SNAPSHOTS AND TWEENERS

NEW WEBSITE!

2011-04-20T20:43:00.000-07:00

After spending nearly a year coming up with and getting rid of many ideas, this is the culmination of what was left. I've put a new post on our website and I hope whoever might still look at snapshots and tweeners, will also enjoy my more current work with Kertis Creative. Thanks for checking things out!

buddy with a beard.

2011-01-12T15:32:00.001-08:00

determination.

2010-07-01T19:35:00.000-07:00

two weeks ago we shot the installation of a community garden in west louisville. the neighborhood is known as a food desert. like many on the west side, there are very few places to get "healthy food". what many of us deem as normal foods such as fruits and vegetables. to combat this problem community members and area non profits are getting together to build community gardens. this man, who struggled to speak and shook uncontrollably, i presume has parkinson's disease, but i can't be sure. what i do know is that on a day with the heat index toping triple digits, he in his long sleeve western shirt and straw flat cap worked non stop the entire time. others would take a break and he would keep his pace, slow and steady.

cross pollination.

2010-06-02T16:26:00.000-07:00

THINK CREATIVE

some of my recent work is here. i'm not shutting down snapshots and tweeners, mostly because i'm stubborn and still have hopes and plans of breathing new life into her, but lately a lot of my effort has been put into efforts for work. and this blog is the first public look at it. it's still rough, without a lot of info, but check it out and let us know what you think.

gutter ball mixologist.

2010-02-22T15:28:00.000-08:00

the third oldest bowling alley in the country is just a couple of blocks from our office. jared is the bartender there and these are some portraits i shot last week for a project we are working on about jobs. i shelled out seventeen bucks for the games we interrupted on either side of us (i figured our setup was a little disturbing) and in the end i reckon it was a fair price for a couple of hours of shooting.

don't hold your breath.

2010-01-25T11:25:00.000-08:00

how does one go about explaining a slump. where do i begin to disclose the distraction, the disillusion, the overwhelming change. when efforts are put into something, often times there is little time to keep up. like the crows flying into the wind outside my window, i feel like i've made little progress with a camera lately. that's not to say i haven't accomplished a great deal lately. i've moved, started a new job, and stumbled through trying to figure out hope and fate and everything in between. and now things are settling. i'm sorting things out and wiping the sleep from my eyes to see clearly. i've been in visual hibernation long enough.

eb and flow.

2009-11-04T11:37:00.000-08:00

lately my life has been in flow. the tide rushing in and the water swallowing me with ease as i struggle, arms and legs kicking wildly, to keep my head above it all and figure out how to make it all happen. a time of change is coming and like these girls i seem to be caught in the headlights, the world flailing about me in the pulsing light. my gaze has turned me to stone and i feel as though i can't move to make progress in any direction for the pressure of too many directions to choose. i only hope to stay afloat and work on my juggling routine so as to not drop the ball so to speak.

speakeasy.

2009-10-16T14:57:00.000-07:00

lurking in the depths and bowels of cinder and block and dark comes an amber glow and a beat that you can't resist moving. shhhhhhh. speakeasy.

josh and elly

2009-10-16T07:17:00.000-07:00

a couple from my most recent trip to michigan. thank you to josh and elly for allowing me to be a part of your very special day. congratulations on your marriage. all the best.

p.

2009-09-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

i'll say i knew him when...

2009-09-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

...when we shared a tent at a campgrounds during mountain workshop because we were too poor to pay for rooms.
...when we changed my water pump on the bonnie while he was still on crutches.
...when he helped me achieve the only 100 on an assignment in my college career.
...when he made a call to get me an internship that led to the greatest job i've ever had.

got a chance to see my good buddy brian wagner's art exhibit in knoxville this weekend. damn proud of him i must say. some amazing photographs presented in a truly creative way. i'm glad to say i knew you when and i know you now.

ignition.

2009-08-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

i feel like this round of pictures is like when you're trying to strike a match. that first few tries the spark cuts the darkness in a flash until that precise moment when pressure and friction combine in glass and sulfer and ignite into flame. i hope that i can keep the flame burning but to see its true light it can not be shielded from the wind. i must hold the flame outstretched and hope. thanks lydelle for the long journey to whitesburg and thanks to those at m.a.r.s. fest who appear in these photos.

causeffect.

2009-07-26T22:12:00.001-07:00

the short of it comes down to causes and effects. cause: strip mining in appalachia has drawn opposition from both locals and environmentalists afar. effect: they've decided to step up their opposition by more intense protests. effect from the effect: miners feel as if their livelihood and the well being of their families are at stake so they are showing their own opposition. things are heating up to say the least. this was the scene at kayford mountain on the fourth of july.

rain.

2009-06-17T09:09:00.001-07:00

eastern kentucky has been getting hit hard with rain lately as i'm sure most of the state has. got a call monday morning to check out the flooding that had occurred in the neighboring towns of Bulan and Hardburly. almost everyone i talked to mentioned that the area never used to flood until they started strip mining the surrounding mountains. had a guy explain to me how the creeks in the area are wider yet more shallow now due to the build up of silt from surface mine erosion.

blind tiger string band.

2009-05-21T11:46:00.000-07:00

blind tiger n. - Chiefly Southern & Midland US, A place where alcoholic beverages are sold illegally; a speakeasy.

nuptials

2009-05-01T19:13:00.000-07:00

boston was amazing and the wedding was so casual yet very elegant. thank you to channing and brooke and their families for allowing me to be a part of it all. to the spectators of this here contraption, no my camera didn't fall into a mud puddle, but i have been working loooooong hours. sorry for the absence.

mardis gras (the dirty half dozen).

