backyard stars.

My friends Tony and Liz own a house in Vero Beach, FL, which is where all of our friends (including me) stayed for our spring break reunion last week. There was one night in particular, after we'd had a bonfire and most everyone had gone inside to go to bed, that I just couldn't resist hanging out in the backyard and stargazing because the sky was just so clear. Of course, for me, stargazing entails also taking photos…so a few hundred mosquito bites later, I finally dragged myself inside, satisfied that I'd gotten at least one or two usable shots despite not having a tripod.

off the florida keys.

I just got back from a spontaneous trip to Florida. Last year, we had a huge spring break reunion for my college friends down there, and it was repeated again this year. I had given up the thought of going due to a number of things, but broke down and bought a plane ticket that would get me there halfway through the week late last Tuesday night. I showed up and surprised all but one person (who was my inside man), and it was so worth it. As I was editing through my photos from the trip, I realized that I had been inspired to begin my photo blog last year as a result of this same trip. I don't know what it is about Florida and these friends, but I get so inspired photographically when I'm around them.

This is a shot from the tail end of a day-trip I took with my friend Jeff down to the Keys. We drove there and back in a day, which was a bit crazy, but so worth it.

palm trees and sunshine.

A friend of mine here is a concierge at a swanky hotel in Coronado, which is a sort of island-like strip that is directly above Imperial Beach (where I currently reside). This means he gets all sorts of perks and hook-ups from the surrounding businesses…one of which is to use a sailboat that is usually rented out at a fairly high price. Lucky me…I got to tag along the other day when he took it out for a beautiful day on the San Diego Bay on a sunny January afternoon. As we took the sails down and motored back towards the marina, the sun was starting to get a bit lower in the sky and made for some beautiful scenery along the way.