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12.1.23
12.1.23Back In the SaddleThe steroids the doctor gave me, coupled with some supplemental OTC meds, got me back to 80% of my old self. I was able to make it to the event in Walnut Hills after all.I masked up to ensure I didn’t spread anything to anyone else and had a good time interacting with real people again. The event was at ArtWorks’ V2 gallery on McMillan and featured a collection of young artists’ works. They spoke about who they were and what inspired their art, then ended with an open floor of people checking it all out.It felt nice to get back into it after a week at home.
12.2.23
12.2.23Ralphie OrnamentOur friends, Maria and Mike, have been part of our lives essentially since we got Myrtle. Maria has a dog boarding and daycare business that she runs out of their home downtown, and Mike works for MedVet. When we got Myrtle back in 2017, we wanted to socialize her with other dogs but in a smaller, more controlled setting than a regular daycare. Maria was the perfect person to offer that service as she only watched five dogs at a time.A couple of years ago, after the passing of their dog Bella, they adopted a sweet little Norwich Terrier called Ralphie. He’s an absolutely adorable and playful little pup with an aggressively cute head-to-body ratio who Myrtle loves to rough house when they’re together. Ralphie’s their only dog at the moment, so to thank them for being hugely important people in Myrtle’s life, I made them a little wood-burned ornament of Ralphie for their tree. The backing he’s glued onto is a combo of walnut, maple, and poplar. We put a message on the reverse side for them and Ashley will be giving it to them when she drops off Myrtle for a night of boarding (we’re both going on separate work trips).
12.3.23
12.3.23Arrival In MillersburgA work trip took me to Millersburg, KY today. I was hired by Yard & Co. to accompany them on an excursion where they met with an architect from Seattle in Millersburg to discuss the development of a pocket neighborhood within the ailing small town. We got there as the sun was going down and took a quick walk down to the village green—their version of the town square.Tonight I will photograph a Christmas event at the local inn. Tomorrow I will walk the majority of Millersburg and photograph anything of architectural interest. The footprint is small and won’t take longer than a couple of hours. After that, I’ll be heading to Paris, KY before eventually ending in Bardstown by nightfall.
12.4.23
12.4.23Central KYThe morning started in Millersburg. I stayed at the Mustard Seed Inn last night and was tasked with photographing the city’s architectural makeup when I got up. Though I have many examples of beautiful old architecture in the town, this image of a man driving this old tractor resonated most with me. Right after I snapped the photo, he raised what looked to be a liquor bottle to his mouth and took a swig.After two hours of documentation, my work partner, Chris, and I drove to Paris, KY, where we documented Main Street and some surrounding areas.While there, I ran across a rental store called Movieland with an extremely faded storefront. The posters in the front windows advertised movies from 2017, hinting that it likely closed that year. When I looked inside, tidy racks of DVDs appeared frozen in time as if the closure was sudden. Paris had a statue of Secretariat, a cheap-looking Eiffel Tower monument, and a building with a plaque that claimed it was “the world’s tallest three-story building.”After leaving Paris and returning to Millersburg to rendezvous with the rest of the team, we headed to Bardstown. The crew found their way to a bourbon bar, then a tavern, then back to another bar before heading to the Motor Inn, where we had a reservation for the night. I’m still not feeling well and cannot taste anything, so to let my body recover, I drank water and ate salad.The Motor Inn wraps around a central pool and common area. Once they were checked in, everyone went out and built a fire and continued to enjoy a bottle of bourbon. Sadly, I called it a night because of my lingering sickness and didn’t join them. Instead, I drained my head of about 10 lbs of snot and tried falling asleep between coughing fits.
