Health Care (Obamacare?)

I wasn't going to write about this, but then read the following article by Dr. Mercola, which ties in to what I think at least one thing that health care reform should have been about, and that's education.  Every year in school, there should be at least one class required about health and diet, nutrition, the dangers and side effects of drugs - what you need to do to stay healthy and prevent disease.  Dr. Mercola's article is just one thing, but a very important one.  Here is the link:  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/06/30/excessive-fructose-causes-obesity-and-cancer.aspx?e_cid=20120630_DNL_artNew_1

Here's a little true story  - Years ago, I had constant bloating, cramping, and on and off nausea, and was diagnosed with "nervous stomach," after having very uncomfortable tests to measure stomach acid, and have a scope lowered into my stomach at Kaiser.  I asked the doctor what I could do, and he asked if I smoked, drank, or took drugs - the answer was no to all of those.  So he said to stay out of stressful situations.  I knew there had to be a better answer.  I also knew a guy from the beach in Santa Barbara (this photo is the beach, but obviously not the guy, LOL - I don't have his picture, but he looked like the cover of a Greek Mythology book) who was the healthiest looking person I had ever seen.

                                                   Beach in Santa Barbara - actually Goleta

I asked him what he did to stay healthy, and he told me to get a book called "Health Secrets of the Hunza" and follow that diet.  I did.  It was all whole foods, nothing processed, no sugars, no GMO, etc. Over the next 6 months, my problem slowly faded away, and has not come back.  In addition, several other health problems went away.

That's one part of health reform.  Another part should have been about lowering hospital costs, unneeded tests, unneeded surgery, etc.  An example - my brother stepped on a nail, went to the emergency room, and was charged a total of $1,400 !!!  That's not a typo, but it's part of the problem.  When the president originally talked about health reform, this is what I thought he would be doing, not insurance.

Along with a healthy diet, I take supplements to fill in anything I might be missing in that diet.  Other problems that have gone away:  headaches, some very bad allergies, the flu, colds, dandruff, and I'm probably leaving some out.

That's my rant for the day - my hope is that at least some who read this will change their diet, if needed, take some supplements, and go to health.  And if you do make changes, remember that the results can take anywhere from several days or weeks to several months; perhaps even a few years, depending on how bad you did things before.  One last thing - don't think that if a little is good, a lot is better.  Taking too much of something can be bad, even drinking too much water can kill you.

Well, if I don't add anything else before the 4th of July, hope you all have a safe and happy one.  And a great weekend.

About My Parents (and Capturing Love in Your Photos))

My Mom and Dad are no longer here, but they will always be with me.  My father passed away just a couple of months before they would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.  It has been a while, but I still get a lump in my throat writing about him and my mother.  I know others feel like I do - that they were the best parents one could wish for.  They gave me total and unconditional love, and some of the best memories of my life.  I will always be thankful for all they did for me; while special days like Mother's Day and Father's Day are nice, they are remembered every day - they deserve no less.  Anyway, many years ago we were taking a trip from Scottsdale to, I believe, the Natural Bridge just north of Payson, AZ, and stopped for a rest at the side of the road.  I think it was in the mid to late 1980's, and I had my trusty Nikon FTn with me, and shot a bunch of pictures of my parents.  One of them was a photo that captured one of those magical images - when you capture more than just a picture - you capture that emotion that makes it more than what you might have hoped for, and a memory of who these two wonderful people were, and the love they shared.  As can happen, I was focusing on the getting a great image, but missed a detail - the bag at their feet.  And so it remained in the photo for perhaps 20 years, until digital and photoshop entered the scene.  I finally got to remove that bag, and fix some of the fading of the original slide.  Below is the before and after of the bag removal.  The feeling in the images is pretty much the same in the before and after, but with no distractions to take away from it.  It is the feeling and personality that can be elusive, but which I always try to get in my photography.

