Another Day...

Ok guys, I promise not to keep these updates every day and bother you. I just had another report for my second day of classes, and my first official day on my sunrise/sunset photo shoot. I got up around 6am...let's all let out a sad groan together, ok?...I grabbed a bite to eat real quick and rode my bike about 20 blocks give or take a few to Piedmont Park downtown Atlanta. It was a really nice bikeride and my calves and thighs of thunder thank me right now. (Shots of the day at the end of this post).

My class was right after my morning ride/shoot. I was able to grab a shower to wake up more and head across the street for class. (Not having to drive is freakin' awesome!) The class today was Introduction to Photography. I absolutely love it! The professor is really enthusiastic and really nice. He is a white guy from South Africa and also a believer from what I'm told. Which is cool. But the assignments are going to be really cool for that class and a great opportunity to push the creative envelope. One example to be done by next week is "Worm's Eye-View." We have to shoot all shots from the ground looking up or just from a low point, putting ourselves in the mind of a worm. Sounds exciting...and challenging, but Im set for that challenge.

The shoot tonight was at Centennial Park downtown, but I took the Marta for that. I mean, I bought a city pass, might as well use that bus ticket. The sunset location was not as great as I had hoped. I forgot there were building on both sides, completely blocking direct sunlight. So I had to try my best to improvise. Here are the shots of the day: They are a little mixed up. Five of them are sunrise and the other five are sunset. The first four are sunset as well as number seven with the olympic rings. The ones with the dew/fog and the good orange color are sunrise. Dont get used to seeing my work, but I thought you might want to see first day attempts.

Photoshop class tomorrow. More to come...

Day One Report: Survived!

I'm in a state of being overwhelmed right now. Not in a bad way really in the slightest, but more so just like one of those things where you are running really fast and I am in that moment of catching my breath after a long sprint. Like the running was good for my soul and body, and now I'm just trying to take it all in and recharge my batteries. We had orientation this morning for Portfolio Center at 9am. Eric and I, being the enthused and eager beavers we are, got there like 30 minutes prior. Rolling stone gathers no moss, my friends.

It started out pretty basic. Here you will learn this and apply it to that and it will help you become him/her. It was honestly really deep and informative more than what I'm making it seem. I think one of the things Eric and I are discovering is that everyone there truly cares about your success in the program and in the career field after words just as much as you do yourself. And that feels good, because it's not like these are people who are just getting paid, and want you to do it a set way so you can be this type of cookie-cutter creative arts person. Not at all! They encourage you to push the envelope, to never settle, hit the ground running, get to know your peers because you will know them forever, etc. It's a really welcoming and calming feeling. One of the staff described it best saying that they take care of each other there just as much as a family would and should. Everyone is there to help you figure stuff out and make sure you are doing what you need to be doing. Like honestly this morning you could just feel the creative juices flowing through everyone and there was like an anxiety to begin. An anxiety that will never dissipate from here on out I'm sure.

We got our schedules...here is mine:
* Mon 9a-12p: Natural Light. This is the Photography course I was talking about already where one assignment is shooting subjects with the lighting at sunrise and sunset everyday for the next 8 weeks...weekends too!
* Tues 9a-12p: Intro to Photography. I really hope this isn't a class that won't teach me anything new. I really want to be pushed in this class and maybe even drive my passion from the start.
* Wed 9a-12p: Intro to Photoshop. Same applies with this course. I really hope it helps me harness the skills in this program that I already know and also learn and adapt some awesome new ones
*Wed 1p-5p: Emotive Writing/Grammar Boot Camp. I have honestly no idea what to expect of this class except that my Wednesdays will be PACKED!
*Thur 10a: Seminar. This is required of all students where people from the industry come in and share. Much like "Chapel" at my undergrad.

