JVLIVS

It's been a minute since I been here!

2011-04-25T17:51:00.000-07:00

I recently got my Enhanced Chauffeur License this past Saturday and right away I thought about heading over to Windsor, Ontatrio, Canada. Haven't been there for almost a decade and it felt good to be there after all these years.

So I text some friends of mine from flickr and was wondering whether or not they were game. One was, thankfully. My friends had passports and I got the ECL, so it was all good. Here are but a few pics of the downtown area from the Maple Leaf.

One of my favorite shots. Shot from Riverside Drive facing Detroit's Financial District with Hart Plaza in the forefront.

A more panoramic shot of Downtown Detroit featuring the GM Renaissance Center. One of my favorites.

Of course, the strangest if not funniest moments of that night, was that my friend-I'll leave her name anonymous, unless she reveals herself and it's outta my hands then-was on the verge of getting some shots in and the unthinkable happened. Her battery had run out and she had no spare. Ouch! And I thought that having both batteries go out-which has happened to me recently literally ruining my Sunday afternoon.

The GM Renaissance Center. Est. 1977 by Ford Motor Company, bought by General Motors in 1998. Much has changed since GM moved in, too. I've been here more times since then compared to when Ford had owned it.

And now the coup de gras. Due to the good weather gone bad, I was hoping to get some good shots along Riverside Drive and eventually walk up to Caesar's and get a good shot of the outside of it with some traffic flowing. It's always odd that Detroit from the Canadian side looks like an exotic metropolis of some sort. Yet if you drive through some of our streets, it looks like pure crap. Hopefully things will improve over time.

It felt good to once again be in the Maple Leaf after all these years. I hope to come back again, God willing.

And hopefully I'll also remember to set my dashboard from MPH to KM/h. Took me about an hour to figure it out. Thankfully I had a woman to remind me that it was something simple. Heck because of her I got the shots that I got. I appreciate her company that night as well as any other day or night. Thanks, Adeeba.

Some new pics of Detroit.

2011-03-05T19:20:00.000-08:00

Some recent pics that I have taken of the Guardian Bldg. The gentleman in the bottom pic is Christopher Roddy. The doorman who is also the tour guide to the building. You look these images up on my flickr site, as well as tumblr, facebook, and JPG. All images are © 2011 JVLIVS Photography. All rights reserved.

The Beauty of Detroit

2011-02-08T18:10:00.000-08:00

Some black and whites I've shot recently.

You can read more info about these pictures on Tumblr.

Some pics from the 2011 Auto Show in Detroit!

2011-01-25T06:38:00.000-08:00

These aren't but a few. There will be more to come. Check out my flickr site for more details.

Tunisha

2011-01-17T15:37:00.000-08:00

It's literally a small world out there, isn't it? I went to this year's Auto Show in Detroit, and on my way out I came across a familiar face that I haven't seen in a year's time. Model and Narrator, Tunisha. She was real happy to see me and vice versa. Though this year's show really didn't do it for me, I went just to snap some pics and keep on goin'. I gave her one of my cards, and despite some errors on the card I hope to be friended by her on Facebook one of these days.

Below is a full body shot of Tunisha.

Some rare beauty of Detroit!

2011-01-15T18:23:00.000-08:00

Located on Michigan Ave in Detroit's Corktown. Not many of these are left now-the sign, that is-either city or suburbs. But it's always good to see 'em regardless.

I don't know the name of this sculpture/statue, but it is beautiful. This was shot at Wayne State University.

Shot at the Guarding Bldg in Detroit.

Woodward Avenue with a little "zoom" to it!

Treasured Pics from last year....

2011-01-11T18:40:00.000-08:00

I'm still on hiatus from flickr but I may start posting some pics from last year that I had reservations about during my 365 project. As stated earlier, I won't be doin' another one for a looong time!

Here's a remade pic of the State Theater in Ann Arbor, MI. I personally don't know much of its history, but I am nonetheless thrilled that establishments such as this still standing and functioning. I added an HDR effect, and some tint to give it that retro vibe for folks to remember down the road. Below is the original picture with a little bit of touch work done before I used Picnik.

Some more unpublished pics...

