blinds, but now I sees

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've found that when I come back from a vacation, I take far less pictures. Partly because I'm tired of taking non-stop photos; partly because I have so many photos to sort through and edit. I took just a couple pictures on this lazy Sunday. I like how the fabric slowly falls out of focus.

Did I make an Amazing Grace joke with this title? Yes, I did.

Year 3, Day 249

compound playground eye

originally uploaded by billaday.

Oh, the joys of travel. Since we spend the entire day getting from Michigan to Los Angeles, every photo was at an airport (or on a plane). I was taking the (mostly) typical aeronautical photos throughout the day, but then we got to the Milwaukee airport. They have a small play area for kids on Concourse E. These mirrors were made to either entertain or terrify kids.

Year 3, Day 248

Bob and John

originally uploaded by billaday.

What's more interesting in this shot? I think that depends on who you talk to, and what state they're from. If they're from Michigan, John Deere is more important. If you're from my wife's family, this shot of her grandpa is more important. He sure likes to mow the lawn.

Year 3, Day 247

Spartan Field

originally uploaded by billaday.

We visited Sparta today. That's really the name of a small rural town. I kept wanting to shout out quotes from 300, and run around with a red cape and spear. But I didn't.

I processed this photo using an infrared workflow I learned from Scott Kelby's Photoshop Channels Book. I like the black sky and white clouds.

Year 3, Day 246

Man of Many Phonemes

originally uploaded by billaday.

We visited Meijer Gardens today in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We took the tram tour since my grandpa-in-law needs a new knee. I ran back after our 2pm lunch to snap some shots of this sculpture. I can't find the name of this, but I love it.

Year 3, Day 245

Welcome to Michigan

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's the beginning of our trip to visit Isabelle's grandparents in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We spent the entire day traveling (including this shot). This was taken somewhere in Michigan along Expressway 94.

btw, in Michigan, don't call them freeways.

Year 3, Day 244

James and the Giant Dog

originally uploaded by billaday.

We went to visit Isabelle's friend Erin in Colorado. This is weird, cuz Erin lived in Oregon, and is moving to San Diego. But she's in Colorado for a few fortnights, so we met her there.

This photo is not of Erin. It's her son and her dog.

Year 3, Day 243

dog goggles

originally uploaded by billaday.

I suppose that only in Colorado would you find dogs with glasses/goggles on while driving down the freeway. I've been told, however, that it's dangerous for dogs to have their eyes exposed at high speeds. Hmm.

Year 3, Day 242

Trinity Brewery

originally uploaded by billaday.

Finally! I'm caught up with my photo-a-day! This is what I did last night. Before I describe the photo, lemme talk about my photo-a-day project. I'm so glad that I didn't quit taking photos, even though I was a month behind. I was beyond busy with work, and was able to take pictures, but not process them. Each day, I figured that my photos were lame, since I didn't spend much time taking them. Looking back, I had some great shots (and some faily lame ones). I would be depressed right now if I had given up the photo-a-day project... especially because I am now caught up.

So, last night. We went to the Craft Lager Festival yesterday in Manitou Springs (see the Flickr map). I found one lager I liked--Libidinous lager from Trinity Brewery. It's unhopped, and has chai and berries, or something. Really tasty, really smooth. So we went to Trinity Brewery for dinner. Their logo and labels are amazing. They have an earthy color palette. This shot is a 1/2 second exposure, and I zoomed out (starting at the logo) during the shot.

Year 3, Day 241

LoDo

originally uploaded by billaday.

Isabelle and I are in Colorado visiting her mom. We went straight from the airport to Wynkoop Brewery in downtown Denver. It's lower downtown, so the cool people (?) call it LoDo.

Year 3, Day 240

a clunker

originally uploaded by billaday.

I know the Cash for Clunkers program is successful. I know that car dealerships are starting to actually make money again. And now, I know that car dealerships are really tacky when it comes to advertising.

Year 3, Day 239

no U turn

originally uploaded by billaday.

My original idea was to merge 5 shots, so the traffic in the background would be busy. This one shot, however, had most all of what I wanted. I purposely left my tachometer in the frame (top right corner, blue thing). I think it balances out the frame better.

Year 3, Day 238

reflection

originally uploaded by billaday.

I love my new(er) MacBook Pro. I've been thinking about getting a skin for my mbp, but then I'd lose the super cool logo from the back.

Year 3, Day 237

the gig

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's Alex, our bass player. The guy's got some serious bass chops. He also has a serious handlebar mustache. I'm thinking of offering a photo shoot... he could use some head shots, and I think it would be lots of fun. I've also need to take more photos of people.

Year 3, Day 236

rehearsal

originally uploaded by billaday.

Meet Mike. He's a drummer. This is Mike taking a break during a Francis Band rehearsal. Mike is smiling because he got a new car (Honda Fit).

Year 3, Day 235

Stone Brew

originally uploaded by billaday.

Some people call me a beer snob. Sorry, I just like good beer. I hope you noticed the selective color (there's only red).

Year 3, Day 234

Sweet Baby James

originally uploaded by billaday.

