We are moving at the end of the month and there is nothing like a move to show you just how much useless slag you have accumulated. So why is it so often very hard to part with those tokens of remembrance? And why are all the cool words to describe such things French. Damn you souvenir Tee-shirts.

I went to the Black Rose Ball on Saturday and saw a lot of talented people at work including several photographer friends who were shooting for the Paul Mitchell School here in St. Louis. I left a little late to avoid the thunderstorms and hail that was coming down all over town. Once I got there I saw lots of interesting and inspiring stuff. I took a few photos but mostly enjoyed the show.

Last week Debbie and I flew to New York and rented an electric car to drive to the end of Long Island. We stopped at the Montauk Yacht Club and got a ship shape room with a view of the water. We didn’t go fishing but I did take a snapshot of this photo hanging on the wall.

These are iPhone photos of ship models at the Yacht Club Inn. The iPhone is great for capturing little details along the way.

Fish for dinner at the mostly empty Yacht Club restaurant. Not much is open this week in Montauk but we don’t care because the weather is perfect and it is quiet except for the sound of wind and waves. After dinner the Chef provides marshmallows and wooden skewers for the fire blazing outside on the patio. We providee shortbread cookies dipped in dark chocolate that we brought with us from home but never had time to eat until now.

This one is from the big camera. If you look closely you can see the big black dog on the right. We arrived too late to take a tour of the light house but I was happy just taking photos as the sun set.

This is a good example of what the weather was like all week. Cool nights, sunny days.

They say that Montauk is a drinking village with a fishing problem. This guy seems to have an opinion on the subject and he doesn’t mind sharing it.

A mess of nets and rope… Tools of the fishing trade.

“The Villas” nestled in between the Coast Guard Station and the Yacht Club. I love the shadow of myself in the corner showing my inner tourist. It’s a salute to the snapshot, often under-rated but so clever and precise at showing us the world as it is and making us hungry for all those details that we once thought of as distractions.

On Saturday I had a little photo shoot with Beth Graveman and Steve Yancey. The general theme was travel so we put together a few sets in the apartment building. We started out with some shots meant to look like an old bus station where Boo finds ways to pass time before starting her cross country trip.

Boo finds ways to pass the time including a little friendly flirting. Be careful Boo!

Boo takes on a couple of very odd jobs along the way to pay travel expenses and soon discovers the performer within.

You never know what skills might come in handy on a long trip.

Boo makes a few extra bucks selling vacation photos to other passengers when they make an unexpected stop at a small town gas station. A strange man snaps pictures from inside his car and then drives away…

Sweet success as Boo arrives in a small beach town and finds a charming motel with a pool. Tonight she will dream of being discovered by a well known movie director on vacation and starting her new life as a famous actress…

Lately whenever I have trouble sleeping, instead of counting sheep, I turn on the television and watch late night reruns of the original Mission Impossible series with Peter Graves. The show begins as Mr. Phelps gets his mission (if he should choose to accept it… and he always does). The implausible scenario for the show is presented on small tape recorder and at the end of the tape the message self-destructs in a cloud of smoke. Next (a good time to grab a snack) we get to the lame part of the show (actually the opening credits) where the main character Jim Phelps, carefully selects the members of his Impossible Mission Force… Hey, it’s the same four people as last week… and the week before that… and… Actually, they do switch it up once in a while, probably at the beginning of each season. As a bonus (or a relief) there are all those fabulous character actors… I mean, “Guest Stars.”

Wind me up. Let me go. I have a camera inside my phone.

Should I go left or should I go right? I don’t really know.

I guess I’ll take five and then decide.

It’s cold outside and there is a light rain falling that threatens to turn into snow and bury the world in silence. Maybe not tonight but sometime in the future or perhaps the past. The mind wanders easily in both directions of that dimension, occasionally helped along by things that appear in strange places as if from an invisible or long vanished hand. I am a traveler of both time and space…

The world is not shrinking… It is only our imaginations that wither on the vine from too much easy entertainment purchased by subscription without thought or effort.

Scott shared this video today. It’s good stuff for anyone who takes portraits and shows how subtle changes in posing can make a big difference.

It’s all about the Jaw from Peter Hurley on Vimeo.

Here is another one with Peter Hurley on YouTube.

Here are a couple of photos I took in January at a group shoot at Studio Nazz in St. Louis, MO. The first model is Kaitlyn Obryan and the second one is Ashley Dawn. Hair by John Napoli, makeup by Jessica Dana.

While I’m at it I guess I should post a few more from that shoot. Here is one of Ellyn Thorson. I shot all these on white seamless paper. I like the white background a lot but I also wanted to try swapping out the background on a few to see if I could manage a passable job. In some cases I think my original white background was a bit too bright so I’ll try to pay closer attention in the future.

This is from a series I did of Beth Graveman.

Just a couple of shots from last weeks “Swim Bike Run” shoot hosted by Rutster Photography in Earth City, Missouri. I felt like I swung and missed most of the day but the day went by quickly. Shooting away from home teaches you to be prepared or in my case tries to teach you.

Triathlon, yoga, body building, basketball and more. Of course I didn’t get around to shooting everyone and forgot to bring back up memory cards or a backdrop. I just seemed to be having an off day but it was still a lot of fun in spite of all that.

In case you are wondering, “Is photographing triathletes intimidating and does it make you feel like a big out of shape slob?”

Yes, just a little bit.