From My Brain to Your Face

Olympic Athletes I

2011-11-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

Busy month documenting some of Nike's upcoming olympians. This girl hits people in the face. Hard.

New Orleans

2011-10-26T21:42:00.000-07:00

Nike is helping to rebuild a park in East New Orleans. We're making a video about it. 9 days of shooting, a great trip for sure.

I hear at night the come alive and eat people, but they can only move 2 steps forward and 1 to the side.

Lots of nice doors.

Dawned an NFL bib and shot the Thunderdome... I mean, Superdome.

Definitely a musical city. Most street performers were quite good.

Our king of hookups Lautime, standing in front of his new project.

The legendary Lukeburger - getting the shot.

Visual Meditations - Lift

2011-09-18T00:33:00.000-07:00

Kicking off a new series of short films called Visual Meditations. Essentially, these are simple visual studies to keep my brain creative. I love how this first one came out - my only regret is that I couldn't get more footage of Makana before starting all this work. He rips so hard, these shots are pretty tame compared to what he can do in some real waves.

CLICK THAT FULLSCREEN BUTTON IN THE BOTTOM RIGHT.

(it's really important to me that you watch this big, I promise you will enjoy it more)

Busy Break

2011-08-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

This fall is shaping up to be full of work, and while that means I have to leave home, I still welcome the opportunities. All fun projects for Nike, but very life-consuming. This morning I took a break from the paid gigs to start cutting together a self-initiated project featuring a local surfer from Kauai. Makana Munoz rides a longboard, and does it impressively. Look for the full video sometime in September. Ok, back to work!

Levi's - Crossing the country with Ride4Water

2011-07-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

This was one of those legendary projects. Got a call from the boys at Conscious Minds to direct a series of videos for Levi's. Of the 7 on our film crew, 5 of us were friends from the APU film program. It makes such a difference working with a group of buddies. The project had the potential of being a complete nightmare, but in the end was loads of fun and our videos turned out great.

Our task was to document a team participating in the Race Across America, a 3,000 mile bike race from Oceanside California to Annapolis Maryland. Unlike the Tour de France, the riders never stop. It's billed as the hardest bicycle race on earth. Day and night - for 8 days - our team had someone on the road, pedaling through the country.

As a film crew, this meant minimal sleep and rest for us also. We were living/working out of our own RV, and had a follow car to film from. It was constant motion. Every time you pull off the road, you're falling behind the racers - even in the middle of the night. We had 2 editors working around the clock in our "mobile editing suite" and it was a lot of fun to come back from a long day of shooting and see what they had accomplished during the day. Speedy turnaround was essential because Levi's was releasing these videos DURING the race on their website and all over the internet. For more behind the scenes stuff, you can check out the photos posted on Benji's website.

Here's the last video which recaps the whole story. To dive deeper, scroll down - I've posted the rest in order. My personal favorite is #3.

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Video 1: Something Greater

Video 2: Rocky Start

Video 3: Pitching In

Props to our awesome crew. Trust me when I say this was a massive team effort:

Blake Heal (producer)
Pete Cote (director of photography)
Anders Lindwall (editor)
Benji Newell (editor/motion graphics/wet ducks)
Jason Richardson (logistics/driver)
Milton Campbell (photog/driver/steakouts)
Yours Truly (director/cinematographer/general weirdo)

Happy Happy Time

2011-07-01T19:45:00.000-07:00

Andrew is one of my closest friends from college, and a few weeks ago he married a sweet chic named Jeniece. I was honored to be present at this small wedding, and the best part was that it took place 9 minutes from my house at a secluded nameless beach.

First time I've shot a wedding. The shots turned out more photo-journalistic, big surprise from a cinematographer who typically works in documentary. The collection diverges quite a bit from traditional wedding photos, which is fine - this was not a normal wedding. I had a lot to work with - you'd have a hard time finding a more beautiful place to get married. The group was small and intimate so I felt really comfortable getting in close for some shots without feeling like I was disrupting the flow of the ceremony. Tons of fun.

Quite the parking lot.

Some fisherman walked by, other than that we had it to ourselves.

Good save, Haley.

I went to India with Nike = Blog Neglect

2011-06-15T09:21:00.000-07:00

To my few faithful readers, sorry for such a delay between posts. I usually put new stuff up here when I'm not busy, but seeing as how it's been nonstop work for the last few months I just haven't had the time. Participating in a lot of fun projects.

A lot of people don't know this, but I went to India a couple of months ago. I was in Delhi and Mumbai filming cricket and capturing the excitement around the cricket world cup. The championship match was played in Mumbai and the city just about imploded on itself when the India National Team won. Unforgettable stuff.

It's the only sport they care about. There isn't anything in America comparable to cricket in India.

