Stefan's 2007 Review

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Stefan's 2007 Review

December

Jennifer Daniels played a delightful Christmas show at Eddie's Attic. She and the other act, Drew Holcome both brought full bands and played to a sold out audience.

The Hexxt Holiday Horror Holocaust was fun, though not as well attended as I'd hoped. The music was better than usual and I got some good pictures, which is always a plus. I drank too much which is very unusual for me, but I'll attribute to the season and leave it at that. I took a couple people aside and did a short photoshoot which I think came out well. Special thanks to Jessika and Wes for that! (PW is tinsel)

I caught a sneak preview of the movie The Golden Compass and was underwhelmed. Sure the visuals were nice, but the characters and story were much too weak. There were so many technical questions or holes that left me confused and I lost interest. I didn't read the book couldn't undersyand some glaring omissions to the plot threads. For example, how could one not get separated from their daemon? Were the daemons flesh or spirit? What were the rules for daemons? How did she figure out the compass? Why was she an orphan if her parents frequently visited her home at the college and were well known? It needed better handling and I suspect the sequels will be low budget if they are made at all. It's too bad too, it had potential.

November

The Hexxt Dead Doll party at Sp4th was fun but not well attended. I had fun but wished there were more people.

We played hooky and went to the matinee of Beowulf. After the Troy debacle my expectations were pretty low. I was not surprised that it was weak. Why must these idiot Hollywood types mess with great stories? Beowulf was a larger than life hero that killed demons with his bare hands! His story has been passed down for a thousand years - Why do these writers think they can improve it? I'm aghast - They didn't make it better with their silly and unnecessary changes. The animation was fair, though too dark in my opinion, and the action was good. That's all I can say. It wasn't great but it wasn't awful either. I think Angelina Jolie was wasted, any actress would have been fine in the role and they could have saved their money. Ditto Anthony Hopkins - Any old guy's voice would have done just as well. Big name actors brought nothing to this movie. But mostly, I would have liked it much better if they didn't give Beowulf needless flaws. He was a pure hero, they didn't need to give him modern personality problems. He should have been a Good-Good guy fighting to save the village and for honor, not a flawed-Good guy fighting for gold and glory.

October

Craig Carothers, Don Henry, and Gene Nelson put on their regular great show at The Swallow at the Hollow. I had a nice evening listening to fine music and eating delicious barbecue.

The Jonquil festival was nice. Held in the Smyrna square there were arts, crafts, and food. I enjoyed a few beignets and bought some dip mixes and room fragrance crystals.

Halloween Hookup at Front Page News 2007

The Halloween Hookup at Front Page News was not what they advertised. Most importantly it wasn't a singles event and far too many women came as part of couples to make it interesting. It was more raucous bar party than singles mixer. But the costumes were great and I had fun meeting people and taking pictures. There was a group from Events and Adventures and I met some interesting people with them. I even ran into a former Air Force buddy - maybe I'll finally have that wingman I need. (pictures are posted)

This year's L5P Halloween festival and parade wasn't impressive. I didn't see much of a festival since there weren't any tents. Very few groups got fully dressed up for the parade and it moved in starts and spurts. Still, it was a beautiful day to be outside.

Hexxt returned to Sp4 with a pre-Halloween party called Dark Harvest. There was a fair number of people there and they all seemed to have a good time. There were three stage shows: a burlesque show, a fire performer and Psychotic suspensions. The duo of Veronica Lashe and Talloolah of Sirens of the South put on an interesting performance but didn't bare any skin. Only half the Terror Twins performed, but Beth AKA Krucifixation was still sexy wonderful. The suspension team got pierced and hung or played tug-o-war until streams of blood were running. I took many pictures. (pw is "spock" - That's Oni to the right - A very sexy model)

Sex, Wine, and Chocolate: a sexy fundraiser was fun but disorganized. Held at the Solarium at Historic Scottish Rite it had competing shows in adjoining rooms which was not really a good idea since the place was already too crowded. I squeezed my way into the main room for the fashion show and was trapped there and missed the burlesque dancing in the main room. It was a small room besides and I couldn't get to the wine. The chocolate was nice though.

