is the world ending?

A few weeks ago there was one of the most dramatic sunsets I've seen here in Santa Barbara.  I didn't know what to make of it, but it was awesome!

I only have a few weeks left here, and hopefully there will be more sunsets like this one.  I can't believe that my freshman year of college has gone by this fast.  It really feels like last month was August and I was moving into my dorm and meeting all these amazing people for the first time.  But in less than a month I'll be packing up my room and driving back to LA, not to return until January 2012.  Because in less than 100 days I'll be getting on a plane for Scotland for a month, then an entire semester in Europe and Israel.  I can't wait for summer and Europe, but I at the same time I'm really going to miss my life here at Westmont in John C. Page Hall.

my famous friend

My good friend Jayme Dee is an amazing up and coming artist.  She is the most talented singer/songwriter I know, and is already making it big.  I had the privilege of seeing her play at the House of Blues in Anaheim a few weeks ago and I was blown away!  It's so weird to think that the girl that used to play worship at my church, at local coffee shops, and at open mic nights at our high school is now a rockstar!! This video is her cover of Adele's Rollin In The Deep, and I like it better than the original! Check out her website, youtube, and facebook. 

how many gummy bears?

That is the question of the night.

I asked my friend Erica to spring formal using hundreds of gummy bears and we had a few extra...  so naturally we put them in a Jarritos bottle one by one and kept count.

Any guesses?

talented friends

A few of my good friends preformed at 'The Study", a cafe/grill/hangout spot on campus last night.  Every Wednesday night they have students play.

Wesley and Sarah started the night off, and Josiah joined in on a few songs.  The last song they played was one Wesley wrote after he, Sarah, Erica, and myself pulled an all nighter in the bed of my truck parked by the beach and talked for hours and hours.  

Then one of the most talented friends I have went on.  Jasmine is a senior here and from my home church.  I grew up listening to her play worship and having her here at Westmont, especially when she sings in chapel, is very comforting and very fun.

Jasmine's voice is absolutely amazing, and every time she sings in chapel I have a good day.  It's like a good luck charm.

pond exploring

My friend Natalie Pond and I went exploring around a cool church on the cliffs in PV while I was home last week.

old school feelings

I tried getting creative in my editing of some of the pictures I took of Theo's bus last week. For the interior shots, I decided to go old school and give it an almost antique feel.  I tried four different styles, just playing around with settings and presets in Adobe Lightroom. I'm happy about how they turned out, let me know what you think.

two rolls

I shot two rolls of film over spring break. One BW and one color. Comparison:

spring break friends

Spring break was partly about seeing as many people that were in town as possible, but also spending some good quality time with a few people that are my closest friends.  This break was by far the most enjoyable time I've spent back at home since I left for college.  I slept in almost everyday, usually until 2pm or later. Everyday I hung out with my core group of guys that are all still seniors (one junior) in high school, plus got to see tons of friends from my high school class that were also on their college spring breaks.

Theo and the VW Bus

It's been a while since my last update, but I've been shooting primarily film for the past two weeks.  When I get those developed this weekend prepare for many posts.  I shot with my digital camera for the first time in a while today.  My friend Theo has been begging me to do a photo shoot with his VW bus he got for his 16th birthday and it finally worked out today.

The bus is the definition of Theo in car form, it fits him perfectly.  We went down and took pictures in the parking lot right next to Torrance Beach.

It was a beautiful Southern California sunset, and Theo said this is "how he always watches the sunset or watches anything these days... on top of the bus!"

I miss this kid, and I was so pumped to hang out with him today.  Hopefully in the next few weeks Theo is going to make the drive up to Santa Barbara in the bus and we can go to the zoo (his favorite place).

I took some shots with both my film cameras too. I'll post those when I get them developed this weekend.

grandpa's car

Some of my very oldest memories involve driving around in my grandpa's Chevy Corvair.

It's a 63' or 64', but if I ask my grandpa the exact year it would be a two hour conversation slash story about who knows what.  Apparently it's been deemed "unsafe at any speed" because with the engine weight in the back it has a tendency to slide out of control around corners.  I need to learn stick better before I can drive it, but I can't wait!

