shehstar

Norman Jean Roy photographed Joni Mitchell for New York Magazine and the images are just phenomenal! 

No LCD screen on a digital camera! What?! I like it!

The Leica M Edition 60 is exactly that. A Leica M-P body but with every possible digital control taken away. An ISO dial in-place of the LCD screen, aperture and shutter speed dials. The camera only records raw files, and like all Leica M cameras manual focusing only. 

I love this idea for a digital camera. It brings photography back to the absolute basics. I've never been one to pixel-peep, and keep my screens off for the majority of the time I'm shooting. Now only if I could afford a Leica, let alone a limited edition one. 

Ideas are scary. They come into this world ugly and messy. 

L’atelier by Grid - Cusco, Peru

Theirblemont Ingrid (Grid) is a French designer transplanted in Cusco. She has one of the most unique shops in the San Blas neighbourhood of Cusco. Surrounded by the antithesis of cool, her store is filled with her jewelry, local designs, and vintage finds. She won’t talk much about it, but her designs have been featured in numerous major fashion magazines.

An amazing designer and curator of cool, stowed away in a little city in Peru. Now to figure out how to bring her designs to Vancouver.

[email protected] www.latelierbygrid.com Carmen Alto 227 A, Cusco, Peru

Cicciolina Restaurant - Cusco, Peru

Some of the most brilliant food I’ve ever experienced eating anywhere in the world.

Fresh bread with house made tomato sauce and olives to start, followed by stuffed squid on squid ink. Peruvian scallops grilled and served in their shells in a soy ginger reduction. Langui red trout grilled perfectly in coconut milk, chilli, and cilantro, with fried sweet potato gnocchi on wasabi and sesame cream. Finished with poached caramel apples with cinnamon ginger ice cream, and caramel and salted dark chocolate mouse.

This food is to die for. If you are ever in Cusco treat yourself and go to Cicciolina, especially after enduring the Machu Picchu Inca Trail.

Machu Picchu Inca Trail

A few pictures from the Inca Trail - an amazing, exhausting, exhilarating, gruelling 4 days. Could not have don’t it without the local Peruvian cheskies (porters) who carried the entire camp from site to site - each chesky carries 25kg/55lbs. A 11kg/25lbs pack was more than enough for me. The oldest chesky, Gregory, on our team is 63, though he can’t really remember (5th picture). Our veteran guide of 15 years, David, made sure everyone made it to camp each day. And our amazing cook Jesus stuffed our stomachs at each meal, though I still can’t figure out how he made such delicious food so far into the mountains.

One of my favourite spoken word poets, Sarah Kay, has a new book out, No Matter the Wreckage. She turned up in the TED app one evening with a talk that received two standing ovations - she performed "B". Her poetry throws me into a different world - one of dreams and visions and colours. And the pause that she gives every line, creates so much feeling in her performances.

If Apple ever made a camera this is what it would look like. Jony Ive teamed up with Leica to create a one-of-a-kind Leica M and Summicron 50mm f/2 lens for the (RED) Auction on Nov 23rd, 2013 in support of The Global Fund. 

In true Jony Ive style, the camera has a simple minimalist aesthetic and amazing attention to detail. I think this item will raise a lot of money!