Eye Spy

No More Bush

2009-01-29T14:47:00.001-06:00

I wonder how long they've been waiting to use this slogan?

Peurto Vallarta

2009-01-25T10:25:00.004-06:00

We spent the New Year in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Good times!

Influential People

2008-12-24T10:20:00.003-06:00

Tiki Barber, record-setting running back for the NY Giants and current broadcaster and author.

John Dean, White House Council to Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal.

Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor and 2008 Republican presidential candidate (current 2012 front-runner!)

Champs

2008-12-14T14:44:00.003-06:00

Some photos from two State Championship games at War Memorial stadium in Little Rock. The only two football games I covered this year!

Kalua Pig

2008-11-23T16:44:00.004-06:00

Starting on Friday night me and a few friends began our first attempt at roasting a whole pig under ground with coals and hot rocks. We dug a hole in my backyard, built a bonfire in it and then buried the pig wrapped in banana leaves. The next day we dug it up and had a party.

Good times!

Taking up the burlap before removing the pig.

Shredding the pork by hand.

Fred seemed a bit worried before we stuffed his belly with pineapple, oranges, bananas and apples. Doesn't he have beautiful brown eyes?

Hunting Trees

2008-11-17T20:25:00.002-06:00

I tried my hand at a different kind of shooting this past weekend.

The Roast

2008-11-12T15:40:00.003-06:00

Cooking up a whole hog Luau style. It's going to be delicious!

Click here for direction.

Hope to see you there.

Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!

2008-11-03T10:14:00.003-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, the infamous Jerry Springer came to Little Rock to speak at the Clinton Library. Instead of dredging the bottoms of society for mindless entertainment, he delivered a populist speech on the current affairs of American politics. It was a reminder of Springer's roots as a politician as opposed to his current role as entertainer.

...Springer 2012?

Men's Health

2008-10-24T11:35:00.004-05:00

The current issue of Men's Health (Nov. 2008) has a portrait I shot in Frontenac, Kansas awhile back. It was part of their Belly Off! program which features reader weight loss stories. Fairly straight-forward shoot. Everything was outside and in multiple locations, so I went with a simple, one light set-up.

Sam's Throne

2008-10-20T09:43:00.005-05:00

Spent this past weekend climbing and enjoying the beautiful weather out at Sam's Throne in Northwest Arkansas. Below, Dianna getting ready to climb the fist-crack Boston Rag on the Throne Proper.

Public Enemy

2008-10-05T10:42:00.006-05:00

September was a busy month, hence the zero blog posts. Hopefully I'll reverse that habit now. Above is a shot of Chuck D of Public Enemy for the Clinton School of Public Service. He gave an interesting (but sometimes rambling) talk about black America and the current presidential race. It would have been a lot better if he would have been able to connect all of his ideas into a greater theme, instead he just diverged into rants.

Below is James Polshek, the architect of the Clinton Presidential Library. I didn't realize what a bad-ass Polshek was in the architecture world, but that's probably because I don't know anything about the architecture world. But he's the guy that designed the newly opened Newseum in Washington and he's working on the current update to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (as well as around 200 other buildings you've probably seen around the world).

Crusing the Rock

2008-08-29T15:16:00.003-05:00

A friend of mine started a laid-back bike ride through downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock. It's a lot of fun and usually ends at Vino's or some other bar. All are welcome to come. All you need is two wheels and now that it's starting to get dark early, maybe a light. Meet at the parking lot next to the ASN on Thursdays around 7:00ish.

U T P

2008-08-19T09:45:00.003-05:00

My friends Ryan, Adam & Amanda (aka UTP) had their first gig at the Boom Boom Room in Fayetteville this past Saturday.

The Pacific

2008-08-09T11:29:00.002-05:00

Some photos along the Oregon and California coasts. The above shot is from a beach near the mouth of the Klamath River in Northern California. The rest of the beach pics are in Oregon.

Aspen in the Unita Mountains in Utah.

Old growth in Washington covered in Spanish Moss.

Gray Seattle

2008-08-05T10:42:00.004-05:00

So I took the above photo and then realized Getty already has a copyright of the Seattle skyline. This message was painted on a wall:

What the hell is that all about? How can a company own the image copyright of someone else's property (i.e. the private individuals who own the downtown buildings) viewed from public property?

Anyway here's another image. I didn't really take many photos while in the city. Hopefully the pier isn't copyrighted too.

