I Married a Photographer

One of Dean’s photos of the ESP has been selected to be used for Schmap Philadelphia Guide

Yeah, DSP!

After a long hiatus of not reading for leisure, more specifically, not reading anything interesting for leisure.  My husband bought me a book on our recent trip to California.  I like reading and I enjoy it even more when I can commit to completing a book.  I used to read all the time, I always had a book in my hand.  After passing my boards, I would look forward to pouring myself a glass of wine, spending the evening on my bed or futon and diving into a good book.  Since Dean and I have been married I think I finished one book (In Cold Blood by Truman Capote),  just measuring a milestone to a milestone.
With all of this being said, my writing skills are severely crippled.  When I don’t read for a creative outlet, I cannot write with much of a flair it becomes clinical and concrete.  When I was a Chemistry major at Bloom, I had to take a few gen eds my first 2 semesters, one was Comp 1.  I found that when I applied myself to the topic, I did very well at expressing how I felt and why I felt that way.  It became a great tension release, eventually I found that I somewhat relied on my writing to help me work through my problems.  So let me give it a whirl again.
On a Summer morning, one of the Pennsylvania summer days where at 9 am the weather is that cool muggy feeling.  You walk outside and you can feel the layer of  humidity stick to your skin.  I zipped up the lap-top bag and walked out the front door.  Running over The Checklist.  I have this tendency of doing the check list before I leave the house, fridge door closed tightly, toilet running,  stove off, iron unplugged, doors closed, windows shut, etc.  Really the way I was raised, this list could go on forever. I reached to my ears, slipping my earrings on while getting into the passengers side of the car.  Though on the drive we had light conversation about the future’s events, I ran through how and when I should approach people when I am out; and one thing I make a point to do is wear something memorable.  Identifiable.  For example, when Dean and I decided to go to the Children’s Miracle Network motorcycle ride at Quaker Steak and Lube in Bloomsburg, I had starfish earrings on and my hair styled in pigtails.  That should be easy to spot, right?
As the morning progressed, the sun beat down hard on our shoulders and noses forming beads of sweat that no matter how often you wipe them off, reform in the same spots seconds later.   We approached the entrance gate where a woman stood, wearing a baseball cap and a bright orange or yellow vest, as if we’d all have a hard time seeing her without it.  Dean, wearing one of his tie-dye shirts, grabbed his camera equipment, strapped it on him and away we went.
Lined on the south by the river and the north by the edge of town, the open fields of the airport were a welcome setting for a car show.  We entered the grounds and turned left toward an open macadam lot where, in clear view, were the hangars.  After zigzagging through  the crowd of people and beautifully shiny chromed-up cars, trucks and bikes, we were  fortunate to find a ton of friendly people who permitted us to take photos of their vehicles.  I remember thinking that by 1130, the sun was so bright and unobstructed that I could barely look at 50% of the vehicles. Much too too shiny and clean!  Ouch!  We made it a point to give out as many business cards as possible, meet and mingle with as many people as we could and really sell our idea and skill.  Looking back, I think that it was a great marketing move.  Word of mouth is still one of the best forms of advertising out there and when people can put a face to it, how can we go wrong?
Well, I’ll tell you how.  The evening before the car show, Dean and I were playing around with the flash on the camera.  Trying  different lighting techniques, etc.  As one of the settings on the camera changes the white balance to compensate for the different lights one can shoot in. The entire collection of photography taken at the car show was done in an incorrect white balance.  Now thanks to technology, all of those types of errors can be corrected through a few different programs.  I can’t recall the software that he did end up using but thankfully, he could correct them.

taking a sharp turn during the STPR

To top off the birthday celebration of our son, we drove up to the Wellsboro area for their rally car events.  Saturday was the main day for races and meet-and-greet with the drivers and crews.  Having left around 0730, in order to have enough time to scout out a good location and schmooze up some racing persons who will hopefully be interested in Dean’s HDR photography, I was feeling sub-par.  Excited for the opportunities that may come from this experience, meeting new people is always enjoyable and showing off my husband’s work is something that greatly interests me.  That morning and most of the day I just couldn’t muster up any sort of motivation to do anything, other than feel miserable.

Thankfully after the races, the drivers and co gathered at the fair grounds to show off the mud and dents from the day’s battles.  Here was me chance!  I eagerly introduced myself to a few key people, after asking around for if there was a PR rep there and where may he/she be?  I met one of the Subaru Rally America team members for whom Travis Pastrana drives. I was so excited to be able to confidently advertise for my husband, explaining his work and process with examples to hand to him.  He was very nice and easy to speak with, he asked me if he could have one of the images as an example to take back to Vermont with him.  I could hardly contain myself and happily handed over this shot.

The last portion of the ‘race’ was a course that we all could spectate from the bleachers, featuring a hairpin turn, man-made course that I couldn’t see at all and a jump that some drivers had a boat load of fun with.  Dean practiced some new timing and techniques with the flying cars.  It was  a learning exercise for both of us.