My friend Ray invited me out to see Michael Stanley in his latest project, a band called Midlife Chryslers. Back in the 80s, The Michael Stanley Band was huge in the Midwest, and I was a big fan. (The first concert I ever went to was a Michael Stanley Band concert.) Back in the day, they were able to crack the national Top 40 once or twice, but were never able to do much more nationally. In the Midwest, though, it's not possible to overstate their popularity.

Tonight's gig at The Northside (Akron, Ohio) with the Midlife Chryslers was a [...]

Today we visited a most excellent playground in Ravenna, a town four miles north, and among the resulting photos was one of Anthony gleefully enjoying a spin on a suspended tire. I liked the picture, but thought that a more punchy treatment would suit it better. I've occasionally liked the results of a "Dave Hill look" treatment (described here, and another example here), and what you see above is the result.

This time, though, I took advantage of a new feature of Lightroom 2 to soften it up, and take off the edge that the normal Dave Hill result.

You [...]