Until Next Time

It is difficult when people move away. It can be hard to accept change. We make friends and we expect the people around us to always be there.  Life isn't that easy though.  We're all on a journey in life and sometimes paths cross and sometimes they go in different directions.  Yesterday, I attended a going away party for a friend of mine.  I met Elaine through Instagram this past summer.  Elaine and I shared the same passion of taking photos.  We followed each other feeds.  We went on photo walks together. We laughed together. We even had clam chowder bowls together.  None of these things would have happened if it weren't for Instagram.  Some photographers don't take instagram seriously, and even if you don't, you must admire the community and relationships it builds. 

I will never forget the day I went to the SonyQX event in San Francisco.  When I showed up I barely knew anyone and was basically wandering around by myself. At the time I didn't know Elaine that well. After she spotted me, Elaine and her friend, Adrienne, ran up to me and started chatting.  After just minutes I knew I wasn't there by myself, but with friends.  I'm sure most people who have met Elaine have a similar story.  Elaine is the type of person that after meeting just once, you feel like you're best of friends. 

Yesterday evening a group of people joined together, not to say goodbye to Elaine, but to cherish a friendship.  We got together to snap photos, to share more laughs, to have another drink together.  This phrase might be beat to death, but I'll say it anyways, I'm not going to say goodbye because goodbye means going away and going away means forgetting.  Elaine, I will never forget you because you are unforgettable!  You will always be a friend and I look forward to following you on your journey through Instagram.   I'll see you when our paths cross again.  

Elaine at her going away party.  12/14/13

Filming with Instagram

I owe a big thanks to Instagram and it's community.  I had the privilege of being included in the promotional launch video for Instagrams new feature, Instagram Direct.  Instagram now allows you to send photos and videos to your friends.  I'm super excited to be able to interact with my friends with Instagram Direct!  Now more about my involvement!

A couple months ago, Jeffrey Gerson, from Instagram contacted me, asking if I'd be interested in working on a project with the Instagram team.  If you know me, I love the Instagram community and would do anything to help out.  I was fortunate to have met Jeffrey while I was co-hosting the #sfadventuremeet with my good friend Georgia Verrells (@Georgiakatee).  I was pleased to hear that both Georgia and I were going to be included in a video that Instagram had been shooting.  Instagram had been following a group instagramers on a trip across the country, made up of @sittingingodspalm (Joe), @sweatengine (Kevin), and @christmaselk. (Kristin).  After a couple phone calls with Jeffrey and signing some non disclosure agreements, I was given some details of the video. Georgia and I were to meet at The Mill in San Francisco.  For those of you who don't know about The Mill, it's an amazing coffee shop with the best toast in town.  I myself was told to bring a few flannel shirts and a beanie.  I brought what I had, including my beard!  When I got to The Mill, I found out more about the scene we were shooting and things started to make sense.  Kristin was going to send me a photo of a Paul Bunyan statue, using Instagrams new feature while on their adventure across the country.  I must say there is a resemblance between the lumberjack and myself!  Georgia and I were filmed interacting with each other using the new Instagram feature.  After about an hour of shooting different angles they called it a wrap!  

The fun didn't end there!  After the video, Jeffrey invited Georgia and I to their headquarters for a tour.  Jeffrey showed us all around the Instagram and Facebook campus and we were able to meet many of the wonderful staff that makes Instagram what it is!  We even saw Mark Zuckerberg on our walk around the campus!  It was an awesome way to finish off an amazing experience. 

Now fast forward to December.  Jeffrey sent me an email asking if my girlfriend, Allison, is on Instagram and wondered if she would like to have her profile photo included in the video.  I was thrilled that Allison would be included in the video.  A very cute touch!  I must say everyone who worked on this project has been  amazing!  I can't thank Instagram enough!

Head over to Instagram and check out the new feature, Instagram Direct!!!!

Georgia and I being filmed. Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Gerson. 

Georgia on set. Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Gerson. 

Andy Scott filming and Nate Salciccioli assisting. Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Gerson

Instameets

As most of you know I love the Instagram community. Some might define it more as an obsession, but whatever you want to call it, it's great!  I have never in my life been so active in a community or met so many amazing people through any type of group.  I'm not sure what it is about Instagram, but it has this amazing way of bringing people together.  

Just a couple days ago I went to an Instagram meet, better known as an instameet. For those of you who don't know what an instameet is, basically it's a group of instagramers who get together at a location and take pictures together.  It's a great way to meet new friends in the community and to catch up with old instafriends.  Another cool thing about instameets is the instameet hashtag. Using a hashtag designated for the specific meet means we can view the instameets uploaded photos in a group.  It's always neat to see other photographers perspectives and creativity when capturing similar subjects.  You can check out the photos we captured at #christmasatfortpoint over at instagram.  

At this recent meet I was very excited to meet a person who is one of my Instagram followers. I heard that @LizEischen was going to be traveling to San Francisco during the same weekend as this instameet. Of course I had to invite Liz!  I let her know the details of the meet and was thrilled when she was able to make it.   She let me know she was running a bit late, so I made sure I stuck around when most of the group took off to another location.  I was sure glad I stayed because I made an awesome friend!  I can't think of another way were this could happen in a community.  One thing I love about Instagram is one can seem to judge a person by their photography feed.  I knew Liz would be super cool and I totally was right!  So this is to new friends who I couldn't have met any other way!  

Here are the brave ones that battled the cold winds and stayed till sunset at this weekends instameet! 

Striving to Grow

As an artist I feel that I'm always striving to grow.  I've always considered myself a landscape photographer.  As some of you know, I love searching for hidden forests and foggy goodness.  For some reason I can capture these scenes with ease. It's almost like I can visualize the shots before I even make them. I can tell what will transfer into a beautiful image and how it'll look when edited.  Lately I've had this urge to stray from this comfort and try something new.  I decided it was time to give portrait photography a try. I figured it couldn't be that difficult. Boy was I wrong!  The first few portrait shoots did not turn out how I thought they would.  I found it difficult to photograph in natural light. It wasn't like taking a picture of a bridge, or a beautiful waterfall.  I would need to pay particular attention to my source of light and shadows.  Trust me, shadows can make a huge difference between a model looking stunning or scary.  With more practice though, I have grown to enjoy portrait photography.  The challenges that are now present have made me become much more creative.  Plus it's fun to scout out locations that are different from landscapes.  I now love to shoot indoors.  I love searching for pockets of natural light coming through windows or open doors.  So here is to a new me, a more creative me!  

Photographers and Coffee

There is something about coffee shops and photographers.  No more matter what city you are in, it seems like photographers like to call unique coffee shops home.  One of my homes would have to be Sightglass Coffee in San Francisco.  This place has some awesome coffee and the atmosphere is pleasant.   As a photographer, I'm drawn to this place because of the beautiful natural light.  It's always fun to be able to grab a cup and joe and also snap a couple photos in the process.  Maybe this is why photographers like to hang out in coffee shops.  They can relax, grab a delicious cup of coffee, and also snap some shots to upload to Instagram.  My creative juices seem to flow when I'm able to relax in an environment that I would enjoy shooting in.