Holiday Rush

It seems like the holidays are coming faster then ever and it will be New Years Eve before you know. Best to not do what I do every year, wait until the last minute to try and find a reservation. Choices are always better if you start looking early. It's all good through, being with family and friends. Good to be above ground as well. Much better then the alternative. Be thankful for what you have and what you have is considerable.

Imaging USA

If your looking for a chance to recharge your worn out batteries and get motivated to a better year next year, take a trip out to Phoenix, AZ., Jan 11-13 for Imaging USA. Get lots of great ideas and some warm weather to boot. I will be at the Burrell Booth at the fantastic trade show giving a lecture on classic portraiture. Burrell is celebrating its 50th year in business (they have been my lab since I started in 1983) which has to be some kind of record in this highly competitive industry. That should tell you something about their commitment to quality and taking care of the photographer through thick and thin. They have a lot of new really cool products as well. Their designer is the best in the business and the print quality is second to none. I can't say enough good things about the great people who work at Burrell who are responsive and on the cutting edge of today's digital world. I highly suggest you give them a try if you want to work with the best in the business.
Stop by and see me if your there. I will be speaking on Sunday, January 11th at 1:00 pm.

It's the Fall Crunch

Ok, I am booked almost every hour until the middle of December. I planned for it, I got it. Be careful what you wish for. Long days, in the studio at 6:00AM, getting home about 8:00PM. The days fly by and seem like they are over before they stop. I get to serve which is what I am here for. Better then to be sitting around waiting for the phone to ring, much better. People are happy with their portraits. That's the bottom line. A person has to have the right attitude to deal with hundreds of people and focus on each one without distraction. The economy might be slow but people want their portraits because kids don't stop growing just because of bailouts:)

I am doing a print judging next week for the MPPA (Maryland Professional Photographers Assn) which I used to belong back in the 80's. I wonder how many people that I still know will be there. Should be fun. I am sure I will see lots of new age photography. My judging is based on a lot of traditional ideas. Not sure how that will go over with the other judges. Then the conventions start, PPA, WPPI, SPA, and all the rest. So I am tightening up my program and adding a few new wrinkles.


Now is the time to plan for Winter strategies, vacations and Spring promotions. Rest? What's that?

Wild Times

Well you pick up the paper or watch TV, it's the economy or the election. It's almost like a perfect storm coming at us from two sides. But just like nature, violent storms or heavy winds don't hang around all that long. Most of the time things are fairly peaceful and generally uneventful. So hang in there and this will blow over as well. Stay flexible and deal with things as they come. A good thing to remember is all the things to be thankful of. Staying positive and enjoying each day your alive will keep your sense of calmness when others are losing theirs. Time to get back to watching the World Series...

Distractions From The Now

Boy, you can't read a paper or turn on the TV without everyone telling how bad things are. Kind of reminds me of the guy I saw in Midtown NYC as a kid carrying around the world will end sign over his shoulder. So I guess were supposed to spend the better part of our days of our life focus on how bad the economy is. I say there are enough bad things that happen to us as humans that we can't avoid such as getting really sick or losing someone close to us. So when you wake up in the morning, see the sun shining or even rain, it's still a great day because it's one more day you can choose to feel alive and free to pursue your passion.

I had some of my great successes during the last recession of 1989 because I was forced to be more creative to keep growing my photography business. If I crawled into a hole, I imagine you wouldn't be reading this blog because I would have thrown in the towel long ago. Sometimes life will shake you up if you get complacent and who doesn't want to coast when things are rolling along in an easy fashion.

Ok, I agree that the people who you trust, the elected officials and the Fed, make bad short term decisions to avoid recessions to save their jobs. But you can't play the game forever and propping up only works for so long. If you don't like it, you can vote them out or run yourself. No fiat currency has ever lasted except gold (I suggest you buy a few gold American Eagles to put away for when a hot dog costs $75.00. I used to pay a quarter for one.) Invest conservatively, keep some cash and bonds, avoid debt, and own some gold and you won't have to worry and watch the markets all day. On the other hand, if you love the drama......