2011-01-08T19:41:00.000-08:00

1) Taken at last year's Identified Fashion Collective. I had a blast that night!

2) Shot outside of the GM Renaissance Center in Detroit.

More unpublished pics.

2011-01-04T09:35:00.000-08:00

1) This picture is of William G. Milliken State Harbor (formerly Tri-Centennial Park). I took this picture around the change of season. I had some time on my lunch break so I took out my camera and tripod and made several shots of our downtown area.

2) Detroit's Central Business District facing the Detroit River. I shot this after work that evening.

3) Shot at Talluah's Wine Bar in Birmingham, Michigan (suburb of Detroit). I was invited to this event. It was my first wine and cheese party, and to say the least, I had a blast.

My head is FULL of ideas!

2011-01-03T10:18:00.000-08:00

Photos, blogs, selling junk on eBay, flickr, facebook, my new webbie on the way, YouTube. Everything is clouding my brain with ideas up the wazoo. Most times I do not know where to begin, but I plug along anyway planting seeds wherever the opportunities present themselves. My artwork, photos, and designs have gotten some very favorable responses on flickr and my first myspace page (which I deleted about two years ago). So with so many things to do in so little time, I try to manage-even micromanage my time so that it is not squandered over something that is/was of petty unimportance. Heck, I'm even thinking of publishing a book of my artwork, selling my designs as bumper stickers and T-shirts. All this artistic talent that I have and I'm pushing a dang broom?!?

THAT is about to change. Quick!

But here are some samples of more photography that have yet to be seen anywhere else online. Hope you like it!

The new year is already off to a good start!

2011-01-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

A new year, and a clean slate, hopefully.

Still working on JVLIVSPhoto.com as well as posting blogs on my other sites, taking a break from flickr, trying to plan things out for 2011, studying for an exam coming up with the next week or so. I have just celebrated my 15th year with my current job. And in spite of that, I'm ready to hang it up for one reason: EVERYTHING is going backwards, but I'll get in to that later. But I will say this, there's no growth where I'm at now, and I wanna go somewhere where there is growth. And I'll leave it at that!

Though I haven't picked up a camera since this past Wednesday, I have TONS of pics that I'm dying to share with many folks on the online community. Here are some pics that I have to post online, unedited and straight out of the camera. Hope you like 'em!

The Best Of 2010!

2010-12-30T20:55:00.000-08:00

Well, what can I say about this year? Other than despite some setbacks, this year is just a predecessor of things to come. I won't delve into the bad things that occurred, for the reason that the good actually outweighed the bad. After reading up on business ventures as well as looking for a new job, I've gotten a newer outlook on things. Esp. since I've been taking pics left and right. I am currently at the end of my 365 project on flickr. I have one more picture which will be a compilation of this past month's activity.

But here are some pictures to give a sample of what I've been doing as of late....

The best plans are always prepared on pen and paper!

2010-12-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

Well, planning is a must in order for any measure of success to be made. I had some time to kill later on today at work and I went inside a classroom and got some paper out and made a small design about how I wanted JVLIVSPhoto.com to come out. Hopefully it will come out the way I've made it on the index cards. I think it's a go. I'll try to work on my site later on tomorrow, God willing.

Stay tuned! I also have a very special announcement regarding my site on flickr.com as well...

After ten years, I'm parting ways....

2010-12-23T09:39:00.000-08:00

Well, after 9 1/2 years with the black and red, yours truly is leaving Verizon Wireless (VZW). Make no mistake, I do miss 'em, but they were too high for the money I make. I'm a high school janitor in case anyone doesn't know, and where I'm at right now, it friggin' sucks!

But I'll delve into that later, much later, God willing!

I joined VZW in 2001, and was with them for two years when my contract expired and I joined T-Mobile. I enjoyed them as well but in my area (Detroit), if I was anywhere near a body of water, I'd get a text message saying "Welcome to Canada" making my bill skyrocket for no reason. So after two years of that headache, I went back to VZW. And I was looking forward to a longtime relationship with them. Technically, a relative by marriage was an employee of Verizon and had a huge majority of us hooked up so our bill was very moderate to say the least. Sadly that individual is no longer married into our family so gradually we all had branched off to other carriers.