2009-02-28T12:38:00.000-08:00

my first mardis gras experience actually occurred in covington kentucky about eight years ago. it included all of the stereotypical things you hear about, beads, flashing, drunken nonsense. last week a crew of folks from whitesburg and formerly of whitesburg headed south on a journey to experience the "real" mardis gras. after visiting some peeps in knoxville and spending 13 hours in the car we arrived in lafayette louisiana. wonderful music and chaos ensued shortly there after. sara traveled from mississippi join in the fun and after hours of costume preparation we found ourselves amongst a rather large crowd of strangers dressed in costumes more elaborate than our own and half drunk by 9 in the morning. a five hour trek followed and the ruckus escalated. the was a great deal of urinating in public, wrestling in sewage smelling ditches, dancing, and yes more walking. in all the trip was incredible. thank you brett ratliff for the scoop. thank you to lora's family for the denali, thanks to sara for making the solo trip over, thank you to my co-travelers for keepin it rural, and to those who couldn't make the trip. you were all missed greatly and i hope that we can all make the trip together next year.

mardis gras (who in the hell).

2009-02-28T12:16:00.000-08:00

this is a collection of pictures of people who i have absolutely no clue who they are. chickens played a big role in the march through the country. they would be thrown from rooftops or horseback, stampeded after by herds of drunk people, rolled on by the same, and finally caught only to occasionally flee again setting the whole chain of events in motion once more.
ps. that guy in the last frame playing guitar is actually peeing at the same time. that's talent i guess.

penelope keefe lemon.

2009-02-10T13:24:00.000-08:00

seven pounds two ounces, penelope sprang to life nine and a half weeks ago and has given a whole new light to the keefe lemon house. baby talk is the new fad and parenthood seems to have come naturally. congratulations buford and mindy on your adorable baby girl.

civil disobedience.

2009-02-06T10:11:00.001-08:00

on tuesday the folks from coal river gathered in an act of civil disobedience on coal river mountain. these photos follow lorelei scarbor in her attempt to speak to those in the mine office. lines were literally drawn on the ground in the form of railroad tracks and warning was given that whoever crossed would be charged with trespassing. not all that crossed, like myself were arrested. actually the police were very nice and surprisingly cooperative in the matter. lorelei crossed and was arrested, at which point she walked directly across the street to the police station. very convenient. those who crossed were given tickets. all in all it was an exciting and worth while day for the campaign.

"fortune"ate.

2009-01-31T13:33:00.000-08:00

for•tune
1 chance or luck as an external, arbitrary force affecting human affairs.

i've always put so much weight into fortune cookies. went as far as to carry them around in my wallet. and until now, like reading a horoscope in a newspaper, i felt that they had some sort of direct insight into my life at that time. i could always reflect on my life and somehow see the connection. naive i know. but today my luck came to a grinding halt. i had just devoured my hunan chicken and little cardboard palace of rice when i tore open the cellophane and broke the wafer inside to reveal this.

close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades.

2009-01-30T13:09:00.000-08:00

this past week kentucky was torn apart by horrible ice and snow storms. reason #163 to live in the mountains. it seems as though the mountains might have shielded us from the harsh weather. all we got was a lot of rain. hell on the worst day of the storm we hit 60 degrees. crazy how weather works.

crop dusted.

2009-01-28T13:21:00.000-08:00

for anyone who knows me, you know that i'm not the most well behaved and grown up guy around. that said it was my good friends steve and channing, who traveled a collective 1189.71 miles to lob ice chuncks at me while on a slick surface struggling to maintain balance, and fart repeatedly in my car with the windows up, who lacked manners. i wouldn't have it any other way. thank you both for making the somewhat dangerous trip to visit me. look forward to your return.
channing is credited with the ultimate find of the trip. while exploring the abandoned coal processing plant in lynch, kentucky he scored a sweet playboy from the early 90s. the booty, pun intended, was left turned to the most glorious of pages for future pioneers, hopefully in their teenage years, to be rewarded and educated. i think most of us probably got an early anatomy lesson thanks to mr. hugh hefner.

travelin' snakes.

2009-01-22T10:48:00.000-08:00

a couple more from the photo shoot with The Travelin' Snakes. i wish all shoots were as casual as the ones with old time musicians. this one happened to end with an amazing home cooked meal with the best cornbread made in a cast iron skillet i've ever had.

a new beginning.

2009-01-20T12:23:00.000-08:00

i witnessed history from the flocoe diner in pineville kentucky. the older women who shared the television shared the same hopes for a new beginning that i have.

my side of the moon.

2009-01-19T17:56:00.001-08:00

the last full moon from my side of the world.

foggy coffee boys.

2009-01-13T10:43:00.000-08:00

after an hour of patiently taking orders to look at the camera, and make ever so slight adjustments in the winter chill, the travelin' snakes were happier than a pig in shit to have their molasses sweetened coffee. upon entering the wall of heat fortified by the haywood's kitchen, my lens immediately fogged, but i think it only helps to recreate the feeling of warmth we all experienced.

the middle third.

2009-01-10T14:20:00.001-08:00

from the beginning of my affair with f-stops and ISOs i learned that the easiest way not to look like an amateur was to place your subject of the frame in the left or right third of the frame. i started shooting as many centered frames as possible in an attempt to disprove this theory. plus, given my ocd personality to have things orderly and balanced, it just feels comfortable. here are some oldies where i fought the rule of thirds and i won. i think. sorry for the lapse in current images. i'll work on it.
oh and ryan, this might be the original clock picture. bout it bout it.

heif•er.

2009-01-04T01:05:00.000-08:00

noun
a young female cow that has not borne a calf.

as you can tell the rambling rummage continues. as you work on stories over the years, you learn to let go of pictures you like, but don't exactly fit into the story. this picture is an example of just that. maybe in the next couple of days i'll make some new pictures so you don't have to look at this old cow shit anymore.

shapes.

2008-12-26T22:55:00.001-08:00

if you've seen these before i'm sorry, but i don't think you have. i've been rummaging lately and these are a few i like that flew under the radar. i'm pretty sure they were all shot pre-blog days.

second thoughts.

2008-12-16T19:43:00.003-08:00

on second thought i think i might like seeing the surrounding doorway in this frame better than the second one. maybe i'm wrong though.

lunch break photo shoot.

