2010 - Year in Review

Blogging is tough. It's been 7 months since my last blog entry, so one thing I've learned is that I am not a writer. I'm a father, a husband, an IT professional and a photography supergeek, among other things...but not really a writer. That being said, I still like to try and exercise what little writing skills I have every so often, and wrapping up this year w/ a blog post seems to be a perfect opportunity.

It's been fantastic year. One of the best years of my life for sure. Jenn and I were blessed with our third child, Christian, I weigh 15 pounds less than I did 365 days ago (that number was 30 back in July, but I sort of fell off the wagon a bit :), I had the privilege of photographing the 2010 Race for Fetal Hope 5K, and I shot a photograph of a Space Shuttle launch that went viral across the internet, around the world and back, was published in a major magazine, and is now adorning the walls of space agencies throughout Europe and the US, as well as many homes around the world.


I have many things to be thankful for, and many people to thank. Here is just a small list of people who helped make this a fantastic year for me:

Brian Barquilla, Jerry Bonnell, Mike Buresh, John Gaughan, Keith Garrett, Ian Garrett, Sue Gunter, Michael Klesius, Mitch Nahley, Mark Pettus, Eric Rousseau, Caroline Sheehan, Rob Simmons, Jim Snyder, Thomas Von Deak, Georgi Wick and mostly, thank you to my beautiful wife Jenn, and my kids, Abbie, Nicholas and Christian for supporting me throughout the year.



I also want to thank my sister, Michele, who is mostly responsible for me shooting the Space Shuttle Endeavor photo. Quick story: Michele and her family live in the same neighborhood as me, and she decided she wanted to come and watch the shuttle launch with me from the top of the Palm Valley Bridge. So we set up a plan to text each other at 4:00 am early Feb 7 morning and I would go pick her up to go view/photograph the launch, which was scheduled for 4:39 am. We were on the bridge, tripod/camera ready, when the launch was scrubbed due to weather at 4:30 am and rescheduled for the next morning at 4:14 am. That night we had a Superbowl party at my house, and of course we had a few drinks and stayed up late. As Michele was leaving she asked, "Do you still wanna go tomorrow?" and I said, "Of course, I will be ready!". Well 3:30 am came quickly, and Michele sent me a text that I slept right through...then another text, then another text etc...finally she sent enough texts to wake me up and I had to rush to go get her and get to the bridge. We got there with a few minutes to spare...just enough time to take a couple test shots and watch/photograph the launch. There was only one other person on the bridge that night. So, thank you Michele for making that photo possible!

It's gonna be tough to top this year, but I will try. Resolutions for 2011: Continue to grow as a husband/father. Continue to grow as a photographer. Blog more. Lose those 15 pounds I gained back (and maybe some more :)

I hope you all have a Happy New Year and a fantastic 2011! God Bless.



Jimmy

Check out "Waterway to Orbit" in Air&Space/Smithsonian Magazine This Month!

My Space Shuttle photography has definitely provided me with a fun couple of months, but the coolest thing so far just occurred this week. My Waterway to Orbit photo is featured in the June/July issue of Air and Space/Smithsonian magazine, as well as on their website! They also threw in an article about one of the shots I took of the Discovery STS-131 launch. I'd like to thank Michael Klesius of Air and Space/Smithsonian for writing such thoughtful articles.



Congratulations to Our "Name the Photo" Winners:

Congratulations to Libi Huey and Chris Kemper for helping us name the Discovery STS-131 Launch Photo "Dawn of Discovery." They each received an 11x14 Metallic Print of "Dawn of Discovery" as well as a $50 print/merchandise credit at jamesvernacotola.com! Thanks, Libi and Chris!

New 15% Off Coupon Code:

Thanks to everyone who has purchased photos from us over the past couple months! I'd like to extend to you a new 15% off coupon code that is available for all purchases on jamesvernacotola.com. The code is " airspace15 ". Be sure to enter the code in the purchase process, and it will automatically reduce the cost of your purchase by 15%. Feel free to share it with your friends, and you can use it any time between now and Saturday, July 31. If you have any questions, comments or issues, please feel free to email me!

New STS-131 Space Shuttle Discovery Photo

04/05/2010 6:21 am - STS-131 Space Shuttle Discovery launches into orbit in the minutes before dawn, leaving a beautiful reflection through the light fog on the Intracoastal Waterway in Ponte Vedra, Florida, 115 Miles from the launch.

This is the second time I've written this blog post. I wrote the first one about 4 days ago in notepad on my laptop while sitting on the couch watching TV. When I was almost done, I started getting tired so I set the computer down on the ottoman and went to bed. When I woke up in the morning, I picked up the computer and guess what I saw?? That's right, the ole' "your computer was recently updated and needed to be restarted" message. Apparently if you use notepad and don't click save, the computer just deletes it. Lesson learned. So anyway, as you are reading this, try to imagine that you are actually reading a much more thoughtful, witty and well composed blog post, because that last one was perfect, dangit.