But thats my schedule for the first quarter. I know it might not seem like much, but I'm pretty positive my butt will get kicked. I actually had a class today. My Natural Light class met. We got to meet the professor for the first time. He is really cool, Jerry Burns. www.studioburns.com to see his work. He is one of the most well-known photographers, as I understand it, in the Atlanta area. But he seems like a really genuine guy. I know he expects a lot out of us and our work but I can also tell he genuinely wants to help us become a better photographer than we thought possible. It's exciting. In class, we had to take photos of each other. There are 7 of us in the class. The girl I took photos of had a really good sense of humor. She was totally hitting on me too. Kidding...or am I? The professor went over the syllabus, requirements and some assignments to come in the next few weeks. Oh the excitement! Tomorrow is my first day for the Intro to Photography class. I hope that goes well. Be praying for me.

Eric and I went and checked out a church on Sunday. Buckhead Church, www.buckheadchurch.org What an amazing place! I loved it! I will seriously keep going back every week its just a matter of work for school but more so if its a place where I can get connected and really get to know people my age who are also Christians. Especially since I've noticed A LOT of the students at PC are not what Im used to. But this is a fact I have already expected. It's just going to take getting used to. But this church was phenomenal! The worship was great! The message was awesome, and really spoke to me. It was about how God uses the negatives in life to grow us in our faith, and immediately I started thinking about this entire last year with my ex, and Nashville and the job struggle and it really showed me where I've come from. It just made me smile. Knowing that God brought me here on faith alone to PC and Atlanta. That I put my faith fully in Him that this is the route He had prepared for me, and today I started walking it. Like I said...overwhelmed...and I love it! I'm hoping as each day goes by I'll survive it like I did today. With this wit, charm, dimples and faith of course I can hahaha.

More to come...

P.S. Thanks to EVERYONE for their birthday wishes! 25 was a great one!

It's Been One Week...

Well, a lot has been going on this week as Eric and I have gotten settled into Atlanta living conditions, walking non-stop, waiting on city busses non-stop and praising the fact that we now have our cable and internet...non-stop. The first thing I need to get off my chest is a funny, sad-but-true story. The other night we were decorating our place, and by decorating I mean hanging up the 47 NYC things we have. I decided I was going to take the opportunity and meet a neighbor. She lives right next to us. To be honest, the only reason I said I'd go meet her was because we knew it was a girl living there and we wanted a closer look. No, that isn't the sad-but-true part. So she opens her door and I'm standing there talking to her for a bit. Her name is Connie. She goes to State. She looks as if she is a rocker-type chick who can kick my tail, but then again who can't? She mentioned she works a lot so, naturally, I asked her where. She is a stripper at Tattle Tales hahaha. Now that I know that, we have tickets to the VIP room there and she is planning a special show for my 25th birthday on Sunday! Only kidding...or am I? (insert evil laugh here).

But yeah, on a more serious note. We have mostly been spending the week getting to know our way around Atlanta. Figuring our good routes to get to where on the Marta, finding the library, post office, learning back roads, walking around downtown. I went by myself to the aquarium which was really cool. Feel free to file that into the sad-but-true category also if you desire. I don't, however. Our apartment is completely finished with the set up and that makes us officially moved in as Atlanta residents. This time last year I was saying that for Nashville. Weird how much difference a year makes. Tomorrow is our last official day of "freedom" before grad classes/orientation starts on Monday. We are going to Buckhead Church tomorrow morning (www.buckheadchurch.org) Looks pretty awesome and Eric has heard a lot about it. Also I'll be doing a little something I like to call....CELEBRATING MY 25th BIRTHDAY!!!! Man I cant wait to hit my VIP seat at Tattle Tales! Or is it "tails"? Hmmm...I'll leave that one to question forever. (Don't worry, mom)

I got a syllabus for one of my classes. I take 5 classes (what the other 4 are I wont find out until Monday at orientation). I guess the professor decided to get an early jump. The class is "Natural Light." One of our assignments is every day for the next 8 weeks we get to shoot subjects at both sunrise and sunset. Sounds pretty cool, but to those who know me know the sunrise is going to be a huge adjustment. I'll find out if my clock actually does show anything other than double digits in the morning hours. Im up for the challenge though. We also have to read "Girl With A Pearl Earring" for artsy reasons. I was joking with Eric how it would be funny to take that book out with me places to read like at bus stops, and other embarrassing public outlets.