Colchuck Peak

2008-08-03T14:57:00.004-05:00

While in Seattle, Dianna and I headed out to the Cascades with Josh to attempt Colchuck Peak. It was a crazy climbing experience to say the least. I got my first look at a glacier and then quickly saw how unforgiving they can be. The photo above shows the peak in the center and glacier approach to the saddle. The picture below is of a snow band while approaching the Colchuck glacier.

Here's Josh "battling" the elements before the snow became a thin layer above the ice and he did what you could describe as an "apline style glacier exit of no return". You can see the ice section right behind him. This is the spot where Dianna and I stopped because the ice became too steep and we didn't have a rope or ice screws for protection. Shortly after this I was standing in what I thought was a secure rest position, but the snow slid out from under me and I began a fast retreat down the mountain. I was able to self-arrest after only about a 30 foot slide, but it was a hair-raising experience.

All of this coupled with a lack of experience in glacier travel led to a retreat. The image below shows Dianna down-climbing some scree below the glacier.

A little sketchy ice didn't deter Josh and he managed a summit. But he did pay a price and I'll let him tell you the story if he wants. I'll just say that what took about an hour or so to climb took only 10 seconds to descend. And Josh may have managed to use the rest of his 9 lives.

Below is an overall shot of Colchuck Peak (right) and Dragontail (left) with a mystical shroud of cloud cover from Apline Lake. You can also see Alpine Lake in the photo above.

The Sawtooths

2008-07-27T13:10:00.005-05:00

We finally made it to the coast and are hanging out relaxing in Seattle after a week in the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho. Had a few storms roll through...

Climbed Snowyside Peak...

Swam in some Alpine Lakes...

Caught some trout...

Smelled some wildflowers...

Eaten alive by horrible mosquitoes...maybe worse than Alaska...

More to come...

The Tetons

2008-07-18T13:39:00.006-05:00

We just arrived in Idaho after spending the last few days in Wyoming. While there we climbed Teewinot (the peak on the far right in the above image, the "Grand" Teton is just to the left of Teewinot). It was an amazing climb with about 1000 feet of snow climbing followed by some 4th and 5th Class rock climbing. 5th class only because we got off route! Below is an image of Dianna pulling off her first mantle at about 13000 feet.

We also caught a few rainbow trout at our camp outside the park in the National Forest. The Park system was hatin' on Smoke.

After the Tetons we headed to Yellowstone, which was way overcrowded, so we bailed after a day of driving around to see all the weird geothermal activity.

More to come...

On The Road Again

2008-07-13T16:17:00.005-05:00

On our way to the Grand Tetons to kick off our summer road trip. Many updates to come...

Also, here are a few images from the past month. Puzzle Day tournament for the Clinton School, some wedding work and a story about the Border Patrol for the New York Times.

Demolition Derby

2008-06-14T10:44:00.003-05:00

So the past few weeks I've transferred my house into a full-on construction zone. I completely gutted my kitchen all the way to the floor joists, and even removed half of them in order to re-level the back half of the floor. So I've been a bit preoccupied, which hasn't left much time for blogging. But now I've passed the demo phase and have moved into construction!

More updates to come!

Oh yeah, and that is my downstairs basement toilet you see in the second photo.

Track Star

2008-05-22T17:02:00.002-05:00

The current issue of Runner's World (June 2008) has a story about Arkansas track coach John McDonnell with some portraits I shot awhile back.

Work Pays

2008-05-13T21:49:00.002-05:00

Talia Greenwood is a mother of four and is participating in Arkansas' Welfare to Work program called Work Pays.

All-USA Team

2008-05-01T10:30:00.001-05:00

A portrait of Morrilton basketball player Shekinna Stricklen for USA Today.

Old Man McCain

2008-04-28T10:13:00.002-05:00

John McCain's Straight Talk Express (I love that name) came to town and stopped by the Whole Hog Cafe with the Huckster.

Memphis Rain

2008-04-07T11:16:00.006-05:00

Last Friday I stood in the rain for over 4 hours to cover John McCain and Hillary Clinton's visit to the Lorraine Motel to mark the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. King. But it was well worth it when I saw the front page of the New York Times the next morning.

Hillary didn't seem too happy to be there, which is ironic since we're the ones that stood in the rain while she was two hours late.

White Lightning

2008-04-04T19:20:00.004-05:00

I shot this on my front porch last night before a tornado came through about a mile away. I love thunderstorms, but tornadoes can be a bit freaky. We saw a bunch of green lightning. And when I say green, I don't mean just a little green. But the sky lit up like night vision goggles!

