France on Film

I'm a 'to-do list" maker and developing my rolls of film from my April trip to France has been on my list since I got back. I'm pleased to say I finally got the first one done and there are some great shots in there. They came out well even though I did a number of things wrong. I put this roll in the development tank months ago - and while I didn't think that would effect it - I didn't know for sure. Then when developing it I accidently poured the stop bath in before the developer - I did the whole development routine before realizing what I had done. I rinsed the film a few times and started over. Finally - when I went to hang dry the film I knocked a dirty rafter worrying me that the film would dry very dusty. Despite all the results were really good! 

'Splorin

The owner of Dirty River Bicycle Works had become a really good friend of mine over the last few years. We spend a lot of time together and I have made some videos for him and also shot some photos and he helps me fix all of my vintage bikes. As a thank you/trade/sponsorship he built me a Raleigh Tamland 2 with a mix of components we had. It is my first modern gravel bike and it is a lot of fun. Last weekend was so nice that I went out and put it through its paces on all kinds of surfaces - old oil roads, wet Towpath, abandoned Akron roads etc. I brought my GoPro and made a short movie highlighting some of the adventures.

New Year

So I wound down 2018 with a some great people at the studio - a few of whom are pictured above. I know some people aren't huge fans of resolutions but I like to take the time to reflect and set some goals. When I was writing at this time last year I really believed it would be the year of getting back to personal projects - more analog film, more YouTube videos and things like that. In fact it didn't work out like that at all. I shot more videos and photos than ever before - but it was mostly for work. Most of the personal projects came from my travels. That being said my biggest goal had always been to a professional photographer and now it is to grow my business - so I'm not mad at all that things didn't go as planned. 

Year in Photos 2018

I just posted the annual 'Year in Photos' blog. Same as every year - two of my favorite photos from each month of the year. Check it out an let me know what you think HERE. Above is a honorable mention from our April trip to France.

Tall Tales +

Otis, Ben and I rode out to the Whiskerton Holiday Party and then onto Akron Glassworks to see Tall Tales play(where we met more friends). What a couple of super cool spaces! After that I headed to Highland Square to see a few old friends who were in town. An all-in-all awesome evening. I brought my Canon 6D with a 24mm f/1.4  - not wanting my 5D on the bike ride and all around town(even though I always miss the 5D and lens selection when I don't have it). 

Fat Bike Delivery

Downtown Akron Partnership had ordered a couple of fat bikes from Dirty River Bicycle Works so they could start up a bicycle food deliver service in their footprint - it should be helpful to businesses on both sides with all of the construction. I do work for DAP and Dirty River so I was on hand to cover the event. 

Deck the Hall 2018

Going to see the lights at Stan Hywet has become a family tradition. There have been a few years where I couldn't make it because of work but I think the rest of them have been doing it for over a decade. This was a cold one - there have also been snowy nights and warm nights - it is Akron - you never know what you are going to get. This year we did go a little earlier though so I ended up running around a bit and catching some sunset light before we all wandered the grounds together. 

Wooly Pig Farm Brewing

Erin had bought me a gift card for Wooly Pig Farm Brewery for my birthday last August and we finally made our way down there on Saturday afternoon/evening. It is kind of out there in the country, down 77s and 36 with West Lafayette being the nearest town. To be honest I expected about four average beers on tap in a cool, rustic location - but it was so much more than that - they had a big selection of interesting and fantastic beers(in a cool, rustic location). ….and of course - wooly pigs. 

10 Years

So 10 years ago today I launched this blog with the above photo and this text:
"My new blog - about photography. I'm going to try and post a picture everyday....and write some other stuff."
I didn't ever quite keep up with my goal of one post everyday but I did always work to find something new to post - a new technique, camera, film, place etc. Through that process I ended up learning and growing a ton as a photographer.

Shammas Kick Off

My friend Shammas Malik is running for Akron City City Council - Ward 8. The current council woman is giving up her seat to run at-large. It is a short campaign season because in Akron the primary is pretty much the election(since a republican has a very hard time winning here). Shammas asked me to photograph the kick-off event at Akrona Gallery(I had also shot his campaign promo material). Having someone as intelligent, thoughtful, and with a younger fresh perspective on Akron City Council will be awesome and I fully believe he will do a fantastic job if elected. 

Shade in Ann Arbor

My friend Rick and I headed up to Ann Arbor last weekend to see Pete Souza speak- he was Barak Obama's Whitehouse photographer. We went the day before to have some time to do a little bit of exploring and we stayed with Rick's niece and her husband. They have a beautiful home in the woods just a few minutes from downtown. Pete Souza was promoting his new book 'Shade' where he juxtaposes the grace, humor and intelligence of President Obama with the current guy, which he calls "Minus". This book actually started as Instagram posts where he would post an image of Barak that contrasted with the current news - go give him a follow on IG - it is worth it. 

Thanksgiving Weekend: Part One

On Thanksgiving we did something a little bit different - we went over to my sister's father-in-law's house. Most of our two families know each other fairly well and it was a really good time. I had my portrait lighting in the car from the job the night before and set it up and took some family portraits for everyone. I'm not posting those here but I did post some of the fun test shots. On Friday my family started at the Northside Marketplace(which was also hosting Crafty Mart) and then bounced around to a few breweries. We finished off the day with the tree lighting fireworks. 

The Dreemers & White Lighter

Last Wednesday we went out to Annabel's to catch some of our friends' bands. I had come directly from a job so I had my camera with me - although I only photographed the first two bands - White Lighter and The Dreemers. I shot some images with my flash but most of them high ISO. There were a few good ones in there - check 'em out. 

Back to Boston

I returned to Boston to visit my friend Eric and his fiancé Martha - we also met up with Colleen(Erin's best friend) who had recently moved to town. I had a good mix of solo-exploring, going out with the friends, and some relaxing as well. Boston is a really fun city to roam and photograph - I think a life there would be tough though. 

Museum in Autumn

On Friday I was walking down High Street on my way to my car after a long day of shooting when I looked up at the beautiful, changing leaves in the garden of the Akron Art Museum. I really wanted to get home as I was pretty beat....but then I also noticed the dramatic sky over the building. I couldn't help myself - I spent the next 45 minutes or so taking photos around the garden. The colorful trees and plants looked so great against the grey backdrops of the museum and the sky. I haven't shot very much Fall foliage this year because I have been too busy with actual work - I guess it is kind of funny that I ended up doing it in a downtown instead of the woods like years past. Anyways - here are a few of my favorite images. 

Halloween Charity Ball 2018

The Halloween Charity Ball is always one of my favorite events to shoot. It is fun to photograph people in costume dancing and having fun and it also makes a bunch of money for great charities. The costume contest is always a highlight to as the contestants work the crowd(see above). Here is a small slice of some of my favorite images - check out their website for them all:
Halloween Charity Ball Website

Marietta by Backroads

I had only ever been through Marietta for work and never really had the chance to check it out - so I suggested it to Erin for a quick Fall get-a-way. We set Google Maps for "no highways" and took off on Sunday morning. It was a beautiful drive roughly mirroring the path of the Ohio and Erie Canal. We made a few stops on the way down and the way back and took in Marietta's long history on foot and on the bicycles. 

Bike Packing to Massilon

On Saturday afternoon Erin and I loaded up our bikes and rode down to River's Edge Campground a few miles outside of Massillon. The campground is only for Towpath users and its a really nice spot with a firepit and benches overlooking the Tuscarawas River. We made a few brew and diner stops along the way. It was a fun but short getaway.