Monday, December 26, 2016

UK Ireland 2016 Collage



Just some of the places we visited this year.  God is good.

Clockwise:  (1) Chester, England; (2) Stone Henge, England; (3) East Gate Clock, Chester, England; (4) Phone Booth in London, England; (5) Stream in the Ring of Kerry, Ireland; (6) sheep grazing in the Ring of Kerry, Ireland; (7) Bath Abbey, England.

#iPhone #SimplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #collage

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

I love the nightlife

When you've got women all over town

The women in Limerick know how to party.  They dress in style.  They conform to one another.  They want real action.  And they like to go where the people dance.  They really love the nightlife.  They want to boogie.  On the disco round, yeah!

#simplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #iPhone6 #AliciaBridges #80s #disco #boogie
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Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Interpreting St Stephen's Green

Eighty percent of success is showing up. 

Shot with iPhone 6 at St Stephen's Green, Dublin.  So I sent this image to some people and requested their interpretation of it.

Scorsese:  I think they are heading to bomb the police department.  Possibly they are from the IRA.

Tarantino:  Seems like a sequel to Reservoir Dogs.  They are planning to rob a bank.

Woody Allen:  Are they walking backwards?  Because I think it's brilliant.


#simplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #StStephensGreen #Dublin #iPhone6
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Monday, December 19, 2016

Still Life with Fruit Basket

The cool thing about shooting still life is my subjects never complain.  

This is from the archive.  I shot the image back in 2008.

I think it was the time when KC returned from Baltimore.  Or was it?  My mind is foggy now.  But I remember it was Christmas season.  She took a bunch of fruits, and added some cones and Heavenly Bamboo from our back yard, and proceeded to create a holiday fruit basket.  I didn't want to let a great work go to waste, so I decided to document it.  At that time, I was just getting serious into photography.  Didn't know much what I was doing.  It was with an entry level DSLR - a Canon Rebel XT (or 350D if you're in Europe or Australia) and 18-55mm kit lens.  Didn't know much how to use the flash either.  But the picture turned out pretty decent - if I may say so. 

Wishing you a safe and grand holiday.  

#FruitBasket #CanonRebelXT #KitLens 

Friday, December 16, 2016

Can you hear me knocking

Shot with iPhone 6 on Pembroke Street.

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool." Richard P. Feynman

The Georgian Doors are part of the established visual attractions in Dublin.  Specifically, they can be found mostly along Fitzwilliam Square.  This one was shot along Pembroke Street.  Probably the most shot door in that  area.  I think it's because of the red brick walls complimenting the foliage.  Some tourist guides will tell you that at one time the doors were originally painted with the same neutral color.  Probably washout grey or something similar.  That didn't last long.   After leaving the pubs in the evening, drunken men would be knocking on the wrong door.  This irritated some people so they started painting their doors with whatever colors they fancied - so as to distinguish one door from another.  Don't you ever believe this story.  The truth is even with distinguishable door, the men of this day - besotted from a night of drinking -  can still be seen knocking on somebody's door.

And you mat find yourself
This is not my beautiful housing 
you may find yourself
this is not my beautiful wife - Talking Heads

#GeorgianDoor #Ireland #Dublin #simplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #FitzwilliamSquare #PembrookeStreet
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Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Wish you were here

Phone Booth in London
No one uses the phone booths anymore but they are still ubiquitous.

#SimplyTrafalgar #London #England #Unionjack #PhoneBooth

Monday, December 12, 2016

Glimpse of Venice, California


Jamal:  Where do I sign up for California to secede from the United States?

Oprah:  You can try that T-shirt store back there.

Penny:  Like ... where did the other half of my sneakers go?

#streetPhotography #VeniceCalifornia

Saturday, December 10, 2016

Ginny, Sidney and the Olfactory Afternoon Delight (Or choose a topping)



© 2014 Rob Castro

Sidney:  Hmmm … I can smell the organic garlic in your hair.

Ginny:  Shut up.  Can't you tell that I haven't shampooed in weeks?

Sidney: Oh, is that why you are wearing that silly hat?

Ginny:  You mean this one?  I found it at the Asian food mart.  They were using it to measure the jasmine rice.