Feeling Bored

   All too often people need stimulus to keep from feeling bored. In a mind centered world, this is all to easy to understand. The mind needs constant activity and attention.  So we turn to television, the internet, eating when were not really hungry, or work our way into drama by focusing on things that are ultimately not under our control. 

   Instead of falling into the boredom trap, why not try to notice the thousand miracles that surround you every day. These are missed  because they are not of the ego's focus. Within these ten thousand things of the world exists the hidden energy that exists in all of life. The clouds, stars, flowers, trees, birds all are part of the energy that inhabits every living thing. Once you notice that energy, it can stop the mind because it is not part of the mind. The living energy in the universe can't be seen, touched, smelled or heard. Yet it pervades every single thing and every breath you take. Because it can't be seen, the mind can't perceive it, only you can.

   If you took a human body and perfectly placed each part on a table, it would still be all of you yet it would be unable to live in the conventional sense. In the pieces taken apart, you couldn't breath, walk or talk. The invisible energy of life force would not be on the table to view because it exists within the totality of the body but not in the parts themselves. Just yesterday, I was standing on my deck in early morning sunshine by some mornng glory flowers. Seemingly out of no where a tiny humming bird magically appeared suspended only a few feet from my eyes. It was so startling that for a minute my mind stopped thinking.   I just enjoyed that perfect moment of "no mind." I was living in the now. Next time your feeling bored, take a few moments and notice your breath and how it happens without thought. Sense the energy you can't touch in all things and notice how we are and always will be part of it all. Life rarely gets boring if you keep the a little of the awe of nature and the universe within your realm of your thinking mind.

Rain

   What a storm yesterday. I am blessed to have a great view of a golf course in my yard and from the upstairs balcony, you can see much farther then at eye level. If you view a place in nature on a regular basis from the same perspective, you get to see nature in it's purest form, one of continuous change. Certain events have a visual quality that stops your mind and you are totally inspired from simply looking. This is often after the most dramatic changes. 

   Subtle changes are the seasons which happen in small stages over the course of a few months. The dramatic, mind stopping events are large sudden changes such as to wake up to the volume and majesty of a snow scene blanketing the landscape. The quiet and muffled air is deafening in it's quietness if you know what I mean. It's so different that it's the "nothing" that grabs your attention.

   Yesterday nature showed it's force from a tropical storm. The sky swelling from sea water picked up in the Atlantic, dumped nine inches of rain in the course of single day. Seeing the ponds over run and the rivers of water made into rapids where there was only a walking path was incredible. The whole scene was transformed from the power of nature. This morning the sun is shining and the water is gone, looking for the most part as if it was only a mirage. You can experience the essence of life and your true self from these few precious moments when the mind has been stilled and the chatter has been silenced if for only a few minutes.

September Song

   Can you believe the summer is almost over! The fall is wonderful and all seasons have their charm before they wear out their welcome. Crisp mornings and warm liquid afternoons await us and the golf course is of course, a great place to spend time outdoors taking it all in.  This is my busiest season. The schedule is insane trying to get all the portraits finished and ready before the holiday season. If you are thinking of getting your family portraits in time for gift giving, best to call right away and get on the schedule.

 "Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."

You Can Learn From Nature

Stress can take years off your life. Often it's because we put a lot of unreasonable demands on ourselves that don't contribute to what we really need.  Sometimes we get the idea that more is better. I say that depends on how "more" comes to you. If it is at the expense of your health and quality of life, you might need to take a second look. 

You can learn from watching animals. You don't see many stressed out cats, dogs or birds. They just live every moment and deal with whatever comes their way. Watch a tree how the limbs bend in a heavy wind. They are born to be flexible and yielding to opposing forces lest they break apart at every storm.  Learn to live more in the moment and give your energy to what your doing rather then what it brings you. Then you will live more like our animal friends that rarely die of a stroke from trying to get more then they need to live.

