Ah yes, the blog.

Well I'm back online, finally. If there's anyone out there still bothering to read I've been offline for almost a month now. You might remember me popping in just to let everyone know I was still around once during that time, but mostly I just haven't been able to update.

I was working most of the month, as Santa Claus came to town for the first time ever, at least in the capacity he was here, and I was required to take his photo with children who came by. It was an interesting time, fun, boring, tiring, frustrating, unusual..

It was as bit of a learn as you go sort of thing, it was a bit of a shambles to start with, too many people hanging around, hardly any people wanting our services, but it slightly came together, and by the end of the first week we'd figured out how to get the lighting right, had fixed up Santa to look something like Santa, and I'd learnt a bit about this whole photography thing so our photos were looking pretty good.

We still had some problems though, a few extra helpers around who were just there to be paid and get in our way, people who either didn't come at all or came at the same time, a problem because we printed the photos out on the spot which took some time, particularly when people wanted more photos or the larger photos, and you can't print and photograph at the same time, so people were waiting.. but we figured it out, and once it actually got sorta busy, right near the end of our time there, we had a sort of system, and the only problem then was that our main cashier/hostess left, disgruntled over something, and left me to do the cashier job as well as the printing and photography, as well as 80% of the greeting and explaining work to be done, as the 2 helpers we had with us daily didn't seem to happen to be around when that was needed, or if they were they happened to be looking another way.

It took me about 2 days before I could do the register thing without screwing something up, but hey.. I'm an artist, I shouldn't have to work under these conditions. Ok, so for the first week I couldn't figure out how to take a decent picture.. but I did learn these things in time.

So that was most of the month, I also had my usual business to tend to, which I didn't do a whole lot of, seeing as I was offline and at work all the time, and I had a visitor. That was fun. Then there was christmas, and now I'm back online.

Don't fret folks..

I'm still around. I am working quite a lot with Santa and the little people, but that's not the reason I've been neglecting you. I'm offline. Well.. not right at this minute but the regular way I do the internet is not happening right now so I'm not on as much as I usually am, thus things like letting my audience out there know what's up with my life is falling by the wayside.

So, apart from not being online I'm working a lot. I was supposed to be in a film today and yesterday but that fell through just like the others, instead I worked with Santa which I've been doing since December 1.

I'm getting reasonably good at this portrait photography thing, I totally sucked to begin with but after 2 or 3 days they started looking kinda good. After another 3 days they looked almost good and in another 3 days I might be able to call them good.

Been kinda slow so far, which is rather good really because we're learning as we go along, but tomorrow might turn out to be a busy day. Who knows.

I don't have any photos to show because the dude who runs it hasn't sent me the photos yet, and there are some good ones, particularly those of screaming scared kids who's parents insist on them being photographed with Santa. I've taken some of the place and the people there with my own new camera, but I can't upload them because I'm not on the internet. I mean I am now, and actually had a few photos prepared on a disc but this particular cafe doesn't accept no foreign objects.

That's all for now.