fiddle me this

Continuing work on my Missouri Fiddler's project.

smile

It's been a tough one, but you still work hard and smile while doing it. You pray to your creator daily. I'm not sure if he or she listens. I'm not sure if that matters. I listen and I love you. My heart will always roam with yours.

highway blues

Some snaps from my journey back from Barnstorm. I was loosely working on a story about human trafficking, but I was really just letting all the ideas from the weekend bang around in my head. It seems Barnstorm means a lot, to a lot of people. For me, it was the first major photo accomplishment that I ever really gave a damn about achieving. Now that it's over, I'm not sure what it means to me. I am not friends with many photographers. I don't really enjoy talking shop. I think the more you know about other things in life, and the less you know about photography, the better photographer you will be. The whole thing seemed a little elitist, but that's the nature of the beast I guess. If I had to take a lesson away from the weekend, it would be that hard work pays off. You can have all the talent in the world, but if your a lazy bitch, you will get nowhere.

And yes, I did get a ticket.

Dmitry Korkin

Dmitry was a teenage numbers whiz from the Soviet Socialist Republic of Kazakhstan. Korkin not only aced his college entrance exam, but also pointed out errors in the test questions. He is a 31-year-old assistant professor of computer engineering at MU and was nice enough to ride up and down this elevator for about 30 minutes while I made these portraits.

b-ball preview

I photographed Mizzou point guard J.T. Tiller for the basketball preview in our winter issue of Mizzou. We are turning the first image into a poster, so I will post as soon as the design is done.

Baltimore plane break

You come on like gangbusters laying it thick
Arboreal sleestack lost in the sticks
It's warm for a witchtrial, don't you agree
Cold are the hands that would ever touch me

You got the energy of a classic creep
With sex vibe for miles and shark eyes asleep
No intuition, no need to sleuth
Poor is the man who would sully my view

A one minute story is all that you are
A song undeveloped, beyond the first bar
For all of your hustle, what did you win
Woe is the man with the cheshire cat grin

You criticize life
You criticize pain
You criticize situations you’ve never been in
But dawn for the dilletants will come soon enough
Alright

The panic is leaking through every clear pore
Your animus weakened acetylene torch
So root for the crucifix on the skull full of rot
Alright

I’m in love with the people
I’m in love with a saint
I’m in love with a soldier from Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore

-Stephen Malkmus

I could use a new turtleneck

Mike

Some of my most real and intimate moments have been with complete strangers. Within minutes of meeting them, they open up their hearts to me. Why doesn't the bagger at the grocery store do this? Why doesn't my boss come up and poor her heart out on my desk? Doesn't anyone have any guts anymore? doesn't anyone have a heart, or a good story?

Tonight I'm up thinking about the real people. The stern survivors. The unbelievers who do their best at this thing called life. Tonight, I'm thinking of you, Mike.

this time tomorrow

Happy Halloween Eddie

goodbye, for now

I have not used this blog very often to express my personal life. I usually save that content for my journal, which I have not been using much lately. In an effort to increase everyday reflection on my life, my family and all the smiles, tears, adventures and hardships that go along with that, I am going to start posting more personal content.

Today I leave for the Eddie Adams workshop. It's an intensive four day workshop held in Jeffersonville, NY. I am very humbled and excited to be a part of this prestigious experience. I am going to go into this with no inhibitions or preconceptions. I am going to open my heart, my ears and my eyes and internalize everything I can.

Although I am very excited to get the trip under way, I didn't consider how hard it would be leaving Cohen for more than a couple hours. This will be the first time that we will spend more than 12 hours apart. It's and interesting emotional experience, to love something so much it hurts, but I have cherished every second so far. People say that parenting is the greatest thing ever. The jury is still out, but I can see how it could be true.

I snapped this picture before I dropped off Cohen at the sitters and headed to the airport. It's amazing. Cohen really looks at you. He studies everything he sees. I will miss that look.

See you in one week,

-dad-

fly on the wall

When I am working with subjects I try and be a fly on the wall, but lately, I have been feeling like this?

football preview

Just wrapped up our 2009 football preview. I thought we executed our concept well. I think Kurtis Gregory ate four bowls of cereal.




Mizzou Art Director and super-duper design genius Blake Dinsdale created this behind the scenes video of the shoot.

love

Am I sure about this?

I shot some engagement photos this weekend for a wedding that I am shooting in October. Sarah and Mike were great to work with and Shane and I had a good time on the shoot, despite the 5:30 am wake up call.

I am still up in the air about weddings in general, but I had a good time on this shoot. I like the pictures that I made, but I feel they have a stock quality them that is almost inescapable. That is my issue with this type of work. It's very hard to not use a stylistic crutch. I don't know, all in all, I am happy and I think they will be too.

Here is a small selection of what I shot.

The beginning stages

I have a son. His name is Cohen Isaac. He wakes me up in the middle of the night. I don’t even mind much. His neck bobbles like a bowl of jelly and his eyes bounce from object as he begins to absorb his new world. I can tell he is a dreamer. This world needs more of them. These are the beginning stages of his life.

ROTC

I have been revisiting some old work lately. This is a new edit of a story that I shot last year. I think it still needs some work, but I like where it is going.

fiddlers

A wiswer man than I

Running Deer.

legs, belly, hand and eyes

legs and eyes

confessions?

not on the 25th!

vanity fair

mushroom hunting

Lyndon, KS.

Rosebud, MO

Female reporter: "If you could've found out what Rosebud meant, I bet that would've explained everything."

Thompson: "No, I don't think so; no. Mr. Kane was a man who got everything he wanted and then lost it. Maybe Rosebud was something he couldn't get, or something he lost. Anyway, it wouldn't have explained anything... I don't think any word can explain a man's life. No, I guess Rosebud is just a... piece in a jigsaw puzzle... a missing piece."

felipe goodbye

the first of many!