In Your Face!

2008-04-02T13:07:00.003-05:00

This photo just makes me laugh and is way more interesting than my recent work. So I thought I would share it.

FYI - Click on the photo to see a larger, more in your face version. It really looks better bigger.

Buffalo v. Truck

2008-03-25T22:01:00.005-05:00

The Buffalo River wins!

While floating last weekend we came upon a truck that was caught by last weeks floods (just past Steele Creek campgrounds). Pretty crazy site to see and I'm not sure how they're going to get it out!

The Agony & The Ecstasy

2008-03-10T20:20:00.003-05:00

The winners and losers from this past weekend's State Championship games I covered in Hot Springs.

Walking the Dog

2008-02-17T18:01:00.003-06:00

Fog is super cool at sunset while you're out walking the dog!

Arkansas Twisters

2008-02-11T11:42:00.000-06:00

Last week Super Tuesday didn't just describe politics in Arkansas, but the weather as well. I don't recall too many tornadoes in Winter, but that was not the case this February. I covered the aftermath of the deadly storms in Atkins for the New York Times.

My condolences go out to all the families that lost loved ones.

Super Duper Tuesday

2008-02-07T13:12:00.001-06:00

I covered Arkansas' participation in Super Tuesday for the New York Times this week. They also had me follow the Huckster around as he voted for himself and then later on his watch party. It was a long 16 hour day, but a lot of fun. It blows me away that this guy may be our vice president one day.

The Catwalk

2008-01-16T14:32:00.001-06:00

A few images from a recent runway fashion show held at the Arkansas Art Center. The show was part of the overall Delta Exhibition, which features Southern artists.

A New Year

2008-01-01T19:41:00.000-06:00

the '80s in '08...

Leg wamers & leotards; mullets & cocaine...the 80s are back! Happy New Year!

Model Scouting

2007-12-19T14:36:00.000-06:00

...from a quick photo session last week. This is Lollie, a tattoo artist at Inkjunkys in Conway. I've been looking for a person with a non-traditional look for some conceptual work I want to do in the future. This was more of a meet and greet than an actual shoot, so everything was set up rather hastily (just two lights and no hair/make-up).

Go Red

2007-12-16T16:39:00.000-06:00

A few images from my shoot with the American Heart Association last week. The photos are part of their Go Red campaign. I shot the whole age spectrum from young kids to the elderly and everything in between. I think the images are going to be blown up and hung in hospitals and other public places around Arkansas.

Creating Mood/Combining Exposures

2007-12-03T09:40:00.000-06:00

Nothing creates a mood like a cool-looking sky. But usually the best sky is a vastly different exposure than the ground beneath. I've tried combining photos before, but never really perfected the technique. This past Fall I wanted to show my Digital Darkroom class how to make one exposure from two in order to improve the overall tonal range of a photograph.

The above image is a combination of the three below. I used the brightest image as my primary photo. I layered the darkest image over the top and created a mask to only allow the sky to shine through. I then blended the middle photo to create the rich colors. After I had my exposure I created a Levels Adjustment Layer to correct the color cast (basically a white balance adjustment). I also used a Curves Adjustment Layer masked in certain areas to open up a few of the mid-tones. There was no need to increase the saturation or use Selective Color to pump up the reds and yellows since I already had a rich tonal range after combining the photographs. You could accomplish this same technique by shooting RAW and then processing the image twice: one overexposed and one underexposed.

The image was taken at Pinnacle Mountain State Park.

D, D & D Update

2007-11-29T09:58:00.000-06:00

I finally got a copy of the final product from the shoot with Dianna this past Summer.

Second Place

2007-11-26T15:37:00.000-06:00

This past Saturday I got my only High School Football experience of the year by documenting Springdale Har-Ber's failed attempt at the 7A State Championship. It's a bit awkward photographing baby-faced behemoths crying, especially when you realize some of their misplaced emotion may result in a helmet to the face. Touching none-the-less.

Down in the Delta

2007-10-31T14:27:00.000-05:00

I was in Helena about a month ago to check out the Blues Fest they hold annually. I only came to town for a few hours and there wasn't much going on yet. So I drank a few beers with Zac and then headed back, stopping off in the cotton fields along the way.

Panorama Canyonlands Composite

2007-10-17T10:15:00.000-05:00

I've been wanting to try a panorama like this for some time and finally got around to creating one. You can easily get a copy of the print through my PhotoShelter Account; if you are so inclined.

