Starry, Starry night.

“Starry, starry night.

Flaming flowers that brightly blaze,

Swirling clouds in violet haze,

Reflect in Vincent's eyes of china blue.

Colors changing hue, morning field of amber grain,

Weathered faces lined in pain,

Are soothed beneath the artist's loving hand.”

Many years ago I spent more time in front of an easel than behind a camera---on average I would paint three to five paintings a year and take maybe a roll or two of photos during that same time. Boy have things changed---I have not touched a paint brush in more than 10 years and you can probably guess I have taken a few more pictures than I did all those years ago.

Some of my favorite paintings, ironically, were from pictures I loved. Many came from magazines and some from photos I had been given---specifically one from my former brother-in-law of Mark McGuire hitting his 70^th home run. Mark, his name, was a really good photographer and probably still is; but on that fall day, from his vantage point, he caught history in the making. It was a fantastic photograph—still is---however the photo has taken on less significance due to steroid allegations during that exciting time in baseball. But it still is one awesome photo.

When I was painting, I knew I wanted to paint this picture on canvas. Believe it or not, I was into painting in black and white; I loved black and white then and still do. So, I sketched it out and started to paint. Then I got the crazy idea of putting my family, all of them, into the stands. Big mistake as it took months to work them into it; some actually resembled the people, others, well if you squinted and turned your head sideways maybe you could see some familiarity. But Mark McGuire did look good. At least I thought so.

So why did I quit?

I found my true passion. One that can produce thousands and thousands of images in a day yet alone a lifetime. This was for me and it still is. Over the course of a year I will sometimes shoot as many as 250,000 photos. I know that’s a lot, and unfortunately so does my trust Nikon, as it has had some “issues” of late. But one thing has not dissipated, and that is the thrill of finding something that makes me stop and say, “I must have that photo.” It doesn’t happen as often as it once did (I have become more critical of what I shoot) but when it’s right, you will hear the shutter of the camera click---sometimes at 7 frames per second.

A week from Thursday I will be going to the Bulls last regular season game; to say I am looking forward to it would be an understatement. However, and this is something that happens every time I know an important opportunity to capture something I really want is awaiting, I get very nervous. The problem this time---I am going with a client. Yes, he loves the Bulls and yes knows I am going to be shooting, but at the end of the game he will probably saying one of two things. “Can this guy talk? or That was a great game, who did I go with? I will try to be more social, but I know it’s not likely.

The photo above was taken a few years ago in the middle of patch of sunflowers; when I saw it, I knew I had to capture it. The problem was, I didn’t have my camera with me and it was far away from where I lived. What did I do? I went back and when I did, I had a new friend waiting for me on one of the pedals. I am not planning to get back into painting anytime soon---if I did I probably would want to wait until my Nikon peters out. I really hope that is not in anytime soon—I don’t miss painting.

Thanks for stopping by.