Paris Weekly

Holidays in the Countryside, Bread Bandit, Foreign Exchange, Down, Tuk-Tuk & 2012 …

parisweekly — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 10:29:49 +0000

Like each year, spent our holiday break with M’s family in the countryside, about 1 hour away from Paris. It was a wonderful few days away from the mayhem of Paris. Instead of photos of us opening presents and drinking, and in the spirit of all the cat photos/videos that flood the internet, here are a few images of their ornery critter.

Cat Eyeing Dessert

Cat Eyeing Food

Cat Crouching

Best story of the last few weeks, which you may have already heard about, was about the Bread Bandit. Here’s what I’m talking about:

French police are on the hunt for a “serial” croissant thief. In the last 10 days, a man believed to be in his 40s has robbed five boulangeries, or traditional French bakeries, near Paris. But instead of asking for the contents of the cash register, this thief goes for the buttery baked goods. In every robbery, he uses the same technique: calmly orders a generous helping of croissants, pains au chocolats and a few other viennoiserie, or baked goods. When it comes time to pay, he brandishes what is believed to be a fake gun. Then he grabs his breakfast and runs out the door. The total value of all five robberies comes to under $92 and no one has been injured. Nevertheless, the man the French press has called the “serial chocolate croissant thief” could face a prison sentence if caught. Augusto Dos Santos, a baker and croissant thief victim, told French reporters he has no problem giving away free food every now and then if someone really needs it. In fact, if the thief had only asked, “We’d have said, ‘Take them!’” he said.

It’s such a great French story; it reminds me of the story of the French guy a few years ago who kept stealing expensive pieces of art not to resell them for money but instead just because they were so beautiful he just wanted to look at them in his bedroom.

Another interesting recent news story is a new form of “foreign exchange” program:

Wealthy Parisian couples looking forward to an elegant, expensive and naughty New Year’s Eve — of caviar, lobster and wife-swapping — may have to think again. Les Chandelles, the most exclusive of the wife-swapping clubs in the French capital, is under investigation for allegedly allowing prostitutes to operate on its premises. Les Chandelles (‘The Candles’) has a reputation as the most snobbish “boite echangiste”, or wife-swapping club, in Paris. To be admitted to the glittering premises between L’Opera and the Louvre, you have to be wealthy, famous or good-looking — preferably all three. Clients are reported to have included members of the political and media elite. The restaurant and bar have the elegant look and quality of a five-star hotel. Guests who wish to do so can move on to the “libertine” activities — partner-swapping or group sex — in the lounge and private rooms.

However, it is now alleged that some of the female “guests” are not what they appear. An investigation by the vice squad has concluded that the club is a haunt of high-class prostitutes. A police report recommends that the club should be shut down, at least temporarily. Wife-swapping clubs have become an accepted part of Parisian nightlife in the last 30 years. More than 50 establishments are listed in entertainment guides.

For the French who are not wealthy, famous or good-looking, there was another story of interest this week:

Despite having food, wine and scenery that are the envy of the world, a new study has revealed the French to be the most downbeat people on the planet. The annual survey spoke to the residents of 51 countries across all five continents to measure levels of optimism and pessimism. The survey found that wealth has little to do with overall happiness, with the gloomiest people to be found in Europe while the happiest were mostly in Africa and Asia. The unhappiest countries were in Europe, with France at the top with a negative score of 79. “We have never seen a score this low in 34 years of doing the study,” said Celine Bracq of BVA-Gallup. The cheeriest people were in Nigeria.

A recent development in Paris:

A new fleet of ‘tuk-tuk’ taxis have taken to the streets of Paris this week, offering free journeys around the French capital. The service is set to run seven days a week, using 24 tuk-tuks and stopping at 150 points on some of the most popular fixed bus routes in the city.

Paris Tuk Tuk

The service is operated by entrepreneur Kheir Mazri, who aims to cover costs by selling advertising on the side of the vehicles and by selling a variety of pastries, tea and popcorn to passengers during their journey.