Westmont's best speaker

Sara Reinis won the speech tournament last weekend!  A few hours before the tournament we went and had a mini photoshoot outside Page Hall.

Sara has got some big hair... These were the only two I took with my film camera, but I still need to edit the ones I took with my 60D.

skating montecito

About a month back, Wesley and I went on an adventure skating around Montecito.

We stopped by my grandpas house, and explored his neighborhood.

Jayme Dee

A few weekends ago I drove down to Anaheim to see my amazingly talented friend Jayme Dee Mackinga play at the House of Blues!

(the only camera I had was my iphone)

She is quickly rising to fame, and I am so proud to call her my friend.  She opened for Tyrone Wells and was flawless! People in the audience who had never heard her before could not stop talking about how amazing she was, and I just stood there smiling.  I am so proud of all she has accomplished, she is going to be very famous very soon.  Check out her youtube page HERE, and her facebook HERE.

roll 2 (I know... I'm going backwards)

While I was home for 4day the other weekend, I spend the night at my sister Annalise's house (age23) in Playa Del Rey.

Yes, Annalise and I are blood siblings even though we look absolutely nothing alike.  She looks pure Italian and I look pure Scottish, but our middle sister bridges the gap.

Even though I knew only one of Annalise's friends at the party (Sarah above), it was still really fun.  I got to see what life and parties are like after college.  Everyone talked about work most of them time, and since I was the only person there not working for a big advertising agency, I was left in the dark.  I had a blast, but I'll take my time through college.  My sister said that this was basically as fun as it gets after college.  I'm glad I'm only a freshman and I've got 3 1/2 years left until then!

roll 3

I got my third roll of Ilford B&W film developed taken from my Pentax K1000.  Most of the shots are from a trip to the pier Wesley and I took last week.

This was actually the first time I went to the very end of the pier here since I was a kid.  Unlike the pier in Redondo, this one just end with almost no guard rales.  It makes you feel much more on top of the water.

There was a rowing practice going on, and they're instructor was just a old guy just screaming at them about how they're waisting his time.  I'd like to meet that guy.

The palm trees here remind me of LA.  I love Santa Barbara. 

a patriot and an inspiration

Former Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice spoke at Westmont on Friday, and I had the privilege of attending her talk at the Westmont Presidential Breakfast in the morning as well as the discussion in chapel.

Dr. Rice is an amazing woman, and her talk was both illuminating and inspirational.  The United States is better off because of her work as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor in the Bush Administration.

Dr. Rice spoke on a wide range of topics from the Cold War, to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, to education, as well as her family background.  She is a brilliant woman, and was able to make her points in an intelligent yet understandable way.  

2007 vs. 1971

My '07 and Brandon's '71 Chevy.

I am increasingly jealous of Brandon's new, actually very old, truck.  It's in amazing condition and sounds like a beast, almost as good as mine.  I can't wait to drive it next time I'm home.

love triangle

For some time now I have been involved in a very dramatic and "passionate" love triangle...

Sara "Trampy Fish" Reinis. (She looks strikingly similar to the fish played by Angelina Jolie in Shark Tale)  Sara is an amazing person and 100% extroverted.  From Texas, when she kicks in her southern bell accent, she 'damn near breaks my heart'.  Her impressive British accent causes a similar effect.

Greg gets in the middle. Our love triangle can cause extreme tension between us, as well as a lot of awkward moments...  At times we both fight for Sara's affection, and at other times Greg and I stand together against her.  

I love them both!

Little Rincon

I tried out a roll of Ektar 100 film in my Olympus this week.

This film works really well with blues and greens.  I got off the freeway this weekend on my way home at this small inn near the surf spot Little Rincon to take some pictures.

I love the way film looks as compared to digital.  I have shot digital for a while and I can get some amazing shots that way, but there's just something very unique about using a film camera. Even editing a digital image to make it look like film doesn't come close to it.

71 Ford

My best friend Brandon bought a 71 Ford Truck last week.

I took some pictures this past weekend when I was home for the four day weekend with my Pentax K1000 camera with some BW Ilford film.  I tried on an earlier picture to do a double exposure and apparently my camera can't do that anymore. It still slid the film when it shouldn't have, and all the subsequent pictures were cut up onto two frames. But I think it actually turned out kinda cool!