When your out-of-town friends have kids, they grow up awfully quickly. The kids, not the friends. Last time I saw James, he was as big as a pea pod. Now, he's bigger than a cheeseburger with whole grilled onions.

Year 3, Day 233

The Pendleton Loop

originally uploaded by billaday.

Ryan and I went on a bike ride from Christianitos (Trestles) to Camp Pendleton, and back. Here's the route on Google Maps. http://snipurl.com/pendletonloop

Good times.

Year 3, Day 232

air hockey

originally uploaded by billaday.

Man, Chuck E. Cheese is exhausting with little kids. I used to go for my birthday, and only big kids were allowed. We'd go from 8-11 pm, and it was a blast. It's fun, too, with a three and a two year old, but in a completely different/exhausting way.

For a while, they played air hockey together. Good times, and good reflections. View On Black

Year 3, Day 231

The Brass Menagerie

originally uploaded by billaday.

That's right, I made a joke about a Tennessee Williams book. This is Tyler's man room. It gets cooler every time I step inside. This shot is a closeup of what's below the shuffleboard table. Nice.

Year 3, Day 230

Do you take palm trees in your coffee? Or just cream?

originally uploaded by billaday.

I met my friend Brent for breakfast. He's partly to thank for this shot--he went to go get more coffee (or to the bathroom), and I was staring at my coffee. The reflection caught my eye. Thanks Brent, for your active "coffee drinking".

Year 3, Day 229

Countertops

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here are countertops from a house we really like. I really want a house now.

Year 3, Day 228

barrel tasting

originally uploaded by billaday.

Isabelle and I went to a barrel tasting at Stuart Cellars. They brought out 10 barrels of wine, and we were the first ones to taste it. Very cool.

Year 3, Day 227

Hello new computer lab

originally uploaded by billaday.

After all the computer drama, we finally got a perfect computer lab together. Here are the cliff notes: someone stole our summer school laptops, we were on CBS news, we got lots of computers.

The greatest part of this shot (for me) is that you can't even see all the computers. I wasn't going to make a panoramic shot. So thank you Dreamworks, Claremont Consortium, and Connor's grandma.

Year 3, Day 226

signs, signs

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've noticed that despite California being billions in debt, there's a lot of construction going on. Lots of new things, lots more traffic. I don't like the extra traffic. I do, however, like this shot viewed large.

Year 3, Day 225

She thinks she can get away with anything with that smile

originally uploaded by billaday.

...and she can.

Year 3, Day 224

surfing the web

originally uploaded by billaday.

I always thought the term "surfing the web" was strange. There's no salt water or wetsuits involved. It doesn't feel like surfing. Maybe that's why I don't hear people call it that anymore.

Anywho, if you were "surfing" on the internet, I'd imagine it would look more like this.

Year 3, Day 223

chocolate peanut butter cups

originally uploaded by billaday.

I must admit, I'm not a huge snacker. I've had these (frozen) since Christmas, and they're only 1/3 gone. Tasty, but resistible.

Year 3, Day 222

That's right, Pat put his MacBook Pro precariously on his car

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here is I am, and always will be, a dork before a geek. I think putting a MacBook Pro on top of a car is cool (and will take a picture of it), but I will never do it.

Year 3, Day 221

Jenga with Jenga

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've found that pictures of mine that (I think) are funny tend to not be very interesting to look at. This is one of them. At Barnes & Noble, you can buy Jenga. All the Jenga games used as playing pieces to make one gigantic Jenga game. Very cool idea, not necessarily a very cool picture.

Year 3, Day 220

Now I Notice Tiles

originally uploaded by billaday.

We've been house hunting for a while now, and I've noticed that I notice things more. Now, I notice what countertops are made out of. I still don't know the names... granite, tile, pseudo-granite, concrete. Whatever. But I do notice that it's there, and I have an opinion on it.

That brings us to this photo. There was a giant (broken) fountain in the corner of a park I was driving by. I noticed it was covered in tile. Very cool. So, I pull over and take 50 pictures of it. This is my favorite because it accentuates the curves of the fountain.

Year 3, Day 219

More Donated Dreamworks Computers

originally uploaded by billaday.

I went to Dreamworks again to get more donated computers for summer school. This time, I got a tour and met the CTO Ed Leonard. Very cool. This photo is of Chris; he gave us a tour of the Dreamworks campus. You're not allowed to take photos, so I don't have dozens to share (it was gorgeous), but Chris did let me snap a shot in the main courtyard.

Dreamworks been so generous helping to replace our stolen computers. When you have a chance, be sure to support Dreamworks.

Year 3, Day 218

Waiting for her daddy

originally uploaded by billaday.

Kids have ears like dogs--they can hear anything. Geneva heard her dad's car door close. She knew it was his car (from 1000 feet away) and immediately stopped playing and rushed to the door to wait for him.

I didn't mean to compare kids to dogs. You know what I mean.
Year 3, Day 217

I put the X in X-ray

originally uploaded by billaday.

I'm proud of this shot because I asked to take it. I was being shown my x-rays and I took a picture. Way back when, I would not have been so brave.