Now, back to health - a recent publicized study said calcium and vitamin D may be bad for you.  I would not disagree with that....if that is all a person took.  In nature, things are in balance, and by taking two isolated supplements, without what would be needed to keep things in balance, you may well run into problems.  I personally would never take calcium and vitamin D (in the form of D3) without taking magnesium and vitamin K along with it.  But check with your health care practitioner (one who hopefully knows about supplements), and do your own research, too.  Some supplements may interfere with some medications, and some medications can deplete some nutrients that you would then need to take as a supplement.  And keep in mind, too, that it is not only what supplements you take, but what form the supplements are in - are they natural or synthetic, are some organically bound to another substance that will help you absorb them better, or might you not absorb them at all if they are not in the correct form.

This is it for now.  Have a great day, and "see you" on my next post.

Ask Your Doctor

Every evening, when I turn on the news on TV, I see countless ads that say, "Ask your doctor if "X drug" is right for you."  After hearing all the possible side effects, I would ask, " are any of these drugs are right for anyone?"  Properly prescribed prescription drugs kill over 100,000 people a year.  What can you do to avoid getting into a position where you would likely be a candidate for a drug?  Well, you're already online if you're reading this, so do a search on Google for whatever condition you have, and add "natural" or "holistic" etc, to your search.  For example, I put "arthritis natural" in Google, and it gave me ten choices I could search for.  You could also add the word "Mercola" to your condition, and you'd get a list of Dr. Mercola's site recommendations for diet, exercise, etc.  Try it for "weight loss" if you are having a problem with that.

Yes, this is a photography blog, but because health affects everything else, and you want to look and feel your best whether you're a photographer, a model, a family, a young lady or an old man, you need to take control of your health.  If you want to save money, you need to take control of your health.  I know because through diet and exercise, I eliminated more than five major health problems, some minor ones, and went from 4 colds and flu's a year while growing up to maybe one cold every 3-5 years and no more flu, at least not for several years.  So, do your research and go to health!  It's much more fun to be healthy.  Really!!!

I love a challenge in photography - whether it is a challenge to get that action shot, or to get that perfect expression on someone's face.  As some of you may know, I play paddle tennis down at Venice Beach paddle tennis courts, and also bring my camera down there and get photos of others playing.  The following photos are from a few days ago, under midday sun - which is the worst lighting there is.  Because these are real live action shots of people actually playing, can't use light modifiers.  But can use Lightroom after the fact.  Every time I use it, it amazes me.  I could have gotten even better results if I had shot in RAW, but this is my "beach camera" and to maximize possible exposures, I keep it set to .jpg.

The Good, The Bad, and the Distracted

Well, I'll get to the bad in a few minutes.  As for the distracted, this photo was taken in Santa Monica, heading toward Venice.

I used to skate this path all the time and always carried a camera with me (been carrying cameras with me since I got my first one at age 7) - one never knows what one may see along the bike path from Venice to Pacific Palisades.  Now I ride my bike out here whenever I get the chance.  But back to the photo - since the guy being distracted might itself be a distraction, below is the same photo with him removed in Photoshop.

I guess this would be the good.  A sunny day on the bike/skate path along the beach.  Palm trees, cool ocean breezes, and more.  Some days you'll see film crews, once a year the IFC Awards, and ya never know what else.  And as you get into Venice, you'll see lots of performers, tables set up with arts and crafts, and lots of shops and sunglass stands.

That covers the good and distracted; now for the bad, which you can avoid.  And that goes to all the substances in food that, well, aren't food.  Things that are genetically modified (which currently may be hard to find, as these items don't have to be labeled - however, there will be a ballot measure in CA which would make labeling of GMO "foods" mandatory - please vote for that).  Other non-food categories would be preservatives, artificial coloring and flavors, flavor enhancers, etc.  Other things to avoid or cut waaaay back on include sugar, fructose (aka HFCS or high fructose corn syrup), crystalline fructose, and artificial sweeteners (Splenda, aspartame (which was the number one product complaint to the FDA, and which a friend of mine said caused her to lose her memory until she stopped taking it in diet sodas), and asulfame K (K = potassium).  Now, some of these items listed above may or may not cause problems for everyone, but do you want to take the chance.  I don't.  I used to think that eating all this stuff would make life more enjoyable while I was here on Earth, but when I got ulcers, and when I got other health problems, that was when I realized those things (like milk duds, salt water taffee, and all the other junk foods) made life much less enjoyable.  Health is in the top three things in importance.  Without good health, everything else suffers - health problems cause more bankruptcies than any other cause, and can make life miserable, not to mention health problems can end your life prematurely.