I have had some good and bad experiences with the black and red. My biggest issue of all was with the LG VX8700, AKA "The Verizon Shine". A stainless steel model designed to compete with AT&T Shine, also designed by Lucky-Goldstar. I had seven-yes, seven-of those phones in one year! I was about to sever my ties with Verizon on that note. I mean, the phone was literally a lemon. I believe that phone was also made to compete with the RAZR as well. And to make this long story short, after the seventh 8700 model, I was about to go over somebody's head with this issue, so I went to another VZW branch farther out, and they gave me the new LG Chocolate free of charge for the inconvenience. And the salesperson told me that I should've gotten a free phone after the second or third one was went out. But I was so happy to have that chocolate! I had read reviews online about it before and after it, and little if anything bad was said about it!
So another two years with no problem until most recently.

I was told because of my long, faithful stay with VZW, I was eligible for a complimentary 1st generation Droid phone because it was about to be phased out and replaced with the Droid 2. But my contract wasn't up yet, and some things had come up and my bill had lapsed a few times, but I paid it. September had rolled around, and I'm going to the VZW in St. Clair Shores, MI (suburb of Detroit) hoping to get my free Droid, right? And I was told that it was discontinued about a month ago, and I was behind on my bill again. So dejected and pissed off at the same time, I said to myself "(SCREW) THIS!" So I paid the following bill and left for Boost Mobile. I do miss VZW for the one thing that had 'em on top for many years-their strong signal! But Sprint has caught up with them on that note, and T-Mobile is about to follow from what I heard.
But unless I had a better paying income, I don't think I'll be going back to VZW anytime soon! Besides, there isn't one in the city (the kiosk at the GM Renaissance Center doesn't count, nor does the VZW outlet in Highland Park [enclave/hamlet in Detroit] doesn't count, either), and with gas being so high, as much as I love to drive, I hate driving a good 5-10 miles outside the city to either pay a bill, or get service.

So Sprint was my next option. But for the sake of downsizing, I decided to go with Boost Mobile, a Sprint Subisidiary until I had things in order. No problems yet. The only issue that I have with Boost is that their phones are either secondhand or leftover models from their parent company, Sprint. In other words, I wish they had a better selection of phones. But for unlimited talk, text, and web for 50 bucks, what more can one expect?

My new webbie's comin' along!

2010-12-18T01:02:00.000-08:00

A preview of my photography courtesy of slide.com. JVLIVSPhoto.com is gradually being put together as I speak. And another trick up my sleeve is also along the way! Both a bit of a surprise and a shock to my flickr and facebook family as well. At this point, I might at well use my myspace account as well (does anyone myspace anymore?). I hope to have everything up and running by January 2011. I also plan to-if I can-merge my two blogger accounts (The Blacklight Studio, jvlivs) with this one if I can change primary emails like I recently did with flickr. But if not, I won't even worry about it. Now if I can get some followers here on blogger, that would be soooo nice. I have my youtube and facebook and eBay sites all linked. And I am on twitter as well. I could ramble on and on about this, but without further ado, enjoy the slideshow, and check out the JVLIVSPhoto.com page as well.

BTW, expect an exposuremanager site coming hopefully no later than Spring 2011!

New things on the Horizon (if the will of God wishes it)!

2010-12-11T19:45:00.000-08:00

Well, what can I say for today...? I installed some new step on the upstairs leading to my bedroom, checked on my grandmother, cut up some pomegranates, and walked to the hardware store for wood filler just to find out that I need some wedges to fill in the gaps on the wood. But that's a horse of another color.

I also have another 20 days left on my 365 project, and it feels great! This one is by far way better than the one I did two years ago. Personally, I'd rather have no recollection of it for a variety of reasons, but this one had a great start, and hopefully I'll have just as great a finish. I'm also posting leftover pictures of this year from January until now, so that'll be my plan as well. My goal is to have 10,000 or more pics posted by New Year's Eve. I'm almost there as it is. I am also working on my primary site, JVLIVSPhoto.com as well. I hope to have it up and running sometime next month so I can set up some sessions as well as prices for my shots. I have yet to work on my portfolio.