New Short: Freeflow

2011-03-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

Hey gang - thought you'd like to see a little project I've been working on in my spare time. This short video is comprised of leftover footage from around home. Not the greatest surfing footage in here, but I think it captures a little bit of the down and dirty nature of the "everyday" session of surfing.

WATCH IT FULLSCREEN!

Untitled

2011-03-10T22:55:00.001-08:00

In the Works

2011-03-03T18:19:00.000-08:00

This has been a great break. Taking a step back from work is an important part of the (or at least my) creative process. It helps me realize:

1. I enjoy doing this - because my mind wants to drift back into an imaginative mode on its own.

2. There is more to life than work, and many of these things are much more important than my occupation.

3. I am blessed.

Some fun personal endeavors coming up. Here's a screenshot from one. Stay tuned.

Recent Renditions

2011-02-04T00:14:00.000-08:00

Good to be home. Here are some recent sunrise shots from down the street. No real "work" on the horizon, so I'm excited to start churning out some personal projects I've been dreaming up! Stay tuned for more.

Nike - LA Anthem Collection

2011-01-18T11:40:00.000-08:00

Only took me a year, but I finally got around to uploading all of these. The second installment of the Nike City Anthem campaign, Los Angeles. This was a really fun shoot, and immensely different from the pieces we did for NYC or Chicago. And by "different" I mean "more traffic."

It's fun to re-visit work you've completed over a year ago. I tend to appreciate things more, because right after I finish a project I'm pretty tired of watching it. Later on, however, I can be reminded of how much fun it was to be able to travel to all these unique places in LA and capture the nuances of life.

I recommend clicking through to the full collection here on Vimeo.

Or, if you're too impatient or just plain lazy, here's the opening piece (I BEG OF YOU, WATCH IT IN FULL SCREEN):

First Game at new Matt Court

2011-01-16T13:21:00.000-08:00

That's our film! Weird, this is the first time I've ever watched one of my videos play in front of a real audience. I'm usually on a plane to Hawaii as soon as I finish the edit.

Moving On, Starting Over

2010-12-18T16:44:00.000-08:00

Keeping things moving! The projects for Nike are wrapped - one was a piece on Chicago, another was a series of short stories 4 about high school kids across the country. Evey thing came out gravy, and I'll post the projects later on.

This next project is for the University of Oregon, and it involves a lot of historical footage. It's fun to dig through the past, and I'm really glad most of the assistant editing has already been done for me. Life is good. Go Ducks!

Apparently, this is what the Oregon mascot used to look like.

Oh boy! This sure is swell.

iPhone Wallpapers

2010-11-09T12:46:00.000-08:00

My friend Justin was using one of the photos from my website as the background for his iPhone. I was flattered, yet disappointed to see it wasn't cropped right, and it looked muddy and pixelated.

The sad truth with digital media - artists spend so much time and money getting the highest quality image. We pour hours into color correction, effects, and small nuances only a fraction of viewers will notice. After much labor, the video/image is "done." Sitting in Photoshop/After Effects/Final Cut looking pristine and beautiful. From there, the quality gets lower and lower. Images are compressed and made tiny for the web, where they are copied again and again, surfacing on Facebook looking like trash. Pristine HD video is squeezed onto (BARF) a DVD. It's all very sad for us to see the quality degrade as it goes out to the world. SO, I made a few of my photos into iPhone wallpapers because I've been meaning to do this for myself anyways!

If you're on your iPhone, click a link below - on the next page, tap and hold on the image and choose the option "save image." There you go! The image will appear in your saved photos, right next to all your other iPhone photos and videos.

Taking In My Surroundings

2010-11-08T18:42:00.000-08:00

Kalalau & the Pristine North

2010-08-21T01:41:00.000-07:00

If you're like me, your memory is awful. People tell me their name 5 times and I will still forget it 5 minutes later. Most of our days are entirely forgettable, but once in awhile, you get to participate in something you will never forget.

Last week I joined some family and new friends camping. We cruised in on kayaks - totally the way to go since the hike takes about 10 hours. Took a very light camera package - just 2 lenses and the housing - but it was all I needed. Click below to the full galleries for a glimpse.

"I look up to the sky and say, you're beautiful." We live on a well-made planet.

Click here for the ART GALLERY

Click here for the HAPPY SNAPS

Catchin' up!

2010-08-10T00:25:00.000-07:00

After a long stint of work, I'm working from home and enjoying the daily routine. My arsenal of nerd gear has been growing, I'll show the goods when it arrives in the mail. One sweet little item came last week - it's a Modbook - cheap from the lords of Ebay! It will save me tons of time masking those pesky photos for 3D animation.

Lots of break-ins happening in the neighborhood lately. Making me nervous, but half the stuff in my house is a little too obscure to sell for cash on this island. What's a little punk going to do with a bunch of hard drives or camera lenses? Nothing, I hope!

