July 4, 2007 by Joe.

Wishing everyone out there a very safe and enjoyable Holiday!

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July 2, 2007 by Joe.

I took a couple of years off from running, (not by my own choosing) and now I’m having a lot of trouble getting back into it. What I’ve gained is a deeper appreciation for training. I’ve learned to manage my time better. And I’ve been able to move my swim and bike training to a new level. My runs are still my hardest of the three.

For example: I’ve gotten comfortable at swimming in the lap pool. (Maybe too comfortable) I lose track of the number of laps I’ve already done. Today, I went for what was supposed to be a 1 mile swim (1600 meters in the pool, or if you like, 32 laps) I always use an 8-lap set and/or a 4-lap set at the end as a reference for my overall time. According to those times though, when I average out my per-lap time overall, I’ve ended up doing 1850 meters. (37 laps) How that happened I have NO idea. Maybe I should just break down and buy a REAL Swim timer, instead of using the lap timer on my cell phone. But, then again, I don’t know if that would help all that much.

The only thing that hinders my bike and run training is the oppressive South Carolina summer heat. The humidity combined with 95 degree temperatures, (Not to mention the fact that I am VERY hot natured anyway) can make a ride or a run even more difficult. I try to go early in the morning, but thats not always either. Work, family, LIFE, has a tendency to get in the way. And then, of course, there is the weather. This morning brought a torrential downpour, which should make the good ole’ outdoors feel like a sauna when the sun comes out later on today, as it usually does. Does anyone else have these problems? “(Ha Ha)

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May 10, 2007 by Joe.

When I first started out as a photographer, I never imagined that it would bloom into a thriving business. It was just something I liked to do. I photographed my first wedding for a couple of friends, high-school sweethearts that knew I had a “professional” camera. My “professional” camera was a Pentax K1000 with a 50 mm, f/1.4 lens that I bought at K-Mart. Soon after, I had friends of friends wanting me to do their weddings and pictures, and friends of friends of friends wanting me to take their pictures. I still never even considered making it a profession. But then, at that time, I never imagined that I would meet Faith, my wife of now seven years. She made me seriously think about doing what I liked professionally. She will tell you that she’s in training under me, but she is a good photographer in her own right.

Now, two digital cameras, (of course Pentax), a couple of good digital lens, two lightstands, 2 kids, and 3 years after getting a business license, and I can actually call myself a professional photographer (even though I am still my own worst critic). I still look at my photos thinking “How can I do things better the next time?”, and ocassionally “How did I ever do something like that?” Thankfully, Faith is there to give me a more objective perspective, and a good dose of reality when I need it.

There are days when I miss the darkroom with the chemical fixer, developer, and photo-sensitive paper. Going digital was something that I didn’t find appealing at the time. I hate staring at a computer screen for more than 30 minutes. I have to admit, I fought going into digital tooth and nail. I went through the whole range of usual excuses. “Digital can’t match the quality of film,” “Film was good enough for me back then, its good enough for me now,” excuses that were based on opinion more than anything else. Digital has opened a lot of doors, not the least of which is the cost benefits. And I’ve found that the quality of a digital image is really good.

Now, I consider myself not just a photojournalist, I am a story-teller. My medium is still the same. And I still believe that the best pictures are the ones I take when you don’t even know I’m there. I love what I call “hokie setups” that help you relax. If I can get you to relax, and get great pictures that make you “Ooh!” and “Ahh!”, then I’ve done my job. And I still like letting the action happen, whether its a wedding or a child’s one year portraits, and hearing, “I can’t believe you got pictures this good!”

I look at the advances in cameras and lenses from the days of film, and I think back to the days when nothing without the name Kodak on it entered my sight. I also think about my very first camera, a 120 rollfilm plastic camera called a Diana Camera, the predecessor of the Holga, and I look at the technology I hold in my hand when I hold my ist D. But then I also look at the Pentax-Loyalist ads in the magazines that say, “You once carried a K-1000 around with you everywhere you went. . .”, and I think, “What do you mean ‘once’?!”

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April 7, 2006 by Joe.

Entering the world of web journaling…

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