Here are some samples of some pics that I have yet to post online, be it flickr, facebook, myspace, twitter or anywhere else. Untouched, unedited and S.O.O.C. (straight out of the camera). Hope you like 'em!

All images are copyright yours truly 2010!

Flickr Testimonials (Read 'em 4 yourself)!

2010-12-07T22:21:00.000-08:00

Some kinds words from some folks on the blue and red...

Manage your testimonials

RW2Photo ©™ says:
"People like Bob make my journey on Flickr all the more worthwhile. When I'm in a creative rut or need a motivational push, he's usually on my stream offering strong words of encouragement. For that, I'm grateful. What's more, his photostream gives me a great sense of who he is and day-to-day life in Detroit. It's what reality TV should be but isn't: genuine, honest, and without the high gloss. I'm glad and fortunate to call him a friend on this medium."
29th December, 2008
diwong says:
"Haha! This ia waaay overdue!! ;D

Well, what can I say??! Bob is indeed one of the nicest Flickrites I have met. His photographs are all about life, everyday scenes which we sometimes just pass them by without even bothering to notice it!

I wish him well and here's to more Transformers and hotwheels to come!! :D"
14th September, 2008
Joriel "Joz" Jimenez says:
"Bob is one of the nicest and most conversive Flickrites you can have come your way. His photographs are nice, and tell stories of his life and wanderings, which make one feel thoughtful, nostalgic, humbled and involved. His comments are always well written with feeling and expression - with empathy. I'd like to see him succeed in his enterprises and one day meet him, just to have chat about Transformers over a Cheeseburger in Paradise."
21st August, 2008
NikaleRenoir says:
"Like many of you, I have never met the artist Robert Julius aka Blacklight Studios Photography but I have been deeply moved by his love of 'beautiful imagery'. His intuitiveness, instincts and insight-fullness are always on point. He can look at a capture and tell you what was happening at that exact moment in the mind of the subject. His 'extraordinary ability' to interpret the 'essence of a depiction' has won me over. I pay 'sincere homage' to his love for this craft and I am honored to call him a 'friend', sincerely; NikaleRenoir...!"
25th February, 2008

A rare find!

2010-12-06T17:00:00.000-08:00

Talk about a ride down memory lane. I can only imagine these things being ten cents today. Would've helped during our recession-some say it's over, but I don't know. But around the time we were using these, the Detroit Dept. of Transportation (D-DOT) had just began to switch from the old window boxes to the electronic boxes that took either money-including coins-and tickets and transfers (like the one you see here).

Nowadays, you have transfers that can be doubled up to an extra 2, 3 hours if not longer. Whereas the one in the picture, once you use it and request a transfer, you'd receive it. And if you wanted to use that same one (not the ticketed one you see in the picture), it would be "doubled" up to 30-45 minutes depending on the consistency of the buses-and they were very consistent back then. Today, you're fortunate to even be on a bus in Detroit today with the recent budget cuts and our current mayor asking for 5-10 % of City workers pay, if not more than that. But that's a horse of another color, as it were.

But IDK what got my attention the most, finding a $0.10 transfer that's a good 20 years old, or that our mayor at the time-Coleman Young's-name is on it. The first Afro-American mayor of Detroit. And he was no-nonsense to the bone, too. Dirty like the rest of the-dare I say it, "leaders" of our city. But he always had the residents of Detroit in mind. Unlike those in office today.

Just one man's opinion, that's all.

Hot Wheels. Gotta Love 'em!

2010-12-04T21:15:00.000-08:00

I only wish I had the ones from the early 90s. I'd have a major collection right about now. I do no know how many of these I have now, but being from Detroit, and coming from a family of Auto Workers, automobiles are in my blood. I was briefly into Transfromers in recent years, but due to a lack of space here at home, it was either collecting cars or Transformers. I've sold most of my TFs so far, and the toys from the current movie franchise were too complicated to convert from one mode to the next. Seeing that I'm also approaching 40, my patience has reached obsolescence at that point. The Classics 2.0, on the other hand, I miss 'em! I not only broke even but made some mad profits to boot.

