I recently had the opportunity to photograph a custom painted Mike Giant Edition Leader track bike.

I set the bright white bike among a dingy dark basement to get a great contrast. The lighting was low but the bike was bright.

Thanks to Bikes on Wheels for giving me the chance to take some great shots.

After struggling with various different pains and injuries over the past few race seasons, I decided to make a drastic change to my footwear. I contact the Danish shoe manufacturer ECCO to get a pair of their Biom A 2.1 Natural Motion running shoes.

These shoes take a completely different stance, no pun intended, than most other companies. Instead of adding extra foam and support to the sole of the shoe, they give you an incredibly low stance and flexible shoe. This will allow my feet to move in a more evolved natural motion, and over time, will eleviate my pains and allow me to run faster.

This adaption process will take at least 6 weeks, and I will be recording all aspects of here. Check back for details.

I got together with Robin of FourEyes Studio to get some action shots to accompany the articles. Thanks for the work, we can call it even now.

Links:
BIOM by ECCO
FourEyes Studio

Eureka! Furniture Assembly is a new company that will come to your house and assemble  your new furniture, as the name suggests. They will also help set up home theaters, sterios or any other confusing assembly projects that you thought you could do yourself. They are very quick with fast turn around times, great rates and friendly service people.

Its a long weekend here in Canada, so we took the opportunity to head to Keen Valley in New York State. My sister was there with her husband and their baby Emery, this was his first trip to the mountains. They also had their Norval friends with their baby.

Cassy had never been up a mountain before, so we jumped head in, with a 2762 ft climb as soon as we got there. No problem. We all made it with some slight rain and cold weather to boot. The plan for the week was to rest a day and tackle another climb on the weekend. Didn’t happen. We headed out Friday morning for what turned out to be a 7 hour hike over 3 mountains ( Lower Wolf Jaw, Hedgehog and Rooster Comb). We expected a long hike, but this one tested out legs and our will to live. I am so proud of Cassy, who with no complaints or anger took on the mountains and kicked their ass. We came across many new scenes, lean-tos, ranger stations and even a suspension bridge. Cassy faced her fears, and took the bridge one step at a time. Nice.

After the hike, we took and easy night of bbq with the Owen family. These people are the main reason we keep coming back to this region. I will have to do a whole post dedicated to them. Frank and Martha Lee are gracious hosts, and make the long drive worth it.

Saturday was our last day, and one to relax. We took some easy time on the beach in Lake Placid, and I got a bit of training in Mirror Lake on the Ironman Course. There was a rowing regatta in place to provide some entertainment as well. We then headed over to the Olympic Speed Skating Circle for a little sampling at the rib fest. We got there at the right time, and had the chance to do a little judging in the “BEST RIB” contest. There where 16 entries, and it cost $1 for 1 rib. I will just say I got my fill.

The night was another relax in prep for the long drive home in the morning.

Sunday started the way any other would, with a run up over 2500 ft at 7am. This was a killer. Within a few seconds on the ascent, my heart was over 180 bpm. I had to take it easy. I made it to the top, but had messed up my stop watch and had no time up, but got it worked out for the 25 minute descent. Back to the tent just in time to pack and head out on what turned out to be an 11 hour drive home. What a day, what a trip.

We are already planning our next visit, this time with the bikes. It is a perfect setting to get out and speed around by bike. Hundreds of kilometers of paved shoulder up and around some of the nicest scenery in the country.

You can get the other ones HERE

I had the opportunity to do a little work for a new photography company called Four Eyes. This company was started by Robin Hamill and Brian Telzero, hence their combined 4 eyes. What a great name to start, and how fun to work with other creative people.

I love classic European type design. I can’t seem to get enough of the Swiss and Danish concept of layout and communication design. I have given in to my desire to use Helvetica for everything, and created a calendar for 2010. I wish I had thought of this earlier in the year, but this is how it has happened. I made these to put on my desktop for easy reference. Feel free to download and use yourself. I’ll post new ones as the months roll on.

You can get the other ones HERE

These are a few photos Cassy and I have taken in the past while. I kept seeing them in my iPhoto library, and meaning to touch them up but never did. Until now. We spend much of our free time finding and photographing textures, colours, shapes and forms. I know the more images I have to draw from, the better the a finished piece will be. There have been many times that I had something in mind, and was able to use my pictures to get the job done. The bigger the library the better, in this case. In case your lost in a library, you would want it as small as possible.

Here is a list of what you need:

Case, Stain, Foam, Padding, Fabric, Contact Cement, Chain, Brass Tacks, Small Brass Nails, Sand Paper (220 grit), Love and Time.

This is the order I used:

1. Take apart the case.

2. Sand for a long time.

3. Stain and hang dry.

4. Cut the foam and wood platform.

5. Cut the padding and fabric.

6. Glue the fabric and padding to the foam and wood platform.

7. Assemble and add accessories.

8. Make sure it all fits, and make adjustments.

9. Use it.

Now that FITC (Flash in the Can) is over for an other year, I have some time to put up some photos and comments about the event. The overall feeling I have is WOW. I have been overwhelmed with amazing design, new technology and the stories told by great designers from around the globe.

Some good sessions to check out on the FITC site:

Back to the Future with James White
United Visual Artists with Ben Kreukniet
North Kingdom: An Inside View
ISO50: Blending Analogue and Digital with Scott Hansen
Terraforming Narrative with Alex McDowell
The Grammar of Interaction Design with Brendan Dawes
Welcome to the Sideshow with Mario Klingemann
Eyes Can Hear, 5 Ways with Jared Ficklin
It Has To Be This with John Underkoffler

As a designer, I tried to see as many creative sessions as possible. These all give you the feeling that you are involved in one of the most exciting and innovative industries available. With new programs, and the programmers making numbers work in ways never believed possible, I could see the future of communication and art in the digital world. I have new hope for the future of our industry, and see its not just about Facebook and Twitter, and this feeling seems like it is across the board. I hate Facebook and Twitter, hack ways for non-creatives to feel important.

More to come…