The Rock N' Roll Circus with The Hot Rods, Pyscho Devilles, and the Terror Twins at Smith's Olde Bar was great. The music was good and the pin-up girls and midway games were a blast. There was a bearded lady, a strong man, a midget, and Belly dancer too. The Terror Twins' shows was more racy than kinky but still fun to watch. Tonya and Susanne (to the left) were sweet and friendly. There were several motorcycles outside and, though I hadn't planned on taking pictures, when the opportunity arose I couldn't help myself.

Loreena McKennitt put on a lovely show at the Fox. She had a ten piece band with lots of violins and drums and even a hurdy gurdy. She took turns playing the harp, keyboard, and accordion throughout the performance. I thought she would play it more upbeat but, was true to the CDs and the show was very melodic and serene. The lighting was especially nice. We had a good time but I was too relaxed to be excited. I enjoyed it but often I caught myself nodding off.

Abbey Road Live!, a band from Athens, put on a nice show at Smith's Olde Bar singing covers of Beatles' songs. Although they sang well, it made me nostalgic for the Beatles and I left at the intermission.

The Yard Dogs Road Show returned to Atlanta for another outstanding show. There was comedy, a sword swallower, and beautiful burlesque dancers. The show was opened by the belly dancing troupe from the Awalim Dance Company. I had a great time. It was my first visit to the Variety Playhouse in a long time.

The Atlanta Horrorfest Zombie walk was very cool. I had hoped for a larger turnout but it was still cool to see a parade of zombies in Atlanta. Several people posed for me, which was nice, and I had fun watching them do the make up and pour blood on each other.

Afterward, I stopped by Twisted Throttle Choppers for their 1st Anniversary party. The bikes were cool and I had a delicious chicken burger. Hot Rod Walt and the Psycho Devilles were playing and I enjoyed a beautiful afternoon in the sun.

Phobia returned with wonderful Pre-Harvest party at Sp4. There was a great crowd with great performances and great music. An enjoyable time was had by all. I got some terrific pictures. (pw is "singlecell")

FFF made it's first appearance in Charlotte. The crowd was light but a fun time was had by all. I did the helping out thing and made some new friends and took pictures.

I visited my buddies Chuck and Julie at their new coffee shop, Cupps, just South of Charlotte. It's a cool place and we had a fun lunch.

September

I was a little disappointed when I got to Riverside park in Roswell only to find out the movie in the park had been changed from The Astronaut Farmer to Firehouse Dog. It was a cute movie but I would not have planned my day around it if I had known.

I was disappointed by Carmen Electra at the Thread-House fashion show at club Fever in Atlanta. I got there early but the obnoxious doorman wouldn't let my mail-bag in because he didn't think it was cool enough. So I didn't bring in the book I wanted Carmen to sign. Meanwhile others were wearing torn jeans and no one had their shirts tucked in. Next they wouldn't let us into the main room, so we had to stand around as the upstairs filled up. Drinks were a pricey $8.

After an hour they let us cram down a tiny stairwell into the main room, which was mostly roped off. It quickly filled up too and I couldn't move as people stepped on my feet and pushed me around. Finally Carmen arrived, said two sentences, and retreated to her roped off private area.

The Thread-House fashion show was very cool but my good camera was outside with my bag - Sorry.

Afterward, I wanted to go out and get my book but the place was so crowded that was impossible. Exiting back out the tiny stairwell was a nightmare anyway, as the staff tried to crush us as they moved the stage out. Why they wouldn't let us exit the side doors I'll never understand. As far as I know Carmen didn't mingle or sign autographs or pose for average people's pictures. Really disappointing and I'll NOT do any thing by Tabu Events again.

It must be nice to be Carmen Electra. They flew her to Atlanta, set her up at a nice hotel: She got her own VIP area at a full capacity club complete with food and drinks - And all she did was say ten words - Maybe 2 seconds on stage. Wow. She didn't even wear a nice dress.