Below is the piece for Hurley. I finished it last week and flew out the next day! I like how it came out, but more importantly, they're really stoked on it - and in the end, that's what we're going for I guess. You'll notice the split-screen format. The vertical video appeared on large format flat screen TVs surrounding the audience. The other screen was a large projection. I think it looks kind of cool in this side-by-side format, even though it wasn't designed to be watched this way - still sweet!

I beg you! Click that fullscreen button for the best experience!

No place like home!

Quantity AND Quality

2010-06-24T12:45:00.000-07:00

Working on a lot of jobs at once is not my choice style, but it's proving to me more manageable and less daunting than I thought. Here are some screen captures from an installation piece I've been working on that will show in South Africa for an event near some sort of international sporting event. I think it has to do with Cricket. Hundreds of little videos, opening up to reveal larger videos... videos... videos... comin' out my ears. It's going to be another one of those huge video walls - when it's set up at the venue, I think one of those little squares will be about 3 feet wide. GNAR!

Wild Canyon Games, Staying Busy!

2010-06-09T22:42:00.000-07:00

Life keeps rolling! Last weekend I was in Eastern Oregon filming the Wild Canyon Games. Tons of fun, great weather, great crew. The competitors were going all out. My favorite part was watching the cyclists bail during the cyclo-cross.

Things are getting nuts - the schedule is pretty full and continues to bloat. Very thankful for this. Got some really exciting projects coming up so check back, ya hear!

Reviewing some shots while I awkwardly stand wearing the Steadicam. Hey, it happens. Photo: Parker Logan

This is what Luke and I do when we wait for assets to come.

THE COOLEST GUY IN THE WORLD.

New Website!

2010-06-09T22:10:00.000-07:00

Did I mention, I finished my website? I'm glad it's over, because it was a slow and painful process. HTML is my mortal enemy, we battled, I won - but there will always be scars. It's not the prettiest thing in the world, but it's got a lot of stuff on there so I hope you'll enjoy it!

The new and improved Ty Frey Dot Com!

Did I mention I love you? I love you. Thanks for reading.

Quick Chicago Trip

2010-05-28T18:44:00.000-07:00

The Chicago shoot was fantastic. We're planning to make a couple trips back there, but for now we have some great material to start with. Snagged a few fantastic interviews and some great stuff of the general activity around the city. The next trips will be spent going deeper into a few of the stories we found this first time around.

Flew into Portland last night, and I take off for Kauai tomorrow for a short 5 day recharge before hitting a crazy weekend in central Oregon documenting the Wild Canyon Games. Life is nuts, and I love it. Hopefully my new website will be up and running in all its shiny glory within the next week! If it's still "under construction" after I leave Kauai you know the waves were too good to stay inside. Here are some Chicago screen grabs:

Bridge timelapse.

Running the lake at sunrise.

300mm f/2.8 is pretty hot if you can roll that focus, or get lucky. (i'm lucky)

Didn't know there were beaches in Chicago? Neither did I!

Cemeteries Session

2010-05-06T03:49:00.000-07:00

Shot these photos in about 2 feet of water. Not ideal, but still fun.

I Need Slave Gnomes

2010-04-30T13:02:00.000-07:00

Kauai > Oregon > Tokyo > Shanghai > Mexico City > Oregon > Kauai

After an insane trip around the world, there's no better place to return to. I'm using this in-between time to edit together a showreel of my best work from the last couple of years. It's taking longer than I thought, but look for that soon.

I'm also working on redoing my website. Ok, I haven't started yet but it's on the list. Either way I'm pretty sure my website is forever doomed to be half-finished. They say your website/portfolio is an extension of yourself, so I guess what I'm trying to say to potential clients is, "if you hire me, I'll be reliable some of the time." I need tech-savvy slave gnomes to do my HTML bidding... and finish my showreel while you're at it. I've got some waves to catch.

As a token of my gratitude for being faithful readers, here is one of the pieces made from the trip. If you're part of the Nike Sales Team, you'll find it interesting. If you're a normal dude, give it a shot anyways. Hit that fullscreen button for the full experiance.

My hotel in Mexico City had a hammock in the shower. Neat.

LA Anthem

2010-02-22T02:00:00.000-08:00

Been a long time coming due to a little adversity. My computer kicked the bucket a couple weeks ago and I had to wait for the new one to ship here. There are a lot of things I'd rather spend my money on, but it's all fine now.

Here's the closing segment for the anthem on Los Angeles. It was a load of fun to shoot. Good memories all around.

Don't forget to fullscreen this little guy.

NYC Selections

2010-02-03T01:05:00.000-08:00

At long last, the single screen edits are done. I've made a page where you can view my favorite pieces from the NYC project. They can be found here.

Water Test II

2010-01-29T00:54:00.000-08:00

Here is another series of test shots I took earlier this month using the camera housing and Canon 7D.

