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My Favorite Podcasts: A Roundup

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 00:01:04 -0500

Today marks the one-year anniversary the Adam Carolla Podcast, the show that really turned me on to podcasts. His hour-long interviews are engaging and hilarious, sometimes pointed and sometimes tangential, but it's consistent in terms of scheduling and quality, and it's served a la carte, like every other growing segement of media.

I've also turned to podcasts for sports conversation, having given up on sports radio a long time ago. As if commercial breaks and call-ins from fans who can't put a sentence together aren't enough, you have to sit through three news updates an hour, even when nothing is going on. How many times can you listen to last night's NBA scores? So inefficient. And when even the good interviews last but a few minutes, you don't get nearly the insight as you would from a 30-minute or hour-long sit-down.

I'll listen to a show or two on the subway or while walking around or even when playing a game of NBA 2K10. If one doesn't strike my fancy, I'll just delete it and begin another. That's the beauty of having a nice library of podcasts. It's DVR for the ears, and it's awesome.

Here are my favorites...

COMEDY

• Adam Carolla Podcast — Just days after CBS canceled his L.A.-based morning radio show, Carolla launched this podcast, which was an immediate hit (Wikipedia | story). Adam welcomes guests from all worlds of entertainment and sports, and the hour-long conversations are the exact opposite of predictable and boring late-night celeb interviews. Lately, he's been taking the act on the road, interviewing guests at sold-out venues. Get it on!
Frequency: 5 days a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: @adamcarolla

• Onion Radio News — My most trusted name in news? Doyle Redland. He reports, and I decide on such stories as "Secondhand Smoke Leads to Secondhand Coolness" and "Area Bass Player Fellated."
Frequency: 3 days a week; Lengh: 2 minutes; Twitter: @TheOnion

SPORTS

• SportsCast With Spider and the Henchman — Newly launched on the Adam Carolla Entertainment Network (A.C.E.), this show has a ton of potential. Film and TV writer Kevin Hench brings a lot of the same personality and ovservational style as his friend Bill Simmons (but without the corporate muzzle), and John Salley adds humor and candor from a guy who won four NBA titles with such legendary teammates as Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and Isiah Thomas. He can talk on the field and off the field will equal expertise and flavor.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: @SpiderandHench

• B.S. Report — Only Tom Carvel had a worse voice for broadcasting, but Bill Simmons makes up for it with timely, intelligent and humorous conversations with such sports heavyweights as NBA commish David Stern and such nobodies as his Yankees-loving friend JackO. Simmons always comes prepared and delivers.
Frequency: 3 days a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: @SportsGuy33

PHOTOGRAPHY

• Digitial Photo Experience — DPE is a relatively new broadcast hosted by well-known author Rick Sammon and Juan Pons, who are extremely easy-going and likable. Their decades of experience adds context to the changing landscape of photography today. They not only explain what challenges new products are conquering, but suggest quick and easy methods for improvement, as well. I especially enjoyed their episode on photography mythbusting.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: @ricksammon

• Lightroom Killer Tips — Matt Kloskowski hosts a well-edited, weekly video broadcast on getting the most out of Lightroom. Episodes cover such broad topics as Adjustment Brush Tip Extravaganza as well as specific ones, like Batch Cropping.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 8 minutes

Also check out: Learning Digital Photography, Pro Photo Show, Photography.ca

POKER

• The Poker Beat — Part of the Poker Road family of podcasts, Poker Beat is a roundtable discussion of industry news hosted by Scott Huff. Guests discuss the virtues of happenings in casinos, courtrooms and media and debate their impact on the ever-growing industry.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: PokerBeatRadio

• Cash Plays — Jeremiah Smith hosts this program dedicated to cash games, often with a guest who specializes in a type of game, whether it be full-ring no-limit hold 'em, Omaha or heads-up play. An easy listen and not as super-nerdy as other poker shows.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: cashplays

• Deuce Plays — Bart Hanson, a professional cash gamer from California, hosts this show as part of the DeucesCracked network. Heavy on strategy, Bart breaks down invidual hands from a variety of games, picks the brains of fellow pros and shares thoughts on the multitude of off-the-felt life decisions that influence optimal play.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: DeucePlays

• Two Plus Two Pokercast — Mike Johnson and Aaron Schwartz discuss the latest conversations on the immensely popular Two Plus Two poker forums, eschewing most of the strategy stuff for the more fun gossip and crazy prop bets that are always being floated among members. They also interview multiple guests each week on the latest industry news.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 2 hours; Twitter: 2p2Pokercast