And I enjoyed this:

Happy, healthy and preposterous new year to all …

Some photos of the week:

Holiday Cheese Plate

Decanting the Wine

Holiday Carousel - Hotel de Ville

Americanized Eiffel Tower

Hand Painted Barrier Warning Sign (with scarf and falling umbrella)

Eiffel Ice Skating, Cordonnier, Viggo, Vincent, Ben and Marty & Some Restaurants …

parisweekly — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 14:35:00 +0000

Braved the ridiculous wind and cold and headed up to the first level of the Eiffel Tower to shoot the opening of the public ice skating rink they put up there each year. I arrived a bit before the opening and for at least a few moments, I’m pretty sure I was the only non-employee walking around on the tower. It was a bit eery.

Don’t let the image fool you; it shows the 15 seconds of sunshine during that day. The public eventually arrived and then proceeded to spend more time photographing themselves on the ice than actually skating.

Had a nice encounter with a cobbler in my neighborhood. A little “cordonnerie” opened around the corner from my place a few months back and just this week I walked in to ask a question. The man was especially friendly and chatty and when he heard my accent (evidently I have an accent when I speak French), he asked where I was from. When I said LA, he laughed and went on to share a story about some clients of his from LA that have been trying to get him to leave his shop in Paris and go with them to LA to be the cobbler to the stars. The rambling tale, recounted in an enthusiastic African accent, lasted probably 20 minutes and had me thoroughly entertained, especially because the basis of his client’s proposal was the cobbler’s ability to replicate a car key that was allegedly not replicable.

Cobbler of my arrondissement

After listening to his tale, I remembered I happened to have my good camera with me and spontaneously asked him if I could take a few shots of him in his colorful work space. He kindly agreed. A couple of days later I went back into his store and brought him 6 color prints that I made for him. His reaction surprised me; he was really moved by the gesture, so much so that he had tears in his eyes and literally thanked me dozens of times. He even made another customer wait while he continued to thank me profusely; I think the customer rather enjoyed watching me awkwardly attempt to figure out how to gracefully accept his barrage of merci’s in a French-appropriate way. It was a memorable experience.

Much less memorable was going back a few times to the Champs-Elyees to shoot a couple of movie premieres. The first was for David Cronenberg’s film “A Dangerous Method” with Viggo Mortensen and Vincent Cassel; the second was Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo” with Sir Ben Kingsley and Marty himself among others.

Viggo Mortensen and Vincent Cassel - A Dangerous Method premiere

Sir Ben Kingsley and Martin Scorsese - Hugo premiere

Visited a few good restaurants recently and thought I’d mention them here. One of the restaurants is quite known by locals and tourist alike. It’s called Le Pre Verre and they really know how to make food. Unfortunately, what they make doesn’t AT ALL correspond to the kinds of things I eat. Here are a few menu items for example:

GRILLED PORK PATE, DATE PUREE WITH VINEGAR
FOIE GRAS WITH BUTTERNUTS
PHEASANT WITH RED CABBAGE AND ORANGE
WILD BOARD STEW, QUINCE AND JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES
SUCKLING PIG POACHED IN SPICY SAUCE AND CABBAGE
ROASTED PINEAPPLE WITH BLACK SESAME ICE CREAM (ok, this one sounds good actually)
SAUTEED RABBIT WITH CUMIN
CHANTERELLE MUSHROOM CAKES WITH KAFFIR LIME LEAVES

Thankfully they had a steak available on the day I went there with some friends so I survived. I even quite enjoyed the spiced, grilled brussel sprouts appetizer.

The next restaurant of note is called L’Etoile du Berger. I’m mentioning it more for the experience of the place than the food. They serve traditional Savoyard dishes like fondue and raclette (where the waiter brings you as many plates of hot melted cheese as you’d like) but with a Vietnamese woman managing the place and an Italian waiter taking care of the customers. The final touch to the ambience is their music, which included Funky Town.

Lastly, Le Comptoir is an organic, California-inspired restaurant serving Lebanese, French, Asian and North African dishes. The restaurant is associated with the Slow Food movement and the food is tasty. One more thing – this place is not to be confused with the more popular Le Comptoir restaurant that is part of the Hotel Relais Saint-Germain near Odeon.

