Come Fly with Me

First things first... these shots are Starlitt, not your average auto parts store employee. I had the good fortune to shoot with her during the Chicago trip a while back, with a really excellent location to enhance things. At the time, the landlords were trying to "upscale" the location, so would probably prohibit photography in the common areas and empty space, so I'm lucky to have gotten in under the wire. Star was a hoot to shoot, and game for my various ideas, including climbing into treacherous spaces and getting dirty as one only can in ancient warehouse space. She was even willing to pour gasoline onto a radiator... well, at least pretend to. Debated adding faux flames to this one, and may yet, but for now the potential for flames works for me.

At last report, Frank Sinatra remains dead, while Larry King still roams the earth. Where is the justice?

Sitting in the Dayton Airport, enjoying the luxury of free wi-fi, despite the block placed on ModelMayhem.com -- I was hoping to catch up on those e-mails. Waiting to board the puddle jumper to Chicago, then onto LAX. My friend Dave gave me the secret route from the airport, avoiding the freeways, which I will attempt to do for the duration of my visit. The workshop is a fantastic opportunity to work with some world-class models in some outstanding locations -- I need to leave my stress and anxiety here on the ground in Ohio and arrive in LA with a Zen mind, ready to make the most of the trip while still just being in the moment and go with the flow.

"SERENITY NOW!"



In addition to the workshop, I'm scheduled to work with a couple of amazing models in LA on Monday, with some help from my new friend/location scout/concierge, Lizzy, sister of the renowned A. Owen Layne. Ask for them by name.

Flying with my "old school" iBook that's about 7 years old rather than my slightly less ancient one which has mysteriously disappeared... this is one of the first post-toilet-seat models. Could not install Lightroom because it's not up to specs, could not install Photoshop, so it's basically just good for surfing and e-mail. I'm guessing I'll be the only photographer there without a spiffy high-end laptop, editing images on the spot. Perhaps I can rely upon the kindness of strangers to edit one or two images. Or the shots will join the queue back in Ohio. To go with my lappy is the equally, uh, utilitarian case,.. half of a padded envelope that fits like a glove. At least it's the same sort of scruffy, scratched white as the iBook. Maybe I'll start a trend.

The recorded voice just told me that the HSA Security threat level is "Orange" which as I recall, it has been for almost 7 years. What's the point of this color-coded system if the color never changes? The paranoia is becoming really tiresome... ended up going to the store at about 12:30 last night in search of tiny bottles of sunblock and aloe, but no luck. Hard to believe we crow about being the strongest country in the world, yet we're afraid a 4-ounce bottle of Coppertone could result in tragedy.

Something just occurred to me about this free wi-fi... I wonder if TSA monitors what's going across the wireless wire?

Well, things are starting to get busier here at gate B18, so I think we must be about ready to start boarding... a few large men in black suits and sunglasses are approaching me, so I should probably go ahead and hit "publish post."