TECHNOLOGY

• New York Times: Tech Talk — This group-hosted show not only reports on major product launches and conferences, but it touches on lesser-well-known apps and gadgets that can make your life more effiecient and fun. Tech Talk's webisite provides a comprehensive list of show-related links, as well.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 30 minutes; Twitter: nyttechtalk

• Engadget — A discussion of industry news and trends, a bit more techy than NYT podcast. A recent show dedicated an hour, 20 minutes to what whent down at the Mobile World Congress, a week after previewing the event.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: engadget

GENERAL

• This American Life — Chicago Public Radio's amazing broadcast offers stories that unfold via interviews with everyday people. The details and emotions ring clear without images and graphics to distract. Earlier this month, host Ira Glass promised in an interview with the Los Angeles Times an upcoming "huge, groundbreaking investigative piece of journalism." Among my favorite recent airings are Guns and #1 Party School. They also launched a popular $2.99 iPhone app.
Frequency: 1 day a week; Lengh: 1 hour; Twitter: NPRamericanlife

• Freakonomics Radio — This one's just getting off the ground, but I predict it'll be a huge hit. If you've read any of the books, you know that while people can lie, numbers cannot. The New York Times is behind this mythbusting of data that tells us how we live, as opposed to how we think we do.
Frequency: too early to tell; Lengh: 30 minutes; Twitter: freakonomics

Some Recent Photo Work With Models

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:08:22 -0500

As winter approached in New York, I decided to improve my photography skills in controlled environments. Up until then, my work had been mainly street and travel photography, genres that are usually off the cuff and more enjoyable in warmer weather.

So I took a Studio & Lighting course at Photo Manhattan and joined photo-related Meetup groups where models and shutterbugs collaborate in group settings to get practice and build portfolios.

I also built a Model Mayhem profile to network with local folks with similiar interests.

My work has still been done with either flash-on-camera or natural light. I haven't yet tackled expensive lighting set-ups outside of class, but I plan to do that soon in more advanced workshops.

Here's an always-current link to what's new at my Fotki portfolio.

Photos: Blizzard '09 in Central Park

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:50:49 -0500

Heavy snowstorms present opportunities for great photos, and I captured a few today around Central Park. Unfortunately, heavy snowstorms also present opportunities to hunker down in a bar and stay warm, and so I didn't wake early enough to hit the park before it got really crowded and much of the snow got trampled.

Moneyball Has Come to the NBA

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:39:37 -0500

Despite the Knicks' sucktitude, I'm trying to get more into the NBA to fill my NFL-to-MLB sports fix, in a time when college hoops gets progressively less interesting with one-and-done stars.

I'm more than halfway through Bill Simmons' 700-page The Book of Basketball, which weighs the merits of players and eras and illuminates the NBA as a true team sport, where individual skills, circumstances and, ultimately, value vary significantly from one 18-ppg, 7-rpg guy to another. Think less MLB and more NFL, where you can argue what Barry Sanders would have done with Emmitt Smith's offensive mates or why a shutdown corner shouldn't be measured solely by INTs, because fewer balls come his way.

Simmons' book mentions a site called 82games.com as a resource for the new age of sports numbers crunching. I went over there and — holy shit — there's a lot of data being processed to determine the value of NBA players.

Just look at the player page for David Lee of the New York Knicks. As far as I can tell, he's a 18-point scorer who grabs 10 rebounds per game and serves as a negative for the Knicks for the second season in a row. Hence, a key to any game for the Knicks should be to keep their leading rebounder and second-leading scorer off the court! (Another key would be to prevent fans from killing themselves, which might be an even tougher task if LeBron snubs us, which I fully expect.)

I hope to be a more sophisticated NBA fan by the Super Bowl, which is when I go into serious sports depression (two straight months without an NFL snap or MLB pitch). By then I should have a firmer grasp on players' assets and liabilities on both ends of the court. And when I see a capable low-post scorer defend like the Venus de Milo, I'll understand better why an 18-10 guy is an overall liability.

(82games.com's Commentary section links to dozens of articles that'll make your brain hurt for a week.)

Photos: Aboard the USS New York

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 10:25:30 -0500

Earlier this month, I toured the USS New York (Wikipedia), an amphibious transport dock made partially from steel salvaged from the World Trade Center.

