Another day of planning and number crunching. Yuck. Reality bites. My mind keeps changing on whether or not I should attempt to open a studio in these economically trying times in this famously thrifty town. I've never been one to let obstacles stop me though so I'm still trying to find a way to make it work. What I really need is some generous person to offer me a decent sized space in a good location to use for my studio. What are the odds of that happening? Call me crazy but I like to believe they're good. Ever seen the movie, "The Secret"? It's all about manifesting your own destiny by believing it already exists. Scoff if you will but it's how I landed the biggest photo job of my life so far. What are the odds that an international book editor would find and contact an unpublished photographer, who at the time made no mention of being a professional, and offer them several thousand dollars to shoot every photo for a guide book on one of the most beautiful cities in the world? Well it happened to me a mere 2 weeks after I manufactured those kinds of thoughts. Coincidence? Maybe. If that kind of thing happened only once, I would right it off too, but it has happened many times. The trick is basically based on one of the precepts of Buddhism. To be AWARE. Awareness provides so many gifts that we might otherwise miss. It's amazing what you find when you take off the blinders that habit and routine have formed on our eyes. Tomorrow's another day and I'm anxious to see what I can learn from it.

To studio, or not to studio, that is the question. As winter closes in the outdoor portrait season also draws to a close except for a few hardy souls. Having never run a business before I am painfully aware of how much I have to learn. It is definitely an exciting time, regardless of the financial worries. I'm doing some number crunching now to assess the feasibility of opening a studio. Alas, making sales projections, especially in the current economic climate, is a bit like rolling dice. I would love to be able to make my prices affordable to everyone who truly values the art of photography. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who feel that the big box studio portraits are good enough. If only they were able to compare them to what can be done by a dedicated, passionate professional with time to spend on creating images that they will cherish for a lifetime. I'm an optimist though, so I'll do my best to find a way to open a studio. Much as I enjoyed my years of teaching, there's nothing like the satisfaction of hearing my clients express their joy at seeing the images I've created for them.

A sunny morning by the International Train Bridge at the foot of Jarvis St., in Fort Erie, Ontario.

The biggest news so far! As some of you know, I was hired to shoot pictures of my second home, Kyoto, Japan, for Time Out International. It was an incredible experience despite the hectic schedule it required to finish on time while getting married, packing for Canada, finding a replacement for me at my job, while working full-time and shooting several locations a day for several months! Iori spent all her lunch hours in her car making appointments for me to shoot. I shot temples, shrines, hotels, ryokan, restaurants, shops, scenery, etc, etc, etc. Anyway, the editor emailed me today to tell me that the book has been printed and he's sending me some copies. It is available on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Time-Out-Shortlist-Kyoto-Editors/dp/1846701295/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252548128&sr=8-1

The pictures will obviously be very small in the book so if you're curious you can see them on my website here:

http://www.lakehousephotography.ca/Japan/Scenes-from-Kyoto/Guide-Book-Favorites/7328051_LDNDP

It was this job that gave me the confidence to take a stab at being a professional photographer. It took me many years to discover what I felt passionate about doing and it's a great feeling. Hopefully things will pick up and I can keep doing it for a living!

My sister's cat Decker will be living with us starting tomorrow morning! Can't wait. He's such a beautiful cat and will make me feel like a part of Cindy is living in our house, though she always resides in our hearts.

I've gotten up before sunrise for the past 2 days to shoot, and then shot again at sunset both days. Here's a few of my favorite model.

Well I finally have something to talk about I guess. Very busy lately. Not making enough to survive yet but the business is slowly gathering steam. Hopefully the fall weather will be great for portrait bookings. Hoping to focus on the relatively untapped high school senior portrait market. Very big in the US but not so much here. So let's see, I shot the Gardiner family at Matt and Lisa's beautiful lakefront house in Port Colborne on Sunday.

Then I shot John and Martha Gardiner's 50th wedding anniversary party at The Plaice in the afternoon.

Well things are starting to take off finally. Got an event to shoot this weekend. FESS reunion of the '79 class. Spent about 10 hours putting together a slideshow using Apple Keynote software (much like Powerpoint). Great software if you've got text that you want to animate along with images. I just bought Fotomagico slideshow software too but it's basically just for putting an image slideshow together. On Monday I'm shooting my first maternity session and on Tuesday I'm shooting some candid shots of kids at a party with about 15 moms. Hopefully I'll get some bookings from it. Got my first notice from Revenue Canada. Apparently I'm supposed to report my income! Ha! What income?

Here's a few quick edits of some sunrises over Buffalo. Enjoy.

My beautiful wife Iori (not Lori) patiently modeling while I practice 0ff-camera flash at the old Dance Hall today.

Iori really enjoyed the trampoline in Mike & Terri's backyard. I think I'd rather have a hottub.

Iori had never cut grass before. She enjoyed it... for a while. Fresh cut lawn feels almost as good as a haircut.