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

To the beach... and back

originally uploaded by billaday.

We took the San Gabriel Riverbed trail from Whittier to Seal Beach. Then we turned around and came home.

This was my farthest ride, clocking in at 40 miles. I took this photo just after we turned back from the beach. You can see my two riding buddies--my father-in-law and Wayne, just behind me. They look nice when the photo is bigger.

I'm really glad I didn't drop my camera.

Year 3, Day 199

The Infamous Bread Toss of 2009

originally uploaded by billaday.

We went to Disneyland today. I'm such a fan of the annual pass--a couple rides, a bit of food and drink, and that's it.

I taunted the sourdough bread worker at California Adventure. He threw the entire loaf (round?) of bread at me. Fortunate for me and my camera, there was glass between us. This shot was not photoshopped (aside from the basic contrast/crop). I'm pretty proud that I captured this shot in one take... I guess all those that practicing at taking pictures paid off today.

Year 3, Day 198

closing in

originally uploaded by billaday.

Closing in...I hope that you make it.
Closing in...I hope that you find your way.

Year 3, Day 197

endless

originally uploaded by billaday.

Blue skies above. Hot blue skies.

Year 3, Day 196

the best parking spot ever

originally uploaded by billaday.

I was twenty steps away from my classroom with this parking spot.

Year 3, Day 195

REV

originally uploaded by billaday.

This is an example of a reverse shot (in video production). Shoot from one angle, the shoot the reverse of that. Simple enough.

I demo'd nine shot types to my APU digital video in the classroom students. This is one of the shots.

Year 3, Day 194

stepping stones

originally uploaded by billaday.

This shot reminds me of the first Zel picture I saw:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zelnunes/469298182/in/set-72157600357743477/

Not sure if it's abstract enough. Is it obvious what this is (without looking at the tags)?

Year 3, Day 193

Welcome to Texture City

originally uploaded by billaday.

This plate caught my eye late at night. There's texture on the plate and on the table that holds it. I like how the contrast came out in this shot.

Year 3, Day 192

we will miss you

originally uploaded by billaday.

The California state budget is beyond bad. There isn't enough money, and cuts are being made in education. Three of the teachers on this sign got laid off, and don't have jobs next year. My name is the only one on the sign that managed to keep a job. I'll be teaching elementary music next year. Who knew that a music degree would save my job?

Year 3, Day 191

the pool inspected at the above address has been inspected and is producing mosquitos

originally uploaded by billaday.

Aside from the pool containing a dead crow, two dead lizards, and a swarm of mosquitoes, this house we looked was perfect.

Lemme back up. We are house hunting. We are house hunting on our anniversary. And every home seems to have something wrong with it. I know we shouldn't buy a house when I think to myself, "Man, if only this place did not have the West Nile Virus..." Argh.


Year 3, Day 190

The Replacements: donations

originally uploaded by billaday.

Just one day after being on CBS-2 news, and five days after losing 13 laptops, someone donated twenty 20" widescreen monitors. Beyond stoked.

This is more of a blessing than I imagined.

Year 3, Day 189

Geoff here, on CBS-2 News

originally uploaded by billaday.

So, if you haven't heard, someone stole 13 laptops from our (non-profit) summer school program. This was very bad, since it happened two days before we started, and I'm the computer teacher.

A bunch of people came out of the woodwork to help out. A local paper ran a few stories, and then... as shown here... CBS-2 news came and did a segment on us. If you'd like to see it, the video is here: http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=106121@kcbs.dayport.com

This shot is of my assistant Geoff. He's posing for the cameraman to get the white balance and exposure set. I snuck in and took a picture of him (in the viewfinder of the really fancy, expensive camera and in real life).

Year 3, Day 188

just add water

originally uploaded by billaday.

Despite all the cool reflections that water has, I found that it's really hard to get an interesting (or even good) shot.

Year 3, Day 187

Congratulations Deacon Alan

originally uploaded by billaday.

For the last four years, he's been called Alan.

After four years of work, he's now called Deacon Alan. This is his first homily.

Year 3, Day 186

el mariachi

originally uploaded by billaday.

My father-in-law had a birthday party, and mariachi arrived. It was fantastic. They rocked out, and we enjoyed food and drink.

This shot was photoshopped using a plugin to emulate a daguerrotype photograph. I wanted it to have a less modern look. Hope I pulled it off.

Year 3, Day 185

a cool looking gem-type rock

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here is one reason I don't teach 4th grade... I don't know the name of this rock, er, gem. Someone tell me. I don't think it's quartz.