And as much as I love the Transformers, I've been into Hot Wheels and Matchbox for as long as I can remember (does anybody remember the Fast 111's?). And unlike the Transformers, HWs and MBs are real easy to store as well. I plan to get back into collecting 1/18 models again, God willing.

Yep, cars are in my blood for sure!

Time has flown (and I've had fun in the process)!

2010-11-30T23:10:00.000-08:00

NOTE: To those who are unfamiliar with the 365 Project on flickr.com, it's a daily documentary of one's personal life in pictures (to say the very least)

What can I say about this project other than thus far I did what I said I would do. Make it more intense and dramatic than the one that I did in 2008-which I think I did and did well! In a nutshell I can sum up many events that occurred this year in so many words. Let's see, prior to the year's beginning, I've gotten a (new-ish) vehicle, my grandfather passed away (I think of him a lot), I've purchased a DSLR (my very first one), and despite slow progress in some areas, progress picked up in other areas. I've shot three fashion shows, a live concert (one which I've yet to post), my uncle gave me his old SLR from the 70s, though he bought it in the 80s. I also did a wedding, a maternity, was recently invited to a wine and cheese party (couldn't say no to that one). I've sold quite a bit of my old stuff on eBay, I've met other artists from Exposure Detroit for the very first time, I've gone on roves with other artists, some roves by myself. I have made up in my mind that I was gonna step and think outside the box and live totally different as opposed to how I've been living. I've even shot a friend's baptism (I'm still debating whether or not I'm gonna post 'em on flickr-facebook is out of the question, sadly). I cannot contain how much I have done these past 11 months, this is my second 365 Project that I have done and most of the time I'd rather not recall the one that I did two years prior to this one for two reasons: 1) I did it on a whim and started a few weeks late, and 2) I was whupped after I was done. I kept missing days-on both projects. But this will be my last 365 set that I'll be doing for quite a while now...

Now up until April, if I'm not mistaken, I'd do a banner at the beginning of each month, and I thought, at least, that it underminded the purpose of the projects, but I've gotten no complaints yet. It's been eight months since the last one, and this one is a masterpiece, literally!

I think so anyway.

I could keep on, but as usual time escapes me (but I try to keep up).

This year rocked for sure! Be sure to check out my 365 Project 2010

What happened to the days of modern convenience...?

2010-11-29T20:21:00.000-08:00

I can only imagine the life this Station once breathed in its prime. Seems like most gas stations both in and out of the Motor City have pretty much competing shops take over their businesses. Now in the 21st Century, it's gotten to the point where the way cars are made, you gotta go to the dealer. Gone are the days when you can drive to the station and the workers do a bumper to bumper inspection on your vehicle. You may come across one every blue moon, but it's gonna cost you up the wazoo, that's for sure.

I also think about BP despite the bad wrap they've gotten these past few months. It would've been nice if one of the gas companies ran this old relic. Gulf, 76, Boron, or Citgo to name a few. Even though a shop exists a few yards to the right of it (formerly an Olds Dealer-DECADES before my time), it would be nice to see this shell of a building breathing life again.

I have, in recent months, have thought to myself about converting an old gas station into a studio/club with a small staff. I saw one not too far from where I currently stay at, as well as this one. Perhaps one day before the year's end, I'll take a picture of the other one in the 'hood as well. But if I had a choice, I'd choose this one.

Especially since this part of suburbia has embraced diversity in recent years.

Nothin' like some deep dish pizza!

2010-11-28T20:17:00.000-08:00

Had some spinach and mushroom deep dish from Pizza Papalis on the outskirts of downtown. We haven't had this in so long, I forgot how much it tasted. I was gonna have some more wine with this, but I've consumed more than enough booze this past week or so. So some Lipton Brisk was just as good. Had a bit of a busy weekend, so it's back to work tomorrow afternoon at my Alma-Mater.

God, I hate that place with a friggin' passion! DPS should've closed it down when they had the chance...!

Hopefully down the road, when I make some better money, I'll be able to afford this good stuff more often.

At one point in time, they had apple pie pizza slices (you had to see 'em to believe 'em). They didn't do too well, though.

