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Picture Perfect

2008-11-16T08:37:00.001-05:00

Today pgatour.com featured Stan, Chris & my favorite photos of 2008 as the lead story. They ran a bio on each of us as well as our top-10 photos of the year.

Havin' Fun at Disney

2008-11-04T21:03:00.007-05:00

I'm at Disney this week shooting player headshots at the Children's Miracle Network Classic Presented by Wal-Mart (which is also the longest name for a golf tournament).

After I shot Fredrik's headshot, he said, "You pay a lot of attention to detail. I really like that." Then I got a big hug & as soon as he left, I immediately dialed Jana to gloat. Sorry Jana! ;o)

Jerry spent over an hour giving a golf lesson to the girls in player registration.

I got to shoot some nice family pix ... some normal, some funny.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T21:09:00.007-04:00

When we arrived at work there was a crime scene & scary decorations everywhere. We all suspected that Mike, AKA "Dr. Ben Dover, Proctologist," had come in last night to decorate (even though it was his week off).

Rob, AKA "The Joker," made this year's card, starring our creepy office-mates.

Let the fun begin ... these kids seemed to be mesmerized by The Joker.

We sure had some adorable trick-or-treaters! (click to enlarge)

Batman meets The Joker.

At different parties, Anna & Tyler dressed up as Ike & Tina Turner, while Chris was a member of the Blue Man Group.

Tiki Torch

2008-10-30T23:00:00.009-04:00

Tonight I went to a going away party for Joan at Aqua Grill. JR & I were entranced by this tiki torch. I could have shot it all night long.

Ty, Joan, Bob & Stewart.

Big Shopping Weekend

2008-10-19T21:37:00.002-04:00

Friday night I went to Sam's Club to make sure they had the TV I planned to pick up with Rob on Saturday morning. I got there & the model I wanted was gone, but the floor model was available for $700 less than the previous week. There was no box, so it fit in my car. Rob came over to help get it in the house.

Saturday was a big shopping day ... TOUR Stop, Scan Design, Bo Concept, West Elm & Sound Advice. I couldn't believe it but Sound Advice had the exact tv I bought at Sam's for $200 less, plus $500 in free gas. It was a big enough difference that I had to call Rob to the rescue. A 52" tv isn't exactly easy to buy, return & buy again.

Today, Rob was good enough to take me to Sam's Club to return a TV then to Sound Advice to buy another. Before we went, I made waffles, lattes & smoothies. Rob was hoping to find some Bunnies in the Playboy Bus.

I saw some good bumper stickers ...

2008-10-18T20:25:00.003-04:00

Why can't Republicans pronounce the word "NUCLEAR"?!?

Presidents Cup Captains' Day

2008-10-08T00:35:00.012-04:00

Today is Captains' Day. It's an opportunity for the Captains to do interviews with the media & schmooze the bigwigs.

Greg & Fred pose with the trophy.

Greg posed with Chris too.

After the 1st round of press conferences there was a buffet lunch for the media & a fancy lunch for the dignitaries. Then came the 2nd round of press conferences & photo ops out on the course.

I drove up the coast for a bit. The surf sure was rough.

Funny house.

Nice hippie bus.

On the way back to the hotel, I stopped at Ghirardelli Square. Every time I talked to John, he asked me if I got him any chocolate yet. I figured I better go since he is the birthday boy this week.

San Francisco

2008-10-07T23:29:00.021-04:00

I flew into San Francisco today for Presidents Cup Captains' Day. The only good thing about a 6:40am flight ... the light.

There was a cool shadow of our plane on the water.

I took advantage of my window seat & shot some scenery.

I think these are sod farms. We passed a bunch of them every so often.

First I went to Harding Park to scout locations for tomorrow.

Then I drove around to see what was near the golf course & stopped by the iconic IN-N-OUT. I did witness a kid eat a french fry that his mom dropped on the floor near the cash register (heavily trafficked area). You should have seen the expressions of those who witnessed the incident ... sheer horror! When JR saw this photo, his eyes lit up & he said, "I don’t think I’d ever leave there. I’d have all my shopping in one location."