All you need to do is read labels on your food, eliminate certain things, eat less (none is better) processed foods, and more whole foods.  Then you can look like the skaters above, or the guy.  OK - you do need to exercise, too.

As Jasmine Star (one of the best Wedding Photographers) says on her blog - if this helps just one person....

Have a great week.

Lightroom and Summer

I'm constantly amazed at what lightroom can do.  If you haven't used it (I hadn't until just a few months ago) and you're a photographer, then you really need to get it and use it.  I had read that it speeds up your work flow, and it does.  But it does so much more.  It has brought back to life many of my old, faded, color shifted photos which were shot with film (negative and positive films).  And it is helping me reorganize my thousands of photos, so I will be able to find what I am looking for.

OK - Summer has nothing to do with Lightroom - just more daylight!  Today is the longest day of the year and the first full day of Summer.  In Los Angeles, along the coast, aside from the length of the day and rain, Summer isn't that much different than Winter - Winter days can be in the 80's and Summer can be in the 60's on any given day.  It is extremely rare to get any rain from mid-May to late September.  This makes it great for outdoor photography and lots of other activities.

Today, on CreativeLIVE, the subject is table top photography.  It isn't something I had thought about doing, but it looks interesting.  Who knows, maybe I will start experimenting with that, and have some fun photos to share.  Until then, have a great day and stay healthy.  More about health in an upcoming post.

Customer Ratings and Lightroom

I was reading "Worth Every Penny" by Sarah Petty and Erin Verbeck and they were talking about economist Vilfredo Pareto's 80-20 rule which says 80% of effects comes from 20% of the causes.  In other words, 20% of your customers will give you 80% of your business.  The authors go on to say that if you treat those top 20% of clients better, your business will increase or expand with less effort than if you had spent all your time equally with everyone.  How do you keep track of those people?  Well, you would need some kind of database.  Because I am a photographer, I've been recently learning and studying the uses of Lightroom 3, and realized that this would be the perfect way to rate clients.  Each photo can be rated from 1 to 5 stars, and can also be rated by assigning them 5 colors, or both, although either should be enough.  But you could break things down even more by using both.  You can also use keywords and metadata, including address, notes, etc. for each person.  And perhaps best of all, you'll have a photo to go with their name, and pictures of their family should you need that.  So how do you set this all up?  What I will be doing is creating a separate "Clients Rating" folder, so as not to confuse the star ratings there with the star ratings of best photos, and putting one copy of their best photo in that folder.  And then make a keyword that would just apply to my best clients, next best, and so on.  I'm sure that as I am doing this, I will refine things more, but this gives a rough outline of the steps.

The following would be a top 20 client, shot with film and scanned.

Eliminate the Variables

There are lots and lots of variables in life, in health, in photography, etc.  The more variables that can be eliminated, the better the chance for success in all of the above.

One variable, related to health, concerns whether you would like to know if the food you are eating has been genetically modified (aka GMO).  Currently, in most or all of the U.S., food does not have to be labeled GMO, so you have no way of knowing what you're eating.  There will be an initiative on the ballot this fall, that if passed, will require GMO foods to be labeled as such.  If we know what we're eating, that is one less variable.  More info about GMO labeling - if you want to know if your food is genetically modified or not, and want to avoid eating GMO food, please read and share this link: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/06/14/organizations-on-anti-gmo-labeling.aspx?e_cid=20120614_DNL_art_1


My photography professor at college was the one who told us to eliminate the variables.  What are some of the variables that can and do affect whether you get a snapshot or a work of art?  Lighting, exposure, posing, focus, depth of field, clothing, post processing, your health and the photographers health, whether you're well rested, relaxed, etc., for the session.  How do you eliminate these variables?  For the photographer, through never ending study and practice of each of the variables.  Each variable along the way will add to all the other variables, so for example, if the light is not just right, the focus is a little off, you weren't feeling well, exposure is off, etc., you probably will not be too happy with your photos.  Get all the variables right, and your image should stop someone in their tracks!  But more than that, you can look back at it in the future, and share it with your family, and they will not only see your beauty, but also your personality, who you were at the moment the portrait was taken.  It will be a work of art.  Snapshots have their place for your day to day activities, but works of art are priceless.  Thankfully my family had both.

