Rich Cruse

Help me get blankets to the homeless in SD.

2011-12-12T18:40:00.000-08:00

This winter has started off very cold and wet and if you are homeless, you don't have many options when the weather turns foul. Alpha Project of San Diego provides assistance to the homeless throughout the community. They have recently erected some temporary shelters in San Diego.

On my recent trip to the Alpha Project shelter on 16th and Newton during the cold snap, I saw lots of people turned away due to overcrowding. This left many to fend for themselves on the cold sidewalks of downtown. There were simply not enough warm blankets for everyone. I felt compelled to try harder, to get more blankets to bring down there, so at least people weren't freezing at night.

I connected with Anna's Linens and they have agreed to sell me their $9.99 twin fleece blankets for half price! That means $100 will now buy 20 blankets instead of 10! I am not prepared to operate as a charity, but if you would like to send me a check or PayPal for $5 per blanket, I will purchase them and bring them down to the shelter myself!

These are the blankets Anna's is selling me for $5! Nice and Warm!

You can donate directly to Alpha Project on their web site here.

Alpha Project of San Diego

If you want to help me buy blankets and take them down there myself, you can certainly send money to me via PayPal. My account there is rcruse@aol.com

Thank you for your support.

I can tell you that the money you send for these blankets will go directly to their purchase and I will take them down there myself. I don't know if I can secure a receipt for the donation, but I am certainly willing to try if you need one!

Happy Holidays!

Thanks!

Rich

If you wish to send a check- please email me direct at
richcruse@gmail.com and I will email you my address.

Update
Thank you all so much! I was able to purchase 78 blankets and I took them down to San Diego myself.

Here is a link to some photos on Facebook.
Photos of Blankets to homeless in San Diego.

Raising $5k for CAF to Celebrate Turning 50!

2011-06-21T11:57:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all who donated cash or prizes to my fundraiser! The total raised to date is $3240. That is shy of my goal but it is a great accomplishment. I was thrilled by the number of people donating $50 or more. I realize money is tight, so I am deeply touched by your generosity.

I will keep my donation page on CAF active for the foreseeable future, so if you missed out there is still time to donate $10 or more here.
PLEASE Donate at least $10.

If you won a prize and have not received it yet, please contact me a richcruse@gmail.com

Congratulations to David Murphy, winner of the Suunto Retweet to Win Contest. He won the Suunto M5 watch!

Sincerely,
Rich

July 17th will be my 50th birthday and to be honest, I am not thrilled about it. It means I will be over the hill and eligible to join AARP!

I began to think about how I could turn this occasion into something positive. It didn't take long for me to realize that raising money for Challenged Athletes Foundation would make me happiest. I don't want or expect gifts, instead I want you to join with me in support of an organization that means so much to me. CAF changes lives. They truly do amazing work. I encourage you to explore their web site at Challenged Athletes to learn more.

Here is the link to my CAF donation page.
PLEASE Donate at least $10.

Donate $50 for my 50th, and be eligible for my exclusive prize drawing as well! I have had some very kind donations of prizes from some good friends and even a celebrity or two!
If you want to donate a prize, please feel free to email me at richcruse@gmail.com.

The Prizes

Category One Prizes Twitter Only -

Suunto M5

These will be part of the RT and Follow Contest and will be open to all US Residents to win. You must Re-Tweet and follow @CAFoundation, @CrusePhoto and the prize giver on Twitter to be eligible to win. Follow me on Twitter for each contest and details. Re-Tweet as many times as you wish, but one RT per Twitter name will be counted. (No donation is required).

~~Oakley Fuel Cell Sunglasses~~ ~~- Black $100 retail value courtesy~~ ~~@Oakley~~
~~Starbucks Via Coffee Gift bag from~~ ~~@Starbucks~~ ~~Aliso Creek & La Paz in Laguna Niguel~~
~~One Year Subscription to Inside Triathlon Magazine~~ ~~@InsideTri~~
~~An autographed copy of~~ ~~"I am Here to Win"~~ ~~by Chris McCormack~~ ~~@MaccaNow~~
~~An autographed copy of~~ ~~"To Be a Runner"~~ ~~by Martin J Dugard~~ ~~@MartinJDugard~~
~~$50 Apple gift card (2 to be given away) provided by~~ ~~@GirlsGoneGeek~~
~~K-Swiss sandals, an autographed poster & Powerbars from~~ ~~@JoshCox~~
~~PhotoTools 2.6~~ ~~from @onOneSoftware $249 value~~
"25 Years of Ironman" autographed by Ironman Hall of Famer @Bob_Babbitt
~~Access Hollywood's "The Royal Wedding" Commemorative book. Signed by~~ ~~@billybush~~
~~Suunto M5 watch~~ ~~$205 retail value from~~ ~~@SuuntoUSA~~

Suunto M5 drawing is July 17th- Tweet the following to be eligible. " Giveaway thru 07/17! Win a Suunto M5 Watch, follow @CrusePhoto @SUUNTOUSA & tweet. Support CAF & Donate here. http://bit.ly/kSE9Sg #RCSU " Tweet as many times as you wish, but only one tweet per Twitter name will be counted. you must follow @SUUNTOUSA and @CrusePhoto to be eligible to win. Winner will be announced July 18th.

