It's a Narnia kind of day.

I took these a while back at Narnia. 

No editing going on. Raw pictures. 

I just want to go back.

Sigur Ros - Ara Batur

Overdue.

I haven't updated this is forever. Apologies.

School has 2 more weeks. THEN I'M DONE WITH THE JUNIOR CORE!

I'm going to NYC in late May for another internship interview. And I'm not paying! Bonus. And to San Diego in a month for Christine's wedding. And then I go back to Chicago and then out to NYC for the rest of the summer in June. 

Provo, you're fun and all, but I'm kinda done with you for now. Is that okay? Okay. Awesome. Glad we're on the same page. 

Things I've done in recent months that should have been put up on here but weren't:

Curling. As in the Olympic sport on ice with brooms. Hilariously fun. I didn't even fall! 

Archery. I felt a little bit like Katniss. So did Jessica. And in terms of competition, she kicked my butt. She'd shoot the squirrel in the eye. I'd probably get its neck.

Buttermilk Scones have become a Sunday tradition in our apartment. Even Jay makes them. Actually he makes them more often (and actually better) than I do. Sometimes they are blueberry, sometimes they are strawberry, or mango - but usually, they are chocolate, which is best. Annie thought so too. She liked them so much she proposed to me. But it was via text, so I couldn't reasonably accept.

Cookies. Oatmeal cookies. I love them. Perhaps too much.

Thai fried rice. I was on a Thai kick earlier this semester. This was one of the results.

The lake. It's one of my favorite places. And Cousin Clara was there. Double win. 

Photo adventure with Katrina. Construction is a great playground.

Jay sometimes puts things in funny places. Like leaving his milk on the counter and putting his protein powder in the fridge where his milk goes. 

This video has both entertained and horrified our apartment. Special juice in continually involved in conversations, and it has also been replaced with "purple drank" and "dp" - I'm pretty sure Quinton and I won't be speaking normal English after living with each other for another year. We don't really speak it now. 

I made another book. I was pleased with the outcome. It needs to be sent to its intended recipient. Badly. 

Ricotta gnocchi: easy, quick, yummy. Roasted red pepper pesto sauce & tomato chorizo sauces were both delicious. Christine approved. Then again, if you don't approve of fluffy cheese pillows smothered in deliciousness, then you must be crazy. Or maybe your name is Melissa, and it's okay, I'd still love you.

I listened to this song more times than I can remember. Sigur Ros is my musical drug of choice. 

Dance parties have happened to these songs:

Mackintosh Braun - The Same

Just listen. It'll be fun.

M83 - Midnight City.
Interesting video, and the song is amazing.

Skrillex - Bangarang
Running to this is epic.

Foster the People - Helena Beat

So much better than Pumped Up Kicks. So much better.

Lykki Li - I Follow Rivers

Video is strange. Song is awesome.

And I made bread. Lots of bread. With rosemary and sea salt and parmesan. It was YUMMY!

This website made my cry of laughter. (Profanity in abundance, but it is hilarious). Also this has fueled me calling Cody not just by his first name but Mr. Cody. And Q and Jay and Jon have all become Mr. Q, Mr. Jay, and Mr. Jon. And Mr. is pronounced Mista. Like I said, my English is falling apart.

Anything else that happened probably involved excel, my financial calculator, fast food, Narnia, the HBLL, the grocery store, the gym, or any combination of the above. 

Dinner adventures: Spicy Mint Beef

Pretty much the only thing I watch on TV with any regularity is the Food Network. Chopped, Iron Chef, 30 minute meals...anything, really. If it involves food, I'm generally entertained.

I saw a recipe for this spicy mint beef that Giada did. She's the Italian lady - so I was confused as to why she was cooking Thai food, but hey, it looked worth trying. 

Also, backtrack: the first time I went to San Francisco, back like 10 years ago, my family and I went to a Thai place with my aunt and uncle. It was the first time I remember having Thai food. I had a spicy basil duck, and oh my, it was delicious. And this spicy mint beef, well, its a lot like it. More minty, but the recipe calls for lots of basil too, and given it is a ten year old flavor memory, but tonight's dinner really came close and was a most delicious endeavor. 

I got the recipe here, but only did 2 Serrano chilies, and then probably only did about 2 teaspoons of the chili paste. Still had plenty of kick and flavor. 

Happy cooking!

Food.

