$1,485.55 a second

$1,485.55 a second is how much PROFIT Exxon Mobil made in the second quarter of this year.

I am speechless. Actually what I feel like saying is not very polite.

Read more here.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

Super yummy is this little camera. Due out in September. I was hoping it would be here in the couple of weeks, just in time for a much more important delivery.

getting the house ready

The garage is being converted to a studio this week. Since the darkroom is already up, I just needed to make the rest usable. This is the new glass front that will be frosted to allow beautiful northern light in.










And now the Bean, has more stuff than I do. This is the baby's room.

baby projects

I came across THIS on another blog and it seems like a fun project I can do with my baby.

baby names

Amelia and I have been talking a bit about baby names. We do not know the sex of the kid so we are discussing both. If it's a boy, we are leaning towards Titan and if it's a girl, we are thinking Sunshine.

I talked to my niece and nephew yesterday, who are 7 and 6 respectively, and this is what they came up with; Harley likes Gary for a boy and Isabella for a girl and Tristin likes Crusher for a boy and Rosalina for a girl.

We are about 35 days away so who knows.

more getting ready

Amelia and I have been going to baby birthing class. It's been rather interesting. The videos are fun and so is the vocabulary. I'm also the oldest in class, except when when of the women brings her mother, who might be 50.

Last Saturday night, Josh, Ben and Tomas threw me a "Daddy Diaper" party. Poker, martinis and diapers. A very fine time with great friends.
And Michelle, Cristina, Julia, and Zona threw a party for Amelia that included a diaper cake, that Michelle hand made. Very cool.












Here is me with the new stroller.

And here...we...go...

I just got home from the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight.

I am still processing it but can say it is damn good. It is the way Batman should be. Slightly off center and really pissed.

Heath Ledger did an amazing job.

And for those of you who have not seen it yet, I don't really think it is appropriate for kids under 13, so the PG-13 rating is correct. There are some really violent scenes.

I went with Amelia, Josh, Julia, Ben, Zona, Cristina, and Lisa Marie. A damn good time.

I'll write more later.

How to (or not to) sell a bike on ebay

I've been looking for a bicycle on ebay. Something to help get myself in shape.

This picture was used in an auction description.

Getting ready

This afternoon, Amelia and I put together the new crib that came a couple of weeks ago, courtesy of my sister. Clearing the room, which used to be my photo room, has been a real task.












Even the stroller, the Bugaboo Bee, courtesy of my father and his wife, had a few parts to screw on.

New Radiohead video

Sent to me from my good pal Michelle.

Radiohead, one of the best rock bands ever, has a new video out for their song "House of Cards".

Use this link to see it but be sure to watch the making of the video.

No cameras were used. Very cool.

red pumas

Puma Kite Team Sneakers
Puma Store,
Union Square,
NYC,
USA

Red Dog News

Fellow Albuquerque residents Tim Anderson and Tom Gibbons have started a new photo news website called Red Dog News. Have a look.

Ellen Rennard and Women in Photography

Ellen Rennard is this months featured artist at Women in Photography.

This body of work is about the Albuquerque Downs Race Track in New Mexico. I was fortunate enough to see some of the work in person while visiting with Ellen a few weeks back in Concord Mass. The work is really well done and we hope to feature it here on Fraction in the near future.

To see more of Ellen's work, go to her website.

More news on the Fuji GF670 Folder

I emailed Fuji USA today to see if I could get an update about this camera. Nothing yet.

My guess is the full fledge camera will be on display at Photokina in September.

I promise to report any news immediately.

This is what 41 looks like?

No, not a picture of me but one of Dara Torres, the 41 year old Olympic swimmer. Oh yeah, she has a two year old kid. I'm going to the gym in the morning.

This is a picture made by Robert Maxwell.

iPhone Sold Out !!!

At least it is here in Albuquerque.

I went to buy one this afternoon at the Apple store and was told it was sold out and they had no idea when they would get more in.

Even with the major glitches yesterday, they still sold out.

I should probably wait about three months when they start appearing used on eBay. Three months is about when all the little teenies who bought them will figure out that they cannot afford the $75 a month to use the phone.

No, I want a new one.

Some fun stuff here...
iPhone activation hell, part 1
iPhone activation hell, part 2
iPhone activation hell, part 3

Oh Lord, when will it stop?

Hasselblad announced their new flagship camera yesterday.

A FIFTY MEGAPIXEL H3DII camera.
That's right, 50 mega pixel.

Come on now. When will this stop? Who the hell needs 50 megapixels?

If for some reason you want to read more, go here.

Fraction Magazine Issue 2 - and some good news

First, Issue 2 of Fraction Magazine has been released. We have a great selection of work for you to view. Check it out now. Be sure to book mark it and check out the blog too. Once again, Josh has done a great job.

And second, I've been asked to be a reviewer a PhotoNOLA in December. This means I get to look at a lot of portfolios and offer my advice and such. I am in very good company and it makes me a bit nervous. Here is the list.

While there, I am going to select 5 photographers that Fraction will showcase in a special edition of the magazine, to be released at the end of January.

I am really looking forward to this. It is a great opportunity for me and certainly for Fraction.

Thank you to those who run photonola.

When things go right

I shot a lot of film while in New York last week and I shot 5 rolls yesterday out at the ranch. Little Elsa Bean is a beautiful two and a half year old who loves to have her picture taken and always says "thank you" after each snap.

So yesterday I did a couple pictures of her at the ranch. She wore her favorite cowgirl boots and hat. She is so very cute.

I also made a few pictures of her older sister Daisy who is about to turn six.

I did all of the shooting with the 60mm lens on the Hasselblad. I also used an orange filter and Acros film. I got down to their level so that we could see eye to eye. The 60mm is a great lens that is not too wide and I can still blow out the backgrounds. Zeiss says this is their sharpest lens. We'll see.

Well, I just developed the negatives are they are great. Perfect exposure. Great contrast. And the compositions are terrific. I will print on Tuesday as I still have about 12 rolls to develop and we have a busy Monday ahead.

After I have the prints done, I will scan them and post here and on flickr.

I really like it when things go right.

I guess we are in a recession

The big news last week, at least for me, was that Starbucks is closing 600 stores and laying off 12,000 employees.

Some people are happy about this. I have no feelings at all about this.

As much as I like to support local business, I always know what to expect when I go to Starbucks. The coffee always tastes the same way. The lattes always made the same way. When I travel, this is a good thing.

Here in Albuquerque, the other coffee shop of choice is a place called Satellite, which is owned by the folks who own the Flying Star chain. Satellites coffee is always good and the service is decent. Pricing seems to be about the same although I sometimes think Satellite costs more. Guess I have some research to do.

The differences between these two places comes down to service and cleanliness for me. The Starbucks are always clean and the staff always great. If they make a mistake, they often offer a free coffee and a sincere apology. Satellite is always somewhat clean and the staff, at various locations, although generally happy, seem to be a bit moody. I was recently greeted with major attitude when I received the wrong drink and asked about it. I declined to argue and regretted leaving the $1 bill in tip jar.

For me, coffee is a social thing. I often meet one or two people at Satellite nearly 3 or 4 times a week. During the last 12 months, I probably spent $20-$25 a week at Satellite, which when doing the math and seeing that I spent $1000 to $1300 on caramel lattès is a little frightening.

So back to Starbucks. In hearing of their decline, I can only hope they get back to doing what they do best, making great coffee. Enough with all of the other crap they sell in the store. No more music, no more games and bullshit, impulse items. Give us free internet and keep the coffee hot and fresh.

Now I'm off to get some caramel goodness.

Control by Anton Corbijn

Last night, my wife and I watched a rather good movie made by a rather great photographer.

The movie is called Control and was directed by Anton Corbijn. It's entirely in black and white and tells the story of Ian Curtis, the legendary singer of the rock band Joy Division.

Without going into much detail right now (in a rush), it was just about 2 hours long and well worth the time.

Here is the official site for the movie. I got my copy from netflix so I am sure it is out.

See it now !

Happy July 4th

Happy July 4th to all!!!

Home is where the heart is

Amelia and I got in last evening and we are both still a bit wiped out. She has a better excuse than I do. The flight from NYC to Atlanta was a bit rough but the second flight to ABQ was just fine.

It's so nice to be back in our own space. Our bed. Our cats.

I love my life, my wife, my home.

Nikon scores big - and teases me

The camera on the right is the new Nikon D3 full frame, super high ISO camera. I wanted this camera as my first jump into digital as soon as I heard about. Then my pal Sam Portera got one and scared the crap out of me with his black and white images he got out of the camera.

The D3 costs $5000 for the body alone. Not doable right now. It has bells and whistles I do not want or need. So I held off. I wanted a simplified version. My Hasselblad is fully manual. No battery. Very simple.

Then today Nikon announces their next "new" camera. It is called the D700 (the camera on the left) It too is a full frame camera and is a somewhat simplified version of the now legendary D3. It uses the same chip and same sensor. It has sensor cleaning. It can shoot 5 frames per second. It's rather amazing. It has all of the same low light abilities.

The cost....$3000. Not too bad.

Now might be the time for me to add a digital camera to my bag.

24 hours in Brooklyn

Yesterday afternoon, I had the good fortune to meet up with my pal Odin in Union Square. He had some legal business (hahaha) to take care of and then we headed for DUMBO which is an acronym for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. It is the new Photo District of NYC because Chelsea is no longer affordable. We wandered around a bit and I made it to the powerHouse Books arena which is really cool. Unfortunately I did not buy anything because I could not carry it. I already had my Crumpler bag jammed with overnight stuff as well as my Hasselblad, lightmeter, and film.

After some time strolling around and checking out Olafur Eliason's Waterfalls, we got some very messy Ice Cream and headed for Green Point where Odin lives.

The next stop was for another beer at the Pencil Factory pub. We sat next to a group of lads who were talking about being interviewed about their North American tour. I have no idea who they were.

After this, we stopped off at Odin's place to drop off my bag and then had some dinner at another local place.

Dinner was completed rather quickly and so we headed for Williamsburg to have a drink at some former hotel and for me to see Bedford Avenue. Lots of fun and lots to look at.

We had some gin and freshly chopped ginger concoction made by a bartender that Odin knows. Quite good and very refreshing. Then we made it home to chill out with the A/C.

This morning was a relaxing breakfast and then I headed for the trains to come back to the Upper West Side, where I am now.

I am quite hot and my body is not happy. I am only consuming water at this point but I am tempted by a caramel macchiato right now.

Tonight is dinner with the entire gang and I am very excited. I appreciate their efforts to see me while I am here in NYC with my very pregnant wife.