Another Rove Downtown

2010-11-26T15:53:00.000-08:00

How can explain this one? I went downtown, and it was cold as the opposite of the heaven. I tried my hand at using my uncle's Nikon EM and I was getting some good shots in-so I thought-but I had trouble getting the film out of the camera, so whether or not my shots turned out good, I won't know until after payday. I'm considering buying a refurbished one or just get this one fixed. The thing's 30 years old, so what more would one expect seeing that hasn't been used since the early 90s...?

So again the spirit of dejection had gotten to me. I tried not to let it, but somehow it's still there. But I got a few extra bucks on me, I might go to Wal-Mart and buy some Hot Wheels. Haven't done that lately (I need to invest in some playsets).

But here's one shot that I thought turned out well. It's on my 356 set on flickr. It'll be in some groups by the time [anyone] sees this.

Some other pics I've taken downtown earlier tonight, but haven't posted 'em yet...

Now this shot would've been even better if those reflections weren't the way. I have both lightroom and photoshop, so I may toy with 'em before I upload 'em to one of my sites...

The Ambassardor Bridge. The gateway between Detroit(U.S.) and Windsor(Canada). going over there hasn't been as fun as it was before 9-11. The last time I was there was 2004 at the latest. But this is always a good site to see no matter what.

Rove for the day...

2010-11-24T17:22:00.000-08:00

I recently posted a thread on the Exposure Detroit group on flickr offering-at a spur of the moment notice-someone to join me for a quick one-hour rove in any area of their choice taking pictures. Someone responded but was going out of town this Holiday weekend. But it was all good. I was gonna choose either Downtown Detroit, Grosse Pointe (either one of the five boroughs), Birmingham, or Royal Oak. To make a long story short, I chose Royal Oak. And it was the best decision I've ever made on a one man rove this evening...

Stephen and Brandon. Two strangers who noticed that I was scouting the area and trying to capture some great shots. We talked for a good ten-fifteen minutes about a few things from religion to metro living as well as verses in the Bible. The cold had gotten to the three of us and I hope to see these guys again. They were very down to earth.

One of the best coffee joints in Metro Detroit, 'nuff said!

A very expensive but very delicious seafood restaurant. We have 'em in both the city and the suburbs. I recommended this to anyone who comes to the Motor City for the very first time. Their oysters are to (almost literally) to die for!

I would like to one day buy a nice timepiece of my wedding ring from here one day (unless my lady friend [we're not there yet] says otherwise, more than likely she will).

I love this shot seeing that I had my camera on night portrait mode along with my flash. But this shot would've been better had I used my tripod, but with the weather being what it was at that moment, this sufficed quite well in my opinion!

I'd say in an hour's time, I got quite a bit done at dusk! Not bad at all.

What happened to our city...?

2010-11-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

I can recall growing up in the early half of the 1980s when we still had major businesses in the inner-city, we were still in the top ten cities to live in, though toward the end of that list. Unfortunately we are no longer on that list and have not been for a number of years now. I've been out of the blog game for awhile now and I'm trying to get my wind back on that note. And after attending a wine and cheese party in Birmingham, Michigan, some spokesmen from Yahoo was looking for photographers and bloggers, I've stepped to the plate and hopefully someone from the powers that be will notice it. Although Detroit with it's inner-city communities have suffered a great deal, but continue to strive....

I really hope that one day we will have major business back in the city-esp. downtown. Which has in recent years improved a lot. It may take years, perhaps decades before it comes back to the flair that it once had before the 1967 riots.

Did anyone know that JFK nominated Detroit for the 1968 Olympics? THAT would have been a milestone for our history.

It could still happen down the road.

More reasons WHY I do not take DPS seriously!

2010-11-22T20:44:00.000-08:00

How can I explain this one. Originally there used to be a security gate where these new doors are now. Now my Alma Mater is already in a state of disrepair, and why in the name of God would someone squander more money in trying to improve the cosmetics of the corridors just to (butt) backwards insert a new set of doors where the lock and handle are inside the corridor instead of out?!?

What gives?