Obama

On the way to my hotel, I shot this picture out my car window for my brother.

After that I checked into the fancy 101-year-old Fairmont ...

... home of the outrageous parking fee. They say it’s $50, but after tax/tip it's $58 (the only good thing about it is that it's free to park a hybrid ... that's awesome). This will go down in history with the world's most expensive cup of coffee … a quad espresso at the Four Seasons in Scottsdale … $30 after tax, tip & room service delivery fee (I think they charged us $6 for each shot).

I passed a disturbing sign on the way into the hotel … yikes!!! I wish I would have asked for a brochure.

Down the hallways of the lobby level, was a tribute to the history of the Fairmont. There were photos of celebrities that had stayed there, including all of the Presidents since 1907. There was also a section that mentioned various things that were filmed at the hotel, including the Towering Inferno (Steve McQueen & Paul Newman), Dirty Harry (Clint Eastwood) & the TV series Hotel (James Brolin & Connie Sellecca), to name a few.

I spotted a cable car, but no Rice-a-Roni, "the San Francisco Treat." I'm not sure who decided it was safe to hang out of a moving cable car. I don't think this would fly in any other city.

Sensor Cleaning

2008-10-05T15:34:00.004-04:00

While I was cleaning my camera sensors & shooting the sky to check my progress, four ducks swam thru my backyard. When I pointed my camera at them, one decided to put on a show.

The Playoff Finale

2008-09-28T23:32:00.001-04:00

My picture of the trophy & clubhouse from last year was everywhere. Banners, posters, video boards, Ritz Carlton room keys, as well as the cover of the program & 29 times inside. It was a bit much.

Me & the FedExCup

We brought both trophies over to the NBC booth for a quick segment. Anne cues Johnny & Dan.

The clubhouse was expanded since last year.

The Tiffany engraver has much better penmanship than the Waterford engraver! Funny ... he didn't wear white gloves & he wasn't afraid of making fingerprints everywhere!

Tiffany & Co Master Engraver

Vijay watches to make sure the engraver spells his name right.

Camilo won the tournament, but Vijay won $10 million!

The club always falls off this trophy. I tried to put it in the golfer's hands earlier today to no avail. Camilo watches the Commissioner try to fix it.

Camilo also unsuccessfully tried during the trophy shoot. Needless to say, our trophy pix look silly without the club.

Saturday at East Lake

2008-09-27T22:32:00.005-04:00

The FedExCup ... the trophy that comes with a $10 million check.

Chris gets a better angle.

I must be smiling because Chris is lying on the ground.

Tiger won both trophies last year. There'll be two winners this year.

Friday Night Dinner

2008-09-26T22:47:00.007-04:00

Streeter suggested a Mexican restaurant, then stood us up. To overcome the grief of being dumped by Streeter, Chris drowned his sorrows with the 32oz "Super Bedwetter"!

Chihuahua?!? Yuk!

THE TOUR Championship ... Day 1

2008-09-25T23:18:00.008-04:00

The Final Playoff.

I spent 5 hours today shooting hospitality with Laura (after shooting 3 hours yesterday with models). I shot around 1500 frames over the course of two days ... that's a lot of hospitality!

They were debuting these new aluminum bottles in Coke's hospitality.

I asked Laura if we were gonna get in trouble. She said, "why?" I said we just drove by a sign that said no golf carts. Oops!

The MetLife hospitality had a Snoopy theme.

Chris & I were on our way back to the hotel when we saw that the streets downtown were closed. I called the Sheraton to ask them how we were supposed to get back & they told me there was a race & it would be at least an hour before we could back to the hotel. UGH! I snapped this sunset out my car window.

Since we couldn't go to the hotel, Chris & I decided to head straight over to Waikikie, for Hawaiian BBQ with Fred, Streeter, JD & Charles. Fred said he expected to see my blog update in the morning. Exhausted, I said, "Fred, I am not your blogging whore!" ... but here it is, so I guess I am.

