Triathlons and fundraising have taken up the large majority of my time over the past year and I wanted to take a moment to show how I incorporated and sharpened my design skills on the road leading to my recent Tri for Les Lavaman race.
I designed the images below in Photoshop with a few key elements in mind:
This past weekend I was lucky enough to stumble upon a free screening of the documentary, Nostalgia for the Light at the Phoenix Art Museum. The 2010 film, by Chilean director Patricio Guzmán, painted a stunning picture of some of the most fascinating elements of Chile. I highly recommend it, even if you don’t know anything about the country, or its veiled past.
Sometimes the money shot sneaks up on you.
A few months ago we had family in town and took a quick trip to the Grand Canyon, stopping in Sedona on the way back to Phoenix. The quintessential scenic Arizona road trip. Both locations, though touristy and on the beaten path for photographers of any level, have a beauty and wonder that continues to surprise me.
This photo is a prime example.
I spent a couple hours shooting the 2012 annular eclipse. I couldn’t get a hold of a solar filter so I made a quick pinhole camera and tried to find a unique backdrop for the sun’s projection and come up with something interesting.
I poked a hole in some cardboard and taped it to the top of my tripod to make my last-minute pinhole camera. This street art is located in downtown Phoenix, on a west-facing wall of the recently shuttered Phoenix Public Market. I liked the bright blue paint and black skyline for the backdrop.
It’s tough not to get nervous and panic a bit when you’re crammed in the water, among hundreds of other triathletes, waiting anxiously for the gunshot to start the race.
The challenge ahead appeared so daunting. And considering the months of training; the late nights and early mornings; and all the people who helped me get to that point, the pressure to perform quickly built up.
I worried about all the things that could go wrong out on the course: a cramp in the open water; a flat tire on the side of the highway; a misstep on a lava rock.
I wanted to dominate this race for my supporters, my coaches and teammates, the patients and families who benefit from Team In Training and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and for my aunt Leslie.
But it’s tough to take yourself too seriously when the back of your neck reads, “It’s not a race till I poop myself.”