Heidi Ryder Photography: The Blog » urban

Re-Experiencing Los Angeles

Heidi — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:30:14 +0000

I’m a native Southern Californian. Because I live in Los Angeles, the place where people all over the world come to follow their dreams of stardom, I am usually surrounded by transplants from other states or countries. Whenever someone around here asks me where I’m from, they are usually surprised to find that I’ve lived here my entire life. You wouldn’t think so, but it does seem rare to find natives to this area — at least in the groups of people I tend to know.

This past weekend, Chris and I had a day out with some friends: Josh, Christina and Charles. Charles is also a native Southern Californian and even grew up in the same area I did. Charles puts on slideshow performances showcasing found slides and he used to give his own special tour of Los Angeles where he equates certain parts of the city to parts of Disneyland. Trust me, it’s as interesting as it sounds. Click on his name to find out all about it.

Josh and Christina are old friends of Charles’ and Chris and I were lucky enough to tag along with them as they wandered the city. I was amazed at all of the things I did not know about this town. I was able to experience two very old Los Angeles landmarks for the first time (Clifton’s Cafeteria and Bob Baker’s Marionette Theater) and I had an absolute blast. As the title of this post implies, I was felt like I was experiencing Los Angeles again for the first time.

Luckily I remembered to bring my camera along for the journey, and here are a few of my favorites from the day.

Viva Las Vegas!

Heidi — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 05:39:50 +0000

I finally returned home from Vegas last night, and boy, is it good to be back. Vegas is a fun place to escape to, but it’s not really the type of place I’d recommend visiting for longer than three days, that’s for sure. I did have an absolute blast though. After the tradeshow (WPPI) was over, Chris, as well as my mom- and dad-in-law flew out to meet me in Vegas for four fun-filled days complete with not one, but TWO Cirque du Soleil shows and TONS of walking around. I definitely made a conscious decision not to lug my huge camera around and unfortunately I misplaced the battery charger for my point-and-shoot camera, so I am almost entirely devoid of Vegas photos except for two fun shoots that I will post later, and these ones from a night of walking around to take in the sights.

Stay tuned for two more Vegas-themed posts from me coming up later this week!

Here are some fun photobooth pictures of me and some lovely lady photographer friends of mine at the GoBee party our first night in Vegas. Not surprisingly, I had trouble fitting my big ol’ head into frame, but that only makes these all the more hilarious! From left to right (not including me): Jen Berry, Jenny Smith, Nicky Kahn, and Araxi Dertavitian. Can you tell we were having fun?

Oh, and here’s a fun one of Jenny Smith and I that I stole from her blog. We didn’t have anyone else around to take a photo of us together, so we each took one of each other and she photoshopped them together to make them one. Yes, we are nerds.

We Looked Like Giants

Heidi — Wed, 21 May 2008 15:06:59 +0000

Whoa…Long time, no blog! Not gonna give a laundry list of excuses (like the one where I tell you about the fact that I’m getting married in six weeks and, boy, that’s hard work!) as to why I haven’t blogged any photos in a while. I have some stuff to post, I’m just not sure if I’ll get to it. I am trying to get back into the swing of things, so hopefully there won’t be any super long absences from me again!

Here’s a few personal photos of mine from the past weekend. Chris’ parents were in town for a wedding shower that was thrown for us. They got to meet my parents for the first time, which was super special and a long time coming. Everyone got along smashingly and we all had a great weekend. We took his parents to see the Griffith Observatory because they had never been and I hadn’t seen it since it was re-opened last year. It’s more impressive than ever, so if you ever get a chance to see it, I highly recommend checking it out. You don’t even need reservations anymore!

I hope you’re all having a lovely time doing whatever it is that you’re doing! Enjoy…

Let’s Play Twister

Heidi — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:23:59 +0000

Colorful architecture in Chinatown. I took this image in between shots at the faith + jason shoot.

Well, another work week has come and gone. I came down with a pretty nasty cold early on in the week so I’ve spent most of my time curled up in bed, feeling sorry for myself. I’ve been a human snot factory all week and spent more time than I care to admit daydreaming about all of the things I could be getting accomplished were it not for the fact that I felt like like death warmed over. I’m feeling well enough to get back to work today, though, so if you need me I can be found propped up in front of my computer, trying to act like a contributing member of society again.

Today’s Friday song is another cover. Chances are you’ve heard the original and it needs no introduction. The cover is done by Swedish indie-pop band, Shout Out Louds. There are many people who don’t like covers, but I always enjoy hearing a new take on an old favorite. I like to see how other bands reimagine a perfectly good song and make it their own. It’s not better, it’s different. I like different. Enjoy!

Shout Out Louds – Man on the Moon

She Believes in Shoes and Cars

Heidi — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 15:56:20 +0000

My original plan of taking new shots daily just isn’t happening. I want to pick up my camera more often, but I just can’t seem to get myself into the habit. This has become very frustrating for me. One thing I might do is enroll myself in some workshops, just to give me a reason to shoot.

The good news is the re-launch of the website has sent some new gigs my way, so I’ll have some willing subjects very soon! The subject above is my dear Flaxie. You may have noticed a few shots of her in my portfolio. These shots feature her basking in the warm glow of the West Hollywood sunset, along with her stuffed pal, Cool Santa.

You Were the Mother of Three Girls So Sweet

Heidi — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:57:03 +0000

Yet another sloppy border; yet another old photo from Chinatown. Give me a break, I’m busy! Besides, I really kinda like this one.

Alone in Kyoto

Heidi — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 16:07:22 +0000

Another old image (guess who hasn’t been taking photos!), this one from almost two years ago, I think! Allow me to introduce you to my friend Karl. He doesn’t like to have his photo taken–you’ve probably gathered this from his expression. But that doesn’t stop me from forcing him to pose for photos! I am lucky in that he always obliges–what a pal! This photo was taken during an exploration of Chinatown with a few friends. I miss explorations, I need to arrange one of those soon.

As you can see, I’m trying out the whole “sloppy border” look with this one. I kinda like it … what do you think?

I Waited For Days

Heidi — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 06:40:28 +0000

Explored Echo Park a bit at 10pm on a Saturday night. Got this shot about two minutes before it started to rain again.