Sunday, December 30, 2007

50 plus 50 equals an Awesome time!

For the second straight weekend, I was privileged again to be asked to photograph another 50th wedding anniversary, this time for my friend Kerry's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Frank and Kimiko Kawahara at the Redondo Beach Cheesecake Factory. What a spectacular evening it was!

What was unique about this event compared to last week's (which was equally awesome BTW) was that the children displayed photographs from the couple's original wedding ceremony and reception 50 years ago. And here they were, 50 years later, celebrating that same love that brought them together. And I was there,asked to add to their family photo history book. How can I not love this job?!

The night also included a terrific slideshow presentation made my Kerry for Frank and Kimiko which included photos from both their childhoods, growing up, when they met, their travels, etc. All the pertinent memories that one would want to share on a momentous 50th anniversary. It was so touching to watch Frank and Kimiko's memories displayed on a big screen for everyone in attendance to see. I truly was honored to be there, and to have the opportunity to add to their life slideshow.

Enjoy the slideshow of some of the images I photographed last night. And wish that if you are with someone, or when you find someone, that you too can live such a glorious, love filled life like Frank and Kimiko :)

Click on this link to see the night's photos.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

A 50th Slideshow Presentation

Yes, the holidays have been pretty hectic for me lately, plus, I got SICK again with a pretty stubborn head cold! Nonetheless, I wanted to post something up just to be sure you all know that I'm still around and ALIVE for that matter.

This past weekend before Christmas, I was honored to have been invited to photograph the 50th wedding anniversary of my friend Denise's parents, Roy and Nancee Iketani in Las Vegas! (How cool is that?!) They are such a close knit, and loving family! The night began in the parents' suite at the California Hotel in Downtown Vegas, where the kids (all 7 of them, including spouses and grand-children (2 of them)) presented a slideshow of photos from the distant and not so distant past. A visual walk down memory lane. From there the party moved over to Vic and Anthony's Restaurant located in the Golden Nugget Casino for some awesome steakhouse kind of food! (I was lucky enough to have been fed, and boy did I EAT!)

It was such a great time, watching and listening to their family rant and rave about their parents and their siblings. It almost brought a tear to my eye :)

So a big thank you goes out to Denise for asking me to photograph this momentous occasion, and here's to Roy and Nancee! Check out the slideshow!

Monday, December 10, 2007

My First Triptych!


Yes, as my subject heading reads, I have created my first triptych (trio) and have used Denise as my first victim, I mean, subject.

I actually created this a while ago, but had not used it till today.

This series was shot during one of our Cold Tofu rehearsals. The legs off to the side are Zakiah's.

Let me know what you think!

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

This should be frickin' cool!

Okay, I admit it, I'm a big Johnny Depp fan, but have only become one since "Edward Scissorhands" and not during his "21 Jump Street" days. I've always admired the roles that he has chosen to play. Avant guard, risky, and downright awesome. Naturally when I heard he was doing "Sweeney Todd", I found it interesting that they would choose him, but teamed up with Tim Burton, it has to be a hit! After watching the trailer (below), I am convinced it should be awesome!

Now, I say this after having watched the original Broadway production with Angela Lansbury (on DVD, I was too young when it initially opened), and the East West Players' version of it as well (TWICE!). Seeing this trailer is convincing me that this should be a great film, although probably not a blockbuster, unless you are in to stage musicals or perhaps Sondheim, as I am.

Enjoy the trailer, and let me know what you think.

Sweeney Todd Website and trailer links

Monday, December 3, 2007

I Haven't Posted Since Hawaii

Coming back from Hawaii was tough! Not only was I a bit melancholy coming back to the daily grind of life in L.A., but that same week, I caught the flu which took me out for a solid week and a half! A lot of stuff happened after that, photography wise, including a video shoot with Cold Tofu, and a cool gig with Nathan Wang for his upcoming musical "Denis the Menace" (yes, THAT Dennis the Menace!).

Now that I'm "back" physically and mentally, I'll be posting more often. But here are a few images from the past month.


We did a birthday gig for a terrific group of 16 year olds in Torrance!


This shot is from an upcoming Cold Tofu "commercial" we did for our upcoming sketch show.
It's kinda like "Wife in the Box". I'll post it up when it's ready.


This is Steve in another Cold Tofu "commercial".
Scary.


This is what a professional reading looks like. Cold, dark rooms with chairs, with producers/directors on one side, actors, etc. on the other. This was for the upcoming musical
"Dennis the Menace".


Hope you all are getting your Christmas shopping done. Happy Holidays!

