Browse Category: photos

The Whang-Dang Gang Nuptials

Saturday’s wedding was fancy. It was in a fancy hotel, on a fancy beach, and we had fancy food. It was at the Kahala Mandarin Hotel that was right on the beach. Derek and Elise’s ceremony was by the water and decorated with white and coral flowers. At the end of the ceremony, they released a basketful of white doves that was brought to them by a large man in a green aloha shirt…kinda funny.

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The hotel had live reef fish swimming around in their lagoon. They also had six dolphins in a larger lagoon nearby. Poor exploited mammals. Anyway, the reception was inside the ballroom with hors doeuvres and open bar. In the banquet hall, it was decorated with white linens and orchids. The food was buffet-style with a strangely large selection of salads. Fortunately for the boys, there was a prime rib and pork waiting for them at the end of the table. My favorite part was the dessert bar complete with tiramisu and key lime pie…mmm.

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The couple was so cute and their bridal party performed a little “Summer Nights” for them. Of course there was dancing and Derek’s dad and Scott stole the show with their antics. By the end of the night the back of Scott’s shirt was soaked and he was grinding every living thing in the room…including the bride’s mom. Ew. Fancy wedding. Fun wedding.

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Here are the photos.

“It’s like getting a flat tire.”

Earlier this month I noticed a little UFO in the top right-hand corner of all my photos. It was always in the same spot. I tried cleaning my lens but that didn’t solve it. Then I became worried and thought, “Oh no, do I need to send it in for professional cleaning? That’s going to cost me a fortune.” Well, fortunately, the friendly camera nerds at Samy’s taught me how to get rid of that UFO on my own. Mark said that it’s a VERY common occurence and kept saying, “It’s like getting a flat tire. It happens all the time and you can take care of it on your own or have a professional do it.” Well, he taught me how to flip open the mirror to expose the sensor and suggested that I buy a $6 blower to remove the debris. I must say that it was the best 6 bucks I had spent in a while. I went home, flipped the mirror, blew air around on the sensor, put the lens back on, took a few sky shots, and the UFO is gone!! Awesome. Thanks, Mr. Mark!

X Gizames

On Thursday afternoon, I went to Staples Center with the brother to watch the XGames. Johnny designed their media guide this year so he had some free passes to use. Gotta love free stuff.
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The XGames weren’t exactly the way I remembered it to be. A few years ago, I went to XGames in SF. I took BART over to the city and walked right in. It was more like a festival by the water just next to PacBell Park. There was shwag and No Doubt was playing on stage. This time, it was indoors in the Staples Center with not very many spectators and really limited viewing areas. It felt more like a TV production with camera guys everywhere and commercial breaks. I took about 250 shots and ended up uploading only a handful. I suppose that’s how you learn. Sports photography is tough when you’re stuck in the stands with poles and TV cameras in your way. The Flying Tomato, Bob Burnquist, Andy Macdonald, and a bunch others were competing and it was cool to watch them skate. At the end we even saw the legendary Tony Hawk in the media booth doing the play-by-play. It was weird since he was sitting only 10 feet away from us and it took at least 15 minutes for us to notice that he was there. Here are the photos I uploaded.

time to play

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I’m in the middle of Week One of Camp. I’ve been getting up at 6 am each morning and on the road by 6:30 am. It’s been rough but I sure am caught up on pop culture through Kevin and Bean and the news through the news radio and NPR.

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So far, everything has been going smoothly and the new coordinators that I’m sorta mentoring are doing great. Unfortunately, I’ve been stuck in the office taking care of the last bit of my paperwork duties. Luckily I finished everything today and I’m ready to be out in the sun. It’s hard work running around and hauling stuff but it sure beats being in the office behind a laptop all day.
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In addition to all the paperwork, I’ve been able to get outside for little spurts to take photos. We have this new “Camp Live” thing where parents can go online and view photos of their kid at camp…sorta. It’s sorta because I’m the one taking and uploading all the photos and it’s hard to keep track of who I’ve taken and who paid for the service. It definitely forces me work on my photog skills. Just wait until I bring my flash tomorrow. Heh Heh.

Holly and Roy tied the knot

Holly and Roy threw a big party last night to cap off their marriage. My day started at 10 am when I got to the Hyatt where the girls got ready. We had our hair and make-up done by noon and helped Holly get ready. She looked so beautiful and Roy was glowing.

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At the Bowers Museum, we took some group photos and unfotunately it was the hottest day of the year with 95 degree temps and some crazy humidity on top of that. We all tried to stay cool and hydrated but the satin dresses we wore didn’t allow for much air circulation.

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The ceremony was very touching and the couple looked so happy. The guests tried their best to endure the heat as Holly and Roy said, “I do.” The dinner reception was in the same courtyard area with twinkle lights all around and plenty of booze flowin’. There was a slideshow, some cake, and of course dancing. By the end of the night, my feet were sore, my skin was sticky, and I was buzzin’.

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Here are some highlights:

  • Holly’s mom and dad cried and made Holly cry.
  • Roy was sweatin’ buckets from the heat.
  • I didn’t fall down.
  • There was ball play and double dutch.
  • Victor made friends with the bartender and tried to serve drinks.
  • Susie had a tree in her teeth.
  • Jes was the LD.
  • The alma mater was sung.
  • We got kicked out of the Presidential Suite for being too loud.

Good times….congratulations, you two!! Here are the photos.

So many Islanders

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On Friday, we grubbed on Korean BBQ with Yong, Helen, Eric, and Annie. There was so much meat that we all rolled out of there stuffed and happy. We later met up with the Tranandos who were celebrating Thilan’s birthday at Mai Tai Bar. Victor, Susie, and Dayantha pretty much came by as soon as they got off their planes and Huy arrived on Thursday night. The best part of weddings is having your friends back in town. The bar/restaurant was surprisingly crowded and bumpin’. I’ve only gone on a Tuesday evening before going to the aquarium and I’m used to having the whole place to myself. Well, on this evening it was packed with lots of large islanders…Samoans, Hawaiians, Filipinos, you name it. It was as if the restaurant really wanted to stick with the theme and imported a bunch of “locals” to give it an authentic feel.  Here are photos from that evening.