There were two locations utilized in the shoot. One on P Street NW in DC and another in a Baltimore recording studio. Most of the footage was captured using a Canon t2i DSLR. Both locations had their challenges but I think things worked out more or less. For the P street location, the sun was rather harsh so we needed to find spots in the shade to shoot.

For the recording studio location it was the opposite problem … there wasn’t enough light. All we had to work with was the available light in the studio. Even with a 35mm 1.4 prime lens the ISO needed to be bumped to 800 to get a decently exposed picture. For a sub $1000 camera, the t2i produced a nice picture but it’s very apparent that the low light capabilities are lacking compared to the Canon 5D Mark II. It also made it difficult to film because we were shooting wide open at an apature of 1.4 which didn’t give the actor much headroom. It was very easy for him to move in an out of focus.

With all that said, it didn’t matter in the end because the footage will be chopped up and displayed in short clips in the beginning of the film. I’m anxious to see how everything will come together. Below is a Picasa link to some behind the scenes photos for the shoot. I will have to confess that my girlfriend took most of these shots as I was operating the camera. In my opinion, I think she did better than I would have!!

“Pawn” Behind the Scenes: Day 3 on picasa

A shot from the set of Pawns

This past weekend I had the opportunity to be apart of the making of a movie. I was invited to help as a crew member and take some behind the scenes photos. The last time I was apart of a movie production was way back in Frederick where I and a few friends enrolled in a 72 hour film festival competition. This experience was different in that there wasn’t a rush to try to get everything done from the writing of the script to the editing of the film all in three days!

The crew members were great and I was really impressed with the actors! It ended up being a lot of fun and I learned a thing or two as well. It took two days to shoot most of the movie and it is now ready for post. To contact the director and author of the screen play, go to Rosehaven Production website.

Below are some behind the scenes stills that I took from the set of “Pawns”. The images are also available on picasa at the following URLS:
“Pawn” Behind the Scenes: Day 1 on picasa
“Pawn” Behind the Scenes: Day 2 on picasa

Pawns BTS Day 2 90 photos
Pawns BTS Day 1 112 photos

Mont Saint Michel, originally uploaded by lonny.gomes.

In this photo is a picture of Mont Saint Michel which is located on the coast of north western France. This was one of the most impressive sights I saw on my trip, mainly because I didn’t know anything about it. When we were arriving there we could see the structure miles (or kilometers I guess) away and it really was impressive. Apparently, Mont Saint Michel was an Abbey, and then turned Prison and then an Abbey again. If you’re ever in France, this is definitely a worthwhile stop to take!

My Block, originally uploaded by lonny.gomes.

I haven’t been posting much lately, but that should change because I recently got a new digital SLR! I loved my Nikon film camera but I finally broke down and came to the realization that film is dying.

I’m happy I made the switch. I really feel as if I can be more creative in the digital realm, and not to mention it’s much more cost effective. Another added bonus is that it feeds into my need for instant gratification. I kinda do miss the “wait” to see how the film came out, but not enough to switch back!

This shot was captured with my Canon t2i (550D) and was an attempt at a long exposure using a nearby garbage can as a tripod. The location was 14th and V … It’s not technically “my block”, but is close to it!

I had the “pleasure” of experiencing this historic event by effectively being snowed in my neighborhood. The buses were down and the Metro soon came afterward and already having 2 incidents with my car in the snow I definitely wasn’t going to be driving! Being that I did most of my growing up in a middle-class New England town where there never was a shortage of snow come winter time, experiencing winter snow storms in the city is truly a unique experience. I had a similar experience in 2003 where I was stuck in New York City in a huge snow storm and one thing I noticed both in DC and NYC is that when the snow starts to fall in the city, so do people’s inhibitions. People forget about their age, about their differences or social standing and all come together to make snowman, slide down hills on improvised sleds, and have snowball fights.

With the advent of social networking and smart phones, collaboration is much easier to achieve. Some people organized a snowball fight to take place on 14th & U. I wasn’t aware of this plan but I happened to be walking on U Street and heard people laughing and screaming in the distance as I approached 14th street. It was actually quite a site and I took part in one “battle” for a bit which was timed based off of the red lights. About 10 or so minutes after I left the scene, a few of the “snowballers” threw a snowball (or two) at a hummer driving by. The driver got out of the car and proceeded to show his gun. He didn’t point it at anyone but the gesture definitely was an abuse of his power.

The one thing I do feel that many people haven’t been saying in regards to this situation is that the kids really shouldn’t have been throwing snowballs at moving traffic. The cop’s reaction was unprofessional and although it may fly in the hood, it’s not gonna work with the U Street crowd who are armed with iPhones and youtube accounts! Below is footage from the incident. After the detective pulls out his gun there is a kid that still nails him in the face with a perfectly placed ball of snow!

Despite the snowball fight incident, it was beautifully refreshing to see DC covered in generous layers of white fluffy stuff. For that one day, the snow covered the harsh realities of life and for a moment brought joy to an otherwise politically charged and divided city. Below I captured some images and video of the snow storm, or as it was referred to on Twitter, the #snowpocalypse of ‘09.

In the midst of all the drama I have gotten a few things done.  I’ve made a mix tape, done some demo recordings and started research in developing applications for the iPhone.  I’m going to work at being better with updating my site with upcoming projects so stay tuned!

The plan is to head to DCA (Reagan National Airport) to pick up out other friend Ethan.  This is a start of what will be a long day.  By the end of it, our patience will be tried and as well as our endurance to the elements.

I will be making periodic updated throughout the day and I will also be trying to capture much of the experience on video.

I’ve been to the Lincoln Memorial several times — often playing tour guide to those visiting DC — but never really stopped long enough to think of all the history that has taken place on it’s steps.  Yesterday, we were watching the free pre-inauguration show, which took place on the same very same steps.  

Some of the biggest names in politics and entertainment were sharing the steps that King did 46 years before.  It definitely brings another perspective to the monument and the man it remembers.

Today, Soledad O’Brien interviewed a few people who were in town for the inauguration who were also in town August 28th, 1963 to hear Dr. King speak.  Some say, King was the Moses and Obama is Joshua generation.  Continuing with the bible reference, some have even said from the death of King to the election of Obama represented 40 years of walking in the wilderness and it now is time to see the promise land.  I’m not sure if I’m ready to go *that* for with it, but one thing is for sure, I will be in DC tomorrow to share in the experience of history.

A couple years ago, I made a “tribute” mix to MLK … it’s actually more a commentary on freedom.  It’s a bit long (about 10 minutes), but check it out when you get the chance.

Download audio file (DJ%20Mass%20Defect%20-%20Be%20Free.mp3)

I will be making updates within the next couple weeks, including my inauguration experience so stay tune!

Anyway, my parents found some old video footage of us from way back in the day and my dad got this little video camera for Christmas. So putting the two together, some of this footage ended up on you tube! Below is raw footage of my short-lived career as a child rock star. We were it back then, but then my brother and I started to have creative differences and the pressure got to me … I gave it all up!