Combichrist put on a good show at the Masquerade. Imperative Reaction and Modulate opened. The crowd was kewl and we all had a great time. I wanted to go to the after party but it was so late I had to bail. I'll bet it was awesome.

August

DragonCon had is good points and bad this year. I really enjoyed taking pictures and the people were both beautiful and beautifully costumed. Almost everyone was willing to take a moment to pose for me and I'm very happy with the results. The BattlestarGalactica panel was enlightening - I didn't know those guys were British. On the downside, it was too crowded and their crowd control was awful. They blamed the photographers and specifically banned photography in several key locations which means I missed some great stuff. They also shut the main floor down at least three times, preventing me from getting to events I wanted to see. The lines for the main shows were so long that you had to miss the show before just to wait in line, which sucked! Lastly some major cancellations and poor panels really make it hard for me to justify going back next year. The high point for me was the amazing Cruxshadows show that filled the main hall - It was incredible. Rogue and the other members were just so nice, being social and posing for pictures all weekend. I had fun, but this will probably be my last one.

The Martini-Girl fashion show in Eatonton was tremendous fun. I rode down with Eva and then took pictures of beautiful people wearing beautiful clothing. Unfortunately the lighting wasn't great and the models were moving too fast so my pictures aren't great. But you can see a few here. The show was at the Saville Art Gallery which is still deciding how the direction of the gallery - So the layout wasn't great and it wasn't decorated in the runway area. But some new model's were great and some of the returning models were wonderful. We all had fun.

The Carnival of Chaos arranged by Secretroom was terrific. Held at at the Jungle Club, the music and dancing were extreme! Later in the night two trapeze artists came out and entertained the crowd while several DJs rotated behind them center stage. Especially cool were a couple of guys dancing and twirling glow sticks with great artistry. There were a lot of beautiful and exciting people to photograph and almost all of them were willing to take a few minutes to pose for me. I stayed to the wee hours and had a really great time. JSin and crew did a great job.

On the right is one of the many Cyberdollz dancing throughout the night. I'll call her Cyberdoll-J because I don't know how much publicity she wants. But she was a great dancer with a lot of energy. She was totally adorable and just the nicest girl too. (PW is "fire")

I just returned from three weeks in Greenville S.C. supporting a U.S. Coast Guard aircraft modification. The folks up there are very nice and actually working on the aircraft and fixing problems is, in some respects, more satisfying than designing them. Living in a hotel and being away from my kitty isn't so much fun though. The pillowtop mattress was great - I have to get one now.

I caught the Greenville's Shakespeare in the park performance of As You Like It in Falls Park. The park is very nice and we were able to set up lawn chairs close to the front. It's very hard to screw this show up and despite their attempt: it was still okay. They took too many liberties and I was very confused as to who was who. I especially didn't like all the modern singing. But it was better than nothing and I gave them a few bucks for their effort. Better luck next time.

July

The Transformers was a fun movie. There were some issues, but it was fun and the special effects were very nice.

I spent Independence day at a friends eating barbecue and blowing stuff up. We had about $200 worth of stuff imported from outside the state that really impressed the neighbors. No police were involved and not trips to the hospital.

A friend asked me to take pictures at an anniversary party she was throwing. I looked at it as an opportunity to try out a few things I'd learned at my photography seminar and also try out the lighting equipment I purchased too. I started by taking pictures outside among the flowers but it began to rain so I moved inside. Pretty soon though it got too crowed so I moved to the home theater. There I set up a couple of light stands and lights. I soon realized I need to add extension cords to my kit but luckily there was one available. Over the next four hours I took almost two hundred pictures and everyone was impressed with the results. Another step accomplished toward becoming a good photographer

June

The 2007 Atlanta Skin Two Pre-Party arranged by Secretroom was terrific. Special guests Anastasia Pierce and Rubberella (Jean Bardot) not only put on great performances but were out with the people all night being very social. I really admire them for that. Also present this time was Tim Woodward, the editor of Skin Two magazine and reknowned clothing designer, The Baroness

Most of the audience followed the dress code and I had a fun time taking pictures. There were a lot of people in the best dressed contest and a few more that should have entered. I wasn't too successful getting the performances or the fashion shows but my audience pix came out very nicely. There were several other photographers at work, so I'm sure the net will be abundant with pictures - Hopefully none of me.