Sidney:  Hmmm… jasmine rice.

#streetPhotography #NewYorkFleaMarket

Thursday, December 08, 2016

Existential Thoughts at Waterford

Shot with iPhone 6 from our hotel.

 The day is dawning.  My entire consciousness shrinks before me now.  It eludes me - fleeting like a whisper of breath of a dying heathen.   It is  pure futility to fight it.  All sublime.  And yet boring.  I mean it's cool.  But it's not like standing close to the edge.  I think it's time I have my breakfast.

#simplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #HighlightsOfIreland #Philosophy #Existentialsim #Waterford #Ireland

Tuesday, December 06, 2016

The Mighty St George

Shot with iPhone 6.  St George at the V&A Museum, London.

 In the tenth-century Georgian narrative, the story begins in the fictional city of Lasia, which was plagued by a fire breathing dragon.  

To appease the dragon, the people of the city fed it two sheep every day. When they ran out of sheep, they started feeding it their children.  This was done through lottery.  One time, the lot fell on the king's daughter.  The king, in his grief, told the people they could have all his gold and silver and half of his kingdom and unlimited access to his credit cards if his daughter were spared.  Ah, but the people were too scared of the dragon so they refused. 

The daughter, dressed as a chicken salad, was sent out to be fed to the dragon.    By chance, St George rode past where the dragon dwelled.  Seeing that the princess was in distress, St George negotiated with the dragon.  

Being a pacifist, St George believe that any dire situation can be dealt with reasonable arguments.  The dragon was adamant that it be given the entire kingdom.  But St George was able to bargain.  He promised that the dragon could have Brooklyn instead, and that its name would be remembered as Puff the Magic Dragon.  Not knowing where Brooklyn was, and the name Puff sounded exotic, the dragon agreed.  St George gave the dragon a one way ticket to New York, and then took the princess with him to Estonia.  There they got married and had five happy children.  

The rest is history.

#V&A Museum #SaintGeorge #iPhone

Monday, December 05, 2016

Off with his head



I was taking pictures of the Queen of Hearts when one of the the Playing Card Soldiers scolded me because it was unlawful to take photos of the queen.  At that very moment, I heard a familiar shriek that could only mean my life was endangered.

"Off with his head!"

#AliceInwonderland #Denver #QuuenOfHearts #RedQueen

Saturday, December 03, 2016

Waiting at BJs

Shot with iPhone 6.  The unberable lightness of being and having feelings that are unbearable.

Loneliness:  Same as sadness because one has no friends or company.  Used in sentence as "feelings of depression and loneliness".  Or the quality of being unfrequented and remote.  Isolation.  Used in sentence as "the loneliness of the waiting for one's beer while everybody is enjoying their drink".

Emptiness:  While Christianity and Western sociologists and psychologists view a state of emptiness as a negative, unwanted condition, in some Eastern philosophies such as Buddhist philosophy and Taoism, emptiness (Śūnyatā) is a realized achievement.  Really.

Empty chairs:  Evidence that no one is around.  Or business is not doing very well.


#iPhone6 #restaurantBar # LonelyPerson #Alone

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Fern somewhere around Clan Donald Skye

Shot with iPhone 6.  Somewhere at Clan Donald Skye, Armadale, Scotland.
People sometimes asked me what kind of a photographer I am.  I tell them that I'm really an artist who happens to know how to use a camera.  I will shoot images of almost anything.  My preference is to shoot portraits of people.  If I can capture something beautiful inside a person, I know it would be special.  It's almost seeing the person's soul.  I've heard that Native Indians were wary of having their photos taken because the process could steal their souls.  Not sure if this is true or not.  But I digress.  Yes, I will take photos of anything - anything that I like at that moment.  Why do I do it?  Perhaps, because I may never pass that way again.

Hope your day is going well.

