Uno on Google!

My web design instructor gave us a little "designer" secret one night: If you have/own a website, when you "title" your index page, include your business phone number. That way, when people bookmark your site as part of their "favorites", when they look up your site using their "favorites" button, your phone number will be listed as part of the title, thus saving them time in finding out how to contact you. As you can see with my Google listing, the same holds true.

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Well, it's getting a bit late and Survivor's coming on. Yes, I have become the quintessential reality junkie. Just can't get enough of those shows...

Until next time!

Flower Power! (or, Macro is Magnificent!)

2007-02-22T15:50:00.000-08:00

I recently purchased a 24-105 L Series IS (Image Stability) Canon lens for my 20D and I r-e-a-l-l-y like it! I decided to invest the cool $1000 for some upcoming client work and a future wedding I have in April. (Need an SLR lens? Try Beach Camera. They had the best prices on the internet - some $200 cheaper than the retail stores here in San Diego - and they're an authorized dealer of the products they sell so I could e-shop with peace of mind.): www.beachcamera.com/shop/searchresults.aspx?cti=1060&pti=1050) Somehow or other, in all my research of which lens I should buy to complement my gear, I missed the fact that this lens has a great macro feature with it. Crazy, huh? Talk about happy little accidents! Here are a couple images from just outside my front door.

Did I mention that my roomate was going to get a lot of exposure in this place? Took a nice shot of him while I was shooting the floral and then experimented with a few Photoshop borders, a nice tight crop and voila! Hmmm, maybe I should think about going into the postcard business...

Welcome!

2007-02-21T15:11:00.000-08:00

Welcome and greetings to my new Blogspot! First of all, thank you for visiting! I hope to keep you entertained as well as up to date with my imagery, goings-on and personal rants & raves.

Just a tidbit about myself, I'm a San Diego Professional Photographer working in many areas of photography including travel, events, weddings, corporate, models, etc... Besides taking pictures I love to graphic design and then intertwine the two! I speak Russian (I lived and worked there! In the wintertime, no less!) and have been to 23 countries on 5 continents. If you need travel advice, let me know!

Well, I have more editing to do w/ this new blog toy so I'm going to head back to it. Until my next post, I bid you adieu, до свидания, adios, auf wiedersehen, so-long...

Figured that the first image to put up should be that of my best friend. This is Buster, otherwise known as the Groovedog. Chances are you'll be seeing more of him. He's a funny guy, let me tell you. And pretty photogenic, too!