Canyonlands

2007-10-16T13:54:00.001-05:00

Some photos from my trip to Canyonlands in Southeastern Utah last week. The light was amazing and the red rocks surreal. Being out there is like landing on the moon and walking around. Just be sure to bring plenty of water and watch out for the rattle snakes. We found Floyd (his portrait is the next to last image) waiting for us in one of our campsites. But he didn't have too much to tell us and quickly disappeared after a few hisses and rattles and kicked rocks in his direction.

...Hayduke is dead!

Runner's World

2007-10-14T16:05:00.001-05:00

The current issue of Runner's World (Nov 2007) features a few portraits I took in August. It was raging hot that day which made it all that much better to work with 20 kids. I was pretty happy with the photo play when I saw the issue; this is my first double-truck!

On Display

2007-09-27T09:38:00.000-05:00

I recently joined the faculty at the Arkansas Arts Center where I will be teaching "Advanced Digital Darkroom" this fall. Last Sunday the museum held an opening, which I happened to forget and miss, for the faculty art show which runs through October. It was weird seeing my work displayed so nicely, with its own special light and everything.

Gone Fishin'

2007-09-24T13:56:00.001-05:00

Everything else I have shot lately is way too boring to post here. Fishing is probably boring to most people too, but these images had some nice early morning light with mystical fog rising off the water. Plus, check out the huge rainbow in the school of fish! The last image is a self portrait I took with a group of my best friends. I'm the one on the far left. I know I've really let myself go with that huge gut. I'll work on burning that off.

Wild Art

2007-09-06T22:52:00.000-05:00

Some personal work from the past week or so.

The Mountain Says, "Rejected!"

2007-08-29T20:42:00.000-05:00

This is the lake below Wheeler Peak, the highest point in New Mexico. The first picture was taken with thoughts of a beautiful summit. The second photo is one hour later with fears of being struck by lightning. And of course we got to climb within a thousand feet of the summit before the storm clouds popped over the ridge.

Great Sand Dunes NP

2007-08-29T20:30:00.000-05:00

More images from this summer. These are the Great Sand Dunes along the Sangre de Christo Mountains. They're a pretty crazy formation: a sandy oasis amidst a mountain desert. And for some reason people like to get a running start and roll down the mounds. When I saw this, I was like "Wow, that's some redneck shit. It's like we're in Arkansas!" So I approach these guys after getting shots of them in all their glory...and get this...they're from Arkansas! True Story.

The Crestones

2007-08-23T23:15:00.000-05:00

I finally got around to editing the photos from our summer trip to the Crestone Group in the Sangre de Christo Mountains in Southern Colorado. It was an amazing trip, but a bit too early in the season (June) and we had to turn back at around 13,000 feet because of poor snow conditions. It was still very mystical, as the last photo will show. Now, I'll just have to go back...damn!

Little Bird Complex

2007-08-13T09:17:00.001-05:00

These little birds where chasing this crow around Murray Park the other day. I guess it's not the size of the bird in the fight but the size of the fight in the bird.

Elk River Debauchery

2007-08-07T10:27:00.001-05:00

Some images from last weekends booze cruise along the Elk River in Missouri. You would have thought Michael would have known better than to get three sheets to the wind with a group of photographers, but I guess not.

Oh yeah, and that is a diaper floating in the Elk. Gotta love the white trash along Missouri waterways!

The group photo courtesy of Nathan .

FYI - The pups name is now officially Smoke.

Name That Dog

2007-07-30T12:19:00.000-05:00

This past weekend we acquired a new addition to the pack. He's a six-week-old Australian Shepherd. Right now his name is Tosh Wellington, but the name isn't set in stone. Any suggestions?

Back to the Rock

2007-07-23T08:37:00.000-05:00

While moving Dianna's stuff out of her parents house we were treated to a beautiful sunset on our last night in Fayetteville. Maybe I should try to sell this photo to U-Haul?

A Portrait of Africa

2007-07-17T13:11:00.001-05:00

A selection of some of my favorite portraits of people who participated in Winrock's AWLAE program. I took one light with an umbrella and stand along with a remote transmitter. It's amazing what one strobe can do! Having only one light was a reminder to always keep it simple.

Cassava Production

2007-07-13T09:56:00.000-05:00

Well it has been quit awhile since my last update, but no worries. I wasn't kidnapped by rebels or eaten by a hippo. I'm now back in the States and have been busy moving into my new house in Little Rock. Plus, when I returned I got smacked by a sinus infection (fyi-do not fly with a sinus infection, it is not fun).

