Trip to China in 2008

So I finally posted some photos from my recent trip to China on my website so go check them out and let me know what you think! Melissa Renee Photography

Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland

So a small picture from Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland has already made it's way around the internet and eventually got to me. I almost died. What a tease!!! Now I find out that the release date is not until March 5th, 2010. I was thinking more "Summer 2009" but no luck. This dark fantasy film has...you guessed it, composer Danny Elfman for the score, Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter as the Queen of Hearts.....have I died and gone to heaven? I think so.....As for this photo...I feel another tattoo idea coming on :)

Oh, and for those of you that are considering getting the G1...it is a great phone! I love it except that there is no flash support. LAME.

And the Winner is......T-Mobile G1!

So after reading through every possible website that compares the T-Mobile G1 with the iPhone I decided to go with the G1. A few reasons: It has the flip top to type and is not ONLY touch screen, it's cheaper, and based on feedback by ACTUAL G1 holders - they love it! These were my reasons and I'm sure there are many hard-core Apple lovers out there that would disagree but that is why THEY have an iPhone and I have a G1. To each his own right? It seemed that the website reviews got feedback from people that have only read about the G1 and have never actually seen it in person, plus it came out not even a month ago and they were reviewing it back in September. I guess only time will tell if I made the right decision, either way I am stuck for 2 years now.....

China photos for Lomography

I got back my first few rolls from my recent trip to China! Medium photography is a nice change for a different view of the same city and sightseeing spots. It captured China in a different light, the fog and grainy black and white film gave it an almost dreamy, eerie feel to it. All photos have been uploaded to my Flickr gallery but here is one shot of the Great Wall of China in Beijing taken with a Holga 120 CFN on Ilford HP5+, 400 ISO, 120 black and white film. The photo above was taken on the same roll on the West Lake in Hangzhou, China

Here is a shot of the Great Wall in color with light leaks, what the holga is famous for!

Day of the Dead weekend photoshoot, New website launched, and a whole lot of Los Angeles cruisin'

So I made some changes to my photography website but still tried to keep it G rated since I am sure some of my viewers would not appreciate the whole Los Angeles gangsta' "Livin' La Vida Loca" chola look. The photo shoot was fun, we almost got rained out but luckily Dia De Los Muertos afternoon was nice and cloudy but not rainy. The weather actually made for some nice shots. All photos have been uploaded to my flickr gallery as well as on the myspace and the website. The new classy riot mob website has also been launched, this time including a splash page with music to provide a soundtrack while you are shopping and surfing around the site. We figured it would be a nice touch. Hollywood Forever Cemetery held their annual Day of the Dead festival on Saturday night and for whatever reason they decided to start charging a $5 entry when I have never had to pay to get in. So basically you pay to get in and walk around to see what else you can pay for, maybe some overpriced tamales? The event overall was amazing as usual after I got over that little bit of disappointing news but I hope there was enough complaining that they decide to not pull that again! I did walk out with a Virgen de Guadalupe purse that i absolutely loved even though it set me back about $40. Totally worth it. We also attended the Dia De los Muertos event in Los Angeles the Sunday afternoon after the photoshoot at Self Help Graphics (free entry). To be honest, after attending the festival in Hollywood, SHG does not compare, it was almost a waste of time to attend. The place was TINY. I would probably just stick to Olvera Street next time, which I did not attend this year because of these other 2 events.