Nearly everyday for the past three years I’ve driven over the Alaskan Way Viaduct for one reason or another. Work, the airport, whatever. But no matter what the reason, and despite all the worries it will collapse the next time a hummingbird lands on it, I actually like driving on the Viaduct. Especially heading north when you get that great top view of all the buildings in downtown Seattle, and can lookout over the Sound to catch a glimpse of the Olympic Mountains. Last year Hyundai even used a shot from here for a Super Bowl spot (starts at :38). The drive south is also nice as it takes you into SoDo, right past Safeco Field.

So no matter if it collapses tomorrow or they tear it down in a few years, my little slice of the Viaduct can live on forever in this digital world.

I’m cutting it close, but last night I whipped up an envelope and dropped it in the mail for the Lil’ Happy Invisible Creature S.A.S.E. Club, put on by none other than the very talented guys of Invisible Creature. Luckily, it won’t have to travel far from Seattle to make it to Seahurst, WA, because the deadline is Sept 1st.

It’s a pretty cool deal they have going on here. You design and send them a self-addressed stamped envelope, then they send it back with all kinds of mystery goodies. And they could be sending anything. Well, probably not live animals, drugs or explosives because those are prohibited by the USPS. But there’s a lot of cool stuff you can fit inside a #10 envelope and if there’s anyone to fill it it with amazing stuff it’s Invisible Creature. Plus, the whole thing is a fun idea all around.

So if you’ve yet to send in an envelope to the Lil’ Happy Invisible Creature S.A.S.E Club, perhaps there’s still time. Grab some markers, paints or whatever and get to it. Don’t miss an opportunity for a bit of nostalgia and a chance to use the postal service for what they’re really intended for, bringing you cool stuff.

Recently while searching through an antique shop, I bought a vintage camera, an Argus Argoflex E to be exact.  It’s an old twin-reflex camera, made sometime between 1946 to 1948. But that’s not the cool part. Inside this camera was a little gem. Or at least the possibility of being a gem. Because inside this 70 year old camera sat an undeveloped roll on 620 film. The only thing was, no one knew what was on it, if anything. For all I knew, it could have been damaged beyond recognition after years of rotting in some musty basement and from the outside you couldn’t even tell if it was black & white, color or slide film.

But all that doesn’t matter because it was far too interesting to remain sitting in the back of this camera any longer. So Ibrought it down to the Panda Lab and got it developed. And to my surprise, it had ten beautiful images waiting to blow the minds of all who gaze upon them.

The thing is, only more questions arise now that it’s developed. Things like, “who is this family?”, “What happened to this camera to why it lay forgotten for what appears to be 45 years?” and “where are these people now?” It’s mind boggling and frustrating to think these questions will most likely never be answered. How could you take photos of your young family playing in the yard, only to then leave the camera and the film sit untouched for decades and decades? It’s even confusing to think about how the camera ended up on the shelves of an antique shop.

But as for now in the year 2010, after all the things that must have fallen into place for these images to cross my path, I feel mighty lucky.

NOTE: Thanks to the detective help of Andrea Nelson and her automotive scholar dad, they were able to decipher the white car in the photos to be a ’66 Ford Thunderbird and the others are early 60’s Dodges. So perhaps if the Thunderbird is a few years old, it could mean the film was taken sometime around 1968.

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Did you know you can take pictures through a peephole? Well you can. And you should. It’s the perfect poor-man’s fisheye lens. Plus, if you want some really unflattering portraits of yourself, it works great for that, too.

To help my friend, Laura Haithcock (a.k.a. Birdie Royale), in her bid for the Mad Men Casting Call, I volunteered my photography services with her submission. We even broke out theHolga to help aid in the look and feel department. Luckily, Laura does a pretty good job herself of looking like she just stepped out of the 1960s. She definitely made my job that much easier.

If you haven’t seen the Mad Men Casting Call, it’s a pretty cool promotion for the show. Check it out and be sure to vote for Laura. She’d be a great fit for the cast. And not only does she look the part, she’s even a seasoned ad veteran. Plus, they wouldn’t even need to run her through wardrobe. And if you need more convincing, take a look through the extra shots from our shoot.