So how do you follow the most popular photo that you've ever shot? In my case I went out and shot the exact same photo again. I was interested in seeing the difference between a night launch and a pre-dawn launch. While the components of the two photos are very similar, the differences are amazing. It's cool comparing the two back and forth. (use the right and left arrow keys).

I want to thank everyone who emailed me with your positive comments about it. For some reason the second one has become quite popular in Japan, as well. The photo has been retweeted over 1000 times, largely in Japan, and I'm now being followed on Twitter by 古田真治, 山　ミヤエ, and 小椋　淳一! That's awesome! Remember we ship internationally as well! :)

Now the business:

Name the Photo Contest:

Since Jerry Bonnell of APOD was nice enough to create such a catchy name for the STS-130 photo (Waterway to Orbit), a few people have asked me what I'm going to name the STS-131 photo. I will admit that my creativeness doesn't extend far past photography, so I have no idea. That's why I've decided to enlist everyone's help in naming the photo. I've set up a post on my Facebook Page that you can respond to with your idea, or you can email me your idea at jamesvernacotola@gmail.com. My family and I will choose the name on Monday, May 3, and whoever is responsible for creating it will receive an 11x14 print of the new STS-131 photo, and a $50 credit for prints and merchandise at jamesvernacotola.com. Feel free to enter as many names as you like, and this is open to everyone, including relatives of mine.

Thanks to everyone who has purchased photos from us over the past couple months! If you have any questions, comments or issues, please feel free to email me!

Thanks again!

James Vernacotola

Waterway to Orbit Prints Now Available!!

I'm excited to announce that the print version of the Endeavor Space Shuttle photo known as "Waterway to Orbit" is now available! Thank you all for your patience while I pulled the site together. You can now purchase these prints (8x10 and larger) directly from my website.

Purchase Prints:

Click Here to Purchase Prints

Purchasing is easy; simply navigate to the photo in the "Waterway to Orbit" gallery, click on the “Buy” option to the top right hand side of the page and choose “This Photo”. You will see a pop up box with all of the sizes available and the prices next to it. Choose a product to add to your cart and follow the directions for purchasing.

In addition to the prints, there is also merchandise available if you are interested; coffee cups, mouse pads, t-shirts, etc.

I've also replaced the photo on the page with the previously unreleased, un-cropped version of the photo to the site in order for you to receive the best photo possible. Cropping will be necessary if you choose 8x10 or 16x20 and some select merchandise. For all other print sizes, cropping will not be necessary, although it is available if desired.

I plan to add other photos for sale in the near future. If there are any in particular that you are interested in, please contact me and I will move them to the top of the priority list.

15% Coupon Code: thankyou15

As a "Thank You" for your patience, I would like to offer you a 15% off coupon code for your purchase. Feel free to share this coupon with your friends and use it for any purchases between now and Saturday, March 6. Don't forget to apply the coupon during the checkout process, in the "Payment Info" step. Be sure to keep it all lowercase as the entry blank is case sensitive.

12x18 Print Giveaway:

You may notice that the photo on the purchase page is slightly different than the one that has been circulating. I've been ordering test prints from the vendor and tweaking the exposure on the photo in order to get the most desirable exposure for print. Of course, that has left me with a ton of test prints. I've created a Facebook page where I plan to give away three free 12x18 prints. I will do this by a random drawing of everyone who has become a member of my page, on March 13, 2010. [anyone related to me is not eligible to win, and this offer is only available to those who live in the lower 48 Continental United States]

Click Here to Join my Facebook Page

I sincerely appreciate all of your interest in my photo and I am truly honored by all of your praise and recognition.

Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, concern or feedback.

Warmest Regards,
James Vernacotola

jamesvernacotola.com
jamesvernacotola@gmail.com

Welcome to my Blog!

I've never been a blogger or a tweeter, but I've decided to give both a try. I've tweeted twice in my life; once when I started my account (The_Real_Jimmy...don't ask), and once when I posted my Waterway to Orbit photo. Both times I managed to exceed the 140 character limit. This is my first blog ever...luckily there is no character limit. I probably won't update it with any sort of regularity, but I'll try and update on occasion if I feel like I have something relevant to say.

Since I decided to start this blog as a result of all of the fantastic responses that I've had to my "Waterway to Orbit" photo, I want my first entry to be a Thank You to everyone who has emailed me with your complements about the photo.

It's been an amazing couple of weeks, and I've enjoyed reading all of your emails, from literally all over the world, whether you were complementing this photo or other photos, asking technical questions, or telling me a story about where the photo had come from before it landed in your email box. This photo has spoken to so many people, and some of your stories are truly amazing.

I'm working on answering all of the emails personally; it has definitely been a challenge to keep up with them.

As far as ordering prints are concerned, I believe I am *real* close to being prepared to have them available for you. I apologize for the wait; I just want to be sure everything is perfect, since this has become the most popular photo I've ever shot. Thanks so much for your patience, and I hope to be emailing you real soon to let you know that the prints are available.

Thanks so much for your support,

Jimmy