#4)  Take a picture of myself visiting NYC in Times Square

Last picture to share from my NYC travels but I just didn’t want to let this one slip by without crossing it off my list! I think it’s funny that on my old 101 list, I also had “Ride an elevator to the top of the Empire State Building”. When I made both those lists, I had no idea how I’d get here. But so grateful to say that I did and can check both of ‘em off ;)

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Friend Gail on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

When I travel, I embrace my inner tourist. I walk down streets and let loose shrieks of delight when I spot buildings and attractions I’ve admired in books and movies. I pull out one of my handy dandy miniature guidebooks every 3 blocks to, you know, see if there was anything in those last 40 steps I took that I might have missed. After all, I may only get one shot to see a place and I’m all, “I’VE GOT TO MAKE IT COUNT.” Which means I’m prone to trying to cram as much in to what little time I have somewhere as I can. Trust me, I’m SURE it gets annoying (just ask my husband).

My adventures with Tina in New York City were no different. Editing these photos has left me in a bit of awe, asking myself, “DID THAT REALLY HAPPEN!?!” Did we really do ALL of this? SEE all of THAT?! ‘Cause to be honest, it all kind of feels like a really wonderful dream. But these shots below are proof that yes … yes we did—do it all, see it all, make THAT happen. Proof, too, of what all you can accomplish with an ambitious schedule, an overzealous tour guide (aka, me) and just 24 hours in the City That Never Sleeps. Enjoy seeing it through my viewfinder :)

Talk about the shopping mecca of the WORLD

While we were in the city, Tina and I had to pay a visit to B&H Photo Video. For us, being inside that store was like letting loose our inner-6-year-olds at Disney World. And I just might have splurged on a fisheye lens. The better to capture this amazing trip … like documentation that Tina and I paid a visit to Serendipity. THE Serendipity. A place I’ve wanted to visit ever seen I fell in love with it watching Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack fall in love there.

And Gail and Tina drank of the frozen hot chocolate. AND IT WAS GOOD.

From there it was on to Grand Central Station. My jaw might have dropped a little in here. Just ..so gorgeous, so much history contained in one terminal. Not to mention a perfect place to practice slow shutter speeds. It’s shots like this that—to me—perfectly capture the energy in New York City. Unlike ANY other place I’ve ever been!

Gorgeous ceiling at Grand Central & the Chrysler Building (the definition of the perfect skyscraper…LOVE those Art Deco accents!)

New York is a city that begs you to look up. And rewards you over and over again for having done so.

Tina and I reached Radio City Music Hall and Rockefeller Center at that peak hour after sunset where you have those most fabulous blue sky—all of which means I can’t decide which one of these shots I love more!

On to Times Square—a tourist mecca that, I don’t care who you are, you really need to see at least once in your life. Words don’t do this spectacle justice.

Left: A florist stand on the corner of the apartment where Tina and her fiance’s friends live and where we crashed for the night. Right: View from the roof of said apartment. WOWWWWWEEEEEE!!!

And finally, what’s a trip to NYC without a visit up 86 floors to the top of the Empire State Building? Talk about a view that takes your breath away! (and seriously, is a fish eye not perfect for a place like this?)

Thanks for an AWESOME trip Tina — I’ll travel with you anywhere girl :)

(And there’s still more to come of Miss Tina as I shot an engagement session for her and her fiance while I was out in Philly—looking forward to sharing those images next week!)

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Friend Gail on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

Lately, I’ve been prone to thinking about how much my camera has influenced my life. It’s not magic or anything like that ( just a tool to create the images I do) but one without which I’d have missed out on SO many wonderful things over the past two years. For instance, if there was no camera in hand, there would have been little reason to attend Melissa Jill’s MJ2Day workshop in Arizona last year. Had I not attended that workshop, I would have never met the sweet, funny and fellow-attendee-turned-fast-friend Tina Hertzler. And had I not met Tina, I wouldn’t have found myself on a plane last week, bound for Philadelphia (followed by a bus ride to New York City) to visit new places, try new things and fully appreciate the way God keeps granting me these opportunities to live my 20s exactly the way I desire—TO THE FULLEST.

(A friendly disclaimer: I have to give Tina mad props as a hostess. She welcomed me into her wonderful home with a bouquet of tulips beside the comfy bed I slept in each night and a pantry full of Pop Tarts. Yes, that’s right. POP TARTS. She remembered they are my weakness. And isn’t that what friends are for? To enable you when it comes to such indulgences? :)  Oh, and to help a girl out with some photos since I forgot my wide-angle lens — d’oh!! Tina’s 35mm lens came to the rescue, so a few of these shots are hers!)

Oh come on… if you were in Philly, you’d give a shout out to Rocky with your fists raised too :) (the best was watching random businessmen in suits coming up the museum’s stairs, raising their hands like Rocky as their co-workers took photos of them on their Blackberries…I could have watched this tourist scene play itself out all day!)

