Il Mostro comes home

Il Mostro is Puma's first entry into the Volvo Ocean Race, a 37,000 nautical mile race around the globe. It is one of the fastest single hulled sailing ships in the world, capable of achieving speeds in excess of 40 knots. (46.1 mph)

I had a great opportunity to work with Puma to shoot the Volvo Ocean Race Pro-Am here in Boston back on May 10th. New England native and Il Mostro skipper Ken Reed had high expectations for his crew after a disastrous homecoming on leg 6 in which they were forced to sit offshore in sight of Boston for over an hour waiting on the wind.

My day started by joining fellow photographer Jeff Tamagini and heading down to Puma city, a large 11,000 square foot store and office space designed out of cargo containers. We met up with Heather & Kristina from Puma to sign paperwork, go through a safety briefing, and all the other fundamentals that you would expect from a large event.

After that we were escorted down to the docks to meet up with our rib boat crew. A rib boat is a small (16' in our case) inflatable boat with a hard fiberglass floor. Puma had arranged for Jeff and I to be out on the course during the warm up period, and then shoot from alongside the course during the actual races.

Skipper Ken Reed (far left) warms up his crew in Boston Harbor before the first race of the day.

Due to wind conditions, the races were head to head instead of a 7 team fleet with the course being laid out across the harbor instead of a traditional windward/leeward arrangement. With the winds gusting in the 20s the boats would have simply been too fast to be safe during a run downwind. Fortunately the change in course layout didn't affect the hometown team as Puma won their first race of the day to lift the spirits of the Boston crowd.

The amateur sailors quickly learn the truth in the sailing adage "One hand for you, one hand for the boat" as Il Mostro leans heavily to starboard during the first race.

While most of the races were close, Puma left the competition in their wake and when it was all said and done, Puma had won both of their races and took home the day's bragging rights. The momentum from the day carried forward as Puma ended up in 2nd place overall at the end of the 2009 edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, an unbelievable feat for a team in their inaugural race.

Puma's Il Mostro crosses the finish line during their 2nd Pro-Am race to finish 1st in the day's racing.

1st Monthly Bostonist Photo Walk

This past Sunday, August 16th, I led the first Bostonist Photo Walk. The photo walk was my idea to help bring together the Bostonist contributors and readers, and to foster a community of photography knowledge and sharing. The inaugural walk had about 12 people all with varying skill levels and perspectives on photography. We started in Boston Common, walked through the Boston Public Gardens, up Newbury Street& and finished in Copley Square. The walk route was about a mile and took us about 2 hours, just what I was looking for.



People are still culling and processing photos so I've only seen a few, but I think the results will be solid. The more experienced shooters were gladly answering questions of the newer ones, and everyone seemed to have an enjoyable time. I hope to see this group grow as times moves forward and as long as we get through the harsh New England winter unscathed, we should have a solid foundation come Spring.

As for myself, I only took two pictures that I liked, as I spent much of the time talking with the group, and surprising enough they weren't architecture or geometric shapes, but a few beautiful flowers in bloom.

I'm looking forward to the September 20th for our next outing and can't wait to see what Boston has in store for us.

If you would like to join our walks, everyone is welcome. The walks are free to anyone who has an interest in photography and a good attitude. The walks will vary in time but will always be on the 3rd Sunday of the month, rain or shine. In case of bad weather we'll take it indoors and do more of a Q&A or learning session of some kind. In addition, if you have a suggestion on where to go or what to see on a walk, please let me know.

Night Shoot

On Saturday, July 25th, I met up with fellow photographers Jeff Tamagini & John Tammaro for an sunset/evening shoot around the Christian Science Mother Church complex in Boston. After meeting up at Bukowski's Tavern we headed to the CSMC reflecting pool and fountain to prepare for sunset. As the groups of parents and children played in the fountain to get in those last few minutes of fun as night approached, I concentrated my attention to the reflecting pool and church.

With the moon making an appearance in the warm light of sunset behind the Church, I elected to shoot from multiple angles to give myself a few different compositions. The shot on the left was just as the sun had just fallen behind the church, while the shot on the right gives more architectural details.

Both of the shots were multiple exposure HDRs processed in Photoshop and Photomatix.

