Working off of one RAW file, I lifted the foreground shadows a bit to balance the dynamic range a bit better while processing in Adobe Camera Raw.

Due to family life and heavy traveling and work/appearances out of state this summer, it's rare that I get a chance to go out for the sole purpose of shooting pictures as a way to relax the stress I've accumulated. I truly do believe that all photographers should plan an entire day every now and then, regardless of whether photography is their real job, to just go out and shoot what you love. Relax and have fun. Relieve stress. Party. Oddly, however, I don't do this at all for my art/drawing side--I never plan a relaxing day just to "draw" whatever I like. Shit, drawing is the last thing I want to do after I fight deadlines for freelance comic/other work (it's one reason why I can't stand/don't do "Drink 'n Draws").

Recently my friend/photographer/sometimes-lighting-assistant Alexis and I spent a day just going out and shooting. We had planned this for a while, and finally settled and got a day that fitted our schedules.

We did a day of shooting at the zoo, shooting "street style" at the Mall of America, and then finally hitting downtown Minneapolis for some evening shots.

While I haven't culled through all of the photos, here are a few from Minneapolis. Some of these may be available as a print on my online store once I get my act together. All were shot with the Olympus OMD-EM5 and various lenses; for the long exposure shots, I used a MeFoto Tripod for support: