Get Well, Gare!
My trusty trail running partner is on the injured list. So I wanted to give a tribute to my boy, Gary!
Gary had a couple lumps removed. After testing, we are glad to know that they were nothing to be concerned about! BUT….
Gare’s incision on his arm got infected. He had to go into a second operation. I felt so bad for him. When you pick up your dog from surgery, they are usually still half asleep from the anesthesia. In my case, both times, a half-asleep Gary knew which direction the door was and was dragging along a vet tech who probably weighed about the same, behind him. In fact the first time, he didn’t even see me - he went straight past me into the lobby, where he stood, looking around. I called his name and you could tell it took a second to register, then he turned around and dashed over to me, just about knocking me down. He just leaned real hard against me until we left. The second time, he leaped into the air and right into my lap where I was sitting.
Short story long, after the 2nd operation, things STILL were not healing. So we went to a surgical specialist who is currently trying to get G to heal and avoid a 3rd operation. So he stitched this bandage to his arm! I think it’s a relief for Gary. He hates going to the vet, but I think he gets that we are helping him! He seems happy as a clam at the check out (taken with my camera phone)
So Gary can’t run for a while. He can’t even go for a walk around the block. So now our routine, 2-3 times a day, we will walk a half-block, and then chill out on a stranger’s lawn in the shade.
Get well soon, G! We’ll be running trails again before you know it!
July 26, 2010 | 
(1) |
Willow Ridge Manor Wedding: Photography of my friend Tony and Wife Andrea
Recently I had the great opportunity to photograph a wedding of my good friend, Tony (AKA Shorty) who I know from college! He got married at the Willow Ridge Manor, a very cool venue right near Red Rocks Amphitheater. The setting is beautiful and the wedding went extremely well!
Meet Tony and Andrea:
Now let’s start from the beginning!
I have always been a little bit jealous of Tony Shortino for having a slightly more Italian sounding name than me. 
I like Andrea because she’s an entrepreneur, a finance grad with her own business.
This flower girl was loving it all day long
Time for a wedding. Shorty waits patiently for his soon to be WIFE!
The flower girl ran out of flower petals, but she signals to the crowd that she’s all right with a “thumbs up”. Nice!
One of my usual shots of the guests!
You know I’m pretty stealthy at weddings, I never get too close to the action. I want the attention to be on the bride and groom only. But I couldn’t shake granny, here. I got a bogey on my tail! She’s got a missle lock on me! But she seems to be a very sweet bogey!
The happy new couple!
You twalkin’ to me, wise guy?
Even the M.O.B. joined in on the fun!
This is a true Colorado Wedding!
F.O.B. helping out while we are shooting!
Let the party begin!
Hopefully dad is going to make the catch, here! Unlike this clip (CLICK HERE, but COME BACK)
I had a total of three past Cafiero Photo clients at this wedding! Craig and Michelle, who are also friends and dog-sitters!
Beautiful Colorado Evening!
These two were no strangers to the dance floor!
Future clients! Shooting their wedding next summer!
The guys serenaded the bride with a rendition of “Sweetheart of Sigma Chi”
Another former bride and groom of mine, Karl and Jackie!
Anyway, that’s all for now. I have a wedding to shoot in the AM, so I am off to beddie bye!
Ciao!
July 10, 2010 | (2) |
MMA Legend Jens Pulver: Boise, ID Family Photos
I love when I get an interesting shoot in the books, one that might never be replicated in my career as a photographer. Today I had one of those shoots, as I photographed a UFC Legend, Jens Pulver.
To date, I have photographed some very cool celebrities: The weddings of PGA Tour Golfer and winner of the Canadian Open, Chez Reavie; FOX news anchorwoman, Libby Weaver; and even Dinger the Dinosaur’s wedding!
Of them all, there has only been one who required that I don’t publish their image: Dinger the Dinosaur.
Today I got to photograph someone who will go down in UFC history, a legend in the sport, as he was the first ever UFC Lightweight World Champion. To take family photos of a professional fighter, Jens Pulver sounded like an awesome opportunity. And it was!
