Save your money. Before you buy a hand painted, or computer generated background, go outside, and take a walk around your neighborhood. You’re likely to find great backgrounds that will enable your vision to take shape without spending a dime.

But, it’s winter, you say. Yep, so grab a coat. Make sure you’re subject has a coat, heat up the car, and go shoot.

But, it’s snowing outside. Yes, so grab a cup of hot chocolate, get one for your subject, and stay inside.

I want you to save money, but I’m not crazy!

The background I used for the picture of my son, is the door to an old storage shed we have in the backyard. It’s been there for as long as I can remember, and I never considered it to be photo worthy. Until, I saw it as a potential background.

Look around your house, your neighborhood. There’s concrete walls, brick walls, trees, stucco buildings, gates, alleys, storefronts, all types of interesting backgrounds. Hey, how ’bout a park. You heard of them, right?

A concrete sidewalk makes a terrific background for a headshot, as does hardwood flooring (a tip I learned from Zack Arias). Use things around your studio, or your home, that are, well, just there. Once you start looking for backgrounds “in the wild” you’ll discover them everywhere.

I wanted my son to look serious. He chose to adopt an attitude instead. Gee, what a surprise for a teenage boy. In any event, I think it worked.

Go look for backgrounds, and let me know what you’ve discovered.

(click on image for larger version)

Thank you all for visiting this blog.

I am retiring from the political arena to devote all my energies towards photography.

a great deal to me.

This past weekend I attended a photography workshop in Georgia. It was not an accident. It was there I made my decision to concentrate 100% on my photography.

There is no greater endeavor than to fight for ones country, and you my friends, have done, and are doing a noble job in protecting our liberties from the likes of Obama. Your dedication gives me hope that we will be victorious, and America will be restored to the nation our founding fathers dreamed of.

While I was fighting the good fight with you all, my God, and family, and my photography business we’re being neglected. Not to the extent that I was in danger of losing any of them, but my mind was solely focused on the political arena, and I don’t believe that is my calling in life.

The passion I have for photography could have only been imparted from above, and I must honor that call.

I am not leaving Twitter altogether. My apolitical twitter id is @amfoxhound, although I may change that in the future. @dazedjourney will be kept active, but silent on matters political. It’s time for me to address my life’s priorities.

It was an honor to meet each of you, and it’s been a great privilege to call you my friends.

Even though I’m retiring from the battle of politics, my prayers will be lifted up daily for each of you.

Stay strong. Fight the fight. American will once again shine brightly, and it will be because of people like you.

I shall end my farewell message, with my customary good night tweet – May the good Lord bless all of you, and God Bless America!

Posted via email from dazedjourney’s posterous

There was nothing racist about Joe Wilson calling Obama a liar, as Jimmy Carter proclaims.

Fact, Jimmy, Obama is a liar, and his color doesn’t matter one whit.

If he was white, he’d be a liar. He if was purple, he’d be a liar. If Obama were green, he’d be a liar.

Joe Wilson’s comment had nothing to do with the color of Obama’s skin. It had everything to do with the color of Obama’s character, which is as black as the deepest black hole.

And, dear, senile, president Carter, I have nothing against black holes, white holes, or donut holes. Please don’t call me a hole racist.

Obama is a liar. Pure and simple. Joe Wilson told the truth about the man, Obama. Not, the black man, Obama, simply, the man, Obama.

Mr. Carter, you were a moron as president, and you are a moron now. I applaud you on your consistent behavior. In a way, it’s refreshing to know we can always count on you to incoherently say nothing, and still draw the media’s attention.

I don’t know whom is more stupid. You for your ridiculous statements, or the media for its lack of judgment in giving you any print space at all.

What can I say about prez Obama that hasn’t already been written? Nothing.

So, let’s see…Once upon a time Obama worked with Acorn as a community organizer. Since that time he’s kept in contact with the folks at Acorn. I suppose he just wanted to keep in contact with old friends. Nothing wrong with that.

Then, came Obama’s stimulus package which is the most pork laden bill ever to be rammed through the halls of congress. Yet, Obama still tells us his stimulus bill is free or earmarks. My friends, Obama has completely lost his mind, or he is a pathological liar. I’ll let you decide which.