Follow and re-tweet prizes will be chosen at random from qualifying entries. Sorry but the RT contest is restricted to US residents only.

Signed by THE Dave Stewart!

Category Two Prizes require a $50 donation or more.
Receive one entry for each $50 donation.

Photo Suite 5.5.3 software from @onOneSoftware $349 value.
"The Dave Stewart Songbook: The Stories Behind the Songs" autographed by @DaveStewart
Avia Running Shoes from @AVIArunning
Reflect Sports Gift Pack ($85 value) from @hoohahrideglide
"25 Years of Ironman"book Autographed by @Bob_Babbitt
Just Added! Lunch or Dinner for 4 at the Prestigious New York Yacht Club in NYC or the Rhode Island annex hosted by @AndrewHersam. Valued at nearly $1000! Good thru August 2012, so if you are going to IM NYC, you can use it then!

Category Two prizes will be given away at the end of the contest on July 17th via random drawing. Please follow @CAFoundation and me @CrusePhoto on Twitter. I encourage you to follow my sponsors as well! All donors who win will be notified via the email they used for their donation to CAF or Twitter name. One Prize per donor in the Category Two Prizes. Your chance of winning increases with each $50 donation but only one prize per person. Prize winners will be selected in sequence with the first person selected having first choice of the prizes. It will continue down the list until all prizes have been awarded.

My Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/rcphoto.

Please Like https://www.facebook.com/CAForg on Facebook as well.
Please Share with others using the link at the top of the page.Donate to CAF

A Poem by my Mom

2011-06-06T18:13:00.000-07:00

Love Is

by Wendy Mary Cruse

Love is making someone smile

when someone’s down in the dumps.

Love is sending a note to a friend

when he’s sick in bed with the mumps.

Love is feeding a homeless dog

or a cat that’s gone astray

Love is something that melts away HATE

and unkind words people say.

Love is for giving and forgiving.

Love lives inside and out.

Love doesn’t care about the color of skin

or whether you’re skinny or stout.

Love is something you may or may not see

Love is something you feel.

Hugs and kisses aren’t always love

if the feelings inside aren’t real.

Love is something you can’t live without.

It makes the world go round.

Love can never be kept to yourself.

Let go—and spread it around!

We lost my Mom to cancer 7 years ago, but her words and Love live on.

Changing the Rules in the Middle of the Game?! TwitPic Crosses the Line.

2011-05-22T12:38:00.000-07:00

For over two years, I have been using Twitter to share my photos with the world. It brings me great satisfaction to be able to "Tweet" a photo and have it instantly available for the world to see. Since the beginning, I have used Twitpic to post images. It works with Twitter for iPhone and is easy to use via web browser as well. I have close to 1000 images on TwitPic.

Last week, I posted my last image to Twitpic. This is because I was made aware of a huge change in their TOS (Terms of Service).

You retain all ownership rights to Content uploaded to Twitpic. However, by submitting Content to Twitpic, you hereby grant Twitpic a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicenseable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of, display, and perform the Content in connection with the Service and Twitpic's (and its successors' and affiliates') business, including without limitation for promoting and redistributing part or all of the Service (and derivative works thereof) in any media formats and through any media channels.

If you read carefully, you will see that Twitpic is now claiming that by uploading your photo to their service, you give them permission to sell your photos to third parties without any compensation to you! WHAT?!!! Who in their right mind would agree to this? What is most disturbing is that this change was made without any official notification to me nor was I given the opportunity to opt out. From a legal standpoint, I believe that if I discover any of my images that were uploaded before this change went into affect were sold for profit, I will have legal grounds to sue them. I never agreed to those terms- and I never will!

Twitpic has made plenty of money off the advertising on each page with a photo you view, now they are getting greedy. This is not only happening with Twitpic, but also with Plixi (now known as Lockerz) and most all other picture sites for Twitter. This is alarming!

NEVER GIVE AWAY RIGHTS for others to make money off YOUR Photos- EVER! If there is no compensation to you, then don't allow sites like Twitpic to sell your images. Lockerz approach is slightly different, they will give you "points" for each picture that is sold- Yawn. yFrog has another approach. They state they will never sell your photos without your permission. All requests will be forwarded to you.