Meet Jens:
There’s currently a documentary film being produced about jens. Here’s the first 3 minutes of it. I’m loving it already. I think this video is going to make people appreciate MMA fighting a little more. It’s not the barbaric mindless fighting that people assume it to be. The fighters are real athletes. they train hard and dedicated their lives to the sport. Jens is obviously no exception, he has an incredible story and I’m looking forward to seeing the completed film:
Jens has a wife, Nikka and son, Karson (I hope I spelled that right). I met them at Jens’ gym in Idaho and then we went out to a local greenbelt and did some outside shots, too.
He is a great guy, and has an equally great family too. And I’m not just saying that because he can beat me up!
I sort of wanted this shoot to be less of a “family portrait session” (even though we did do a few…), but more of a photo documentary / lifestyle shoot. I am happy with how it came out.
OK how about some photos…
Here we are at his gym, Driven, just outside of Boise:
I’m not sure why I get this feeling that his son is going to follow his footsteps.
I like this one - mom in the background, cheering on her two boys. I think she’s got her money on Karson.
Karson, finishing off his dad with a free lesson.
We pulled out a sled and had a little fun with that. Nikka and Karson:
Jens is currently training for his next fight, which will air on Pay Per View, August 14. He’s got his family behind him!
Karson gives us a very subtle hint that he is over this photo soot.
Next we ran off to a nearby creek to do some “nicer” photos… Yes, Jens has one blue eye and one brown eye. So if you ever see that in a dark alley, know that you can run, but you can’t hide! Jens’ wife looks exotic and that’s because she is! From Laos, just a skip from Vietnam. I hear she can make an amazing pho! Which I am addicted to!
…and this is where I am officially too tired to blog any more. Gotta get up early for the Boise Urban Challenge! More photos to come. Thanks Jens, for having me shoot your family photos! Awesome family! And good luck in August - train hard! Or like Matt Carpenter (another amazing athlete, Leadville 100 record holder) says, “go out hard, when it hurts - go harder” (actually I think it’s “speed up”, but I think “go harder” works better in this instance! Regardless, I like that way of thinking!
**UPDATE**
Now that I have gotten some rest, did the Boise Urban Challenge thing (we got 3rd place overall, that’s right) and spent a day boating, I am back at editing and have 44 more shots to add to the collection here.
This is Karson’s trademark wink. Love it.
Priceless…
The sign on Jens’ office door Believe it.
Karson in clean clothes…. didn’t last long!
…and that’s all she wrote. Until next time!
June 26, 2010 | (2) |
Boulder Colorado Wedding, Jennifer and Peter, Hotel Boulderado
I shot a great wedding last weekend in Boulder, Colorado. The ceremony was at an amazing residence, once which I run past almost weekly on my Mt. Sanitas trail, so it was exciting to get to spend some time there!
The house is amazing and I would love to post more photos, but that’s sort of a fine line of etiquette I think. I don’t know if I want someone posting photos of MY amazing estate ;p all over the Internet. But here’s a cool photo, I really thought the old-school las vegas sign in the living room was super cool
Jennifer was an AWESOME bride. ALWAYS smiling, very expressive. Look below to see for yourself. What I love about Jennifer is that she is so expressive with her eyes, which as a photographer is something I really love. She was also very cool and easy to work with. Another HUGE plus!
This is an old family loop horn that Jennifer’s grandmother used on her wedding dress.
I love photographing friends and family too!
The Father of the bride get’s ready for the big walk with his daughter
I love details!
Lots of great stuff to look at!
The grooms suit was awesome. I want one!
The Kids were in effect.
Kind of like some of the Persian weddings I have photographed! They bride and groom tasted honey off each others’ fingers. Very cool!
SMACK!
Overcome with emotion by the beautiful wedding, I caught the ring bearer wiping a tear.
…meanwhile, the flower girl was loving the attention.
