Flowers

I did a few paintings recently for a holiday commission.  They were a lot of fun to work on, especially since time was limited and I had to paint fast.  It had been a while since I painted for hours at a time and it was nice to get back into it.  I got a chance to do a few paintings this past week and will post soon.  

Catch Up

The past few months has been so busy and here is my weak attempt to catch up.  

Over the Thanksgiving break, I went home to see my cousin (first of my generation) get married.  I didn't bring my camera, but the ceremony was great.  It was full of emotion, laughs and a bunch of inappropriate jokes.  

Most of my time home was spent surfing and eating, but on one of the days, I went on a little photo excursion in Kaneohe.  It was nice to spend some time on that side as that's where I grew up.

We got up at the but crack of dawn and headed to Kaneohe bay.   I was super stoked on the pictures I took there, but this one I like.

After the bay, we headed to Ho'omaluhia for some nature shots.  Originally, I really just wanted to get pictures of the Ko'olaus, the mountain range that separates Kaneohe from town, but I got a lot better shots of things close up.

I think the best part about walking around the park was getting to see things so familiar and beautiful from my perspective of being removed.  A few years ago, I probably would have just walked past this magnificent tree trapped with vines.

Hibiscus.   It's the state flower for a reason and in bloom all year.

 I'm lucky to have gotten this shot.  With a little help from Lightroom (Thanks Mom!) this one came out better than I had hoped.

We also went to the Japanese temple and Valley of the Temple. I was, as usual, more interested in the wild life.

Koi of all sizes and colors.   They are definitely conditioned to swarm when they see someone standing on the edge as they sell food to feed the fish.  I wonder if they think we are god, feeding them abundantly...

Here's a little pigeon, hoping for some of the fish food to miss the water.  

Black swan.  I got really lucky on this one too, with the depth of the water and the strong angular light.

Later that night, Mom had a few tricks to teach me with my camera.  Every Friday, the Hilton sets off fire works, which you can see perfectly from Magic Island.  

I took so many that is was hard to find a favorite, but I this one is up there.  I can't wait for new years to use what I learned again.

Here is a shot of Waikiki from the harbor.  Fun note, to the right of this scene is a surf spot named Bowls, which is where I learned to surf and was stubbornly loyal to, until everyone else got a board.

Last shot of home.  This is a view from Mom's apartment.  I think I might just find it a nice pictures because it looks a lot like something one of my favorite artists would paint.  Kim Cogan - look him up!

Of course, the last few months were filled with live music.  It always seems like fall is when all the bands come to San Francisco.  I didn't always have a camera on me, or at least not my good one, so here are a few.

Blasted Canyons played at Bay Brewed, an awesome music and beer festival put on my the amazing Bay Bridged.  

This is the guitarist from Bloc Party.  Not much to see, but it was cool to get this calm shot with the heavy music they were playing.

Bear in Heaven.  They played the Bay Brewed as well.  I love their music and am a huge fan, but the guy kind of creeps me out.