Lily came by last week for some photos.  These are some we shot on film after I fixed the Rolleiflex (it wasn't synching properly with the strobes, so I fixed the M/X switch permenantly to the X position, and all is fine).  It's also the first time I've tried my scanner with film, and I'm pleased with the result.

Lily is a joy to work with.  She's one of the sweetest and funniest women I've met, and her creative ideas add to each shoot.  Her experience and professionalism show in her work, and together we took some beautiful photos.

These photos were set up in the bedroom with a single strobe, and are all from the same roll of film.  I wanted some shots with a more natural, candid feel to them, and keeping it simple gives me a chance to practice using the Rollei with the flash. Lily will be back for more pictures as soon as we can schedule it.  It'll be another productive and creative day!

For the first time in several months I let my Craigslist ad expire.  I kept the ad looking for models, and when it worked I found some very good people.  But even for free, keeping and maintaining an ongoing ad was a time sink I could no longer afford, especially given the overall poor response the ad consistently received.

Guy Kawasaki sees some value in Craigslist, but I question whether the effort really pays off.  I got most responses when the ad was at the top of the list, naturally, which meant when I renewed the post I could expect a dozen or so replies.  Most were throw aways; people with one or two word replies, or people with no resume, headshot, etc.  Others were simply confused about what art modeling actually is, and with apologies to exotic dancers everywhere, it's not stripping.

So I could immediately toss half the responses.  Of the other half, those who responded to my contact to set up an interview sometimes showed up on time.  I'm not too patient with Portland's sense of timishness (you know, showing up at 10:30 for a 10:00 meeting and thinking you're on time, like, it's still 10ish and all) and in the end I found about 1 in 20 responses from Craigslist were from people with an understanding of the work, and the ability to be someplace on schedule.  Not a good ratio, nor a good way to spend time chasing the next drawing or photo.  Add to that the number of responses has been in steady decline the past few weeks, and I attribute that to the ad going stale.  All potential models who look at Craigslist have already seen it, and either passed or replied.

Thankfully, I get by mostly on references now, as well as community websites like Model Mayhem or OMP.  Which means I can finally bid farewell to Craigslist.

I can't help being a Phillies fan.  I'm cursed, I suppose, and even though I haven't lived anywhere near Philadelphia in over 20 years, I still have a hopeless attachment to Philly sports.  Which leaves me a sucker for constant disappointment.  But the Phillies have suddenly come alive.

Don't be to excited.  This is standard Philadelphia baseball.  A late season tease at the playoffs, winning just enough to let every fan think maybe this is the year, only to fall flat in the end.  Not only are they the worst team ever, they have a consistent ability to staunchly avoid the temptation of success.  They'll get close, but fall a game or two short.

But if this is the year, this week's sweep of the Mets could be the sign of things to come.  Great playoff runs usually start with some sort of spark, a timely hit, a great outing on the mound...something.  They've looked good the last few games, and seem to have more jump than earlier in the season.  And they're getting players back from the DL.  I'm not ready to say it in earnest yet, but...this could be the year.