Originally my school (I'm a 1993 graduate) was slated to be closed down this past summer. Personally, I was in favor of it, because-as stated earlier, the building being nearly 50 years old was at its wits end as it was and it would've been less stress on our last principal (who sadly passed away just months after he got the promotion, I'll delve into that much later). But in a last ditch effort to save Kettering, DPS closed down an Alternative Ed. school-which was in decent condition, I might add, I know, because I worked there in '06-to merge with the ailing Kettering High. So now we have three schools in the same shell.

Kettering, Kettering West Wing (it was our vocational when I went there in the 80s and 90s), and now Trombly. The confusion has yet to stop.

They should've closed the school down when they had the chance!

And I got a feeling that they will do it despite the BASS-ACKWARD job that they did with the doors when they installed them in reverse.

That's an accident waiting to happen, I see it comin' before the semester ends!

Been travelin' abroad lately...

2010-11-21T20:31:00.000-08:00

Wow. It's been awhile since I've been here on blogger. I know I need to get back into the fray of things. But to give you an update on some things since I've bought my DSLR as well as received a decades-old film SLR from a relative, I've been exploring some things here in the Motor City. I'll just say this. Some of the pics that I may post here, I may say something about them, I may not depending on the information that's already there on flickr. I've been managing various email accounts so I could have everything consolidated to just one out of two email addressed. And I may go so far to condense those two into a gmail account because I've also upgraded my phone though I'm no longer with Verizon. I miss 'em, but their service was KILLING me!

Feels good to breathe with unlimited talk, text, and web-all prepaid for a fixed rate!

I wouldn't have it any other way! So to put it bluntly, yet mildly, I'm very happy with the way things had turned out as of late...

So without further adieu, here's some pics.

You can click the pic(s) below to read further information on 'em unless there's not much there and I'll explain it here...

The two pics above was a complimentary gift from the folks who promoted a Yahoo! project that featured everyday goings-on of the Detroit area. I was invited to a wine and cheese party outside the city, and my respect for vintage wines grew. Over the years-to add to my wine tasting resume-I've had local vintages, vintages from France, Spain, and Portugal. But if they have contacted me, I'd be willing to be a contributing photographer to Yahoo's new BETA site. That was the best 3 hours and some change I've spent there! Moving on...

The next pic is very self-explanatory (to say the least)!

And now my first crack with the new Yahoo! project. I hope someone notices...

It could happen!

I left a lot of info on that one!

All pictures have been pasted from my 365 Project for 2010.

Some night shots with the use of a tripod...

2010-09-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

Some shot I've taken with my tripod and my shots have turned out better than they would've turned out as opposed to not using a tripod...

My very first professional wedding shoot!

2010-09-01T14:00:00.000-07:00

I had a blast with this despite the long hours. I'd definitely do this again. A friend of mine on Facebook requested that I be the photographer at their wedding. Here are a few shots.

2010 Woodward Avenue Dream Cruise

2010-08-24T16:47:00.000-07:00

Here are some shots from the recent cruise in Royal Oak, Michigan (suburb of Detroit). I may post more, I don't know yet.

Click here for more images.

HDR!

2010-08-17T18:08:00.000-07:00

One art form that has definitely lit a fire under me since I joined flickr nearly four years ago. HDR is short for High Dynamic Range. While time fails me to go into detail at present, you can click on the link posted.

I'm still new to that game myself. One observation that I can rightfully say about HDR is that you bring out more elements of a picture when you play with tones, colors, as well as manipulate an image-virtually making it to display any facet of the picture any way that you see fit. That's my take on it. Here are some samples of my HDR work...

Hope you like it!

Another Fashion Show...

2010-08-11T23:11:00.000-07:00

More pics from the Idenitified Fashion Collective

And some pics of the fashion show from the BBQ Ribs-n-Soul Festival.

Still going through the motions with photos...

2010-08-11T15:24:00.000-07:00

Trying out some new things with my camera as well as my lenses. I'm trying to stay consistent as well as learn new things, be it depth of field, diptych, blur-motion, etc. Here are some recent shots of my city that I have tried time after time again, but from various perspectives...

Identified Fashion Collection

2010-08-04T17:07:00.000-07:00

A few shots of a fashion show that I was invited to this past weekend. I have more shots coming after this. Courtesy of the http://www.identifiedfashioncollective.com/>Identified Fashion Collective on Detroit's westside. Enjoy!