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Final "Aloha" blog entry

Well, as the subject heading reads, the vacation is over and I’m already back in L.A. It was so nice to be back in the islands after two long years away, and even though it rained our first two days there, and although it was only for a week, I once again realize why I love Hawaii so much. It’s everything I can think of. All my trips there have always been with people I love and adore, mostly my family, and what makes these trips so awesome is the fact that we are able to spend time with oneanother, away from the daily grind that is our lives in L.A. You’re able to relax, and literally not think about the stuff you “have to do”, but stuff that you “want to do”. For me it was just being there that was so rewarding and memorable. For this trip, to once again travel with my Mom and Grandmother, cousin and nephew, to do nothing but shop, eat, and sightsee. To go to places that we’ve been to before but never get enough of. Each time we go, one week is never enough as the allure of “aloha” keeps us wanting to go back for more, and soon.

Things I’ll take away from this trip:

- Some of the best photography I’ve done in Hawaii to date

- Leonard’s Malasadas

- Zippy’s as usual

- The Rain! And lots of it.

- Going to the Aquarium for the first time ever

- Surfing at the “Wall” after almost a decade

- Visiting Alice and the kids, and my friend Eve

- As with every trip, all the great new t-shirts from HIC, T&C, and of course swap meet

- Visiting Auntie Enang

- That the Waikiki Banyan sucks (despite this being my 3rd time there!)

- Getting a little bit sunburned on my forehead!

- Driving by a surf competition on the North Shore – finally!

- The Ocean. Always, the Ocean. The water is what I’ll always miss.

There are more memories that I’m certain I’m forgetting, but as of this writing, these are the things that come to mind. I’ll always have the photos to look back upon, and the thought that I was able to share them with you all.

For those of you who have followed me on this week long vacation, thank you. It was great sharing our daily outings with everyone.

So enjoy these photos from yesterday, and some from other days as well. Thanks again for reading and following along with me.

Until next time, Aloha and Mahalo.





Clown Fish at the Waikiki Aquarium



The "L & L" we ate at in Haleiwa, North Shore



The Kualoa mountain range where they film "Lost" presently



President Clinton once visited this little mini-market in 1996



The Haleiwa sign at the North Shore




Can you believe that this is a McDonald's?! Cool!


My mom and grandma at the Dole Plantation



Helen's new nephew Bryce - what a cutie!



Finally, what Hawaii is all about:
The Aloha spirit :)

Friday, November 9, 2007

Day Five's Photos

Today we were able to venture out of town for a bit as we drove off towards the windward side of Oahu. To think that that side of the island has its own weather system compared to the Waikiki side is awesome! It was pretty sunny and balmy as we left town, but once we got over the mountain range, it got gloomy and rainy at times. But with this wetter climate on that side of the island comes lush green landscapes and fauna. It was pretty cool. We made it all the way to this one macademia nut farm my mom wanted to go to before heading back into Waikiki. On the way, we stopped by Sandy Beach and the adjacent blow hole overlook. Here are a few photos from today. Enjoy!



I went to the beach again this morning, but this time armed with my big camera to take this shot





Even the Burger Kings here have their own island style!





I had lunch with my pal Eve previously from the mainland at a local spot called "Ono Hawaiian Food"




On the walls are photos of VIPs, etc., and look who I found on the wall near our table!
(Hint: She is that gorgeous gal in the middle)





Here's the "wait" sign outside the restaurant - "No Get Mad!"



Next stop - Sandy Beach and the Blow Hole!
(My cousin Rondee, Connor and my mom)





Here's the four of them watching the water spout through the holes in the rock face





In 1996 when President Clinton was still in office, he visited this little McDonald's in Waimanalo that we happen to stop by at. There was this article about the visit on the wall complete with photos, and when my mom read it, she wanted to have her photo taken the same way Pres. Clinton did. Is it a match or what?!





Flower lei on a truck at the macademia nut farm we visited.





This and the lei above are all what Hawaii is about.

I do have more photos to post, but it was getting late here in paradise. I have one more full day here, and tomorrow is going to be packed with activities again so I have to get some sleep! Hope you all enjoyed the photos :)

Aloha and Mahalo!

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Day Four's Photos

Okay, yesterday was actually filled with photos from the Swap Meet, and the Matsumoto Shave Ice store on the North Shore. Sadly, we got there kinda late so all I was able to shoot was the store and me with two shaved ice treats (shaved ice, vanilla ice cream, Azuki beans). So, not much to say but a lot to look at! Enjoy!













Two Fisted Shaved Ice-er! Woo Hoo!!!