In other news, the waves have been good and I've been busy doing way more surfing than shooting. There are some big big projects looming that will consume my life in half-year segments. I'd like to spend as little time as possible in front of a computer screen for now. Plenty more new stuff to post, so I'll see you soon!

Waiting

2010-01-07T11:55:00.000-08:00

A few months ago I sold my old camera and bought a Canon 7D. So far, I judge it's decent. Are there better camera bodies? Absolutely. Do I have the scrill to pay for a full pro setup? Not yet. With the new setup, I had to order a new camera housing too.

It's due to come in the mail today or tomorrow and I'm as impatient as a 6 year old! Cant wait to get back in the water and shoot. Until then, I'm spending some much needed time in the water surfing and unwinding after 5 months of nonstop work.

Here's a small piece from the NY shoot. I thought I'd give it some love and post it here since it never made it into the final piece. The woes of editing - sometimes you work for days on something that eventually gets scrapped.

I guess the reoccurring lesson here is patience. Full screen looks best - Enjoy!

Looks Cool

2009-11-23T23:49:00.000-08:00

... which means it took forever. Here are some samples of the P Rod segment from the LA anthem I've been doing for Nike.

Blog Neglect, New Goodies, Endless Editing

2009-11-22T17:04:00.000-08:00

Been awhile. I know, you don't care. On to business.

LA felt like a long trip, probably because we were stuck in traffic more often. Post is going well - but not enough time to finish things the way I would like. I suppose it's the norm.

Selling the 40D, and I picked up a 7D. The slow motion looks great in the small tests I've done so far. Can't wait to get home and try it out during the winter swell! Also purchased a new Wacom 12wx screen. Yeah, you can write on it - and it's already saved me hours in Photoshop and After Effects masking.

I'll post some samples of work soon. I promise.

Post Production Zen

2009-08-16T23:59:00.000-07:00

New York City was fantastic. Long days of shooting followed by long nights of organizing, copying, and logging footage. The stuff I shot on the 5D is turning out to be our best footage by far (compared to the HVX). I was witness to a whole new side of the city in comparison to my last visit. Rowdy streetball in Harlem, dodging crazy homeless fists in midtown, filming the city's biggest Friday night party and club scene - memorable stuff.

Now it's back to the cave to make sense of it all.

I've started watching a lot of 5x5's lately that people have been posting. 5 shots, 5 seconds each - they can be of anything but usually go with a place or event. I'm going to post a few to represent some cool spots I visited during the trip. Here's the first from Dyckman in the Dominican neighborhood in Harlem.

1. He'll be them someday.
2. Dyckman court from up high (50mm Lensbaby)
3. Spectators getting involved.
4. Money.
5. Vantage.

Booms

2009-07-26T21:18:00.000-07:00

Major thunder and lightening today in New York. Here's the view from my hotel window.

Back Where I Belong

2009-07-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

The longer I'm here, the more I wonder - will I ever be able to live anywhere else? Upon my return from the mainland, I was greeted with 3 weeks of perfect waves. "Welcome back" she said. Things have calmed down wave-wise (another swell on the way), but there's plenty to do. Today I was in the water shooting, and came out with some decent shots despite marginal conditions.

The air stretching out underwater.

Stormin.

Gene Machine.

4th of July weekend. Big Island. Lava flowing into the ocean. The island - it still grows!

Controlled fall.

Mah short babies.

Dennis' New Room Mate / Wife

2009-07-14T20:25:00.000-07:00

One of my closest friends was married a month ago, and I helped out with the photography. Another (more talented & experienced) friend was doing the more traditional (important) photos, whereas I just showed up with my camera and a couple of lenses. It's nice to have something to do during the ceremony. Even though two dear friends were becoming united before me, that doesn't mean I'm paying that much attention. Those who I have bestowed as 'dear friends' have gained this title because they understand I have no desire to pay attention to anything, ever.

Speech, speech!

Embodiments of quality.

Look, honey - there's Ty. He's all alone.

Gross.

Timelapse Compilation

2009-06-25T22:59:00.000-07:00

Graduation

2009-05-26T09:45:00.000-07:00

My cousin Amy graduated last week. It was hard to get good shots after the ceremony - room was dark, people everywhere. Long exposure with a flash did the trick.

Portland Timelapse - Hawthorne

2009-05-10T03:37:00.000-07:00

This is how Friday nights go for me these days. Sitting on the ground next to my tripod for hours, watching people walk by. The resulting footage came out well.

Various Vagrants

2009-04-20T22:32:00.000-07:00

Back on the mainland. Stopped off in Southern California for a few days before continuing on to NAB (in vegas) and then to Oregon for a couple weeks of work.

These are a few shots from the last few days on Kauai. Couple of beach shots, and a long exposure of the moon. N-JOI.

