day 084

it is nicole's birthday. it is also the day she flies out for florida. we had a slower start to the morning than expected. alcohol and dance the night prior can cause that. it was really sad, and i probably should not admit this, but i was actually sore this morning.

i wasn't able to finish nicole's b-day gift the night before like i had wanted. so i rushed downstairs while she was getting read to pull it together.

she liked it, or at least she said she did. i still need to frame it somehow, but i have a week or so to get that done.

after nicole split, it was lazy-ville. i didn't do shit. it was great, absolutely great.

so i was creatively productive for the day. and i will take a pick of the piece tonight and post it up.

day 083

all the fun to get done!!!!

most of the day was running around, shopping, baking and picking up last minute items for nicole's b-day present. that evening, we hit up two shin-digs and danced away.

nothing much on the creative end.

day 082

today's productivity has been pretty good. in what i needed to accomplish for work, what i needed to accomplish for personal prepping for the winter (snow tires!!!!!), and what i needed to accomplish creatively and for nicole's b-day.

knocked out some last minute image selects for the new web portfolio. split from work early and took off to so. po. to get some snow tires. it is winter #4 for me here in maine. this will be the first time i have had snow tires. OH MY F-ING GOD!!!!!!!! they are amazing. i plowed through an empty parking lot tonight with at least 5 inches of fresh snow, unplowed and even made it up a steep incline without any trouble. i tried to get stuck, and had no problems what so ever. it was amazing.

made it back home and worked on nicole's b-day gift. it is coming together nicely. i have a few more tweaks to make before it is finished. i will need to get a few things tomorrow for it, then i should be able to unveil it sunday morning. we'll see how it goes.

the problem with her gift is that i could not think of something appropriate to give until too late in the game. i like the concept i have, but it will be somewhat unfinished when given. but i can finalize it while she is gone for christmas.

it is the thought, right?

day 081

busy day in the studio. scrambling to finish up on a model and also get images out the door for the new website.

so what did i do that was creative? i had to deliver some new images to an AD for consideration for my web portfolio. he seemed to think that astro-turf and cups with a t-shirt was a bit too abstract and couldn't really wrap his head around it. he also didn't care for a B&W pic of some dinner plates being prepped in a restaurant kitchen (i will see if i can post the image later for reference).

this doesn't really offend me. he is expressing his taste and there is nothing wrong with that. the problem i have is that he is catalog-centric. and although catalog is a wonderful paycheck, it shouldn't be the only work we do. or at least not the only work we try and gain.

and besides that, we (i hope that pronoun is correct) are all artist who work for the company. we strive to be creative. we strive to be better, greater, stronger and most of all, more MARKETABLE!

although photography is fun, and although it gets the chicks naked, it isn't fun to do for free. and then you ain't got no money to spend on the ladies you get naked.

i don't think we should pigeonhole ourselves into being only marketable to catalogs. what is going to happen when we send a link to the website to an editorial client? we will be too generic, not edgy enough, and therefore not employed.

i guess i should actually say this to the AD. i think i will when we have another chance to chat.

anyway, i am posting a day late, but at least i am posting.

day 080

today was a scary day. i thought i was about to lose my job. i though nicole was about to lose hers. it was freakin' my shit out.

good news is, that as of 10:13 pm, we are both still employed.

it sparked a bit of a flame in me. i complain about not having enough time in the evenings to work on creative stuff when i get home, or i am too busy/tired come the weekend. the onl way i am going to progress in my career, and be sure that i am in a position to find work, is by puting aside my list of complaints and actually working on something.

an image request came across my desk today that was asking for some pics of blueberries. a good shot could land you a cover. a cover could land you an extra $1000. and regardless of the money, it gets your name in print, it gets your foot in the door of possibly showing a portfolio to a potential new client. and the cost is nill. a couples containers of blueberries, a little farm basket and my time.

luckily, alt views is coming to a close. more time will be available and more resources as well.

good news is that i found out my review will be in february, so i have an extra month to prep my port. that makes me feel a bit more at ease. it means i can get some new images compiled probably.

now i must run to bed.

day 079

the word of the day is "Trust".

trust in your friends

trust in your partner

trust in your employer

trust in yourself that was you are doing is right.

i questioned two of the four within the last 24 hours. not a pleasant place to be.

as for the creative aspect. well i worked on something. i can say that, but i can't say much more. i will explain why later.

day 078

first of, i am actually posting on the same day the post is referring to.

i got to go to the gym today!!!!!! yippeee!!!!!! that felt fucking great.

creatively today, notta' damn thing. work, then home, then gym, then home, then supper, then post, next is bed.

i am feeling a bit stale. i need to work on something, but i really don't know what.

i could work on the food photo layer collage. it is basically going to be similar in layering to the delta piece, but i am thinking about tossing in some raw meats and oils and such onto the glass and making it look like a sloppy meal. who the hell knows. something to play with this coming weekend.