Visits like these are always moving experiences. There's the "cool" factor, of course. I'm blown away (er, so to speak) by the technological genius and massive power of our military. And, of course, I'm reminded of the cost of freedom and the sad realities that necessitate such force. A reality check, for sure.

Here are my photos aboard the USS New York.

Photos: Yankees 2009 Championship Parade

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:17:59 -0500

These are't the greatest pics I've ever taken, but here's my gallery of photos from the Yankees championship parade held Friday at the Canyon of Heroes.

I was shooting from inside an office building, so the glass between me and the street, as well as being anchored to one spot, hindered me a bit. But, a HUGE thanks to my friend John for inviting me to his company's gathering. The people, food and beers were all awesome. Much appreciated.

This One's For the Longtime PK.com Readers

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:22:31 -0500

Back in the middle of this decade, when I was writing this site with gusto and entertaining 6,000 visitors a day, Yankees fans took a lot of shit. And for good reason. We had the highest payroll but couldn't produce a championship. We blew a 3-0 ALCS lead. We saw A-Rod try to slap his way on base, sun shirtless in Central Park, kiss himself in the mirror, conspicuously escort a stripper into a Toronto elevator, get reduced to a No. 8 hitter by Joe Torre. From 2005-07, ALDS sounded more like a disease than a speed-bump to the World Series.

And all that coincided with the Red Sux cheating their way to two steroid-infused titles.

Myself and all the Yankees fans who visited here celebrated victories along the way, but never the big one. We were deservedly mocked and criticized. But what could we do?

Now we've bookended the decade with titles, and it feels good to be back on top of the mountain. Thanks to all the people who visited here on the way back up.

THOUGHTS ON THE WORLD SERIES

• So much for that Ortiz jersey some dickwad tried to bury under the new Yankee Stadium. Total length of curse: 0 years.

• I personally broke the curse of Don Mattingly by sporting a No. 23 shirt during Game 6.

• It's gonna be a great offfseason on the MLB Network. They gotta be grasping for any ratings in winter, and I imagine they're gonna tap into the biggest market and produce a lot of Yankees stuff.

• When chicks nibble on Hideki Matsui's earlobes, do you think they're full for the next month?

• Speaking of Matsui: bonzai! Sake bombs all around for what will always be remembered as one of the greatest individual performances in a clinching World Series game.

• Look on the bright side, Sux fans. At least you won't be pestered anymore about the "26-time" World Series champions. All those t-shirts and banners and ugly jackets are headed straight for the trash.

• Look on the bright side, Mets fans. At least the Phillies won't be coming back to Citi Field as world champions. But, um, see you in June!

• Yes, we are the Team of the Decade. Again.

• I'll be at the parade Friday. If you've got my number, text me where you're at. Beers at the Patriot afterward. NO PINK JERSEYS!

Fantasy Fest 2009 Photos and Review

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:33:21 -0500

Another year of Fantasy Fest — Key West's week-long, debaucherous celebration of pretty much everything — is in the books. For those of you who missed out, I posted a huge gallery of Fantasy Fest 2009 photos.

I reviewed and posted photos from the event in 2006, 2007 and 2008, and I don't have too much to add to those thoughts. It continues to be a great party, and I continute to encourage as much participation as possible.

It was great to meet a ton of people who recognized me from this site. If you saw me and didn't say hello, don't be shy in 2010.

I tried to continue my practice of posting some of the friendliest photos you'll find online. Smiling faces of friends old and new. Side-boob "gotcha" shots of female passers-by aren't really my thing. They're not "candids," they're just lazy and lame. They're not eventful, they tell no stories, they don't make anyone look good.

But sometimes you gotta be "that guy" and just fire away continuously at street scenes to get some interesting compositions. This neck-breaker reminds me of the funny shots of Obama checking out asses. This dancing granny was a Hail Mary, a shot captured by holding my camera high and praying something comes out. This capture of our Capt. Tony's float had unintended results, but I think it looks cool.

I love street photography best because you never know when a girl is gonna sit on 18 bags of ice, when a dog will drink beer on a bar, or when Batman is gonna come running down the street. Those occurances make things exciting every time I take out the camera.

But I spent more time partying than street shooting, and so you'll have to settle for the more conventional party shots of happy women wearing paint.

FANTASY FEST 2009 PHOTOS FROM AROUND THE WEB

NOTE: I will add to this list as I find them. Bookmark this page and come back for more.

• Flikr: Most Recent Photos Tagged "Fantasy Fest" — This gallery will obviously be added to often, as people recover from their hangovers.