Some photos of the week:

Champ de Mars from Eiffel Tower

The Seine

Hermes Store - rue du Faubourg Sainte-Honore

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner meeting with Sarkozy; he doesn't look like someone you'd like to spend time with does he?

Sarkozy checking out what Merkel has to offer

Continuing demise of the Marais - fake plastic crepes in the window of a new Hello-Kitty-like Japanese creperie

Saint-Gervais Church

Street Art - rue Vieille du Temple

My favorite holiday card of the season - thanks David!

Bank Champagne, Thomas Dutronc, Ice Skating, Chevy Volt, Jamiroquai and more …

parisweekly — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 14:46:21 +0000

Got an unexpected call from my banker last week, asking if I was busy on Thursday night. I couldn’t imagine why my banker was asking me this but after a few awkward moments of me being non-committal, he explained that the bank was inviting some of their clients that live in the neighborhood to the bank for some champagne and hors d’oeuvres. Must have been a good year for them; it certainly wasn’t thanks to me.

Champagne and Hors d'oeurves at the bank

I’m pretty sure the champagne I drank was more valuable than the interest they paid me this year. At least it was a nice gesture for the bank to bring the locals together, feed us and introduce themselves, without trying to sell us something. I’ve never gotten that kind of call from Citibank before.

For my birth anniversary, went to go see (not shoot) a concert of Thomas Dutronc at the Folies Bergere. It’s a beautiful old theatre and Dutronc put on an energetic and entertaining show. Here’s a song of his that I dig.

Folies Bergere before the start of Thomas Dutronc in concert

For those of you keeping score at home, Thomas Dutronc is the son of well-known French singer Jacques Dutronc but has carved out his own career doing gypsy jazz.

Shot a lot since my last blog post. In no particular order …

I enjoy shooting figure skating; the movements and the theatrics usually make for nice imagery … and this time was no exception. I shot the Trophée Eric Bompard, one of the International Grand Prix of Figure Skating events that brings together some of the top skaters in the world.

The skaters do some pretty extraordinary things on the ice, things we’d be hard pressed to do anywhere. Like this for example:

Don't try this

Headed back to the ambassador’s residence to shoot the arrival of the very first Chevy Volt in Europe. The ambassador’s fleet received two of the electric hybrid vehicles from the president of Chevrolet France. And the appetizers were delicious.

U.S. Ambassador Charles Rivkin and his new Chevy Volts

Chevrolet also parked some of their other car models – past and present – in the courtyard of the ambassador’s residence, just to show off a bit I think.

Chevys at the Ambassador's residence

Shot Jamiroquoi (remember him/them?) in concert, Audrey Tautou (of Amelie fame) pressing the button to turn on the holiday lights along the Champs-Elysees, Roman Polanski and Kate Winslet at the premiere of “Carnage”, Salma Hayek at the premiere of “Puss in Boots” and finally, Nicolas Sarkozy meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron at the Elysee Palace to try to save Europe. Here’s proof:

Jamiroquai in concert

Audrey Tautou after pushing the button to light up the Champs-Elysees

Roman Polanski and Kate Winslet at the French premiere of "Carnage"

Salma Hayek - French premiere of "Puss in Boots"

Sarkozy and Cameron at the Elysee Palace

Now some things that caught my eye recently.

The city of Paris is planning to cover the Eiffel Tower with 600,000 plants. They are planning on spending €72 million on making the tower look like a giant tree, with baskets of shrubbery attached to it from top to bottom, plus an elaborate irrigation system. The aim is said to be to symbolize France’s desire to be seen as a leader in the field of eco-friendly living. The plants will only be temporary, from 2014 to 2016. Most importantly, the sparkling lights that turn on at the top of every hour won’t be affected. UPDATE: just after I wrote this the city of Paris released a statement saying they’ve never heard of such plans. Too bad, it would have been pretty cool.

Next time you’re in Zagreb, Croatia, check out this place: The Musuem of Broken Relationships. Must be interesting right? It’s on my list to check out someday. Read more about it HERE.

What the hell is THIS?

Got a nice surprise this week when a buddy of mine sent me a message of congratulations for having the cover of Point de Vue, a well-known French magazine. If it wasn’t for my buddies telling me when my photos were published, I’d probably never find out.

