Planning, plotting, scheming, working hard, playing hard, traveling, photographing.  Those are a few of the things I have been doing instead of blogging.  But really I thought I would have a new and improved portfolio site up by now.

The design phase is almost complete, but as I am a solo designer I crave feedback from other creatives out there on the interweb.  I have posted mockups of the portion of my new site that is complete here on flickr.  Constructive criticism is more than welcome.

And yes, your eyes are not fooling you — there is a name change involved.  Going forward I will be known as Amy Rouleaux: French she geek pixie warrior extraordinaire!

***** Update!! *****

I’ve been convinced to use my real, easy-to-spell name.  I’ve also cleaned up the design quite a bit.  However, wordpress is being an a-hole and not allowing me to update the screenshot, so you’ll have to click the link above to see what I’ve got in store.

One of the many reason I moved to Oregon was because I missed having fun in the snow.  Waiting around on a freezing subway platform is not my idea of fun.  It doesn’t really snow in Portland, but Mt. Hood is 40 minutes out of the city and Mt. Bachelor is 3 hours (landscape photo below taken on my iPhone from the top of Bachelor).  Read: accessible snow for sports, but no regular threat of frostbite.

At the beginning of the season my awesome friends Spicer and Carolina brought me out to get into some west coast powder.  Of course I ended up with all new gear including the prettiest snowboard that has ever existed: the Burton Deja Vu V-Rocker.

My father reimbursed me for my new digs as my Christmas present and told me he wanted a photo of me with the board in return.  It took me 6 months, but better late than never, eh?  Happy Father’s Day, Rick!

My least favorite part of photography has always been the horrifically ugly utilitarian bag required to protect all that precious equipment.  In fact, my poor camera usually only gets a loosely wrapped scarf for protection and is then promptly tossed into a giant purse.  The Ugly Camera Bag only gets used for storage.  I haven’t met another female photographer who doesn’t do the exact same thing.

Enter: the Kelly Moore Bag.  Finally a woman has taken it upon herself to create stylish camera bags that don’t look a thing like camera bags.  I came across her site awhile ago and was stunned with the B-Hobo style (am finally pre-ordering in mustard).  This is absolutely the camera bag for me as it’ll fit seamlessly into my bohemian-hipster-princess wardrobe.

Not only are they unattractive, but a traditional camera bag screams, “STEAL ME!!  I AM HOLDING EXPENSIVE THINGS YOU CAN SELL ON EBAY!”  These bags are discreet.  They don’t sell you out as a tourist.  The camera thief will move on to the next and your equipment will stay right where it should be: with you.

Now if only someone would design a fashionable bicycle helmet…

Having spent the majority of my life living in the Northeast, my knowledge of the west coast has basically been limited to maps and wikipedia entries.  Finally I got to make that infamous trip down the Pacific Coast Highway and start putting pieces of the geographic puzzle together.

Unfortunately we had to turn back toward Monterey about two hours in because of a landslide blocking the road which begs the question: what is it with landslides interrupting my travels?  Remember that daunting adventure on the way to Maccu Picchu?  I do.

Anywho, we still got to see some of that epic topography which had Nicole and I squealing with delight.  A worthwhile experience indeed.

Left: Crossing state lines (Sorry your face is blocked on this one, Nicole! My bad.);  Right: Flat tire in Oakland, CA

Top: Highway 1; Bottom Left: Honking trucks entering Cali; Bottom right: the ghost of a stairway in Oakland, CA

This little girl was so calm around the squawking birds at Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey, CA.

Left: a lunch of crazy oysters at Isabella’s; Right: Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey, CA

Grass fed cattle somewhere along the PCH

About 2 weeks ago on her birthday, the lovely Nicole Berke came into my apartment stoked about an impromptu road trip to Los Angeles, CA.  Almost on the verge of begging, I inquired about going with so I could visit my girls and get some sun.  One phone call later and I was packing my bikinis for warmer weather.

We made several stops along the way – the most notable being two nights spent in San Jose.  Why San Jose?  For an afternoon full of music under the sun in a beautiful backyard.  There is an amazing family residing in this charming town who hire their favorite musicians once a year to come play for their family and friends.  They hooked us up with a sweet pool house to stay in for the weekend (image of the exterior below), so I figured the least I could do was take some photos of the guys.

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I didn’t know who this Brendan James was before I met him.  A simple google search reveals that he is quite the successful musician with his second album debuting in the top 10 on iTunes.  Handsome and charming and talented – it’s no wonder this LA-based pianist is doing so well.  His drummer (also my road trip buddy), James Williams, and bassist, Malcolm Gold, were instrumental forces with to be reckoned with as well.

The guitar playing vocalist, Todd Carey, also graced the crowd with his acoustic melodies.  As did Nicole Berke with a powerful rendition of the Jackson 5′s “I Want You Back” and an encore of two original tunes (after hearing her sing for 10 seconds, Brendan decided she must be the show’s special guest).

Grateful for the serendipity of having met these skilled musicians and music lovers, I am pleased to give you some visual delight with these garden party jam sesh photos.