Boy + Window

He chose where he wanted me to take his portrait - right next to the window - which in the end, I think was a pretty good decision.

Who We Become | January's Hotshot

I love when my muse is standing against a wall for the interesting angle it allows. If I'm lucky I'll get some wonderful leading lines and patterns. And if I'm really lucky I capture a quirky grin. 

Below is my hotshot for this month. Make sure to visit our collective site, Who We Become, to see a mosaic of our January favorites. Or click HERE to follow along the circle, starting with my good friend down in the District, Lisa Rigazio.

Boy Wonder

The Gold Standard

At least in my eyes they are. The Gold Standard of LOVE. Growing up as kids in the same neighborhood in a small Ohio town, my dad asked my mom out on a date when she was 15 and he was 16. They were sweeties throughout high school and college and on her 21st birthday, which happens to be New Year's Eve, he proposed. As Dad likes to say, "The rest is history." Indeed. Sixty years of history!

So on this New Year's Eve Mom, I would like to wish you the happiest birthday! You are 81 and so much fun! Your joy and compassion for others is such an inspiration and whether you believe it or not, you touch so many lives, namely mine, in extraordinary ways.

This day is for you!

I love you.  

Farewell Summer

The boys would like to thank New York City's mass transit - the subway, busses, ferries and water taxis - for taking them to all of our favorite places this summer. All in all it was an excellent ride.

Farewell summer and see you next year.

Shark Week

Beware the fin. 

Shark Week 2015 is finally here and we know a certain someone who's been counting down the days. 

"Dununt....Dununt.." 

 

Harlem Bulldogs 11-0

This past week wrapped up my oldest son's first Little League tee-ball season. Only 4 years old, he was the youngest on the team and also the smallest. The Harlem Bulldogs was his team, bright orange in color and in my opinion, coached by the best in the league. 

Over the past three months with the support of the amazing Coach David, my son went from batting on the tee to consistently hitting pitches, from shy newcomer to team player and for his father and me, it was a tremendous joy being both supportive parents and wide-eyed spectators. So congratulations Bulldogs on your undefeated season! 11-0 doesn't come easy. 

~ Click on each image to view full scale ~

~ Click each image to view full scale ~

Technically in tee ball you aren't supposed to keep score; all games are considered a tie. But everyone, coaches and parents alike, do it anyways. The Bulldogs wrote the score next to the batting lineup on a dry erase board that hung on the fence.  

Cash Money, Lucky #7.

We're already hearing you talk about next season. 

Hopefully you will have Coach David again... 

...and who knows, maybe another undefeated season.

Ferry

This past Saturday I took the boys on a late afternoon Staten Island ferry ride - a beautiful day for their first time aboard the big orange vessel. 

 
 

"Travel not for the destination,

but for the joy of the journey." 

~ Sir Joseph Fresco

 

i only have eyes for you

This is the glorious beauty I see each time you look at me.

 My guess is those eyes will get you in trouble one day.

[Click on each image to view full scale]

Elevated Dreams

These last weeks of winter, shooting for myself has mostly been about capturing our travels on the subway. Sometimes I'm inspired by the bright morning light that comes through the doors as they open, or the way it hits the floor just before the turnstiles at certain stations. But in this case it was my son looking out the window of the 1 train while it was elevated near 125th street. I look forward to that stop because there are always fantastic shadows, leading lines and cityscapes to capture; but the moment is brief and you've got to be quick with the shutter before the train goes back underground. 

Elevated Dreams

"X Factor"

Sometimes what we personally want out of our photography cannot be satisfied by shooting for a particular audience. Many times it is simply a personal aesthetic. I must admit that ever since I got an iPhone nearly five years ago, I have loved taking photos with my "pocket" camera. It's fast, easy and very self-satisfying. I capture moments that I would miss if I had to race and find my big camera or lug it around with all the other crap I schlep on a daily basis. I'll cop to having far too many editing apps on my phone and of course the pixel quality is nowhere near the same as my Canon; but for my personal pleasure and a daily need for a creative "fix", I love taking photos with my smartphone. Plus I can easily share favorites, like the image below of my oldest son taken this past week, with family and friends on social media. Crouched in the corner forming the perfect human "X", I quickly snapped his pose before he was off to the next thing.

                

[Below is a gallery of some of my favorite photos taken with my iPhone. Click on any image to enlarge]

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