AF Twenty-Seven

Around the holidays I met up with Chris Shephard and had a shoot.

A few weeks ago I took a vacation to the incredible country of Panamá. With a group of about 60 people, I got a chance to really see what Panamá was all about. I ate good, laughed hard, explored, took over 1,500 photographs, and met some good people I’ll probably know for the rest of my life.

With a fraction of the images I created one of the longest photo montages…ever:

My First Trip To Panamá from Amon Focus on Vimeo.

One of my favorite pictures from the trip:

Check out the rest of the pictures here: My First Trip To Panamá

I think today is Thursday but it feels so much more like a Friday. Hold on…wait…wow…it is Friday.

The first two above lines are what I like to call starter lines. It is the section of the post that I write but rarely ever publish. It is a technique I use just to get the ball rolling when I am drawing a complete blank. Pretty much my literary catapult or my creative ice breaker to pick up where the caffeine dissipates. Try it, love it, and expect more of it from my end. Especially since, even at this very point in the post, I still don’t where I’m going with this.

I think I know the angle I’m going to take with this one. I’m going show a dozen or so images and then write captions under them. Does this sound like something that you’d be interested in checking it out? If so, you can get your scroll on…now!

Key West

Skipper, Sunshine, and I headed to The Keys for an expert shoot with Smart Travel Expert, Mitzi Gordon. Here are Mitzi and I taking a smile on Duval Street.

One of the many highlights of the shoot was the Hemingway House. We were granted access behind the great steal gate that guards Hemingway’s writing studio. After the interview, I got to sit in Mr. Hemingway’s actual chair and pretend to type on his typewriter. I gotta admit, I was a little inspired.

On the way to the Kino Sandal Factory, I found this street stencil of Mr.T and Rocky. I don’t remember the movie, but I will remember that day for the rest of my life.

Going to Key West and not taking a picture in front of this monument is like going to Paris and skipping the Eiffel Tower.

New Kicks

When we were heading back to the lab from Destin, I stopped by the Reebok Outlet and dropped 30 bones on a sweet pair on Ventilators for my adventure back to NYC. To see the whole sneaker, stop by my office tomorrow and I’ll see what I can do. Bring Jelly Belly Beans.

South Jamaica Queens

Here is the intercom to get into the building where I grew up. Why am I showing you this? Because I have your attention, yo.

Money-Making Manhattan

I took this picture waiting for my sister to call me back before I hopped on the train.

While I was waiting, I suddenly became infatuated by the style of this crosswalk sign.

Grabbed a pic of one of the music spots I used to hit when I was in high school. If you don’t know about Colony, then you don’t know about music. Well, maybe you do. Plus, I was just kiddin’. Sheesh.

My Little Sister

This is my little sister, Delilah. She is about as cool as little sisters get. Just don’t ask her to make you a sandwich with mayo on it. She hates the stuff. Won’t touch it. D if you are reading this, your Swiffer Sweeper is on the way. Congrats on your new apartment.

Staten Island

My grandmother lives out on Staten Island. When I was a kid, my family and I would take 2 buses, 2 trains, and the Staten Island Ferry just to get to my grandparents’ house. Nowadays, there is a bus that will take you there in a jiffy, but I thought it would be fun to travel the old way.

While on the ferry, I looked at my mom’s wrist while she was eating a bag of pretzels. I thought her bracelets had a cool texture to them and I took a picture.

This image is on a wall in my grandma’s home. Ever since I can remember, this drawing has been there. It is my mom back when she was 18. The artist sketched it about the size of a movie poster.

These are my grandma’s hands and my favorite picture from my whole trip. She thought I was joking, but I’m going to sell this one to a coffee shop and she is going to be famous. You’ll see. You’ll see.

I bought this sculpture for my grandma one Christmas and I love taking pictures of it. They never quite come out right but this one made the cut.

Back In Queens

This is a small sign somewhere in my uncle’s shop, better known as Ritz Auto Body. It is one of the staples of the neighborhood as well as of my upbringing.

