I am living in London until Christmas and I have a new blog/website to track my trip.

Please visit www.ryaninlondon.com to follow me!

Star musical acts from around the country came to the 142 Throckmorton Theater in Mill Valley on December 17 for Narada Michael Walden’s annual Holiday Jam and once again, this intimate show proved priceless. Can you name another show in a small venue sold out to no more than a few hundred attendees with appearances by musical geniuses as big as Carlos Santana, Narada Michael Walden and Tommy Johnston? I didn’t think so. The band rocked on for nearly four hours as guest after guest took turns on the stage giving audience members a show that was sure to be remembered.

Proceeds benefit the Narada Michael Walden Foundation which promotes and supports music education for Bay Area youth.

Lynn Asher

Jeanie Tracy

Tevin Campbell

Narada Michael Walden

Sakai

Nikita Germaine

Dale “Satchmo” Powers

Narada Michael Walden

Manuel Romero

Lara Johnston

Tommy Johnston

Tony Lindsay

Tevin Campbell

Lynn Asher

Jeanie Tracy

Carlos Santana

Nikita Germaine

End Notes: I shot this show entirely with the Pentax K20d at 1600 ISO. I used the 70-200 f/2.8 for the majority of the show by shooting from the sides of the theater and from the balcony. I did my best to move around and get up close to the stage to shoot with the 50mm f/1.4 and 16-45 f/4.

So it’s that time of year, and the Selewicz family climbed up on the roof to do something incredibly dangerous and stupid to get that action filled Christmas card photo that all of the neighbors would be talking about. Ok, maybe there was some Photoshop involved, but shhh, don’t tell anybody!

Merry Christmas to all!

A funny letter my father received regarding this card:

What the hell kind of Christmas card are you sending out to your insurance agent!!! That is a liability bro!!!!!!! I will need to be at next year’s Christmas Card picture just to manage what ever non-liability shot we need for next year. This year we have kids on the roof with no harness, no helmet, no gloves or safety goggles. Your bride is not wearing a reflective vest or cleated shoes for the roof. You are wearing a very looses jacket that can catch onto anything, the ladder is not secured to the house nor have the legs backed up on the ground so it doesn’t slide. I could go on but now I need some egg nog and brandy.

Merry Christmas!

End Notes: All of the photos used to make this composite were taken with the Pentax K20d and the 50mm f/1.4 and put together in Photoshop CS5. There are three main photos involved in this composite, then some others used for little spot fixes. I’ll leave the rest a mystery

It was a concert like none other. Dozens of famous musicians and vocalists from all over the country made their way to Mill Valley for Narada Michael Walden’s annual Holiday Jam Benefit Concert. The list of special guests was seemingly endless with names like Tony Lindsay, Tommy Johnston, Lara Johnston, Tevin Campbell, Jeanie Tracy, Dale “Satchmo” Powers, and many more. The unannounced special guest that made the night even more unforgettable was Carlos Santana. Disappearing from his seat during intermission and not returning for the second act, his wife still enjoying the music, anticipation began to grow for the idea that Carlos may be preparing to take the stage himself. When he finally emerged, guitar in hand, the crowd rose, he took charge of the stage, and the band started rocking for a finally that will continue to ring within the hearts of all in attendance for years to come.

Narada Michael Walden

Tom Johnston (Doobie Brothers) & Lara Johnston

Carlos Santana

End Notes: More photos will be added soon.

Finals week just passed at Santa Clara University and, as is tradition, some of my friends, Paul, Gordon, Ryan & Duncan, were looking for a way to distract themselves from the laptop screens, energy drinks, and desk lamps that had consumed their lives all week. This photo shoot did just that. We went out to the O’Connor Hall archway at around 10pm when the only ones out were the occasional student cycling or long boarding by on their way either to or from the library. The guys were dressed perfectly for some classy photos in a classic old-style setting.

End Notes: I took these photos with the Pentax K20d and the 16-45mm f/4. I tried the 50mm f/1.4, but since there are stairs on either side of the hallway I couldn’t stand back far enough. Instead I kept the camera real steady, put it at about 1/20 of a second, and added even more light in Photoshop. Most of the shots are back lit with the Vivitar 285hv and triggered with Cybersyncs.

Thanks to the amazing Vaniah Holtz for helping me hold lights (and for posing in the last photo of this set)!

Imagine sitting in a dark theater as the pleasant squeal of a lone violin begins to reverberate throughout the room. The volume slowly increases as an operatic chorus begins in the background. A lone man (Lane Renfort) sits on a bench and begins to mime his story as an ensemble of dancers begins gracefully off to the side. The booming voice of a narrator starts with the words of the classic Samuel M. Johnson poem “Lovers on a Park Bench” and the dancers gracefully begin a performance illustrating the struggles a young couple faces to express an inexpressible love for each other. This piece, “With Their Bodies Touching” choreographed by student Anna Houk, was just one of the seven incredibly diverse and inspiring pieces included this show which took place December 1st and 2nd in the Mayer Theater at Santa Clara University.