These images are from a small village outside of Abidjan that centered around the production of cassava, a root crop you can find all over tropical regions in Africa. The top image is the plant followed by images that show it's root crop production. Cassava has to be cooked before consumption because the raw crop actually contains small amounts of cyanide.

One of the main reasons I went to Africa was to take portraits of women who participated in the African Women Leaders in Agriculture and the Environment (AWLAE) program. So I plan to post a bunch of those soon.

Cote d'Ivoire Portraits

2007-07-01T09:54:00.000-05:00

The top portrait is of a young girl in a small village outside of Adidjan, where I was photographing women working to process cassava, a starchy root crop. The second is a portrait of a cocoa pod filled with cocoa beans. I had no idea this is what the fruit looks look from where we get chocolate. You can actually eat the white flesh (the beans are inside) and it tastes delicious.

Houkami Football Club

2007-06-26T14:12:00.000-05:00

Today I arrived at my hotel in Cote d'Ivoire and ended up having the afternoon off; so I decided to find my own photo assignment. I've been wanting to shoot a soccer match since arriving in Africa and saw my opportunity across the street from the hotel. I was a bit concerned leaving the grounds with no local escorts, but decided to chance it anyway. The hotel grounds actually look more like a prison than a comfortable place of lodging; complete with barbed wire, guards and metal gates. But, this would probably be my only chance and life is all about taking a chance. So I headed out with a backpack filled with roughly $15,000 worth of camera gear and some broken French. I walked across the street in a light rain and found a spot to shoot from on the sandy field. I only got a few frames off when I was approached by a man speaking rapid French, but with a welcoming smile. We made our introductions and I soon found out he was the president of the village football club, "Centre de Formation de Football Houkami." What a name! Sylvain, the president, then called each and every one of the two dozen players over so we could all be introduced. We ended up speaking (in French I can proudly say!) for about 15 minutes until the formalities were over and the match got under way. The rain let up and the sun burned its way through the clouds. I shot for maybe an hour until I noticed it was past time for me to take my anti-malarials. So I said goodbye to everyone and started to walk back. But Sylvain wanted to make sure I got back safely so he (and about 4 others) escorted me back to my door. Cote d'Ivoire is the poorest country we've been to and one of political turmoil and instability. But so far its people have been the friendliest.

Cape Coast

2007-06-25T14:29:00.001-05:00

I spent yesterday and this morning in the coastal fishing village of Cape Coast in Ghana. The site where thousands of slaves were held before being shipped off to the new world. A place where oppression and division began that eventually spearheaded a Civil War. It was a bit surreal. I didn't have a specific assignment, besides a portrait session in the afternoon, so I decided to try to find some women working at cleaning or cooking fish (women do not actually fish is this part of Africa). One of our local contacts took us deep into the village where the sandy road turned into more of a footpath. We drew a lot of stares but everyone was extremely friendly. In the end I didn't get a lot of images but a couple came out nice. I shot for maybe 20 minutes and left with a feeling I could have spent a month and barely scratched the surface of their story. I hope to one day return.

The Nutsheller

2007-06-25T11:46:00.000-05:00

My former omnipotent assistant photo editor sent me on a quest to find a nut-sheller during my journey through Africa. I searched far and wide and finally came across the elusive contraption in a remote fishing village along the Ghana coast. I hope you're happy Z-Man.