2008-12-16T15:41:00.000-08:00

yesterday, as i stood admiring a freshly tarred roof eric and i were working on, my phone rang and with tar covered hands i reluctantly answered covering my phone in a sticky black mess. the voice on the other end was that of rich kirby, one of the premiere old time musicians in the country, and coincidentally my boss' dad. he said, "you take pictures don't you." i replied, "yep". he followed with think you could shoot some pictures for me. i said, "sure of what". he replied simply, "me". and that was all. we met on his lunch break today and made a few pictures. he is incredibly humble and somewhat shy, but in the end i got to hear some great music (he played throughout the whole shoot) and i hope he likes at least a few of the frames.

over the hills we go, laughing all the way.

2008-12-14T12:55:00.000-08:00

the leaves have all gone from the trees, and in just a few short weeks since nearly rolling down the mountain in my car, amelia, maysie, and i, joined by brett r., lora, and joe, sought to conquer the same hill that proved too much for me in round one. round two was a beat down of 6 on one, us vs. the mountain, and armed with two pinkish saucer sleds properly labeled sno snakes and a nameless green toboggan we prevailed. the record now stands at 1 and 1, both good times.

other side of the press.

2008-12-09T20:07:00.000-08:00

today i drove for a total of 7 hours and shot pictures of two press conferences for a total of about 45 minutes. it was good to be back in west virginia and working on the project with chad and the folks from coal river.

pesky wabbit.

2008-12-08T18:25:00.001-08:00

cheers to the one that didn't get away. well there were actually two i think and they tasted damn good, but the kale left my friends erik and daniel fleeing the room today as we pulled carpet. here's to small game animals and the people who know how to cook them. cheers!

separation anxiety.

2008-11-30T20:45:00.000-08:00

i haven't shot a picture in over a week. these were a couple of the last ones. took a ride to the top of the mountain with amelia and maysie to see the early snowfall and clear my head. wound up nearly killing us all and stuck in a ditch. not the best for clearing your head. in the end everything was fine as frog hair.

run, shoot, run, shoot.

2008-11-11T09:01:00.000-08:00

this past week felt like track and field day rotating from the standing broad jump to the V sit reach to the 50 yard dash. instead of spending time stretching i spent time in the car on my way to hazard to see what hillary had to say. politicians really do start to look ragged after years of persuading people to agree with them. the following day i found out that a local oil company had dumped petroleum near the north fork of the kentucky river, whitesburg's water supply, and it had begun to leech into the river. i made some pictures and phoned the paper again. the next day was one of america's most historical days and the most uplifting and hopeful political day of my life in which i voted for our country's first african american president and struggled to make pictures getting turned away at every venture. after speaking to the county clerk and a phone call to frankfort i was falsely informed that i could only make pictures of voters from the neck down. i considered it a loss and settled with making pictures of a low rider instead. and somewhere in there i was invaded by party people in masks. breathe.

hiatus - [hahy-ey-tuhs].

2008-10-27T16:22:00.000-07:00

a pause or gap in a sequence, series, or process.
this is what i got as of late.

horses, a boars head, and a bit of texas in the bluegrass.

2008-10-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

after having breakfast at the P.M.G. natasha invited me to tag along and see where she grew up and the oldest strip mine in letcher county. i accepted the invitation because she's always talking about how blackey is the coolest place and how anyone who grew up on "the seven" is the shit, i had to see for myself. after arriving in her home hollow, we traded out the civic for her cousins enormous 4X4 Dodge to head up the mountain to one of her favorite places, where the power lines are. when we got to the top it looked like we had crossed state lines from kentucky to texas and tasha said that it looked as such. i imagine that this place would be the poster child for "reclaimed" land. tall dry grasses, grazing cattle and horses, an surprisingly what looked like trees or big bushes maybe. well these are some of the photos from the trip. there is a bit of humor at the end of the post, but you have to look for it. thanks tasha for leading me down the seven and showing me where you grew up.

tag! you're it.

2008-10-07T07:44:00.001-07:00

put two photographers armed with cameras together and what follows is what i imagine looks like a ridiculous game of tag. imagine watching from afar two people in all sorts of awkward positions taking photos of each other. yes photo friends, we all look that stupid. i'm sure krista and i looked silly as we hiked along raven's rock this past weekend.

n.y. times article mentions summit city.

2008-10-03T08:35:00.000-07:00

CLICK HERE FOR THE ARTICLE
i was surprised to see carl kiilsgaard stroll through the door at summit city last week, but i quickly found out he wasn't there for the show, but was working on an assignment for the n.y. times. the story is on a new trail being constructed on pine mountain a.k.a. my front yard. go to the site to see carl's pictures and to read the story.

6 1/2 hour haul.

2008-10-02T17:28:00.000-07:00

that's how far it is from whitesburg to mayfield, but it was well worth the drive to see so many great people, dabble with video, and tell endless poop jokes. thanks to hunter and katie for putting me up in bg. i miss all of you. move to whitesburg. we're always looking for a few good people.

hail mary, for the hell of it.

2008-09-29T08:57:00.001-07:00

when your tippy toes aren't good enough you take that chance and pull the camera away from your face, raise it just a bit, and pray. hence the name hail mary. all three of these images followed that same sequence as i shot the mountain heritage parade for fun before going to work. so i find myself questioning; what does it mean when i shoot better pictures when the camera is away from my face. hell maybe if i were to close my eyes all together they would get better still.

the bees of bad branch.

2008-09-24T08:17:00.000-07:00

i took a hike yesterday to bad branch falls on the other side of pine mountain. it's a beautiful hike just over a mile to the falls. after scaling a bunch of boulders i noticed some bees flying about the falls. after a closer look i realized they were drinking form the falls. i need an editor. i couldn't choose just one of the falls pictures and one bee picture.

behind the mask.