Belligerent Bandits

2009-03-17T12:42:00.000-07:00

Although way above my comfort level, I jumped in a shot some photos at a sketchy spot on a big day. It's been 10 years since this wave broke, and it probably won't again for a long time. There were still some pretty big sets rolling through this shallow reef break, so I hung back where it was a little more safe and took some wide shots that captured more of the environment, and focused less on the surfers. Guys who fell were getting held under for 25 seconds, pretty gnarly.

Since it was cloudy, the colors and highlights in general came out a little flat. I decided to go with this black and white film grain treatment.

Finally, Good Light

2009-03-15T15:36:00.000-07:00

These are from Donkey Beach at sunset. It's a great beach during the evening because it's at the beginning of a big valley, so the soft sunlight keeps the beach lit until just before the sun goes down. Most of the other beaches on the east side fall into the shadow of the mountains before things get really pretty - like this:

Abstract Distractions

2009-03-11T11:49:00.000-07:00

Went for an underwater session yesterday at Kiddys (by the rockpile at Kealia). This time I brought a mask, and it made all the difference in the world - I'm going to use one from now on when shooting the underwater stuff. There were a lot of hopeful shots that didn't turn out as good as I thought they would. The problem: I am still shooting too close. My 17mm lens just isn't wide enough, so I need to be more mindful and quit sticking the camera so close to the action.

Below are some of the good ones. You can peep the rest here.

Formations

2009-02-25T00:22:00.000-08:00

The last 2 days have been good for shooting. The underwater visibility has been particularly good, which means rich blues and greens in those waves. Not many people were out surfing, so most of my concentration was on underwater shots. The rest of the shots can be found here.

Here are a few that I find particularly easy on the eyes.

Visitors and Visions

2009-02-21T22:59:00.000-08:00

Went to a local surf competition today and spotted a couple of guys I shot last week surfing. They went nuts when I gave them their prints. It's fun to watch people view - and enjoy - your creative work.

Adam is visiting from Portland and scrambles into the sun shirtless whenever the clouds break. Photo-wise, the weather hasn't been cooperating the last week. Onshore winds mean ugly waves, and lots of clouds have brought flat light.

Here's a shot that slipped through the cracks. It's from a couple of months ago - this guy definitely had no idea I was taking a picture of him. I can hold my breath for a long time.

Darn Kids

2009-02-16T01:45:00.000-08:00

They're half my age and twice as good - visual evidence.

Macro Waves

2009-02-13T02:50:00.000-08:00

A few shots from crawling around on my hands and knees in the shorebreak. After awhile you forget people are staring. If you'd like to see the rest, some of them came out nicely. The camera housing has a pistol grip on the bottom so it's hard to get those really low shots. I ended up taking all these pictures holding the camera upside down so I could get the lens as close as possible to the ground.

More goodies.

2009-02-03T23:53:00.000-08:00

People on Kauai are totally stoked on the pictures I've gotten printed - I need to order more. In some ways, photography is more gratifying than film, because it's much easier to hand someone a photo than email them a link to a low-res YouTube video. So here's a few more. Enjoi.

Well again

2009-01-29T01:39:00.000-08:00

After throwing up for 12 hours and losing 6 lbs, I'm back, alive and well. Yesterday was a great day for waves, so I shot photos instead of surfing. It's so rare that the ocean looks this pleasant on the east side.

Cmd+Ctrl+Del

2009-01-21T02:08:00.000-08:00

"When you are able to create a lonely place in the middle of your actions and concerns, your successes and failures slowly lose some of their power over you. For then your love for this world can merge with a compassionate understanding of its illusions." -Nouwen

Here is one of many great photos from today's shoot.

Little Tubes.

2009-01-20T00:39:00.000-08:00

Everything looks better when you add water.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-04T19:39:00.000-08:00

FINALLY my camera housing came! Woody is here visiting, and we've been surfing nonstop. Great waves, people, food. Little complaining is necessary.

Rainy Days

2008-12-17T23:32:00.000-08:00

Crummy weather led to a lens test. Pretty self explanatory. The water has since cleared a bit. Today the waves were awesome on the eastside at the beachbreak near the house - no wind! occasional head high sets! hardly anyone was there, and it would have been really great except I felt like something was going to come nip my foot off the whole time in the dirty water.

Heavy Kealia

2008-12-13T21:57:00.000-08:00

Snapped these a few days ago. It was pretty big at the beach break down the road and a lot of good surfers were out. But man! Muddy water from all the rain!

New Hard Drive!

2008-11-15T17:45:00.001-08:00

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Originally Formulated For World Of Warcraft. I Use It For Editing.

2008-11-12T21:16:00.001-08:00

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Timelapse

2008-11-10T01:05:00.000-08:00

Here is a compliation of all the timelapse sequences I've been shooting in Oregon. The last shot is the best, you can see the stars! Go HERE if you want to watch it in HD.