As promised, here are some more images captured through that magical plastic lens of the Holga. These exposures come to us from a few locations from around the Pacific Northwest. Namely the Oregon coast, beautiful downtown Portland, OR and finally the remote beaches of Olympic National Park, along the Washington coast.

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of shooting with my Holga.  Its pure simplicity can’t be beat, and the beauty of film can't be denied. The more popular digital photography gets, the more rewarding it is to shoot film. So with that in mind, hopefully it won’t be long until I can expose a few more rolls and post some more.

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Be sure to keep those eyes peeled at all times. You never know when you might spot some good looking type staring right back at you.

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After being inspired by the bottle cap pin that Carl wore in the movie “Up”, I decided to design my own. Only instead of using a safety-pin, I chose to retrofit a pin from a regular button. I also opted for my favorite carbonated drink of choice, root beer.

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This here is the world famous Snoqualmie Falls, near Snoqualmie, WA. They even have their own special brand of pancake mix. You should experience both.

Yesterday some of my photography got a nod of appreciation from We Are Creative People, a site dedicated to showcasing the creative pursuits by those in the advertising industry. And since I appreciate what WACP is doing, here’s my nod of appreciation toward them.

WACP is run by a fellow named Eric Lee, who as a creative person himself, has started something pretty cool. Advertising is an industry filled with all kinds of talented people and it’s good to see someone calling attention to that. And it’s good to see all the different things people do with their talents outside their day-to-day work. Especially since they do some really incredible stuff. It definitely makes me feel good seeing a few of my photographs alongside some pretty impressive people and equally impressive work, anyway.

The moral of the story is that creative people should create. Make stuff. Make anything. Then show it to the world and be proud.

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Keep your eyes open for some new Holga shots coming along soon. Here’s a little taste of something that was hiding out on the hard drive.

As we speak, exposures are being prepped to take a swim in the developer, a quick dip in the stop bath and then finally soak in the fixer. It’s always an exciting time because you never really know what the end result will be. It’s one the beautiful things about film and it gets amplified even more through that magical plastic lens.

Over the weekend, a few friends and I took a trip over to Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula to camp along the coast and do some hiking in the Hoh Rain Forest, all within Olympic National Park. And it was during our hike through the beautiful Cape Alava that these fine sea glass specimens were discovered by our watchful eyes.

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Since living on the West Coast, I’ve taken to looking for these little guys whenever I find myself on a beach. It’s kind of like searching for gold or precious diamonds, only you can actually find what you’re looking for. Although, it does get more complicated when you take into account the rarity of the different colors. So let’s just say if you find an orange piece, you are a damn rockstar.

Note: A big thanks goes to West Coast Sea Glass for putting together and letting me use this handy rarity chart. They make some really nice jewelry using sea glass too, so be sure to check them out.

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Keep an eye out for more Polaroids. After I round up enough, I’ll start to add them into the Photography page. But for now, please be patient. Or go check out Robert Whitman’s portfolio. Specifically under the “8os My Livingroom” and “Eryn Brenie” sections. You’ll find enough Polaroid goodness to quench your instant-film thirst there. Also be sure to check out his other work. He’s the guy who shot everything for that awesome Canadian Club “Damn Right Your Dad Drank It” campaign that’s been running over the past year and some. Or maybe it’s been two already.

But this also brings up the topic on how awesome photographers are. Not just what they do as a profession, but who they are as people. And the test of a good photographer is how much cooler they are than the average human. They’ve traveled to the deepest corners of the world, slept with more models than they can remember and met more celebrities than most celebrities. If you take a stroll through Mr. Whitman’s work, you can tell that guy has lived a life worth capturing on film and has plenty of stories worth listening to. And having that kind of person behind a camera has to make for better images. At least that’s my philosophy anyway.

For instance, Whitman has photos like this, whereas I have a few shots of an kitchen appliance.

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For those that claim llamas aren’t majestic, clearly have never met Llamosus, King of the Llamas. When he isn’t seen posing atop sunny hillsides and scenic overlooks, Llamosus can be found freeing animals trapped in petting zoos and spitting all on those within a fourteen foot radius who spread injustice within the animal kingdom.

