Emile Modesitt

Rest in peace little Luna ❤️ December, 2014 - May 5, 2026 I carried her on my arm the night we got her over 11 years ago — to the car, into the pet store to get her food, and then home. She had emerald green eyes, a pinkish-brownish nose, and the cutest face I’d ever seen. I carried her on one arm, then as she grew, two, until she didn’t need me to anymore. A couple days ago, I carried her in my arms to her favorite spot atop the yard — the place where she listened the birds, caught scents on the breeze, and surveyed her land. I felt her warm belly and soft breathing against me, and I laid her down in the place where her heart would beat its last beat. I was right there with her as she finally slipped into the peaceful void. J.K. Simmons said in his Oscar speech to call your parents, tell them you love them, and listen to them as long as they want to talk to you. I say, if you have a dog, go tell them you love them, take a selfie with them, then take them on as long of a walk as they want to go on. Leave your phone at home and let them stop and sniff things every 10 steps if they want to. Talk to them, give them a treat, or three, take a long look at them, and realize how lucky you are at this moment ❤️.

It’s been a fun return to climbing. I stopped at the beginning of 2025 because I wanted a mental break and a change of pace. But I inevitably came back, luckily with a much improved mindset. I was pleasantly surprised how quickly I started to feel relatively normal on rock again, despite my only finger training for a year being a few sets of block pulls a few times per week (mostly for testing various edges, including my adjustable “ModEdge”). I’m enjoying climbing a lot again, even though I’m not necessarily climbing as hard as at my peak, which I’d call a huge win :). The biggest shoutout to the friends that have made these last few months extra special (and extra thanks to @crimpsweakly for basically being the one to get me back into climbing). @abbyrkelley @annahazelnutt @only__rocks @iceeiceebailey 1. Vanishing Point V9 (Tram) 2. 🤦‍♂️ predatory marketing strikes again 3. Drink Ticket V7 (Tram) - the smollest boulders are sometimes the funnest (FA @crimpsweakly ) 4. Hikes with mom and Shiloh 5. Started 3d printing short rubber loading pins because no one makes them and they’re so convenient 6. Left Gilded Crack V6 (Tram) - super technical, super quality climb that not enough people know about (FA @jamiechen860131 ) 7. Mean Loser Blues V8 (Culp) - tall person pogo beta makes it a bit easier 😇 8. Baby girl loves peas (Luna is 11 years old now! Still kickin’ on 3.5 legs) 9. Evidence of mischief 10. Master Blaster V9 (Tram) - short and sweet. Thumb wrap over the top of the left hand crimp was key. 11. After a year of designing/testing these pulley splints, we (@hoopersbetaofficial ) finally released them for sale and also all the STL files are free to download 12. Lolz 13. Shutt’s Squeeze V10 (Tram) - new one that deserves a lot more traffic 14. More is Less V8 (Culp) FA - after ~12 years of climbing, I think this might be my first FA? 15. Waffles and maple bacon with Gram ❤️ 16. The ranch 17-18. Shiloh silliness 19. Black Spot (?) V3? (Culp) - took me so many tries☠️ 20. My proudest invention so far - adjustable finger training edge

31 was a banger. Dogs, a multi-state road trip, cousins, a documentary, homemade sauce, weddings & old friends, Luna (technically part of the “dogs” category), Halloween shenanigans, dirt biking adventures, 3D printer, Japan with the boys, extended Japanese fam, trying to figure out how to lift weights, and my YouTube partners in crime. Sincerest thanks to everyone who helped make 31 a memorable one (just by showing up) <3

Screenshots from @ashleyenortonlpb ‘s Album Release party last Saturday at the historic Ramona Town Hall (currently being renovated with local musicians raising money for it!). Ashley is a talented performer, which made my job 100x more fun. An Ashley E. Norton concert wouldn’t be complete without her jumping off stage and running through the audience. Simple single camera setup for this one. Sony a7IV + 18-105mm PZ (power zoom) for smooth zooms from wide angle all the way to close-up.