12.5.23
12.5.23More Central KYWe woke up in Bardstown, got breakfast, and documented the historic district on foot. After several hours, we got in the rental and headed to Danville.In Danville, the crew got what they described as the best donut they’d ever had (I didn’t partake once again because I still could not taste anything), and we walked around checking out its historic district’s commercial corridor and surrounding residential streets. We also took a shortcut through a cemetery with an array of headstones with some of the boldest designs I’d seen outside of Spring Grove Cemetery.Once finished in Danville, we drove to Midway. Much like La Grange, Midway features a rail line that bisects their historic downtown area, though less tightly than La Grange. I asked the barista at the coffee shop how often it rolls through, and she said “about every hour.” While walking and documenting Midway, I kept listening for an approaching train.I walked further up the hill into the residential part of Midway and photographed several houses and historic buildings. I still hadn’t heard or seen the train when I got back downtown. The evening had arrived, and our trip back to Cincinnati was in order. As soon as we left, the other car of Yard people said the train came through. I’m beginning to think I’m cursed when it comes to seeing trains in small KY cities.Once back in Cincinnati, we all went to Alcove and had one final meal together before going our separate ways. It was a great trip full of fun, easy photography that I enjoyed, a boatload of genuine laughs, and two very nice overnight stays in comfortable, alternative accommodations.That said, I’m looking forward to sleeping in my bed, not having to excuse myself every 12 seconds to blow my nose, and letting my social battery recharge by not saying a word to anyone for 24 hours.
12.6.23
12.6.23Myrtle Christmas 2023Ashley’s on a work trip, so it’s just me and Myrt. We hadn’t yet done her Christmas card photo, and with the big day rapidly approaching, it was up to me to handle it alone this year.I was having trouble coming up with a different concept from previous years. While sitting on the couch brainstorming and watching Bar Rescue, Myrtle walked over to the toy bin I made her a few weeks ago and got out one of her toys. The idea came to me at that moment.She’s been a good girl all year, and that toy bin was just large enough (and sturdy enough) to hold her. After a handful of Cheerios and some quick training, she got up in the bin. I surrounded her with toys, found a static winter image on YouTube, and took my shot. Submitted it to the printer and should get them all later this week.
12.7.23
12.7.23Stoplight EntertainmentWhenever I’m in the car, I plug my phone into the dash with a 6-inch cable to stream audio and enable Carplay. I never want to be distracted while driving, and the cable prevents me from fiddling with my phone because it’s too short to move around. Occasionally, though, I unplug it for a photo. While at a stoplight today, I saw this dog in the car behind me. It’s not a good photo, but it was a nice moment.
12.8.23
12.8.236th and MainChristmas at the corner of 6th and Main downtown. This handsome building has been home to several things over the years, but I think Richter & Phillips is doing the best job of highlighting its architectural features by continually lighting it up every December. During the holiday season, the wreaths emblazoned into the facade above the second-floor windows feel especially festive, and I love the way they’ve strung the three strands of lights between them like ribbons. Lining the perimeter of each window and the bottom of the roofline is an excellent touch, as well. I look forward to seeing this every year.
12.9.23
12.9.23Leaf JailMaximum security prison for only the most unbe-leaf-ably horrible offenders.
12.10.23
12.10.23Ding-DongsWent over to my parents’ house to see them and work on refinishing a used crib my sister bought on Facebook marketplace for $25. The person who sold it to her lived within 2 miles of my house, making me the designated crib-transporter since my sister lives an hour north and has enough on her plate.While at my parents’ house, these two ding-dongs sat patiently on the downstairs steps waiting for me to finish and come back upstairs to pet and play with them.
12.11.23
12.11.23Unflattering SurveillanceThis is kind of a weird entry. I didn’t take this photo directly, but I am responsible for it. For a while now, I’ve wanted to place outdoor cameras in several spots around our house to keep an eye on the porch, backyard, and alley because I like the option of having a record if I ever need it. After months of on-and-off research and YouTube reviews of several brands, I decided to bite the bullet on a bundle deal of Arlo Pro 4 cameras from Best Buy that wirelessly connect to Wi-Fi and are powered by rechargeable batteries. They’re not the latest models Arlo offers, but the price for the number of cameras and batteries was right.After charging them, finding the optimal positions, and installing the mounting plate, I brought each one online.Doing so was as easy as putting a battery in and adding it to the network via the Arlo app. Once added, I adjusted the settings to record when needed. A ‘feed’ tab in the app collects moments of activity based on those settings and stores clips for 30 days. While reviewing the feed, I screenshot the first moments the porch camera came online.