This shot is selective color: blue and cyan remains, the other colors go to grayscale.

Year 3, Day 184

birthday phone calls

originally uploaded by billaday.

Isabelle received many calls on her birthday. They wished her a happy birthday. She liked that.

Year 3, Day 183

Landon likes cake

originally uploaded by billaday.

Even though it wasn't his birthday party, Landon still got cake. And he was very happy about it.

Year 3, Day 182

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is fun again

originally uploaded by billaday.

It's been a while since a Disneyland run. Good times were had by all.

Year 3, Day 181

stripes and dots

originally uploaded by billaday.

So, I need to burn 100 dvds for my students for tomorrow. We finished rendering the project at 7pm, and I've been burning for hours now. The downside is that it's 4:30, and I have to work for 14 hours tomorrow (not counting burning 100 discs without sleeping). The upside is that I get to catch up on my photo-a-day. I've been taking daily photos, but haven't (remotely) had the time to sort, geotag, edit, and upload. Yay?

Year 3, Day 180

chipotle chicken burrito to go

originally uploaded by billaday.

Yum.

Year 3, Day 179

Wanna play it?

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's a tip: when a 3-year-old offers to share his harmonica with you, say no thanks.

Year 3, Day 178

I'm the wise guy with the bright idea

originally uploaded by billaday.

Taking one photo every day was not my idea. It's something I do to become a better photographer (and person (?)). Anyway, there are two good friends that also photo-a-day. Though work has been beyond busy, and I haven't been uploading every day, these guys have. And since I've been a small part of their photo-a-day journey, I have that much more drive to continue my own.

So go check out Mike at http://www.flickr.com/photos/michael_soliman/

And check out Bill at http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalviaw/
Year 3, Day 177

chain gang

originally uploaded by billaday.

I rode my bike to work, then dinner. Good times. I wish I had more time for it. I wish I had more energy for it. I need to think like The Little Engine That Could.

Year 3, Day 176

teaching

originally uploaded by billaday.

If you've never taught in an elementary classroom, this is sort of what it feels like.

Year 3, Day 175

stuck behind a really, really slow vehicle on the way to work

originally uploaded by billaday.

It's a rule:
when you're late, you get stuck behind slow cars.

This morning's commute takes slow driving to a new level. I followed a bulldozer going 14 mph. Dude. Pull over. Get off the real roads. Of course, I did not dare to pass it. I might have been crushed, or destroyed.

Year 3, Day 174

drip, drip

originally uploaded by billaday.

If you're thinking of starting a photo-a-day project and you're really busy, read on. If not, then don't.

I'm pretty busy, and I photo-a-day. Most days, I don't have time to spend an hour taking photos. Most days, I don't have a desire to take photos for an hour. Nearly every day, I don't have the desire to sort, delete, edit, and upload photos. So, I take photos of things when I have a free minute. Today, I got the my car washed at the gas station, and took a picture of the windshield.

Year 3, Day 173

this shot socks

originally uploaded by billaday.

Sorry for the bad pun with the title. I'm busy, and I need to do more laundry.

Year 3, Day 172

Lactase

originally uploaded by billaday.

Ah, Lactaid. You give me the power to digest dairy. You are the superhero of enzymes.

Year 3, Day 171

a trip to the Mann Chinese

originally uploaded by billaday.

I took Daniel to the Mann Chinese to see Terminator. He had never been to the Mann. Welcome to the club.

Year 3, Day 170

a thousand dances on an empty canvas

originally uploaded by billaday.

Not gonna say much about what this photo is, but I will suggest what it could be used for: album cover.

Year 3, Day 169

love the staff parking

originally uploaded by billaday.

I really like teaching at the college level. Among the myriad of reasons, great parking is definitely one of them. I get to park really close... for free. If you've ever had terrible parking, you know how great this can be. Love it.

Year 3, Day 168

painting our perfect home

originally uploaded by billaday.

We officially started house hunting. Since most houses have photos on the internet, I find myself not taking many pictures. Even though we aren't buying this house, we did look at it. And, as it turns out, it was the only photo I took. So to make this mediocre shot a bit better, I threw it into Photoshop and applied the Alien Skin Watercolor plug-in. Kinda cool. Definitely fun to create.

Year 3, Day 167

aye matey

originally uploaded by billaday.

After a few months, I finally used my Disneyland pass. I met up with my old friend Rob!, and we hit Pirates right away. Good times for sure.

Camera choice for the day:
When hanging out with friends, I almost always bring my point-and-shoot in my pocket. This time, I also brought my dSLR with my 50mm f1.4 lens. This setup is great cuz the lens is fixed (doesn't zoom), so it is pretty small and easy to carry around. Definitely glad I brought the fancier camera. I gotta do that more often.

