Seattle

The road through life is often uphill, and there are those moments when we all have to lean in and give it everything we’ve got to reach the summit. Witnessing this man climbing the street in Seattle, hands clasped behind his back, taking a low angle, eyes on the ground in front of him. He was making good time. I admired him for his tenacity. He seemed to be using his low center of gravity to his advantage.

This man, hunched over, leaning into the steep incline, hurriedly making his way through the people who seemed oblivious to his presence. At this moment, I felt like I was the only one who noticed him at all. Thinking back, I imagine there had to be someone else whose eye this character caught. He navigated the sign behind him by shouldering it like a tackling dummy, slithering around it like a snake and continuing on, ever moving forward, like a salmon fighting its way upstream.

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Don’t send you broken lenses to Precision Camera

My favorite lens to shoot with, the Pentax 21mm prime, suddenly stopped working. The outer lens ring was completely knocked off the lens. I suppose I banged it into too many steering wheel and walls in its lifetime, and it just finally had enough. This lens is tough. It comes with a lens hood that is made of metal, and its profile on the camera is minimal. I like to shoot close, and this lens makes that possible. I’ve put it through its paces on the streets of Denver and in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.

I’ve used it to capture tens of thousands of images and there isn’t any lens I like better. I found Precision Camera through Pentax. It seems that’s where Pentax sends their lenses off for repair, so I contacted them. I went through an online process with the company to start the repair order, and shipped the lens myself from UPS. The lens arrived in early May and I assumed work had begun. After several weeks of silence, I attempted to e-mail the company through their website. I received no response on three separate e-mails.

I then called their customer service department, and spoke with Charlene, who said that the problem was that I hadn’t authorized payment on the credit card for the $166.50 repair. I was under the impression that this was paid up front, when I entered my information online and received a confirmation. She was short, and I would bet she didn’t look at the order itself, just repeating the phrase “now that the payment is received you will get your lens in four to six business days.” Today the timeframe given was five to seven business days. I didn’t feel confident about the conversation or the information I was receiving, as the online order status had a big red stop sign on it and stated that they were waiting for backordered parts. I told the customer service representative and she stuck to her story about the payment problem and now everything is on schedule. I wasn’t surprised when I didn’t receive my lens within that time frame.

So I called again today, July 26, and spoke with Charlene again who says that the payment was approved, and the parts are on backorder until July 6^th. After that date she says the lens will be returned as soon as possible. I asked her about the reason I was told on my last call that the lens would be delivered in four to six days, she said that was me that told you, and normally repairs take five to seven days barring any unforeseen circumstance. In this case I supposedly have parts on backorder that will arrive on July 6th. I asked how long ago the parts were ordered and she gave me two different dates in May, the eighth and then the 12^th.

I will follow up on July 6, to determine if the part was received or not. My complaint about this experience is that the numbers keep changing, and I’ve been kept in the dark for long periods of time. I think your customer service department is suffering a deficiency in effective communication. The system you have in place isn’t working and the customers are receiving mixed information from your website and your live representatives. The information we do receive is often incorrect and is leaving your customers dissatisfied. We are vocal about this problem, and your company received poor reviews in many internet forums where fellow photographers warn against dealing with your company in any way.

I will join the ranks of your naysayers and advise any photographer I come across to steer clear of your company. The equipment we send you is expensive and waiting more than three months for a lens repair is just bad business. After being completely ignored on four separate occasions online, and getting mixed and inconsistent information on two phone calls, I am completely frustrated and unhappy with this experience.

Camera companies would do well to take their business elsewhere. I will contact Pentax about this experience, and while my one voice might not worry you, the voice of potentially tens of thousands of other photographers and customers of yours will eventually be heard and a good number of us are unhappy.

The Urban Landscape of Albuquerque, New Mexico

A colorful street sign signifies my presence at Marquette Street in downtown Albuquerque.

Commuters in downtown Albuquerque wait for the Rapid Ride.

Observing pattern, repetition, color, light and lines. All that from a brick wall and a telephone pole.

This 1982 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia is what drew us out to New Mexico in the first place. It was a decent enough specimen except for the really bad exhaust leak. The voices told us no this time. Our quest continues.

Shingles, pigeons and bushes are just a few of the interesting aspects of Raks Building Supply.