12.12.23
12.12.23The Narrow StaircaseRebecca, the realtor I work with, had me photograph 121 E 15th Street in Covington this evening. When I arrived at 4 PM, the light outside was already fading. I quickly got what I could and moved indoors to grab interiors with what little light we still had.The house is old. The owner says he found it on a Sanborn map from the 1860s, which would probably make it pre-Civil War. Rebecca has a local researcher looking into its history for the listing, so I will learn more later this week.The house has been updated since it was built and retains very little original character today—except this gnarly staircase leading to an unlit, dusty attic space. The staircase is narrow, only widening to about 16 inches at most. For the photo, I used my phone’s flashlight to lighten it up and give it definition. It makes a 90-degree left turn up to the attic space, which rises to a reasonable standing height.I didn’t photograph the attic as I had to finish my job with the light I still had, but it was creepy. It’s interesting to think about all the people who’ve climbed these stairs over the long lifespan of this building. All the kids who might’ve played up there and/or were likely too afraid to. All the owners who stored their seasonal decorations at the top of the steps and had to wander up with a flashlight to retrieve them each year. All the cats that found their way inside and realized this was a secret space where no one would bother them.Also, did I mention this opens up to the primary bedroom? The headboard of the bed is against this wall. Not at all unnerving!
12.13.23
12.13.23Indigenous DancersThe Cincinnati Art Museum’s latest exhibit, Clearly Indigenous, showcases a collection of Native American glass artwork. To memorialize opening night, organizers brought in indigenous dancers to perform in the Great Hall. Three people dressed in traditional Native American attire performed to the sound of chanting and rhythmic drum beating.As I was so caught up in making sure the images were focused and I had my composition right, I missed the title of the chanting man. However, something he said during his speech struck me. He said that as the dancers perform, their vibrations find their way deep into the soil. Those vibrations connect with the mycelium network, granting positive effects to the earth. He speculated that the land beneath the Cincinnati Art Museum hasn’t had this healing touch in a long time. As I watched them perform, I couldn’t help but feel like I was witnessing something truly special—maybe even more special than I currently understand it to be.While I photographed this performer at f/4, I wasn’t satisfied with the level of bokeh. Her dress clashed too much with the audience behind her. To give it a more f/2.8 look, I utilized Adobe’s Lens Blur feature to increase the contrast a little bit more.
12.14.23
12.14.23Holiday Parties That Aren’t My OwnAnnie asked if I would photograph the Rookwood holiday party this year. I always like working for them when the chance arises. Their party this year was held at Velocity Esports, which was most recently Rotolo, at Newport on the Levee.Everyone ate and hung out, bowled as much as they wanted, and bought raffle tickets for prize baskets. There was an awards ceremony to honor several spectacular employees, as well as a rundown of a few bits of news the company had for future projects. I stayed for a little over two hours, got my shots, then made my way out.While on the walk home, I couldn’t help but think about how the freelance career path is an oddly lonely one at times. Sure, I get to work with loads of people throughout the year and I’m never truly working by myself when I’m doing events, real estate, architecture, or headshots. But the holiday party isn’t something I get to do anymore. While the corporate job I had years ago nixed the after-hours party in favor of a cheap long lunch hour in a conference room, it was still nice to have a brief window of time when everyone would stop working and just hang out together. If I were a Rookwood employee, I would’ve enjoyed going to Velocity with my coworkers and spending an afternoon together. It’s probably a grass-is-always-greener thing, but it bummed me out a little thinking that I haven’t had that in several years.