#ClanDonaldSkye #Armadale #Scotland #fern #iPhone #TrafalgarInsider #simplyTrafalgar

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Please don't step on the dead leaves

Autumn leaves at Blarney.
I take pictures of almost anything.  Silly things like pencils, and dried leaves.  Such as this one.  I shot it while trying to get lost on our way inside the compounds of Blarney.  Earlier, Rose and I climbed up the Blarney Castle so she could kiss the rock, which was known to give one the gift of gab.  I don't think it worked because she couldn't convince me to kiss the rock. The kiss, however, is not casually achieved. To touch the stone with one's lips, the participant must ascend to the castle's peak, then lean over backwards on the parapet's edge. Hence, half of your body is dangling.  At least you don't see what is below.

#SimplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider #BlarneyCastle #Blarney #AutumnLeaves

Monday, November 28, 2016

Call me Ishmael



In 1954, film director John Huston filmed part of Moby-Dick in a small town in Ireland called Youghal (pronounced like a Texan "y'all'), with the town standing in for New Bedford. The town of Youghal provided the perfect backdrop to the original story, written by Herman Melville in 1851.  The town also provided ample supply of  booze such as Guinness beer and Irish whiskey to the crew working on the film.  It has been rumored that the actor Gregory Peck who played Captain Ahab always had a problem deciding which leg required walking with the wooden prosthetic as he was always drunk on the set.  That obviously made him irritated, which one cannot help but  notice in the movie.  As of this writing, our tour group is waiting for Moby Dick to show up.  Oh wait, rainbow alert!

#simplytrafalgar #trafalgarinsider #Ireland #HiglightsOfIreland


Saturday, November 19, 2016

The Dolomites





Had a tour and quick lunch at the trilingual town of Bolzano, and then head to Dolomite Mountains.  This image shows a spectacular view of the famous mountain plateau.  Afterwards, we had apple strudel and drinks at the top of the Renon.  Rose had coffee (or was it soda?) and I tried the local white wine (the folks in Northern Italy prefer white wine to red).  We took some pictures of the Alps and that was where I accidentally burned my camera strap with my cigar.

#Simplytrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Goodnight Cardiff

Viewed from our hotel room in Cardiff.


Our last night in Cardiff.  Not much going going on here.  It is the capital and largest city in Wales.  I thought of just heading down to the bar and chat with the bartender.  I then remember that there is no bar in our hotel.  We are holed in this small hotel and there is nothing much to do.  I'll try to count how many street lights are out there.

#Cardiff #England #iPhone6 #urbanism #architecture #SimplyTrafalgar #bokeh

Monday, November 14, 2016

The secret of good tasting Guinness - it's in the water



Man made lake in St Stephen's Green in Dublin.  In 1916, the Irish Citizen Army took over the park and dug defensive positions against the British army.  A short time later, gunfire was temporarily halted to allow the park's groundsmen to feed the local ducks.  Awww.

#Simplytrafalgar #Ireland #StStepensGreen #duck #park #Dublin

Tuesday, November 01, 2016

Alice in Denver Wonderland

Off with their heads!
According to Wikipedia, Alice in Wonderland is considered to be one of the best examples of the literary nonsense genre.  But who cares?  We love it.  First published in 1865, the book has never been out of print.  The book has been translated into 174 different languages, including Neumaptsian, Esbotenian and 327Mxyzmptlok languages that nobody seem to know where they came from.  

Taken at Downtown Denver.

#travel #xpro1 #35mm #Denver #poster #NothingIsRealAndThereIsNothingToGetHungAbout


Monday, October 31, 2016

The Doctor is coming to your house

He's making house visits.

The Doctor was last seen roaming in the streets York, England.  He is expected to come to your neighborhood tonight.  Please welcome him and treat him well.  Otherwise ...

Have a safe Halloween.

#Halloween #York #SimplyTrafalgar

Saturday, October 29, 2016

After the rain in SoCal


Hope your weekend is doing well.

It rained the other day.  It is getting to feel autumn here in SoCal.  Although officially autumn started weeks ago, it still felt like summer.

As I mentioned yesterday, I took out my Carl Zeiss 100mm Makro and started shooting macros again.  I thought it would interesting to see if my vision on macros have changed since I last shot with this lens.  I think that I am more into the bokeh and overall softness of the background in contrast to the main subject.  My older macros seem to be more tightly focused even on the background.  Nowadays, I'm loving the openness that a f/2 aperture can deliver.  This image is one of them.