In a world run by mega-corporations, we cannot police ourselves. We need the watchful eye of God-like llama. Someone who without fear, can turn wrong into right, night into day and bring hope to those who have none.

So the next time you’re taking a stroll though a steep canyon or standing beneath a picturesque waterfall, don’t be surprised if you see a mighty llama gazing down upon you. And if you look real close, you just might see that hoofed hero is none other than… Llamosus.

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Real Polaroids can never be replaced by some .99¢ iPhone app. But the way things are moving lately, it’s really quite a shame when you think about it. There’s a certain joy you get hearing an old Polaroid camera come alive with that buzzing sound as it spits out your newly exposed picture. No app can capture that. Also, now that 600 film is hard to come by, every picture you take is special. One of a kind. Real. Nobody out there is stockpiling, then rationing how many pictures they take on their iPhone. And sure being able to shoot without care is nice for somethings, but it definitely cheapens the experience.

Perhaps the saddest part in all this is that Polaroid themselves is part of the problem. They’re a company that for decades has made their own product obsolete, just to force people to buy a new camera that uses different film because they think they’ll make more money. Unfortunately, their constant short-term thinking will probably be the thing that finally kills them one day.

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In a few weeks, two good friends of mine, Lucas Will and Greg Petry, are set to embark on a trip they’ve dubbed, Superior Dream. Their plan is to circumnavigate Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world, in kayaks they’re building with they’re own two hands. It’s pretty awesome stuff if you ask me.

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To do my part in supporting this, I teamed up with the guys to help make a logo you see above for this momentous event. And please do your part to support as well. Go check out their site, read their blog and pour over all the pictures of them building their Greenland style kayaks. It doesn’t get much better than seeing a bunch of random sticks come together to form a such a beautiful craft. And then to think about paddling that around this:

And be sure to keep an eye out for Superior Dream in the future too. They’re planning to film the entire process and release a documentary after it’s all said and done.

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Look no further, it's just what you probably maybe ordered, here are some Adobe CS5 wallpapers built in everyone’s favorite size of 1440×900 pixels. If it’s not your favorite size, too damn bad. Make your own.

The nice thing about these wallpapers, should you choose to slack off at work, is they act as an extra line of defense. Or if you are working hard, moving pixels around by the truck-load and happen to go to your desktop, the sight of seeing another Photoshop screen can cause your rods and cones to explode. Both are pretty cool. Enjoy.

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Everywhere you look someone is trying to sneak something past you.

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Three years ago to the day, the creative partnership between myself and Mr. Andre Vriesman began. And three years later, the A-Team, as we’ve been dubbed, is still going strong.

Advertising is a strange business for a lot of reasons, but the one that is among my favorite is that you work with a partner. In my case, being that I’m an art director, I work with a copywriter. But the thing that makes me lucky is that I also get to work with one of my best friends in the world. Everyday. And because of that, I feel mighty fortunate.

Anytime we go into battle, I know Andre has got my back. And visa-versa. I know if I throw some dumb idea out there, he’ll make it better. And if I can’t even muster some dumb idea, he’ll at least have something up his sleeve. That’s the way it is and that’s the way it should be.

So thank you to Andre for being a great writing partner over the past three years and thank you to all the partners I’ve had over my advertising career. I wouldn’t be who I am without you.

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A few years ago, a friend was telling me how foods like carrots and potatoes to can be carved out to make stamps for printing on clothes and stuff. And because of their density and other delicious vegetable qualities, they work surprisingly well. Then somewhere from this conversation, the idea come up to try the same thing but with bread. Which for printings sake, does not have the same qualities as carrots or potatoes. But we tried it anyway and I’m glad we did.

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Since then, I’ve made quite a few shirts and ruined a lot of possible sandwiches. Plus, since no two pieces of bread are exactly the same, each shirt is slightly different than the next. Perhaps one day bread will overtake snowflakes as the symbol for being unique.

If you’d like to make one for yourself, here’s what you’ll need:

01. A shirt
02. A loaf of bread (find a loaf with a nice iconic bread shape. You’d be surprised at how much bread isn’t baked this way)
03. Fabric paint
04. Paint brush
05. A human torso