I love photographing other people taking photos. Photography is so fun!
Perhaps my favorite series of the day. Mom and daughter right after the wedding…
The light was amazing in this back yard!
I’m never really the type to play with lens flare, but thought this would be a fun opportunity!
Shots at the receiving line…
My signature bride and groom series. 
The bride gets fresh with the Porsche getaway car!
At the Boulderado! That classic stained glass ceiling and the cake!
There were lots of cats featured on the tables. Cats and toothbrushes! (the groom is a dentist)
The father of the bride was giving his speech and not really using the mic… so the bride’s brother decided to help.
First Dance
I’d describe the brides sister’s dancing as “very robotic”. And I mean that in such a great way!
And she wears the right shoes for the job.
Y…
…M C A!!! (the father of the bride’s FAVORITE song) Hilarious!
I love this shot! I told you like like photographing people taking photos!
The brides brother also had a unique dancing style, which I describe as…. Nevermind. I can’t really describe this.
Father-daughter
Jennifer was really getting into the AC/DC song towards the end of the ceremony.
Overall, this was an awesome day and one heck of a party!!!! Thanks so much for having me, Jennifer and Peter!!!
June 25, 2010 | (0) |
Half-Moon
Here’s an interesting shot I got while leaving a wedding on Saturday. The moon! I can’t believe I was able to capture as much detail as I did in this shot with my little ol’ 70-200 IS lens! If you look closely, you can see craters, mountains, a dry lake or something, a martian, etc. It kind of looks like cheese. Imagine that.
June 22, 2010 | (1) |
HAPPY FATHERS DAY!
Last night my dad came up from Monument, and we all went out to City Park for Jazz in the City for some jazz music and BBQ! I haven’t really seen my dad in a while because of busy schedules and other things so it was fun to hang out and in Denver this time! Usually I am going out to Monument.
I just gave a tribute to my mom, and a Father’s Day tribute to my dad is just as important. All my life, my dad is the guy that I have wanted to be like. As a little shaver I loved every second that I had with my dad. He was a navigator in the Air Force and as millions of AF brats know, a lot of your time with military dads are spent on vacations, as he was always bouncing around the globe. So whenever I was able to hang out with my dad, it was truly special!
Here we are at Keystone, hitting up the slopes.
This is kind of funny… Yesterday, on Father’s Day, I went out with MY son, too and by pure coincidence, my photo at the summit of Green Mountain in Boulder is strangely reminiscent of the above shot of my dad and I. Sorry dad, someday you just might get a “real” grandson out of me. For now you will have to settle with Gary. But I love Gary just like a son. I know. Sad. haha!
Sorry about the armpit in that photo. But Gary, my doberman is indeed like my son. He is my best friend and my faithful trail running partner. A very unique and special dog. We seem to have our own language. Excuse my hair in both photos!
All my life I have loved hanging out with my dad. Especially when it’s one-on-one. As a kid, I loved cruising around in his red Fiat Convertible. It looked just like this, and I remember clearly the night that he drove it off the lot:
Whether we were on a road trip to AZ or just cruising around the Air Force Academy, I loved listening to Steve Martin on the 8-Track with the top down.
I am going to load this post with a ton of visuals. These are all icons that will forever make me think of my awesome childhood memories with my dad!
My dad would cry every time, from laughing soooo hard to Steve Martin.
As mentioned, I have a lot of fond memories of the US Air Force Academy, as my dad was stationed there and when we was somewhere else, we’d always stay at the VOQ (visiting officers quarters), and I still remember exactly how it smells, which I can only describe as “very sanitary”.
USAFA:
And the KC-135, the refueling tanker that my dad logged hundreds of hours inside…
Some of my greatest memories were at the park. The one thing I love about my dad is that he appreciates the simple things in life:
BBQs: he had this old smokey joe and to this day, my favorite kind of grillin’ is from my very own smokey joe and I don’t think that will ever change. The smell of it and even just the act of stacking charcoals and spraying them with lighter fluid and fanning the coals with a frisbee to keep them glowing… those are all things that make me feel good inside:
Kites: My dad loves kites. Just a long length of string attached to a plastic wing = hours of easy entertainment and lots of great memories. This kite is like the one I am getting (I told LK about how my dad loves kites and I think she could tell that they represent special times with my dad and so she got me one for my birthday!)