But we couldn’t do that when we had to move on to the next “must-do-in-Philly”— CHEESESTEAKS!!!!!

Then we had to hit up a bit of history, taking in both Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell

We had wonderful weather while Tina indulged me in my tourist take of her city and I couldn’t believe how beautiful everything was, the trees in bloom. We came across this little azalea garden and well, being two photographers and all, had to take some photos of one another!

I think photographers may be of a different breed when it comes to random sight-seeing. We were literally drooling over the doors of these courtyard apartments. At one point, the older woman behind Door No. 1 (aka, the Blue Door) came out and I know she was thinking, “WHAT ARE THESE GIRLS DOING?!” But hey, we’ll do anything for a fun shot, right Tina? ;)

Loved this apartment with the cat doors. It’s how we remembered where we parked after dinner— HA!

And finally, ending with another shot Tina took of me. When I look at this picture, I just feel happy because I feel like I can SEE how relaxed I am. How traveling does this to me— forces me to live in the moment and leave all the stress of jobs and reality behind. So thank you Tina, for taking what may be my favorite photo (of myself…I know..oh the (hu)vanity!) It’s now my Facebook profile too :)

More shots to come this week from New York — stay tuned!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Friend Gail on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

I’m getting that urge to blab about some of the “stuff” I’m loving as of late which made me think, “Hey…it’s time to head over to my blog with all this!” So here we go again ….

1) NBC’s Parenthood

A few weeks ago I was laid up sick on the couch and NBC’s Parenthood came to rescue me. To say I love this show is putting it mildly. I mean, I REALLLLYYYY love this show. In a way I’ve only loved one other family drama, my favorite of all time—The Wonder Years. Great cast (Peter Krause is such a great actor) with storylines that tug at the heartstrings and a line-up of music that has me scrambling to find songs on the Internet after every episode. Here’s one from a recent episode I’m still obsessing over. The best news? It just got picked up for a second season. YES! :)

2) Laura Marling‘s new CD, I Speak Because I Can

A Brit barely out of her teens, Miss Marling has a voice that just speaks to me. Soft and sorrowful, it’s been the reason I’ve been giving her new CD LOTS of listens as of late. Check it out with a first listen yourself. Standout tracks: “Rambling Man,” “Blackberry Stone,” and “Goodbye England.”

3) My neti pot

I’ve used one of these for about four years now and, as someone with seasonal allergies, I can attest they do really work. The problem is, they might work a little TOO well. I’d gotten out of the habit of using mine since I no longer was dealing with allergies but whooooaaaa boy did my laziness get me in trouble! Earlier this month, I got hit HARD with a sinus infection. Hard enough that as I laid there on the couch with my head feeling as though it was in a vice, I promised that neti pot of mine I’d never leave it behind again!

4) A Year of Mornings
What a beautiful little book … a gift from a friend, I recently took the time to sit down with this slim little volume and pour over its contents and I just felt so satisfied/relaxed/creatively inspired for having done so. Perfect addition to your coffee table and a great idea when you need a cool “something” for a special “someone” in your life. Love it!

5) Date Night
Ooooh you guys, I laughed SOOO hard at this movie. Like, my-stomach-hurt-until-I-went-to-bed-that-night hard. If you love Steve Carrell and Tina Fey and HAVEN’T seen this movie yet, well, get thee to a theater PRONTO :) And if you HAVE seen it (and giggled your bootie off), well, I have two words for you: Sex Robots. HA!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Friend Gail on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

I’m leaving today for a whirlwind trip to visit a dear friend and fellow photographer, Tina, in her hometown of Philadelphia. Now, I’ve never been to Philly before, so this of course means I’m going to drag this gal pal of mine along to do allllllll the touristy stuff one must do when they’re in that city. This would include eating a cheesesteak or two, pulling a Rocky in front of the Art Museum, seeing the Liberty Bell, and maybe conning Miss Tina into a round of karaoke sung to the tune of Elton John’s Philadelphia Freedom. Oh, wait…was that last one a bit much? ‘CAUSE THAT SONG MAKES ME WANT TO DANCE :)

While out East, Tina suggested we make a quick trip into New York City, which will be another first for me. Can you believe it?! So I said HECK YES, and immediately started plotting all the landmarks and people watching we could do in a mere 24 hours in one of the coolest places on Earth. I know we can’t see everything (I’ll have to save that for another day) and I know a visit to the MoMa likely won’t be in the cards either, which made this video hitting my inbox this week pretty serendiptious. It’s like, I don’t even NEED to go there now ’cause I’ve seen it all (I kid, I kid … I’m a sucker for art museums and I’ll make it to this one someday!)

I’ll be away from the office for the rest of the week and returning emails on Monday. See you then!