Interesting too is I never took advantage of the wide aperture that the lens offers.  I was mostly shooting at f/8 in those days.  Yet one pays a premium on the wider aperture lens.  I knew what it can do.  But maybe I just did not have that vision.  Until now.


#macro #CarlZeiss100mmMakro #autumn #fallcolors 

Friday, October 28, 2016

Birthday Flower

This is how the inside of your brain looks like.
Just another flower shot.

I completed photographing people at our church for our new phone directory so I can go back to shoot fun stuff.  Not that the church gig was not fun.  It was.  But I was under pressure to complete the project.  While with personal projects, I usually take my time.

I'm not even sure what this flower is.  Rose bought it last week to decorate the house as we were having guests over to celebrate her sister's 64th birthday.  I used my Carl Zeiss 100 mm Makro Lens on this one.  I haven't used that in a while so it was kind of refreshing to shoot macros again.

Hope you enjoy.

#BirthdayFlower #Macro #CarlZeiss100mmMakro 

Thursday, October 27, 2016

1897

East Gate clock in Chester, England.

1897 was an eventful year.

Santa Claus was confirmed to be a real woman living in Argentina.

The novel 'Dracula"was published.

The East Gate Clock in Chester, England was given as a gift to Queen Victoria.

Next to the Big Ben, the East Gate Clock  is the most photographed  clock in the world.

Shot with the iPhone 6.

Hope your day is doing well.  Cheers.

#SimplyTrafalgar #EastGateClock #ChesterEngland #Brexit #UnitedKingdom #1897

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Ben Nevis and On the Road Again

We just have to stop by at Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles.

On the way to St Andrews, we stopped by for a selfie moment at Ben Nevis.  It is the highest mountain in the British Isle.  Its highest peak is 4400 feet.  Not a whole lot compared to our mountains here in Southern California.  (Mt Baldy's peak elevation is twice that of Ben Nevis.)

Our tour director called this place the Apache Snow Mountain because one can see a patch of snow here, a patch of snow there.

Thank you, Al Gore.  If not for your work, this would have been the only remaining mountain left in Great Britain.  As you have predicted, by 2016 the sea level would have risen so high that all the other mountains would have been under water.

Shot with the iPhone 6, and post-processed using Snapseed and Silver Efex Pro 2.

#iPhone6 #SimplyTrafalgar #travel #BenNevis #Scotland #UnitedKingdom #Snapseed #SiverEfexPro2

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Rock garden predates Woodstock

This rock garden predates Woodstock.

Donald:  I have this real estate in England, and I though that we can decorate that property with a bunch of stones.  We'll call it a Rock Garden.

Bill:  England, you say.  How far is that from here?

Donald:  Well Wales is about 160 miles to my property.  It's going to take us a few days to get there.

Bill:  Well, I could use a change of scene.  My uncle lives in Salisbury, and we could stop there for tea.

Donald:  Great.  After that.  I'll invite a fledgling rock and roll band to entertain us.  They will work for beer.

Bill:  Who would that be?

Donald:  I think they call themselves the Rolling Stones.

#StoneHenge #Wales #Archeology #RockGarden #iPhone6 #SimplyTrafalgar

Friday, October 07, 2016

Loch Lomond: Rob Roy was here

Rob Roy was here.


Okay so here we were on a rink boat on the lake called Loch Lomond, and I could not find a single float vest.  I was scared to be on the water.  Always have been.  I can't swim in the open sea or in a lake.  I am so scared of water that I would not even dare to drink it.  But after a few beers, I was willing to go along with the excursion.  

Loch Lomond is is a freshwater Scottish lake, which contains many small islands.  One of the islands is famous because the outlaw Rob Roy MacGrrrregor was known to have hidden in the cave when the local Collection Agency went after him for not paying for the cattle, which he bought from the chief herder. 

Trivia Notes:   Rob Roy was tall so casting the actor Liam Neeson as him was appropriate.  On the other hand, Braveheart William Wallace was very very tall for his time - about 6’-7” - so a 5’-10” actor Mel Gibson had to be photoshopped in the movie. 


Shot with iPhone 6 … of course.