Budweiser: When I was a kid, my dad and I would be working in the garage on either the car, or building a coffee table, or SOMETHING… and all I remember is that it was super hot outside and my dad would grab an ice cold budweiser and crack it open and down about 3 big gulps in a row and exclaim: “ahhhhhhh”. He would let me have a sip under one condition: that I also follow up my sip with an “ahhhhhh”. Now, as an adult I am an alcoholic! (JUST KIDDING!!!! haha!)
Coca Cola: I loved grilling with my dad. It seemed we had steak like, every night of the week. And he’d make home made fries that were so amazing and so our dinner would ultimately end up as a steak, salad (with olive oil and vinegar ONLY), fresh home cut fries… and coca cola. My dad preferred to have Budweiser while working on projects or while out in the hot sun. But for dinner it was always Coca-Cola!
And as mentioned in an earlier post, his old Olympus:
My dad used to drive me around as a kid and pretend that the car was driving itself. He’d strain as he struggled to overpower the car’s steering wheel, only to lose the battle as the fiat would pull into a parking spot, right in front of a Dukin Donuts. “Oh man, I guess the car wants us to have a donut”. :
My dad and his buddy, Tom used to go sailing out on this sail boat in Virginia. I always got to come and eventually he got a sailboat while stationed in Hawaii.
One day on a jog, my dad ran into some people who were following a hot air balloon called Quo Vadis. He was instantly a part of their crew and for a while, hot air ballooning was a part of our weekend agenda
Another weekend tradition:
I could keep going, but I still have a few images to post from yesterday!
City Park on Sunday is always packed with people who come to listen to live Jazz music
And of course I am now an owner of a smokey joe grill. My dad brought the chicken and it sparked some serious nostalgia from our time, growing up. Some things never change!
For Father’s Day, LK, who works for a uniform company (in sales) was able to hook up a chef’s coat for my dad. And I also got him a plank cook book with some hickory planks so that he can start cooking some really healthy salmon and chicken on it!
So there you have it. Happy Father’s Day Mario. And Joseph, too who was also with us in spirit!
June 21, 2010 | (2) |
My momma didn’t raise no fool! CONGRATS MOM!
I know the timing is a little awkward, being just a couple days away from Father’s Day… but in a few, I will have a tribute to my dad, who is amazing as well
But my mom, after something like 35 or 36 years (shoot, maybe even more than that!) of teaching little rugrats in elementary schools, has FINALLY retired. And well deserved!
CONGRATS, MOM!
Now let me tell you a few things about my mom…
Growing up, things was HARD! (that’s horrible grammar, used purposefully for the sake of making us sound extra “ghetto”. I might do more of that throughout this blog post. To my potential wedding clients, please know that I am really literate.)
My parents were divorced and no, nothing against either my mom or my dad. They are both great parents. Its just that my mom was cursed with the extra responsibility of raising us kids! Actually my older sister Gina left to live with my dad at one point and I believe she packed a curse that was even greater than my little sister, Katherine and I together! haha! So my dad didn’t have it any easier - someday I will post about Gina and how she used to have parties and stole my dad’s car and smoked cigarettes while listening to Guns-n-Roses! haha!
That’s Gina on the far right. Kat, in the middle, on vocals, and that’s me on the left. At least we had style. Not pictured, are Gina’s leg warmers that she wore even in the brutal summers in Arizona. And I was a style-setter myself. Have you ever seen the top-hat, aviator glasses, Redskin’s t-shirt with maracas combo? Didn’t think so. I was a regular Derek Zoolander.
OK where was I… oh yeah. Times was hard!