2008-09-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

while mourning brett favre threw for over 300 yards in the first half of a football game the day after his father's death. abraham never enters summit city with anything less than three star wars actions figures in hand. lately he's been arriving as vader. he and i both attended our first monday night football game on the back deck at summit city where the players are larger than life on a 12 foot projection screen. i also had 2 1/2 of the most amazing brats with sour kraut, onions, green pepers, and mustard on a toasted bun. and i don't really like football, but who can resist when vader and fine pork products are present. i can't wait to see abraham's reaction when we have a marathon screening of star wars.

seafaring pirates.

2008-09-21T18:54:00.000-07:00

spring fed bathtub beer cooler... check
pitchfork hot dog skewer... check
toad in hole... check
these were a few of the highlights of my brief visit to this years viking fest (founded by some of the fine folks here in whitesburg). a three day event devoted to overindulgence in all sorts of things scandinavian including a stone throw, fruit infused vodkas, and meats cooked in the ground. all of which i did not partake. despite only attending on sunday. i still had a great time.

scalped.

2008-09-19T14:42:00.000-07:00

this is kayford mtn. from above. this is the opposite view from my earlier post that showed a tiny chad taking photos in the upper right hand part of the frame. that photo was from the knob at the far right of this frame.

pinball.

2008-09-19T00:55:00.000-07:00

two days after shooting my cousins wedding i found myself watching enormous rock trucks at work atop kayford mtn. in wv. the next day i was in the capital building trying to find the governor to deliver a petition where i had a sheriff's officer hide behind a door from me to prevent being photographed. and the following day i shook hands with a guy named kenny in a small conference room as we awaited our bumpy flights over mtr sites in wv. i later realized that the interestingly dressed guy i chatted with was "big" of the group "big & rich". save a horse ride a cowboy big & rich. he seemed like any other guy. hell he wipes his ass the same as i do. i hope he washed his hands though. after landing it was a three hour drive straight to the bar to work a full shift. i feel like a human pinball sometimes, but man it's fun. and yes that's five sign pictures. what then.

anticipation.

2008-09-15T22:20:00.001-07:00

when i met up with my cousin katie at 3 o'clock in the afternoon she seemed carefree. her sister did her hair in the kitchen and she and her bridesmaids killed time before getting ready. i left the girls to photograph the guys for a while and when i returned to the wedding location i could tell katie was starting to get nervous. she paced the room and looked out almost every window of the house to see what was going on. at one point she yelled last minute orders from a second story window. all in all i think katie and her husband josh are happy to be rid of wedding preparations and are just happy to be finally together after all the waiting.

the next pele.

2008-09-15T22:06:00.000-07:00

before shooting my cousin's wedding, i headed to lexington with my dad and stepmom to watch my youngest nephew gannon play in his first soccer game of the season. he plays with a lot of heart and intensity (as you can see in the second frame), but i think he needs to put on a couple of pounds. he got dropped a couple of times by the girl with pigtails at far right.

handy as a pocket watch, twice as much fun to be around.

2008-09-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

my dad used to say that about me. it kind of seemed relevant to these "handy" photos of krista. the same holds true for her. thanks for driving all the way from jasper to hang out and let me borrow your computer charger.

rory's hip pocket.

2008-09-04T14:27:00.000-07:00

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rory is one of the front runners for the wind campaign chad and i are documenting. he and i hung out the day after labor day as he rallied to put together information for a community meeting. here are a few from the day. that's him in the background of the first photo hard at work along with charles in the doorway and chad on the laptop.

labor day means work.

2008-09-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

chad and i spent labor day atop mountains or what used to be mountains. turns out people still celebrate national holidays that don't involve fireworks, poultry, or presents. while everyone else was enjoying their cookouts and taking it easy we were working. as much as exploring can be called work. the morning began outside of an abandoned deep mine where we camped the night before and ended atop one of the most active strip mines in wv. hope you all spent the holiday with family and friends and not atop a strip mine sweating to death.

trip to M.A.R.S.

2008-08-24T18:02:00.000-07:00

the lower half.

between drunken passes from girls at the bar and having my eardrums dulled by a rockstar cover band, i was lucky enough to escape to jim webb's place at the top of pine mountain ( where joel and i went swimming earlier in my blog) for the first ever M.A.R.S. Festival. created to bring artists, musicians, and general good people together, the festival proved itself well. my favorite part of the festivities were the late night jam sessions by lantern light. i had a great time and i think the others did too. some may have had a little too much of a good time like the fellow showing his better half while lying paralyzed against a truck tire. as his buddy asked him to leave he responded very matter-of-factly, "i can't walk".

three's company.

2008-08-21T07:08:00.000-07:00

as my previous blog posting showed my family came together to celebrate my great aunt and uncle's wedding anniversary. what the photos did not show was my grandmother. she is my uncle matt's sister and the three of them and later my grandfather shared many good times together. my grandmother is the foundation of our family. she holds us together and she's taught us all what it means to be a family and what it is to love unconditionally. though her fifth grade teacher persuaded her mother to change the spelling of her name i like to use her birth name. that said, Erylene, you are truly beautiful and the most genuine person i know, and i love you.

60 years of love.

2008-08-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

this past weekend our family and extended family gathered at a small park in northern kentucky to celebrate and recognize a monumental occasion that is increasingly rare in today's society. my great aunt mary and uncle matt celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. so in the same year that the supreme court ruled that religious instruction in public schools was in violation of the constitution and NASCAR was incorporated the real news was the union of this amazing couple that has meant so much to my family. congratulations.

handful in the mitten.

2008-08-15T00:29:00.000-07:00

great lakes, great people, great fun.
my first trip back to michigan gave a dose of all that i've been missing. from amazing friends to a beautiful vacation spot and the fair. thank you to everyone who made the trip both near and far. it was awesome to spend time with all of you.

rural red light district.

2008-08-02T07:51:00.000-07:00

no sex workers. just winters and i on a remote logging road patiently waiting for the next trip to the nets. one way to pass the time is depicted here as winters quietly stalks a mosquito before brandishing the pimp hand of death.

extreme horizontals.