In the stimulus bill, which according to Obama, has no earmarks (another word for pork), we find several billion dollars going to Acorn. Isn’t that special?

So, not only has Barry kept in touch with his old friends at Acorn, but loves them dearly enough to funnel billions of dollars of tax payer money in their direction. Obama, appears to be a good financial friend to have.

But, all has not gone swimmingly with Acorn. Lately, they have allegedly (although the evidence is clear to see on the video tapes) been enabling child prostitution rings, setting up brothels, etc., all on the taxpayer’s dime.

I’m sure president Obama will sick his AG, Holder on Acorn, just as he instructed Holder to go after the CIA.

If Obama does not instruct Holder to prosecute Acorn, we must conclude a few things:
1. Obama supports children being used as prostitutes.
2. Obama is garnering untold amounts of cash from Acorn, and doesn’t want anyone harming his golden goose.
3. Obama would rather see children sold as prostitutes, than see justice served.
4. Obama is so morally bankrupt, and he simply doesn’t care about anyone but himself.

It will be interesting to see how Obama handles the Acorn child prostitution ring scandal. His actions will speak louder than his tele-prompted words. And, as we have seen in the past, his actions reveal his true intentions for America.

We’re watching you Barry.

Human life has been likened to the four seasons. Spring, the start and renewal of life. Summer, the living of life. Fall, the maturing of life, and winter signals the end of life. Poetic, to be sure, but when winter comes to a family far ahead of its time, poetic beauty is lost and replaced with the harsh realities of life.

Martin Niederer, was in the summer of his life. It was his time to live, to enjoy, to savor every moment of every day. But, on September 11th, 2001, Martin’s summer turned into winter. In a moment’s time, far too soon, his life on this earth ended.

Today, we pay tribute to Martin Niederer, one of the 2,996 people whose earthly existence ended on 9/11. Each of the 2,996 deserves their own tribute. Their memory, and the reason they are no longer here, must forever be remembered. It is my privilege to honor Martin Niederer. And, to the other 2, 995 victims of 9/11, rest assured, we shall never forget!

Martin Niederer, was America. His hard work, dedication, love of family and friends, exemplified the America he loved, and the America he would have been proud to die for, if given the choice. Martin, did not have a choice. The enemies of America took Martin’s life, robbing his family and friends of a treasure placed in their hands by God.

By the age of 23, Martin had lived a life many people dream of. He had three passions in life, basketball, family, and later the world of business.

Martin loved basketball. He played point guard, and did it well. After growing up in Western New Jersey, Martin attended the University of Vermont, where he continued to play basketball.

But, Martin was always open to explore the possibilities that life could offer, and on a trip to Wall Street, he discovered the world of finance. Martin’s love for basketball would always remain a part of him, but the business world was calling, and Martin answered that call with the same dedication he applied to all areas of his life.

After graduating from the University of Vermont in 1999, Martin was recruited by Cantor Fitzegerald, and begin his career as a securities trader.

Martin’s head and heart were always in the right place. He maintained close ties with his family, and would often have them over for dinner. Martin also enjoyed entertaining his friends. Martin was living the good life, a life he had earned by hard work and due diligence.

On September 11, 2001, Martin arrived early at his office in the Twin Towers. He sent out an e-mail to a friend around 7:45 a.m. “That was the last anyone heard from him,” said Charles Niederer, Martin’s father.

Martin is survived by his parents, Charles W. and Marilyn Niederer of Richmond, Va., and a brother, Brian Charles Niederer of Atlanta.

Martin was a young man with his life in front of him. He was in the summer of his life. Family, romance, a family of his own, all were within his sights. Martin was robbed of those things, and so were we.

But, Martin did leave us his life. He left us with memories of a young man who knew how to turn dreams into reality. Martin left us with memories of a young man who valued family above business, and who had America’s dream in his heart.

I have a feeling that when Martin walked into a room, the room became a brighter place to be. He was the energy that sparked others into action, he was the catalyst for a thousand good deeds. His life, and how he lived it remains an example of balancing family, business, and relationships, so that none suffers, but all are enriched. A rare gift indeed. But, so was Martin.

