Aspen burns hot and fast, great for cooking a meal quickly, but not so much for a long fire into the night. But the warmth is wonderful.

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Another of my nightclub reviews. I actually liked the club, probably because it wasn’t trying to be the latest, greatest thing.

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Shot at the 2010 America’s Family Pet Expo

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Here are some of my latest shots. I am planning to create a “Forever Home” book specifically for this rescue, and will be getting shots of some of these pups in their foster homes as well.

Families that foster really are special, as they know these dogs are only there temporarily. Once they have a family adopt them, they’re gone. Has to be tough.

Trying to get the rest of the photography done in the next few weeks…

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Shot in the billiard room at Hearst Castle

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A sunny summer day at the Magic Kingdom

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There is a quiet spot near Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland. Snow White’s Grotto is usually quiet and cool, and a nice break from the crowds.

In the grotto, in addition to a wishing well are alabaster figures of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. This was the first image I captured there.

To find the grotto, simply stay to the right of the castle as you face it, and follow the path to the castle. Or, go through the castle entrance and turn right once you emerge from the entrance. Look for an archway to the right and you’ll find the grotto beyond.

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So, I took a few photos today of my latest culinary effort – making homemade dill pickles with no salt. I love a cold crisp dill with a good snap, but the store brands are loaded with sodium. So I’m trying this new recipe. Which is why I wanted to get a nice shot of the completed jar.

I snapped off a couple of quick shots, popped the SD card in my laptop, and … WTF? They were all blurry. I though maybe it was the viewfinder that was off, or something weird. So I adjusted the viewfinder to it’s best, and shot again. More blurriness. Then I remembered that a friend had mentioned that a couple of my shots lately seemed blurry.

I tried a couple more times, to no avail. I was able to rescue the image (the one above), but there’s no doubt, there’s a problem with my camera.

It’s been through a lot. It’s nearly eight years old, and has had a series of issues develop over time. I have had to shoot in manual mode for about four years because the light sensor that calculates exposure is burned out. Now, my guess is that the mount for the image sensor has been jostled and is out of place. Even a minute movement of that sensor would make it virtually impossible to focus.

The last time I tried to get the camera fixed (the light sensor) the estimate was $220. I;m sure it will be far higher than that to get the image sensor aligned. Which then begs the question – is it worth repairing? If the cost of the repair is over $300, it;s half the cost of a newer, more capable camera.

Of course, the other side of that coin is that I have no money for either the repair or the new camera. But it never hurts to start a list. You never know – maybe a rich relative will deed me enough money to be independently wealthy. Or I could hit the lotto.

So, here’s a little wish list, in case that relative is reading. Couldn’t hurt, right?

• Camera – Pentax K5 - Why? Well, because it’s a Pentax, all the lenses I currently have will be work with it. And I have some lenses I really like. But it also has newer capabilities including in camera HDR and 1080p HD video. Which means I can shoot all kinds of things with the same camera – and the same lenses.
• Lens – Sigma 50-500mm Zoom – I have a 50mm prime lens that is awesome for portraits and street photography. I also have a 14-28mm zoom that gives me good wide angle shots. This lens would replace my 70-200mm, giving me good close-in shots while allowing me to shoot great sport shots, like surfers from the beach.
• Photo Lighting – Because of the troubles with my existing camera, I really haven’t researched the lights, but ideally a three light system with softboxes would do everything I’d want.
• Vehicle – My poor car is on it’s last legs. The engine has a small crack in the head somewhere that lets moisture get into two of the cylinders. The transmission is going out, sometimes refusing to shift out of first gear, and usually not shifting back down into it. It’s 8 years old, it’s seen over 140,000 miles. Frankly, I’d love to own another VW Bus. I’ve owned a ’63 and a ’69 (the ’63 was my favorite). They’re great vehicles and a lot of fun to drive – and they can carry a lot of stuff.
• A Home – Yup. We’re getting into big stuff. But it’s a wish list, right? All I want is a home of my own. We’ve had a rough time for the last couple of years, having to move because we lost our place to live, moving in with friends, then squeezing into a small apartment. We get regular attacks of ants. We have small “yard” where my grill is located, but I can’t use it because the smoke goes straight up into my neighbors apartment. The dishwasher is too small to wash more than 2 meals worth of dishes, and the kitchen is tiny. I just want a place that’s ours, where we can feel at home. Where we can have a dog (a real dog; sorry small dog lovers). A yard where I can use my grill. Nothing fancy, just a place of our own.
• Function Of My Heart – Told ya I was getting into the big stuff. As I type, my heart is feeling the length of the day. My chest constantly feels like there has been a section carved out. Not very painful, more like hollow. It may get better, it may not. But I feel it just walking. I want to be able to hike again, to move quickly, without having to worry about going too fast. I want to be close to where I used to be.
• Family – My daughter asked me the other day when I would get married again. I don’t have an answer for that. I know what I would like. I know what she would like. And somehow, those are both the same thing. But there’s a piece missing. Well, not exactly missing. We know where it is. It just isn’t here. Which makes it tougher. This may be the biggest item on the wish list. And the one I seem to have the least ability to grant myself.

I’ll revisit this list periodically, but it’s a pretty strong list. Maybe I’ll get lucky and buy a good Quick Pick ticket. But that won’t get me my whole list. Some things I just have to keep wishing for.

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It’s been about three months since I have had a chance to go out and do a photo outing. I took the opportunity yesterday to head down to the Huntington Beach pier with a buddy and get some shots of the surfers.

This particular shot is my favorite of the bunch. It shows the power of the waves out there, and the power of the surfer shredding them. And they are in harmony, not one against the other, but both creating a flow and a motion.

Yes, I’m waxing poetic. It was a beautiful day.

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UPDATE 6/9/11: I have been asked if I have the interview from the article. As I was a freelancer on this article, I went back to the magazine’s website and they are only archiving back to 2008. This article was published in 2006. I will look for the magazine in my stacks and see if I can locate it. If I can, I will post an excerpt.

Another of my pics while I was freelancing for a poker magazine. I got to attend the Legends tournament with celebs and poker pros. Jean Smart and her husband and her husband Richard Gilliland were both playing, and I got to sit with Jean for about 15 minutes after she busted out. She was warm, kind and funny, and it was a pleasure to get to interview her for the article.

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