My photo of Princess Stephanie and her kids at the Monaco Royal Wedding

Some photos of the week(s?):

Italian Figure Skaters

This is not how he's supposed to pick her up is it?

Me shooting Jamiroquoi (thanks Pierre)

Dancers - Le CENTQUATRE Space for Artists

Written on my chopsticks cover

rue du Prevot

I’ve been a bad man …

parisweekly — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 23:38:21 +0000

… I’ve been seriously remiss in my blogging duties this past month. My last post was one month ago. Not good. But I’ve been quite occupied making up for the lost time I spent on the sofa the last 2 months. Since my last blog entry, I’ve been to Rome for a week (Rome Film Festival) and Belfast for a few days (MTV Europe Music Awards). Really enjoyed both places; Rome is like an old friend to me now and Belfast like a new one. Got extremely lucky there and probably had the three sunniest days that that city gets all year. Learned so much about their history – who knew they STILL had a functioning wall separating the Catholic and Protestant areas of a certain part of town? – and was really happy to be in the city while it was experiencing what many residents described to me as the biggest positive event to hit Belfast in recent history. The whole town was buzzing and it made for a great experience.

So much has happened over the last month that I think I’m just going to let the photos tell the story. So here goes …

Rome International Film Festival

The new vampires from Twilight - Nicki Reed & Jackson Rathbone - Rome International Film Festival

Pizza Makers - Rome

Lady Gaga - MTV Europe Music Awards - Belfast, North Ireland

Justin Bieber - MTV Europe Music Awards - Belfast, North Ireland

Steel-cut oat porridge with honey and bananas - Belfast, North Ireland

Famous Gunman Mural - near Shankill Road - Belfast, North Ireland

Peace Wall - The Falls Road - Belfast, North Ireland

Botanical Gardens - Belfast, North Ireland

Pervert Poster - Belfast, North Ireland (despite the 800 telephone number)

Birds in cage in dress made of chocolate - Salon du Chocolat

Models in fashion made of chocolate - Salon du Chocolat

Baby got back - Salon du Chocolat

Macaron Shoes - Salon du Chocolat

Flea - Red Hot Chili Peppers in Concert - Paris Bercy

Roger Federer - BNP Paribas Paris Masters

Andy Murray Ball Problem - BNP Paribas Paris Masters

Roger Federer (winner) and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (runner-up) - BNP Paribas Paris Masters

US vs France Mens Soccer - Stade de France

Exhibition - FIAC Contemporary Art Fair - Grand Palais

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard - Premiere of "The Rum Diary" - Champs-Elysees

Steven Spielberg signing autographs - World Premiere of Tintin - Grand Rex Theatre

People Hanging From a Building - Centquatre - Paris

Just kidding - Centquatre - Paris

Launch of Paris Photo Week - Ambassador's Residence - rue Saint-Honore

View From My Window Last Week

New iPhone, Soap Bubbles, Eiffel Redo, Nude Chocolatier & Dog Ads

parisweekly — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:01:08 +0000

One week after covering the death of Apple founder Steve Jobs, I was back at the Apple Store for a much less important reason … the release of the new iPhone 4S. Crazy people lined up overnight here in Paris, as they did in many cities around the world, just to get the phone on day 1. Hard to understand the insanity.

iPhone 4G launch in Paris

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Saw a street performer with two wooden sticks tied together and some liquid soap making huge soap bubbles just behind Notre Dame. Stood and observed for a while and watched people react to them. Was really entertaining watching how kids of various ages as well as adults reacted to the bubbles. I shot a series of images to capture a bit of what I enjoyed watching.

Bubble Boy

To see a few soap bubble images, CLICK HERE.

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  A solid glass floor will be the main feature of a €25 million facelift of the Eiffel Tower.   Visitors will be able to walk on the glass up to the barriers and look down on the square 57m below. For those who don’t like the idea of walking on “nothing” the floor has been shaped to allow them to look down without walking on the glass.     It is only the third facelift for the 324m tour Eiffel since it was built in 1889 for the Universal Exhibition and the work will be done without closing the tower.