We will never forget you Martin. Thank you for enriching our lives.

We will never forget!

Tonight, I wrote a memorial for someone I never met. All the information I had was gathered from the Internet. There wasn’t a ton of information available, but for a project like this what was there was enough.

9/11/2001 was a tragic day in American history. On that day 2,996 people lost their lives as a result of four airplanes overtaken by terrorists. Two of the planes crashed into the Twin Towers in New York City, and caused the demise of both the towers. Both towers were destroyed as were the lives of the people working in them.

The other two planes had different targets. One made it’s mission, the other did not. Flight 93 was diverted from its target, the Whitehouse, by brave passengers and crew. Flight 93 landed in a field in western Pennsylvania. There were no survivors.

The fourth plane made it to the Pentagon doing extensive damage and killed more innocent people.

Since that tragic day, America’s slogan has been, “We will never forget. “. Not forgetting is twofold. We will never forget the people who lost their lives, and we will never forget whose hands are stained with the blood of the innocent.

Islamist terrorists are responsible for the carnage and destruction of that day. They say they did it in the name of their god, Allah.

Islam, the religion of peace killed 2,996 Americans. And, now many years later our president, Barack Obama has the audacity to host a dinner party for these followers of Allah at the Whitehouse. This act desecrates the lives and memories of each person who died on 9/11.

Apparently, president Obama has forgotten what happened on 9/11. We, the American people, have not.

Obama would like to erase history and have 9/11 become a national day of service, like some feel good Boy Scout jamboree. Obama would like to erase from our memory the people responsible for the destruction and death they caused that day. We say, “No, Mr. President, we will not forget.”

One can only imagine Obama’s desire to obscure the memory of 9/11. Whatever the reason, it has nothing to do with honor, but rather dishonor.

President Obama dishonors the lives lost. He dishonors the countless hours thousands of volunteers struggled through debris, tears and sweat to rescue and recover as many people as they could.

Obama dishonors the grieving hearts of friends and families, of futures never to be, and children who who still cry for mommy and daddy.

No, Mr. President. 9/11 shall not be a day of service. We will never forget, and you sir had better remember.

2,996 innocent people died. It is their lives we honor. It is their deaths we mourn. It is their memories we carry in our hearts.

No, Mr. President. No. We will never forget.

Posted via email from Beating of the Drums

The Czars have to to be removed from their positions. We don’t know their salaries. We don’t know their other compensations. We don’t know what kind of vacation time they have. We don’t know the limit of their power. We don’t know how they can bypass congress when making policy that will effect the entire country. We don’t now why Obama needs all the help.

Wasn’t he supposed to be the One, The Messiah, the One from whom all answers would flow.

Instead all we see flowing from his expertise are one failed program after another failed program. Obama wants to break everything that’s working in American with some hair-brained text book ideology that history has proven will fail every time it’s tried. Yet, he continues burying this nation deeper and deeper in debt.

Get rid of the Czars. Stop giving Obama’s failed plans a hangar upon which to hang his loser’s hat. Let him stand and fall on his own merits.

Problem with that is, Obama is so far out of his league he has no idea what to do on his own. He head is full of ideas from others, while having nothing original between his ears.

When Obama is giving his cold, calculated teleprompter driven speech tonight.spewing I pray some one calls him a lair, or boos him, or shows dissent to the lies that are sure to be spewing out of his mouth,

Perhaps no applause. Our congressman must let Obama know, he is finished. His school boy charm is not enough to lead the greatest country in the world. A community leader has no business being in the white house other than organizing the cleaning staff to keep the place spic and span.

Obama was never ready to be president, but the electorate was ready to elect a young super star. Sucker Punch!!!!

Obama was the least vetted presidential candidate ever, and we still know nothing about him. Yet, people will defend a man whom they know nothing about. Amazing.

Remove the Czars. Let the Emperor dance around the WH fully naked, unprotected by the czars robes. Let the public see Obama for who he really is. a spoiled child, who by hook and crook has conned enough people to have thrown him into his present job. A job, he is woefully under qualified.

Posted via email from Beating of the Drums