LAX Bomb Squad

Thanks for checkin' out Bsombin'! I might have said it before. But, for someone who doesn't travel much, I spend a lot of time at LAX. With most of my family living in other states and countries, there's always someone flying in to visit or going to visit the family elsewhere. On my most recent trip to the airport, it was my youngest sister who needed to be dropped off. My mom also wanted to go. When we got there, mom decided to go in with my sister to make sure her luggage wasn't over the weight limit. It was late at night (on a week day) when we got there, so the airport was empty. While they were inside checking in my sister's luggage, I waited outside in the car, since the loading zone was empty. I had my camera with me and it was taking a while for my sister to check in. So, I decided to get out of the car and take a few pictures while I waited. I walked about 20 yards away from the car, to get a better shot of the Bradley terminal, while I was shooting. To my surprise, that set off alarms with the airport police and the bomb squad. To them, it looked like I abandoned a car in front of a terminal, since they couldn't see me shooting in the shadows. Within minutes, I had a squad car pull up behind our car. Before I could turn to address the cops in the squad car, a bomb squad truck with a K9 office pulled up. The bomb squad office quickly got out and asked me what I was doing as he let the K9 officer out of the back. I told him that I was just taking some pics while I waited for my mom. He laughed and said, "You can't just leave your car unmanned like that." He explained why it looked suspicious and politely asked me to wait by the car. The other officers walked up behind me, while the bomb squad spoke to me, and surrounded me. Once the bomb squad officer said it was okay, the other officers walked me into the terminal to find my mom. They saw that my mom is handicapped and were nice enough to let me stay parked in the loading zone while my sister finished checking in. They even let me keep shooting and stayed to talk to me about photography. They also let me play with Bailey (the K9 officer) and take his picture. I thought it was funny how they called the bomb squad on Bsomb. Fortunately, all the officers were very cool and it was a fun encounter with the LAPD and the bomb squad.  ...Can't say I've had too many of those. But you can't let one bad apple (or cop) spoil the bunch. And that experience goes to show why you shouldn't. I was able to get some shots worth sharing, before I had to leave. And, on the way home, I also shot some moving long exposure shots...

I hope you liked the pics! Thanks again for checkin' out Bsombin'! Check back soon for more photos, art, poems, stories, and more!

A Gundam In Van Nuys

Thanks for checkin' out Bsombin'! I'm not gonna lie... I've been slacking off on posting here. I haven't  slowed down on creating the content, I just haven't been sharing it. I'm beginning to think I need to hire a part time assistant to help me manage all the art I create. While I continue to think about that idea, I will leave you with some pics I took of the Gundam that landed at the Van Nuys airport...

I have always wanted to see a Gundam up close, but never thought I would have the opportunity. Imagine my surprise when one landed a few blocks from my house! I saw it coming in for a landing, as I was driving home from a shoot, and followed it over to the airport. It landed by the control tower with it's saber drawn and stood looking around, like a guard on patrol, for about 10 minutes. Then, as if something was calling it, it turned, took a few steps towards the runway, and took off into the air. It left a big cloud of smoke as it flew out of site in a matter of seconds. It ascended into the blue and disappeared faster than anything I've ever seen before and sounded like nothing I've ever heard either. I'm not sure what it stopped for. But I was beyond happy to not only see it but to have my camera with me when I did. In all my excitement, though, I didn't think to film a video. To be honest, I was kind of scared when it turned and looked at me as I was taking pictures. That's why I only got a couple. But, 2 good pics is good enough for me. Hopefully I don't get in trouble for posting this and have to pull these down. But, for now, here is proof that Gundams are real!

I'll be sharing more Gundam Wing Tales in the months to come, as I begin to work more with the Gundam mobile suits that are stationed here in Van Nuys. Check back soon for more on the Gundams and for more Bsombin'!  

A Weekend In Guatemala - Pt8. The Android's Trip Home

A Weekend In Guatemala - Pt7. The Flight Home

Thanks for checkin' out the blog! Have you ever have one of those weekends that take a week to recover from? ...My weekend in Guatemala was exactly that! I was exhausted when I woke up on Monday morning! There were still people to see and gifts to buy, though. So, despite might lack of energy, I got up early to pack all my things and clean up the room I was staying in.

After a few last minute visits with family, my dad took me to the "Mercado Central" (The Capital's central market place) to buy some gifts for the family back home. Unfortunately, the Mercado Central is not a good place to try and take pictures. When I told my dad that I wanted to shoot in the central market, he said I'd probably get mugged if I did. He then reminded me that we didn't have a lot of time either. I think we spent a total of about 15-20 minutes racing around the Mercado Central looking for gifts and treats to bring home. That was all the time we could afford to spend shopping, since the city's insane traffic was going to make getting to the airport on time a challenge.



