I was up late Sunday night doing laundry and getting the bike packed safely into the travel case. I was up at 4:00AM so that I could finish packing and ended up taking a lot longer than I wanted to- because I'm a "light traveler" (those who know and work with me are surely rolling their eyes at that). After getting into the taxi and getting to the airport, it was the usual frustration of checking in with the bike case- it seems that I am charged a different price each and every time and that nobody ever knows how to go through the process. Pete, our Creative Director- aka "Sticker Boy"- was already at the gate and sending me text messages every 3.5 seconds... which by the way causes all kinds of problems when you are going through security screening and your phone is going off constantly through the x-ray. I could see the latex gloves going on to hands and could sense an imminent cavity search in my future. Thankfully, the screener could understand the concept of "smart ass coworker".
Our flights to Minneapolis went smoothly and without incident, even carrying the two heavy camera bags that Pete had. It didn't take too long to get our bags once we arrived and after a little confusion, we found our way to the car rental to get our minivan. It should be noted at this point that Pete and I both are confessed directional idiots- neither of us is Magellan. Even though I had directions to the hotel, as provided by the hotel, we also used the GPS on Pete's iPhone as I drove. It should also be noted that Pete is about as a big a Mac iGeek as you can possibly be... I'm just sayin'... but we did make it to the hotel without any problems.
The hotel was in the warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis. After getting settled in and getting my bike built, we waited for Chuck from Behind Bars Bicycle Shop , Nathan Freeman (the videographer/ model/ cool dude) and Spencer Haugh (model/ cool dude/ LGR rider/ guide/ scout) to show up for our first night time location recon' ride. After the guys showed up, we cruised the city looking for a few locations to shoot and even got a few good impromptu sessions in while simply cruising around. It wasn't on our original agenda to get any production work done on Monday night, but it turned out to be a very good night of shooting. After we got done with the shoots and recon, we headed back to the hotel. Pete and I were both still very excited about the city and the evening's first productive shots, so we hopped back on the bikes and took off for some more riding around the area and didn't end up getting back in until about 4:00AM!
One of the many gorgeous night time views of the city- I just wish I could have gotten better pictures in the dark. 
Chuck serving as marker to set focal point for Pete. He was pretty good at it too!
Bike in the dark... so artsy and... dark.
Another poor attempt at an artsy pic- the brick texture was just too cool to skip, but I really should leave the picture taking to Pete.
The famous wall of money at Cuzzy's.
Pete getting his photo. It was cool to get a few good shoots in the bag on the first night- it was totally unexpected.
Another one of the many beautiful views of downtown on our first night.
I was smiling on this first ride... but the backpack on my back later became my enemy! All that photo equipment gets WAY heavy and uncomfortable!
Crossing the bridge at night, heading back into downtown. The view was spectacular.
One of the many iconic images of Minneapolis. It is impossible to not admire and appreciate the cool signage and symbols of the city's historic past.Part Two- the first day of shooting... More to come!
Tim
1 comment:
Hurray for Minneapolis and Behind Bars! Two of my favorite places in the world. :)
Post a Comment