My mom spent the majority of my childhood working really hard. She worked all day teaching 2nd graders, would come home, make a quick dinner for Kat and I (the routine was something like… Monday: Burritos heated in a microwave; Tuesday, Spaghetti; Wednesday, Chip beef on toast; Thursday, Chicken broccoli casserole, which I hated; Friday: Little Caesar’s Pizza; Saturday she’d bring us to Chili’s for a burger or on really special occasions, to Furr’s Cafeteria. Believe it or not, we all went CRAZY for Furrs! Usually we’d go on “payday”; and Sunday she’d cook a nice Sunday dinner for us).
Usually after dinner, she’d be off to Chili’s where she worked as a server.
Times was tough, but my mom, the hardest working woman I have EVER met, still made sure to be a good mom.
She was also a tough mom. Raised on tough love herself, she handed it down to us. But I appreciate it. I am so thankful that she never let me watch TV. If it was nice outside, I was ordered to go out and ride my bike and play. So many parents use the TV as nanny or a baby sitter.
When I would get sick, my mom always surprised me with a SUZYQ. Ever had one? They are awesome:
And my mom forced me to go out for sports. I believe that parenting move in particular changed my life right there. I started to enjoy sports and my friends were all good, healthy people. I wrestled and was on the track team and in High School started racing bikes at the local velodrome.
And all through college and now my adulthood, it is so great to know that my mom is done working.
Rumor has it that she is on facebook now. She’s golfing and playing gin with her friends and I can tell that she is having a blast.
Last weekend we celebrated. I hooked up a nice wasabi-rubbed grilled lamb dinner. And we watched UFC on pay-per view. That’s right, my mom will even watch UFC with me. haha!
So congratulations mom, I am so excited for you! Well deserved!
As a cautionary note, I want to warn all of my peeps to watch for a white Subaru Outback. Because she’s retired, it means she may be driving more now and her driving record is a little shabby. So just as a precaution, if you see a white Subaru Outback on the roads, just play it safe. Get in the furthest lane from it as possible. When passing, pass quickly and get yourself a good distance ahead and you should be OK.
I know that the family in this music video resembles my family, but no it’s not really us. Although it is a pretty close representation… (minus the “crack fiend, different daddy’s, and jail cells, perhaps…) haha! OK my life was nothing like this… But I’ll still dedicate this to my mama in perfect G-fashion!
(tupac, the legend!)
June 18, 2010 | (5) |
Little G
One of the highlights of my day happens in the early AM when I get to go running with Gary, my 107lb Doberman Pinscher!
And then again in the evening, we usually hit up the local park after a long day of working. I decided to test the low-light video feature of my new S90 and I am very happy. And I need to make more videos, they are fun to have!
June 17, 2010 | (1) |
New Family Member Arrived Today
I love CraigsList.
So let me tell you a quick story, the very abbreviated version:
June, 2009: I tragically lost my beloved Canon G7. I had had it for years and it had a lot of sentimental value. My heart broke.
March, 2010: Still somewhat in denial, and with a glimmer of hope that I would find my G7, as a “temporary solution”, I bought a Canon SD1200 Elph, as I would need SOMETHING to teach the 500 new SNAPshop students that I got from Groupon.
June, 2010: While golfing with LK, I found my beloved G7! In my golf bag!
I was elated! I was taking photos with the G7 and it was taking beautiful photos! I took this one of Gary
Two weeks later: After putting a charged battery into my G7, it still would not start. It died in its sleep. My heart sank.
Yesterday: With upcoming SNAPshops, I needed to act quick. I gave LK my Elph, and she would have given it back but that’s just not cool. Plus, as a Point and Shoot instructor, I believe I deserve a nicer tool for instructing! I spent a good amount of time. These P/S cameras are not things I intend on buying over and over again like a pair of socks. I want to find a new camera that I can bond with and grow with and share special moments in my life with! May sound silly to you, but the purchase of a Point and Shoot camera is a big deal to me! I looked at the top models from each major company: Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Samsung, Panasonic, Leica, and others. I narrowed it down to three, and finally decided that the camera for me, even aside from my bias towards Canon, is still the CANON Powershot SD90! $430 bucks. Not spare change by my bank accounts standards by any means!