All requests for permission regarding your content usage directed at ImageShack will be forwarded to you. All uploaded content is copyrighted to its respective owners. ImageShack directs full legal responsibility of said content to their respective owners. All content generated by ImageShack is copyrighted by ImageShack. ImageShack is not responsible for any uploaded content, nor is it in affiliation with any entities that may be represented in the uploaded content.

In my opinion, the Best place to post your photos is: MobyPicture. They have a very straightforward policy on content posted. They will never sell them! They do collect data, but that is it.

Content Ownership
All rights of uploaded content by our users remain the property of our users and those rights can in no means be sold or used in a commercial way by Mobypicture or affiliated third party partners without consent from the user.

This is why ALL my Twitter image posts will be done through MobyPicture in the future. It is available as an option via Twitter apps for iPhone and Android and also on TweetDeck and Twitter for Mac. I highly recommend you stop using Twitpic and tell them why.

Update: If you are a celebrity or sports star, you might be able to use WhoSay.com
They provide a unique service for celebrity posts. You need to apply for an invitation.

Lastly, if you are posting images, it is always a very good idea to add a watermark to them. It basically tags your photos with your name and © and lets everyone know that it's your image. There is a saying in the photo biz, "once it's created it's copyrighted". In a way that is true, you do not have to file paperwork with the US Copyright office to claim copyright on your photos, you do need to file if you want full protection under the law. You are limited in the amount you can claim if your images are not registered with the US Copyright offices, but your images are yours. If someone steals them and you can prove it, you can sue for damages. If your image has a watermark with your © on it and they remove it or crop it off the photo without permission then that is copyright infringement and you have a much stronger case.

How do I add a watermark? Well, if you have an iPhone, you can use an app. called Impression. It allows you to add text to your photos before you post them. It is $1.99! You can also do this with your photo program on your Mac or PC. There is a program for Mac/PC and iPhone/iPad called iWatermark. It allows you to add text/copyright to your photos. Just add text that says ©2011 (Your Name). This is all you need to do. I recommend you do this to all the photos you post to the public on Facebook, Twitter or on your web site. That way, no one can repost without your permission. If they do, at least people know where it came from.

To conclude, don't let sites like Twitpic profit from your images. Read the TOS before your post your images to any site. Protect your copyrights. Always add a watermark with your name and © to all images you post for public viewing!

Life is Good

2010-11-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

I have the privilege of meeting and getting to know many interesting and inspiring people through my work. One of the most rewarding assignments I have is when I get to shoot the San Diego Triathlon Challenge to benefit the Challenged Athletes Foundation. "Established in 1997, the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) is a unique organization that recognizes the athletic greatness inherent in all people with physical challenges and supports their athletic endeavors by providing grants for training, competition and equipment needs."

Among the many stories and personal triumphs I saw, this one struck me the most. I was photographing kids at the expo sliding down an inflatable. I would see a tiny face poke out from the opening and some of the kids sliding down were wearing prosthetics and some were not. It was a blur. The common thread was that they were all having fun together. I remember back when I was a kid, you didn't see kids with disabilities much. They were locked away somewhere. Now, it is different and it was wonderful to see. I looked over and a saw a lady on the park bench who, like me was enjoying the site of kids having fun. I could see she was tearing up. She told me two weeks earlier she'd had a stroke and nearly died. She was doing much better and said she was "happy to be alive". Watching those kids having fun made her heart sing- Mine too! I gave her a hug.

Life IS Good!

Please Donate to CAF at www.challengedathletes.org.

Check out more inspiring photos from the SDTC here.

9 year old Cody McCasland prepares for a 1 mile swim.

Good Comes from Bad- Remembering Jim MacLaren

2010-09-10T10:46:00.000-07:00

Update: Today is the one year anniversary of the passing of Jim MacLaren. This post was written shortly after I heard the news. Jim touched so many people's lives and Challenged Athletes Foundation is exists because of Jim.

Jim's ready for the start of 1991 Ironman

My Mom always used to say "Good comes from bad". If you ever met Jim MacLaren, I think you would agree. I was saddened to hear that triathlon's most inspirational person had passed away August 30th. He was just 47 years old. I hadn't seen him for a number of years, but he was always close to my heart.

I first met Jim at Ironman in Kona, Hawaii. I was hanging out by the pool at the King Kam a couple days before Ironman with Scott Tinley, Wendy Ingraham, Russell Moore and others when someone in the group yells out "Hey! No amputees in the pool!". Huh? I look up and there is Jim MacLaren. He flips us the bird, removes his prosthetic leg and "hops" into the pool! He swims up to us and is laughing and smiling ear to ear. That was my introduction to Jim MacLaren back in 1991-always positive and always smiling. He was fun to be around. I began to follow Jim and learned about his accident. The former football star and aspiring actor had his left leg amputated after a motorcycle accident in NYC. Jim was breaking new ground- competing at Ironman with a prosthetic and he inspired us all.