 Snapshots of my mother and father, taken at Jones Beach, NY.

And a family snapshot of my brother (playing music?), my father, and me - Christmas morning, many years ago.

And one of my younger brother, done professionally.  As always, thanks for stopping by and hope you've enjoyed your visit.

Health and News Reports

In addition to over 25 years experience, I have over 20 years experience studying and being involved with vitamins and supplements.  During this time, I have talked with and gotten feedback from over 10,000 customers at various places where I have worked.  So when I hear news stories on radio and TV that present one side of a story, it bothers me, and it should bother you, too, as it is your health that may be affected.

For example, say there are 8,000 studies done on a particular vitamin or supplement, and 7,900 showed positive results and benefits, and 100 were negative - well, those 100 are what the news might report.  And the result would be to deter you from something that might be extremely beneficial to you.  Also, what you are not told is that the negative studies were sponsored by a company with competing interests, that they used synthetic instead of natural ingredients, nor will they tell you that any positive results were discarded.  Or perhaps, like the study that was mentioned on TV a few days ago, a supplement is studied in isolation, but really needed to be taken with supporting nutrients to keep those nutrients in balance, allowing the nutrient to be better absorbed, as nature intended.   The news report was about calcium supplementation.  If you saw that report (or not), here is a link you should definitely read:
http://www.lef.org/featured-articles/Flawed-Analysis-Misleads-Public-About-Calcium-Heart-Attack-Risk.htm

In short, studies can have many flaws in order to show a particular outcome, and which no one would ever follow in real life.

So, what can you do?  Research online, and there are many sites with good information.  Below are some of the best of them:
http://www.anh-usa.org/
http://orthomolecular.org/nutrients/fats.shtml
http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/index.shtml
http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/
http://www.lef.org/

I hope you will find this information helpful.  To enjoy life to the maximum, you really need good health.  With proper diet (what to eat as well as what to avoid), exercise, positivity, and the right supplements, most people will enjoy good health, and thus enjoy everything else a bit more.  And to tie this back to photography, your photo session will look better, too, because you will.

Luck, or is it Preparation

The following proof sheet of the Lunar Eclipse, taken at Venice Beach, California - were the images a result of luck, or planning?

In this case, a little of both.  I had planned exactly where I wanted to be for the eclipse - I wanted to frame it with the palm trees.  I knew the time when it would reach its maximum.  What I couldn't plan, and what was luck, were the coastal clouds that the beach if famous for this time of year.  Any more clouds, and there would have been no view of the eclipse.  Any less, and it would have been too bright to photograph without the possibility of burning out the sensor in the camera.  And it would not have been quite the same without the added drama the clouds added.  At times, it was hidden from view, and at times it was not obscured at all, so was too bright.  But with patience, preparation, and some luck, was able to get some excellent shots, which were then post processed in LightRoom 3.

To make a bit of a generalization, life is often a combination of luck, planning, and skill, to different degrees.  The lotto is about as pure luck as you can get (unless your totally psychic).  Photography, on the other hand, is pretty much pure planning and experience, occasionally some luck is involved.  When Ansel Adams shot "Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico," he was lucky to come upon the scene at the exact time that he did, but because of his experience and understanding of lighting and exposure, and because he always carried his equipment with him, he was prepared for that lucky moment.

If Uncle Joe shoots your portrait, or wedding, and gets a beautiful result, it is probably more luck.  When a professional, someone with knowledge about lighting, posing, depth of field, composition, etc., and who has many years experience gets beautiful results - it's not luck.  But if you add a little luck, too, then you will end up with a once in a life time image.  And it will be Priceless.