Crystal Ballroom Concert Turned 4 Hour Dance Fest!

2008-11-08T12:43:00.001-08:00

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Accurate Summary

2008-11-07T15:02:00.001-08:00

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These Socks Suck!

2008-11-07T10:40:00.001-08:00

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More Gallery

2008-11-06T21:28:00.001-08:00

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First Thursday!

2008-11-06T21:20:00.001-08:00

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Big List Of Changes.

2008-11-06T17:01:00.001-08:00

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2008-10-26T19:23:00.000-07:00

I like weekends, but taking a break from work doesn't mean too much when you have nothing to do. Or rather, are motivated to do zero. I think the problem is that I am a person who is fundamentally motivated by relationships. When a mother suggests to her 23 year old son, "you should go out and do something" it really doesn't count as motivation.

Guess I'm just here to work.

At least something exciting happened yesterday - although it isn't exactly a good thing. Poor dad. At least it wasn't my fault.

40D, I love you.

2008-10-24T00:12:00.000-07:00

Went to a friend's birthday dinner tonight. Man, it was really nice to hang out with people my own age - it's been about a month since I've done that. I think I freaked people out because I was so enthusiastic just to talk to someone other than my parents or co-workers.

The videos, they go well. I still enjoy doing what I'm doing - it's just that 60-70 hours a week of ANYTHING will become a little... too much. I suppose this line of work is suitable to my personality though. I'd rather work and play separately than strike a balance.

In other news, I took pictures, there they are. Can't wait to fix them up in photoshop. 50mm f2.8 macro lens. Yep.

And we all float on, alright

2008-10-04T19:23:00.000-07:00

I'm in Portland. Have been for 2 months, will be for 1 more. Working. Just editing video and eating. There is literally nothing else to tell. I can't say I have many friends around here. My dad asked me yesterday if I miss hanging out with people my own age. I do, and did not find it funny.

There are still things to smile about though. I'm making money - and really, what else is there to life? Cash and babes, man.

I do continue to wonder, what it is God wants me to do, because there is nothing else to do. Although I do think he simply wants to change me. Encouraging to know that spiritual change isn't exclusive to a power-packed church service, group prayer, camp, or simple fellowship. None of these things are available at the moment. So I continue to wait on many things, to see what I do next. Until then I will be here, simply existing.

Todd Arnold. One of few.

Scattered Thoughts

2008-04-09T00:19:00.000-07:00

Seriously, folks are going nuts around here. Sure, this is the biggest page I've ever turned, but it does no good to be self-focuesd and miss savoring the final scent of this season. I suppose sadness is meant to come with everything good - there are so many people I wish I knew better! I'm trying to make the best of the last month here, and I constantly have to remind myself of God's truth. There are only two things I have now that I'll be able to see in heaven:
1. The Bible
2. Other people
That's all I have to say on the topic of graduation - I'm tired of the subject. If you want to know what's really exciting me these days, read on. Oh man oh man!

Silence. Quiet. Expansive stillness. What does it mean to you? Do you ever experience it? Though empty mediative prayer, God's been doing big things:
I am not great, but small. My spirit is indeed, quite poor. I am wretched, and I am full of self - but I'm loved intensely and personally. Furthermore, this love has nothing to do with what I do. "We are not the result of our actions." And so, in solitude the world slowly loses its power over us, and the Holy Spirit wakes up from its long nap.
The disciples must've flipped out when Jesus said he was leaving. We talk about how sweet it would be to have Jesus in the flesh, walking around next to us. People would be amazed, just like they were back then. Yet, Jesus told his disciples it was for their benefit that he was departing - that the Holy Spirit sent afterword was going to be BETTER. Supposedly, we're better off than the disciples were. God doesn't walk beside me, he lives INSIDE of me (holy crap - HA! get it?). But do I really believe this?
Let's be honest, there was a lot going on when Jesus was around. Shouldn't there be more supernatural stuff going on in my life? I know, I know, it's dangerous to get caught up in a brand of Christianity that is based purely on experiences. Honestly though - I can't deny that there's something inside me that cries out when I read passages about the Holy Spirit. When I read the Bible, I know there's more. There has to be more.
And I have no idea what is going to happen. It's not like the disciples knew tongues of fire were were going to come down. I have no idea what the hell is going on either, but I know God is good, and I know something big is coming.

The last 4 months have been the best of my life, and yet I have the sense of something very strange. Even though my life is great, in almost every sense of the word, a part of me feels trapped here on Earth. I'm so in love with the Father - man, I just want to go home. My heart longs for Jesus. "I'm doing well"..."I'm having a crappy day" It doesn't even matter, I just want him to come back today.
Sometimes (ok, VERY rarely...) I look forward at the rest of my life and I become afraid. Am I going to keep living for Christ? Will I really decide to do this until the day I die? I get so tempted sometimes. I'm so fickle, and I believe the lies of this world so easily.

