Michelle and I met Danielle a couple of months back when she was coaching younger girls in cheerleading.  We brought in to take photos of the cheerleading squad in action and we had a lot of fun taking photos and talking with all the girls.  Danielle is headed off to college soon and Michelle and I wish her luck with her new college life :-)   Thanks Danielle!

Paul and Down Town Fairfax

Paul was great to work with.  He was game to try just about anything including climbing to the top of a large metal box :-) 

Wedding Day for Julie & Matt!!

Michelle and I had a great time this past weekend with Julie and Matt and all their relatives and friends.  Congratulations Julie and Matt!

Camera Lens Rental

Hi All,

We had a couple of photo shoots this past weekend (wedding and senior photos) so I decided to try out a lens that I have been thinking about buying.  I really like my fixed focal length lens; a Nikon 35mm, f/1.8 and 50mm, f/1.4 lens.  The photos are crisp and play to my short depth of field techniques.  They are also very affordable but have the obvious limitation of not being able to zoom in or out as needed.   I have had my eye on the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 but at about $1,700 it’s a little on the pricey side so you had better be sure it’s something that will work for you before you buy one. 

That’s what lead me down the rental trail for the first time.  I follow a lot of photo blogs and there is one company in particular lately that has been mentioned quite a bit.  LensProToGo.  About a week out, I went to their web site to check it all out.  I found the lens I wanted to try and signed up for a 4-day rental.   The 4-day rental cost me $84 and included shipping in both directions.  As I recall, there was a $12 insurance coverage but I opted out because I already have business insurance. 

Signing up was painless and efficient.  About 5 minutes after I placed my order, I received a phone call from the company.  Very personable and they wanted to make sure I knew what I was getting and exactly what the lens was good for. 

The lens arrived on the day I requested by UPS.  Signature was required (as expected). 

Inside the box, I found a protective Pelican case that contained the lens as well as a return address label. Also a lollipop that my kids were immediately were attracted to :-)

I put the lens through its paces over the weekend shooting about 3000+ photos and it worked great.  On the 4^th day, I placed the lens back in the Pelican case and back in the box it came in, resealed it, placed the return UPS label on the box and dropped it off to my local UPS store. 

The whole process worked very well.  Look for future posts of the photos we took with the lens. 

Amman, Jordan

Had a little fun last week...

Wedding Planning & Budget Spreadsheet

Caution… objects on spreadsheet are closer (and larger) then they appear!! (And then again, they maybe right on :-)

For those of you getting married, planning and budgeting can be a big headache.  I know what I’m talking about.  My wife and I married almost two years ago and I ended up making a spreadsheet that helped take a lot of stress out of the whole process. 

I’m offering a free copy of our spreadsheet for those in need.  Just shoot me an e-mail; steve@smbeltz.com and request one.  No strings attached meaning no follow up e-mail or phone call sales pitches.  Just one married couple trying to help another couple get married :-)

Philippines

Just had a very interesting trip to the Philippines.  Was there for over 2 weeks working from sun up to past sun down.  I was able to break away from the job at times and tour around Manila;

Below are some shots from a seafood market not far from the hotel I stayed at.  I think I ate more seafood in the 2 ½ weeks I was there then all of 2010 (or since living out in the great northwest).

 Assorted sea creatures. 

 Very tasty squid!

How's this for a colorful lobster :-)  

I also visited Corregidor Island, a World Word II memorial.  It's hard to describe the amount of destruction and drama and the role this little island played during WWII.  All I could say is it was very humbling.

Of course, I was there in the middle of the day with the sun blazing straight down.  I tried to make the best of the situation and look for contrasty settings.  This is a bombed out military barrack.  

Shrapnel damaged door that protected explosive storage room.   

 "We are not in Kansas anymore!"

More bombed out military barracks. 

I have been fortunate to be able to travel and I can say that Philippine people were some of the best hosts I have had the pleasure of meeting.

Coming home was probably the most interesting part of the whole trip.  I was supposed to route through Tokyo but because of their recent issues, I was routed through Hong Kong (great airport) to LA, then to Dulles.  17 hours in airports and 19 hours of flying made for a very long trip.  It was great to be home :-)

500px.com

Came across a very cool site.  If you are looking for inspiration or want to show off your portfolio, take a look at www.500px.com.   A great collection of portfolio's from some very, very good photographers.