Nicole Hawkes Photography

…that I can’t blog for crap!

We’re gonna go ahead and try to get back into this.  This spring has been absolutely awful and depressing weatherwise.. so here’s to a fantastic summer that will hopefully last a while!

Have a look at some photos I’ve taken over the past couple of months.

Blogging is clearly not one of my strengths, however I have been trying to think of new and exciting projects to work on in my free time so hopefully there will be some new photos regarding that up soon.  Plus, winter is coming, and there’s always fun things to capture when the snow starts to fly.

Choppy waves at Sand Beach in Acadia National Park

Last month I had a chance to visit Acadia National Park, which I hadn’t done in the past 10 years or so.  It was a nice crisp fall day, so I decided to take the drive myself and explore the beautiful rocky Maine coast on Mt. Desert Island.  Was I ever glad I did.  This area, if you haven’t been, is quite stunning.  Definitely worth a trip!

Here are some photos from my recent trip to Acadia National Park in Mt. Desert Island, Maine.

Click Here for the photo gallery

I have decided that I went to such a fun and interesting show recently that I wanted to share a bit of my experience with you readers, and maybe do a little dabbling in music review?  It seemed like a good idea at the time.

The opener, Far East Movement performing at the House of Blues in Boston this past Tuesday.

Before I start, I have to say I was completely baffled when I learned that Robyn and Kelis (pronounced Keh-leese) were teaming up together on a US tour.  I couldn’t help but think, what does Kelis have to do with the good, artistic, inspiring pop/electronic music of Robyn?  But somehow, they worked it out, and it turned out to be a pretty amazing show.

First up was a band I had not heard of called Far East Movement.  They came onstage wearing glowing space helmets a la Daft Punk, and promptly busted out their first single, “Girls on the Dance Floor”.  The DJ did a pretty awesome job of keeping the beats interesting and it was quite danceable, however they did suffer from the all too common rap based lyrics issue, mainly every lyric had the words “girls, party, drinking, or dance floor” which gets a little old after even a few songs.  I met the guys after the show and they seemed really genuinely pleased that people came out to see them, and were nice enough to sign autographs around 11:30pm even though they were done by 7:00.

Dan Black performing at the Boston House of Blues on Tuesday, July 27th. He had two guitar players with him and this synth drum and bass machine that was pretty nifty.

Next up was Dan Black, formerly of the british-pop band The Servant.  Mr. Black proceeded to completely dominate the stage, totally rocking out, and cementing my eternal love for him.  He played several songs from his debut solo album “Un” as well as “Pass that Head Noize” from his mixtape EP “Weird Science.”  After his set, Dan signed autographs and was kind enough to chat with fans.  When trying not to act like a total goober in front of a musician that I admire greatly, I mentioned that his genius was somewhat lost on Boston, (mostly a crowd of Kelis fans)  and he said “It’s okay, the people who matter got it.”  heehee.

This guys expression pretty much sums up my feelings of Kelis. She did kind of rock the spandex though, I'll give her that.

What do I say about Kelis?  I honestly tried to like her, I really didn’t want to give into any preconceived notions about her talents, so I tried to enjoy the show with an open mind.  I couldn’t really get into much of her music, I really just think it wasn’t for me.  She openly admitted that she did not rehearse, and hadn’t sung many of her “older” material in quite some time…that much was obvious.  However she was nice, fun, and friendly, and seemed to really enjoy being on stage and was quite entertaining to watch.  Her single “Acapella” was actually pretty good.  I think it’s her newest single, definitely a far cry from “Milkshake.” Her platform shoes and spandex onesie were quite a statement as well.

Robyn and her band performing "The Girl and the Robot" at the House of Blues in Boston.

Finally around 10:30pm Robyn took the stage.  She opened with “Fembots” which was outstanding.  She played all of her hits, including “Be Mine!” “None of Dem” and “With Every Heartbeat.” She also played a few tracks from her self titled album, as well as the song that made her big in the US, “Show Me Love.”  Robyn was a joy to watch onstage, she has great presence, and really gets into her music.  She let the backup track take over during the beginning of “Don’t F**kin Tell Me What to Do” while she ate a banana, and then proceeded to totally rock out to the rest of the song once refueled.  I think I like Robyn so much because she just seems to be so genuine and sincere and really care about her fans, how many acts do you know that will stay an hour after the show to meet fans and sign autographs?  I was very impressed with her all around demeanor, and of course with the quality of her performance.

Oh yeah, and I got to meet and get personalized autographs from Dan Black and Robyn, no big deal.
(read: obviously a VERY big deal)

Wow..Sorry followers, I haven’t updated this in forever…I’ve been working a lot of hours at my new jobs at the Lord Camden Inn and the new Grand Harbor Inn in Camden.  So far I’ve really enjoyed the new jobs.  I’m having fun learning new skills and meeting lots of new people, and really enjoying myself!  I even get to take photos sometimes while at work!  (Check out the Grand Harbor website slideshow on the homepage, the shot of the breakfast tray is mine!)   But since I’ve been so busy with work I haven’t had much time to update the photos.

I’m going to try and get back in the habit of uploading regularly. To get back in the swing of things,  here’s a photo of my parents new yellow lab puppy, Maggie.    This was taken the second or third day they brought her home, she was just finishing her first bath.  She is soooo cute!

Maggie May: 9 weeks

More photos of Maggie will surely make an appearance here.  Thanks for reading!

View of Rockport Harbor from the nearby park.

Summer is finally here! Some of my favourite pictures have been taken from the water while kayaking on lake Megunticook in Camden. It’s one of the best places to go to relax and unwind from a long day. Now that the weather is starting to warm up, I’m sure they’ll be lots more photos from the lake or kayak.

There are also some shots of Rockport harbor and the surrounding areas. I recently went to visit the newly renovated offices of Bay Chamber Concerts and took a few photos while I waited for my friend Becca to come to lunch with me.  Hopefully soon I’ll be able to get the Belted Galloway cows! They were all hiding in the shade when I drove by.

Click Here for more photos from Rockport Harbor

Here's me on the lake, loving this warm weather!