2008-07-20T10:42:00.000-07:00

the endless clack of bulldozer tracks and hum of diesel engines muffle the calls of hundreds of tree frogs in the night of west virginia's coal river valley. this is somewhat like what i had in mind chad.

old time's future.

2008-07-17T13:37:00.000-07:00

i hate to admit it, but in whitesburg i'm the other brett. brett ratliff plays a sweet fiddle and mean banjo and makes his home in whitesburg. brett's friend woody pines came to town to play a gig over the fourth of july. the pair of them played music into the morning in the living room. it's awesome to be friends with such talented musicians.

back to batting.

2008-07-09T09:38:00.001-07:00

after a long weekend of good music and great friends it was back to the woods and big browns. i think i can improve upon this picture. i might post an update if it works.

around the fire at kayford.

2008-07-09T09:13:00.000-07:00

here are some photos from the kayford mountain keepers music festival. it was my first opportunity to meet the folks chad has been documenting for the past two years. the festival was an interesting mix of activists fighting mtr and others who were for it. things got a little tense around the fire, but overall the two sides got along and sang music together.

a reunion and the journey begins.

2008-07-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

whether it be chance or fate, chad stevens and i returned together once again in the mountains near charleston, wv. we met six years ago, he as my incredibly inspirational teacher/slave driver. our instant friendship has grown over the years and now he has offered me the humbling opportunity to work with him on a documentary on mountain top removal. i feel like i have finally found something to sink my teeth into over a long period of time and better yet it's something i believe in and i get to hang out and work with someone i respect and admire a great deal. this is the first batch of hopefully a great deal more to come. and if you don't know what mountain top removal or strip mining or surface mining, etc. is take a look at the panoramic view of chad taking pictures from hell's gate atop kayford.

a sign.

2008-07-02T17:48:00.000-07:00

per ryan's request i returned to the town that is literally calling my name. well my nickname anyway. i stumbled upon boomer, WV on my way to a new netting site in summersville and in a blink of an eye it was gone. i made a special trip back to check it out and shoot this lame picture. i'd like to return and do a little essay sometime. if i were a church going man i think this is probably the church i would have to attend by default.

firelight.

2008-06-26T00:34:00.000-07:00

after forgetting both matches and a lighter i resulted to my scouting days and attempted to produce an amber glow using the most primitive means possible. rubbing two sticks together of course. i made a small bow and tried to make a fire by friction. all i got was a little smoke and a lot of sweat. the following night i came prepared and accomplished a campfire which served many purposes, but the most important being to ward off the most ferocious predator in the mountains of west virginia. the bugs. the bugs are also the reason i look like a mexican gangster. the bandana covers my ears where tiny gnats love to drag race back and forth.

...

2008-06-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

he looks cute and cuddly while in the net, almost smiling really. but he/she, like most of the bats we caught on my first night of netting, go nuts as soon as you touch them, hence the leather work gloves. eric and i had a good night of netting, nabbing eight bats in five hours. it was a change of pace from the miles of 4 wheeler riding we had put in previously in the week. i think our netting will be short lived. there is still one with a transmitter attached to it which has proven to be quite illusive. eric and i will be back on tracking duty tonight.

front porch sittin.

2008-06-13T13:49:00.001-07:00

this is the view from the front porch of my summer home in whitesburg. not sure how much i'll get to see of it. the ghostly girl is rebecca o' who works at appalshop and that's the amazingly talented and determined amelia doing a number on the old carpet in the dinning room. imagine that, i come to whitesburg and within day's we're starting projects.

good ol' boyz.

2008-06-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

one high quality malt liquor/energy drink + a set of car keys = a test of manhood and a moment of peak intelligence otherwise known as shotgunning. got to visit with poynter and b-wag last week for a few days. i think we all realized just how much we miss one another's company. they are both all growns up now with fancy houses and plans for fixing them up. kind of makes me feel like a slacker since i just quit my job and currently reside in a knights inn in the mountains of west virginia, but i'm on my own adventure i suppose. anyway the time in k-town was great and also gave birth to the fantastic knoxville trio karaoke group who debuted at toot's honky tonk bar rising to number one on the charts with their rendition of tom petty's won't back down and then plummeting with their second release of dolly parton's jolene. and i'm now in the belt making business. wagner chose the fitting words, which is actually one word but it fits better this way, home made. i hammered it out as everyone else socialized.

360 degrees from atop town hill.

2008-06-13T13:15:00.000-07:00

which is really a mountain. it's about a three mile hike to the top and the view is worth every long winded, out of shape, heaving breath. sorry the picture is so small.

hello whitesburg hello home.

2008-06-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

home |hom| 1. the place where one lives permanently, esp. as a member of a family or household. 2. a place where something flourishes, is most typically found, or from which it originates.

despite the fact that i'm writing this from shawn poynter's living room, i am home. it's hot as shit and it's muggy enough that if you walk outside it feels as if you have to push the air out of the way and it's almost hard to get a breath like when your in a car and you stick your head out the window. so far home has been wonderful. i've tried to ignore any feelings guilt for leaving my job and focus on the fun times that will be had this summer. i haven't started work with bats yet, but that should be exciting as well. this is a glimpse of home. the first few are from the nati while hanging out with my buddy derrick, his graffiti, his apartment, his city. the latter is from my first day in whitesburg. j. cut out of work early and we went swimming at the highest (in elevation) swimming hole that i know of in kentucky at the top of pine mountain. the swimming hole is part of jim webb's, kentucky's highest (in elevation) resident, resort. he's the bearded one, and a film maker at appalshop. it was amazing and we later ended the evening with some of amelia's wonderful leftover lasagna. i'll keep you posted on the events that follow, right now it's off to breakfast with poynter at nearly 11a.m.

really great people.