Thankfully, I know the Lord doesn't want me to feel this way. It's all up to the power of the Holy Spirit. Bottom line: I'm tired of this earth - Lord, I want to see your power.

...and I really miss Kauai.

Pictures.

2008-03-06T12:20:00.000-08:00

Nothing to say really. I simply like these.

Good Things

2008-03-01T15:40:00.001-08:00

2 days of awesome/decent surf. 48 Hours with an encouraging friend, and other great people. I love it, and yet I long to become quiet and lonely.

Where else can I receive the peace and assurance of Christ? And even more importantly than receiving, it is where we grow in intimacy with the only one who knows what's best.

...Or maybe I'm just an introvert.

Good Things

2008-02-11T21:23:00.000-08:00

Lately, when people have asked me how I'm doing, they have gotten way more than they bargained for - because I be lovin' life these days.

-Jilly's friends crazy house
-Surfing with the SumTimes
-Andrew's glorious return
-An amazing meeting with Bob Hurley
-A sick weekend in Texas with Dave, working on computers, and shooting firearms
-Prayerful silence - usually with Dennis. I'm the MOST stoked about this one. Ian has joined us as well - a praise for sure.

This is a season in which it is very easy to trust the Lord, because things are relatively easily and enjoyable. I hope nothing changes when the crap hits the fan - but I'd be naive to say my joy has nothing to do with my present circumstances (although it shouldn't).

Lord, may I bring you glory in all times.

2008-01-10T02:34:00.000-08:00

Life has indeed been good (although not always easy). The Lord is working specifically, quickly, and passionately in my life and in the people around me. What an exciting adventure. The break saw its fair share of brokenness and trials, but in the end proved to be perfectly necessary - in order for Christ to bring about the things needed in life. Again, all part of the adventure.

What, How, Who?

2007-11-11T23:14:00.000-08:00

What am I doing with my life?
How am I spending my time?
Who am I loving?

Go. Now.

2007-11-04T00:49:00.000-07:00

Matthew 8:22
"But Jesus told him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

The time to go is now! There is no valid excuse for our delay in giving our entire life to Jesus. We are to disregard everything else and place him at the top.

The Park

2007-10-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

Prayer in the park this morning.

I want to live my life so in love with Christ, that if Christianity were proven to be false, people would say my life was an absolute waste.

God is moving - may it be so, brothers.

Wow.

2007-07-27T02:05:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of work and research in the realm of social justice - mostly relating to poverty. Tomorrow I will drive my nice Ford F150 to work, and eat a sweet lunch at the culinary school's cafe (sooo delicious). What a strange juxtaposition. Speaking of sad comparisons:

1. 0.13% of the world's population controls 25% of the world's assets.

2. 30,000 children die each day from poverty related causes.

Sorry to be such a downer, I guess this is just where my heart has been at lately. Here's a cool little clip from a Rob Bell video (from the Nooma series), he explains it way better than I ever could.

Sup Ya'll

2007-07-02T19:36:00.000-07:00

A kid at church with an Evanga-Cube, the strangest presentation of the Gospel I've ever seen.

Nate and I by the world's greatest rock.

All is going well here, and things are moving fast. Still working a lot. I pulled an all nighter organizing clips on the computer, so I'm a little beat. God's teaching me a lot, and things are fun. 4th of July is coming up, and it will be the first time I can ever remember being away from home for the 4th, let alone out of the country! I return to the states on Friday, probably.

Waiting in line

2007-06-28T22:41:00.001-07:00

Here's a story that happened a few days ago. I had to drive Nate back across the border (he had to fly to New York and back in a day). Everyone at camp said we should leave early, because sometimes it can take up to 2 hours to cross the boarder into the US. Long story short, Nate and I spent 6 hours and 45 minutes in the truck waiting in line. Absolutely insane. That's longer than anyone here at camp has ever heard of, and quite frankly, I'm proud.

Rockin' Hard

2007-06-27T21:20:00.000-07:00

Howdy everyone,

Still doing long days, but it's a lot of fun, and the team of people I'm working with is awesome. The project is coming along well. It has forced me to face the reality of where Christian high school kids are today in America. The way they've been taught really has an impact on these self-centered missions trips. The shooting is going well, and I've spent the last couple of days inside transcribing all the interviews with Kellyn. It takes awhile. You don't realize how poorly people communicate until you have to copy down their every word (including "um" and "like"). It's warm here, but not insanely hot like I was thinking it would be. God is good.

Made It

2007-06-23T12:05:00.000-07:00

I'm alive and well. The drive was nuts as expected. No lines on the road, hidden stop singes, and pretty much no rules in general. It takes some aggression to drive safe. So here we are, Nate and I, just waiting for people to get here. We've gotten all the shots we could of this brown dusty environment. More later, it's lunch time now.

