Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

One of my favorite shots within the Hagia Sophia, because I can't tell if that security guard (left side of bottom photo) knew if he was in the frame. He is smiling, after all.

Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

Despite freezing our tails off, I'm pretty sure we spent the better part of four hours in the Hagia Sophia. So much to learn, so much to see.

Ceiling/Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

Turkish cat keeping warm in a very, very cold Hagia Sophia. I think more people were photographing this cat than the visual treasure trove around them. Clearly, I was guilty of this as well... mainly because... I was envious of this kitty's warmth.

These photos are for Carlo Pitocco. Duh.

Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

First a church, then a mosque... then a museum. What a fickle structure!

Hagia Sophia/Istanbul, Turkey/2.23.12

One day I will have a real home to bring light fixtures back to.

I'm going to pretend this is Twitter for a second: #readytomove

Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

The delight of Turkish delight. Not a delight for me, personally, but people seem to like it!

Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

Dainty little Turkish coffee cups.

Mmmm Turkish coffee. Finely ground, roasted coffee beans boiled with water and sugar, then poured into that delicate cup. No filter is used, so make sure to not drink the coffee-ground sludge at the bottom. Or drink it, if you want, I guess.

Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

Throughout the week in Istanbul, I found myself obsessed with the deep blues found in much Turkish pottery. That being said, I ended up buying two bowls of this color and design: one for my Lucky Charms and the other for my Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

Nothing says "grown-up" quite like a purchase of this nature.

Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

Yes, these pillows, pillow shams and carpets are indeed for sale. I'm sure they could cut you a deal for the cat too.

Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

Morning snack, anyone? Corn on the cob? Roasted chestnuts? Some nice across-the-street eye-contact?

Kestane - chestnuts (100 grams - $1.97)

Misir - corn ($0.84)

First photo in Istanbul, Turkey/2.22.12

Women's pole vault/U.S. Open Track and Field/Madison Square Garden/New York, NY/1.28.12

Victory lap/U.S. Open Track and Field/Madison Square Garden/New York, NY/1.28.12

U.S. Open Track and Field/MSG/NYC/1.28.12

The Madison Square Garden crew opening up the track for sprints, mid-event, at the U.S. Open Track and Field on January 28th, 2012 in New York City.

Annnd the prize for my favorite portrait from the dog show? This guy!

Westminster Kennel Club dog show/MSG/New York, NY/2.14.12

Doggie dressing tables! In reality, it's more like a doggie day spa. Do you think they take human clients?

Westminster Kennel Club dog show/MSG/New York, NY/2.14.12

Somebody's getting their teeth cleaned! I wonder if he has dental insurance!

Westminster Kennel Club dog show/MSG/New York, NY/2.14.12

More Westminster pups! This show always comes just at the right time for me. Photographing puppies instead of models at the end of NYC's Fashion Week? Yes please!!

Westminster Kennel Club dog show/Madison Square Garden/New York, NY/2.14.12

$10,686,924.83!! For The Kids!

Just in case you are unfamiliar with Penn State's annual 46-hour event:

The Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon, affectionately known as THON, is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. More than 15,000 students at Penn State are committed to making a difference in the lives of children and families battling pediatric cancer.

Over the past 34 years, THON has donated more than $78 million to The Four Diamonds Fund and has helped more than 2,000 families battling pediatric cancer. Student volunteers work year-round to raise the awareness and funds necessary to conquer pediatric cancer. - Thon.org

My dear friend John F. McClellan and I spent the last four days covering Penn State events, including THON, and decided to incorporate a little bit of science birthed from the brainy power couple, Carnegie Mellon University and NASA. The kid's name? Gigapan.

Can you guess how large this file is? Don't even bother:

Over 2GB.

If you were there, find yourself and your friends in this lovely Gigapan created by Mr. McClellan and Yours Truly during THON's Family Hour on Sunday (2.19.11) and pass it on!

Great job, Penn State!

P.S. - You can see a larger version of our photo on Gigapan's website: THON at Gigapan.org

Westminster Kennel Club dog show/benching area/MSG/New York, NY/2.14.12

When I saw this face, I knew he was a champion.

Seriously!

I had purchased about two dozen of these for a show once from Home Depot! Man, what a mop. So absorbent!

Malachy, the Pekingese, getting prepped for his "Best in Show" competition in the benching area at MSG on 2.14.12.

Malachy! The Pekingese! Best in Show! The crowd goes wild!

They really did go wild. I wish I had an audio clip.

Malachy/136th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show/Madison Square Garden/New York, NY/2.14.12

Ashanti (left) attends BET's "106 & Park" tribute to Whitney Houston at BET Studios on February 13th, 2012.

Snow, snow, snow, snow, snow.

Skiing with the camera has become one of my favorite things to do on skis. It's always nice to have it with you just in case the light is right and the flakes start to fall.

Seven Springs Mountain Resort/Seven Springs, PA/1.15.12

Dudes being dudes. With things in their mouths.

Wait... that doesn't sound right...

but don't they look handsome!

Brad (top photo) and Hamish (bottom photo)/the McClellan farm/Coburn, PA/sometime in October 2011

Dudes being dudes. With firearms.

Brad (left) and John (right)/the McClellan farm/Coburn, PA/sometime in October 2011

Cody Simpson/Gramercy Theatre/New York, NY/2.4.12

The Walkmen and Fleet Foxes Played a Solid Show; I Grew Some Balls and Learned a Valuable Lesson

This shot is a single frame of a time-lapse that I did during the Fleet Foxes/Walkmen show at the Williamsburg Waterfront. Since I'm not a rigger, mounting my camera had to be done, sadly, by one of the union guys. Not only that, but because of video screens, I couldn't shoot the time-lapse from the center of the stage. So, upstage left corner it was. Of course, I would not have cut off the downstage edge with the wide-angle lens, but hey, union rules are union rules, right??

Wrong.

Ten hours later, frustrated my by inaccessibility to my camera and after having seen how brilliantly the sun was setting behind Manhattan from the front gate of the venue, I ran backstage, grabbed the rigger and told him I needed to get up on the scaffolding.

All union technicalities aside, I climbed up the back of the stage to make sure the camera was exposing properly... and stayed there until night settled in and Fleet Foxes took the stage - which was the better part of an hour. I did it partially to adjust exposure/make sure the camera didn't stop shooting annnd partially to watch a show from an unusual vantage point.

I must say, hanging off stage scaffolding is a pretty sweet way to watch a show! Unfortunately, it was too late for me to alter the framing, but whatever. It's not like the thought of how I could have framed it didn't plague me for the next two months...

So photo kids, the moral of the story is... always climb the stage scaffolding, even if people are yelling at you, if want to like your frame without a panoramic crop.

The Walkmen/Williamsburg Waterfront/Brooklyn, NY/9.24.11

P.S. - If you look to the bottom, righthand corner you can see Hamilton Leithauser, the Walkmen's frontman.

High and wide shot of the arena. Final MSG remodel photo until next summer/fall!

Things happen in here...

The almost newly renovated Rangers' locker room taken last fall...

Madison Square Garden wrapping up its first summer of renovation. Photo taken about a month prior to its reopening last fall.

A few more photos to come.

Pickin' it back up, kids... it's about that time...

Photo taken sometime last fall from the roof of a shopping complex in Queens with a delightful view of the Manhattan skyline. Trip to the parking deck courtesy of John McClellan.