me di cuenta de cuanto te había echado de menos…

Invierno.

Polaroid SX-70? Check.
1 pack of expired 600 film? Check.
Some extra neutral density gels? Check.
Free time to shoot? Check.

These are the shots that make me happy.

Muy dulce.

{i ♥ JG}

Before I Die I Want To… is an interesting project showing polaroids of random strangers with the one thing that they would like to do before they die. By Nicole Kenney and Ks Rives. They update it every first of the month with new shots.

worked the final day of HELLO KITTY’S month long stay at Royal/T and it was still NONSTOP.  staff had a little send off celebration come closing time…

BYE HELLO KITTY…

we’ll miss you!

my favorite staff instax….

Neil Krug recreates vintage photography in the present with the use of expired polaroids. Armed with his polaroid land camera automatic 100, this Kansas based photographer shoots a variety of subjects including models, hippies, landscapes, and other personal works. Neil is a full time promo director who also had his hand on LadyTron’s “Tomorrow” video.

http://www.flickr.com/people/neilkrug/

Thanks for participating in my Twitter contest and sticking with it over so many days ! Anyway, without further ado..we have a winner – @ali991 . If you give me a mailing address ( you can use the comments as they are moderated and not published straight away ) then I will get your calendar off in the post to you .

As a thank you to everyone else who joined in, if you would like to buy a copy of the calendar  for yourself you may also choose two 5×5 prints from those listed in my Etsy shop. Just state “Twitter contest” in the “Note to seller” and your choice of prints. Something for you to keep and something to give as a present – you can choose which way round you do it.

And because I’m nice like that, if you would prefer the other calendar then the offer applies to that too . This bonus is valid until midnight on Tuesday 17th November 2009.

( * You can sign up for my “soon-to-launch” Ezine from the link on the right or from here – and receive two downloadable postcards* )

Yummy, easy and much better than shop bought! A perfect winter warmer dish which is also quite fun to make. The traditional Italian pasta, potato dumpling combination. This recipe makes around 50-70.

What you need:

600g Marie Piper Potatoes, 350g Spinach, 150g Plain flour (plus extra for dusting), 1 egg yolk, Black Pepper & Sea Salt

Simply peel and cut potatoes and simmer in a boiled pan of water for 20mins, when nice and soft drain and evaporate the moisture from the potatoes in the hot pan and mash to a nice smooth consistency, set aside to cool. Now wilt the spinach leaves in a pan on medium heat until soft. Scoop out the spinach onto muslin and squeeze the liquid from the spinach, as much as you possibly can. Now finely chop the spinach and add to a mixing bowl.

In the mixing bowl add to the spinach, the mashed potatoes, flour, egg yolk and seasoning. Mix the ingredients until thoroughly combined together. Now take  take a lined tray and dust with flour (also dust your hands). Simply take small amounts of the dough and roll into chocolate truffle sized balls, do this until all the mixture has been turned into little balls (^-^) Now take a folk and gently press the top of each ball. To cook, fill a pan of water and turn to simmer just before boiling point. Cook the gnocchi in tens, so there is enough room for them to move around. once the Gnocchi has floated to the top it has cooked.

Serve with olive oil and garlic, or grill with melted cheese.

Last week we spent a morning just hanging out. The day started at the public market where we took a water taxi to the beach across the inlet. We threw pieces of driftwood into the ocean and compared splashes and distance. We made a small channel to the sea. We waded into the ocean past our boot tops. We took off our boots and socks and headed back to the public market for hot snapper soup, and some playtime at the wooden toy shop before heading back home. If you haven’t thrown sticks into a body of water lately, get yourself out to the nearest sea or lake. I highly recommend it.

So I’ve been shooting for ehhh about a week now.

I find it fascinating what people will tell you after you ask to take their picture. I’ve had discussions on immagration, feces, and I have even been proposed to. But to hear the rest of that story , you’ll have to buy the book.. ( I joke, If I do ever finish this project i’ll bring the finished book to class)

Here are some creame’d ‘la crop images.

Shack near Jasper Ny

Dan and Lori, who came three hours early to Mullers auction.

When I went back to photograph Club Valentine , I was horrified when I discovered they changed the sign completely. I guess things change, even in these small ‘time-warp’ towns. I still think the sign looked better with peeling paint and rust, but what are you going to do.

Changed sign

Found on the road to Jasper...

I’ve had 3 lengthy shooting sessions thus far. Thursday and Friday were abnormally sunny and warm for November, which I attempted to take advantage of, but by the time I got out of my classes, it was around 2 o’clock, which means I had only 2 hours before night would fall.

2 packs of instant film , 2 rolls of slide film, and one tank of gas later = some pretty ok images.

Have been enjoying experimenting with the Holga + Polaroid back – commonly referred to as a Holgaroid. It lends itself to a very dreamy style of image and has given me an idea for a series that I plan to execute very quickly over the next couple of weeks. Maybe I was influenced a little by seeing a performance yesterday at the Arches by Derevo in collaboration with another Russian company and a Scottish theatre group. The Arches is an underground space below Central Station in Glasgow and provided a suitably grimy mysterious backdrop for an equally mysterious show. The audience congregated in a central area for the start and finish and in between had to select 3 doors, out of  a possible  7  to watch 20 minute performances in each. Dreamlike  and confusing with reality and fantasy  blurred.

( * You can sign up for my “soon-to-launch” Ezine from the link on the right or from here – and receive two downloadable postcards* )

Gripe A.

These are from London and Jerusalem.  Another Polaroid commission.

Juegas?

Before memory:

My grandparents came to visit Texas both when I was born and then again when my sister came into the world. I remember the latter visit to a small extent.
Don’t all the grown-ups look dapper?
Doesn’t my grandma have an intense look? Not mean, just, meaningful.
And check out my ride. Did I know how to pick a stylish tricycle or what?

(I sure miss my grand-folks.)

What more can you expect from a town obsessed with space travel? I mean, we have the Rockets and the Astros, why not a rocket for kids to play astronaut on?
Notice the small opening to crawl through to get to the tippy-top? There is no way that large parents could follow their offspring up there. Gotta love old un-child-safe playgrounds.

Cute, right?
And can I just that I like the outdoor carousels much more than the ones inside malls? (Cuz I do.)

Do you remember back in the day when they had plaster casts? I sure do.
I also remember the day this photo was taken– it was the day I had to hang that heavy leg over the edge of my bed for a few hours before the doctor came in, sawed a window into my cast, and pulled out my stitches. If you’ve never felt it, it is a really weird sensation. I can’t say I recommend it.