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A French chocolatier who recently suffered through some bad luck, including a fire in the building where his shop was, has found an interesting way to ask the authorities for some help. CLICK HERE to watch the short video (it’s in French but you’ll get the point; you may have to watch a short commercial before the video starts)

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Nestlé has launched a pet food commercial that contains high-frequency sounds aimed at canine ears. The 23-second ad for the dog food brand Beneful emits audible squeaks and pings, along with a high-pitched whine that humans can just barely hear. “We wanted to create a TV commercial that our four-legged friends can enjoy and listen to, but also allow the owner and dog to experience it together,” said Nestlé Purina’s Anna Rabanus in a press release. The ad comes after a similarly themed effort to appeal to dogs’ olfactory sense. In Germany, the company placed on advertising kiosks posters that released the scent of Beneful dog food, in the hopes that dogs would lead their owners to the posters.

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Some photos of the week:

Happy iPhone 4G Customer

Bike Parking

Playing the blues - Pont au Double

Dog Dreaming

New bike parking; electric charging (via solar panels) and locking front door included

Yoga, George, Pink Martini, Autolib & Creative losses …

parisweekly — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 11:52:14 +0000

Jumped (only figuratively) right back into action this week. First up was a giant “white yoga” session held on the Champs de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower. Over 2000 “yogis”, predominantly dressed in white, attended the event organized by American yoga instructor Elena Brower. It was a bit disorganized but the participants seemed to enjoy the event.

Giant yoga class in front of the Eiffel Tower

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Lots of music this week. First up was George Michael, who still fills large arenas and stadiums here. He’s doing a tour with a symphony orchestra and evidently, other than his hair, hasn’t lost a lot.

George Michael performs in Paris

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Pink Martini came to Paris as they do each year. Thanks to a great after-show bash following my shooting of one of their shows in 2004, I’ve become friends with one of the band members (we went to rival high schools and have friends in common) and each time they’re in town, my friend gets me seats for their show and passes to go backstage afterwards. It’s nice being a VIP at a show instead of being yelled at by the VIP to get out of their way when I’m shooting the show!

Pink Martini at Olympia Hall

Of all the shows I’ve seen of theirs, this one was special. The highlights included a New York cross-dresser, a master puppeteer, NPR’s White House correspondent Ari Shapiro singing a couple of songs and finally, during the last song, the band’s leader Thomas inviting anyone in the crowd who ever dreamed of being on the mythical stage at Olympia Hall to come join them up there (and a whole lot did).

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The city of Paris launched a two-month test period of the world’s first car-sharing program called the Autolib, which it hopes will revolutionize transportation in major cities. The program is modeled after the city’s public bicycle program, the Velib, which has been a huge success.

Autolibs on the streets of Paris

The cars are all electric and eco-friendly and are meant to driven from point-to-point, with no need to return the car from where you picked it up. The program launches city-wide the first week of December. I hope this program doesn’t follow the pattern that is typical with other programs the city launches – creative idea, chaotic implementation.

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The world lost a couple of immensely creative talents this week in Apple founder Steve Jobs and Sipa Press Agency founder Goksin Sipa. Adoring Apple fans left personal tributes to Jobs around the Paris Apple Store and people congregated throughout the day there.

Tribute to Steve Jobs at the Paris Apple Store

Everyone knows the vision and influence of Steve Jobs. Not so much for Goksin Sipa. Sipa was a Turkish photographer who moved to Paris and covered major world events like the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Paris riots of 1968. He founded Sipa Press, which is still one of the major press agencies here in Paris. Thanks to an introduction from a mutual friend, Mr. Sipa was kind enough to meet with me at his office on the Champs-Elysees and give me feedback on my portfolio when I was first trying to find my way here in Paris. Judging from online postings throughout the photography world, Mr. Sipa gave a start to many photographers throughout the years and was widely admired. I owe him a debt of gratitude for giving me the confidence to keep pursuing.

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Some photos of the week:

Yogi

George Michael in Paris

Steve Jobs tribute at the Paris Apple Store

I’m back …

parisweekly — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 11:08:27 +0000

I’m back to my blog, after an unscheduled 2-month hiatus to recover from a torn Achilles tendon. Welcome to middle age.

