Met's Spring Training Comment of the day...

Met's Spring Training Comment of the day...

Backup Catcher Ramon Castro commenting on an apparent hamstring injury: "I didn't pull nothing," he said. "I don't think it's nothing big. I feel something, so I stop running. I stopped running and it went away." (quote courtesy of Newsday, Image is © J. Mitchel Photography 7/2006)

"I stopped running and it went away..."

Reminds me of the old joke; A guy walks in to a Doctor's office. Says to the Doctor, it hurts my arm when I do this....Doctor says. Don't do that. Please pay the receptionist on the way out.

Do you have to be a Met's fan to be a Wedding Photographer in Queens? No, but it helps.
Check out http://www.jmitchelphotography.com/ for the best in Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island Wedding Photography.

Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whacha Gonna Do?

The parade is tons of fun. But behave yourself because NY's Finest is out in force today.


These folks have a tough job. Don't make it harder by being foolish out there.

Don't drive to NYC today

In fact, avoid the trains too, because there is nothing so much fun as the evening St. Pat's drunk train home. Do what these wise folks did. Take the Magic Bus.

No Parking Even if your Irish

Or even if your not Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day

The city is alive with activity and everyone is wearing their green like a badge of courage.

One Night Only...OK, Two Actually.

Sunday Morning my time at The Grind is up until another couple of months, so definitely stop by Grind in Bellmore tonight or Saturday night and view/purchase my landscape prints.
The prints present some unique views of life in NYC and Long Island with lots of energy, color and light. I am also showing the Doors images from my Artisan Series of work in Italy.

Can't make it to The Grind? Stop by Spoon, in Lindenhurst! They always have my work up and I call that place my second home. Tell Joe you came because you saw it on the blog. That will drive him nuts. Speaking of nuts...you would be if you went there and did not get a frozen hot chocolate. Better yet...go there on a Saturday night for some really good live music and dessert.

Remember, if the folks shooting your wedding are not artists, they are just pushing a button on a black box. Your wedding deserves more than that. For the best in Long Island Wedding Photography, go to http://www.jmitchelphotography.com/

Finally Home to JFK

My flight from ATL was going on to Venice, Italy....Hmm, I like Italy. Maybe I could stay on board and no one would notice.
Nah, I miss my family. Ok, to the Airtrain!

Last Minute Pit Stop in Atlanta

I had a last minute change of plans and had to make an 8:30AM meeting Wednesday in Atlanta, so it will be another day before I am home with the family.

I got in around Midnight, but if you get in to Atlanta with more time, stop at Fat Matt's, a couple of clicks North off 95. It is the kind of hole in the wall place you can't find unless you know it, but it has the best BBQ for a hundred miles and live music from bands that will be a household name in a few years.

I was up in time to see a beautiful sunrise.

Last Flight Out...

Change in plans. Not going to JFK today. Going to ATL at 9:20PM.

I woke to catch the sunrise and now I am watching the sunset, waiting to board a flight to Atlanta for an early AM meeting.

It's not always Sunny in Miami

Maybe just a cute play on words, but I am in Miami for a couple of days and already miss my daughter Sunny and of course my wife Erica.

I am heading to Coconut Grove for two days of FINRA classes on Ethics.
I have spent more than the last 15 year on Wall Street in trade operations and compliance. Ethics is something that constantly comes into play. One of the examples to be discussed in the course, is doing business in a foreign country where bribes are part of the culture and not only accepted, but the way things are done...how does a responsible company handle that? Adopt a "when in Rome" attitude? It is just not that easy. It is an interesting course with real world applications that nobody likes to talk about, but have broad reaching effects.
What is FINRA? www.finra.org for more details.

Not sure if you are on the right blog? You are.

What does this have to do with the best Wedding Photography on Long Island? Well, it is interesting to see how my worlds collide.

The ethics course isn't just about the financial world. The next time you are at a reception venue and they show you a "Preferred Vendor" list, ask the coordinator how much kickback they are getting from the photography studio. I have been asked for 15-25%. I won't do it and never have. Anybody recommending me, is doing so because I provide outstanding work for a reasonable rate, Not because I am paying them. Not all venues do this, but many do. Ask them about it. It doesn't mean the photographer is a bad photographer...but it is something that is effecting your purchase and you want to think about it. What is the "right" answer? Ideally, the venue should be open with you about it, be able to explain why they do it and have it make sense to you.

One of the reasons J. Mitchel Photography provides such a strong value as a photographer is that I am doing it because I truly am passionate about it. I have the skills, knowledge, and resources to make your images something you will enjoy for decades. I price my services very aggressively to make them accessible to young folks just starting out. Together, You and I create a package that really fits your unique needs and make it work for your budget.

