Silhouette Spirits
This new addition to my Silhouette Spirits project takes me off the beaten path from my usual turf. Pretty much all the prior images I’ve created for it have been…
A Stormy Spooky Strange Stroll
A Stormy Spooky Strange Stroll
As my dog Nunzi scoots down the beach ahead of me, I can’t but feel some trepidation on this nasty late night walk. Creeping along the deserted stormy shore, pitch black, no moon and no starlight, wind howling, ocean raging, and to me it all adds up and seems like it could be the perfect setting for a spooky horror movie. One where I would be the perfect dumb character who gets snatched by some supernatural something or other.
WHACK! I almost leap out of my skin when the diabolical wind tosses down a large palm tree branch that smashes right behind me and my startled pooch simultaneously lets out a loud yelp.
As Nunzi whimpers beside me, I admonish him that it’s his own fault we’re out here in this scary setting because when I returned home, admittedly after being gone for hours, he insisted a romp along the beach was absolutely mandatory. Since the storm died down and the rain had stopped, I relented. But as the angry surf and nasty wind conspires and blast sheets of cold spray at us, we both agree it’s time we get our butts back home.
We start trudging back and of course the rain starts up again. Swirls of sand are blowing off a berm, and as I squint my eyes, I swear I can see ghostly apparitions mixed in with the particle tornados. Hey, I was sleep deprived and had a long shooting day of flashing strobes and my eyes were beyond beat.
But I didn’t have time to ponder the apparitions because–OOF! I trip over a driftwood log, fall and get tangled up in a large slimy mound of seaweed. I lay there and wince at the pain I feel throbbing in my ankle, which I’m thinking could now be sprained.
Nunzi kindly runs back to me and licks up my face—good boy. I try to get up but I slip back down into the slippery seaweed tentacles.
Ok. Now I’m thinking this would be the perfect moment when the movie monster descends upon us. Or maybe that sketchy homeless guy I noticed lurking under the pier is about to descend upon us. I also noticed he had a large pitbull, perfect for eating my gentle canine. And maybe the guy has a meat clever too and will choppity chop and then and then… (more…)
Head in the Clouds
Just wanted to share a few of my recent cloud and skyscape images. Though my commercial photography is earthbound and people oriented, the past few years I’ve become a sky…
Ocean sunset silhouettes
For the past year, I’ve been working on a personal project--Bellissima Venezia--creating images of my Venice neighborhood while walking my dog. And. I wanted to share a few silhouette photos…
Video | man helps poor community with fresh food
Richard Joyner has led his rural community of Conetoe, N.C., to better health by helping students grow and distribute 50,000 pounds of fresh food a year.
Video | young teen heroes save bus driver and passengers
When a school bus driver had a heart attack and the vehicle careened out of control, a couple of middle school students heroically saved the day. It was a normal…
Video | mystery hero saves man from home fire
When an elderly man is trapped in a burning inferno, a stranger happens along, bravely rescues the man and then disappears. It was a lazy Saturday morning when fire erupted…
Video | a hero saves a stranger’s life in NY subway
When someone had a seizure on a NY subway platform and fell on the tracks, a brave man sprang into action and saved him. Wesley Autrey, now dubbed the “Subway…
Funny Dog Video | freak outs after taking baths
Dogs Freak Out About Taking Baths Does your dog freak out whenever you want to give them a bath? These goofy canines do so in very strange ways which are…
The Arts | stunning animal creations from living human models
You may think you’re seeing a frog–but in fact you’re seeing five human beings, painted and intertwined to create an incredible art illusion by Italian artist Johannes Stoetter.
Inspired by nature, Italian artist Johannes Stoetter turns living models into animals, fruits, flowers, or blends them with the surroundings. These impressively detailed paintings take up to five months of thorough planning and up to eight hours of work to complete. The winner of the World Bodypainting Championship says that the key to success is to love what you’re doing: “I think I observe the world, nature, colors and shapes with very clear eyes and an open heart. And painting is my big passion.”
Johannes Stoetter body painting art video
You’ll have to look really close at this picture of a beautiful parrot to realize that it’s not a parrot at all. The rich red-and-gold plumes are, in fact, a woman’s limbs painted to perfection. The incredibly clever photograph is the work of 35-year-old body painter Johannes Stoetter. (more…)
Video | comedic film-maker creates hilarious Vine illusions
Zack King can make traffic disappear, jump through the closed doors of a moving train and steal the Eiffel Tower–and he does so with imaginative fun in his very short films known as Vines.
Here’s What You Need to Know About Illusionist Vine Star Zach King — By Laura Lane
Known as the Final Cut King, Zach King is a bona fide Vine star. While other popular Vine users post six-second pranks, mash-ups or jokes, King’s Vines are also comedic, but they stand out from the crowd with his astonishing illusions that use major motion-picture-quality special effects.
In a recent Vine, King grabs the Apple logo from his computer and turns it into a luscious silver three-dimensional apple and takes a bite out of it. “I definitely got lead poisoning, I think,” he tells PEOPLE. “I looked for edible spray paint and I couldn’t find any.” In another video he turns a lazy friend acting like a couch potato into actual potatoes. And in his most popular Vine, he takes a souvenir from Paris with him: the Eiffel Tower. (more…)
Business & Life Hacks List
Business & Life Hacks Being happier at work What is disruptive innovation now? You’re already more persuasive than you think The new science of customer emotions Mindfulness As A Productivity…
Video | aliens among us–beautiful deep sea creatures
Mysterious and stunning alien life is indeed with us on Earth today, and they’re hanging out in the darkest depths of our oceans.
The term deep sea creature refers to organisms that live below the photic zone of the ocean. These creatures must survive in extremely harsh conditions, such as hundreds of bars of pressure, small amounts of oxygen, very little food, no sunlight, and constant, extreme cold.
These creatures live in very harsh environments, such as the abyssal or hadal zones, which, being thousands of meters below the surface, are almost completely devoid of light. The water is between 3 and 10 degrees Celsius and has low oxygen levels. Due to the depth, the pressure is between 20 and 1,000 bars. Creatures that live hundreds or even thousands of meters deep in the ocean have adapted to the high pressure, lack of light, and other factors.
Video of deep sea creatures
Podcasts | The David Steinberg Podcast
The legendary comedian and director, David Steinberg, sits down with comedians, entertainers, and creators to discuss life, art, and comedy.
One of the many interesting aspects of podcasting is that performers seem to be discovering the medium at the same time listeners are finding their way here, too. David Steinberg has signed in, and it’s great to have this longtime standup comedian in front of a microphone after what seems forever. The David Steinberg Podcast
He’s mainly been directing television for the past few decades (having won several Emmy awards along the way), but his background in improv and comedy have stood him in good stead over the years.
Some of the guests he has had on the podcast include Mel Brooks, Kevin Nealon, Martin Short, Kathy Griffin, and Phil Rosenthal. (more…)
Business Hacks | Learning to love networking
Why? Because professional networks lead to more job and business opportunities, broader and deeper knowledge, improved capacity to innovate, faster advancement, and greater status and authority. Learn to Love Networking…
Funny Dog & Cat Video | unlikely hodgepodge of cross-species fun friendships
This very funny and heartwarming viral video, Be Together--Not the Same, features a hodgepodge of animals of different species, romping around together and having friendly fun.