With the sun and crowds gone, we had a short amount of time to get our fountain shots completed before the fountain was shut down for the night. Using a Sigma 10-20 I was able to get my camera into the fountain to give the photos a little something extra.

Shot with the Sigma 10-20mm: f22, 30 second exposure

Shot with the Sigma 10-20mm: f22, 30 second exposure

After looking through my shots I decided that this fountain was perfectly suited for the 8mm Peleng circular fisheye. After mounting the Peleng and adjusting for it's 180 degree field of view, I found an angle that I liked. The Peleng does tend to lend itself to chromatic aberration, vignetting and lens flare, so using it can be a real challenge. Fortunately this is where experience comes in and I came out witha shot that I'm very pleased with.

8mm Peleng circular fisheye: f16, 30 second exposure

After 3 hours of shooting our night was at an end, but the night held one more opportunity for me. I had been forced to park at the top floor of a parking deck which was nothing special by day, but by night afforded some great views of city life. As the crowds were walking by after a night at Fenway Park, and the traffic of the city stopped and went, I was able to capture an image which I think gives a good feel of that evening.

A single tone mapped exposure of Boylston & Dalton streets, with the Mass Pike in the foreground.


I'd like to thank Jeff & John for joining me for the impromptu shoot and making it such an enjoyable experience.

World Wide Photo Walk Day: Boston

On Saturday I led a group of photographers from around New England on a harbor walk in Boston from the Seaport District to the North End. Our group was one of six Boston photo walks that were a part of the larger World Wide Photo Walk Day sponsored by Scott Kelby and all the great folks over at Kelby Media Group. The overall event ended up with over 900 photo walks and 32,600 walkers. Here in Boston my group had the maximum of 50 registered walkers ready to take on the Harbor. Although we got off to a late start due to the weather, everyone I've spoken with says that they had a wonderful time.







For many people it was another walk through familiar territory and the chance to do something new. Such is the case with my friend and fellow photographer Jeff Tamagini, who wrapped his camera up tight and stuck it in the middle of a fountain looking for a unique image.

Armed with some water-proof gear from our friends at Puma, his camera, gaffers tape and his trade mark sunglasses, Jeff set forth to get the shot that no one else was going to get. Although the initial shots didn't come out as well we he'd like, I know Jeff will go back to the proverbial drawing board and figure out how to nail that shot. And I'm sure the results will be spectacular.





For others it was their first walk along Boston's famous harbor. We asked that experienced Bostonians pair up with those from out of town to try and give everyone a great day of photography. Many tourists never make it over the Northern Ave. Bridge into the Seaport district and to me that's a tragedy. This area includes the ICA, World Trade Center, and some great eats near the fish pier.
















With members of the group choosing between sticking to the harbor walk, or moving inland a short bit to walk along the Fitzgerald Greenway, the group's photos were as diversified as the group itself. It's always fun to find out what other people saw that you didn't, and vice-versa on these types of walks. Many photos showed me things I had never seen before in these areas, or a new way to interpret those things that may have seemed mundane.

Making our way towards the North End along Cross street we went past one of my favorite places in the area, Public Alley 101. I made the following tone mapped image from a single exposure using Photoshop CS3 + Photomatix.



With good people and good conversation time moved quickly and the walkers spread out over the 2 mile route. My group, being the slowest of the participants, arrived at the Charles River just as the blue skies began to show themselves. This lent me a great opportunity to photograph two of my favorite subjects, the TD Garden & Zakim Bridge. This image is also tone mapped from a single exposure.


I loved the reflections in the water and the way the clouds streaked through the sky. I also framed in quite a bit of urban decay in the foreground because I liked the juxtaposition of the decaying dock & building vs. the newer Zakim & TD Garden.

After 3 & 1/2 hours my small section of our group arrived at Boston Beer Works on Canal St. We met up with most of the rest of our group and enjoyed some good food and good camaraderie with our new friends. That ended our photo walk and we parted ways to head back to homes, apartments, and condos to begin the process or sorting through photos and reliving our day.

I'd like to thank Andre from Boston Beer Works for being ready for us in addition to another group that we had planned to meet up with. We will certainly be back to BBW on future walks thanks to their great service and attitude.

If you have any questions about this photo walk, or photo walks (or photography) in general, please don't hesitate to email me here.

thanks!