This was the first time it was held at Wet Bar, a very beautiful club in midtown. It has several different areas so people were dancing and shopping and lounging very comfortably. Outside is a wonderful garden with plants and fountains. The air-cond was trying its best, but with that many people and the open doors, it was too much and it got very hot at times. But the lighting, the seating, and the atmosphere are awesome. (pw is "latex")

Anastasia Pierce at Atlanta's Wetbar 2007

I really enjoyed seeing Scandal at Chastain Park. It hadn't started raining when Patty Smyth started belting out her hits at exactly 7pm. He was sweet and fun and climbed down from the stage to walk through the audience as she sang her big hits. She only sang for 35 minutes but it was great! Next, the Money Man, Eddie Money took the stage and thrilled the crowd with his many 80's hits. He was dragging a little and sometimes didn't hit the notes or forgot the words, but still was a fun show. His daughter Jessie sang a few tunes too. It had started raining by then and a good portion of the audience left or took shelter. At 9:30 Rick Springfield took the stage and amazingly he looks and sounds exactly the same at 20 years ago. I didn't recognize most of the songs but he played his big hits and the mostly female audience appreciated it. When the rain took a break he too walked down into the crowd to sing among the peeps. He didn't mind the groping of the several girls that ran on stage to kiss him. Has favourite part seemed to be his trademark playing guitar with flowers and making the petals fly. Despite the rain I really enjoyed myself. Chastain Park

I was disappointed by the Sony Digital Days photography workshop. It was too heavy on the technical aspects of photography and not enough practical guidance. The instructor was very experienced and knew his stuff but the topics he spoke on were not what I wanted. He spent hours on Aperture and shutter speed and how the camera worked - I wanted a lot more on lighting, posing, composing and before and after settings changes. We did a modeling shoot which was very good but there wasn't enough analysis of how to do the modeling portion to get it right or afterward to see how we had done.

I went out to the Last Great Watering Hole (Midnight Room) to see Lust and had a good time. Very few people go to that place, so I had the band to myself. The opening band was Can Can a duet with Mary Collins formerly of the Motolitas. It was nice to see her again.

I attended the opening reception for Cold Feet, the new works of James Dean at the Seen Gallery in Decatur. It was great to see his new painintings and they were awesome! Pete sits in many cool cars and there are a few new ones with the Beatles but my favourite was Pete with Holly Go Lightly.

I just completed two weeks in Greenville SC doing my part to support the US Coast Guard's Deepwater program. It was an interesting assignment and I had a good time. Living in a hotel for two weeks isn't bad if you choose the right place and the LaQuinta was very nice. I tried a few new restaurants and visited the riverwalk again.

For me, the Rock and Roll Monster Bash was a monster bust. Due to a scheduling conflict I could only stay three hours, so I got there early to take pictures. Three long, boring, and hot hours later I left. About eight of us photographers waited for models that didn't show (or showed up after I left). It was very disappointing since even the bands didn't start on schedule and I really wanted to see the the Luchagors again. I'm not sure I'll ever do that again.

I enjoyed some food and music at the annual Virginia-Highland Summerfest. I bought another blowfish for my collection but couldn't get excited about anything else.

May

The first Ride N Rock at the Atlanta Motor Speedway was not well attended. I got a great deal on some shirts and hung out for a while, but overall not that much fun.