Leaving for Mexico

2007-06-22T12:08:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

In an hour I'm leaving for Mexico. I'll be going down with Chronicle Project (the film company I'm working for) to shoot a video on short-term missions. It should be quite the adventure - I'll be gone for 2 weeks. I'll try to keep you posted since we're going to have internet where we are staying.

Surf, Solitude, and Doodles

2007-06-02T11:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I woke up and went surfing. It was wonderful. I think it's been 6 or 8 weeks since I've last gone. Even though the waves weren't that good, it was refreshing to get back in the water and get a few rides. I went to Uppers, rode chest-high waves with a slight onshore breeze, not bad - I even boosted some airs. Fun times.

After waking up, driving an hour to the beach, riding waves, sitting on the beach and getting in my truck to drive home, I realized that I hadn't spoken to a single person all day. It felt great for some reason. Turns out the first glorious human interaction I would have was asking some lady named Maria for a Chicken Burrito at Pedro's Tacos. After being around people all the time every day, it's nice to go be alone for awhile.

"When you are able to create a lonely place in the middle of your actions and concerns, your successes and failures slowly can loes some of their power over you. For then your love for this world can merge with a compassionate understanding of its illusions." -Nouwen

Last week all of my sketchbooks were partially ruined because I left them outside when it rained overnight. Instead of getting a new one, I went to Home Depot and bought some pieces of plywood and spray paint. Those have become where I go to sketch and doodle. Here are a few of them. Also, I have included a little video I took a few months ago when I strapped my camera to my longboard with duct tape. The camera in it's case is so heavy that it was surprisingly hard to steer. The video turned out alright, and it's kind of fun to watch.

Daily Life

2007-05-23T18:53:00.000-07:00

Being intentional is key. If we aren't stepping out and making an effort to continue walking with God, things won't happen on their own. How does one get so far from where they once were? "The greatest enemy of the life of faith in God is not sin, but good choices which are not quite good enough." -Oswald. We have the amazing ability of rationalizing everything we do, especially choices that are "good enough." How easy it is to put my needs and desires before the Lord's. We must stand firm, and learn the ways of obedience.

What a Year, Summer is Here.

2007-05-14T23:26:00.000-07:00

What a beast of a year.

I learned a lot, but I will have to learn the lessons repeatedly until they really sink in. Once again, I have re-established how much of an idiot I can be, and I will surely continue in these idiocies until I die.
I continue to grow in humility, but it will never be enough. In fact, nothing I do will ever be enough. If I train hard, I still won't be able to long jump from Huntington Beach to Hawaii. That's definitely impossible. If I work hard, I will never be able to fulfill my own life. That is also impossible. What else?

I am pretty cool, and people tend to like me when God has more control of my life than I do.

I have fallen into a brand of shyness that closely resembles apathy.

I'm not as nice or kind as I once was.

I give good advice. People rarely listen, myself included.

I want to learn how to fight like a ninja, but I am unwilling to put in the time or effort, so I will probably end up buying guns or something.

I really enjoy being weird.

I don't want to make crappy art, or even good art. I want to create things that will blow people's minds. I want to be the most kick-ass film maker there ever was.

I love to surf. I FREAKING LOVE TO SURF - but living here makes me want to give it up.

I hate Los Angeles, one of the most awful cities in the world. Mankind has absolutely ruined this place.

I learned that humility is the least desirable qualities in our culture, and is the hardest to find in people - yes, Christians too.

I learned 3 things about God:
1. Follow Him because he is the truth. His plans have no regard for our comfort.
2. Know what you're doing when you ask for the Holy Spirit. "One of the primary functions of the Holy Spirit is to lead us to the desert."
3. Jesus was an 'all or nothing' kind of guy. If I chose to walk away from him, he will let me.

I have a collection of pictures I call "Me Alone in the Airport." I take them because I get really bored while I'm waiting for the next flight, or for my bags to come. I also have pictures of our family friends' 2-week-old puppies, because they're awesome.

In a strange way, these pictures represent how my year has been. Or maybe I'm just messing with you.

Midnight Breakfast

2007-04-30T13:22:00.000-07:00

Filmed Midnight Breakfast last night. Pretty funny stuff. At the end I'm always left thinking "that was the weirdest thing I've ever seen." Great job kids...

The First

2007-04-30T01:29:00.000-07:00

I wonder if I will use this? Will anyone actually read this? Probably only if I do something extremely obscure or sweet, like cross country ski across Canada. I now wish myself good luck in keeping semi-timely posts.

This is a picture of a guy who looks a lot like a man named Andreas that we met in the Canary Islands. What an awesome guy. This isn't actually him, but it looks like him. And it looks like he's saying "Hey brother, come sign up for classes at Mt. Sac! God lives here!" Nobody reading this has any idea what I'm talking about. That's ok.