I have been published again.

2010-06-27T19:36:00.000-07:00

Four times within this past year, I have been published by a variety of publishers.

Cannon Design, Grosse Pointe Today, Cyber13, and Michigan Mounted.

Here are a couple of pictures that you may see coming up.

McNichols Motel. Located in Detroit's Old Redford (formerly the eastside of Redford Township until Detroit's expansion over that area in 1926 not to mention the former downtown Redford. Whether or not the motel is still open, I do not know. But judging by its design, the sign itself was a beautiful piece of work in itself. I was contacted by a company in Denver asking to publish this picture. Although I won't be getting paid for it, I'm gonna be sent 2000 postcards of this image. So there's a side hustle right there. Can't wait for the cards to come.

1976 Ford Gran Torino from "Starsky & Hutch". The stories that I could tell about my infatuation with this car as well as the infatuations of other aficianados of this historic ride as well. But time fails me at present. I shot this car in front of a church in Grosse Pointe Woods and made every second count. I was contacted by Grosse Pointe Today via flickr and they want to publish this for their online newspaper. Can't wait to see that either.

I had a blast yesterday!

2010-06-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

Friday was my last day off work, so I decided to go downtown and see if I could get some good aerial shots of the area. I got some shots but only posted two. I may post some more, but most of them were very similar with the exception of one or two.

East Larned St. This was one of the better shots that I've taken from a parking garage. Sadly most of the ones that I've taken of the Renaissance Center weren't so great. But one of them is on flickr. And it had just dawned on me that I had an even better one... Aerial, that is.

Larned and Randolph. One of the better pics that I've taken on the ground. Eventually I'll post the other one either here or on flickr, or perhaps facebook. I took this pic before the did the aerial ones. After being frustrated with the way most of my pix had turned out, I headed over to the Renaissance Center hoping to get some better skyshots. Little did I know that something way better was in store...

I still do not know what the occasion was seeing that I was there on a limb. Let's just say that what I've witnessed at the RenCen was a preview of what is to come on July 25 when I'll be doing my first photo shoot with a friend of mine who's a model as well as with her model girlfriends. I do have some information, but I'll have to link it later on, I am dog-tired right now.

Later.

BTW, any further info, just click on the picture and it'll lead to my site on flickr.

Some business card designs that I've been working on...

2010-06-24T21:28:00.000-07:00

Something in the works for me until I have things up and poppin' and ready to go.

I eventually got some cards printed, but not like the ones that I had in mind, but it works for now.

The Detroit River Days Festival/Target Fireworks

2010-06-22T07:19:00.000-07:00

Some brief pix before, during and after the fireworks.

Jefferson and Randolph. A huge crowd featuring the People Mover and the Renaissance Center in the background. Due to preparations of the fireworks within the next hour or so, foot traffic had to be redirected. The RenCen was eventually closed to the public for the remainder of the day.

The remaining pictures are somewhat self-explanatory...

And now a video that I posted on YouTube.

Some of my best stuff so far...

2010-06-21T14:59:00.000-07:00

For those who may not know, I am from Detroit. And I bring out the good, bad, and ugly parts of my town. Here's a sample of my stuff with a brief explanation behind each piece...

You can click on the picture to see all sizes as well as some other features...

Detroit at dusk. Shot at the Belle Isle beach. After all these years of being in Detroit, that was my first time there. I wanted to get a good shot of the MacArthur Bridge with the skyline of downtown in view.

Detroit Boat Club. A lot of history behind this place. Hopefully it will rise above the ashes again. All that it's being used for now is for high school rowing classes if memory serves correctly.

Ford Motor Company Headquarters. Located in Dearborn, Michigan. A westside suburb of Detroit. A lot of history there as well. Henry Ford's Fair Lane Mansion is located about a half mile west of the HQ. I know a lot of Ford workers and customers have helped pay for that building on numerous occasions.

1976 Ford Gran Torino by Starsky & Hutch. I drove past a church in Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan (an eastside suburb of Detroit) and saw this nice vintage hot rod. This car cemented the careers of David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser and their supporting casts in the mid to late 1970s.