SALDIVARS ASSEMBLE!
by betoman on May.04, 2012, under Creativity, Family, Movies
This weekend the AVENGERS movie opens and WE HAVE TO GO SEE IT. But it was going to be hard since it will be one of the years HOT movies. So it inspired me to keep my Photoshop skills up to date.
I have purchased our tickets online (my superhero trait) and we’ll go Sunday afternoon so we can sort of beat the crowds and be blinded once we walk out of theartre in bright sunlight.
Thinking of the crowds we’d face I got inspired since I knew my family was up for the challenge. So I created a movie poster, like I had done for Star Trek awhile back.
Originally I was going to actually do a photo shoot to get the photos but then I remembered this beautiful picture of my wife I had taken in our portrait photoshoot so I started looking for more images. I found one of Emmy during her Track and Field event and I even found one of me when I was just clowing around practicing with some lighting techniques.
Joaquin was the tough one. I didn’t have many but then Liz reminded me of the photos I took of him before his sophomore year for football. As you all remembered he had to drop out due to his concussions but I thought, he looked like a “HULK” in his pads so I decided to use the photo.
I created the logo and then ASSEMBLED the team. I’m quite happy with the results.
I know, I’m such the geek.
Now to go see the movie on Sunday!
Beto
Popularity: 2% [?]
1940 – 50″s Glamour photo shoot
by betoman on Apr.24, 2012, under Creativity, Photography
FINALLY finished editing the photos from the photo shoot with my wonderful friend, Vanessa. I decided I wanted try my hand at a 40′s-50′s style of Glamour photo shoot so I asked Vanessa, who is a loving wife, mother of two and a marathon runner if she wouldn’t mind letting me photograph her as a Hollywood glamour actress/model. Van agreed.
Van came over with her sister, Alyssa, on a Sunday afternoon with the help of my buddy Mike (kept me on track with my shot list), we began shooting. Even my wife Liz got into the “swing” of things.
I took them in color but then added some black and white (and other) effects in Lightroom and some clean up in Photoshop.
But man…does my friend make an absolute gorgeous model? That’s her in all of the pictures. Her sister even brought over some short wigs and the transformation was incredible. Van and Alyssa were ready with so many outfits and Van was very patient with me on the poses and took direction very well. The last three photos in the gallery below we just were clowning around, I wanted a silhouette of her and I told her, “show me those guns!” It was fun. I’m still trying to prefect my craft but I’m happy with them.
Click on the thumbnails for a larger look.
Later on I’ll post some behind the scenes (BTS) photos of a DIY project I created to help me shoot tethered on this photo shoot.
Thanks Van, Alyssa, Mike and Liz for all of your help. And Van, I appreciate your patience with all this, especially when my Mac hard drive crashed.
Beto
Popularity: 10% [?]
“Mea filius possedi numisma in Latine.”
by betoman on Apr.22, 2012, under Creativity, Family, Photography
That’s my son, with the gold medal he received for competing in a national Latin exam. The blog title reads, “My son got a medal in Latin” for you non-Latin speaking folks out there.
I’m very proud of my son Joaquin, besides being an all around good young man he is doing very well at school too.
He is finishing up his sophomore year at Antonian High School and was thinking of switching from Latin to Spanish.
This is his first year in Latin and although he really enjoys the mythology portion of Latin, it is very challenging for him. On our drives home from school he’d tell me about how difficult Latin could be or how he missed a couple of questions because he didn’t use the correct “neutered” adjective or noun.
I already don’t like the language.
So he wanted to give Spanish a try because he thought it could be beneficial for his job at Fiesta Texas. But when he submitted his course schedule for his Junior year, his Latin teacher asked him to reconsider since he was doing well in the course. Plus, they could use his support in the mythology portions of Latin competitions.
His teacher also mentioned that he had earned a medal at the last competition too. Joaquin was very surprised and when he told Liz and I, we were very apologetic because we didn’t know either!
During our dinner conversation, we told him how very proud we were of his accomplishment. He humbly responded that a lot of kids got a medal but I went so far as to say, “Mea culpa” for not knowing. To which Joaquin acknowledged with his signature toothy grin.
