Dahlias Dahling!

It's a great honor working with the Washington Chapter of the ASID covering the Dahlia Regalia. Every year we have been connecting for an amazing evening with everyone dressed up and having a blast connecting with their peers from our industry.  This year it was in Tacoma on my home turf at the Tacoma Golf and Country Club. In the middle of our 82 days of no rain the weather was amazing!
We went for a Red Carpet look with the event photography which added to the party feel. Here is Tori Ross (red dress) from Cosentino and Julie Myers, ASID, IIDA (black dress) who is also our 2012 Designer of Distinction, Educator of the Year award recipient captured on our red carpet!
http://asidwa.org/

Saving the Salmon

I think Salmon are one of the greatest creatures on earth. I spent years as a commercial fisher being outsmarted by the different varieties of Salmon. All the species are pretty smart except for our rather slow friend the Pink or “Humpy” Salmon. I’m digressing. What we are talking about is a wonderful organization based here in the Pacific Northwest.

Salmon Safe’s http://www.salmonsafe.org/ mission is to transform land management practices allowing our friends the Pacific Salmon to thrive. They even help the Humpy’s. In a world where we are starting to moan every time we hear the word sustainability (I don’t moan but most of my Architect friends do) Salmon Safe stands as a clarion to the benefits of conserving, preserving and restoring our precious watersheds. They certify vineyards, farms, university campuses and even golf courses. They are one of the good guys in white hats riding the backs of beautiful Salmon returning to healthy watersheds of the Pacific Northwest.

So when I had images I captured of the sustainable, eco-friendly, water harvesting landscaping that had helped win awards for the PCC Edmonds store http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/ I jumped at the chance to be a part of such a respected organization. Plus they used a photo credit that was big enough to be seen AND I was on Television. The PCC Edmonds store is not only Salmon Safe certified but also awarded a Platinum LEED certification, which is no small feat. They never moan when they hear the word sustainability. Check out the show here:

http://www.king5.com/new-day-northwest/Salmon-Safe-Ceritifed-116422494.html

Taos Eco Park

Saturday April 16th was the official opening for the Taos Eco Park. I took a quick trip to Taos to shoot the project and the opening for my client LDG Architects of Taos New Mexico. What a heartwarming, exciting project. I reconnected with old friends like Brian Greer the director of the Taos Youth and Family center. He was one of the team members in creating this world class soccer venue. As it is the highest 2 star FIFA sanctioned soccer field in the world, Brian was telling me he had just talked to the Rwanda National football team about training in the new facility as they have a game in Mexico city and need to train at altitude. Doug Patterson the principal and driving force for LDG Architects utilized smart sustainability which is the trademark of LDG Architects. Features like water recycling, solar technology and an amazing playing field that is safe, beautiful and uses no water make this a world class venue while conserving resources. The Taos Eco Park was a community effort that is a shining star or actually a shining 2 star dream that was turned into reality.

This one is Personal

What a great project this is. It's like coming home regarding all the great entities and people involved in the creation. First of all it was built for Angel Fire Resort who I have been involved with professionally and personally since the 80's, a cool jewel of a Resort in the Northern New Mexico. It was designed by LDG Architects in Taos, New Mexico. LDG is a dynamic team who were sustainable before sustainable was main stream. One of my favorite things is that it was built by Dov Sunbow Construction. I've known Dov since he was knee high to a Bullfrog and to hear all the Bosses in the project rain down accolades on the quality of his work has made my heart soar like an Eagle. Our websites Architectural-Interior-Photographer.com and ResortHotelPhotographer.com both will have a project pages relating to this project for more information and in depth facts and details of the project. For a direct link to the project page click here. A beautiful project created by excellent people!

Sustainable Architecture

Center for Urban Waters, a possible LEED Platinum building


This was published on the Resort website as well but it holds very true for both sites and the world.

I recycle. I even did it when I lived in New Mexico and had to take it to the recycling center, five miles, uphill, both ways. It took some effort. I also remember I had single pane windows. Ouch. After this week at the Living Future conference here in Seattle I am now a believer and realize how lame my understanding was. I photographed the "What makes it Green" juried competition for the American Institute of Architects chapter here in Seattle. This was a tough jury. They asked hard questions. I was impressed with the answers they received. I'm glad they weren't asking me those questions. My loft has single pane windows but I do have very well insulating curtains. I've raised my consciousness. Attending the opening night at the "Living Futures" conference increased my awareness. While the keynote speaker James Howard Kunstler gave his doomsday speech about the environmental apocalypse that is only 36 months away. I think his job is analogous to that of the Baptist Minister, "If you don't change your sinning ways, you are going to burn in hell". His pessimism aside, his speech made me think. After attending both events I immediately edited the AIP website to recognize the efforts my clients make to be sustainable. I realize that being green isn't going to be just a good idea. As we see with areas of the public sector, not just a good idea, it's the Law! Unlike dear James Howard I am optimistic about the future. I am excited about communicating sustainability through imagery. It's now a core of the Architectural-Interior-Photographer business model. And I think it's getting better, I just have to walk across the street with my recyclables. Cheers!

First Blog

Oh La La is this a lot of work. Creating albums, galleries, keywords, SEO optimized text, client project pages, ITPC data, Drupal, Gallery, James Woods, (Thank God for James Woods), collecting interesting text, creating blogs, website design, computer time, writing copy, having Jocelyn correct my copy ( Jocelyn is a blessing) Just so you know, this is going to go BIG! Stay tuned I'll fill you in. Check out the site here