Here is my cousin Rush fixing a van for a client at the shop. I can’t think of too many cars he can’t fix. As a matter of fact, he is building a car from scratch! Can your cousin do that? I didn’t thinks so.

And here is his boot. This picture is also going to the coffee shop.

If this Go-Kart could speak, it would probably tell humorous tales of me and Rush driving wildly through Brookville Park. Coincidentally, his driving style has not changed much since we were kids, yet it’s still fun driving with him.

Here is my other cousin. He doesn’t speak much but when he does, I listen. I seriously expect big things from this dude.

This is my other cousin who is also an artist. While I was there, she showed me a few of her latest pieces and let me get a few shots of how she does it. I was seriously impressed by her work and by the fact that she was welding. I’m very curious to what she’ll be creating in years to come.

This is one of my cousin’s art pieces. She gave me the run down on what it means, but I don’t quite remember. If you really want to know, drop me a line. I will give her a call, and then I will reply to your email with the back-story.

I got a Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens a few months ago and this picture pretty much explains why I love it so. There was an old oil drum somewhere in my Uncle’s shop and these bolts were on it. I took a picture.

The East Village

I took this picture on a walk-by because I thought it looked cool. Inside, there were people in the windows recording their radio show live on the air. I tried to take a picture but all I got was wild reflections. I deleted the image and kept walking.

New Jersey

At one point during my trip back home, I ended up in Jersey with my sister, Liz. She invited me to a BBQ and we had a few hearty laughs.

The food at the BBQ was incredible. As they say in some of the smaller towns throughout Florida, “Now That’s Good Eatin’!”

Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse

Three days ago we headed up to Daytona to film our good friend Lucy Beebe Tobias. We all climbed 203 steps to the top of the lighthouse behind me. The trek was worth it for two reasons. The first is a given, and that is the view. The second was my favorite, and that was the breeze.

Well people, I love you but I gotta go. Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you at the beach…I can’t say that. That is David McRee’s line. My line is:

Till Next Time,

Amon Focus

I’ve just become an instant fan of Bruce Gilden after watching the way he takes pictures in NYC. He’s in and out of your face before you get a chance to care about what he is doing.

I came across these videos clicking through a friggin’ cool site I found like 15 minutes ago: The New Pop: New York’s Online Video Magazine

KAREEM BLACK & WHITE PART 1

KAREEM BLACK & WHITE PART 2

Also checkout: Kareem Black’s Interview with Curious Artist

Back on the block or better yet back in the office for a day or so. To be honest, I’m feeling kind of good today.

I woke up this morning and my stomach was killing me. Why? Because yesterday I did 50 sit-ups and then today I did 50 more. I’m trying to get in better shape because the summer is right around the corner. I should be running right now but I’m working and I need to get this blog posted. If that sounded like an excuse not to run then it probably is. Let us move on.

As I’m writing this post, I’m listening to a classic 1994 mix tape from DJ Clue called Double Flavor Part 2. Talk about nostalgic, this mix tape stems from an actual cassette and had incredible “blends” which were a staple in my South Jamaica Queens upbringing. A blend is essentially creating a new sound for two songs that may have never met otherwise. DJ’s like Doggtime, Grandmaster Vic, Mista Rello, and Dirty Harry perfected these “Blend Tapes” from housing projects as well as backstreet basements deep in the borough of Queens, New York.

You take an a capella of some sort like Stephanie Mill’s “Rush On Me” and mix it to an instrumental like, um, I don’t know, Big Daddy Kane’s “Ain’t No Half Steppin’.” The result is nothing less than a classic mix that I’ll dub and bump in my Walkman for years to come. Plus, blend tapes or mix tapes or mash-up mixes are wonderful to write Open Florida blog post to. You should try it.

Let’s change the subject.

I’m seriously trying to recall what and where we shot over the last two week without asking Ben or Emilie but I’m drawing a blank. I try to make notes of places we film via twitter but I often forget. Give me a second and I’ll check my Google calendar…1…2…3…4…5 seconds. Ah yes, I can now recall a few of the crew’s daily activities.

