When many of us think of homes in California our minds take us to neighborhoods of endless track homes, mansions scattered in the hills or beach houses lining the coast. Birdman came across something a bit different this past month while scouting homes around Northern California. We found two prefabricated houses built 100 years apart! A Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog home completed in 1908 and the other a Michelle Kaufman Designs modular home completed in 2008.Sears, Roebuck & Co. started selling prefabricated homes to Americans in 1908. A family could purchase all the necessary hardware, materials and plans to build a home for themselves. This model, Modern home No. 124, was delivered in pieces to Petaluma by railroad in 1908. It came from the first catalog of Modern Homes released by Sears and the bathroom was an upgrade. The homeowner has restored the home to its original beauty.Michelle Kaufmann Designs (MKD) was founded in 2002 in California; the company offers the general public modular, eco-friendly and sustainable homes. This model, The Sunset® Breezehouse™, like all MKD homes was built in a factory off site in cube like sections. Then it was shipped to Lafayette by truck and assembled by a team on site with a crane.Eco-friendly upgrades have replaced options like bathrooms. Railroads no longer reach small towns and the Internet has replaced paper catalogs. But all in all the concept of prefabricated homes hasn’t changed much in 100 years. Americans can still order prefabricated family homes and customize it to fit their lifestyle; the major difference is sticker price.The Modern Home No. 124 in 1908 cost about $3,000.00 (with bathroom upgrade) The Sunset Breezehouse in 2008 cost about $300,000.00

Summer brings us warmer weather, barbeque's and visits to favorite cool down spots. This year Birdman got a head start on summer searching for water parks around The Bay Area for a pharmaceutical ad. We’re looking forward to a great season of fun in the sun!

Birdman headed to Northern California’s Wine Country to visit a spectacular medieval style castle. This 121,000 square foot authentic fortress with its half a dozen towers, great hall, chapel, four floor deep wine cellar, torture chamber and vast courtyard is tucked into the rolling hills just south of Calistoga. You feel a world away pulling up the winding drive and once inside centuries seem to fade away leaving visitors awestruck by its magnificence.

Completed in 2007 after 14 years of careful planning, construction, artesian craftsmanship and attention to detail, the castle has a very genuine look and feel. The moat, drawbridge, meurtrieres (slits in the castle wall originally used for shooting arrows at invaders), flying buttress, piazza and grand loggia all add to the overall realism created within the castle walls. The 171-acre site has a small lake with an island, 30-acre vineyard, wine testing lab, wooded paths, small village market and a medieval looking water tower providing plenty of variety for photo production.

Birdman has been back to visit some of it's favorite ranches over the past few months for clients looking for rolling green hills, vistas, barns and lone trees. These working ranches have all sorts of location options for photo shoots. The ranch owners are so welcoming and great to work with that we find ourselves at these locations more and more these days.

Birdman worked with photographer Dan Goldberg on a project for The Almond Board of California earlier this month. Garrett headed out to the bountiful Central Valley to photograph the blooming trees, take a look at his beautiful images.

Birdman spent some time at the beach this winter. Two projects for '09 summer print ads sent us to the waters edge , one for a children’s shoe company and the other a national department store. The weather along the California coast in December and January is often said to be the best all year. Early 2009 was no exception, the waves were crashing, sun was shinning and the clouds played along the coastal mountains. It has been a pleasure visiting our coastal counties from Marin to Santa Barbara with stops in San Francisco, San Louis Obispo and Monterey Counties. Central and Northern California truly offers extraordinary coastal beauty.

Birdman has relocated their studio north over the Golden Gate to sunny San Rafael after many years in San Francisco’s SOMA neighborhood. Historic architecture elegantly meets the 21st century in our San Rafael store front office location on the city's main drag, 4th Street. The 150-year-old space was originally built as a small theater, then for many years was home to a travel agency. Most recently the location was rented by the Democratic Party and served as Marin County headquarters for the Obama Campaign. We have comfortably settled in and love our new space! If any of you are in the San Rafael area, please stop by and say hello!

