Well, if I'm being honest, I'd have to say the Oscar winner for Best Picture, Hugo, never appealed to me.  That said, it won a lot of awards... Guess I better fork over the $1.20 plus tax to see what all the fuss is about.  :)  So, tonight is a Redbox night!  My good friend David said he didn't think it was that great.  I will have to make my own opinion of it.  I'd really like to be pleasantly surprised by it.  Expectations are still a bit low.  

I'm also working on a presentation for the Sioux City Camera Club this week.  I will be presenting on Making the Best of Travel Photography.  I'm at a bit of a loss on what to discuss.  It'd be really easy to turn the presentation into a "Look at my vacation pictures" type of presentation... Sounds like a great time!  I really want it to be useful information as opposed to just being an opportunity to show off my pretty vacation pictures.  I expect to discuss issues on preparation for the local area you're visiting, what gear to pack, shots I've got and how I've retouched the photos, and being a tourist in your own town.  That itinerary could change, but I'll call Photographer's prerogative and maybe it will be a surprise on Thursday!  

Thanks again for visiting my blog!  I plan on putting up a new post every day.  Keep me accountable if I'm not!!  I'd like this blog to be a place worth visiting daily.  Please feel free to comment or chime in below!  Any thoughts on Hugo from anyone?  Like it?  Love it?  Hate it?  

UPDATE: A quick correction is in order - I said Hugo was the Oscar winner for Best Picture.  That is incorrect, The Artist won Best Picture.  My mistake.  After watching Hugo, I can say a couple things.  One, it was filmed beautifully.  Every scene was composed perfectly and if you took just a still shot of the frame, practically every frame of the movie could be a beautiful still shot of it's own.  The film though... while I think it was a heart warming story... It lost my interest pretty early.  It was very slow moving and about 30-40 minutes in I became distracted and started playing on my iPad... I continued to watch it, but without all of my focus.  So, for what I paid attention to, it seemed like a nice movie, but it was kind of boring for my taste.  I'm glad I only spent $1.20 on it.    

Shane Monahan is a Sioux City Photographer that specializes on weddings and senior portraits.  We live in Iowa, but will travel to any destination!  Also, ask us about our new Photo Booth rental now available.  Thanks!