One last thought - although people seem to like specialists (such as portrait photographer, wedding photographer, sports photographer, landscape photographer, war photographer, etc.), the photographers with extensive knowledge and experience (Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Richard Avedon, and so many others) will always get superior results in anything they photograph.

Have a great day, and a healthy one!

Photography and Certification

Happy Friday, everyone.  Today I read an article about photography and certification.  The author thought that if you want to have good portraits done, you would need a photographer who is certified.  He made the comparison to doctors, nurses, and accountants, and basically said that if the photographer wasn't certified, then the photographer couldn't be trusted to give you the results you wanted.  However, there is a problem with this thought.  Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Picasso, etc., were not certified (and no, I'm not comparing myself with them, LOL).  But I think you see where I'm going with this.  You don't have to be certified to make great art, or great images.

They were artists, and I think we can agree that photography is also an art.  Certification might mean you can produce something that is technically perfect, assuming you would want that (sometimes breaking the rules may give the best results).  Do you want someone who will make a perfect image of you, but not capture your emotions, your personality, that special something that makes you who you are?  Or do you want a work of art that does capture all those things?  Being certified is not what will determine that.  When you see your images, you will make that determination.  I try to create images that are at least what you want (hopefully better), and you are the critic, the final judge of the results.  If you don't absolutely love the results, you don't pay a penny for them.  I give that guarantee because with over 25 years experience, and having studied lighting, posing, fashion, etc., I'm pretty certain you will be extremely happy with your images.  I will do my best, too, to make sure you have an enjoyable experience during the photo session.  I want you to have fun and be relaxed so we can capture some great images.

I am not saying certification is worthless, only that it is not needed, because a photographer's images speak for themselves.  A 100% guarantee, to me, negates any need to worry about whether a photographer is certified.  Certified or not, make sure whoever your use as your photographer, that they give you a total money back guarantee, not just a re-shoot guarantee, as many do (who can say you'd be any happier with the re-shot images).  I hope this helps you when your are choosing a photographer.

On an upcoming post I will go over what to expect during the session, prior to the session, and after the session, as well as what my prices include.

Great Websites for New and Experienced Photographers

Over the past year, I have come across several websites that I have found to be extremely useful, from learning how to promote your business, to lighting, posing, editing software, and much more.  One of the best ones has been creativeLIVE .  Other good resources you might find helpful: photoshelter.com/mkt/research/ . They have lots of free informative guides - they do promote their web hosting somewhere in the guide, but no obligations. And this one, too, has been good:  http://www.photographyschoolhouse.com/webinars.aspx , http://www.profitablestudio.com/success-articles/ and finally this one http://www.thejoyofmarketing.com/ - she does try to sell you on her things, but still gives a lot of good info.  After a while, you have to pick and choose, or you'll go on overload, LOL.


These sites have given me some great ideas, filled in some gaps, or given me new ways to look at things.  I have been doing photography as a hobby and profession for over 30 years, have seen many changes, the biggest being the switch to digital.  With all my experience and courses I have taken, the above sites still give me a lot of great new information.  Perhaps the biggest area for me has been on marketing and branding.  And some "Aha" moments when watching webinars on PhotoShop and Lightroom.


The following photo of the eclipse, taken at Venice Beach, was adjusted in Lightroom to look a bit more dramatic.  It was a jpg photo taken with a Panasonic FZ30, hand held.

The images were reduced in size for this blog.  Before adjusting in Lightroom, the low clouds were a very light gray.  Even at 85% obscured, the sun would have been too bright to shoot with my camera - and might have burned out the sensor had I tried.  Not only did the clouds allow me to shoot the eclipse, but added so much more to the image.

Although I usually photograph people, I also will photograph anything that is beautiful (a rainbow, an eclipse, a flower, a sunset, etc.).  (On a side note - celestial events - today Venus moves across the face of the Sun, which won't happen again until 2117 - but I don't think I'll be able to see it or get pictures of it as it doesn't cover enough of the sun, although maybe if I get a sunset picture, it might show).
This concludes this post - hope you all have a great week, and a healthy one.