That is the extent of my knowledge of Latin, so I was glad he got my intent.
So, after much deliberation by him and true to his character (he tries hard never to quit something he’s started) he will stick with Latin next year.
He brought his medal home and when I told him to come out so I could snap a picture, he knew what I was going to do and asked:
“Dad, are you gonna post this on your blog? Because some of my friends are following your blog and they give me ‘bleep’ about it.”
I thought about it for a moment…
- My intent is not to embarrass him
- So what if other kids got a medal – HE’S MY KID.
- And hell, I’m proud of him and not afraid to show it.
Sorry Papa, I hope you can forgive your ‘ol man.
Beto
Popularity: 4% [?]
Easter 2012 at my Brother’s and Sis-in-Law’s Ranch
by betoman on Apr.17, 2012, under Family, Photography
Finally got around to going through images from last Easter.
This past Easter my Brother (Martin) and my Sis-in-Law (Trish) invited all of us to come spend Easter at their ranch in Stockdale, TX. We got there Friday night and stayed until Saturday late afternoon. All the neices and nephews enjoyed it out there. They got to ride horses, do a hay ride, drive around in his “country go-kart” – the Ranger, went swimming and some even got to shoot some guns.
It was a very enjoyable weekend and I spent some time shooting some pictures. I finally got around to culling them down but it’s almost about 100 so I posted them all in a gallery below so everyone can see the entire weekend.
My brother even had us clean his arena by having a “rock pick up contest” with prizes. Over 500lbs of rocks were collected. It was fun to watch.
So – click on below and see the pictures.
Beto
Popularity: 4% [?]
Punishment for not knowing music…
by betoman on Apr.11, 2012, under Creativity, Family
A little taste of what goes on at the Saldivar household…
So I’m sitting with Liz on the sofa watching the DVR’d Glee episode when they mention, Simon La Bon.
Yes…I watch Glee…
I innocently look over at my adoring wife and ask, “Who’s Simon La Bon?”
In less than 5 seconds the following events occur:
- I see the magnificently beautiful brow on my wife furrow…
- Then she snaps her head to me – eyes locked on her target…
- I catch a blur of motion as I vaguely register the site of her “Moma Backhand” racing towards me…
- My smile doesn’t even have the chance to change to a frown before stars explode in front of me followed by blackness…
Don’t know how long I was down (7…8….9!) but as my vision cleared Liz was standing over me asking why I didn’t know who the lead singer was from DURAN DURAN!
Shaking off the cobwebs and mumbling, “Em Oka’d, Em Ok..” I get back on the sofa and listen to her half-hearty apologize for clocking me…
“…I just can’t BAH-LEAVE you didn’t know who that was!” Said my musical genius. Then she smiled and jumped to another story…
“You know who’s getting back together? La Franzzz! Remember them?”
Before a sound escapes my lips, I instinctively raised two clenched fists to my face…classic boxer defense strategy…
“Remember protect yourself at all times…” the referee said.
“Uhm….who?” Ready to bop and weave…
“YOU DON’T REMEMBER!?”
Suddenly this smoke filled boxing ring is smaller, my vision begins to blur, I realized I was going down for the count from a barrage of rabbit punches followed by a vicious upper cut…
- “It was the local 80′s band you and I went to see at the rodeo ON OUR FIRST DATE!”
- “You took me to the rodeo”
- “It was freezing cold”
- “I didn’t want to get on that flying saucer ride but you made me”
- “Then I got sick”
I start smiling and unconsciously lower my hands as I recount the true story of our first date…oh so many many years ago (25?).
I do remember…
Liz smiles and when she moved closer to snuggle, I flinch – thinking she lured me in by giving me a false sense of security, I was waiting for the upper cut.
But she didn’t…and just smiles as she hugs me.
Over 25 years with this woman and she still has this power over me.
…and okay, all of this is true EXCEPT – I’m not a battered husband…but I did flinch.
Beto
Popularity: 4% [?]