Is this considered a self-portrait?

Year 3, Day 216

Three point lighting

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's how to traditionally light a subject. Put one strong light (usually eye level) to one side. Put another light (usually a bit higher) farther away on the opposite side. Put a third light behind them (anywhere) even father away.

I bought 3 worklights at Home Depot for $5 each. I bought 3 paper lanterns at Ikea for $5 each.

Make sure to set the white balance for halogen lights.

Here, I also set up a green screen for my summer school class. We put an additional worklight on that to evenly light it. Good times.

Year 3, Day 215

zebra stripes and wine glasses

originally uploaded by billaday.

I like the refraction in the bottom of the stem.

Year 3, Day 214

Dashboard magic

originally uploaded by billaday.

Another long day, another late photo-a-day. Here's the interior of my car with a one second exposure. I like the colors.

Year 3, Day 213

Call for Help

originally uploaded by billaday.

Quick! Somebody call for help... someone stole the pay phone.

Year 3, Day 212

caught on tape

originally uploaded by billaday.

You know when you leave a 7-11, and it shows the height on the door? That's so they can catch the guy that robs the 7-11, right?

So, here I am at the Home Depot. They have the same measuring system right by the door. Only the height goes up to 10 feet! What's going on? Is Geoffrey the Giraffe stealing lug nuts from Home Depot!?

Year 3, Day 211

Major League Baseball

originally uploaded by billaday.

I had the same great seats to the Angel game. This time, however, I did not bring my dSLR. I forced myself to find a photo-a-day with my Canon point-and-shoot. Why, you ask? Well, I was looking at previous baseball pictures, and discovered that two of my photo-a-days were of a baseball player rounding third base. It's the best shot you can get when you sit at... wait for it... third base. So here's something different. I like it.

Year 3, Day 210

Michael Jackson Memorial Service

originally uploaded by billaday.

So, my wife and I went to the Michael Jackson memorial service at the Staples Center. I was surprised by how somber and respectful the mood was. In fact, I didn't take any photos during the service--it didn't remotely seem appropriate.

Year 3, Day 209

It's world wide

originally uploaded by billaday.

This web was right in front of my house, and my wife almost walked right into it. I moved her just in time (much as Obi Won Kenobi would, I imagine). She demanded revenge, but alas, there was not spider death spray. Instead, she took a spray bottle of (expensive) sun tan lotion, and SPF'd the spider to death. I noticed how the light caught the oils in the web, and busted out the camera.

Year 3, Day 208

the working musician

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's the stuff I (usually) bring to a gig:
• guitar
• water
• coffee
• amp
• laptop

Usually in that order, too.

Year 3, Day 207

Color burn building reflection on an empty Old Town Pasadena fourth

originally uploaded by billaday.

Not the most poetic name on this one. I wanted to remember lots of information on this shot like...

Photoshopping:
1) Channel mixer (adjustment layer): red 100%
2) Layer blending mode (for channel mixer): Soft light
3) Fill layer: Blue
4) Layer mask (for the blue): I didn't want the reflection to be too blue. btw, that's a newspaper dispenser.
5) Layer blending mode (for the blue): color burn

Interestingly enough, Old Town Pasadena was really empty on the 4th of July. I guess most people were cooking hot dogs at home.

Year 3, Day 206

Ribs Rock at Robin's

originally uploaded by billaday.

Yum. Go eat some ribs at Robin's in Pasadena. Good lunch deals. I hear they're beyond crowded on Sunday afternoons.
Year 3, Day 205

Three hours in traffic

originally uploaded by billaday.

Good news. After getting 13 laptops stolen from my summer school (remember, I'm the computer teacher), we got some local press. CBS 2 news ran a story on us. Then, Dreamworks gives me a call and wants to know more about what we're doing. Long story short, this photo is of my drive back from Dreamworks with 13 computers. Awesome... except for all the traffic.

Year 3, Day 204

The nephew snuggle

originally uploaded by billaday.

Wow. July. I've decided that my photo-a-day uploads are inversely proportional to my exhaustion level.

This shot was taken with minimal light. I knew a flash would kill not only the mood of the moment, but the mood of my photo. So I shot with available light, and ran it through Exposure's filter: Cyan- Sun Bleached Poster. It brightened up the mids, and added a nice blue tone to the shot.

Year 3, Day 203

Digipower

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's a photo taken in the 11th hour. Some of my favorites shots are taken when I have to take a shot before going to bed. I don't think this is one of them. Hopefully, it'll motivate me to make some more time to take photos (when I have time).

Year 3, Day 202

Found

originally uploaded by billaday.

There was a skunk when I pulled up to my house. I didn't want to get a closeup.

Year 3, Day 201

Mr. Soda Nose

originally uploaded by billaday.

Finally, I'm catching up with my photo-a-day. I've been teaching summer school in the morning and afternoon with kids, and at night with adults. Crazy, crazy times. I'm still shooting (at least) one picture every day. I just haven't remotely had time to sort and upload shots. Free time is a-coming.

Year 3, Day 200