Category: Honolulu

2009, a wrap up…

I survived! We survived. We did it and we did it with a mortgage.

I made as a photographer during the 2009 recession!

Things were tough mentally as a bit of income slipped away as certain clients stopped calling and the publishing industry had to readjust its self.

There were some tough moments…waking up in the morning to an empty email inbox and not hearing the phone ring for weeks at a time. But photographer Alex Brandon laid some of the best wisdom I will hear for a long time coming…

“Sometimes you’re the bug, sometimes you’re the windshield.”

Thank you Alex…life can’t be said any better.

Alas, our community lost some staff jobs and some good people this year and even last.

Goodbye Burly and Joaquin. Goodbye Ronen and aloha Lucy. Yet, we had to say hello Tanner several others looking to make a mark in the small money photo world of Hawaii. But we actually are doing much better than much of the photo market around the country. The Washington Times canned their entire photo staff and many staff members. The Advertiser and Star Bulletin had a round of lay offs. Everyone is feeling the pinch. Feels like photo is not the business to be in these days…but people keep snapping away making life much more interesting.

Irregardless…lets take a quick look back at 2009 from my eyes….

(funny, the years slip by but to go back and look at what I shot, its tough…just way too many images! I’ll give it a shot!)

This year I had a pretty tough moment as my father had a heart attack which forced him to go under the knife for a quad bypass. Inside I felt he wasn’t going to kick the bucket but it was tough to think it might be time to say goodbye.

I went down to Texas for a vacation to visit Mom and Dad and spent some time getting to know them, myself, and us a little better. Its best not to forget that time does slip by and its tough to get back to San Antonio being Hawaii is so far away.

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In San Antonio for that vacation, I had time to go through the old pictures and got to know a bit more about my history and family. Got to see family new and old and was taken back by a photo of my Mom’s Dad…as it was taken at a bar. Go figure I’d pick up that trait…

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I got a non related nephew this year from Diane and Doug. Aloha Danny!

Got to shoot a very cute girl in her bikini…

Got to hang out with Gloria…

Busted my eye…

Got to see and old friend…

Got to see one sweat…

Saw a few things on the beach…

Another girl in a bikini…

Conjunto and my peoples…

and finally, Terminal 2 Narita…

There is so much to mention but there is not enough time. Its party time…New Years is around the corner for Hawaii that is…and its time to welcome something new.

Headline News

I made CNN on 22 September with my well worn Superferry image. I recall the Superferry sailing into port and feeling there was a huge hesitation as local shipping monopoly scheduled a ship to sail at roughly the same time. The superferry had to sit out in the channel for some time…almost foreboding as the Superferry has received so much gruff from the locals not only on Kauai but Maui, and the rest of the state. Seems locals just don’t want change and that suits those in power.

We do seem like a backwater…

as far as the photo goes, it was big surf on the south side of Oahu so all the surfers were out. Kakaako was full of people and this guy just so happen to jump out into the picture.

I must say that I envisioned this photo. There is much to say on thinking forward and projecting the image you are looking to capture. I am learning that a pre focused idea will and does work in most cases. I did see this surfer and boat but just couldn’t get the stars to line up. I was caught off guard as the Superferry sailed quickly into port. I was on the other side of the park and had to book to the other side. Autofocus and foresight got the image in line. A burst on the trusty ol 1D MII and voila!