Sunday started off really cold but I wanted to take advantage of the morning light.  No real plan on this day, just head out of the house with random cameras that I don’t use often, and be a tourist in our own area.

I had two frames left on the Fuji Instax wide and at least one of them was okay.  Sometimes this camera renders some cool images and justifies the $1/shot cost.

Sometimes on the weekends I like to do small camera Saturday/Sunday.  Meaning only using cameras like the X100, J1 and m4/3 cameras.  They’re definitely lighter of course but the main difference is the ability to actually get more things in focus.  Most of my portrait work is of course using blurry backgrounds, because frankly it’s easier to clean up not so pretty spots and touch them up, but in this case, the blossoms are just as important as the subject.

Nikon J1 with the 18.5mm f/1.8.  Mark my words this camera combo will be highly sought after in the future.  It’s a 50mm equivalent that produces work easily on par with Nikon APS-C sensors (in ample lighting).  

Nikon J1 and 10mm 2.8. This is another combo of mine that is forever in the starting lineup.  I’ve written before that it’s my go to food and product photography combo.  The .nef raw files still hold up to creative edits.

Of course at the last minute I did decide to bring a FF Canon DSLR.  The cooler palette and soft tones has always been there in those sensors.  When you shoot as many different cameras as me, you kind of have to give up on matching colors and just treat every camera combo as different film stock.

I was thinking for my next film roll I’m going to shoot specific colors for the whole 36 exposures.  Today could have easily been all pink day, from the blossoms to this outstanding Hello Kitty steering wheel.

First snack of the day: Taiwanese Spicy Chicken Nuggets and Octopus Balls from Quickly.  Sure there are so many more options for boba in the Atlanta area, but I still like stopping by here just for the food.  It’s fast and affordable.

So when I’m out in Chamblee I pass by this amazing mural all the time.  Glad to finally bring along a buddy that appreciates this fine masterpiece as much as me!

This section of the mural I really like and think it works well in terms of clustering of the subjects and the curves that keeps your eye engaged.

This section however has the most narrative potential.  As in, what are these gelatinous candy creatures doing exactly? Is there a birth and death cycle recalling the hieroglyphs of old?  Do they make or consume their young, and how does their leader the unicorn with the top hat fit into all this?  Alas we shall never know.

In my 10+ years of eating at Frosty Caboose, I’ve only ordered one thing, Raspberry Sorbet in a cake cone.  Because it’s the best (and no dairy).  Your Pie in Suwanee also has mango sorbet, which is really good too.

So many close and cool options around Chamblee.  From the airport where you can have a picnic and watch the planes take off, to the vintage bookstore with cats.  Last time I was there, there was a pineapple plant AND a cat greeting us.

Hopefully they’ll start having events at the old Chinatown shopping center in the future.  It would really help out this area.  Atlanta is different in that we don’t really have a “Chinatown,” as that term’s kinda limiting.  It’s literally pick a spot on the metro map and you can find pockets of every form of Asian cuisine.

After a quick stop being a tourist in the food court garden area, it was time to head back home.

Classic hamburger and sweet potato fries at Craft Burger.  I really like the burgers at this place, and judging by the foot traffic, so do many others in Suwanee.

There was an insanely long train going by so I’ll take any excuse to shoot some hoops.  I always like to say no one leaves until you hit at least one 3 pointer.

Actually I did have a photo idea I wanted to try today, which was to capture the same pose/feel of Angel’s photos that I shot waaay back when.  To me it seems like only a few years ago, but man does time fly.

And yep, that is the exact same red bouncy ball in the photos.  It’s been sitting in the closet and after all these years it really only needed a little bit of air.  While that and other toys were mothballed, progress did not stand still as the houses in the Suwanee neighborhoods are fast approaching the million dollar mark, which is crazy.  Gwinnett county is home to so many more people (with probably the best Korean food) and we’ve been lucky to witness it all grow.  The playground with the sand hasn’t changed one bit though, and I’ll always remember the simpler days of kicking the ball and flying kites in the empty field at town center.