Flirtationship

The Only Truth That Sticks

Forces

Soaring in the Fog

With Their Bodies Touching

Breaking Barriers

PoohBahSan

End Notes: All of these photos were taken with a Nikon D300s and the Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. I was filling in for Michael Erkelens who had a prior obligation so he let me borrow his camera. I have to say, I’m seriously thinking about switching over to Nikon after how this shoot turned out. I’ll have to buy a new hard drive first, though ’cause these NEF files are even bigger than the DNG files that come from my Pentax.

750 students, most sporting Mariners apparel of some sort, made their way to this year’s fall concert sponsored the Santa Clara University Activities Programming Board featuring the Seattle hip hop artist, Macklemore. This was the first year the fall concert was held in the Locatelli Student Activities Center and the smaller venue definitely made for a more intimate show. Timeflies opened the show with an engaging set for the few students who showed up early enough seemingly making it his goal to high five everyone squished into the front fow. A quick 20 minute set change later, Kap Slap hit the stage as the crowd began to grow in anticipation of the headlining act. Kap Slap got the crowd going with some of his popular mash ups and they were ready to rock when Macklemore hit the stage. Santa Clara is a popular school for students from Seattle and they felt right at home during Macklemore’s in-your-face, fast paced set.

Timeflies:

Kap Slap:

Macklemore:

End Notes: I photographed this show primarily with the Nikon D7000 and the 14-24mm f/2.8 and 24-70mm f/2.8 lenses, but had the 70-200mm f/2.8 and 50mm f/1.4 in the bag in case I needed them. The extremely good performance of the Nikon D7000 at ISO 3200 prevented me from needing the f/1.4 prime so I was able to enjoy the flexibility of the zoom lenses. I also kept the SP900 speedlight on the camera and used it when it was really dark, but I got my best photos when I had it turned off. I shot these in RAW as usual and I’m sure glad I did ’cause these photos needed a lot of lighting work.

Summer was coming to an end which meant it was time for Robert Linggi and I to do another collaborative photo shoot. Lizzie, Kristie, and Carey volunteered to be our models, so we headed off to Santa Cruz. Our schedules only allowed us to shoot on a weekend this year which meant we were battling the crowds, but we ended up finding some secret spots and getting some great photos.

End Notes: As you can imagine, we had all of our gear out for this shoot. This was my first model shoot with the new 16-45 f/4 which worked great for wide angle shots. We were using the cybersyncs all day with the Sigma 530 and Vivitar 285hv. The wind was blowing, though so we had to stick to simple flash diffusers. The umbrellas will have to come out next time.

My friend Victor and I had been planning this photo trip for a while and we finally found time at the beginning of the summer. We left Santa Clara in the morning with our only plans being we would head north and see what we could find. We ended up being able to photograph a little of everything from the foggy beaches of San Francisco, to the treacherous waters off Marin Headlands, to the abundant wildlife of Point Reyes.

End Notes: For this shoot, I used every lens in my bag at some point. My favorite shot is the first one in this set of the sunset. I used the 50mm prime opened up to f/8 with a 6 second shutter speed to smooth out the waves and let in all of the color.

Here is the second round of photos from the Mountain View stop of Warped Tour on July 2, 2011, this time from the main stages. Thousands of teens lined up for what seemed like miles to see their favorite acts starting with August Burns Red kicking off the main stage lineup.

August Burns Red:

The Devil Wears Prada:
Always a crowd favorite, The Devil Wears Prada gets the award for highest energy. These guys play every show like it’s their last and this was no exception. If you’re into screaming christian metalcore, it doesn’t get much better than this. Take a look at the photos and I think you will see what I mean when I say vocalist Mike Hranica must have vocal cords of steel.

Pepper:
This reggae rock trio from Hawaii hit the stage strong with their hit song No Control. From there, the guys must have crammed 15 3 minute songs into their 30 minute set and they knew how to keep the crowd going.

3OH!3:
I think by now we can consider 3OH!3 Warped Tour veterans and they proved once again that they belong on this tour. When the clock struck 1, young girls, and a few guys, throughout the venue said farewell to the side stage artists and made their way to the main stage to fight for that front row spot to see their favorite electro-pop duo, 3OH!3.

End Notes: For this show, I used the Pentax K20d with my new Pentax 16-45mm f/4 and the trusty 70-200mm f/2.8. For the past few years I have always photographed the Marysville Warped Tour date which happens in August, but this year I shot the Mountain View date instead. The Mountain View date was definitely more crowded and hectic due to it being located in a much more populated area. There also seemed to be a lot more credentialed photographers making it a little bit harder to shoot. I think the Marysville shoots gave me a little more flexibility, but it was sure nice not to have 100 degree weather like I usually do!