Winter in Northern California brings snow to the Sierra Nevada Mountains and rain to the land west out to the Pacific. And even though nature takes it's course year in and year out, it's always bizarre when evidence of new life carpets the land in the middle of winter. So it’s official, winter has arrived in California and the hills are alive with green!

In December Birdman traveled to The Gaviota Coast for a children’s shoe print ad produced by Lisa Wagenbach of Point Productions. This portion of the California coast is unique for numerous reasons. The beaches here face south, a beautiful set of railroad tracks follow the shoreline and the coastal mountains offer a backdrop unlike any other in the world. This turned out to be the perfect solution for or client's unique vision and was a lot of fun to scout! German photography team Nick and Chloe will be traveling to the US to shoot the project and we look forward to seeing the final ad this summer.

APA SF SOMETHING PERSONAL EXHIBITION & HOLIDAY PARTY

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11th6:00 to 10:00 PM

LEFTSPACEhttp://www.leftspace.com

2055 Bryant Street San Francisco (next to Calumet)Birdman Inc is a proud sponsor of this year's APA SF SOMETHING PERSONAL EXHIBITION & HOLIDAY PARTY .The Advertising Photographers of America, San Francisco invite you to enjoy 100 superb framed personal images from 63 of the world’s most creative professional photographers.This is the 12th APA Something Personal juried exhibition, and in recent years the attendance has exceeded 1000 top Creatives and Photographers on Opening Night; don’t miss the Northern California Photo Community event of the season!Savor delicious catered hors d'oeuvres, sample select wines and enjoy robust holiday ales while you mingle with your friends and colleagues and take in 100 exceptionally creative personal images.Hope we'll see you there!

Birdman Inc and The Blackwell Files would like thank all of you who attended the first BlackBird Gathering last night at the Presidio Yacht Club in Sausalito.

Getting to know the people we work with on a personal level, celebrating life and forging friendships really seemed to lift everyone’s spirits. We are truly honored that so many incredible people showed up and we consider ourselves fortunate to be part of this community.

There is no doubt we as hosts had an unforgettable night, but don’t take our word for it. Here’s what some of our friends had to say about last night’s party:

“A huge thank you to you all for creating such a wonderful event last night, what a great time had by everyone! It is so nice for the community to come together, just because, and have real connections. It means a lot. And, to finally meet certain people face-to-face... that was the biggest treat!”

“Just wanted to say thank you for such a cool and fun event! It was really great to get to see so many people all together. The venue was perfect, the tacos delicious. It was a great feeling of community.”

“WOW! What a fun night. Met a ton of very cool people, which is not surprising because you guys are the magnets! Thank you so much for including me…really fun to come out sporting a bindi.”

“Thank you all for such a great uplifting and fun party- it felt like a reunion of sorts for me and I enjoyed every minute of it.”

“What a great evening! I think that was the first time many of the folks I've met thru the biz over the last 15? years were gathered in one spot. Thanks for bringing us all together.”

“Thanks a million for gathering the SF photo community – connecting faces with names and voices - from the captain's bar to the cheese table, onward to the taco truck and the boardwalk views - altogether, the evening was a delight.”

“Thank you for hosting an amazing gathering last night. It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces and catch up in person. What a beautiful location. It was a great idea to bring people together prior to the holiday madness, too.”

It’s no secret that the shifting economy has quickly changed the face of the photo industry over the past year. Birdman is well aware of what’s going on in today's market, realizing budgets have become incredibly tight. We insist on keeping a positive attitude in this climate, continuing to provide a multitude of resources ensuring that projects achieve their ultimate vision. At every level, we are prepared to creatively collaborate with you.

-The Birdman Team

P.S. – Call for a FREE estimate, no obligation to buy, cancel at any time, 100% guarantee, serving Northern California for over 10 years, certain restrictions apply, valid in all 50 states, 0% down, one per customer only, not valid with any other offer, shipping not included, locations sold separately, valid for a limited time only, pre-approved, 100% organic, zero trans fats.