Jim competed at Ironman from 1989-1992. His best performance at Kona included a 3:16 marathon with a finish time of 10:42! Jim's acceptance into the sport of triathlon helped pave the way for others. His charisma made Jim the perfect ambassador for triathlon and challenged athletes everywhere.

I was there that fateful day at the Mission Viejo Triathlon in 1993, but did not hear of the news of Jim's second accident until the next day. My heart sank and I wondered if and how Jim would survive this second set-back. Everyone Jim touched in the past came to his aid. Bob Babbitt, Scott Tinley and others created what would become the Challenged Athletes Foundation San Diego Triathlon Challenge to raise money for Jim. Doctors said Jim was paralyzed and would never have the use of his arms or legs. He proved them wrong.

Jim speaks at IM Awards Dinner 1993

Jim continued to inspire and amaze us all. In October of 1993, Jim returned to Ironman in Kona- not as a participant like the year before, but this time as a spectator. I saw him on the pier that morning at the swim start. It broke my heart to see my friend there in a wheelchair watching others do what he no longer could. I walked up to Jim after the swim start and gave him a hug. I didn't know what to say. "I am sorry this happened to you." wasn't going to cut it. I thought for a minute and (being the visual person I am) I said, "Wow, your eyes are really blue!". The sun was hitting them and they shone like nothing I had seen before. He said "thanks". I wished him well, gave him another hug and went on to photograph the rest of the race. It was GOOD to see Jim. The next day, he spoke at the awards ceremony and touched us all deeply with his words and courage.

Many years later, I was photographing the CAF SDTC in La Jolla; I looked up and there was Jim! He had a tricked out chair and a tan. He looked very happy to be there. I walked up to him and gave him a big hug and said "great to see you!". We chatted for a minute; I could see Jim was happy. He told me something I never forgot. He said, "Remember that morning on the pier in Kona when you saw me in my chair? I was feeling sorry for myself, then you came over to me and gave me that big hug. You told me how blue my eyes were and it made me feel better. You inspired me that day. You looked for something positive, something to make me feel better. You looked for the best in me and I will not forget that.". That was the last time I saw Jim.

Watch the ESPN video about Jim

I will miss Jim MacLaren. He will always be in my mind and in my heart. My Mom used to say "Good things come from bad" and Jim was proof of that. The world is a much better place because he lived. Challenged Athletes Foundation is proof of that. RIP

Please honor Jim's memory by donating to the Challenged Athletes Foundation.
Donate to Challenged Athletes Foundation

To Share or Not to Share...

2010-08-27T11:05:00.000-07:00

Social networking sites are popping up all over. Almost all of them are free- at least that is what we are led to believe. I have been around long enough to know Nothing is Free. That is almost always the case. Twitter was created with the idea that it would provide added revenue to cell phone carriers. You see 140 characters is the exact length of a standard text message. Most people had their Twitter accounts set-up so when you got a Tweet, it would be forwarded to your cell phone and you would get charged a fee. Now most people have unlimited text messaging or use Smartphone Twitter apps so that revenue stream has become limited.

Facebook is an entirely different animal and they make money in many different ways. One way is through third party apps that access your personal information and your list of friends. Most people freely give permission for these apps to access their personal info because they believe the product or service is worth it. What they do not know is that these third party companies can and do use this information to market to you and your friends on Facebook. This is most alarming to me.

Facebook is the most valuable source for personal information there is. Where else do you disclose your: relationship status, job, hobbies, education, personal photos and religious and political views? That is why Facebook data is SO valuable to many companies. In my opinion, you should lock down your account so you normally only share with friends. There are also ways to create groups. That way you decide who gets to see what.

If you haven't learned by now, remember this. Anything you post on the internet stays on the internet and can be reposted by others. In other words, don't say anything you do not want repeated or reposted. The same goes for your photos. Think twice before you post photos of friends drinking or doing something that could be embarrassing to them. These images can be taken out of context and can be a liability, especially when looking for a job.

Speaking about images, it is important to read and understand the TOS when you sign up for ANY free service. Facebook has some surprising Terms of Service.
Facebook Terms of Service
You need to read this- seriously. READ ALL OF IT!