• John Chow — As usual, spectacular stuff from the best photographer at Fantasy Fest.

• David Epstein — Have a look at his annual photos, including some clever compositions for you beer lovers.

• Bill Klipp — Lots of close-ups of the artistic faces on the street. Great work.

• Ken Bradley — Another excellent PBase gallery.

• Leester — Last year, Leester posted a whopping 1,542 photos. He's got a couple of nights up now and is adding to it. Dude assigns more tags than a mortician.

• Brian David Phillips — This is billed as a gallery of 3-D photos, but I'm not exactly sure how they are to work. (My guess is they require glasses of some sort.)

• Just Another Dick — That's not a name I gave him, that's his moniker on Flickr. Almost 200 photos from the week.

• Old, Weak and Pathetic — Over 500+ photos, sorted by day. Nice shots from folks that put a lot of effort into their group bodypaints.

• Unknown's PbPulse Pics — A healthy 197 photos, but I'm not a fan of the interface. There doesn't seem an option to quickly scan thumbnails or to enlarge individual photos.

• Barbara and Joseph Scheib's Gallery — Over 700 photos from the final four days of the week.

• BuckyWorld's Photos — More than 130 pictures hosted on SmugMug.

• Patrick Fulcher's Photos — Nearly 700 pictures hosted on SmugMug.

• Victor the Nurse's Flickr Set — Another 700+ photos, all of which can be viewed at their original size.

• Yasser's Photos — Almost 1,000 photos in this gallery. And almost 300 more in a second one. Yasser did Fantasy Fest right. He dressed up a bit, took tons of pics and was always very polite. You'll see plenty of recurring faces, including his own, in his gallery — proof that he made plenty of friends and added to the party.

Photos: National Go Topless Day in NYC

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:46:03 -0500

Last weekend in New York, the people behind GoTopless.org staged a "protest" to fight for the "constitutional equality between men and women on being topless in public."

Sounded like a fun time and a good photo opportunity, and here is my gallery from Go Topless Day in Central Park.

Part serious and part goofy, the funky music and dance mixed with weighty speeches left me confused about the overall message, and I was even more puzzled when I read that "GoTopless was founded by the Raelian Movement, which recognizes that life on Earth was created by advanced extraterrestrial scientists."

This point was also missed (or ignored) in a wrap-up by the Daily News.

Rick Ross has republished a series of articles on Raelians, including a 2003 piece from the Edmonton Sun charging that Realians use sex to recruit. Skeptoid writer Brian Dunning asks, Who Are the Raelians, and Why Are They Naked?

Truth be told, I never caught wind of any spiritual or religious agendas when talking to some of the participants. Seemed like typical hippie/free lovers who live by rules not always embraced by more uptight segments of society.

And then everyone flew away in their UFOs.

Photos: Pin-Up Meetup — American Airpower Museum

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:54:02 -0500

Last weekend, I braved LIE traffic to join the New York Pin-Up Photography Meetup Group at the American Airpower Museum in Farmingdale, Long Island. The museum hosts a squadron of operational World War II aircrafts, serving as the perfect locale at which to make some retro pictures.

Here is a gallery of my best photos, and here's the group pool, where other photogs are sharing their select shots.

Today I Bought the Ugliest Baseball Card Ever

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 19:22:57 -0500

Friday at the East Coast National sports card show in White Plains, I was flipping through a box of cheap cards from the '50s-'80s when I came across a $2 gem that should be instantly recognizable to anyone who ever argued whether Willie McGee or Otis Nixon was more dangerous on the basepaths or in front of a mirror.

Lest you think this 1958 Topps #35 card is just Mossi showing his bad side, there are images of others online that make you wonder why Topps didn't instead feature a wide-angle action shot.

OTHER NOTES FROM THE SHOW

• If you attended any of the Westchester County Center shows over the past 20 years, you'll be happy to know that little has changed. Three hundred tables of sports collectibles flood the entire main room. Everything from new and old cards to autographed memorabilia to publications to collecting supplies.

• Nobody is buying. I literally saw no one buy anything in the hour I was there. Granted, my focus was on scouring the selection for my own interest, but I can't name one thing I saw being purchased (aside from my own meager $15 in spending). When I did overhear talk among dealers, it hinted at the same disappointing sales pace that's been plaguing these shows since the early '90s.