The Miami classes are the last ones in the FINRA CRCP Wharton School certificate program. The CRCP is a way to wrap up my 15 + years of securities work, boil it down to it's essence and exchange ideas with other compliance and market professionals about the methods we use to protect your investments. You can read more about it here: http://www.finra.org/EducationPrograms/FINRAInstitute/index.htm

Oh, the cute baby in the slightly crumpled picture above? That is Ms. Sunny Logann, my 5 week old daughter.

Why should a Wedding Photographer be an artist?

I spent the better part of a week wandering the small towns surrounding Lake Guarda in Northern Italy just to knock on doors.

Ok, maybe a little more to it than that.

In the quaint villages surrounding the lake there stand buildings and homes hundreds of years old. Built by artisans with workmanship that is hard to find today, particularly in seemingly mundane things like a doorway. I roamed the empty streets of dawn to find the doorways to the past. Built with pride and artistry, this collection of images captures the workmanship of the past, and lets you peer thru and into the old world.

My mind's eye sees shape, shadow and color in a way that is different from most. Am I a cynical new Yorker? Maybe sometimes, but it is with that eye that I find beauty in the ordinary and look beneath the surface for the real story. 15 Years commuting to Manhattan honed my people watching skills and allows me to learn their stories. By combining the two skills, I am able to capture images that concisely express the emotion of the moment and the sense of place in events and architecture.

Come view my latest landscapes at Grind in Bellmore or Spoon in Lindenhurst and see why I can capture wedding images like no one else can.

Local Long Island Photographer Wows crowd at Grind!

What does this have to do with Weddings or interiors photography? The larger studios pump out 3 or more weddings a weekend, every weekend. They are machines.

I am an artist. I am able to capture images that concisely express the emotion of the moment or the sense of place in architecture and landscapes.

That ability, and that I work with just 15 couples per year so I can take the time to know them as people and have their photography be a reflection of who they are, is what sets me apart from the wedding factories.See you there!

The Grind
2975 Merrick RdBellmore, NY 11710(516) 409-6633

The Daily Grind for Wedding Photography ?

Ahhh, March is here and Spring is just around the corner. Warmer weather and botanical renewal is only a few weeks away. To celebrate, I have a slew of new work up at The Grind Coffeehouse in Bellmore.
If you are on LI, definitely take a coffee break and check the place out. Great desserts and coffee that reminds you that Starbucks is swill.
Oh, did I mention I have new landscapes up? About 30 new works from Long Island, NYC and Italy.



See you there!
The Grind
2975 Merrick RdBellmore, NY 11710(516) 409-6633

Talented Street Youths Work Towards Cosmetic Surgery Internship

J. Mitchel Photography provides the best in inexpensive wedding photography in the NYC/Metro area.

Way too early this morning I caught this thru the dirty train windows with my cameraphone. It is good to see that today's youth is not letting the lack of a medical degree prevent them from trying to get that internship with a good NYC cosmetic surgeon. It is obvious from his work that bust enhancement is his specialty. I will check on the ride home tonight for the "before" picture that must be on the other side of the bridge support.

Frozen Margarita NYC Style

J. Mitchel Photography provides the best in NY Wedding Photography, for less.

New York does things differently. It is the only place I know where you squeegee the sidewalks. The squeegee scrapes all the garbage and food scraps (which are always on the sidewalk outside Friday's on B'Way/50th), mixes them with Mother nature's finest and with a little help from the building Porters, you have a gutter margarita! Mmmmm, slushy goodness

NYC Never Sleeps...

And NY's Bravest doesn't take snow days.

Watch the Gap !

The LIRR station was a mess. No salt, no shoveling, no personnel. Nice.

And they are raising the fares in March too!

Neither Rain, nor Sleet, nor...

I don't know about the Post Office, but I have work to do. So off I go!

Two choices...shovel the snow on the driveway to get out...or plan B. I chose plan B. I Checked for traffic behind me then backed the car over the snow and with a thud, broke through the wall the Snow Plow placed to seal my driveway from evil. Driving was fine. You just had to remember it was snow and you are not Mario Andretti.

Some of the folks in the SUVs think they are invinceable. Until they have to turn or stop. There were a few littering the intersections.

Winter at Last ! !

I remember snow days as a kid.

No school, sleeping late and either shoveling snow for cash or sledding down the side of the Atlantic Beach bridge. Yeah, I know...it's a bridge...we didn't have hills. I grew up on a glorified sand bar.