Year 3, Day 166

a sidewalk lunch with Chris

originally uploaded by billaday.

I'm happy with how this shot of Chris came out. His cap, mixed with Downtown Oakland's atmosphere, led me to a more vintage processing. It fits his personality, too. Check out the shot large on black. You can see the halation (glow) and the grain nicely.

Year 3, Day 165

Congratulations Divine Master

originally uploaded by billaday.

Today Annie earned a masters in divinity.

I got a bit lucky with this shot. The graduate exit line got backed up and Annie stopped right in front of me. Although... I was prepared for this shot. By testing my flash on graduates leaving earlier, I made sure I had the right amount of flash thrown at her. Luck? Talent? I once heard a Samuel Goldwyn quote:
The harder I work, the luckier I get."

And I think that I have to call my little sister O Divine Master before addressing her now. ;)

Year 3, Day 164

a formal rose

originally uploaded by billaday.

Getting ready for Annie's graduation up in Berkeley. I might need a tie.

Year 3, Day 163

Welcome to our Deep Blue Sea

originally uploaded by billaday.

This photo is a big reason why you haven't seen many photo-a-day updates lately. Open House in kindergarten is crazy! Do you see the underwater sea we created?

Year 3, Day 162

the long and winding (and distorted) road

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've been teaching a class through University of La Verne. It's not in La Verne, though, it's in Whittier. This has been my first time at Rio Hondo College. Aside from the large amounts of hills, I noticed that there is a lot of thick decorative glass. Here's what it looks like at night.

Year 3, Day 161

meteorite storm

originally uploaded by billaday.

Prepare for impact.

Year 3, Day 160

battle of the cupcake

originally uploaded by billaday.

I see one cupcake and two people. I don't remember who got to eat it.

Year 3, Day 159

rear view mirrors

originally uploaded by billaday.

View On Black, and watch where you're driving.

Year 3, Day 158

digital projection is a beautiful thing

originally uploaded by billaday.

We have a new movie theater: AMC Glendora. Every theater has digital projection. That means that the picture never has scratches on it. It is the best suburban movie theater I've been to yet. Disclaimer: real movie theaters, like the Mann Chinese, are still far better.

Year 3, Day 157

inside the gears of a clock tower

originally uploaded by billaday.

Take a guess at what this is... then scroll down.

Before I tell you, lemme tell you why I like my Canon point-and-shoot. I can bring it with me everywhere I go. I can get very close to objects. The lens is small, so it can squeeze into tight spaces.

This is the inside of a running electricity meter. It's an 1/8 sec. exposure, so enough light got in, but the gears aren't blurred.

This is another shot that never would have been if it weren't for the photo-a-day project. It was late at night, and I hadn't taken a (remotely) interesting photo all day. I was looking for a late night shot, and stumbled upon this. Kinda cool.

Year 3, Day 156

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart

originally uploaded by billaday.

Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.
-Carl Jung

Year 3, Day 155

Stop ahead, behind, and under ahead

originally uploaded by billaday.

This is a weird road. This is not photoshopped. It is rotated 180 degrees.

Year 3, Day 154

The Rosedale Project: a fence without homes

originally uploaded by billaday.

Before beginning my photo-a-day project three years ago, I was thinking of photo projects. I thought of documenting the Rosedale housing development, from start to finish. The big problem was that, at the time, I only have a film camera, so it was expensive to take pictures. Inevitably, I missed a couple important steps in the demolition of the Monrovia Nursery to make room for houses. I still drive through the "new" development and marvel at how much uglier houses are than flowers. Ironically, the development of this land has frozen, since nobody wants to buy expensive houses in Glendora.

My original goal with this shot was to capture downtown Los Angeles from afar. As I moved around looking for a good perspective (and avoiding power lines), I became increasingly interested in this fence. As it turns out, the silhouette of the fence leading into the foothills was the best capture today.

This looks nice large on black. You can see the details as the fence's silhouette fades into the foothill's silhouette. Thanks Photoshop Curves.

Year 3, Day 153

drive thru view of the Orange Bang dispenser

originally uploaded by billaday.

El Amigo is one of the places. So much character throughout the restaurant. If you're ever around, go get some rice and machaca tacos. Yum.

Year 3, Day 152

small dog, big head

originally uploaded by billaday.

Parking in Old Town Pasadena can be challenging, at best. The upside to terrible parking is being around to find shots like this (while driving around, and around).

Year 3, Day 151