So, for those who know me well, they know that I'm actually majoring in accounting, not photography. This is surprise to many, but in fact the truth. I like using both sides of my brain. 

And most people who actually know me know that food is essential to my happiness and stability in pretty much any situation. No food = not a happy James. If I'm in a bad mood, chances are if you give me food I'll feel better in a matter of 5 minutes, tops. Seriously. 

So today, when I made balsamic chicken, homemade parmesan-rosemary encrusted Italian bread, veggies with hummus, and cookies with Berry-Callebaut chocolate chunks topped with some amazing strawberry ice cream, I was in heaven. It was a yummy yummy meal. 

Now that you have some grasp of my love for food, let me explain what this post is really about:

A friend of mine is doing a new year's resolution of trying one new recipe a week. I like this. I'm going to try. 

So I'm starting off with this recipe (which I guess technically doesn't count because I made it on Christmas but we're just going to use it anyone b/c I have pictures of it), although I have tried a few new recipes in the new year, I just don't have photos of the results. 

So, these were the baked pears I adapted from minimally invasive - check out the recipe here!

What I changed: 

No amaretto in the marscapone cream, and more sugar. 

Also, I just mixed 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract with 1/2 cup of sugar for the vanilla sugar. 

Other than that, I the recipe stayed the same. 

And they were delicious. Light, full of flavor, sweet, and juicy. My family had a hard time deciding if they liked the pears or the cream better. Both were awesome.

And now, the photos. Not as lovely as the ones at Minimally Invasive, but hey, I'm new to the whole "let's take pictures of all of my food!" thing. 

I said I never would

I've been asked countless times if I shoot wedding photos. Up until last November, I always said no. I said I never ever would, actually.

...and then I said yes. 

So last month (technically, last year also - that reminds me - Happy New Year!) I did pictures for Kim and Logan at the Salt Lake City Temple. They are just such happy people and were a joy to work with. Then I got to take pictures at the Chicago Illinois Temple with Sydney and Ben. You will probably recognize Syd from the balloon shoots and the newspaper dresses. They are hilarious and it was fun to work with friends. 

Check out a few more on my Facebook page or my portfolio!

And I have another wedding shoot tomorrow! I'm so excited. Next week another engagement shoot. 

After that? Well, I'm not sure yet, but it might involve driving to California and vineyards and other friends I love. 

Wonderland: Alice, part II

I had a final at 7 am today. I told myself I would be really productive studying afterwards.

I crashed a little bit, although some studying did get done (oh the production cycle...thrilling, really).

(Not really)

I found myself revisiting the Alice shoot from October, and found some shots I really loved. And editing was certainly more entertaining than internal controls after I spent 10 hrs studying for audit yesterday and then after the final this morning.

Tomorrow is going to be a 12 hour study day. Really, it is.

I'd rather go to Wonderland, I think.

Enjoy.

Jay, and the lens miracle.

3 wedding jobs, a family shoot, and an engagement shoot. All in the next month. So exciting!

And my lens died on me. My other zoom lens? Something went weird and there were spots on one of the internal pieces of glass. $130 to fix and who knows how long it would take. I could rent lenses in the meantime, but it would be pain in the butt. 

Then, I thought, well I'll just see how bad the spots are. 

Let me tell you, they were BAD before. The beautiful pictures I did in San Francisco were killed by them. Editing took 5x longer than normal due to them. 

And then, a miracle happened. Literally. I tried my lens out again today. Looked at it through the light. Took it off the camera, inspected every inch of it. 

You know what? Not one spot to be found on the glass. Or in the photos. I have no idea how that happened, but I couldn't be happier about it.

Today's post features Jay. Jay and I met back in freshman year. He makes me laugh. He is tall, goofy, and didn't graduate high school. And although he didn't graduate high school, he got 100% in his Chem 105 class. And that, friends, is worthy of superhero status. Jay doesn't like food. In this area, we are polar opposites. But ladies - you really should all be fighting over this guy. He's pretty much the most interesting and kind person in the world, besides my other two roommates, Q and Jon. 

This is back from our adventure to Alcatraz for Thanksgiving 2010. 

No editing on this picture. None. Zero. 

None here, either. 

Perhaps my favorite of Jay. 

I was testing my 50mm. This was the last picture it took before its death. Someday, I will travel to Spain. It will be epic beyond imagining. 

This is right outside, taken from my balcony. Utah, you are so cool sometimes. 

Jay told me to take a picture of the bird. So I did.