Thanks to Global Warming, we don't get much snow anymore. And when the weather folks at the local TV stations go to their War Room mode, scaring everyone about the latest approaching blizzard, we take it with a grain of salt.

To hear the weatherman get all excited about a huge 10 inches, when you know it will be 6 if you are lucky....I mean, don't all men exagerate like that? Maybe it is just me.

Anyway, we got snow. Nice fluffy, makes you want to play in the park and make snow muggers, the urban version of snow angels, kinda snow. It can make almost anything beautiful and I love it.

Babies like late night tv

I had heard that babies have their internal clocks off by 12 hours and even suggested to my wife that she do opposite days for a week prior to birth just to see if that would help...but she didn't bite on that one.
Baby Sunny Logann likes to sleep most of the day, but insists on watching TV from 12-3 AM each night while feeding. This is after feeding from 7-10 PM. She especially likes the infomercial with Erik Estrada ("Ponch" from TV's '70s show CHiPs) hawking Arkansas realestate.
1:20AM Sunny and I were experimenting with strobing a flash to see how many times we could catch the same snowflake in a single shot as it drifted from the heavens. We got to six before she finally fell asleep on my arm. That worked out well, because the snow started to change over to rain and I was really tired.

The first week with a baby...

Some thoughts from my first week with my baby:

It is amazing how quickly you become attached and dependent upon one another.

My left arm is killing me because I was holding Sunny all weekend while doing the image processesing from a recent wedding. The concept of not holding her in my arms as she slept and I worked seemed foreign.

Crying...babies cry. Sometimes even they do not know why. My wife and I check the top three causes, and do the best we can. When they cry, it can be a tolerable sound or a shrieking hell that could wake the dead. I am convinced that someone should market a car alarm that has the siren on the inside, and it should blare a baby's cry. No car thief could remain inside for more than a few seconds. Even with headphones blasting the Ramones.

Sunny likes the sound the wine fridge makes and when I hold her and stand next to the door of the furnace room when the heat is on. The "soothing" sounds on the "Happiest Baby" dvd sounds remarkably like the sound the submarine Red October made when running on their "catapillar" silent drive.

She discovered her hands this weekend and now grips my finger tightly and holds one to my neck when I hold her to my shoulder. She sometimes tracks my movements with her eyes and head...this is new.

She makes this chirping noise and a cooing once in a while when sleeping. Very cute.

My wife is home with her and I made it into the office to get some work done...I miss them both.

16 Aircraft Engineers=12 Volts

The 16 Swedish aircraft engineers performed diagnostics, replaced the battery and ran the pre-flight checklist. We are go for takeoff. OK, I may be getting carried away with the airplane lingo. I like Saab's new "Born from Jets" line of advertising and I miss the days I used to fly Cessna 172's and Piper Warriors over the beach.

Weird about the battery going, because the car behaved totally fine, even on very cold mornings. I have never had a battery go from totally fine, to non-functional instantly. The only thing I can think of, and my analytical mind won't let it rest, is that one of the lead plates in the battery was so sulfated that it fractured or broke off during the drive into NYC on some bad potholes, and shorted the battery itself. I would not have noticed a problem because the car was running and the alternator was providing juice.

Baby is doing well. A little Jaundice, which is common. That is why we were at the Dr. today. Amazing how she has totally changed my life already. I spent twenty minutes in a staring contest with her today. She won.

Photo wise, I am excited...I have a show coming up at Grind in Bellmore in early March and I have some great new stuff. I also have three special images I can't wait to hang in Spoon, in Lindenhurst. It is just a great place and I just don't get out there as often as I want to.
I have a bunch of weddings booked for 08 with such awesome couples. I am really looking forward to them.

Oh, the picture? That's me a few years ago taking a Cessna 172 up from Republic over Fire Island.

Dr. Visit.

Dr. Visit.

Finally...A tow home

I don't plug many products or companies, but I know good service. And when a company and their people go out of their way to deliver good stuff, I have to give them props.

I called my auto insurance, Geico, and through out a 20 minute phone call, my rep John, and his supervisor Chris, were just awesome. They totally understood my circumstances and even though my coverage (which I did not even know I had, thanks Dad for suggesting it) only provided a tow to the nearest dealer (a block away), they worked it out so not only would they tow my car on a flatbed from the West side of NYC to the Saab dealer near my home, in Rockville Centre, but the awesome driver, Lee, from All City Towing, drove me home after we dropped the car at the closed dealer around 10PM.

Cost? $0.00 (well, I did give Lee a nice tip, but that is not really a cost...just a way of saying thanks).