A friend and I were heading over to watch the Star94 Movies Under the Stars when we detoured to see Premonition at Merchants Walk. The movie was flawed but okay. Leaving the theater, my friend bailed on me so I went on to Riverside park alone. The movie, Night at The Museum, had just started when I arrived and it was crowded but I found a spot and settled in. They had brought in a hugh inflatable screen and the sound was adequate. The weather was cool and I had a good time. The movie was predictable but good.

I rode over to Tucker to see Katy (formerly of Catfight!) perform with her new band, the Shanghai Gesture. The show was at a bar called The Last Great Watering Hole (or the Midnight Room) which I'd never heard of and had a really hard time finding. I drive up and down Lawrenceville highway and missed it a few times. I finally found it behind the Longhorn Steakhouse by going in and out of every parking lot. Anyway the bar was pretty seedy and I was just about the only person there. But Katy and her friends did a good job. Obviously the talent is there, but they are still working on getting everything to flow.

James King put on a very cool Trailer Tie-Up Show at the Doo Gallery. Musical guests Baybee Invincible and Stoneline were pretty cool and between sets, DJ 1313 kept the party rockin'. James King had his pictures hung up around the space which were very cool. The gallery is a small place and the party was going on both inside and outside. It was crowded but everyone had a good time.

Sin For Sale, put on a very sexy fashion show along with Foreplay Clothing, and White Devil Gear. The models looked great. You can see some of my pictures here. They were very nice girls and posed for several pictures for me, which was a lot of fun. The gallery's building was covered with graffiti which made an excellent backdrop. There were a few other photographers there and I hope to see their pictures soon. (Shout out to Cyn)

On the right is Marianna - She's both beautiful and sweet. Some of the other models, Willa, Ashley, Katie, and Zer, were very nice too. I gave out several business cards so maybe we'll get a chance to shoot again.

Craig Carothers, Tony Hasselden, and Sally Barris put on a good show at The Swallow at the Hollow. The place wasn't full, which was unfortunate, and the show lacked the usual level of excitement because of it. But good music and 'nana putting equals fun night anytime.

Jim Photoglow, Don Henry, and Vince Melamed put on a good show The Swallow at the Hollow. The place wasn't full and maybe that's why the show didn't seem to have the usual high-energy. Don did a couple of songs I'd never heard before and Vince did a wonderful job accompanying on the synthesizer.

This year's Shake at the Lake was awesome. Twelfth Night is a wonderful play and works great in the park. This version was edited to be shorter and simpler and set at the turn of the century (from the costuming). They were very funny and did a great job. Although it was suppose to rain, it held off until my drive home which made the park very cool and comfortable.

April

The 97.1 Wings N Rock fest at the Park Tavern was really fun. Not only were the wings really good but the music was excellent. The bands I saw did covers of Elton John, the Beatles, and the Rolling Stones. The crowd really got into it and made it a great time. I got a few T-shirts and extras too.

The Inman Park Spring Festival was fun as always. I enjoyed shopping and people watching and the parade was fun. I was disappointed by the over-the-top protesting and absence of turkey legs and corn-on-the-cob. But it got better when Caroline Aiken, Diane Durrett and a bald Donna Hopkins came out to perform. I was there for the whole day.

There wasn't much to the 15th anniversary of the Vortex. There was a cake, but the crowd just wasn't there for the celebration. Even the DJ offering prizes couldn't get people to do anything. I got a nice T-shirt though and met the T-shirt's designer, Ashley (Who was pretty flaky).

I was disappointed at the Angelcity Rally - Too many old fat Harley riders and no biker babes - Just a handful of motorcycle mommas. I'd hoped to take lot's of pictures but there was nothing to shoot. Even the music was sub par. If you were into drinking it might have been fun but it really wasn't my scene.

Ghost Rider was playing at the cheapie theater so I took a chance, Besides how bad can it be when you get two hot dogs and a movie for five dollars. The movie was weak but entertaining.

Two weeks in Greenville SC was uneventful. I was out there to support a USCG modification that is going very slow. Mostly I was there for moral support - but I did answer a few question and resolve a few problems. Most importantly - I did not make any new enemies, which is an achievement in itself. The kitty was well behaved in my absence too - only minor killing.