2008-06-01T13:19:00.000-07:00

"those who risk win" i've been telling myself and everyone around me that for a couple of years now. i usually apply the concept to photography and encourage people to look outside the box at a situation or how to approach it. well most of you probably already know i said farewell to my job as a staff photographer at the mdn (this is the point where i could say, for a freelance career in some big city, but that would be a lie. if you haven't heard i'm moving to whitesburg, kentucky to help my friend joel with his bat studies for the summer. i plan on figuring it out along the way.) i also said farewell to some really great people. to everyone who has shown me much kindness over the past three years i'd like to say thank you. you are all wonderful and you made michigan a great place to be. i would especially like to thank my gracious and amazing friends buford and mindy. your generosity toward the end of my time in michigan allowed me the opportunity to move on and made my final memories of midland some of the best of all. it was so nice to end on a high note and you guys made it happen. thank you. and all images seen on this blog can be credited to the lemon keefe connection by their continued generosity of the new fowty D. you guys are unbelievably kind and genuine. true salt of the earth and i can't thank you enough. please check out KEVIN'S BLOG to see pictures from my final send off party held in the ol' backyard southern style, equipped with plenty of starting fluid, tiki torches, good people, and what my stepmother likes to call my "go to hell hat".
and to ryan and kevin, keep er between the ditches and don't piss into the wind. you have both given me far more than i can return. thank you for the inspiration, support, education, and occasional kick in the ass. keep it rural.

freelance.

2008-05-27T20:22:00.001-07:00

two pictures that will likely never see the light of day. i recently shot some freelance for a local golf course. the owner wanted shots of each hole to use for a "virtual tour" of the course, but i gave him some fun stuff to go with the boring stuff. he didn't really dig it. whatever, feed the belly feed the soul. my dad would have crapped his pants and wished he'd had a gun being that close to a tom. such a clear shot on the 8th fairway too.

graceland.

2008-05-23T21:57:00.000-07:00

tonight i hung out with the king again. in case you were wondering, elvis not only dyes the hair on his head, but also his sideburns, chest, and arms. the mysterious black patch you see behind the non alcoholic busch is dye. tomorrow we go to the mall for a 70th birthday party. should be interesting.

tradition.

2008-05-22T20:36:00.000-07:00

i believe this is the third year i've photographed meridian high's graduation and each year the graduates uphold a tradition of standing atop the school's sign in front of the building for a group picture. there's always some sort of rockstar light kicking over the building. i started out shooting from behind these guys and could hear a few asking each other, "why is he taking pictures of our butts?" at which point a couple lifted their gowns, sticking their good side further out so i could get a better shot. thanks guys. the other photo is what happens when you take a young child to a crowded gymnasium and expect them to sit still for two hours. you end up walking the halls.

pissed lil' patriot.

2008-05-22T11:08:00.001-07:00

i watched peyton for a half an hour or so before the WWII veterans arrived at the airport. she seemed excited by all the chaos and flag waving. she bounced from her mother's lap to peeking from behind bystander's legs waving her flag. then the moment she had been waiting for came. the band began to play, people cheered, and a processional of old men in wheelchairs wheeled down the center isle. peyton seemed disappointed to say the least. she began to scowl as the tired old men rolled by. i could only imagine what was going on in her four-year-old head. what? is that it? no clowns or animals, no candy thrown by guys in funny cone shaped hats driving little go carts, just a bunch of old guys in wheelchairs who look really tired. what a jip. i thought it was funny how oblivious and honest little kids can be. what wasn't so funny was the bastard who's flight arrived right before the veterans, who walked down the isle shaking his head and muddled under his breath as he passed, "what a joke".

the graduate.

2008-05-20T15:40:00.000-07:00

she's all growns up now. upon graduation from college, my dear friend krista has ventured to the level frontier of michigan for her final internship in muskegon before starting her first full-time job in the quaint little photo mecca of jasper indiana. i'm proud of all that you've accomplished. great seeing you, though it was short lived.

ghost town.

2008-05-14T13:57:00.000-07:00

it's funny how things come full circle. as an intern i found myself trying hard to find life in the little town of Laporte while working on a project about the four corners of the county. It's home to the county's oldest general store, but not much else. today i went to show its death. Laporte is one of 40 ghost towns in the county. most are nothing but freshly plowed corn fields today, but a few, like Laporte, struggle to not be forgotten.

tea party.

2008-05-07T18:01:00.000-07:00

when you think of tea parties, little girls in grown ups clothes talking to stuffed animals may come to mind. or for others a little town called boston might. the boston tea party is when our colonial forefathers told ol' great britian to go "f" themselves and threw a bunch of tea in the harbor thus ensuing the american revolution. well yesterday the little town of edenville had their own revolution and the lady in the sunglasses threw a single lipton teabag in the river in honor of her ancestors (i have pictures of that, but i like this one better). the community partook in a bit of what i like to call street justice, but really they just exercised their right to vote. and vote they did. nearly 50% of the registered voters showed at the polls and voted EVERY member of the city board out of office, trustees and all. that's what happens when politicians don't listen to the populous. so in the words of kurt loder, "rock the vote", and maybe i'll start too.

heads off.

2008-04-26T13:01:00.001-07:00

yes, i'm the guy who sometimes has that urge to ruin christmas by running through the mall yelling how the guy in the funny suit and the big white beard is just that, a guy in a suit. it's just an urge, i don't actually follow through with it, i'd just like to see all the little kids frantically start tugging on their parents pockets with the looming questions and the dumbfounded look on all the mom and dad's faces. that look of holy shit, what lie will get me out of this lie. well today i'm spoiling the party and revealing that the state farm Good Neigh Bear is really just a guy. so is Bookie the Bear sitting next to him, and Lou E. Loon, and the easter bunny, and jolly ol' st. nick. but if i sound like an old grump it's because i miss the days when i believed in these fictitious gods and i too will someday con my kid into believing.

duck duck.

2008-04-24T19:52:00.000-07:00

GOOSE! now run around in circles. it's spring damnit, the birds are back.

resurrecting the king.