Haven’t been too happy with my climbing performance for the last several months, despite doing what I thought should be the “right” training for me. Took a while to realize that’s not necessarily how these things work (duh?), and as soon as I went back to what I know worked well for me previously I immediately started feeling the progress I was searching for. Sounds silly but I find it to be one of the easiest training mistakes to make 🤷‍♂️. Then again, I’ve also found plenty of value in exploring and experimenting with new techniques. After getting absolutely smashed by a stomach bug a couple weeks ago it was nice to have a solid moonboard session again with mostly day-flashes (and even better with Jay-san @hoopersbeta !). Euro grades because who can be bothered to switch the app to v-grades? 1. Supernova 7A 2. Blackfish 7A 3. Bill Clinton’s Sax Var 7B 4. Salathe 7C 5. School’s Out 7C 6. Piccole Righe 7C+ 7. Masterful Gap Alt 7C 8. Honey Mustard 7C

A few interviews with some incredible musicians in Ramona for our little documentary. They all have such unique and heartfelt stories, I wish there was time to tell them all from start to finish! Being completely self-funded means it’s not a quick process by any means but we’re making good progress. Started editing today to see what we have and what we’re missing. Special thanks to all the people and businesses that have donated their time for this project 🙏❤️ In order of appearance: Cathryn Beeks Ashley E Norton Sun Valley String Band Garrett Wear Travis Billy Ross #sonya7iv #sonya7siii #ramonamusic #ramonacalifornia #livemusic #ramonamusicalliance

Japan! 🇯🇵 1000% recommend to anyone interested in going. Had the absolute best time; it’s actually impossible to show what it was like in just 10 photos. The culture, the food, the sights, the trains, the climbing… so different from what I’m used to and such a valuable experience. I’ve never thought of myself as much of a “city person,” but Tokyo immediately made me reconsider that. The best part, though, was visiting the (half) Japanese side of my family, some of whom I had never met before! Getting to know a little bit about their lives, swapping stories about JP vs US things, and laughing about family oddities made an already incredible trip feel legendary. Thanks fam :)

Climber bros on a first date (We’re all overstokers 😂)

A rig I use for my Sony a7IV and a7SIII for some shoots: - Polarpro mattebox for flare protection and VND (I don’t usually use a donut or ring to seal it to the lens — just not needed most of the time and speeds up lens swaps) - Contax Zeiss lenses - Smallrig cage - Nitze top handle - Small rig cable clamps - Custom low profile right-angle HDMI clamp made from a dremmeled cable clamp - ZGCine vmount plate (bought this specific model becuase it has a physical on/off switch, flexible mounting options, and USB-C PD) - Feelworld Ultrabright 7” monitor (usually not a fan of cheap monitors but this one allows you to zoom into the image in 1% increments, meaning I can get a full screen image when “HDMI info display” is turned on) - Moman 99 Pro mini vmount battery

Another interview in the books for the Ramona Music documentary we’re working on. This was a slightly tricky shot trying to balance the light with the window, but I like the way it came out (especially when the horses walk by in the background). Extra special shoutout to my cousin @jakepschneider for helping with gear, interview questions, and even an impromptu jam session with our guest/interviewee!! Great day. Cameras: Sony a7SIII & a7IV Lenses: Contax Zeiss 35mm & 85mm F1.4 Lights: Aputure 200D and 200X Graded with @juanmelara LUTs Producer: @ranchwoman2 #sonya7siii #sonya7iv #contaxzeiss #documentaryfilm #videointerview #ramonacalifornia

Me: Let’s take weird pictures and videos in Joshua tree. Like just super random and odd. Anna: K! Irena: Yup! *Both proceed to just look really freaking cool instead of weird* Gurlz Wknd filming/photographing content for @annahazelnutt and @scarletbegoniasss was bigly successful 🤙 Sony a7IV Video lens: Canon 10-18mm Photo lens: Sigma 85mm 1.4

A peaceful evening at Swami’s. Love the sounds of the ocean mixed with some obligatory yelling from the “locals” 😂 Sony a7Siii Canon 10-18mm (via EF-E adapter) Slog3 4k 24fps #swamisbeach #encinitas #sonya7siii #localsonly