Category: Events

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 9, 20246:46 pm

Supper Ladies

Looking out my home office window, on any given day, a steady stream of healthy, skinny women and men flow by—some exercise run, others casually walk, and even more tug leashed dogs. They are the stereotypical San Diego young and fit. Photographers love them, because who wouldn’t want to look at beautiful people?

California liberals can’t cry enough about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Okay. Let’s be inclusive—equitable and diverse. That’s what the Featured Image is all about—including big, white women, who might otherwise be excluded from any photographic montage.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 28, 20246:42 pm

I Boycott the Paris Olympics

I am more than a little surprised to be writing this post. But here we unexpectedly are. I stand with those people criticizing the 2024 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony’s mock Last Supper as mocking Christianity—and the almighty God, for that matter. In what appeared to be a live reenactment of the famous painting by Leonardo DaVinci, the actors were either drag queens or some simply dressed as such.

The Summer games officially began in Paris on July 26. Today, spokesperson Anne Descamp apologized to anyone offended by the, ah, banquet scene. If BBC reporting is accurate, explanation is as offensive, if not more. From the story: “The ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, said there was no intention to ‘mock or denigrate anyone’ and explained the scene in question was designed to reference pagan gods”.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 19, 20249:17 pm

Swing to the Beat

For the first time this month, I hauled down to Old Trolley Barn Park for the third Friday night of summer concerts. Performing this evening: San Diego Funk All Stars. I more or less sauntered through, taking a few quickies using Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.

I carry Leica Q2 less often than ever and seriously consider selling it. I love the camera, but the smartphone is convenient and the photos are increasingly good enough, particularly as artificial intelligence-enhanced software makes magic happen to most any shot.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 16, 20249:04 pm

More Music in the Park

The day’s mild weather got me looking at past outdoor photos of people gathered together. The Featured Image is a discard for post “Bluegrass and Monochrome“. The close-crop comes from Leica Q2 Monochrom on July 22, 2022. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/4, ISO 200, 1/160 sec, 28mm; 7:33 p.m. PDT.

Setting: Old Trolley Barn Park in San Diego neighborhood University Heights. The community sponsors a concert series for four Fridays every summer—but interrupted during SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2)/COVID-19 restrictions.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 19, 20249:02 pm

Uglydoll to the Stars

For no particular reason, we spend another day looking back on San Diego Comic-Con 2015, where Star Trek-themed Uglydolls went where no plushie has gone before—sold out, if I rightly recall, before the convention ended.

In the Featured Image, Power Ice-Bat rises above a sea of OX. The companion capture presents Ice-Bat as Scotty—and the Red Shirt who defied the odds episode after episode during the three seasons. Red Shirt has become a euphemism for a pulp-media character who is killed soon after his or her introduction. On Star Trek the Original Series, they dressed in a specific color.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 2, 20239:47 pm

Exit Strategy

For lack of people posts, let’s have one with a big crowd—mass of Comic-Con attendees leaving the San Diego Convention Center at the event’s close on Sunday, July 27, 2014. What luck this year that Hollywood is on strike.

The Featured Image is memorable for camera: Nokia Lumia Icon Windows Phone. Microsoft may have fumbled the mobile market and let Android and Apple make winning touchdowns, but the shooting hardware was best of class.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 28, 20239:36 pm

Big Band Bubble Brigade

Summer never really ends in San Diego but ebbs and flows throughout the year. Yet the last Friday night live music event in Old Trolley Barn Park feels like end of the season, even as the dog days of August are yet to come.

I walked over this evening, beckoned several blocks away by the boisterous big band sound of Sue Palmer & Her Motel Swing Orchestra. She drew quite the crowd, and sizable group—mostly older folks—danced before the stage. If mosh pits were for kids and grandmas, well I observed one tonight.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 19, 20239:21 pm

What’s More Inclusive Than Welcome?

On July 14, 2023, as the prideful descended upon San Diego for the annual alphabet-letter parade the next day, I stopped with my wife to gawk at the fence, along Adams Ave. in University Heights, that is subject of the Featured Image.

The “Welcome” sign and homage to the “brave”, along with an American flag out of frame, stood starkly—proudly and patriotically—in contrast to the many rainbow flags we encountered nearby along Panorama Drive. (Say, why do these banners have six colors when the real deal in the sky is seven?)

Living by Joe WilcoxJul 15, 20238:56 pm

Swinging to the Music

I considered cropping the Featured Image even tighter, but leave that for you by zooming in; please do. This is another moment from last night’s live music performance at Old Trolley Barn Park, which is […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 14, 20239:30 pm

Blues and Americana at Old Trolley Barn Park

July means live music Fridays at Old Trolley Barn Park, here in San Diego neighborhood University Heights. Despite feeling crappy all day, I walked over tonight for a look and some photos—oh, yeah, and surprise. Performer: Chickenbone Slim and the Biscuits. Perhaps you remember my sharing about the blues band back in November 2021, after finding them performing impromptu outside our auto mechanic’s shop, which is closed weekends.

The venue and crowd was way bigger this evening. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra didn’t deliver the kind of shots I have come to expect. Highlights are blown out and color is way oversaturated for the dozen captures. Details are muddy, too, as you can see from the Featured Image. Vitals: f/4.9, ISO 200, 1/60 sec, 230mm (film equivalent); 7:38 p.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 6, 20238:48 pm

Christmas in July

I can’t say that I will jump through hoops seeking the ultimate sale-priced goods during Amazon Prime Day next week (11th and 12th). But keeping with the concept of Christmas in July and opportunity for me to share a previously unpublished photo, here we are together. Shop if you want.

The Featured Image comes from Leica Q2 on Dec. 21, 2022. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 12:24 p.m. PDT. Location: Maryland Place in San Diego neighborhood University Heights.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 29, 20239:30 pm

Don’t Be Angry

San Diego Comic-Con commences with Preview Night, on July 19, 2023. Early buzz isn’t so much about what attendees will see but what they won’t. The Writer’s Guild of America is on strike and could be joined by SAG-AFTRA, which represents 160,000 actors, as early as tomorrow.

In the midst of the mayhem, Hollywood studios suddenly are pulling presence from this year’s Con. The infamous Hall H, where some of the best panels and previews take place, is suddenly an unpopular presentation venue. Pick any number of reasons, among them: Nobody to be on stage for fans to gawk at; picketers parading placards outside the convention center.