Life Is Now

     I was thinking, or trying to remember, some of things I did while growing up in New Jersey. In many ways it seems so long ago it's almost as if it was another person. I think that one of reasons that childhood is so memorable is that when we are very young, we live almost entirely in the moment. We have very little past to influence our present experience. Everything is new, fresh, and the sparkle of the "first time ever." As we get older, we spend a lot of our hours thinking about the past and concerns about the future. In doing so, we miss the present moment and what made days fresh and new when we are young.  

It's Summer!

  Okay, things may be a little tight right now but you only have so many summers in your lifetime.  Make sure you find some time to get away and enjoy a little vacation. It will make you more productive in the Fall when your busy again. When you get away, don't waste all your days worrying about things when you get home. They aren't going anywhere so you might as well practice staying in the present. Now, let's hit the beach!!

Quote of the Day

"If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?"

Quote of the Day

"The greatest weakness of most humans is their hesitancy to tell others, how much they love them while their alive"

O.A. Battista

4th of July

   It's that time again. I think more people do less pre planning on this day more then any other holiday or so it seems. It's one of the more relaxing holidays, much more so then say Thanksgiving when everyone seems to be heading out of town to visit relatives. When all else fails, you can always pull out the barbeque and then head out to a local fireworks show. I always know when it's getting close because I see the fireflies at dusk and hear early firecracker practice in the night sky. This week we have the PGA in town for the AT&T golf tournament at Congressional CC. This is Tiger's show but he is recovering from surgery so we won't be hearing much from him until next year. As for me, it's golf, golf, golf all weekend at Fairfax CC. 

  My son Greg is a budding photography superstar. He has been going to lots of classes and seminars and is building an impressive portfolio. Soon his website will be up for all to enjoy.  

  Here is your quote for the today:

  "If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you."

A Really Bad Day

A man walks in a bar, obviously unhappy, orders a drink and huddles over it when a burly bully comes over, grabs the drink and downs it.  At which point the customer bursts into tears and the bully suddenly besieged by guilt says, "Don't cry little fellow, I can't stand seeing a grown man cry.  I'm sorry I took your drink. "  The sniffling customer said, "You don't understand, this has been the worst day of my life. I lost my job, somebody stole, my car, I took a cab and left my wallet in it, my wife has left me, my children won't talk to me. Finally I came into this bar and just when I'm ready to put an end to it, you drink my poison!"

Procrastination

  Procrastination, boy is that a universal problem. How many people do you know that can get  everything done in the order of their importance. I mean thats what all the books tell you to do. You know, make a list, prioritize them into A, B, C, etc.  You can spend an hour a day just reading and imputing into your electronic organizer. I'm lucky. I have a Michelle to keep me in line to get stuff done. But there is always that one project that you never can get finished. We have pills for everything these days. But whoever invents a procrastination pill will have it made. I bet someone is working on one now, if they haven't it put off.... 

Pablo Picasso

Pablo Picasso:

  My mother said to me, "If you become a soldier, you'll be a general; if you become a monk, you'll end up as the Pope." Instead, I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.

Getting Fit

    Why is the determination to lose some weight greatest right after you eat? This is one of life's great secrets.

If Life Was A Baseball Player

If life was a baseball player, I think it would a curveball pitcher.  The one constant in life is change and you can't fight it.  Most of us humans are creatures of habit.  We like predictability in most things because we have come to know what to expect. It makes most days less dramatic if we don't have to jump through hoops and think our way through daily events.

Of course that is not reality and there comes a point when you have to make life changing decisions for one reason or another.  A lot of people would rather suffer with the known rather then move on to what makes sense and get really stuck hanging on to a changed life situation. Look at an old photograph of yourself. Are you really the same person?  We are all changing a tiny bit every second as old cells die and new ones take their place.  It's been said you can't swim in the same river twice.  The river looks the same but every second new water flows on by.  Learn to embrace change as something natural.  Either that or get used to being thrown curves.  If you are only waiting for only straight pitches from life, chances are you going to get called out at the plate.