Kasese Goat Project

2007-06-22T13:05:00.000-05:00

Last Wednesday I departed Kenya in order to visit a goat project that has been installed to help the local women in southwestern Uganda near the D.R. Congo border. After an early flight from Nairobi to Kampala we departed on a six-hour journey across the Ugandan countryside, a car ride I will not soon forget. The first couple of hours of dodging potholes and slamming into random speed bumps while passing cars on blind hills were entertaining, but this soon grew stressful when night fell and our driver continued to race through dark villages at speeds in excess of 130 kph. I pictured villagers diving out of the way as we came screaming through, but they didn’t even give it a notice as we speed past, apparently unaware that death was just inches away. To them, the more entertaining notion was the mzungu (white man) in the passenger seat. The road turned from pavement to red dirt and back again countless times, sometimes even coming to a dead end with no warning. But apparently you just drive around these things on whatever path is available. No worries! Along the way we traveled through various “highway construction projects” were a lane was closed. Where should we go? Just drive in the other lane! Don’t worry about oncoming traffic. The Ugandans have a sophisticated system of flashing lights and honking horns in order to avoid head on collisions. And there’s no need to lower your speed, you can always just slam on your breaks to approaching cars if the road becomes too narrow, or better yet, don’t slow down and drive on the side of the road. This way you can kick up a lot of dirt as you come fishtailing back onto the road; this really helps add to the ambiance of driving in Eastern Africa. We finally arrived at the hotel, stiff and white knuckled and we managed to only get lost once. We got a few hours sleep and the next morning headed into the foothills to check on the goat project. After about 45 minutes of shooting I was then informed we had to cram back into our vehicle in order to met another contact in Kampala by 4. So if your keeping count, that’s a total of 12 hours of driving with less than one hour of shooting. Along the way back one of the rear tires finally grew tired of slamming into speed bumps at a high rate of speed and decided to blow out. Thankfully there was a spare and a jack so I had us back on the road in less than 10 minutes. We got back to Accra a few minutes late but our subject had apparently decided she couldn’t wait on us any longer and was already out the door. We met her right before she was getting into a cab so I quickly composed a portrait, fired about 5 frames and she was gone. At least it was something. I finally got back to my hotel bed that night around 1100pm just in time to get 2 1/2 hours of sleep before catching a 5am flight to Accra, Ghana.

I LOVE IT

Red Soil School

2007-06-18T13:22:00.000-05:00

This is the Red Soil School outside the village of Ngong. Before I left for this trip I was asked to get some shots of girls in a classroom, but Winrock had not set anything up in advance. I asked how to go about doing this and was told to just walk in and ask. So while my writer was conducting an interview I went to explore a school next door. And just like I was told they were all too happy to show me around and let me take photos of the kids. This was completely different than shooting at a school in Springdale, Arkansas where the teachers try to set up your shots and harp you about getting permission slips from the kids' parents. The shot of the classroom was actually during their midterm exam! I hope a white man with a camera wasn't too much of a distraction.

The Rurii Women

2007-06-18T13:10:00.000-05:00

These images are from the Rurii Women's Group in the village of Kibiko near Nairobi, Kenya. They were taught to make these half-cooker baskets so they could sell them at the markets. We traveled to this village to document one of the projects a woman named Fridah Mugo oversees as part of the Winrock AWLAE documentary.

Next stop Nairobi

2007-06-15T09:10:00.000-05:00

I leave for Africa today. Check back for posts!

Diamonds & Dice

2007-06-12T17:06:00.001-05:00

I shot a promotional for the "Diamonds and Dice" charity event here in Fayetteville. It was last minute and I threw something together with only one light and a painted wall as a backdrop. Does the model look familiar?

The Great Smoky Mountains National Drive-In

2007-06-03T13:01:00.001-05:00

Last week I moved my girlfriend, Dianna, back from NYC to Arkansas and we decided to stop off in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It would turn out to be a big mistake. While heading out of the city we realized it was Memorial Day weekend and every suburban family in America would be fleeing their gated communities for the first summer vacation of 2007. After crossing the Tennessee border we stopped at a welcome center to get some info on the park. That's when we learned The Smokies were the MOST VISITED park in America, getting twice as many visitors as the Grand Canyon. I began to realized we might be making a huge mistake! So instead of driving to the park that night we found a spot to camp in the national forest off some Tennessee back road and had a great night in the woods. Monday morning we headed to the park and entered Tourist Town, USA (aka Gatlinburg) which should have been a foreshadow to run like hell. But still determined to check out some peaks we ventured on. Well to make a long story short - it took about 5 minutes in the park to realize this was not the place we wanted to be. Stressful traffic jams are not what I'm looking for when I go to the woods. So we found a pull off that didn't have 40 cars in the parking lot and hiked up to a small waterfall; then high-tailed it back to the Natural State.

New York Blues

2007-05-25T16:18:00.000-05:00

I haven't been shooting all that much since arriving in New York. But I did break out the ax yesterday to get a few shots. I didn't have enough time to work the shots like I wanted, so here are a couple of "almosts".

Who You Gonna Call? Ghost Busters!

2007-05-15T11:49:00.000-05:00

Crazy skies came rolling through the Fayetteville v. North Little Rock championship softball game on Friday. But there wasn't even a rain delay. I guess it was a storm breaking up or just forming.

Jube Overload

2007-05-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

This shot is from Fayetteville's championship game Saturday. I've covered 4 championship games in two days!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAALLL!!!

2007-05-08T12:45:00.000-05:00

This kid scored the winning goal in overtime for the High School 5A state championship game. He's was a little happy about that.