#Robroy #LochLomond #simplyTrafalgar #Scotland #travel



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Thursday, October 06, 2016

The Philosophy of People Watching

The technicolor Lucy-in-the-Sky-with-Diamond-the-Girl-with-the-Kaleidoscope-Eyes-John Lennon inspired image shot with the iPhone 6 at Chester, England.


The Roman orator Marcus Antonius or commonly known as Mark Antony once wrote, "The admiration of the crowd is usually for natural objects, whose unity is due to inward hold or to organic growth."  Whatever he was drinking I would like to have it as well.

People watching is one of activity I like to indulge.  The technicolor Lucy-in-the-Sky-with-Diamond-the-Girl-with-the-Kaleidoscope-Eyes-John Lennon inspired image was shot with the iPhone 6 at Chester, England, an old Roman town.  Our tour director claimed that a city that has a suffix "ster" meant that the Romans have colonized that place.  Hence, Manchester and Worcester were Roman towns.  Adding the suffix "shire" meant it was in that county.  Worcestershire would be a County where the Romans settled.  It is also great for enhancing the flavor of fillet mignon and other beef cuts.  Hmmm ... yum.  


Hope your day is going well.  Cheers.

#simplyTrafalgar #Chester #UnitedKingdom #shotwithiPhone6 #MarcusAntonius #MarkAntony #philosopy #SimplyTrafalgar

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Missing Out on the Melancholy

Are you going to drink that or what?
I can't wait for the weather to get colder.  It is still so warm here in SoCal.  I missed my winter coat, my cowboy boots, and my quiet desperation.  Maybe I should move to Sweden or somewhere where I can be melancholic throughout the year.  Then I'll have a good excuse to drink whiskey all night long.  Or do the Swedes prefer vodka?

#melancholy #quietDesperation #AngstandUncertainty #iPhone6

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Jane Doe

Are you dreaming my memory?
Wake me up when the election is over.

#existentialism #death #JaneDoe #RIP #allLivesMatter

Monday, September 26, 2016

The Ghost of Mary Poppins comes back


While in Thirsk, a small village in Yorkshire, I happened to observe a blue and yellow bike flying across a local tea room.  What was unusual about the bike was not so much that it was sailing by itself, but the bike did not have a chain to allow it to transport itself.  Perhaps, it was powered by some invisibly magical engine that nanny Mary Poppins rode years ago.  After all, the English had their own nutty inventions that they kept secret from the Russians.  I should ask Mrs Wiggs about that.  Assuming that she is available for some afternoon tea.  First, I had to document this phenomena.  Glad I had my iPhone 6.

#Yorkshire #UnitedKingdom #bike #teaRoom #Thirsk #MaryPoppins #iPhone6 #SimplyTrafalgar

Saturday, September 24, 2016

St Paul shops in London

"Is this an Armani?"


Alternate Reality:  London's subway is cool.  They have shopping malls, restaurants and museums.  While sauntering through the concrete underground, guess who I saw? The inscrutable apostle to the gentiles.  St Paul trying out a fashionable leopard skin tunic in one of the shopping malls.  Or was that Kris Kristofferson auditioning for a new Mel Gibson movie?

Real Reality:  This figure is the work of Alonso Berruguete (about 1489-1561).  It was the monumental altarpiece formerly in the church of San Benito Valladolid, Spain.  It is now on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

#VictoraiandAlbertMuseum #London #SimplyTrafalgar

Friday, September 23, 2016

It is about time

Why quiet desperation is the English way. 


If Picasso was a photographer, perhaps he would have composed the York Minster Cathedral this way. His fascination with cubes, triangles, rectangles and circles presented in distorted perspective.  I suppose I am giving too much credit to myself.  That is because I am really digging this image.  If you search the web for images of the York Minster, I doubt that you will find one that is like this picture.   The inclusion of the a modern clock, the two brick buildings acting as borders, and the deliberate tilt would make one think that the photographer had been drunk, which would likely be the case, or he is a postmodern genius.  Take your pick.

York Minster is what it is commonly called for the Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of St Peter.  The Minster is the seat of the archbishop of York, the second highest office of the Church of England.

