First Snow Slide

I haven't put on my skies for years. Today we went back to the slope! Not skiing, but sliding, with my son Anton and our friends Doug, Liang, and Anne. I wasn't sure if Anton liked it or not until I saw the pictures of us. Looks like he was having fun. So we said, OK, we are going back there!

Dark Age Finally Over!

Wow! It has been such a bumpy week! We lost both power and internect connection last Thursday night. Fortunately the power came back last Friday night. The next day, we opened the door to friends who still did not have anything. It was interesting to see that the first thing they did was to juice up their cell phones because they use internet phones. It was a fun weekend! And it shows in this day and age when we rely so much on technology, we become very vulnerable. One friend said they could bear with the cold, but they simply didn't know what to do at home after two days in the darkness. Her mother's comment: big deal.

Wishing you a warm and bright holiday season!

Urban Wildlife

I have seen it twice before. Once right outside our kitchen door. Last Sunday morning I spotted it again, outside in our yard drinking water from a flower box. So I snapped a few shots. Then I banged on the window and it just casually walked away into the woods.

Melanie, Todd, And A Beautiful Afternoon

We couldn't have asked for a better day in this late October Saturday. It has been sunny and warm the whole day. By late afternoon, when Melanie and Todd emerged from the Seattle Temple, beaming as a newly web, the Sun was in the West and created beautiful backlight. We had some great time taking pictures around the Temple.

We then moved to the New Castle Golf Club to catch the sunset and for the reception. The reception was one of the most elegant, sweet, and laidback ones I have ever been. There were only four big round tables to host about 50 or so guests. Each table has its own cake, and was decorated beautifully. Melanie and Todd made it easy and clear: let's having a great time! The DJ was Ben from B&G Production who filled the evening with nice music. We even exchanged some Chinese! How interesting! Melanie's sister Aimee has three darling daughters. Oh, how many pictures we took of them!

It's a sweet and almost pressure free wedding! Thank you Melanie and Todd!

BTW, Melanie did her make up in the morning at the Bridal Reception room at the gold court. The make-up artist, Kitty, brought her six-month old baby girl with her. She was a little sweet and cut girl!

A Weekend Off

I was in a wedding last Saturday. The difference was that I was not commissioned to photograph. So I got a rare chance to relax, had a cold beer, and watch other working! And then when the music came, we hit the floor!

Sunday was sunny and warm. We called our friends Holy and Shawn and their two lovely daughters Tiffiny and Allison and went hiking at Rattle Snake. With our two -year old Anton, we only walked around the lake. But with all the rocks, it was not an easy walk. With a constant supply of pop corns, our son handled it pretty well!

Some Thoughts About A Coyote

It's kind of spooky. Even though it was on the news a few months ago about a coyote jumping on a two-year old, and I saw one joggling in front of my car a block away from my house, it was still like "Man! I have never seen a coyote this close!"

It was a Sunday morning and I was sipping my coffee at the kitchen, when this coyote walked right pass our glass kitchen door. Thinking about the attacking incident before, I immediately bang on the door to scare it away into the woods. We have a two year old and I didn't want this wild animal feeling too comfortable around our house.

I thought about telling the police but later decided against it. There is no use. We live by a greenbelt and I remember the game official mentioned that there are probably a dozen or so coyotes live in the eastside of Lake Washington. To be fair, it is our humans who have forced the wild animals to live with us. There are deers, raccoons, tons of rabbits. Maybe the coyote can bring some balance. I just need to be more alert while taking my son out playing.

Oktoberfest In the Northwest

So we went to the Oktoberfest in Puyallap (those two names don't sound good together, do they?), not a whole lot going on, if you don't count drinking beer! But it's nice that our son Anton could run around and he was fasinated by the big pumkins. I certainly welcome an opportunity to have some beers in an afternoon!

Kam And Gregory in Thornewood Castle

It's a delayed 'Thank You!' for Kam and Gregory. Two weeks ago, Jeff LaPlante and I photographed Kam and Gregory's wedding at Thornewood Castle by American Lake just south of Tacoma. It was a fun and almost stress free event because the couple themselves were so relaxed. Both Kam and Gregory are artists. Kam designs fashion cloths and Gregory does killer webs. The highlight of the night has to be Gregory's remote cousin from Germany. She cracked everybody up!!!

I called my wife around 8:30 PM that evening and told her I was almost home. She said that early?

Thanks Kam and Gregory!

Issaguah Annual Salmon Run

Mike Colon, Paparazzi

"Oh, look how pretentious this bride is! She hired so many photographers to follow her around!" An old lady sitting in the open air restaurant commented as we walk by. Click, click!

We laughed so hard! True, there were fifteen of us with big lenses following the bride and groom around along the street of Laguna Beach in southern California, but the couple (Carolyn and George) were models and we were in Mike Colon's four-day wedding photography workshop! ;-) We were out in the field in that sunny afternoon.

Mike was awesome. Given his fame and status, he is probably one of the most humble, down-to-earth, honest, and fun person I have ever met. In four days, I have learned a lot from both inside the classroom and out in the field. Mike represents the new school that believes the more you give and help others, the more your business will grow. I was also so lucky to meet so many talented photographers/ fun people, like Tiffany from Toronto ("Ni Hao!"), Penny from the Bay Area (Penny you finally drove your D20 out of commission!), the two ladies Bradie and Jen from Phoenix (who often complained being too cold! Sigh), and Todd from Kentucky (go get some sushi, Todd!), and more. They were just fun and nice people to hang out with. Oh, and thanks to Pictage for picking up the tag for our big dinner!

