Project 365 - A Photo a Day

It's that time of year when many make resolutions and promises for the New Year.

Last year I even managed to keep a couple, lose weight and start a Blog about one of my passions, Outdoor Movies (which you are reading).

This year I will attempt a Photo-a-day project.  That is, to take, and post, a photo every day.

Why?
1. With both my businesses I get to travel around California and Oregon. This project will help me keep track of the people, places and things I have done during the year.
2.  I love taking photos and I hope this will get me to take more and improve my technique.

When I started thinking about this project, I Googled to see what others have done to succeed:

• Making your intention public (like I am) increases the chance that you will follow-through with the project.  Find groups of people who are doing the same thing (project365 on Flickr)
• Choose a platform to post to and make it easy.  If you take all your photo's with a smart phone, choose a service that you like and use it to post your photos.   If you are constantly on Facebook, create a folder with your images there.
• Blog it, even if it just a couple of words to give your photo context.
• Take your camera with you!

I am looking forward to the challenge!  Eager to get started I chose Christmas Day to begin my journey.

Day 1  - Christmas Dinner

I am storing my photos on Flickr and have joined the project365 group (it's inspiring to see what other people are capturing).  From flickr I will Blog to http://paultheoutdoormovieguy.blogspot.com/

Be it an iPhone, Android, DSLR, point and shoot or GoPro, grab your camera and start to tell your story, one photo at a time.

Cheers
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

P.S.  If you are going to attempt the Photo-a-day, let me know how I can follow you.

Documenting Jackie the House Elf - Elf on the Shelf Photo Project

You may have seen the Elf on the Shelf.  Our house has one.  Armed with a vintage Nikon lens (fast lens 1.4), my Canon 60D and a tripod I set myself a photo project for the Holiday.  Document Jackie the House Elf escapades.

I use Lightroom to process the photos, a few images are enhance using HDR Photomatrix Pro.

Here are the first few days.

Enjoy

Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Jackie the House Elf is back! He brought the children advent
calendars and looks so innocent... but we know better.

Jackie the House Elf Photo-bomb's a Charlie Brown Christmas

Jackie the house elf wins the sack race

This morning, Jackie the house elf was acting like Godzilla and scaring the villagers

Jackie the House Elf enjoying his favorite sport of bareback reindeer trick riding

Jackie the house Elf scores a triple word score with MISTLETOE

Looks like Jackie the House Elf and Red had a date last night!

Jackie the House Elf hit the slopes last night

Jackie the House Elf and Red found the mistletoe

Jackie the House Elf taunts the family dog!

Jackie the House Elf gets captured by the dogs Lego hit-men "Don't mess with my bone!"

Jackie the house Elf took a night off from mischief to have a nice relaxing marshmallow bath!

Jackie the House Elf goes Zip-lining, the Angel is not amused!

Jackie the House Elf gets in a quick 9 "Fore!"

Jackie the House Elf was up all night playing "Little Big Planet"

Jackie the House Elf added a decoration to the tree

Jackie the House Elf with a front-side air in the Kitchen Bowl!

Jackie the House Elf "came in like a wrecking ball"

Jackie the House Elf loves a good game of Twister

Jackie the House Elf and friends toasting marshmallows at a camp out

Jackie the House Elf high dives into 2 inches of water

Jackie the House Elf knitting up a Christmas sweater

Jackie the House Elf wrapped the TV remotes

Jackie the House Elf made a huge mess last night with his attempt to bake cookies!

See you next year Jackie!

Winter Movie Night Top Tips

An Outdoor Movie Night in the winter can be great fun.  The nip in the air really adds to the Holiday feeling of your movie.  Wrap up warm and follow these great tips

1. Have your party guests bring sleeping bags, warm jackets and hoodies
2. Have a basket of blankets that guests can grab (personalized blankets make a great gift for corporate events)
3. Place a large tarp on the ground to help guests stay dry
4. Blow up air matressess for kids to lounge on
5. Have a fire-pit or outdoor heater to warm your hands by
6. Put up a pop-up tent for guests to sit under and stay dry
7. Have hand warmers on "hand" HeatMax Hot Hands 2 Handwarmer (40 Pairs)
8. Have a basket full of inexpensive knit gloves
9. Have a basket of scarves.  Fleece scarves can be easily made by purchasing some fleece and cutting it in strips (try movie or sports themed fleece)
10. Plan on warming "comfort foods."  A crock-pot full of Chili, soup or stew, gooey mac and cheese or a baked potato bar with all the fixings.    
11. Skip the ice cream and roast marshmallows 
12. Have plenty of hot chocolate available (and maybe a hot toddy for the adults!)

Happy Holidays
Paul

Block Party

I had spoken with Terry, one of our wonderful neighbors, about doing a block party.  "Give me dates and I will make it happen." she said.  And she did, to the delight of the neighborhood!  Everyone came out for food, crafts, s'mores and a kid friendly movie.

Here are some key planning steps and ideas from our event:

Close your Street
In our town you are required to get 50% of the people on the block to agree to close the street.  A $30 permit and many signatures later Terry had collected the required amount.  The City then drops off signs to close your street.

Check with you local city for requirements in your town.