12.15.23
12.15.23A Polaroid InstanceArtWorks’ Harmonies: Mural Studio Gallery opening was held tonight at Bricker Graydon on Main Street. Young artists’ works were hung around the perimeter of the space and open to the public to come in and check out. Someone there was using a Polaroid instant camera to the delight of the artists and their friends/families. Maybe I should get one and offer this to clients?
12.16.23
12.16.23Christmas DrinksAshley and Chelsea had an idea to make special Christmas drinks. I was tasked with riding to Party Source and loading up a backpack full of 750ml bottles of various spirits and mixers to deliver to them. While the drink they planned didn’t aesthetically work out the way they wanted, they still had a good time.
12.17.23
12.17.23Dark SkiesWhile heading for coffee, the sky looked dark and scary.
12.18.23
12.18.23Case ReorganizationBack in May, I bought a hard case for my essential work equipment. The foam it came with was scored in a grid pattern so you can pull it apart in the shape you wanted. Fast forward seven months and the pull-apart foam that came with the case wasn’t holding its original shape. The custom voids I’d created for each piece of equipment had begun to take on a life of their own against my wishes.I wanted to redo my case but didn’t want to use that flimsy pull-apart foam again, so I got a denser, non-scored block to work with. It required manually cutting the shapes I wanted, but it looks and feels much better than before. It should withstand wear and tear for longer than the other foam.By storing the Z9 body apart from the lenses, I could get a third lens in the box without leaving anything out from before. The result is better organization, additional capacity, and an overall cleaner case that suits my operation better.
12.19.23
12.19.23Main Street GlowJust a quiet scene on Main Street.
12.20.23
12.20.23Game Table CompositeSingle Batch built an awesome custom game table for a client and needed photos for their portfolio before it left the shop. The reason this fairly simple composition is interesting (to me) is because so much of it was pieced together later in Photoshop.The wood rails and the beer were actually in place for the photo. I only had a sample of the green felt, so I placed it beneath the beer. After I got home, I brought the green felt to the edges of the table, took a photo of a royal flush from the same angle, and found a pair of die online. Shadows were added, the lighting values were adjusted until they looked right, and I added a little tinge of red to the shadow of the die.Improvising like this is fun. When you don’t have everything for the shoot, it’s an exciting challenge to figure out how to add it later.
12.21.23
12.21.23Errands With a ViewWe had to run to the Zoning & Planning office inside the Campbell County Admin Building on Monmouth to submit an application to have our fence replaced with a new one. I usually hate doing this sort of thing, but the view from the third floor makes the trip more bearable.
12.22.23
12.22.23Horror SantaFound this dirty, cybernetically enhanced Santa at the antique mall. I didn’t buy it.
12.23.23
12.23.23Morning Walk Through Eden ParkIt was a nice morning, so we got coffee and went for a stroll through Eden Park.
12.24.23
12.24.23Little Library FindI don’t know why, but the “Revised Edition” made me laugh. I’m imagining a critical piece of info was omitted in the original version, ultimately leading to the deaths of millions of Bonsai trees, and the publisher had to run another printing to save leafy lives.
12.25.23
12.25.23The AtticChristmas at my sister’s house devolved into climbing a ladder and peering into the attic to see what was up there after she said she’d never had the courage to do so. Short answer: nothing fun. A lot of insulation, a roll of carpet, and some bifold doors that hadn’t seen the light of day in years. I’m considering shopping in a creepy man deep in the background and texting her with some version of “I was looking at those photos again and didn’t notice this guy at the time.”