It's a memorable four days that I would never forget! Thanks Mike!

Parachuting Over Lake Sammamish

The national acrobat parachuting event will be held at Lake Sammamish was the news. I was picturing a big party with parachutes drawing crazy colored smoke trails in the sky. So I took my son Anton there last Saturday. Some spectators. A lone parachute was just coming down, making some swirls, and then landed right by a woman who was taking pictures. And then there were just people walking by minding their own business in this quiet, lazy Saturday afternoon. My son of course was more interested in throwing stones into the lake and I had to be sure he was not too close to the parachute standing by. It was amazing how high up they could pull the parachutes up into the sky by a boat.

Then my friend Jie called saying come to our house and have dinner with us. So much for a national event.

BBQ Ribs, Baked Corn...Puyallup Fair, Neighbor?

Needless to say, my son Anton got his belly full. The direct correlation was that he was in a way happy mood, and so we were. [relief]

Nadia, Shawn, A Red Kite

It was such a blast...Nadia and Shawn's wedding at Quinault Resort at Ocean Shores (http://www.quinaultbeachresort.com/). The weather was just perfect. Even though the ceremony was not on the beach, but we managed to sneak out during reception and played at the beach. The best man Mike brought a bright red colored kite. Oh man, the images were almost crying out for attention! What a super great idea!

Amazingly, even though the casino was packed (go figure), the beach was completely empty. It's pretty much just the few of us out there having a good time.

What a blast!

Wine Tasting Honey Moom for Megan and Scott

"I am OK on the nervousness control side, but the heat starts getting to me." I overhead Scott, the groom, talking to a friend.
It was a hot Saturday afternoon and Scott was going to web his beautiful bride, Megan, in a little nice park on the east slope of Queen Ann hill. Megan emerged from the vehicle wearing a gown from La Belle Elian’s Bridal (http://www.labelleelaines.com/) that was just so beautiful and elegant. The bridal party also picked light colored outfits for this special occasion. The bridesmaids' light green skirts were so gorgeous.
Megan and Scott are a very nice couple...both are young, energetic, fun-loving, sporty, and have great faith in God. Despite the hot weather, we had a great time photographing the bridal party, followed by the ceremony. Afterward, the party continued the celebration in Lake Washington Rowing Club by Lake Union (http://www.lakewashingtonrowing.com/). The late afternoon lighting was simply magical!
Armed with additional $500 dollars (you have to ask them how they raised the fund :-)), Megan and Scott now are in a convertible driving along the scenic Highway 101 to the wine country in California. I wish them a sweet honeymoon!

"No, Johnny Depp was NOT on this ship!"

The ship is 'Lady Washington', or "The Lady", as the sailors affectionately call it. It is a replica of a pirates era tall ship, and yes it was commissioned for the movie making of "The Pirates of the Caribbean", but no, Johnny Depp was not on this ship! Bomber!

We were out in the water for three hours and watching the crews working hard to make it move. When some actions were needed, the first mate would stand on the bridge barking out orders only they would understand, and the seven or so sailors would respond in unison doing whatever they were supposed to do: pulling ropes, climbing ropes, or tightening ropes. The huge sail would then shift direction and the ship would move. A lots of hard, physical works...except the captain and the first mate, who got to be the ones barking out orders, and us, the passengers, who just stood around watching and trying to get out of the crews way.

I learned a few facts about the crews. They are all full-time volunteers. They work and live on the boat. All five women and four men would share one cabin even smaller than the submarine's. Guess no bringing 'home' your date! The kitchen actually looks roomier ( my friend Big Jon was on a boat before and he asked to be a chef. Smart guy). Nonetheless, the crews seemed to enjoy it. "The Lady" goes up and down the west coast for shows or whatever missions she may have.

They did fire up one shot of the cannon during our short and slow moving voyage. No, not aimed at those drunken, loud guys in a motor boat passing by. Bomber!

Hot, Cool, and Cold

My two year old, Anton, goes nuts about water! He couldn't wait to get into the action while we were at the city water park at Kelowna, Canada. But he acted like he was in his bath tube...just stayed in one spot and played with the water. Then I found out he was shivering because the wind was still blowing, even thought the sun was hot.

Had to pull him out.

"Single File. March!"

You see them in the sky, flying with a formation. But how do they travel in water? The other day I was taking a walk along the water front, and out of corner of my eye, I saw this group of geese quietly marching along the sea shore, in a single file formation. Quite interesting. I wonder if there are reasons behind this 'water formation'...smart birds!

"Look Ma! No tripods!" - Fireworks Experimenting

There were too many people in the park to set up a tripods, so I decided to try shooting fireworks hand held my Canon 5D and proving being lazy was not always bad. I picked a spot where there was a flag above me (and really close to the parking lot so I could get out quickly when it's done!) and illuminated it with a 430EX speedlit, then dialed the shutter for between 4 and 8 seconds and just fired away.

I was stuck in the parking lot for a good 30 minutes afterward, but the images are fun.