JD ordered Spam Musubi for his appetizer. Streeter said, "man, that smells like $h!t!" I'm not gonna tell you JD's response.

Nice Hawaiian bathroom signs.

Big Mess at JFK

2008-09-22T23:27:00.003-04:00

I was next in line to go thru xray at about 7:45am, when the entire Jet Blue terminal at JFK was evacuated. So many people were complaining that they were gonna miss their flight. It was kinda funny. Nobody was going anywhere. Scanners spotted what turned out to be paper weights that resembled World War II grenades, in a passenger's luggage. Doh!

Mom's 70th Birthday Spa Getaway Weekend

2008-09-21T20:43:00.009-04:00

After sitting in traffic for four hours, we finally arrived at The Spa at Norwich Inn.

This was one of our duplexes for the weekend.

Wendy, Bonnie, Sandy, Helaine & Andrea joined my mom & me for a weekend of pampering.

Sandy, Bonnie & Wendy picked out these inspirational shirts in the spa gift shop.

Wendy was reading a nice poem that she, Bonnie & Sandy wrote. Everyone was listening intently, even though it looks like they're just snacking.

Helaine insisted that I finally get in a photo.

The toast.

The chocolate flourless torte was fab & photogenic!

I think it would have made a better photo if they put 70 candles on the cake!

After all of the photo-ops, I finally let my mom blow out the candle.

Bonnie & Wendy both had spa pedicures that included rose petals between their toes. I'm not sure why, but at least it made good blog photos.

Mom & Sandy.

Between treatments, Andrea & Helaine hang out in their robes.

The windows on the main building of the Norwich Inn are surrounded by beautiful ivy.

Since she knows she's gonna be pressured to design a waffle when she visits me in PVB, Mom decided to practice on a crepe.

TV Pilot at Catalina ... Take 2

2008-09-19T20:35:00.008-04:00

Even though there was plenty of sun, a bunch of big Arri lights were scattered around the set.

I met Mark Feuerstein, the star of the show. Nice guy.

There were 150 crew members. It was amazing how fast they moved a set from the second level of Oceanview to the parking lot.

This is a show business pup.

These are some tearsheets of shoots at Catalina that are hanging in the office.

TV Pilot at Catalina

2008-09-18T21:46:00.004-04:00

I knew this was gonna be good when I saw the Craft Service truck. Catalina was rebranded Hampt Inn Motel since the scene is set in the Hamptons (NY).

The parking lot was filled with RVs, production, wardrobe, catering & grip trucks.

Ashley strikes a pose while Molly looks on.

Sandy wasn't happy when Teddy showed up, so she put him to work!

When the phone didn't stop ringing, Sandy insisted Teddy come into the office to help man (I mean dog) the calls. Teddy wanted a paycheck.

In between snacks, Larry & Mom watch the filming.

Can't fool me ... I know that is locker #13!

Nice chair.

Wendy, Teddy & Larry

The sandbox set they built in Oceanview was abandoned at lunchtime.

I had panko crusted chicken, sliced steak, snow peas, roasted corn & a little pasta/rice.

Molly went down the slide on cue, while Ashley played in the sandbox.

Andy is hard at work. He claimed it wasn't as easy as it looks.

Sandra & Valerie had to shoot some scenes without making a peep (which apparently isn't easy) & some scenes making as much noise as possible.

Some walls had real life preservers, but this one was painted.

The weather was picture perfect ... a high of 75 degrees.

Wendy is happy that Ashley & Molly are finally bringing home a paycheck.

Denim Days

2008-09-12T12:43:00.002-04:00

I got to wear jeans to work today for a donation to First Coast No More Homeless Pets. Each Friday in September benefits a different charity.

Waffles ... for a change.

2008-09-07T22:21:00.003-04:00

The regular gang came for waffles this morning ... Rob, Anna, Chris, Beth & Shelby. Poor Rob hadn't had any waffles since the 4th of July! Rob is always invited since he does the best blogworthy waffle designs (& he's a nice guy).

Rob coats his sausage in Reese's peanut butter syrup ... YUK!