Shot with the iPhone 6 on a great day blessed by the Creator.  Time was almost 4 PM.  In an hour, the church would hold its vesper.  Not the cocktail made of gin.  Although that would have been delightful.  But an evening of wonderful singing by the church choir.


Hope your day is going well.  Have a good weekend.

#YorkMinster #cathedral #CathedralAndMetropoliticalChurchOfStPeter #York #England #SimplyTrafalgar

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Now I can shoot RAW images on my iPhone (Not)

City of Chester, England shot with iPhone 6.
I was very excited when I downloaded the apple IOS 10 when it came out as it promised support for RAW image files.  [A camera raw image file contains minimally processed data from the image sensor of either a digital camera.]  In my mind, this means that I would not have to deal with the lesser quality Jpeg compressed images that come out from my iPhone 6.  To my dismay, the RAW format can only be used on the 6s, 6s plus, 7 and 7s.  Waah!  So, for now I'm stuck with jpeg images on my iPhone until I upgrade.  

The image quality of the iPhone 6 is really not that bad.  With hard work and attention to editing details, the result can be pretty satisfactory.  As is the case with the image above.  Shot in Chester, England.   The weather cooperated so I was able to capture some clouds amidst the blue sky.  It was a great day to enjoy an IPA beer.


#iPhone6 #ChesterEngland #IOS10 #travel #cityscape #SimplyTrafalgar

Death of Man

"You sure this is the way it works?"
"But being in honor, he understands it not, neither knew his excellency, but willingly subjected himself to sin and consequently to death and the curse, giving ear to the words of the devil ... he has lost all his excellent gifts which he received from God."  - Article 14, Belgic Confession


Valour and Cowardice can be seen at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.  Here Valour crushes Cowardice.  The plaster sculpture is the work of Alfred Stevens (1817-75).  This is a full size model for one of the groups on the bronze monument of the duke of Wellington in St Paul's Cathedral.


#BelgicConfession #BlackandwhitePhotography #VictoriaandAlbertMuseum #Angel #London

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Huracan Revisited


Huracan by Sofia Segovia
Publisher: Random House
Country: Mexico

"Working with publishers all over the world, we’re always delighted to see our imagery included in brilliant designs across many languages and genres. This is a selection of book covers released this summer which use our images in ways we found particularly striking. We hope you’ll find it both interesting and inspiring to see how [...]" - Arcangel Blog

Summer Book Covers From All Over the World

#BookCover #Worldwide #Huracan #SofiaSegovia #Arcangel #ArcangelBlog

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Building in London

Just another brick in the wall.
London's architecture is brilliant.  Sometimes one cannot tell if the building is historical or have just been built.  Such is this building.  It's a stone's throw away from our hotel.  It looks old but it's a newly opened office space.  Or is it a gym facility?  Or maybe it is where Dr Strangelove is making a more powerful version of the atomic bomb? Selah.

#LondonBuilding #PostModernArchitecture #SimplyTrafalgar

Monday, September 12, 2016

Ashley and Tristan

The Vow before the Kiss.

Blogger Kirk Tucker once wrote that photography is a young man's sport.  He is so right on.  Serious photographers have to haul all kinds of equipment - from lights, extra camera lenses, back up camera, tripod, light stands, spare batteries, and many more.  In addition, they should have the stamina to be running around to get the right angle, always alert to capture the moment, and yet be stealth as to not be in the way.  

I did a wedding photo shoot some years ago, and I told myself I would not do it again.  I feel I am really too old for that kind of gig.  Until, a couple of months ago, the youth pastor in our church recommended me to take pictures of the wedding ceremony of two struggling actors.  They are really nice people, working as waiter and waitress until they can find an acting job.  Hence, they don't have enough money to afford a serious photographer.  I couldn't turn them away when they asked if I could cover their wedding.  I didn't feel right to charge them what is normative in this gig.  So I basically asked them about a tenth of what others would charge.  I realized I was getting into something that was stretching my schedule.  I had to do multiple portrait shoots on that day, and still shoot the wedding.  It was a marathon for any other photographer.  For an old geezer like me, it was like climbing Mount Everest and coming back to do some yard work.  Was it worth it?  When I see the images I have captured, I cannot say it was not.  