Playing in Dirt

2007-04-28T13:40:00.000-05:00

I was waiting for a race to start at a kids track meet when I saw this kid playing in the dirt in between his parents. I liked the bold shadows.

Playing With Shapes

2007-04-27T14:56:00.000-05:00

I found a couple of hispanic kids trying to get a ball that was stuck in a metal net while they were playing basketball at a park here in Springdale. I made a few images but none that made the paper. I liked the shapes in this photo so I decided to give it life here on my blog.

Sportrait Time

2007-04-24T15:57:00.000-05:00

My omnipotent assistant photo editor said he liked the second casual shot of the two in the seats; but our sports department usurped him and ran the other one. The top shot is my typical style, but I wanted to try something different with the second shot. What do you think?

This is the high school girls player of the year and coach of the year.

Jumping For Joy

2007-04-22T19:54:00.000-05:00

This shot is from the long jump at the John McDonnell track invitational. Alain Bailey (the guy in the photo) won the event by jumping 25 feet 3.25 inches! That doesn't even sound real!
But what really attracts me to this image is the fact that it looks like some guy jumping for joy while being surrounded by a group of other guys who look disappointed. Like he just beat them in a dice game or something.

Sky Fishing

2007-04-21T11:21:00.000-05:00

I know I haven't been updating as much lately, I've just been busy at work. But, I promise I'll turn up the frequency now. This photo is from an afterschool fishing program to teach kids to fly fish. I thought this would be a cool angle since there was such a beautiful sky. I'm glad I didn't take a hook to the face!

Special Election

2007-04-11T15:46:00.000-05:00

Special elections were held yesterday and I was sent out to rural Benton County to find art. This community was voting on funding for the local volunteer fire department (I think a total of 187 votes were cast). The woman above made my day. She was very eccentric, which makes for a great photo subject. And the paper ran the photo 5 columns!

Back From Iraq

2007-04-06T15:03:00.000-05:00

I was meaning to post these photos last month, but I completely forgot. It's from another soldier homecoming after serving a tour in Iraq. I was trying to get something a bit different, so I focused on this kid who was trying to be as patient as possible. But a parade of speakers all had their turn at the podium to talk about how brave these guys were for serving their country. I also liked all the lines and shapes of the building with everyone in formation.

Baseball Weather

2007-04-03T12:44:00.000-05:00

I know it has been awhile since my last post. I've been in a shooting slump since coming back from New York. But Spring is here with geat color and dramatic blue skies! Which means the shift from basketball to baseball (or softball like the above photo).

George Washington Bridge

2007-03-17T17:19:00.000-05:00

I'll stick with the bridge theme: George Washington Bridge, Washington Heights. Oh yeah, and it decided to snow a few inches yesterday. Two days ago Dianna and I were in t-shirts sitting outside at night.

Brooklyn Heights

2007-03-15T12:43:00.000-05:00

I finally got to check out some of the other boroughs besides Manhattan this trip.

The Brooklyn Bridge

2007-03-13T16:05:00.000-05:00

The Ring Flash (pie pan) Returns!

2007-03-08T15:17:00.000-06:00

I broke out my ring flash contraption again the other day. I love the quality of light that thing gives off! One of these days I'm going to break down and fork over the money for a "legitimate" light. But the $2 homemade version still rocks.

Dark Side Of The Moon

2007-03-03T19:17:00.000-06:00

Tonite's mystical Lunar Eclipse. Sorry, I couldn't resist the title.

Run Forrest Run!

2007-02-25T17:48:00.000-06:00

I just finished shooting the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships in Lexington, Kentucky. This is my favorite shot from the three day event. But there aren't any Artkansas runners in the photo, so it will probably never get published. This is why I love my blog so very very much!

Back In The Big Apple

2007-02-17T15:17:00.000-06:00

And it is freakin' cold!! The top shot is a street vendor selling delicious smelling kebabs, the second one is the beautiful Dianna eating a salad at a diner and the bottom image is a friendly guard from the Museum of Modern Art.

Polar Bear Plunge

2007-02-13T18:13:00.000-06:00

I covered a polar bear plunge this weekend at Beaver Lake and even managed to make a slideshow out of the entire 15 minute event. I was happy with my photos but the audio is kind of weak. So I book-ended the show with some funk music they were playing at the lake, and it seemed to liven it up a bit. Let me know what you think.

Click here to view the movie.