The Atlanta Dogwood Festival was washed out again this year. We took a test drive on some BMWs before the wind and the rain hit though and had a great time. I really want one of those.

“Now you have webbed feet” is something I could have lived my whole life without hearing. We were demo riding some ducks when we got rained on - heavily. Quite the April Fool's joke if you ask me. I was scared but mostly I was wet. Water was running through my pants which was not a pleasant experience. But I lived and checked the life experience box - hopefully, not to be repeated.

March

Jennifer Daniels put on a good show at Eddie's Attic. She played a few new songs which was nice, one was titled "All the Glory."

Phobia was fun. The people were cool and the music was fun. Purgatory put on two pretty lame shows that I thought were totally disappointing - What a waste of beauty. But I took some pictures, not too many, and socialized and made new friends. Oni and Io looked really amazing. I didn't see too many of the usual Secretroom crew which doesn't bode well for the Atlanta community.

The new space at Spring4th is bigger but still needs work. The place needs some serious decorating help, especially paint. It's not the furniture, it's the loose stuff that detracts from the atmosphere. The location isn't great either and I saw some stuff in the neighborhood on the way out that has me thinking about parking differently next time.

On the left is Candice Vermillion, the lead singer of The Mandrake Theory who was out with friends having a good time. She's a really entertaining dancer.

Amanda (AKA) Tin Cup Prophette put on a very cool show at Eddie's Attic. Her music was excellent but her stage banter was really bizarre. She had this cat plot going (her cat is named Judas) that was almost scary. Lindsay Mac opened and was very quirky herself. She played the cello but horizontally, holding it like a guitar. She emphasized that she's not actually playing it like a guitar - because her guitar playing sucks. Still, she put on a good show. I didn't stick around for Bain Mattox because I was meeting friends at Phobia.

February

The FFF was fun. Not enough people attended but those that did were friendly and we all had a good time. There were some great outfits, props/toys, and they put on a great dinner show. I managed to take a few good pictures, but lost most of them when the memory card in my camera died - bummer. I saw some old friends and made some new ones. Much better than watching silly superbowl commercials.

The Clint Eastwood movie, Flags of our Father's wasn't very exciting. The photography was nice but the story of the four guys, who raised the flag in that historic Iwo Jima picture, just wasn't that exciting. If you've got no story - You've got no movie. They really didn't do anything or amount to anything. Obviously the son of one of them wanted to honor his dad, but the movie didn't really accomplish anything.

January

Deja Vu with Denzel Washington was pretty good. It's advertised as a time travel movie but that's not really true. It's really a crime drama disguised as a sci-fi thriller. I really liked it and thought they had some very interesting spin on the paradox loop issue. It could have used a little more action but the car chase was very creative. Well worth the rental.

I went to this 97.1 The River radio station thing at the Dixie Tavern - LAME!. It was suppose to start at 6, but I got there late at 7 and the place was still EMPTY. I hung out for an hour munching a burger and talking to the "River Rats" about the upcoming ski trip but nobody else showed. Apparently they screwed up and the band doesn't start until 10:30. I got bored I started to leave and they offer to buy me beer to stick around. But, my butt was already sore and I couldn't wait another hour for an unknown band so I left. Maybe next time.

The Cirque Du Soleil show Corteo was good. Not as good as previous shows, but enjoyable. There were the usual jugglers, tightrope walkers and acrobats as well as pair of little people that did some filler sketches. I was most impressed with the guys in Cyr Wheels rolling around. The aerial work on the Chandeliers was beautiful. But overall, I was disappointed because it wasn't better than last time.

I went to a good show at Eddie's Attic with Christopher Williams, Willy Porter, and Stephen Simmons. Chris did the drum thing which is always cool. Service was lame as usual too.

Happy New Year!

All pictures are the property of Stefan and are not to be posted on other websites or published in any medium without express written permission. Questions, comments, and corrections are always welcome.

spunbystefan@yahoo.com