Since being mostly confined to a sofa, I haven’t shot a whole lot during my hiatus. But I have been collecting random items for my blog during my down time so here goes, a smorgasbord of blog-worthy items.

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Seems that a man in France thinks he has the answer to the problem of getting a hot fresh baguette after hours – a baguette vending machine. “This is the bakery of tomorrow,” proclaimed Jean-Louis Hecht, who foresees expansion in Paris, around Europe and even the U.S. “If other bakers don’t want to enter the niche, they’re going to get decimated.” “It’s like with banks: before, everyone went to a teller; now, everybody uses ATMs,” he said. “It will be the same with bread: Today, everybody goes to the bakery. Tomorrow they’ll go to the baguette dispenser.” Go Hecht !!!

CLICK HERE for a video of the dispenser.

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If you’re ever looking for a different place to stay near Paris, you can try the new “Bubble Tree”. Located a couple of kilometers outside of Paris near a chateau, the “Bubble Tree” is actually a tent which promises 5-star luxury at an affordable price. I haven’t been to see it myself but seems like it could be quite cool to spend a night there.

CLICK HERE to see some video of the Bubble Tree room.

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Here’s an idea that I adore. The advertisement, roughly translated, goes something like this:

To all those who were awakened by the roar of a washing machine, the morning fuss of a drill or the cry of ecstasy from a rogue night, avenge yourself with a CD made up of some strongly unpleasant building sounds. On the menu: the cries of a newborn, spring cleaning, dog barking, doors slamming … Put on the CD at the highest volume and go out for a walk.

Someone is actually selling a CD that gets sweet revenge on your neighbors for making too much noise. Genius!

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I’ve done one shoot since being back in Paris. I shot a Taylor Lautner photo call at the Hotel Bristol for his new film “Abduction”. I thought he was a vampire but evidently he was a werewolf.

Taylor Lautner

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Here’s a very cool photography website called “Dear Photograph”, which asks people to send in “now & then” images along with an explanation. CLICK HERE to check it out.

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Here’s a much less cool / disturbing photo website: FACESWAP

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This story caught my eye a few weeks ago:

A Frenchman has been ordered to pay his ex-wife $13,000 in damages for failing to have enough sex with her during their marriage. The 51-year-old man was fined under article 215 of France’s civil code, which states married couples must agree to a “shared communal life”. A judge has now ruled that this law implies that “sexual relations must form part of a marriage”. I can’t make this stuff up. CLICK HERE to read the full story.

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Here’s a pretty surprising story:

Employees in France now spend an average of 22 minutes on their lunch break as opposed to 1hr 38mins 20 years ago.   The change in habits was revealed in a study by insurers Malakoff Médéric, which also showed that fewer people are going home for lunch – though it is still the most popular option. A total of 29% do this, as opposed to 34% in 2009.   Almost as many now bring in a meal they have prepared at home (28%) and eat it at work, compared to 22% in 2009, while eating in a work canteen has dropped from 22% to 19%. Eating a sandwich (as opposed to a “proper” home-made meal) has gone up to 14% from 12%.   A meal outside the office in a restaurant or café is now the exception – just 10%.

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So this is what it’s come to with food marketing. I was at the Monoprix supermarket the other day and came across this:

Mystery Chips ... Taste them and give them a name

The writing on the packages translates to “Taste them and give them a name”. Just when you think you’ve seen it all …

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I often mention to people that, at a high level, things like banking systems, health care and restaurants really pretty much work the same in the US and in France. But the joy/horror of the differences between how these things really work lies in the details. Here’s an example of one of those differences:

The cost of parking fines rose from €11 to €17 last week – the first increase in a quarter of a century.

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I like THIS a lot, for a reason I can’t quite explain. If you watch this for more than 1 minute, I’m worried about you.

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Photographers win one: Town halls across France are to be banned from taking their own passport photos, following complaints from professional photographers. A new government decree says only embassies and consulates can take photos and biometric data from people applying for or renewing their ID documents. More than 2,000 town halls are equipped with the technology to take and develop photos and fingerprints for passports. They will have until December 31 to stop. Professional photographers’ union API had complained that the mairies were putting thousands of jobs in the photo industry at risk. The union said the move was “a big victory for the photography profession”.