Smacked In The Head

2007-02-07T16:35:00.000-06:00

Another day of snow...another day of snow features. I shot this at the end of my work week last Friday. Now it is 60 degrees and the snow is all gone. Gotta love winter time in Arkansas!

In case you're wondering what is going on in the photo: one of the kids is trying to put a jacket on while his "friend" blindsides him with a snowball. Good times!

Snow Day

2007-02-01T12:18:00.000-06:00

We've actually had a real winter this year in Northwest Arkansas and it's snowing again. We got about 2 inches yesterday and it may snow more today. This is a photo of a kid waiting on the bus to take him home after school was let out a couple hours early.

Hide 'n Seek

2007-01-27T16:25:00.000-06:00

30,000 pounds of chicken + Arkansas football players = players hiding between the boxes to smack each other with snow balls

I wish I could of run this photo in the paper, but alas...it didn't tell the story. Or maybe it told the story a little bit too well.

Yummy Light

2007-01-25T13:12:00.000-06:00

This is from (I kid you not) a protest rally against the University of Arkansas' football coach. It always blows my mind when I run across people whose lives revolve around sports. Do they really have nothing else to be passionate about? ...anyway... As I was walking away I noticed the light filtering through this big tree and thought it was a nice moment. I wish the protesters were more evenly spaced, but this still worked.

Remote Experiment

2007-01-20T13:39:00.000-06:00

So I've decided to expand my photographic skills by learning how to use remote cameras. This past week I set one up at the Razorback's game against Georgia. Thankfully the camera didn't fall off the backboard and kill anyone! I just need to kill the glare at the bottom of the frame with a mask around the lense...and a better camera position so the square is gone...also using strobes would really help the quality. Basically there's a lot of room for improvement, but I was happy since it was my first attempt.

Putt-Putt

2007-01-19T11:36:00.000-06:00

This is from an assignment at a Golf Expo. It was a bit of a challenge trying to find something that wasn't extremely boring. While this may not be extremely exciting, I think it moves up from extremely boring to somewhat less boring. But hey, it's golf.

Richland Creek Wilderness

2007-01-15T18:04:00.000-06:00

Last week I took a few days off work to spend some time in the woods with Dianna before she went back to New York. We spent three days in the Richland Creek Wilderness and it was an amazing time. I can't wait to get back, one could spend a lifetime exploring all the canyons and creeks. Bushwhacking in a wilderness area really shows how limited you are when you stay on trails.

Puzzle Girl

2007-01-06T13:56:00.000-06:00

No, this isn't from the same assignment as puzzle boy. I guess I was subconsciously shooting a theme this week.

Puzzle Boy

2007-01-06T13:42:00.000-06:00

I've never had the patience to actually finish one of these things nor the desire. Hope everyone had a Happy New Year.

Kid In The Park

2006-12-30T12:14:00.001-06:00

So earlier this month I was glad I didn't have to resort to photographing kids in the park. This is one of several from the week! Hopefully things will pick up after the holidays.

Ring Flash/Pie Pan

2006-12-26T10:14:00.000-06:00

I've been wanting to use a ring flash for a long time, but could never afford the roughly $1000 to buy the flash and accompanying lens. So I decided to rig one up and managed to do so for less than $3! Basically I just cut a few holes in a disposable pie pan (one for the lens and the other for my flash), set a camera up on a tripod and made adjustments until I got the effect. It's not as smooth as a "real" ring light, but I think it's pretty good for spending two bucks and some change. It does take some explaining when you break it out in front of your subject.

Happy Holidays

2006-12-25T23:59:00.000-06:00

Light Warm Up

2006-12-19T18:13:00.000-06:00

There was a window running the entire length of this pool and the sun was setting, which cast a single beam of light across the water before a high school swim meet I was sent to cover. I was hoping the light would stay around until the meet got under way, but it stayed only long enough for the warm-ups. Oh well, next time.

Casey Jones

2006-12-16T10:26:00.000-06:00

It's Christmas time, which means it's time to wash the trains! This is a feature shot I found while driving around to find Springdale's lead art. I was glad I didn't have to resort to photographing some kid at the park.

Busted

2006-12-12T12:37:00.000-06:00

This past weekend I went down to Little Rock to cover the 3A high school state football championship and managed to get what could be my favorite football photo of the year. As you can see above the quarterback has obviously fumbled the ball while being sacked, which was picked up and ran back for a defensive touchdown. But the referee said the quarterback was already down when he fumbled the ball and called the touchdown back. This is one of the coolest things about being a photgrapher: you always have instant replay. But of course my paper never ran the photo.