hawaii deux :: leica lesson

I made the bold decision to bring only the Leica D-Lux5 with me on this trip - no DSLR!  It's wonderful to not be bogged down but the weight of all the SLR equipment, but I did find myself having one small problem with only the point & shoot… no viewfinder.  *humph*  

Problem #1, I wear polarized sunglasses and that makes viewing anything on the screen almost impossible, so I have to pull them down on my nose to even see what I am shooting.  Problem #2, when it's bright and sunny I can't see a damn thing on that screen, even without the glasses!  So I guess I will be purchasing the viewfinder that mounts to the hot shoe.  

That said .. the results I've gotten from this camera have been fabulous.  We took the dog to the local beach (One'ula Beach Park) where she romped around, we watched morning surfers and waded around shallow reef peeking into tide pools.  The sun was just coming up and the haze burning off… And, of course, I cannot go anywhere without taking photos on my iPhone (last two).  I still have the 4 (no "S" yet) and it amazes me how great they turn out.  I think they rival my Leica RAW images.  

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aloha!

SO happy to finally be in Hawaii again!! Nine hours in coach with the middle seat guy jabbing me in the rib and the seat in front of me reclined the whole time is not so pleasant. But I made it and now it's time to relax and hit the beach!

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Bethany and Garrett met me at baggage claim with a beautiful lei (that G-man picked out) and then scampered off to get me some food!! As luck would have it, rain rolled in over the mountains just in time for my arrival. Surprise … I'm in Hawaii and it's raining. HA!

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We came back to the house, unloaded groceries and I met the dog (Oreo) who has fully adopted me as family. I am doing my best to stay up as late as possible so that I acclimate to the new time zone. It's 2 AM in Chicago as I type! Oh and Garrett is totally obsessed with airplanes right now - knows literally everything about them. What their names are (and meanings), exactly what they look like and the chronological order in which they were put into rotation. He drew all of these planes and wrote out the names. He's six.

I'm ready!

The packing has begun and I have a million things to do at the office before I hop on a plane for this beautiful Hawaiian beach for the second time this year!  My BF lives there and will be leaving in the spring, so I thought I better take advantage while I still can!  And as an added bonus, four more people I went to high school with are also stationed there and will be coming together for a mini-reunion Halloween bash!  I'm super excited!  Bethany and I have worked out our costumes and are ready to show some spirit!  

It's raining and cold and windy as all get out today - 25ft waves along the lake, yikes!  So I am ready to go back to sunny and 85.  Yep.  I am just praying for good weather and no rain this time!!  Let's just all sing with Blind Melon shall we?  

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qVPNONdF58?wmode=transparent]

just your average Saturday

Simply a beautiful Fall day today in Chicago.  Met my BF for a late lunch on Southport then visited my friend's new store (Fixture) on Roscoe.  Snapped a few pics of Selika's outfit for her blog ... she turned the camera on me for a good comparison - chic and sporty ... 

Tried for a couple of quick selfies and my friend held up bunny ears ... what's that all about?  Silly, silly girls running around the city.  Oh and yes, it was a little windy today too.  :)

thirty of thirty !!

(30) self portrait :: Hate to end on an iPhone pic, but I'm on a jobsite for a couple of days... so it was my best option.

Had the row to myself on the plane this afternoon, so got a rare chance at the window seat - I'm typically and aisle girl. I travel, a lot. I love seeing and experiencing different places and cultures. Traveling for work kind of sucks though. You're in and out of a city and not really able to experience it. Flight times are terrible and the whole travel experience (security, food, gate changes ... )is dreadful. Even so, the art of plane travel is not totally lost on me... still amazes me that we can fly.

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We were flying between two cloud layers and I spotted this rainbow ring of sorts ... I have no idea what it was reflecting from, but how cool is that??

I had a great time with the 30 day challenge. Looking through everyones photos was so much fun. I loved seeing how people translated the theme for the day. And I have certainly found some fabulous photographers to add to my RSS feeds. I want to thank everyone for their incredibly kind comments and for having me as part of the challenge! Looking forward to the next one. Till then, keep the photos coming!

10 10 11 :: twenty nine of thirty

So this is going to be a combo post ... This is my #29 photo from the 30 cay challenge (black and white) that I am participating in with some other amazing photographers!   (links below)

And my 10 on 10 on 10/10!  Sadly I was not feeling inspired today and thus, boring photos.  But, it's true to my Monday.  Now off to pack for a quick work trip... 

breakfast 

beautify

watching the leaves dance along the road on my way to the office

working on numbering a corporate office ... and not coming up with anything I think will work just yet. 

Halloween candy in the office ... desert before lunch??

Portillos for lunch.  Yum!

walking off my not-so-health lunch

checking things off the teuxdeux list { love that app!! }

fighting with Illustrator all afternoon - there are supposed to be maps on those artboards.  *humph*

the drive home

Check out the other 30 day challenge folks here! 
1~ Mel W.  2~Nicole  3~Beth  4~Lisa  5~Allison  6~Angela  7~Jessica  8~Mr. Fun 

9~Marisa 10~Tree  11~AmyK  12~ShannonJoy  
13~Kimberly  14~Michelle  15~Jen  16~Shannon  17~Jodi

twenty eight of thirty :: flowers

(28) flowers :: Soon these beauties will be gone. But, for now, they are soaking up the warmth of late summer sun.

P.S.  For all of my beautiful photography friends... I participate in the 10 on 10 Challenge by Rebekah over on her blog.  It's a fun challenge about finding the beauty in your everyday.  On the tenth day of every month, take ten photos in ten consecutive hours.  She usually has about 100 or so participants.  I think you should give it a try and up the ante as we near the end of the 30 day challenge.  I will be posting my 10 on 10 tomorrow.  Hopefully my typical work day will not be so boring.  :)

mam :: hear no evil

I love the front gallery of the Milwaukee Art Museum and always leave it till the end, because they always have something really cool in there.  More of an experience rather than just art on the walls, like other areas of the building.  Today it was Yue Minjun: Chinese Contemporary Warriors "hear no evil."  They're pretty powerful. I just love it when I can get up close and personal with sculpture like these. MIngle.  Contemplate.  Admire.   

As I wandered among the sculptures, I thought hmmm...   That's a bit how I feel these days.  Sometimes we get too wrapped up in our own shit to listen.  Maybe it's time we open ourselves up.  Do more than listen.       Hear. 

twenty seven of thirty :: milwaukee

(27) from a distance :: Lots to choose from - I spent the day in Milwaukee at my favorite museum, the Milwaukee Art Museum. It's the 10 year anniversary of the Calatrava building and they have an exhibit going on thru the end of the year about the design process and construction. The scale models are sick! And it was super cool to see the different iterations of the design. I have photographed this place maybe four or five times, and just cannot get enough.

I wandered around the museum and then out along the lake front - there were a ton of boats on the water. It was the perfect day for sailing... a little windy. My hair was a bit of a nest by the time I got back to the car. Yikes!

Despite the wind, it was the most beautiful day. Sunny and warm. I love warm Fall days. The colors in the trees just seem so rich and full. Hope you had a beautiful day where ever you are!

everyday musings: a little film about the loire valley.

a little film about the loire valley.

[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/29931375 w=500&h=283]

I can't say enough about my time spent at Le Moulin Brégeon -- the wonderful people I met, the nutella crepes I ate, the pine forests I walked through, the hilarious songs we danced to. It was the kind of experience I'll be dreaming about forever.

via olivia-rae.com

I have been following Olivia's blog for some time now and LOVE the videos she makes of her everyday life happenings. I love the simplicity and slightly vintage feel and she always has the best music. I wish I knew how she does it.