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Modern problems:

Some teens are so connected to their phones that they sometimes text in their sleep, it’s a new phenomena called sleep texting. “It’s real. Sometimes you’ll be sleeping and you’ll dream something and text anybody just random text messages,” said James Fox, 15. “I’ve texted my cousin, Gretchen, quite a few times when I was sleeping, like two pages of random numbers and letters and stuff,” said Jadin Fox, 12. Sleep texting is so popular that there is a Facebook page devoted to sleep texting. But sleep specialists warn that the phenomena could be a teenager’s enemy. “Twenty percent are awakened in the middle of the night by getting a text, email or phone call. Not good,” said Dr. Kevin Smith, a pediatric sleep psychologist.

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Thankfully we’re having a beautiful late summer in Paris at the moment. But too bad I missed the real summer a couple of months ago: CLICK HERE to see summer in Paris.

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Here’s a musical performance I quite enjoy (for real): CLICK HERE to watch the video

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Some photos of the week (month?):

Me, post-surgery, in Walmart electric cart

Secret photo taken from afar of my friends Steve & Lauren just after Steve proposed to Lauren (she said yes)

My friend Diane picking me up in Long Beach

Water Heater, Solar BBQ, Dick Perry, 405 Party and Mumford …

parisweekly — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 08:59:17 +0000

Granted I’m not exactly what one would describe as a handyman but I was pretty astonished to find out exactly how my water heating system works. A serviceman came by recently to do a cleaning and to make sure things wouldn’t explode and when he took apart the heating system, I was pretty surprised to learn that I’d been living with a machine that shoots flames at the water to heat it each time I turn on the hot water.

Water Heater in Action

The system works well. I was wondering if we have systems like this in the US. Maybe this is how those “waterless” heating systems work? Does anyone have one of these?

Along the same lines, has anyone ever heard of a solar BBQ? I actually saw this on sale at a big department store (BHV) here.

Solar BBQ

This couldn’t possibly work could it?

Speaking of insane things, please watch this video and explain to me how this guy can be a governor of a state in the US. He’s even considering a run at the presidency. I can’t figure out how this doesn’t violate the most liberal reading of the separation of church and state.

To me it feels like a return to the Dark Ages. Does this bother anyone else as much as it bothers me? Because it really drives me crazy.

My favorite story of last week was this group’s reaction to the big 405 shutdown in LA. Evidently they used the freeway closure as an opportunity for a dinner party. Love it.

Dinner Party on the 405 (borrowed from the LA Times blog)

And just in case you haven’t heard of a group called Mumford and Sons, please listen to their music. I’m not sure I’ve heard a better band come around in many years.

And here’s one shot on the streets of Paris …

Some photos of the week:

Pre-breaded Meat

Funky Building Along the Champs-Elysees

World Dog Show, Bastille Day, Harry Potter & Love Like A Cigarette …

parisweekly — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 16:11:29 +0000

Got to shoot a very cool event this week – the Paris World Dog Show. I had visions of the movie “Best In Show” (<– click here to see what I'm talking about) all day as I snapped photos of extremely cute dogs and seriously deranged dog owners.

It was entertaining to see the big packs of identical looking dogs pulling their owners around as well as watching the parading of the dogs in the show ring. But nothing beat what I saw “backstage”. I mean the prep work that these owners put into making their dogs “presentable”. The hair spray, the gas-powered hair dryers, the hair beads and all kinds of combs. Hard to believe that the dogs like all this stuff so much but for a photographer, it’s great.

Salon Treatment - Paris World Dog Show

To watch a video with music of my images from the show, CLICK HERE. (give it a minute to load; WARNING – music lyrics are rather profane; not suitable for work).

Or if you prefer to see my images from the show, CLICK HERE.

On July 14 during this last week it was Bastille Day in France, a national holiday commemorating the day in 1789 where Parisian rebelled against the royalty and stormed the Bastille prison, freeing seven (count them) prisoners. Although they didn’t free many prisoners that day, the event was symbolically important, leading eventually to Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette getting their heads cut off 4 years later.

