Gustavo Fernandez Photographer

So i have actually never owned a car before. Ever since leaving college i have had a company car and therefore after leaving the corporate world i had to figure out all the nuances of buying a car. I did my due diligence and read my Consumer Reports magazines and asked most of my friends about their suggestions on financing, new or used, cars, and dealerships. My last car with Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceuticals was a 2006 Toyota Prius. Our company had a Green Initiative that if you were interested in a Prius you could order it at any moment because they were trying to have a certain amount of hybrids in our fleet. Normally the process was having your car for two years or 55,000 miles, whichever came first. After attending Sundance Film Festival and being at the premier of the movie “An Inconvenient Truth” with Al Gore i decided to give up my 2005 Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan for the Prius. I loved it and was doing my part for the environment at the same time. After leaving it was an easy decision to just get another one. This time with a few more perks than the stock model we get for work. I decided on a Black Package #6 model that includes leather, bluetooth, smart key system, ipod auxilary jack, backup camera, and navigation. After calling around and talking to a few dealerships i settled with family owned Walnut Creek Toyota. JD, the saleman, said he had one just arrive at the docks and it would be a few days. I said i was returning my rental car tomorrow after having it for a week and did not want to have to renew the rental agreement. He said he would be happy to put me in a loaner til my car arrived. Sold!

I drove the rental car back to the Oakland Airport first thing in the morning and caught BART back to Walnut Creek and walked over to the dealership. The process was pretty simple since we had agreed on a price over the phone so i just filled out the paperwork and they put me in a Toyota Corolla for the week. I drove off anxiously awaiting my new 2008 Toyota Prius.

Tonight i attended the Digital Photography Edge Workshop by Canon Explorer of Light Bruce Dorn and his partner Corel Paint Master Maura Dutra. Learned advanced speedlite techniques, cinematic composition for capture, artistic application of textures, introduction to digital painting, elegant and efficient Album design. Unfortunately they were pressed for time and they had quite a vast knowledge on each technique but were not able to go in depth on each or spend more time on them. I mainly learned more about how to use my flash creatively by taking it off camera and placing in in other areas of a reception during weddings. I purchased their Baby Slipper so i can hang my flash on the wall or even place it on top of one of the DJ’s speakers. Will be giving it a try at my next wedding in Chicago.

The set up that i will essentially have when i put mine together. Flash & Pocket Wizard right behind it, hard to see in this image.

I had an amazing time this weekend attending David Jay’s Freedom & Slumber workshop in Santa Barbara. It all started with a party on friday night where i met DJ’s friends. Many were local talented photographers: Rodolfo Arpia, Brittany Leigh Gebler, and Michael & Anna Costa. I even got to meet DJ’s best friend Deyl Kearinand chat with him about their trip to a private island in Nicaragua the amazing book written by the family that owns the home (A Family on the Move).

Friday evening we all found a corner to crash(slumber party remember) and filled up our air beds and settled in for the night. We awoke to a a nice breakfast set up that Crystal (DJ’s assistant extraordinaire) put together for us. We then submerged ourselves with 8 hours of intense training befeore heading oof to downton Santa Barbara for Sushi and then an evening engagement session with some models. The weather did not agree with us as it continued to pur so we headed back to the Freedom House. The next day we continued talking through some new techniques for a “Hands-Free” workflow and we also talked about how to “Get-FIT” and create more FLEXIBILTY, INCOME, & TIME in our lives and then how to use those things to create more meaning in others lives. I was sad to leave Santa Barbara and all my new friends. Mike Larson also stopped by and spoke to us about being first or being forgotten and about the power of the slideshow. He even did his famous camera toss in the house for us.

The Freedom & Slumber crew!
Front (left), Mark Barnes, Crystal Hutchinson, Amy Jett, the host-DJ, Penny Sylvia, Melanie Merkling, Mery Donald,
Back (left) Corey Hage, Kenny Kim, Me, Regas Chefas, Andres Valenzuela, Santa Barbara in the background, and
shot was taken by the beautiful Miss Brittany Leigh.

Most of these photos were taken by the awesome photographer and new friend, Kenny Kim. Check out his blog post for the rest of the highlight images and slideshow.

The boys…

The gals…

I borrowed DJ’s famous Canon 50mm 1.0 Lens that was handed down to him by the father of wedding photojournalism Dennis Reggie. An amazing lens which is not in production and very rare. Thanks Corey for taking this image.

Thank you DJ for your wonderful hospitality and sharing your knowledge with all of us.

I made it to the shoot by 9AM, just a little late since it was a 6AM call time. When i assist for Mark i usually manage the computer. We shoot tethered with the Canon Mark III 1Ds straight into a fully loaded MacPro with one screen for me and Mark and another for the Client. Today we were shooting some of the new headsets that Plantronics will be releasing soon down by the Embarcadero. It was raining and pretty cold, quite a shock to the system when just a few hours ago i was lounging on the beach in Maui.

What a day. Yesterday i had a wonderful time at Nicole & Aaron’s wedding at the Four Seasons. This morning i woke up with the idea that my flight was at 2PM. Well, it was not! When i was checking out of the hotel i glanced at my flight information and realized i just missed it, it was schedule for Noon. I headed to the Four Seasons to join Nicole & Aaron and friends at the beach. I logged onto the internet at the Four Seasons and booked a one way ticket to Oakland. It was cheaper than rebooking with ATA who wanted to charge me $100 change fee over the regular price of the ticket. We lounged by the water and took a few dips followed by a nice teriaki tofu over quinoa for lunch. I then headed over to Brent’s (Nicole’s bother) condo with Bart to change before driving to the airport. I took the car keys to get the toiletries from the car trunk, changed, and when we were ready to leave the keys were nowhere to be found. I called for a locksmith and the keys were not in the trunk? So if i got my toiletries and closed the trunk i would have immediately realized the keys were inside right? I thought i gave them to Bart when i walked back in. Maybe i set them on the couch when i grabbed my clothes to go to the bathroom. It shall be a mystery til i hear back form him after they turn the condo upside down looking for them. We took Brent’s car and Bart dropped me off at the airport to barely miss my flight. This simple mistake cost me a few buck, no fun. I was also scheduled to work on a shoot the next day and therefore my need to get back, if not i would have stayed a day or two and enjoyed Maui some more. Now on a flight to Kona to get on the red-eye to Oakland, to then pick up a rental car(remember i have not had a chance to buy a car yet), race to my house to get some of my clothes for the model on the shoot and then drive back to SF. It’s gonna be a long day tomorrow.

UPDATE: Bart said they looked everywhere with no luck. A day later i was unpacking my laptop and guess what i found right underneath it, a nice set of rental car keys. Must have dropped it in there when i put my computer away. Luckily it saved me $250 spare key charge when i shipped it back. Definitely learned my lesson to double check my flight information the day before.