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Blue Hawaii



(This was taken yesterday by me, but since I don't have many photos up of myself, I figured I'd add one!)

Day three of the Hawaii trip began with a trip to the fruit stand located next to our hotel here. Turns out that a local Senior Citizen center has a weekly fruit stand they put up for the locals and tourists alike. Nothing fancy just the staples like bananas, mangos, and pineapples. It was all for their center to stay afloat for all their senior programs like line dancing classes, and get this, tap dancing! How cool is that!



After our visit to the fruit stand, our next stop was the Waikiki Aquarium. This was my first time visiting the Aquarium, and it was cool. It's a rather small place, but it does it job. It's literally right on the shore on Waikiki, so it's like having a museum about snow in the Antarctic, so that's why I think it's rather small. It had it's share of indigenous Hawaiian fishes including a Black Tipped Shark, which was cool, as well as two seals in their one outdoor tank. Here's a photo of a Seahorse and a tank window. Cool!




Oh, and here a few photos outside the Aquarium, kinda cool I think!



What's great about aquariums and museums, etc. is the learning that takes place. There were kids groups all over the place led by volunteer docents teaching them all about the different kinds of sea life. This next photo shows that anyone can be bewildered at learning about new things (it's also my favorite of the "Aquarium" set of shots):



My Mom and Grandma at an exhibit.




Here's a photo of the beautiful palm trees that surround the island.



Okay, so that's day three. Tomorrow, it's back to the swap meet and to the North Shore! Woo hoo!

A shout out goes out to my cousins Joe, Tod, and Alex, as we all once surfed the same break I did today - great times!

Aloha!

Monday, November 5, 2007

Paradise is returning!

Okay, as the days go by, the weather gets better, and today was just that, with of course, the occasional (and HEAVY) liquid sunshine that dares to visit the islands during tourist season (which is basically every day).

It did still put a bit of a damper on our activities today, but at least we were able to see the sun for a while in between down pours. Here's the shot from the balcony this morning. See the difference from yesterday? (The BW shot is from yesterday).




However, about an hour after I shot this photo, clouds came in and out, making the day spotty at best. Oh well.

After the morning realization that the weather wasn't going to stick, my mom, cousin and I decided to go out for a morning walk. For the first time this trip, I was finally able to see my favorite part of Hawaii, the beach:



When I was "younger", each time we would come to Hawaii, I would surf right off this point. It was cool cause my mom and grandama would walk to the end of this short pier to watch me and tell me that it was time to come in. Ah, the good 'ol days.



A shot from the edge of the pier towards the world famous Waikiki Beach, ah...



My mom next to the Duke Kahanomoku statue on Waiks.




Center Stage at Ala Moana Mall. Many "famous" celebrities have graced this stage.



And finally, the object of my gastrointestinal desires while in the islands, the Zippy's Mixed Plate (Chicken Katsu, Beef, Mac Salad, Zippy's Chili, and Rice)

More tomorrow! Till then, enjoy today :)

Liquid Sunshine - NOT!

Day two of the this Hawaiian adventure was filled with water, and sadly, not the kind that you would hope for in terms of the beach and ocean, but literally torrential downpours with 1-2 inches of rain per hour! The second morning started off with a gloomy outlook on the day from our balcony:



Sadly, the rest of the day looked exactly like this, with on and off rains, each varying in intensity and downpour.

However, being in "paradise" doesn't mean that you stay in your hotel room cause of a little rain! No, you go out anyway! So where do you go? You go to Leonard's!



Despite having visited Hawaii for more times than I can remember, I have never, ever gone to Leonard's until now! For those of you who are unfamiliar with Leonard's, they are a portugese Malasada bakery that has been a staple here on Oahu for decades! Their pastries are simply delicious Portugese creations! I've never had them any where else before. The above photo is of my mom and holding our first ever box of delicious Leonard's malsadas (gee, how many times can I say "Leonard's" anyway?)



Just think, inside each of these lightly sugared malasadas are sweet creamed filled centers! Haupia, chocolate, and for November, Pumpkin! Ah, sweets, yum!

After the nutritional debauchery that took place at Leonard's, we were off to see if the local Swap Meet was still going on. Despite the weather, there were vendors, but not as many as usual. Here's a few photos:


We pretty much tried to stay indoors for the rest of the day, including a trip to our newest favorite hole in the wall restaurant - "Dirty Lickens", buffalo wings in paradise.

Okay, sadly I was having internet problems last night, probably due to the weather, but hopefully you enjoyed day two's happenings. More to come!

Aloha!