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I’ve seen numerous people who’s inbox is just cluttered with unread emails. I don’t know about you but I can’t stand to have unread emails sitting there. I used to mark emails unread as a way of letting me know that I would have to follow up with that email. Now, I use gmail’s built in tools such as “starring” an item. If you look at the image, all my spam is actually in the spam folder.. all 600+ emails. The best thing about gmail is the anti-spam system. So how do I keep my inbox clean and clear?

1. Set specific times to check email.

I think it’s terrible to constantly check emails.. possibly unhealthy. I’ve done a pretty good job at closing my email client so that I cannot see it.

2. Don’t sign up for newsletters.

I suggest using a different email account if you’re going to sign up for any newsletters or sign up for something that offers a free product or trial. These sites may sell your email address to those who spam.

3. Empty the deleted items.

The trash folder is for trash. It’s not an organizational folder for important emails. I’ve had people come up to me asking how they can recover emails from the deleted items because they’ve used it as an organizational folder.

4. Next Action

Do what you need to do to clear that inbox. Reply to the email now or put it in a “need to process” folder. Develop a next action to get to zero.

I had the pleasure of working with Tina Ontiveros from Model Mayhem, #735403. Shes a young beautiful woman just getting into modeling. I contacted her a week ago ask asked if she would be up for a photoshoot downtown and sure enough, we planned it. For this shoot I used a Canon 5d, 24-104mm and 50mm lens. I brought my strobe out, Vivitar 285, shooting through an umbrella. This was my first time shooting all manual and the results made me happy. If there is anything that I would improve on with this shoot it would have to be the amount of poses I knew. I never knew that I’d have to know posing in order to get my creative idea out there. I may look foolish but it’s the model that will bring out the quality of the shot.

You can see more of Tina by viewing my flickr page

They tied the knot in beautiful San Clemente right on the beach. It was beautiful out with a few clouds which made it a perfect time to take some photos. There were some train tracks close by where the kids layed down some coins for the train to crush which looked quite awesome. Hanging out with Coral and Glenn’s family was a blast as they made it very fun and comfortable. Here are just a few of my favorite shots that day.

This post doesn’t include any photos but an actual video. The video is from The Original Joe Fisher from Vimeo in which he documented his trip to the Natural History Museum in LA. Look at the video closely and you’ll find out exactly what’s happening.

Extinct, my ASS! from The Original Joe Fisher on Vimeo.

Many of us try to stay on a diet. I am one of those people. For the most part, I sit on my butt all day long and try to fit in some form of exercise. A big part to a successful diet is to eat healthy and in moderation. Last night was not successful. I had stuffed my face with delicious sushi from Zen5 in PB. If you’re up for some good rolls then this may be the place. And from now on, let’s not call it a diet.. call it an eating plan. It just sounds better.

Last Friday, my girlfriend [Barbara] and I, hosted a sushi dinner where we actually had to roll it ourselves. I went out and bought fresh sashimi at the Mitsuwa Market over in Kearney Mesa. The store was full of delicious foods labeled in Japanese. Anyways, here are the results of that night’s sushi:

Today, I say goodbye to my beloved dog of nearly 10 years. I am deeply saddened by this but it’s just another one of life’s lessons. My family received her as a gift from a friend of my dad’s. She was just a little pup that loved to play in the grass. She grew up to be a tough mean dog that protected our house and family. I would dare not let anyone touch her because she can sense fear and will often bite but when the right person comes along she will let down her guard and make friends. I had a lot of fun memories with her and our family will forever miss her.

I recently had an engagement photo session with Coral and Glenn. They decided to have the shots down in Ocean Beach in a secluded section. Once you go down the long flight of stairs its quite nice and hidden! A fairly small area but many possibilities to expose different kinds of shots. The weather was not on our side as it proved to be a challenge. Very gray and gloomy looking. Here are my favorites:

Hey kids! I am Rowell, the proprietor of this blog and this is my first post. I’m looking forward to posting various material but ecstatic about taking photography to the next level, personally. I’ve got quite a bit to share with you from an engagement session I just photographed, to a wedding coming up real soon, meeting with a few models for a shoot and a baptism at the end of the month.

On a side note, click play to listen to “My Hands Are Shaking”

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by Sondre Lerche is my new favorite song. It’s from the movie Dan In Real Life which is an absolutely great movie and I’d recommend you watch it

The picture is from entertainment wallpaper and is a great example of good photography. You can get an idea of the lighting setup from Steve Carell’s eyes.