Lots of work here but I felt blessed.  Praise God.  Selah.

#WeddingPhotography #YoungCouples #WeddingVow #Candid #LoveRules

Saturday, September 10, 2016

With every breath you take, I'll be watching you

Who is out there?

Lately, I have been wary of posting pictures of people that are not very flattering.  I believe that we are all created in the image of God, and there there is dignity in all of us.  Yet we live in a fallen world, and so our image is distorted.  The world cannot be portrayed as perfect.  While there is life and happiness, there is also suffering and death.  This is truth that I feel should be told.  

#FilmNoir #fear #Uncertainty #LEDLighting #Unsuspecting 

Friday, September 09, 2016

Kainda: I love Dylan

Repost from February 10, 2014


Yo Juzno,

Wassup?! How in da world could I have missed dis album? You know what I'm talkin' 'bout - Desire by Bob Dylan.  Where was I, and what kind of chemistry was going in my head?  Don't answer dat.  Yo, okay, dat time but I thought it was un-cool to be listening to da music of a troubadour who wore white face makeup.  Folklore acoustic guitar and janky monotone yelps – gimme a break! Back den I was only listenin' to B. B. King and Muddy on da colored radio.  Den I saw da movie The Hurricane.  You know, with da brother - Denzel Washington playing Hurricane Carter.  You remembuh boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, who was wrongly imprisoned for murder?  How dare dem leet crackers canned da brother.  But back to Dylan - All of da sudden I was having a whoa experience.  Man o man.  I came away listening to Desire with da bitter sweet feeling of melancholy realizing how flow off da wheezy dis was.  It is pure dope.

Lemme know when you gonna invite me again to your soiree.

Peace out.

Your Beautiful Sista,

Kainda

Tuesday, August 09, 2016

You are now famous

Por la autora de El murmullo de las abejas,una historia desgarradora e inolvidable

Hi Clyde,

You are now famous ... in Mexico.  The picture I took of you got in the cover of the new book by Sofia Segovia, famous novelist in the Spanish speaking world.



Thanks for letting me take your photo and letting me use it.

Juzno.

#bookcover #braggingright #arcangel #SofiaSegovia #Huracan

Saturday, July 23, 2016

Sexy Revolver Got Critiqued

Sexy revolver taken with the Lensbaby Edge 50 on loan.

My revolver photo got featured in Bryan Peterson's website.  Whoo-hoo!


Critique of revolver image starts at 11:52.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckx9F5CBkt0

Humanities class teaches that curves are passive while straight lines are aggressive.  Hence curves in images are usually rendered softly and straight lines are usually rendered sharply.  What do you get when you have both?  One conflicting sexy subject.

Perhaps, it is a controversial image.  It was one of the photos I submitted to Lensbaby when they asked me if I would be interested in using their lens for their website.  None of the photos I submitted were accepted.  Oh well.  But I think it's their loss.

#HappinessisAWarmGun #revolver #smithandwesson #686 #ServiceRevolver

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Tower of London

The first great hotel for celebrities shot on iPhone 6.

The castle was used as a prison for celebrities who were considered persons of interest.  Many figures who had fallen into disgrace, such as Elizabeth I before she became queen, and Sir Walter Raleigh (inventor of the cigarettes),  were held within its walls. This use has led to the phrase "sent to the Tower". Despite its enduring reputation as a place of torture and death, popularised by 16th-century religious propagandists and 19th-century writers, only seven people were executed within the Tower before the World Wars of the 20th century.  Among those held and executed at the Tower were Anne Boleyn, Ozzy Osbourne and Geico Gecko.

#shotOnIphone6 #iPhoneography #GreatBritain #simplyTrafalgar #TrafalgarInsider

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Eilean Donan Castle

Eilean Donan shot on iPhone 6.
Eilean Donan (Island of Donnán) is a small tidal island. It truly is an island in a sense that the castle sits on thrrrree lochs (or lakes), Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh, in the westerrrn Highlands of Scotland. 

The castle was founded in the thirrrrteenth century, and became a strrrronghold of the Clan Mackenzie and theirrrr allies the Clan Macrae, a staunch supporrrterrrr of the Jacobites. Those of you who arrrre big fans of the TV series The Outlanders arrrre well familiarrrrr with the Jacobites.

Harrrr!

#SimplyTrafalgar #BestOfGreatBritain #Scotland #Highlands #ShotOnIphone6 #iPhone6 #iPhoneography

Monday, July 11, 2016

21st Century Man

Where do we go from here.

He will have no eyes because there is nothing to see.

He will have ears but they are there just for aesthetics.  He can only hear what he wants to hear.

He will have no sense of the future that holds for him because the now is all that matters.

His fashion sense will be dictated by corporate greed.

He will live his life but it will be meaningless.  Still, he would not even know it is meaningless.

His opinion is dictated by what others like him think of.  Mainly, apathy.

He will not be able to survive a day without wifi, Netflix and Siri.

Shalom.

#existentialism #21stcenturyman #streetphotography #urbanNonsense

Saturday, July 09, 2016

What if they come for Norman?

Don't worry.

No, I promise they won't take Norman.

#Anxious #Anxiety #filmnoir #wetplate #textured

Friday, July 08, 2016

I think she may have put too much cheese

Spaghetti Vongole shot on iPhone 6

Italians will never put cheese on seafood pasta.  The owner is Italian but she knew I wanted cheese on mine.  She might have put more cheese than what usual customer wants.  But I love it that way.  She winked and told me she does that to her pasta too.  Bon appetito.

#ShotOnIphone6 #iPhone6 #iPhoneography #ItalianFood #SeafoodPasta #SpaghettiVongole

Wednesday, July 06, 2016

How I learned to love the gun

What people think of my gun.

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. - Sigmund Freud

Sometimes a gun is just a gun. - Juzno


#handgun #smith&wesson #638-3 #compactgun #revolver #Magchic #airweight #snubnose #sexyhandgun #gunporn 

Tuesday, July 05, 2016

I finally got paid

Mahmoud and his irresistible smile.

Dear Mahmoud,

For over a year now you have been enjoying fame while I have not received a single cent from the photo I took of you.  Women have been asking me if you are available.  Available for what, I asked.  You have been invited to the White House and have a beer and chat with the president.  A rather strange invitation because I know the president hates beer.  He is more of a wine snob.  But that's another issue.  You fly all over the world to promote your body tonics.  People love to hear what you say even though they don't understand Arabic.  All these because of the photo I took of you.

You see I have patient all along.  And today,  I finally got paid.  Thank you, Mahmoud.

Fondly,

Juzno


Previous Posts: 

Mahmoud is now Famous

How to Haggle with a Moroccan

#arcangel #ArcangelImages

Saturday, July 02, 2016

And so on and so forth

And so on and so forth.  Shot on iPhone 6.

The Current News on TV depress me.  And indulging in current stupid TV shows is not my thing.  Nowadays, the only thing I watched on TV is Perry Mason. The Black and White one.  The later colored series is pathetic - a fatter Mason with a toupee seems off.  But once in a while, I'll watch the Twilight Zone, which sort of inspired me to do this double exposure.   [Begin TV soundtrack here.]

It reminds of one episode where there were parallel universes.  Except in my own paltry rendition, the universes are off.  One is in Amsterdam, and the other is in Los Angeles.  Oh well.



#TwilightZone #DoubleExposure #Amsterdam #LosAnglesFreeway #simplyTrafalgar #shotOnIphone6 #iPhoneography #doubleexposure


Friday, July 01, 2016

I Got My Eye on Liverpool

The Eye of Liverpool located at the Albert Dock shot on iPhone 6.




Reporter (interviewing The Beatles):  So, is Ringo the best drummer in the world?

John (laughing):  Ringo is not even the best drummer in The Beatles.

Ringo:  Oh, come on, Johnny.  Let's not go there.  Just look at the way they cleaned up Liverpool. We now have an Eye that is so much better than the Eye of London.

George:  Yeah, too bad Paul is dead.  He would have loved to  see this.



#EyeOnLiverpool #TheBeatles #PaulIsDEad #iPhone6 #ShotOnIphone6 #iPhoneography #Simply Trafalgar #GreatBritain #Liverpool #AlbertDock

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