On Sept. 4, 2026, I stopped to chat with one of my neighbors as she walked her dog on leash and pushed a mesh carrier carrying a cat. Choppy is his given name.
I used Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra to capture the Featured Image. Vitals: f/1.4, ISO 25, 1/359 sec, 23mm; 6:47 p.m. PDT,
This cat is where it needs to be: indoors. Two phenomena are playing out across Nextdoor this year: The overwhelming increase in missing cat posts and, similarly, the number of coyote sightings. Interestingly, this cottage […]
The Featured Image is one of my outtakes from San Diego Comic-Con 2026. On the first full day, I left the convention center and strolled over to the adjacent Hyatt Hotel in search of coffee. Back at the main venue, lines snaked seemingly forever at any Starbucks. I found something more manageable next door.
A surprising number of attendees carried portable fans to cool themselves. How odd. Inside temperature sure seemed comfortable enough to me. The young woman waited in line behind me.
What surprises me about San Diego Comic-Con is how little—and yet how much—has changed since my last attendance for a single day in 2017. Virtually every venue was where I remember: Disability services in area A. Major celebrity panels in Ballroom 20 and Hall H. Layout of the exhibitor floor, with artists at the end nearest Hall H and smaller seller booths and gameplay nearer to area A. Everything in the middle, from big Hollywood studios to booksellers, all where they have been previously.
The same can be said for the upstairs pavilion and meeting rooms. In the Mezzanine, nothing really changed. Board games are in the same meeting rooms, and the Medieval fighters gather and joust where they always have, for example.
I see plenty of self-serve car washes around San Diego. But a place to scrub your dog, in the open-air and just off the street? Who could imagine such a thing? Obviously, its owners for sure. Turns out there are four locations. I passed by the one in North Park on July 19, 2026.
“Each wash includes warm water, professional shampoo and conditioner, flea rinse treatment, and a powerful dog dryer—all for just $16”, according to the company’s website. You provide the muscle and put in the sweat equity.
San Diego Comic-Con 2016, I was functionally blind—and the realization how much came during Preview Night 10 years ago this evening. My daughter accompanied me to the Convention Center, where she received a complimentary companion full-event pass as the helper for a disabled attendee—a status I never imagined myself as being.
Crippling cataracts clouded my eyesight, and I saw how severely when scanning the show floor and realizing I couldn’t read any of the large numerical signs hanging from the ceiling. Disheartened, I walked into the crowd, blindly pointed iPhone 6s, and shot the Featured Image, which essentially is the only photographic record I have of the event. Vitals: f/2.2, ISO 80, 1/15 sec, 29mm; 6:41 p.m. PDT.
This morning, my wife drove me to Pop Pie in South Park, where a Too Good to Go order waited. The haul? Two pies, one traditional chicken, the other Hog (e.g. pulled pork). I walked most of the way the home, proceeding to North Park and to University Heights—30th all the way to Meade.
Wow, were the streets packed with people. I have never seen Sunday like this. The majority of folks was destination bound, with local bars and eateries the primary destinations—basically anywhere with big screen TVs. Argentina and Spain squared off for the FIFA World Cup final match, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.
Ho-ho, the on-this-date review from San Diego Comic-Con continues—reaching back to July 13, 2012. My attendance started in 2009, although I had a press pass for 2008—about nine months after the Wilcox family moved to Southern California. My return for two days next week will be my first appearance since 2017.
The Featured Image is intriguing for a couple of reasons. The kilt is obvious. You can see that. You have to wonder what impression a brigade of like-adorned stormtroopers would make. Would rebel forces laugh and not take their adversaries seriously enough, ending up even more dead?
Like eleven years ago, July 12 is a Sunday. While the dates and days sync up, something else doesn’t: San Diego Comic-Con concluded on this date in 2015. The 2026 gathering won’t start for another 10 days, with Preview Night. I will be there on Thursday and Sunday, my first dalliance since 2017.
The Featured Image is among the last dozen photos taken using Fujifilm X-T1 and XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS lens on this date 11 years ago. Vitals: f/3.2, ISO 250, 1/60 sec, 18mm; 1:49 p.m. PDT.
Over four days and Preview Night, San Diego Comic-Con presents people opportunity to cosplay as someone whom they aspire to be. Cosplayers are popular with any camera-carrying attendees, which could be anyone and everyone because of ubiquity and versatility of smartphones.
But the event is demanding, especially when costumes and accompanying gear are bulky or heavy. People tire, as you can see from the Featured Image, which hardly shows two people in character.
Don’t bother asking. Joe has no idea what are Link Monks–—if he ever knew. I used Fujifilm X-T1 and XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS lens to shoot the Featured Image, eleven years ago today during San Diego Comic-Con 2015.
Vitals: f/3.2, ISO 200, 1/2500 sec, 18.8mm; 10:44 a.m. PDT. The portrait is a horizontal crop from a vertical original. See how sharp the shot still is? I loved the X-T1, BTW.
Eleven years ago today, I stomped about San Diego Convention Center shooting photos of Comic-Con 2015. Next week, I return for two days—Thursday and Sunday—marking my first attendance since (gasp) 2017. Oh, I tried but failed to secure passes.
During 2015 Con, I purchased the Fujifilm X-T1, bundled with two lenses, from Best Buy and made good use of the kit during most of the four full days. I used the X-T1 and XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS lens to capture the Featured Image. Vitals: f/4, ISO 2500, 1/60 sec, 18mm; 4:31 p.m. PDT, July 9, 2015.