Monday, March 24th, 2008 kicked off to a fantastic experience at the Florida Museum of Natural History. We filmed everything from Butterflies to fossils. Here are a few pictures I took while I was there:

Next stop was Mario’s Bistro which was essentially quick shoot. We got an interview from Mario’s wife then film some b-roll of the establishment. They were very hospitable to say the least. Before the filming began, they made some us some really tasty coffee and when we wrapped the shoot, they provided us lunch. I can honestly say that the panini I ordered was probably the best panini I’ve had in quite awhile. Thanks again!

After Mario’s Bistro we head one store over to film McIntyre Stained Glass. Here I encountered another cool hobby that I didn’t know much about. I was introduced to the art of stain glass when we visited the Morse Museum in Orlando but this was more intimate. Here I could purchase a wide array of glass, buy a glass cutter, and work on my piece right in the building. I also had the option buy pieces that were create by artist in the area.

Next on the list was the Wood & Swink, which I believe in Florida’s oldest active Post Office. First thing I notice when I entered thebuilding was all the beautiful textures on the walls, floors, and objects throughout the place. I took a few picture of the ones I found to be most interesting. Check them out here:

The last stop of the day was Herlong Mansion. I liked it. I took some picures and here are two them:

Later that week I got a tour of University of Florida’s campus by Paco. I’m not really into football but my favorite part of the tour (aside from the girls) was the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium aka “The Swamp”. Paco took a picture and here it is:

Well that about wraps in up for me.

Till Next Time,

Amon Focus

It’s Monday and it is the perfect time to add yet another post to my Florida adventure blog. WARNING: This entry is going to be picture heavy. So all you folks still sporting 28k or 56k dial up, with Windows 95, and AOL 3.0 (my dear ‘ole Grandma in Staten Island is one of these beautiful people), bear with me. Your patience is much appreciated.

The sudden fluctuation in image weight that has occurred in this particular entry is mostly due to the fact that I acquired a new toy on November 23, 2007—the day commonly known to consumers as Black Friday. This beautiful piece of machinery is the Canon Rebel XTi (or the 400D if you are overseas). I got bit by the shutter bug on our trip to Amelia Island and had to invest in a SLR of my own.

This weekend I decided to venture throughout my neighborhood and a fifty mile radius to search for interesting photo subjects. My journey started in Bradenton, then out to Ybor, and I wrapped it in Sarasota last night. Shall we begin? I agree, I think we definitely should.

This is a picture of water flowing ever so freely out of my faucet into my kitchen sink in Bradenton. I don’t know why I enjoy watching water falling from faucet but I do. Don’t judge me.

This is Petey and he resides in Ybor City. Petey was teething during this time and this is him taking a break from biting through my socks to my toes with his tiny baby teeth. If I ever owned a dog, I’d want him to be fun like this little pup. Shout out to J. Artis for being a good sport by letting me practice my photography with her and lil’ Petey Petey.

A few weeks ago I was driving past Marina Jack in Sarasota and I saw the most amazing sculptures. From that point, it was a goal of mine to return and check it out. I know it’s a pretty small goal but I accomplished it. Not only did I accomplish it but I also took pictures to share with you. Call it a little early Christmas present from me to you. No need for thanks, though. Just pay it forward.

I like this piece so much I took a picture with it!

Last night, for the first time in my entire life, I got a chance to taste a bit of Peruvian cuisine with a good friend of mine at the El Patio Latino off Tuttle in Sarasota. We had the Cebiche De Pescado and Chicharrones De Pescado then topped it off with a slice of Pie De Limon. I’d say, judging by the way we savored each dish, we probably will be back in the very near future. I didn’t get any pictures of the food but I did get a picture of the sign.

There was also a celebration going on next door for the Third Anniversary of The Latin Brothers Market. So after the meal we stayed for the festivities!

Open Florida is 24/7. Get Familiar.

Till Next Time

Amon Focus