I had B&H.com open and was about to click “add to cart”, when I thought, “hmmmm maybe I will just check Craigslist.com real quick”. To my disbelief (the S90 is not a popular camera, most people go with the G11 which looks way cooler), there was one in Denver: “Lightly Used, Never Dropped, 5 months old, in Perfect condition with all packaging. $320obo”. I love it when it says OBO.
So I offered $280, thinking I’d get reamed for “low-balling” him. Instead, I get an email, “OK, that sounds good”. And now, after a quick meeting in a parking lot, I own my own Canon PowerShot S90!!!!
I know what you are thinking, “That’s it?”. I actually appreciate the understated design. The camera is loaded though: f/2.0 lens! full manual functionality and a cool aperture ring at the barrel of the lens, RAW imaging, and so much more. This camera is solid and I see a bright future ahead with my new partner!
So far, because today is like a race against the clock, my first photo is pretty appropriate: my daily agenda sheet. eughhh… But what a nice, crisp image!
Welcome S90, I am so happy to have you in my life!
June 15, 2010 | (0) |
Meet Mitchell
I originally had plans to be in Orange County the weekend of June 24, but plans got changed and now I am off to Idaho where I will get to hang with my older sister, Gina!
I have to be honest, I wasn’t very excited that I would, by default be joining her as an Urban Challenge contestant. I have seen these Urban Challenges pass through Denver and they look like glorified scavenger hunts. And I HATE scavenger hunts or anything that puts me into public places doing silly things. ugh.
But after a whole bunch of begging by my sister, I decided that I would do it.
Today, I got an email and everything has changed. I didn’t realize that we’re competing to raise money for the Make-a-Wish foundation (one of my FAVORITE charities) and our team is competing to raise money for this kid, Mitchell. Meet Mitch:
This is a real kid: no he’s not make believe or anything. A real kid in Boise, Idaho diagnosed with Lymphoma. I can guarantee you that he has been through a LOT. While other kids are out playing merrily in the sun, Mitch has to spend a lot of time in hospitals, being poked and prodded, scanned and tested, with a cloud of anxiety always hovering over him and his family.
Mitch is a huge fan of the Green Bay Packers. His dream is to play football for them someday. And Make-a-Wish foundation is raising money to fly him out to Green Bay to fulfill part of his fantasy. He is going to meet the coach, lots of the players, practice with the team, and then watch a game from the sidelines. Imagine that. Kick-ass! THAT is why I love Make-a-Wish - while other charities support science and medicine towards trying to cure illnesses that may or may not ever be cured, Make-a-Wish hooks up the people who have been stricken with these things, while they wait for these cures.
In the past few months, two people who I have met have lost their lives to cancer. And I also thought I had it myself for a brief moment when I spent my time at the hospital, and I can tell you it’s a scary, sobering experience. When I left the hospital, I felt like a prisoner out of jail. And I felt incredibly grateful, that I wanted to do something for other people who are less fortunate. Suddenly this opportunity has come up and I want to do some fund-raising for a really good cause.
Make-a-Wish isn’t a bank. They don’t just have all of this cash to do these things. Here’s a link to where you can make a donation. My blog gets about 300 hits per day. If all 300 of those visitors could donate even $5 bucks, when multiplied by numbers, it makes a huge difference. So please take a couple minutes now and click the link below. You will see it’s the page for Gina Radovcich, who is my sister - but I am competing with her on her team.
It says the goal is $100 or something. That’s stupid. I think we can do more like $1000. So please if you can drop a few bucks in the pot, that would be awesome. This is not just supporting Mitchell here, but there are a gazillion other people out there stuck in very unfortunate positions that your donation will help fund. Thanks!
June 14, 2010 | (1) |
