every year there is one day where my company pays me to take pictures:  TAKE YOUR KID TO WORK DAY.  yay!  once a year the facility is filled with screaming children and they take part in mock labs and science related activities.  i wonder if they notice at such a young age whose parents have corner offices and whose parents just have lockers.  oh the corporate ladder.  is it whose or who's?  eh.  grammer.  i mean, grammar.  ;)  KMD

new blog.  new website.  hard work.  late nights.  early mornings.  after work.  no food.  my eyes hurt.  i think i've developed carpal tunnel syndrome.  i hate keywording.  but it will all be worth it, ya?  i've been sharpening for a smaller output - like 640pixels.  the blog posts at 850pixels and not everything looks as sharp bigger.  this post has no picture.  will anyone read it?  i've been watching a lot of the disney channel lately and that show THE SUITE LIFE OF ZACK AND CODY is on a lot.  i watch it.  these are things i should probably keep to myself.  :)  KMD

5 or 6 years ago, i caught the photography bug.  i had just come back from an "all access" summer jam experience in NYC and i KNEW that this was what i was supposed to do.  if only i had a "real" camera.  :)  i had been sneaking my little film point-and-shoot into concerts and getting pretty decent results.  once i switched to a digital point-and-shoot, i immediately became frustrated with the shutter button press and the delay...ARGH!  i knew it was time to step it up and put in work.  i used a canon elan film slr for a few months before buying my d70.  i thought i was big time.  you might be wondering why i am writing all of this under a post for "JOHN RIDLON".  i'm getting there. 

i got on email and sent messages to over a dozen bands and venues in the area, openly begging them to let me (and jennifer) shoot their shows.  john ridlon of hypercane was the first to respond.  jennifer and i headed down to the miracle east in small town, MA and the rest is history!  LOL.  we shot hypercane.  a lot.  like, a lot.  and through them we made tons of connections with other bands, other venues, promoters and it blossomed into awesomeness.  i still thank them.  craig, peter, dana, john and all of their friends/wifeys.  :) 

and without further delay, mr. ridlon.  KMD

i had 2 kiddos come in to my last portrait mayhem session.  and they both gave me a run for my money.  noelle is a little wild child.  she can RUN and i spent a lot of time chasing her around the studio.  her mother and i found that putting her in the basket or a chair kept her occupied for just enough time to snap a few photographs.  tahmir was born a ham.  he's a lil' actor and his mother should definitely put him on TV so all of america can tune in to his antics.  he's always welcome back.  :)  THANK YOU, ENJOY!  - the cafeteria lady 

you have to visit the cafeteria at my job to understand the joke.  KMD

i wanted to start displaying one of my absolutely - hold on, pandora radio is asking me if i am still listening - absolutely favorite aspects of photography.  it's more on the photoshop side.  retouching.  i love retouching.  simple portrait retouching is cool, but i love fashion/beauty retouching.  the kind you see in the magazine.  we all know that even with all the make-up and stylists and trainers that celebrities have, they still don't look as good as they do without the help of the digital retoucher.  we all have flaws.  it is my job to make those flaws disappear.  and boy, do i enjoy it.  from here on out, you'll see more BEFORE/AFTER blog posts.  here is jean before and after.  and let me just remind everyone...you are beautiful in your 'before' picture.  i'm just intensifying and magnifying your beauty in the 'after' picture.  LOL. 

below is the 'after'/retouched image.  click on the thumbnail (bottom, right) to see the 'before'.  KMD