From Facebook:

"You own all of the content and information you post on Facebook, and you can control how it is shared through your privacy and application settings. In addition:

For content that is covered by intellectual property rights, like photos and videos ("IP content"), you specifically give us the following permission, subject to yourprivacy and application settings: you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on or in connection with Facebook ("IP License"). This IP License ends when you delete your IP content or your account unless your content has been shared with "

What does this mean? Well, if you do nothing with your settings and use the Default privacy and ad settings, you will be giving permission for Facebook to repost and essentially sell your photos and video to third parties! What? Why would they do that? The answer is because they can. They have to make money and they know that most people don't read those TOS agreements.

"What should I do?" you ask. Should you stop posting photos and videos to Facebook? That is what some people would tell you to do, but you don't have to go live in a cave and become a paranoid shut-in. Simply follow the instructions on "how" to set your privacy settings that Facebook provides. You do not have to give Facebook permission to use your photos and video for free in order to use their service. You DO have to Opt Out by customizing your privacy settings.

If you do not share your photos or video with "Everyone", your content is not going to be given to third parties. If you do share photos/video with "Everyone", you can still eliminate the possibility of them being used in ads by going to Account> Account Settings> Facebook Ads and selecting "No One" for both "Allow ads" and "Show Social Actions in Facebook Ads". Be sure to have a look at your Application Settings to make sure only the apps. you select have access to the information you choose.

If you want to minimize the possibility of someone reposting your photos or videos without permission, add a watermark with your name and web address to your photos and include your name in the credits on your videos. It is a federal crime to remove copyright information from a photo.

Anything you post on the web can be stolen or reposted. I would rather people see my work than keep it on my computer. The images you post on Facebook are low resolution so they cannot be used for publication. I always put my photo credit info on images I want to protect.

So to share or not to share? I say share- but read the terms of service before you go giving away all your rights. Unfortunately, they don't always inform you of the consequences of the default settings of Facebook. Be smart and take control of your content and your social networking!

iPhone 4 HD video taken in the produce section

2010-07-03T22:01:00.000-07:00

iPhone 4 Is it worthy of all the hype- and the wait? Part two

2010-06-30T12:40:00.000-07:00

After spending nearly a week with the iPhone 4 and enjoying all its new features, I would be remiss if I did not talk about some problems I have had with the new device. Most of these are minor annoyances while there is one glaring problem that may require a trip to the Apple Store for a replacement.
The old saying Form follows function is usually true. In the case of Apple products, that isn't always the case. While it is undeniable that iPhone 4 may be one of the sexiest mobile phones around, it may not be the most durable. Starting with the first iPhone, Apple chose to use glass for its display cradled by a metal or plastic case. The reasoning is that glass can be just as durable as plastic and it makes for a higher quality display. True, the iPhone's display is beautiful but is still susceptible to shattering- as all glass can be. With the iPhone 4, Apple chose to use an aluminosilicate glass which was created by Apple and is supposed to be 20 to 30 times stiffer and harder than plastic. It is akin to the type of glass in high speed trains and helicopters. They also chose to use the new glass not only for the display, but also for the back of the phone.

The problem with this is two-fold. Two pieces of glass held together with a single band of steel defies logic and although beautiful to look at, it seems to invite disaster. Indeed an unprotected iPhone 4 has been proven to shatter or crack when dropped on cement from waist high. What was Apple thinking? I have no idea but I am mortified of the thought of ruining my iPhone in a single drop. To compound the problem of having two sides of glass, Apple chose to let the glass extend beyond the metal band, making it vulnerable to chipping, scratching or breakage from almost any drop.

Enter the Apple Bumper. Maybe sensing that their newest phone might get pretty dinged up or even break with a simple drop, they created this rubber gasket styled sleeve that slips around the edges of your iPhone 4. After seeing the iPhone in person I knew I could not leave the store without some sort of case to protect it from an accidental fall. The Bumper serves at least two purposes- it protects the metal band from dents and scratches and it also covers the edges of the glass display. With the Bumper installed, the glass will not likely hit the ground first, which is not the case with a bare iPhone 4. I highly recommend a Bumper case to start. A case that covers the entire back of the iPhone 4 and some screen protecting film should give adequate protection for most. The fact that you almost have to buy a case to protect your new iPhone 4 is really annoying to me and I was disappointed that there were no cases for iPhone 4 available at launch!

I have not been plagued by the widely reported signal issue that some have complained about. The story goes that if you hold the bare iPhone 4 while covering the bottom half, the signal strength/reception is reduced. I have not experienced this yet, but I have experienced another issue that may require exchanging my iPhone.