12.26.23
12.26.23Clear CoatI’ve been wanting to free up space on the landing of the stairs to the basement. It has a mishmash of stuff that doesn’t aesthetically go together but serves a purpose. I made this shoe rack with a drawer to replace all of it and make that corner look more presentable overall.The design is based on a Wayfair listing, and I slightly altered the look of the drawer by adding a knob and staining it a dark espresso instead of keeping it yellow pine. When making stuff solely for my home, I don’t care about design theft.The dimensions are custom to the corner I intend to place it in, and it adds more shoe storage for Ashley’s collection by adding another shelf and expanding the width another six inches.I finished it with a protective clear coat and set it on the porch to dry. It’s still wet in this photo, so it will look less glossy and more even later.
12.27.23
12.27.23Good Corner For a Plastic PlantThe new shoe rack I talked about in yesterday’s post is dry and ready for placement on the landing. After loading it up with all of Ashley’s shoes, we looked for something decorative to place on the top shelf. While there’s a door to the alley with a window next to it that we never open, we’re not certain a plant would survive in that spot. Thankfully, Ashley’s Lego orchid is low maintenance and works well in that corner.
12.28.23
12.28.23Neewer GripThe Nikon subreddit clued me into the Neewer Z fc grip a few weeks ago. It improves the camera's ergonomics by adding a little bump-out on the shutter side to improve grip and an Arca mount on the bottom. The mount also adds several screw holes for mounting accessories such as video lights and external microphones.While I love my Z fc as my everyday camera, my only complaint has been how easily it is to drop. I usually wear a wrist or neck strap when I use it because the older-style body is flat enough that I often don’t trust my own grip on it. While I’ve yet to drop it, my heart skipped a beat several times when it came close. The mount takes care of this issue by better filling my palm and adding weight to the entire body thanks to its metal construction.And while I value a camera’s optics over its physical aesthetic, I don’t think the grip detracts from how the body looks. In fact, after putting it on, it’s challenging to imagine the Z fc without the bump-out now.
12.29.23
12.29.23Perimeter EnhancementWhen we bought our house, the backyard was surrounded by a rotting, worn-out fence. Over the course of the last three years, it only grew worse. Bits of the bottom on the alley side began turning green and crumbled apart. The old gate sagged and barely saw any use due to its poor placement. I never managed to get one of the panels back into place after removing it when we had materials dropped off for our deck project years ago. The entire thing was nearing the end of its natural life.It’s apparently a slow time for fencing companies. After accepting a quote, we were shocked when they fit us in before the end of the year. They ripped down the old fence in less than an hour and spent the rest of the day casually destroying the yard and giving the vertical 4x4s concrete shoes. They say this will be finished tomorrow, but I’m skeptical.
12.30.23
12.30.23Second ChristmasMy sister’s stepdaughter didn’t have Christmas with us this year. To make up for it, we did Christmas together a week later. Ashley and I went all in on her gifts and got her a light-up Razor scooter, a Barbie Dream Boat, and some other smaller gifts.She seemed pretty excited by all of it. Watching a kid open presents and temporarily lose their minds with excitement is a special joy. I fondly remember that feeling from when I was a kid. Not sure I’ve felt it since.Ashley helped her put together the boat during a quieter moment. It was adorable.
12.31.23
12.31.23Five YearsI’ve officially kept this daily photo project going for five years as of tonight. It started as a Twitter project and morphed into something that later moved entirely to this site. I gave every photo a name from the start, but I didn’t start journaling with each one until December 1 of that first year when I knew I’d have room to give each image additional context.Feeling a mix of pride and hopelessness at the moment about it. Looking back on everything I did and experienced through those years, it’s easy to ignore the dangerousness of the rose-tinted glasses through which I view them. Did life peak already, or does it just seem that way? The pandemic and being laid off aside, I’ve had some incredible times since I started this. Sticking with a project for five years like this feels like an accomplishment, but it’s also a sad reminder that those moments were fleeting.Allie and Travis graciously hosted a party to ring in the New Year. Here’s a Polaroid of me holding a plate of cheese balls from the evening; imagine the cheese balls are all the photos I’ve put on this site for the last five years, and it makes some kind of sense.
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