2008-04-17T23:34:00.000-07:00

the king is still alive.

the king smokes a pipe.

the king drinks PBR by the pitcher.

the king is in love with a woman named brenda.

the king turned 54 today.

mc.b's, a seedy little bar with split logs glued to the outside to make the cinder block building seem a bit more home like, came alive when the lights were turned out last night. i met claud and his wife brenda there to celebrate claud's birthday. if any of you remember, claud is the elvis tribute artist is photographed a while back when i spotted him cutting his grass on my way home from teaching. i recently decided to pursue the story further and what better night to do so than his big day. he and his wife along with the majority of the bar sang karaoke and danced. after about 8 or 10 songs the dj would put on 3 songs of what claud's wife brenda liked to call "booty music" and the dance floor would fill with middle aged women and college girls alike all touchin that ass to the flo. i laughed the whole time, even when the native american woman twice my size tried to strongly suggest that i take the shot she bought for me. i politely declined... again and again.

the pig.

2008-04-14T21:08:00.001-07:00

pig (pig) n. 1) A hog or hoglike animal, esp. when small or young. 2) Pork 3) An oblong mass of metal just run from the smelter and cast in a rough mold 4) INFORMAL A person regarded as like a pig, esp. one who is filthy, gluttonous, or grasping.

in this case "the pig" is not just a mere mass of metal hot off the smelter, and she aint' no swine. she is a fine piece of steel manufactured by the fine folks at pontiac, and despite the brisk mid april spring temperatures in the mid 30s, we (cool and the gang aka hannah (pictured), kevin, mandy, eventually alex cohn, and myself) took her out to stretch her legs a bit. the pig is buford an mindy's choice of summertime travel, but she answers to no man. she has a mind of her own and we were excitedly along for the ride. thanks to the lemon keefe connection for letting us breeze your fine steed.
(PHOTO BY KEVIN BENEDICT)

another foggy day.

2008-04-14T20:58:00.000-07:00

it snowed a couple of days ago. when does this shit storm they call winter end. i never will get used to living in a place with two seasons.

check it.

2008-04-10T17:03:00.000-07:00

alright alright alright, so i'll get around to shooting some pictures soon i hope, but as for now my partner in crime since the seventh grade (stephen m. kertis) has created something phenomenal. he's provided an outlet for the mix tape. it's freaking brilliant. check it mondaynightmixtapes

filler.

2008-03-31T08:39:00.001-07:00

i've been sick lately, maybe i got it from all the little kids i've been hanging out with. the blue stuff is from a preschool circus. i decided to shoot quick portraits before the start of the show. the portraits ran on the front in a row down the center of the page and the candid stuff ran on a page inside. it was supposed to be a standalone feature picture. oops, took it a little too far. the last is an outtake from "chicken day" at a local elementary school. the principal promised to dress up as a chicken if the kids met their reading goal. they read 3,877 books collectively during the month of march.

bob and me.

2008-03-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

About a month ago I met Bob JEnisson while on assignment. The Midland Daily News was doing a story on a hospice care facility in Bay City called Brian's House. Bob was the resident chosen for the story.

I hung out with Bob while he visited with his daughters, then stuck around for a couple of hours after they left. We sat in the small cafeteria talking mostly about his life, but a little about death. With a sadness and longing in his voice, Bob mentioned that his wife, Judie, had died about a year ago and that he was looking forward to seeing her again. I couldn't help but to imagine how wonderful Judie must have been and how pure a love must be to bring a man to tears just mentioning her name.

It wasn't that Bob was happy about death; he was grateful for the time he has, but accepting of the inevitable we all face.

My first visit with Bob came to a close with a promise to come back and check in from time to time.

Last week I received a message from Bob's daughter, Michelle. She told me that Bob's condition had worsened and he was on oxygen, spending most of his time in bed. She said that he'd like to see me and that I probably shouldn't wait too long. Two days later I entered room105 at Brian's House to find Bob sound asleep in his bed. I took a seat in the rocking chair in his room. I sat for 20 minutes or so and decided to leave a note.

Bob,

Just wanted to stop

by to say hi. You seem to

be sleeping well so I don't ...

A phone rang, interrupting my note. Bob woke and began fumbling with his cell phone to answer the call. I helped him open the phone and after he finished his call we began to talk. He showed me the Speed Graphic camera his father used and an 8-by-10 black and white print his father took of Dwight D. Eisenhower waving from the back of a train during his presidential campaign. He also showed me a print of himself as a child sitting on the lap of Mrs. Fitzhugh, a woman who used to live in the apartment above Bob's family and who used to make him tapioca pudding.

After a while I asked Bob how he was doing and he hinted toward not well. "My life is over and I'm kind of glad about that," Bob said, almost instantly contradicting that statement by saying how he'd started thinking about how hard it was going to be to leave his children and grandchildren.

I said goodbye for the second time again with a promise of returning to check in and to bring photos I had taken of the two of us together.

On the following day, Friday, March 7, I returned on my way to shoot hockey in Plymouth and then go to Kentucky for a photography workshop. I peeked into room 105 to find Bob visiting with his grandson, Justin Jennison Luczak. I learned that Justin has his grandfather's last name as his middle name so that the family name would not be lost since Bob had no sons. I also learned that Bob spells his last name with the second letter capitalized as well. It is little details like this you learn only through spending time without a camera to your face. It's these details that make my job special and so rewarding.

I was pressed for time and kept telling Bob I had to go, but each time I said it I'd linger and he'd begin another story. At the last moment possible without being late to my assignment I told Bob I had to go and paused. I couldn't take a step. Truthfully I feared this might be our last visit. "Well why ain't you going?" Bob asked sarcastically, knowing the answer. "I don't want to." "I know you don't want to go, and I don't want you to go, but you got to. You gotta do your job."

I left with a promise to stop by and check in from time to time, and writing this now I am grateful for the friendship Bob and I have, and for this job I gotta do.

i got a call a few minutes ago from bob's daughter michelle letting me know that bob had passed away yesterday. he was with his family for easter and he went peacefully. i didn't get a chance to stop by and check in on him before he went. the above is from a story i wrote for the paper that published two weeks ago.

reunion.

