About 10 years ago I came up with a list of places I wanted to photograph. All the photos would ultimately end up hanging in a room I called, in my head, the gallery. On my list was the Eifel Tower, The Colosseum, Stonehenge, El Castillo, The Pyramids Of Giza, The Great Wall Of China and The Parthenon. Sure, there are other things I want to see, that I want to visit, that I want to photograph. Christ The Redeemer in Brazil, The Taj Mahal in India and a few other locations have caught my eye. But, I had to keep my list a bit focused.

To date, I’ve knocked off the Eifel Tower, The Colosseum, Stonehenge, and El Castillo. You can see the body of work below.

Well, this year, I aim to knock one of the remaining three off the list. The countdown begins:

Shot on slide Film (Fuji Velvia 50) circa 2002 and with a non-digital SLR (Nikon F5), this is an all time favorite of mine. Many of us will be grilling today, having a beer and enjoying the company of friends and family. I know I will. But, beyond the fun, let’s take some time to remember those who gave us this holiday and who continue selflessly keeping us safe and free. Hope your 4th is filled with fun, sun, family and a cold beverage.

I’ve done some crazy photo projects in the past.  Probably the one I had the most fun with was the 1 picture a day project I did for Cora and John. So this got me thinking that maybe my project for 2011 should be photo related and equally as taxing.  I say taxing, because committing yourself to a project like this is a labor of love.

But, I like challenges.  I thought about shooting 1 photo every day for the next year using just my Nikon D700 and my Nikon 50mm 1.4.  I had thought about picking up a Nikon P7000 for the project.  The compact point and shoot would certainly make things easier, but I’m not sure even I could justify $425.00 just for the project.  I may still end up doing it.

It’s going to be fun.  It’s going to be EPIC.

This is photo #1.  Not a bad way to ring in the New Year!  That’s my hand in the upper left.  See, I’m not always just behind the camera!

This is what Christmas is all about.  It’s not about $600 purses, new cars, jewelry from Tiffany’s, expensive bottles of wine or any other material items.  Nope, this is what makes Christmas amazing…seeing these two faces after they’ve made sure Santa ate some cookies, drank his milk and shared the carrots with Rudolph.

It’s the little things that are the big things.  Merry Christmas.

I love the Believe initiative by Macy’s.  For the last 3 years, my kids have participated in “writing” a letter to Santa at Macy’s and then mailing it to the North Pole.  For every letter Macy’s receives they donate $1 to Make A Wish.  How can you not be a fan of that?  I took the kids this year and it was so cool to see both John and Cora crafting their letters to Santa.

Eventually we all stop believing in Santa.  I never thought much about that idea over the years.  But, this year it really stuck with me.  I’m going to make sure Cora and John believe for as long as possible.  Why not?  Believing is a good thing and it just might help ensure they eat their vegetables.

In the movie Inception Leonardo Dicaprio’s character explains, “The most dangerous thing is an idea that takes hold in someone’s mind.”  In the context of the movie, I can understand why he chose the word dangerous.  But, let’s substitute dangerous for “powerful.”  That’s what the Believe project means to me.  It’s all about the power of the idea.  This Christmas, remember to let the idea…the meaning of Christmas take hold of you.  You just may see things a little differently and enjoy yourself a little more.

Merry Christmas.

Oldies, but goodies!

If you’ve been reading this blog long enough, you have to know I’m insanely passionate about photography. Photos have a certain truth to them. They capture the moment. They capture a snapshot in time. When you look at a photo of someone smiling, there can be no denying that there was a smile. Photos can tell us when someone was happy or sad. They can tell us if the sky was blue or filled with storm clouds. Photos can tell us who we were sharing our time with…and who we elected not to include.

Of course, how we remember a situation, a day or an event often differs from what the photos seem to say.  There’s always something interesting about looking at “old” photos.  They fill in the gaps in our memories and help to tell a story…the real story…the real truth.  When you dig through a photo archive, be it at a museum, someone’s yearbook or their collection of photo albums (digital and real), you can learn a lot about a person.  I often find myself surprised with the photos people hold on to.

Yes, photos don’t lie , they tell us so much and that’s why I’m passionate about photography.  What do your photos say about you?  Do they tell the truth as you remember it?