Now...hopefully those 16 aircraft engineers at Saab can get me up and running quickly. I am hoping it is just a battery. The car is 4 and a half years old and still on the original battery...so it is time. Just weird to go totally flat and not even be able to be jumped.

Baby and mom are doing well. The cat is curious...but cautious.

My dad was unable to remove the car seat from his car. But a quick call to my brother and we had tons of family over to see the baby and remove the seat in no time flat.

It has been a loooooong weekend. Oh wait...it's Monday. Weekend is over.
HEY! Tomorrow is my birthday! 38....Is that old? I forget.

Why can't I leave the car overnight?

Because the Hospital will let you leave the car in their driveway for an hour while you are picking up you newborn and wife...but it is not long term parking. I can't blame them.

Dad will drive wife & baby home to LI

Dad will drive wife & baby home to LI while I resolve the car issue. Dad likes my choice of car so much he bought the same Saab 9-3, same color, black.
Mmmmmm, Boost!

$250 towing + storage to get to a dealer

Ran over to Potamkin Saab, 2 blocks away from the hospital. Their tow service....
$250 towing + storage to get to a dealer 2 blocks away. I love NYC. Wife & baby patiently waiting for me to solve this issue so they can go home.

WANTED: 16 Aircraft Engineers.

My Dad came to the hospital and we tried a jump start. No joy. The lights flickered and relays clicked, but nothing else. It is a manual...and I thought about just coasting down the driveway and popping the clutch...but then what if it is not the battery or starter...then I am stuck on the street in NYC. The NYPD Traffic Squad is like the A-Team. They would have that car down to pier 17 in no time. Been there done that. No thanks.

WANTED: 16 Aircraft Engineers, with tools.

Going Home is Never Easy.

Going Home is Never Easy. My Saab won't start. Never once had a problem. Hopefully a jump will work.

Push present. SHHH! She does't know...

Push present. Frank Gehry, Torque ring on chain. Lapis.
SHHH! She does't know...

My baby girl!

My baby girl! And I think the first picture of me on my blog.

Tadaaa

Wife and Baby!

The world welcomes Sunny Logann Press

First Moments Together

7.76 OZ

.1 Minute old

Fresh Baby...

Back from Break

After pushing and pushing...my wife needed a break. All the charts were good on baby and mom, so "Back to work!"

6:20 Fully Dialated....not long now!

Erica is progressing well and is just about ready. We think it is just a couple of hours until we are parents!

5PM No baby yet

Erica is making progress, but slowly. The hopes for a vaginal delivery are still strong, but we are preparing for a C section if need be.

Both baby and soon to be mother are doing well. All vitals are where they should be.
It may be a few hours before much else happens.

2:20 PM 6CM Dialated

Ahhhhhh. Epidural Bliss at last

The spinal catheter was not working out so well, so we went for try number 2 on the epidural. This time it worked and now Erica is feeling great.

Kids....don't do drugs! Moms.... epidural is the way!

"GET ME DRUGS!"

The spinal catheter is leaving much to be desired. We are going to try for the epidural again in a few minutes.

11:11 Make a wish!

Erica says " I wish I don't need another epidural!"

Actually, Erica did not get an epidural, but a spinal catheter. They could not get the epidural to work right.

8:30Am. We have contractions....

No baby yet. 8:30Am. But we have contractions! Erica is doing great.

No baby yet. 5am.

No baby yet. 5am. Erica is doing well, I am bleary eyed. I have had a bad cold for a week and feel like crap. Chills, fever, elevator ear, all the fun stuff that the big Q is supposed to fix, but isn't. I crashed at my dad's a few blocks away for 3 hours.

Much needed caffeine....

The Starbucks across the street was closed, but this one was open...and provided some much needed caffeine.

10:30 And no baby...

10:30 And no baby...

Still no baby...

Still no baby...

Home base for the next few days...

St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital will be home base for the next few days. Now the waiting begins. We have been here since before 3PM Friday...and at 4:30 we are still in a waiting room. Luckily, I figured out how to connect my cell/cameraphone/swiss army knife to my laptop and BAM! we have internet.

Look for additional updates live as then happen. *

*NOT actually live as they happen. Subject to technical delays, spotty cell coverage and censorship by the momma. See dealer for details, your mileage may vary. Not all blogs will qualify.

It was a Dark and Stormy Night...

At 2:20PM I got the call. Meet her at the Hospital and lets go have a baby.
This little girl is going to be a troublemaker. The sky was dark and gray and a rainy sleet dropped from the sky. Ok, maybe I am being a little dramatic. On the way to the hospital the cabbie gave me sage words of wisdom and I am calm and collected.