• It seemed to me that the supply (of everything) greatly outweighed the demand. The industry is in need of a huge price adjustment, among autographs and insert cards especially. Each year brings another flood of product signed by athletes, another wave of "limited edition" cards. Demand simply cannot keep up, and it only makes sense that a Dave Winfield autograph (he's a guest Saturday for $79 a signature) should go down as he pumps hundreds more autographed items into the market with each highly compensated show appearance.

• Remember, the value of anything is $0 until someone is willing to pay more for it. A number on a sticker is not what something is "worth," it's what someone is asking. A "completed items" search on eBay is always the best way to survey value.

• Soon there will be more grading/authentication companies than there are collectors. They can't all succeed, not unless they share exact standards. That's not going to happen, and it'll be no different than when each dealer just marked his own grade on a top loader that protected a card. At the end of the day, it's up to the buyer to assign his own grade/value and agree on a price.

• Space considerations in a one-bedroom Manhattan apartment make it easy to pass up on all the cool figurines, artwork, game-used equipment and other large items. But if I had a house with a Man Cave ... wow, there would be some serious thought on what to bring home.

• Check out Bill Simmons' account of his trip to the National Sports Convention, and don't miss the great pictures and captions in his huge photo essay.

Photos: Pin-Up Meetup — Gangster/Film Noir

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 21:37:29 -0500

In an effort to get more practice shooting portraits (as opposed to candid street scenes) and to socialize with local photography enthusiasts, I recently joined the New York Pin-Up Photography Meetup Group. This past Saturday, the group of shutterbugs, models and make-up artists met at Blue Ruin, a Hell's Kitchen bar, to cooperatively work on their crafts.

I posted a host of photos from that event. I'm new to this "directing" stuff, and, in fact, I really didn't do much of it, but it's something I hope to improve upon. Follow my progress on Fotki as I attend more event and hopefully make photos that the models, as well as myself, are glad to add to their portfolios.

Also, if anyone can recommend other NYC photo-related Meetups that combine work and play, art and socializing, please send me an e-mail.

Kids See the Darndest Things

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 00:51:22 -0500

While it's always tough to shoot children while remaining respectful of privacy, their sense of wonderment often reminds us of what's plain cool.

Shot on Liberty Harbor Cruise in New York City

Photos: Michael Jackson Funeral Viewing in Harlem

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 23:59:20 -0500

MY PHOTOS

• It was nice to watch the ceremony with hundreds (thousands?) of adoring fans in Harlem. The power of music is very real. A bittersweet scene, and it was clear Michael's music and performances brought them countless good times.

• I agree with Berry Gordy that MJ was the greatest entertainer of all time. Let's just say if there's a back-from-the-dead reunion tour with Elvis, Sinatra, Jackson and all the Beatles and members of Led Zeppelin, Jackson is your headliner.

• On Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson: Two adulterers paying homage to a pedophile. Nice. Johnson's tale of sharing a bucket of fried chicken was cool. I must say that the wealth of first-person accounts of MJ as a regular guy have surprised me a great deal. Let's face it, millionaires who play with chimps and sleep with boys (and don't think there's a problem with it) aren't generally people you're gonna split a bucket of fried chicken with.

• Does Rev. Al realize that Michael Jackson taught black people that they could achieve anything ... as a white person? Seriously, it was a powerful speech, but I kept thinking, "Are we talking about the same guy here? Nothing strange about Michael? NOTHING?!?!" Who does Sharpton think is strange?

• Overall, I thought the Staples ceremony was great, except for the huge elephant in the room. Hey, do they come back tomorrow and talk about Michael Jackson post-1993?

• I learned a lot today about the pressures of fame, the same pressures that caused Johnny Carson and Paul Newman to dye their skin black, dress like a martians and go into debt. Wait, no, they were normal and didn't seek the spotlight. Sorry.

• Think anyone was dumb enough to set a phone alert every time someone tweeted about Michael? Damn iPhone would have blown to smithereens before Berry Gordy was off the stage.

• Thank god Justin Timberlake wasn't up there with Janet again.

• I will always remember the weirdness over talent. If Paul McCartney turned himself black, paid $23 mil in hush money and openly welcomed children into his bed, I'd remember that over "Hey Jude" as well.

Follow Me on Twitter

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 18:15:11 -0500

I don't know what the future holds for this site. Sometimes I feel motivated to return to writing regularly, but then I remember the time commitment it takes to maintain a consistently worthwhile blog.

For now, please add my RSS feed to your reader, so that you'll be alerted when I do make a new post. Also, follow me on Twitter, where I'm just starting to share tweets with friends known and unknown (for now).