"You load 16 megs, and whaddaya get..."

Going through some stuff the other day, I stumbled onto the Kodak memory card at left. It came with the Kodak DC4800, the first digital camera I purchased, and holds a whopping 16MB of image data. Of course, it was too small even then -- it would hold 1 uncompressed 3.1mp image, or 16 standard compressed images, or 48 images at .08mp -- but Kodak felt it was sufficient to ship with the camera.

At right is a 16GB card that I recently purchased... that's 1000 times as much data in the same space, for probably not a whole lot more money. Now, I know that's not news -- "computer memory getting more compact and cheaper" -- but it just struck me funny to see such a concrete example. But that's not what you're here to read...

In real world news, model Minxy D gave birth to a beautiful daughter this week. Congratulations Dani! We were supposed to do a photo session to document her pregnancy, but sadly, schedules never worked out... Here's a shot from our session somewhat more than 9 months ago. :)

The Walking Rose

Friend and a longtime favorite model, The Thorny Rose, is taking part in a fundraising Walk-A-Thon this weekend to fight Multiple Sclerosis, and could use your help. A worthy cause on its own, it's also a disease that's touched her through friends and family, which is motivating her to help raise funds. "My aunt fought this disease and passed away when I was still in grade school. I have two friends now battling and looking for a cure."

If you'd like to make a contribution to help fund her efforts, you can contact her through ModelMayhem or MySpace or via her blog to offer your support.

We've only managed one brief shoot together since she's moved to Chicago, but I'm looking forward to working with her again in a few weeks when get back that way. :)

Flight

Days

A couple images from my recent (and long overdue) shoot with Char Rose... we met back in 2007, and she lives in the next 'burb over, but various circumstances kept us from working together until now.

Also gives me a chance to point out that I've been playing with more post-processing lately. I still strive to get it as close to "right" as possible in-camera, but I'm enjoying the smörgåsbord of options now available. So, we have the top image, which is basically as shot, and the color image, with a little digital magic applied. Not sure if it's "just a phase" for me, or a new direction, but there it is.

Also, I've not done my usual "death updates" lately but I did want to note the untimely passing of two very different icons from my youth. Flash-in-the-Pan pitching phenom Mark Fidrych (54) and girl-next-door porn star Marilyn Chambers (56). They were both way too young to go. I'd just been reading about Fidrych a few weeks ago. Combined with the life-threatening illness of Farrah Fawcett, it all once again reminds me how little time any of us really get...

Welcome Carrie Leigh's NUDE readers...

The Spring issue of Carrie Leigh's NUDE Magazine should be arriving in mailboxes any day now, with newstand sales starting in a couple weeks, so I just wanted to welcome readers from the magazine who may have found their way here, and invite you to take a look around. Dozens and dozens of entries on all sorts of topics, with many of my photos to illustrate, such as this one of Sweet Romance.

In the right column, you'll also find links to various online portfolios and organizations I belong to where you can see more work.

I encourage you to leave a comment to introduce yourself, or "follow" this blog. Thanks for stopping by.

Parallel Development in Chains

Every year, Allure Magazine features a pictorial of several nude female celebrities, strategically posed to conceal the naughty bits, what I might call a "covered nude" or others might call "implied nudity." Well, this year's were recently posted, and I couldn't help but notice that their shot of actress Sharon Leal made use of a chain curtain as part of the conceal/reveal tactic.

A few weeks ago, I used a similar tactic in my shoot with Dani, as seen here, but I'd not posted anything yet... so, here she is, also tastefully concealed. Of course, these chain curtains have been used in this manner for decades, but it's just another "plate of shrimp" coincidence to share with you.

Here, I'll let Miller and Otto explain it all for you...

Gary, Indiana...

You may remember this little ditty as sung by little Ronnie Howard in his pre-Opie days... sort of paints a picture of Gary, Indiana, as a charming little town, which it might have been long ago. Today, its famous mainly for crime and blight, its population having dropped by almost half since its peak in the 60s. It's always been sort of odd, sharing a name like I do, as I remember wanting it to be a really great place when I first heard about it when I was a kid, and being told it was not a place anyone would want to go. I have to say that, despite the squalor, we didn't really feel we were at risk at all -- maybe because it was Easter Sunday in the afternoon.
On the way back from Chicago this past weekend, Tia and I spent a few chilly hours exploring the city, especially the downtown area, where it seems most of the buildings are abandoned or collapsing. The shot above is inside the old post Office, just for example. More from that shoot, soon, and probably a return visit when the weather warms up more.

The contrast was more stark after having spent four days in some of the nicest areas of Chicago, with a couple forays into the more run-down parts of the west side. Was lucky enough to work with Moon Marie, Jessa, Ami Amnesia, Mina Mechante, and Stephanie Cain while in Chicago. Thanks to my various location hosts as well -- I'll leave their names out to protect them from an onslaught of requests, but they were very generous and hospitable to be sure. Edits from those sessions soon, I hope!

"Wounderful"

Started this entry over a week ago, and only got the title and the photo in, and I only dimly recall that someone described one of my shots as "wounderful." Now, I don't think that's the British spelling with the extra "u" in there, but I kind of like the word.

"Wounderful" sort of describes how things have been going lately... on the one hand, many things are going great, and I'm doing my best to enjoy the experiences. On the other hand, I still feel kind of "wounded" for various reasons, which tends to temper the enjoyment somewhat. So, "wounderful" seems to fit me right now.

Sorry to have been absent so long from the blog. You may hear more from me the next few days, or I may lapse into silence again. Hard to tell... very busy!

Thank you for all the congratulations on the Carrie Leigh Nude news, and thanks also to Dr. Lightness and the folks at Univers d'Artistes for a nice profile piece the other day, since buried under an avalanche of amazing work. The link should take you right there though.

Oh, and don't miss the MWSEP art show next weekend in Detroit. "The Seduction of Art." Click the banner link at right for more details!

More soon. That's Tantila, striking the pose that's kind of hard for a guy of my build to demonstrate.