Republican Guards

What Bastille Day means for me is the military parade along the Champs-Elysees each year. The parade goes from the Arc de Triomphe at the top of the Champs-Elysees to the Place de la Concorde, where the president and other dignitaries stand and salute all the passing soldiers.

Troops leaving Place de la Concorde

As much as I really don’t care much for things military, I really enjoy the day because there are so many opportunities to capture and create beautiful imagery.

To see my images from the parade, CLICK HERE.

Shot the Paris premiere of the new Harry Potter movie. It was held not at a movie theatre but at a 15,000 seat arena so that all the faithful could come. The event was a bit lame as the 3 most important cast members didn’t make the trip from London. I cared very little about this whole thing.

Harry Potter Premiere

And for all you fans of Sheena Easton’s “My Baby Takes the Morning Train” song, (which I’m assuming is most of you) here’s a fine performance of a French version of the song titled “L’amour c’est comme une cigarette (Love is Like a Cigarette)”.

The chorus goes like this:

L’amour c’est comme une cigarette (Love is like a cigarette)
Ça brûle et ça monte à la tête (It burns and it goes to your head)
Quand on ne peut plus s’en passer (When we can not do without it)
Tout ça s’envole en fumée. (It all goes up in smoke)
L’amour c’est comme une cigarette (Love is like a cigarette)
Ça flambe comme une allumette (It flames like a match)
Ça pique les yeux ça fait pleurer (It stings the eyes and makes you cry)
Et ça s’envole en fumée. (And it goes up in smoke)

Some photos of the week:

Harry Potter Street Artist Near Galeries Lafayette

My favorite Seine barge to have a drink on

Track & Field, Garden Party, Tour de France & Wedding followup …

parisweekly — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 11:21:27 +0000

Headed out to the Stade de France this week to shoot the Paris Diamond League track and field event, or as it should be called, the Usain Bolt show. The world’s fastest man is remarkable on the track, even to an amateur spectator like me. Bolt looked like he was barely trying as he slowed up at the end and still dominated the mens 200 meter event, easily beating France’s Christophe Lemaitre, who last year became the fastest white man in history.

Usain Bolt crosses the finish line

Track meets are quite fun to shoot but are very confusing. You have a stadium full of people, of which some are watching the high jumpers, some the pole vaulters and some the shotputters. So what happens is you randomly hear people explode into a frenzy applauding and cheering and you have no idea why because you’ve been watching another part of the stadium. It’s a bit disconcerting for a photographer because you constantly feel like you’ve missed something. Thankfully the highest profile events like the race Bolt won are pretty much isolated so everyone is focused on one thing.

Clearing the bar

For a reason that is still unclear to me, I got invited by the US Ambassador to France to join him and a couple thousand of his closest “friends” for a 4th of July celebration garden party at his private residence. I was expecting a much smaller affair but as it turned out, it was attended by a wide variety of people, including a former French prime minister and a couple of cast members from Glee.

4th of July Garden Party - Ambassador's Residence

The residence, on rue Saint-Honore, is of course beautiful and was only enhanced by the Ambassador serving mini-hamburgers and mint juleps to everyone, saving the French touch for desserts including mini-eclairs, tartes, etc. I was happy to be invited to the event but in the end, it was a bit too crowded and only modestly interesting. Especially because I’ve never seen Glee.

4th of July Mini-burgers

The Tour de France got started this week and although I usually address this event when I cover the finish line in Paris, I thought this video was brilliant enough to share with everyone now.

And just as a followup to my Monaco wedding blog entry last week, I found out that Paris Match, a big magazine here in France used one of my images of the wedding on a full page. They didn’t put my name on the photo (they listed it in a credit box earlier in the magazine) but it’s still nice to see my images out there being used.

My image in Paris Match

Some photos of the week:

Men's 110m hurdles

Flying during the triple jump

Giving praise?

South African Oscar Pistorius - he competes against non-handicapped athletes; he got 5th place in the 400m

Steeplechase competitors lining up for the start of the race