Pedicure

Few people know this, but our back porch doubles as a nail salon.

Smoothie

We flew back to AZ yesterday and have a day in town before flying out to CA tomorrow. This morning I made some fresh orange juice using some oranges from our tree in the back yard. It's delicious when mixed with some frozen berries, milk and yogurt. 

I think Lucy thought so too.

Neighborhood Kids

We're headed out of town tomorrow morning. This evening we spent a few minutes in front of our neighbor's home sipping wine as the kids road on things with wheels and wore helmets.

Lucy had to borrow a helmet. 

It was a little large.

She's learning early to look both ways.

This is Will. He has a bruise on his forehead, and scratch on his nose and a scab on his chin. I'm going to go out on a limb and say he's a bit top-heavy.

This is Will's older brother Jared. He was kind enough to pose for me while I lay on the ground... then Lucy jumped on me... then Will jumped on me. Fortunately no one else jumped on me.

Away they go.

Ice Cream

My sister told us earlier today that if you bring two children's books to Cold Stone Creamery, then they'll give you free ice cream. We decided to take them up on the offer. Lucy surveyed the options and naturally wanted to taste "the pink one."

Mommy settled on Oreo and mint chip.

Bubbles

When you're two, blowing bubbles takes supreme concentration.

Drama

Lucy Has always had a knack for generating tears.

Memory Lane Monday

Here's an image from a bus ride in San Francisco back in June of 2000. After I boarded with some friends the ride was standing room only. I still love the way the pole provides a contrast between the right and left sides of the frame.

The First Popsicle Of The Year

String Cheese

Quiet Time In The Kitchen

Sunset Light In The Front Yard

The more I think about it, this blog should be named "Let Me Take Just One More... Lucy." She's not one to sit still for more than a few seconds. Here are a few choice moments from this afternoon.

My model's unwillingness to sit still threw this frame out of focus, but I love her expression.

In a moment of great restraint, she posed for this image. A few seconds later she requested that "Aunt Jes" hold her hand as she walked on top of the wall.

After a bit of death-defying wall walking, she sat in the driveway to study the local geology.

Lucy and Nunny

Long after Lucy was able to pronounce the word "bunny" she decided to name her toy rabbit "Nunny." I love the way this image conveys how she's drawing some comfort from her bedtime buddy.

Video Shoot

We spent twelve hours on the set of JJ's new music video shoot this past Monday. I spent a lot of time thinking about lighting, and not much time actually holding a camera. Here are a couple of frames from one of the first set-ups of the day as our cameraman, John Moessner, captured some footage of Johnna (one of the three models on set).

Lucy At Play

One of Lucy's favorite games is "take all that stuff out of where it used to be and spread it out on the floor."

More Lighting

This is Bradley Gregg. Yesterday he worked with us on JJ's latest music video as director/producer/editor.

A photographer friend of mine lent us some lights for the shoot, and while we had a little downtime I shot a few portraits using a one and two-light setup.

Here's a moody shot using a single umbrella. His fist reminds me of Dr Claw from Inspector Gadget.

For this b&w image I I used a second light to highlight his hair from behind (not very noticeable in this shot), and a make-shift reflector (our roll-up JJ Heller Poster for our merchandise table at gigs) to bounce a little light back onto the right side of his face.