One of the iPhone's features is a proximity sensor that detects when you are holding the iPhone next to your face or not. When you bring the phone to your ear, the display turns off-eliminating the possibility of accidentally hitting an on-screen button with your face and potentially disconnecting your call. Well, this appears to be malfunctioning in some iPhone 4s - including mine. I lost three calls because the proximity sensor didn't not detect the iPhone as being next to my face. I hung up accidentally a couple times and hit numerous numbers as well. It could be a software issue or a hardware issue. I have already restored the software, but it did not fix the problem. For now, using the headset is the best way to avoid this unfortunate problem. I am sure it will be squared away soon- this is a brand new product so there will be some growing pains. (Update) I believe the proximity sensor problem may have more to do with the headphone jack than the sensor itself. The connection for the headset is very snug and it is possible the iPhone is not sensing that the plug has been removed from the jack and leaves the screen on by mistake. (Update 2) It appears that Apple has changed the distance from 2" to 1" from the iPhone before shutting off the screen. This could be addressed by a software update. The reception issues have been explained by Apple as another software issue and the actual reception of the iPhone 4 is better than its predecessor. Update 3, Apple has addressed this issue with the proximity sensor with a software update and it is no longer a problem.

As a phone and paired with AT&T, the iPhone 4 is not the greatest way to make a call. Using the included headset with microphone is the best way to make calls with the iPhone 4. Holding an iPhone 4 (or almost any smart phone) is like holding a deck of cards next to your ear. Not the ideal set-up for talking on the phone to be sure. AT&T is very good or very bad, depending on where you live. I have good reception where I live but hit dead spots from time to time. Check coverage in your area before committing to AT&T. The 3G service is VERY fast. I downloaded an entire 3.5 meg song from iTunes in less than 20 seconds!

In conclusion, the iPhone 4 is a fast and sexy device that does many things very well. The HD video, high quality 5 megapixel camera with flash, hi res display and iPod music make this a compelling choice in the crowded smart phone market. The overall durability of the device is still in question. Apple could improve iPhone 4 durability by replacing the glass panel on the rear with a plastic or metal one and making the metal band wider. Worth a look. If you get one, buy a case!

Read my first impressions by clicking on Older Post.

iPhone 4 Is it worthy of all the hype- and the wait?

2010-06-29T15:06:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since my last blog post. I found that I prefer the immediacy of Twitter and the ability to post galleries on FaceBook. This post is about the new iPhone 4 from Apple. I am an admitted Apple Kool-Aid drinker in the sense that I tend to like almost everything they create. That doesn't mean I don't have criticism of some of the products they make (Including the iPhone 4), but often these minor issues prove to be nothing compared to PCs and other smartphones.

Let me start by saying that I bought the very first iPhone for $599 and I never regretted paying the premium as an early adopter. As a photographer who depends almost completely on the internet for my business, having what amounts to a hand held computer has been a godsend. Being able to read emails and access the web almost anywhere has been great. Add a camera to the mix and you can appreciate why I would love such a device. I used to have to carry my phone and my iPod when on my walks. Now I have my iPhone. It has simplified my life to be sure. Being able to listen to music, check email, and make calls with one device has been great! I rarely have to turn on my MacBook Pro to check email when traveling now that I have my iPhone.

I have owned the original iPhone and the 3G iPhone. I skipped the 3Gs iPhone because I would have had to pay a lot more to upgrade and I heard rumors of the iPhone 4 in January.

What I like about the iPhone 4 -

The sleek glass and metal design is unlike anything else on the market. It is almost like jewelry.
The front and rear facing cameras and FaceTime video chat is great for keeping up with friends and family when on the road. The built in led flash also stays on when shooting video in low light.
The 5 megapixel camera that focusses very close and the 720P 30 frames per second HD video is bright and crisp.
Video editing and posting to YouTube directly from the iPhone.
Multi-tasking suspends apps when not in use and lets them spring to life instantly.
Folders allow you to organize your apps any way you want so you don't have to go through screens of single apps.
The hi resolution Retina display is 326 dpi and a major improvement. It is razor sharp.
The biggest improvement for me is the SPEED! This iPhone is so fast! It uses a chip like the one in the iPad so I no longer have a lag like I did with the previous iPhone.

Having a 5 megapixel camera in your phone is awesome. The full sized file will be nearly 15 megs and could conceivably be good enough for a full page in a magazine. Here is a shot I took with the iPhone 4.

Check out the quality by clicking on the photo.

I am happy I waited for iPhone 4. It's the best yet!

Learn more about the many new features of Apple iPhone 4 on their web site.

Why is Donald Trump holding a Huffy?

2009-09-05T15:29:00.000-07:00

Donald Trump may be a lot of things, but in 1989, he was the champion of US Cycling. In fact, he may have saved cycling in the US by creating the "Tour de Trump" bicycle race.

