My First Drink and Click LA Event

Yesterday I attended my first Drink and Click LA event. I've been a member of the group for a while, but just never got around to attending one of their get-togethers. I really had fun talking shop with other photography enthusiasts from beginner to professionals levels. There was time to do some street photos, a little drinking, some eating, and lots of talking.

It's been a while since I attended a photography meetup of any kind. Last year I attended the G+ Photographer's Conference up in San Francisco. There was a photowalk with Scott Kelby I attended the day before that event, which was certainly fun. Other photowalks I attended last year were Light Chasers Artwalk in Downtown LA and Santa Monica Photowalk with Trey Ratcliff and mySpace Tom. Both fun and good learning experiences.

So as the name of the group implies, it's about getting some drinks and taking photos together. Alcohol is quite optional and there was some appetizers/food too. The point being it's a social event for photography enthusiasts that's based off the G+ social network. The group was very friendly and I look forward to future events!

We made three stops throughout the evening and into the night:

1. Lola's
2. The Surly Goat
3. Canter's Deli

My full set of pictures I took can be found here.

Here is a group picture I took at Lola's.


On our way to Santa Monica Blvd, I took this shot of one of the group member who obliged to get back in this position he was in earlier.




Playing with the shutter speed to paint some light.


I liked this stack of newspapers at Canter's Deli.

Y: The Last Man Review

For the past seven months I've jumped back into reading comics and graphic novels. I used to read them a lot when I was a teenager, but just lost interest by the mid/late 1990s. I find myself struggling to enjoy reading monthly issues and going to the comic book shop every week-- or even getting them online via Comixology.

The problem I have is that I don't like reading them month to month-- it's too little to read bit by bit. I prefer reading a story arc in a sitting or two. My taste is turning more towards graphic novels and/or completed series-- just like I did when I was a teenager.

Don't worry, this review is spoiler-free.

So I recently finished reading Brian K. Vaughan's and Pia Guerra's, Y: The Last Man graphic novel series. I really enjoyed the books. The story is pretty solid and artwork pretty consistent.

This is how I would sum it up:

The story is about the world where one day, all the men and animals with a Y chromosome drop dead, except for one guy, Yorick Brown. This is his journey through a world with only women in charge. 

It's got a bit of romance, science fiction, adventure, politics, action, and all around good story-telling. Each volume has 100+ pages, and I generally read about two volumes at a time. This book does involve adult content, so I wouldn't recommend it for anyone under the age of seventeen. By movie standards, it's R-rated.

That said, there are certain parts-- or rather characters hard to believe in. Just some. It nags at my brain a bit, but I generally suspend disbelief and let it go. A few chapters does jump around a bit to the past a bit, so readers should keep in mind the numerous characters.



Here's are links to the full set of books (paperbacks):

1. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1: Unmanned
2. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 2: Cycles
3. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 3: One Small Step
4. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 4: Safeword
5. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 5: Ring of Truth
6. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 6: Girl on Girl
7. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 7: Paper Dolls
8. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 8: Kimono Dragons
9. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 9: Motherland
10. Y: The Last Man, Vol. 10: Whys and Wherefores

They are available in hardcovers too, but I just prefer softcover format because it's lighter to carry around and read, especially in bed.

I can see this graphic novel being adapted into a TV show. Maybe HBO or Starz can pick it up? I can see this kind of story compete against True Blood or even The Walking Dead. The drama is that good. 

If you enjoy Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comic series (currently ongoing) and other post-apocalyptic stories, you should give Y: The Last Man a try.

What's In My Messenger Bag

Not long ago I posted what's in my camera bag. I thought I would follow up on what I carry in my other bag-- especially when I travel. Here's what I typically have in my messenger bag.



Going from the top, left to right:

1. Canon 5D Mark III
2. Apple adapters
3. Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone
4. Kindle Fire (version 1)
5. Kindle Paperwhite
6. Business cards
7. Lens cleaner pen
8. Pens
9. Apple AC charger/adapter
10. Micro USB charger
11. Headphones
12. 15" Macbook Pro (mid-2010)
13. ONA "The Union Street Camera and Laptop Bag" - Ranger Tan

You're probably wondering why I have so many mobile devices/readers. The Galaxy Nexus is my phone of course. I always have this with me.

The Kindle Fire I have I use mostly for playing a game or reading my Twitter feed. It also runs a custom ROM, Jandycane. I blogged on how you can root the Kindle Fire and put a custom Android ROM on there. a while back.

The Kindle Paperwhite I use for actually reading ebooks. It's actually really nice and clear-- very easy on the eyes for reading anywhere. I while back I tweeted about winning the device at a Amazon Cloud Services meetup in Los Angeles.

Besides all the gadgets, I highly recommend the messenger bag from Ono. They're well made, stylish, and just holds everything you see here.