While my daughter and girlfriend were playing at a local park I wandered down a dead end road. It was unpaved and lined with several modest and unique homes.

Portrait of a home in Albuquerque.

A school bus and a minivan decorate the yard of this home.

Desert plant life is abundant throughout the area.

Albuquerque is filled with art.

The colors of Old Town Albuquerque.

Seen at a rest stop on 1-25 South.

Sunflowers and modern power.

Old Town ABQ

My family and I have been traveling across the United States in search of a van that will be used to travel across the United States. We will be leaving within the next 9 months. The bus we found on this trip was not the right fit for us, but the trip wasn’t all for naught. I got the opportunity to explore Albuquerque with my K-5.

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I can’t remember
how this moment was captured
human connection

Colorblind

devoid of faces

colorblind photographer

trying to understand

Today I joined a group of curious photographers at Mike’s Camera for a Street Photography Workshop. I found the experience to be liberating. Traveling with a large group of photographer’s seems to put people at ease. I felt almost invisible today, camouflaged by a buzzing swarm of paparazzi behind me, cameras aimed at the skyline. Flanked by this photographers mob I found myself getting closer and closer to what interested me. The wide angle lens forced me to be bold or come away disappointed. Traveling in a pack really does have it’s advantages.

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Today I had my first day of a class centered around internet media. I found myself instantly wanting to compete with my fellow classmates once I saw some of their awesome blogs. I kicked myself for that knee-jerk reaction.

It was a realization that I am still trying to overcome years of parenting and conditioning to strive for the top. When is it enough? How many followers do I need to find happiness? How much validation do I need to feel like I am worthwhile?

When do I truly buy into the notion that collaboration and cooperation are more beneficial to me then stepping on the throat of the guy (or girl) who is in my way on my climb to the top? I don’t know the answer to that. I do know that I had an instant reaction and motivation to try even harder and get even better because my emotions got the better of me. The saying that “success breeds contempt” has never been more obvious to me than it was today.

To all of you who read the blog. Thank you. I am your biggest fan. I love you all for what you do, for sharing your thoughts, feelings, emotions, and creative inspirations. I love you because you make me feel human and you give me food for thought on a daily basis. I hope you will continue to read this blog and that we all get to know each other just a little bit better.

A life alone is a struggle. I feel like too many of us just put our blinders on and focus on reaching the top and being the best no matter what it takes or who gets in the way. I don’t think the world HAS to be like that, but it still doesn’t change the fact that is IS like that.

Through the people who follow this blog I have found others who share these sentiments. The world may never be a better place, but at least we can hope for it and promote it and never give up trying to bring about the change we want to see.

They say a photographer’s images are in essence a self portrait of the photographer himself. I like that notion. The fact that maybe as a photographer I am subconsciously attracted to things that convey how I feel as a person in the world or what mood I am in. Tonight I feel hopeful and optimistic, and I see that in this image.

Everywhere, Every Place

Inspired by George Ella Lyon

Everywhere, Every Place

I am from eyeglasses,
From blurred vision and vicious taunts
I am from the flawed recesses of society
(Sweaty with low self- esteem, we smell of desperation.)

I am from the yellow footprints
Which all Marines before me have stood upon
Each of them in search of their own identity
I’m from a case of beer and a pack of cigarettes
From Miller Lite and Marlboro

I am from fist fights
and lost causes
From dirty jail cells and hard metal bunks
I’m from crooked fingers and double vision
From the skewed vision that makes my head throb

I’m from hard work and hope
Dreams and goals
From proving the disbelievers false
I am from you, and you are from me
We are from everywhere and every place

All of us,
Decended from the same cell
From racism and bigotry
From wars and disease
From Ignorance and Advancement
Morphed and twisted into
What we have become
© TheJeremyNix. All rights reserved

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I’m new to the weekly photo challenge, but any excuse to share images is cool with me. I suppose my companion would be my daughter Penelope. When she was born I quit my $50,000 a year job for the Federal Government to raise her while her mom brought home the bacon. It has been the most wonderful experience I could have ever imagined. It isn’t always easy, but it is most definitely rewarding.

Watching a human being grow up in front of your eyes, watching them learn and discover all the amazing and beautiful things around them, it is truly marvelous. This shot was taken at Bighorn Sheep Canyon campground, where myself and the rest of my companions love to be: Out in the world, traveling and exploring.