Quote of the Day

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

What Make a Portrait

  I am often asked what the difference is between a photograph and a portrait. You look at a portrait with your eyes. However you sense the essence of the person or the relationship between the people with your heart.  So you can say there is an unseen energy that is captured by the photographer and received by the viewer.  The energy is comprised of the elements in the portrait. It's part composition, tone and color, light and shadow, balance and expression. The artist uses their innate ability to combine these elements to make a photograph into a work of art. A picture shows what somebody looks like. A portrait shows what somebody is like.  The difference then is like day is different then night.  

Where Does The Day Go?

   I remember as a kid, each day was an eternity. It was amazing how much stuff it seemed I could do in a day.  I couldn't wait to be a teenager when I was nine, couldn't wait until I was eighteen when I was fifteen, couldn't wait until I was nineteen.  After twenty-one, that was the big one, I guess I stopped wishing anymore. Then the days speeded up after and twenty-five came about much sooner, thirty turned into forty, well you get the idea. 

   The theory someone passed on to me was that when your young, your brain isn't full so it took  a number of years to fill it up, hence the longer feeling days. Once your brain is full, the years go by so much more quickly.  I personally think there is more to attend to now.  Maybe when people retire, their days will slow down again with less to run around and do.  I would welcome that when I get to the Autumn of my life. I surely enjoy waking up everyday and the chance to see the sky, the trees, and all that life offers as a daily gift. One thing for sure...I won't be wishing for time to pass quickly. 

Heat!

Were getting the heat now in DC. Golfers today were melting away under high temperatures and humidity. After nine holes today I was soaked and drained after eighteen, and I rode in a cart! What a storm last week!  We lost power in our studio, as I am sure many of you did, and we had to reschedule all our appointments.  This is life in the Summertime here. It seems like it's coming earlier though. Global warming anyone?  

We had Neptune Night Under the Stars on Friday night, an annual event at the Country Club of Fairfax. It was a great time (some of the images are posted on my website).  I had a great time covering the event for the club. As you can see, everyone enjoyed being by our beautiful pool to enjoy the great food and drinks. Tomorrow will be another hot one so find a way to stay cool if your can.  

Baseball in DC

I love going out to Nationals Park. The Nats are having a rough season having lost a lot of key players to injuries. No matter because this ballpark is a gem. Sparkling new with great places to eat, fun stuff between innings and a drink holder for every seat. It has the perfect atmosphere to take your family for a relaxing afternoon or evening of pro baseball. I especially like the heart healthy food at Five Guys (grin), a delicious burger with some of the best fries you will ever eat. You can take the Metro right to the park or pay to park if you register in advance.  Even if they lose, which is more often then not, it's still a great time.

A New Earth by Eckart Tolle

If your the type of person who likes philosophy, I suggest you download Oprah's seminar with Eckart Tolle. It is a free download from Itunes both as a podcast or in a video format. Eckart is a modern day philosopher and author.  His life work is about raising conscience in the world. He feels that most of humanity is locked in repetitive thinking and man's ego prevents him from living in the moment, thus missing life.  All of it makes sense and none of it is particularly easy to achieve.  None the less, I found it to be enlightening listening and interesting to think about. The primer of his lecture is from his book, A New Earth that Oprah has endorsed in her book club. Oprah and Eckart spend each podcast reviewing a different chapter.  People call in from around the world on Skype with questions and reflections.  This great listening on your ipod while on your treadmill or eliptical machine. It is also downloadable in video format.  The basic premise of the book is that life is always now so if your in your head about the past or fretting about the future, you miss the present moment of which all of life is continually made of.  Give it a listen. My bet is it will get you thinking.