Birdman Locations and The Blackwell Files would like to invite you to a Fall Industry Gathering. Ditch the economic chatter and come join us for cocktails at the Presidio Yacht Club. Meet and greet the people you work with. The Grill at the Presidio Yacht Club will have a cash bar and we will provide delicious cheeses and artisan breads. If you would like to receive an invitation please email me at jason@birdmaninc.com and I will send the evite to you right away. Hope to see you there...

P.S. There is an abundance of parking...so don't fret!

Birdman was busy this summer on a large scale project for a major computer manufacturing company. Producer Jennifer Bullock teamed up with Jim Hughes to shoot several locations around the Bay Area.

This scout led us to some amazing new modern office spaces here in San Francisco and across the bay in the Diablo Valley. Check out a sample of the latest Birdman Office Spaces.

The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games have been fascinating and Birdman has enjoyed watching the American Olympic Swimmers win medals, especially Michael Phelps. Photographer Rick Chapman had the honor of photographing the legendary swimmer last year as he was preparing for this year's games. In spirit of these Olympics we're showcasing some swimming pool locations we've found over the past few months.

In May we were asked at the last minute to find a swimming pool for an ESPN Magazine article featuring America's Olympic Medal winner Natalie Coughlin. Olympians are often on a tight schedule as they prepare for the games, we had less than 24 hours to find the creative team a location. King Pool in Berkeley, CA was happy to provide exclusive access to their facilities for the shoot.

Producer Jenny Bullock and photographer Jim Hughes sent us out in the June heat searching for swimming pools for an underwater shot for GSW Worldwide.

Sometimes... you just have to jump in!

Producer Kara Snider was faced with a tight production schedule on a Monster.com project involving several unique work environments. We were able to quickly provide multiple choices for the creative team by pulling files from our database. Our file pull saved time in the early stages of production and photographer Timothy Archibald created some really strong images for the campaign. It was great working Kara and Timothy on this project, check out the results.

Loni Weholt, Isle 8 Pictures, and photographer Erik Almas are collaborating on a project for California Tourism to showcase the best the state has to offer. Vineyard covered rolling hills basking in the Northern Californian sun would entice just about anyone to the Golden State. For this project Birdman had the pleasure of exploring the beautiful vineyards shrouding the landscapes of the Napa, Sonoma and Livermore Valley wine producing regions.

Birdman would like to thank Jeff Kausch at APA San Francisco and Jim Erickson for hosting Photography: the evolutionary path of the artist in commerce last week at UCSF’s Laurel Heights Auditorium.The San Francisco photo community heard from six members of Jim’s team, offering detailed insight on how they work within Jim’s organization emphasizing the importance of teamwork.The panel included the following members of Jim’s Team:Milo Suerth - Creative Director - Erickson Productions, Inc.Jesse Hughes - Director of Sales and Marketing - Erickson Productions, Inc.Wes Hardison - Senior Digital Artist - Fat Cat DigitalKristen Parrish - Production Manager - Fat Cat DigitalNicki Krinsky - Production Manager - Erickson StockBetsy Filson - Senior Art Director - Erickson Productions, Inc.The highlight of the night was hearing Jim speak about photography, referencing everything from fine art painting to business, risk taking, surfing, yoga, challenges and successes. Jim's advice to aspiring photographers was to shoot fifteen minutes a day and reminded us that some of the greatest photographs and paintings have been made in artists’ backyards. Jim came off as an inspired artist full of ambition, foresight and trust in other’s visions. It’s clear to see why Jim shines as a bright light in our field.We had the pleasure of collaborating with The Blackwell Files, a fellow sponsor of the event, welcoming visitors with Champagne, Proseco and truffles. We enjoyed an evening of meeting new people and visiting with old friends. Thanks again to Jim for sharing the intimacies of his success.

The verdict is in! Birdman Inc is guilty of finding several courtrooms open to photo shoots.

Recently a project with Stuart Schwartz for Applied Biosystems sent us in search of courtrooms around the Bay Area. Our investigation uncovered evidence in San Francisco, Santa Clara and Alameda Counties. We've discovered a range of courtroom styles from a 150-year-old classic to a modern moot (a mock court where law students argue hypothetical cases).