After the conclusion of the 1988 Coors Classic, it was clear that Coors would not be returning as the title sponsor. They had decided to sponsor their own professional cycling team instead. This left Race Director Michael Aisner holding an empty bag. He had apparently been playing hardball with Coors, so they took their ball and went home. The prospects of finding another sponsor was next to nil and sadly, the race folded after 10 years. This left a huge void with no other professional stage race in the US.

Along comes Donald Trump and with the help of NBC Sports, Jefferson Pilot Teleproductions and the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino- you have the makings of an over-the-top race. It was! The Tour de Trump was originally envisioned as a Tour of America. The organizers quickly realized a smaller scale tour of the east coast was a good place to start. The race was filled with a who's who of cycling stars including: Greg LeMond, Davis Phinney and European riders like Eric Vanderaerden. A cold rainy day in Albany, NY brought the start of the race. Thomas Craven of Schwinn/Wheaties won the inaugural Prologue and as the race progressed, we could see the organizers had created a heck of an event.

Fun things about the race I remember are: racing photographer friend Jim Safford up the stairs to the press room at The Plaza Hotel in our t-shirts and shorts, seeing Donald Trump and wondering what the deal was with that hair?! The final time trial in Atlantic City, NJ finishing on the boardwalk in front of the Trump Casino. Oh yeah, Michael Buffer the "Let's get ready to rumble" guy was the announcer in Atlantic City. My Mom and Dad (who both came from England) would giggle like school kids everytime I said Tour de Trump. You see in England, trump means to fart!

The Tour de Trump lasted one more year, then it was adopted by the DuPont company after The Donald hit financial hard times and could no longer afford to sponsor the event.

Iron War...The Battle of Mark and Dave

2009-09-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

Ironman 1989 was my second year covering the event. My first year was spent in a press truck, this year I was given the opportunity to shoot the race from a motorcycle! In 1988, I had hoped to see Mark Allen and Dave Scott go head to head, but at the last minute Dave dropped out with knee problems. Mark had a poor showing that year due to bike problems- he finished a disappointing 5th overall.

Dave Scott and Mark Allen duel on the Queen K.

This year looked to be the year. Mark and Dave were in the shape of their lives and it seemed like we were going to see the equivalent of a WWF smack-down on the Lava. There was some pre-race trash talk going around and Mark had said he had made peace with the island gods- adding fuel to the fire.

I don't remember as much about the race as I should but that run is what I remember the most! Mark and Dave came out of bike to run transition only seconds apart. Soon they were running side by side and it continued for the next 24 miles. Two men running side by side for 24 miles? Crazy! I had to get to the finish line so I wasn't there when Mark pulled away from Dave with a mile and a half to go. He finished 58 seconds ahead of Dave- winning his first ever Ironman Triathlon World Championship in a course record time of 8:09:15.

Most have seen the iconic image taken by Lois Schwartz of Mark and Dave on the run. She had the best seat in the house- shooting from the lead vehicle (a Mustang convertible). When I finally came upon the scene of Mark and Dave, it was full of contrasts. Outside of the core group surrounding them was pure chaos. Officials were yelling at everyone, trying to keep a buffer zone around them. I could not get a view to see what was happening. The ABC crew had a giant van that was on them like glue. I remember the guy in the van had a camera on a pole he was using. Anyway, after waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I was allowed into the circle. Once I got next to Mark and Dave it was deadly silent. The only sounds were of shoes slapping the pavement and two guys breathing hard. I was astounded at the peacefulness of the situation and the fact the two could be so close and yet each in their own world. They never glanced at one another or said a word!

Mark and Dave running side by side
about Mile 20.

I took a few images, but soon I was told to move on. I wanted more. It was obvious I wasn't going to make it into the circle again, so I headed up the road, got off the bike and put my fisheye lens on my Olympus OM4T. As they approached, I held the camera low and tried to grab something of the two as I ran beside them for 15 seconds letting the motor drive blaze. Geez those guys were running FAST! This is the image I like best. I don't think it has ever been published, but I like it. I remember them both giving me funny looks at some point, then they were gone! What an amazing pace! Mark ran a 2:40:04 marathon- absolutely remarkable.

It was a total surprise at the finish to see Mark win. He broke down in tears, overcome with emotion. When Dave crossed moments later, you could see he was devastated. Unfortunately, someone had to come in second. Since the Iron War, Mark and Dave have told their versions of the story. Today it remains one of the greatest stories in all of competitive sport. I was happy to be able to see it first hand!

Mark Allen wins his first Ironman World
Championship in 1989.

On the brink...the Paula Newby Fraser collapse of 1995.