When we arrived, my dad and I exchanged our awkward goodbyes and a hug, before I rushed off to check in for my flight. There was no line at the airline counter, Customs' line went quick, and by the time I got to the terminal the flight just started bording. On the way home, I had another long layover in Mexico. 4 hours after landing in D.F., my flight was up in the air and headed back to L.A. A few hours later we were flying over the sea of lights that is Los Angeles. I have no idea what time it was when I landed. I just know it was a little after 11 pm when I finally got in the car.



I think my brain just shifted into auto pilot, for the remainder of the night. I don't remember much after leaving the airport. I do remember being happy to be home, though. ...And the awesome welcome that I got from the family when we got back from the airport! It was the perfect way to end an amazing weekend and journey! A journey that inspired me to explore the great city I call home even more, after seeing it from the sky at night! As we flew into L.A. and past down town, it felt more like the start of another adventure than the end of one. Little did I know how right I was...

Thanks for checking out the blog and allowing me to share my journey with you! Check back soon for more stories, pictures from my adventures, and more Bsombin'!

A Weekend In Guatemala - Pt2. Airborne Android

I ended up taking a lot more pictures with my Android, during the journey, than I did with the DSLR. But I hardly used the Android once one the ground. Here, I'm sharing some of the architecture shots from the airports, as well as some arial shots over Mexico and Guatemala...

  

A Weekend In Guatemala - Pt1. Flying

Hola Mundo! Thanks for stopping by and checking out the blog! Last year, for my Abuelita's 81st birthday, my father's side of the family decided to have a reunion. It was a little last minute, in the planning. And we were in the middle of getting our Summer '15 line ready, with ILUMN8 Co. So I was only able to go for the weekend of the party. But, with family flying in from all around the world, I couldn't miss the chance to see everyone again. I was excited to see all the family, especially my brother, sister, and cousins Rob, Mark, & Becky. I'm always happy to see my siblings, since I don't see them often. And I hadn't seen my cousins Rob & Mark in over 20 years. Becky wasn't even born, the last time I saw her brothers, so it was going to be my first time meeting her!

I got to LAX late, so I was in too much of a rush to take an pictures. By the time I got to the terminal, the plane was already boarding and I flew out of LAX late around 1AM destined for Mexico City. We landed in Mexico D.F. early in the morning, and I had to wait the for 3 hours before my connecting flight was scheduled to board. After going through customs, I got a bit to eat and then walked around the terminals taking pictures of the architecture. After about 4 hours in D.F., I was back up in the air and on my way to Guatemala. Below are some of the pics I took on the trip. As usual, I will be posting the DSLR camera pictures and the Android pictures separately. So, to start, here are the DSLR pictures first. Check back soon, for more travel adventures and Bsombin'!

Lurkin' 'round LAX

Many thanks for checkin' out my blog! With a big family that likes to travel, a lot of my time is spent at LAX making me very familiar with the airport and it's surrounding neighborhoods. This is in part to my usual routine, when a flight is late, being to get out he camera and shoot. Most of the time, though, I find that the delays are in the day. Night flights are usually on time, so I don't get to do a lot of night shooting by the airport. Last November, however, my sister's flight got delayed and I found myself with a couple of hours to kill. And, so, the lurk began... I found a spot to park, right off of Century Blvd., and started by the LAX sign at the Century entrance. First a trip to the top of a parking lot structure, for elevated shoots, then down on to the streets. I made my way down Century to Sepulveda then headed down Sepulveda a ways before flippin' a bitch and heading back towards the car. By the time my sister's flight had landed, I was back at the car with a memory card full of captures. Too many to share, but I will share some of my favs from the night. Thanks again for stoppin' by. Check back soon for more LA stories, images from the city of angels, and more Bsombin'!

El Segundo

...No, I didn't leave my wallet in El Segundo. Although, I couldn't help singing the hook from that old Tribe Called Quest classic, as I drove through the city. My destination, for that afternoon, was a look out point with a view of LAX's runways, and my plan was to test out the new tele-photo lens I got. The combo of airplanes and photography made killing and hour a breeze. Before I knew it, the fam's flight had landed and I had to rush to the terminals to pick them up. I didn't leave without getting a lot of good shots first. I decided to share 4 of my favorites, from that day, and here they are...