Brooklyn, NY under attack!!!

Last month, a Tornado ripped through Brooklyn tearing trees out the ground and sending them flying through homes and vehicles. I was at work during this Tornado and didn't get to see what was going on in the neighborhoods that were affected. On October 11th, 2010, a hail storm along with vicious lightning and rain hit New york City last night and really scared the sh*t out of me. I was on my way to get something to eat after work when it started lightning.

Now, I've gotten use to lightning, but what I saw last night scared the crap outta me. After the lightning, the rain came. Not just any rain... It looked as if buckets of water were being poured all over my car. It made driving impossible. Every car near me came to a stop and turned on their hazards. After the rain let up slightly, I started to drive again - slowly! Then the hail came. Hail the size of quarters pelted the hell out of my car and I was sure the world was on its way to an end. i called my lady and told her what was going on since she was in another state and i could barely hear her due to all the noise being made by the chunks of ice that idiot Mother Nature threw at New york.

I was able to grab a few photos with my mobile phone (Samsung Vibrant - Galaxy S Series). It was very crazy outside and I thank my car for having all-wheel drive to help me get through all the slush and floods with no problems. LOL. The fllods took place on Eastern Parkway, Fulton Street and on Pennsylvania ave. Take a look...

Fall is back and in full effect! The leaves are starting to fall, but not fast enough. I know that I will be out with my Canon once the trees start shedding heavier. The photo above is from last year around this same time. I used a Zoom lens to focus on a man walking down the street and it just looks so lonely out there. I had to capture this! I had been outside for almost 3 hours just taking flick after flick and this, by far, is my favorite.

Now, this photo was edited when it was shot last year. But, now that I am using Adobe Lightroom 3, I was able to take that same photo and really give it the detail I wanted it to have. Man, I cannot wait until I get back out there this fall...

Yes, I'm talking to you...

My lady was playing around taking pics of me and when I posed for this one, I knew what I was doing when I pointed towards the lens. I was pointing to all of you out there that either don't take photos or to those that run from the camera. I am talking to all of you who do not capture special moments in time.

I had a conversation with a good friend of mine the other day that just purchased his first camera. At first, I thought he purchased the camera to really get into doing photography. But, he explained to me that while being on Facebook, he finds himself looking at others displaying pics of their good times with friends and family and capturing stories that no amount of words can explain. He realized that he hardly had any photos of himself and said that he didn't want to die without anyone having any recollection of who he was or what he's done in his life. He also didn't want a Junior High School photo on his program for his funeral.

So, my friend now has a really good camera that he seriously plans on using to capture all those special moments in life with his friends and family as well as all his newlywed adventures with his cool wife. So again, I am talking to everyone that claims they don't need pictures of themselves or feel they don't come out great in photos. Candid photos will always show a side of you that you don't often see or probably will never see. Reason: you can't look directly at yourself when you're laughing, crying, partying, jumping around, dancing or just plain and simple - enjoying life! You WILL miss those moments and to me, its not worth it. When I'm old and gray, I would like to look back on my life and see the friends I've gained and lost, the love and hate I've felt and hopefully strengthen my memory in the process.

My question to you is: Why wouldn't you want to do the same?

Vacation 2010

August 2010 - I went on a vacation to Miami, and from there, a cruise onboard the Carnival Destiny which made stops in Grand turk, Half Moon Cay and Nassau. I must say I had a hell of a time. I was like a kid in a candy store. Everything I looked at, I was so amazed due to the fact that this was my first time off of US soil.

During my travels, i was strapped with 3 cameras: a Nikon CoolPix S4000 to capture regular pics, a Kodak Play Sport (underwater/waterproof) to capture video in 1080p HD as well as some in-the-moment pics, and my Canon XSi to get some vivid and memorable shots. All 3 cameras were used during the entire trip.

What I would do differently is take more advantage of the photo opportunities. There were so many great things going on and beautiful sights around me that I got caught up in the viewing instead of the capturing. But, I did snap a plethora of photos that I am extremely pleased with. Below are just a select few of the hundreds of photos I actually took. Enjoy!