2008-03-22T00:12:00.000-07:00

hannah and i met in college though she probably doesn't remember me. i had a crush on her as did everyone else i know i'm pretty sure. now we meet again years later and at similar points in life. we're both on our own unknown journeys. truth is i'm finding comfort in the fact that someone else doesn't have it all figured out. so here's to new beginnings and the great unknown.

knuckleheads.

2008-03-21T23:55:00.001-07:00

don't let their boyish charm and big brown eyes fool you, these boys are ready to throw down in a nerf gunfight or pirate sword duel to the ultimate fake death at any moment. they are relentless and they are my nephews. if you've come for battle you may hear graeme yell, "gannon, shoot the damn thing!" at which point the unmistakable sound of a gatlin nerf gun will rat a tat tat put a foam dart in your ass.

return.

2008-03-20T08:27:00.000-07:00

just now settling into the frigid life up north after spending more than a week at home wearing t-shirts with the sun on my face. i was able to spend time with family and friends as well as attend the ACP workshop keeping my streak alive. in my opinion workshops serve the best purpose when they are kept small and somewhat thrown together. after returning from my holiday in the homeland my first assignment was this portrait. most newspaper photographers hate assignments like pet of the week or building mugs. we have the employee of the month portrait. like most lame assignments if you keep an open mind most of the time they can be fun. i explored the bowels of our paper and found this back storage room. i tried using a strobe, but preferred the naked florescent bulb despite the blown out forehead.

cinderella.

2008-03-07T08:14:00.000-08:00

the chemics weren't expected to make it to the championship game, but they had a different idea in mind.

slapshot.

2008-03-04T23:49:00.000-08:00

today i worked what i like to call the modified split shift. that's when you work all day, but only get paid for half. it's pretty sweet. it was my own fault for going in to work early. it's 3a.m. and the words on the screen are starting to blur. the computers at work have all conspired against me lately, making my job all the more inconvenient. that's about it. need sleeeep.

absence.

2008-02-25T20:01:00.000-08:00

they say that it makes the heart grow fonder, and from experience i know that it does, but in blogger land, absence just makes your friends get grumpy and demanding, and rightfully so. sorry i've been truant for a week or so. a lot can happen in a week, or a weekend even. these are a collection of pictures from this past weekend. for starters a bunch of kids from the local high school showcased their talents, but these kids were not normally talented. this was a full on production with flamboyant makeup and wireless mics and a full backstage crew. on friday the light was bangin', kevin took pictures of me (his is the purdy one of me against the wall) while waiting for the "mammoth" which lived up to its name and proved to be too much for ol' kevin to handle, i came close to, without lifting any, weights, and finally buford's friends john and vince came to town for a weekend of good stories, plenty of beer, and the best smoked meats i've ever tasted. thank you ryan for the leftover wood from your house, vince for the smoking/cooking skills, and john for the endless yarns. and thanks to all of you who check this piece out from time to time.
(to those who've asked about my amazing lighting skills in the photo below, truth is that's just what mom's nature gave me. it's window light coming through the windshield of his rig. it's nice when the old girl throws you a bone every now and again.)

truckin.

2008-02-14T08:50:00.001-08:00

i hung out with alan corbett for a little while yesterday to make a portrait. alan recently wrote a short book about some of his journey's over the past 17 years. He's logged over 3,000,000 miles in those years. that makes my nine hour journey to kentucky today seem like chump change.

life.

2008-02-10T11:30:00.003-08:00

i think this could have been the only 100% i ever got while at western, and its a damn self portrait. as you might be able to tell from recent posts, i've been rummaging. it's interesting to me how a lot of the feelings and thoughts i'm having now are the same ones that inspired this photo at the time. i was nearing graduation and i felt kind of lost, like life was weighing down on me and i was at its mercy. things worked out okay then and i think they will again.

ode to sara.

2008-02-10T11:15:00.000-08:00

this is my very good friend sara aka ponygirl. she was feeling a little left out so sara this one is for you.

continuance.

2008-02-10T11:07:00.000-08:00

more a.c.p. jams.

you down with a.c.p...... yeah you know me.

2008-02-08T15:36:00.000-08:00

The Appalachian Cultural Project was the brain child of my dear friend chad stevens (he's the one in the first photo). the workshop has been going strong for the past six years. these are a small handful of the founding members who helped to create such a special experience. thanks for all the fun times.
www.acpworkshop.org

media daze.

2008-02-04T21:49:00.001-08:00

so lately i've been to a couple of media day events which we normally try to avoid, but for whatever reason i've found myself amongst the local tv guys and that one radio guy who shows up for everything. i suggest if you find yourself in such a position, a lame one at that, you at least have fun after feeding the beast. here are a few images. the first two are from a media day event about a new office building. literally a sea of cubicles and nothing more. the flowers were the only thing breaking up the countless rows of prefabricated squares. the last picture is from the media day for our local professional tennis tournament going on this week. the lady on the left is 37 years old and holds the world record for the fastest serve by a woman. 130mph. and if you were wondering, that first guy is giving me, what i like to call the you bastard photographer making me look funny face.

year of the rat.

2008-02-02T23:30:00.000-08:00

visited a chinese new year celebration at a local high school tonight and found out that this is the year of the rat. wikipedia says: the rat is associated with aggression, wealth, charm, and order, yet also associated with death, war, the occult, pestilence, and atrocities. i guess that means that this stands to be a pretty damn good year or a monumentally bad one. we shall see.

designer?

2008-02-02T19:54:00.001-08:00

so r-dub and i have been working on a couple of little things we like to call illustrations. and we've been poppin the roids to bulk up our design muscles. it seems lately i've spent more time with a paint brush in my hand than a camera and stuff like this is what comes out. the first was for a story we're doing on how the crappy economy has effected church offerings. surprise surprise, midlands offerings have actually seen an increase. yes, we live in a bubble. the second is for a story about how people cope and mourn after losing a pet.
p.s. those are whole pages if you were wondering. you know how we do.