Spread the Word 
We used the social media site Nextdoor to invite our neighbors.

It's important to remember that not everyone in the neighborohood is online.
Terry created a flyer and placed it in everyone's mailbox.  The Block Party invitations were also distributed to neighboring streets.

On the day of the event, reminders were placed in everyone's mailbox on the block.

Food 
Potluck is a great way to bring the community together.  In our multicultural society the array of food can be fascinating and delicious.  Our potluck table was overflowing!

We had neighbors roll out their BBQ's and people brought their own meat to grill.

A fire pit was set up in a driveway for S'mores and of course, there was Popcorn!

The Movie
As our Block Party was in October we chose Wallace and Gromit - Curse of the Were-Rabbit.  Be sure to keep it Family Friendly.  Don't forget that showing a movie in a public location requires a licence.  We had a group of local small business owners, and neighbors, sponsor the licencing.

Our  movie was sponsored by Terry (organizer extraordinaire and local Realtor), FunFlicks (that's me) and GoWithSlim (a local Plexus natural weight loss ambassador).  Have a table with info for these businesses.

Before the movie we had music and a slide show thanking the sponsors

Your local Police
We invited the local police to come talk about neighborhood safety. It's great for the neighborhood to see local officers in a friendly environment.  They even brought free swag for the kids.  We had a table available for neighborhood safety information and exchange of phone numbers and email addresses.  We even had a brief, unofficial visit from the major!

Kids played tag, we got to see our neighbors and made some new friends.

"Let's do it next year!"
Sounds like a plan.
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Girls Night Out Movie Night

A Girls night out movie night is a great way for ladies, young and old, to relax, giggle and unwind from the constant "go go go" of their busy appointment-filled lives.

Here are some great ideas to help you plan a fabulous evening with your gal pals:

Invites
Get the word out!  You can use a service like Evite to invite your friends.   Evite has a number of movie night and girls night out invitation templates (and it's free!).

Seating
Indoors or out, your guests need somewhere to sit.   If indoors, rearrange furniture and clear out tables to make room for more seating.  If you are outside, consider a BYOCAB -- Bring Your Own Chair and Blanket.

The Film
It's Girls night out, here's your chance to watch that chick flick!  Here are 5 great suggestions:

Grease  It's the word.  Go on sing... no one will judge

Thelma and Louise Road trip for Girls

The Notebook Don't forget the tissues

Love Actually Great movie for the Christmas Holidays

Notting Hill  Hugh Grant at his bubbling best

Not Just for Movies
How about a season premiere or season finale on the big screen?  Parenthood, Bachelor/Bachelorette, Downton Abbey or coming soon the Outlander series.

Food
Popcorn and movie snacks are a must!  You can always theme your food with what you are showing. "Drink tea, there's lots of tea"  with your Notting Hill or Downton Abbey party.

Cheers
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy (and his wife)

5 SPOOKTACTULAR Tips for Outdoor Movies

Spook up your Halloween movie night with these great ideas... 

1. Food and Drink... Make fun themed labels for your beverages.... True Blood labels for wine or  Butterbeer for your sodas!
2. Show a movie in a similar location to where it was shot... Imagine the Blair Witch Project near the woods.  Scarrrrry!
3. Halloween is one time of year where you can dress up.  Have your guests come as their favorite character from the film you are showing
4.  Music - Before your movie starts have a fun playlist of movie themes... Ghostbusters, Adams Family, Nightmare before Christmas and Jaws
5.  Videos and Gaming - Get the party started with the Thriller Video, plug in your console and shoot zombies or dance with Just Dance 3 to This is Halloween

Remember to look at your audience and keep it Kid-friendly if you need too.

Happy Halloween
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Another Gorgeous Outdoor Movie at Chappellet

We had another glorious night with the Napa Valley Film Festival at Chappellet Winery.  Blakesley Chappellet welcomed us to their stunning meadow for another movie night under the stars.

The movie was 20 Feet From Stardom.  "The untold story of backup singers in popular music. 20 Feet From Stardom is a celebration of the voices from the edge that brought shape and style to the soundtracks of our lives."

Amazing music, wine, food and company.

... more photo's

The Napa Valley Film Festival is under 2 months away and runs November 13th - 17th. For more information about the film festival check out their website.

"We could not have ordered a more magical evening!"  
I heartily agree

Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Too Stuffy indoors... Let's have an Outdoor Movie Night!

Last weekend it was hot, the house was stuffy, so we had an Outdoor Movie Night, much to the kids delight!  My wife made a quick trip to the store while I set up the screen.  It was time to introduce them to a classic 80's Flick. Back to the Future

We got the Blu-ray trilogy... image was great.  Every time I watch a film from the 80's I realize how film rating have changed over time (there is some strong language).  Being a skateboard kid from the 80's I love the scene in the square.

The kids loved it, half way through we paused for a family favorite, microwave s'mores.  Quick and easy.

After the movie I had to show my son a picture of the car I saw whilst I was visiting Texas... the OUTATIME De Lorean.  I remember geeking out just a little.

The Car

Cool use of an iPad

Now both kids are pleading to see the next movie... "Soon!"

Great Scott!!  That was fun

Paul the Outdoor Movie Night