Chris enjoys a Diet Pepsi after a delicious hot foamy cappuccino. It looks like he's resting his elbow on Shelby's head. Beth was giddy after consuming the Reese's syrup.

Anna, Chris & I snuggle under a blanket on the couch ...

... while Rob & Beth get competitive with their iPhones.

Tropical Storm Hanna

2008-09-06T21:12:00.006-04:00

I'm back in FL, but following the Open on TV. Today was a bit of a fiasco, weather-wise (in NY). Federer/Djokovic started at 11am on Ashe & the afternoon forecast was dismal. Roger won his semi as the raindrops started to fall.

Originally the other semi was to follow, but they ended up moving the Nadal/Murray match to Armstrong & started it at noon. Rafa was down two sets to love when Hanna moved in.

Since the weather was not gonna clear, they scheduled the Nadal/Murray match to finish after football at 4pm on Sunday (& it was being moved from Armstrong to Ashe in the middle of the match). I couldn't believe they weren't gonna play in the morning.

The Women's Final was postponed until 9pm Sunday & the Men's Final was set to be played at 5pm Monday. That's just crazy! The only good thing about the rain was that Susan got to shoot the Official US Open Rubber Froggie & Rubber Duckie floating in the flooded stadium ... $16 well spent.

Labor Day

2008-09-01T22:30:00.006-04:00

I remember seeing an interview with Rafa last year. He was asked if he had any bad habits. He said he thought his bad habit was fairly evident. 'nuff said!

Mary & I both had flights to catch so we left the matches early. Mom & Hank picked up dinner from The Pizza Place, so we didn't have to rush on the way to JFK.

The Middle Sunday

2008-08-31T22:47:00.014-04:00

All of the top Nike athletes seem to have personalized shoes. I think Tiger needs some personalized golf shoes!

Guess who? Hint: He's won 4 consecutive US Open trophies & his initials are RF.

Serena's shoes are personalized on the back, tongue & sole. The little hearts on the edge of the sole have the years she's won.
(click to enlarge)

Nadal's shoes have bullhorns on one & "Rafa" on the other.

I started the day shooting Roger.

Between the matches, Mary, Kathy, Susan, Frank & I took a stroll around the fenced-in grounds of the old World's Fair. If I could get inside the fence, I'd spend the whole day shooting my two favorite things, rust & peeling paint. That's way more interesting than shooting tennis.

Mary held up the Unisphere while I shot her with the Fuji digital infrared camera.

I was shooting the Roddick match when Mary shot me with the IR camera.

I always like to wait until the player gets in just the right spot near the logo. You can't get this photo in week two, since there's a linesjudge permanently stationed in the middle of the logo.

I went up on the roof of the press box to shoot the grounds.

While I was up there, I found some nice rust.

Hot & Humid!

2008-08-30T21:27:00.004-04:00

Rafa hits an autographed ball into the stands.

Even though I enjoy shooting elevated, I decided to shoot most of the matches from court level today. Here's Serena from the dugout.

I never get tired of shooting Monfils. He makes great pictures!

Venus from the dugout.

Johnny Mac, Dick Enberg & Mary Carillo watch Connors beat Borg (1976) on the Jumbotron ... or should I say Jimbotron?!?

USTA Member Appreciation Day

2008-08-29T19:13:00.006-04:00

It's USTA Member Appreciation Day, & since I'm a Lifetime Member, it means a quick trip to the hospitality village to pick up my annual gift. This year it's an aluminum water bottle.

Roger won in straight sets.

My curiousity was piqued. Can you blame me?

It's not easy hoisting the 700,000 pound Unisphere. It's 140 feet high, 120 feet in diameter & made of stainless steel. Luckily, Mary is quick, so I didn't have to hold it that long to get a blog photo.

Thursday

2008-08-28T23:58:00.006-04:00

The Blake match ended abruptly when his opponent retired after splitting sets.

The light was just getting nice & Monfils looked great, when I had to leave to pick up Mary at the airport

I wasn't happy that Venus was wearing white. Upon closer examination, I noticed she was wearing pink.