I got to shoot some photos of our apartment. There are about 24, and if you have Facebook, I suggest you look at all of them in my "Atlanta Living...So Far" album. There are also photos in that album from all over Atlanta and the aquarium too. Here are 4 photos: Living Room; Dining Room; and two photos of my Bedroom.



We are anxiously awaiting the start of the quarter. www.portfoliocenter.com is the school site if you want to look it over. I'm looking forward to this new beginning...with a little bit of excitement and a whole lot of nerves. I'm sure the two will balance out as the week progresses. At least I hope so. I'll let you know how Monday goes, once I survive it :)

More to come...

A New Chapter Begins...

For some reason when I just typed that Blog title, I thought of As the World Turns...weird. Anyways, I made it to Atlanta!!! Just spend my first night last night in our apartment ("our" meaning Eric and I, who was a friend of mine from NGU, also going to Portfolio Center). My parents, who love me dearly, moved me down here from VA on Friday and we moved everything in Saturday morning. Two flights of stairs can take a toll on you when you're moving furniture. But we're living in a townhome apartment right in Downtown Atlanta near Buckhead. We love it so far!!

Last night we made a much needed Wal-Mart run to get the essentials, wall hooks, groceries, etc. Everything is pretty much set up in our apartment. I decided to paint horizontal stripes around the circumfrance of my room...hard to explain, but Ill post some pictures when its done. We just have wall decorations left. A LOT of NYC themed stuff.

Today we went to the Atlanta Braves v. New York Mets game. It was a lot of fun and Im glad we decided to go. Eric had won free tickets that ended up being in pretty good seats out in the outfield. We chose not to drive, but instead, took a city bus and metro to get there. Helped us become more well acquainted with our home city for the next two years. After the game, we headed back and decided to walk back to the apartment instead of take the bus, because we wanted to see how long a walk would be from our apartment to the metro station. So basically, after an hour had passed we finally arrive at our place haha.

We're currently at Panera Bread a few blocks over using the internet and ordering Comcast cable and internet. I was really hoping for some free wireless internet off of a neighbor, but oh well. But we are loving it so far. Im a big city guy at heart for sure...it became evident in day one. We're both very anxious to get started at Portfolio Center. But classes dont start until a week from tomorrow. I just want to know my schedule, meet new people and form new friendships. I just hope Ill be outgoing and everyone will be very welcoming and not intimidating. Cause Lord knows I'll pop someone's big head ego like a balloon. :) Dont give me that WWJD, because He would use humility to teach a lesson I know it.

I dont feel overwhelmed just yet. Nashville life definitely prepared me for larger cities and living on my own. Im not going to be looking for a job until Jan/Feb when our rent special is over. Right now we get half off the first four months (about $250 each) and then it'll double after that. About $1,000 a month total. Ugh! Hurts my stomach, believe me. But we're in a great location! There is one of my banks, Chick-fil-A, Kroger and many other places all in walking distance. Yay for saving gas! Im not sure if we are going to Six Flags this week because they are only open on weekends and I doubt we will do that until friends or family come for a visit before the park closes Nov. 2nd.

Thats about all of an update for now. Tomorrow I think I might go with Eric and his mom who is coming for a visit to Ikea and some other places. Also I need to work on painting my room so that headache can be over. But now Im headed off of this Panera wifi spot, putting my crumbs of the Roast Beef and Cheddar in the trash, and headed home. 25th Birthday in a week, and I saw a Cheesecake Factory not too far from me...Im thinking I might treat myself to some birthday cheesecake...yes? Indeed! Photos are on the way once we get all settled.