Where did summer go? - North Bay Photography

The past few months have been really crazy, which is great. Business is going really well, and I can't complain. What I'm most happy about is that on top of my usual web and design work, I've been getting a lot of photography jobs lately.  This welcome addition to the workload has been partly responsible for my lack of posts, and my lack of regular sleep.

A lot of this photography has been for the City of North Bay's Tourism and Economic Development departments. There have also been some athletics, coins, political figures, an author, and a wedding thrown in the mix... oh, and a pretty cool dentist too!

I could say, and show a lot about each of these, but there just isn't enough time in the day for that right now. Instead, I'll just say how happy I am to have the opportunity to work on such a wide variety of projects from one day to the next.

Here's a little sneak peek at some of shots I've taken over the past few months (click the image to open it in a new window, then click it again to enlarge)...

The Old Obsession is Back!

I spent most of my teen years playing basketball, watching basketball, playing b-ball video games, dreaming about basketball, covering my walls with any basketball imagery I could find. Well, you get the idea. I was obsessed.

I stopped playing when I was 18 or  so I guess. I'm not sure why, but I'm assuming alcohol and self-induced teen drama probably had something to do with it in the beginning. Then came college, family, work, business, etc... No basketball. A few times over the years, I tried to get into the routine of going to the nearest schoolyard and throwing the ball around, but it never stuck.

At about six this morning, I was laying in bed and decided to hop out, go for a little jog, then throw the basketball around a bit. A bit turned into 2 and a half hours, until I figured it was time to come back home and get some work done. I went outside of a school nearby where I spent a lot of time playing back in the day, and it felt great. I definitely wasn't moving quite as smoothly as I once did, but there's something that just felt natural and comforting about being there. Like visiting an old friend.

Back in high school, the only place I was comfortable was on the court. Well, the outdoor court anyway. When it came to playing for the school team, I was so preoccupied with the fact that I was not well liked (short, scrawny, shy geek who didn't know anyone... easy to make fun of) that I was nervous and even afraid to touch the ball. I don't think I ever even took a single shot in the two years I played on the team. I've always regretted that.

Anyway, when it came to street ball, it was a different story. I was very confident, in control, and enjoyed making people look bad. It was the complete opposite of the rest of my life at the time. Being there today I found myself remembering a lot of the moments and shots & passes I made in the games I played so long ago. I don't know why I remember it all so well, but like I said I was obsessed, and those were some of the only moments I didn't feel like an idiot back then.

I guess you could say those were my glory days... with absolutely no glory because there were no fans, crowds, or any record that any of those matches ever took place at all. hah. Maybe I dreamt it all up.

Here are a few pictures from this morning. It really took me back, but I wish someone else would have showed up to play. I miss the competition. 

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Freeze!

Ok, so with a number of projects on hold, I was planning on doing some running around yesterday but then Jaden wasn't feeling well, so she stayed home from school and I was sidelined for the day. 

I worked on as many things as I could, and she chilled on the couch watching Meerkat Manor. I don't care about meerkats, but the way they filmed and edited that series to be like a soap opera is pretty impressive.

Anyway, after a few hours, I felt the need to play around a little so I set up my camera on a tripod in the living room, went in the backyard, and started acting like a goof.  "What are you doing?... Why are you doing that?... You're crazy!". That's about all Jaden could say. It was the first sign of a smile I had seen all day, so I didn't mind that she was looking at me like I was a freak.

Anyway, a little bit of editing later, and I've got myself one silly little video. Check it!...