2009-09-01T10:56:00.000-07:00

The Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona, Hawaii is one of the toughest Ironman courses there are. The relentless heat and humidity combined with the incredible beauty of the island makes it a perfect choice for the world championship. The lava has sucked the life out of many a competitor. Even the professionals walk a tightrope of hydration vs. pacing. Sometimes it works-sometimes it doesn't. This is about when things go terribly wrong...

It was 1995 and all was going well for multiple Ironman World Championship Winner and course record holder Paula Newby-Fraser. Paula had amassed a sizable lead against Karen Smyers on the bike and her run was going well.

Around mile 20, she got word that Karen was gaining 30 seconds/mile on her and it is possible that Karen could catch her. Paula panicked and decided to abandon her hydration and nutrition plan and simply put the pedal to the metal. It looked like her plan would work- except for one thing she didn't expect. She was overheating and quickly becoming dehydrated.

I was on the motorcycle covering the race and the last time I saw Paula- about mile 15, she looked fine. That is why I headed to the finishline to get into position to capture yet another win for Paula. We could hear Mike Reilly say "She's on Alii Drive!" and we all waited, but no Paula! The next thing I know, Karen Smyers makes her way to the finish tape- winning her first and only Ironman World Championship.

"Where's Paula?" you could here rumbling through the crowd. Karen looked concerned and pointed up the street. Someone whispered in my ear that Paula had collapsed up the street. I bolted up Alii with all my gear banging around and my fanny pack slipping down. About 300 yards up the street was a crowd surrounding Paula. She had collapsed and was disoriented. All she could say was "Don't touch me. I don't want to be disqualified.". Her boyfriend Paul Huddle was there and he was trying to call an ambulance. Paula looked like she was dying. She was white as a sheet.

People kept telling me to get out of the way, but I stood my ground and said "This is my job. I know her and I am not in the way.". I stood off to the side and did not interfere with the situation at all. It was determined that Paula was suffering from dehydration and heat exhaustion. When Paula skipped her water and energy drink, she took a risk and came so close to winning, not today. Now she is laying on the ground and she is literally cooking on the inside. They give her some water, but it's not enough. Her body temperature is too high and she needs to cool off NOW! She could suffer irreparable damage to her brain or other parts of the body.

A smart thinking course referee ran to a local restaurant and filled a giant mayonnaise bucket with cold water. Here is the picture. He poured the bucket over her head and it was like he was pouring liquid life back into Paula. It was amazing! Her color began to come back and she began to speak coherently. After another 5 or 10 minutes she was on her feet and to the delight of the crowd, she walked barefoot to the finish line- remarkably in 4th place!

Paula would later remark that she made a mistake by not sticking to her plan. It was like skipping that last gas station when your car is running on empty. Unfortunately, she ran out of gas just shy of the finish. It wasn't easy to see the Ironman champ sitting there on the ground, but I am glad she was okay and I was able to capture this incredible moment in sports history.

Paula came back in 1996 to regain her crown- lesson learned.

My first blog here...

2009-08-31T11:14:00.000-07:00

One of the best things about being a photographer is that you get to meet interesting people all the time. I recently had a chance to meet Matt Hoover- winner of the second season of The Biggest Loser. He is scheduled to compete at the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona, Hawaii this October.

Matt is being trained by my friend Jim Vance. Jim is a former professional triathlete with a strong background in track and field. He is also great guy. I was scheduled to meet Matt on a Tuesday afternoon about 1pm. I met Jim at his house in Pacific Beach, CA and we chatted while we waited for Matt to get back from a training ride with one of Jim's friends. A quick phone call revealed that the ride was going to take quite a bit longer than expected. The ride out was uphill for 14 miles and the temps were in 90's! By the time Matt got back, it was closer to 2:00. He was bushed so I hung out with him while he had a chance to rest before heading out for our shoot.

The conversation was wonderful. Matt spoke about his journey, describing his hopes to be an Olympic wrestler only to have the dream taken away by a career ending injury. He talks about his depression and his addiction to food and alcohol-pretty serious stuff. Then we talked about his time on The Biggest Loser. Wow- I was blown away at the things he had to say about "the ranch". He talked about the food too. "It was the same thing everyday" he said. They would work out 8 hours a day- it was their job!

He told me that the day after the weigh in when he won the show with an astounding final weight of 182, he gained 10 pounds. He met his wife Suzy on the show and they were married not long after. She was third overall. They have two kids now.

Since the show, Matt has gained some weight, 239 at the moment and he is constantly questioned about it. I know it bugs him, but he is working on it. He is training to do Ironman and it is likely he will not lose more than 15 pounds before Ironman. Matt is going to do The Ironman, not just any Ironman but the Original. This is maybe the toughest course there is and he is prepared to do what it takes to cross that finish line within the allotted 17 hours.

Good luck Matt!