Scream

Somehow, these shots of Alkemie Jane from our "Psych Ward" session seem to sum things up at the moment...

Drafted

Just looked, and I have over 40 draft posts in my blogger queue, mostly just a photo or two, or a few words from a stifled rant.

Someone asked me "why have a blog if you're not going to say anything?"

I guess so I can post pictures.

From top to bottom, Engel, Adrianna, and Naughtya

Help me find my proper place...

Not sure why I like to have models strike "the Jesus pose" every so often when shooting. Maybe it's my persecution complex manifesting. Usually it's when a setting is somehow evocative of the pose in my mind. (There's a perfect setting near my house, but it's at a VERY busy intersection that's pretty poorly lit, so I'm not sure how I'll tackle it, but someday...) Found an interesting site, Female Christ in Arts, so I guess I'm not alone in this predilection. I don't really mean to be blasphemous, although that's not something I tend to shy away from either. It is just a dramatic pose that often works for me, and the suggested symbolism is there for the viewer to interpret.

When shooting a standing model in this pose, I may have them hold it for a couple minutes, after which they report that they had a little trouble breathing in that position. Guess that's not surprising... sometimes my models suffer a bit for my art.

My Jesus figures, from top to bottom, are Tiana, Kiki, and Karla. May God have mercy on their souls.

Barrel Roll

My iPod takes an interminably long time to update for some reason, so while I'm waiting for that, just a stray thought or two.

Obviously, Engel wearing an orange barrel on the street IS art.

Had a brief thrill this week when I was contacted by a photo editor at the New York Times asking permission to run one of my shots of Katie Reider in a profile they were doing. I of course granted permission and sent them the high res file immediately. Then they decided there was only room for one photo, which would be the typical singing/playing guitar shot, so mine would not be used. I think I jinxed it when I mentioned it to some people I know in NYC, hoping they could grab me a copy (it was set to run in the Metro section, only available in NYC) so the cosmos must have caught wind of it and stomped on it. When I first got the news, Tia said that it must be karma, after doing what I could to spread the word and promote her fundraiser, which felt sort of warm and fuzzy as a concept. Following that logic, having it pulled out from under me must also be karma, too, possibly for being excited about having a photo published as part of an obituary. Obviously thinking it would be used, then to have it "killed" is harsher than never being considered at all.

Turns out the article focused largely on Katie's continuing to keep faith in God, despite the devastating illness that caused her so much suffering before her death. I don't know... I simply couldn't believe in any god that would subject someone to that kind of torture just to teach them some sort of a lesson. Katie had a female life partner with whom she had two children, a lifestyle so vilified by most "Christians" that it seems to me to add an extra irony to her managing to keep her faith. So many "Christians" would tell her that it must be God's wrath and punishment for being homosexual, yet she kept her understanding of God clear in her mind. While I don't share her belief, I do have to admit that her faith was mighty strong.

Flickrish

Have decided to try to get better use of my Flickr account and do a bit of a "pilot program" where every weekday, I'll upload 5 semi-random photos for everyone's perusal. Maybe all from the same shoot, or all different shoots, or whatever. So, if you're looking for new images from me, you can check me there. Please comment on the pictures there... it will help convince me that it's a worthwhile effort.

By the way, I'm not sure how the little "Images from my Flickr" gadget in the right-hand column chooses images... seems to be no logic to it that I understand, but they don't seem to randomize, either. Any clues anyone?

Here's Sadie... you'll have to look at Flickr to see if I posted more of her there or not.

Bonjour NuExpo.com visitors ...encore!

Saw that the good folks over at NuExpo.com picked three more of my shots to feature on their main page. Merci beaucoup to models Lisolette, Evearella, and IXI Burlesque. By the way, if you click on the "Interview" link, you'll get to read their French translation... if you're interested in the original English, read it here. Merci encore, NuExpo!

Lisolette Revisited

Finally had a chance to briefly catch up with Lisolette and it sounds like she's doing quite well after her move a few months ago... "I'm very happy and everything is fantastic" she reports. Can't ask for much more than that out of life.

In honor of her newfound happiness, and potentially another shoot in the fall, here are a few more from our shoot late last year. Looking forward to it, Liso!

Katie Reider, 1978-2008

I found out that Katie Reider passed away this morning due to complications from her fight with cancer. While I'd only met Katie once, in 2006, I did have the pleasure of spending the better part of a day with her and her band taking photographs and just hanging out. She was truly a firecracker of a person and a performer, and I really felt fortunate to meet her and work with her. Here are a few of the many nice shots we got that day...

As her career took off, performances in the area seemed less frequent, and my schedule more hectic with frequent trips on weekends, so I never quite managed to get to see her perform again. Then I started hearing about her health problems, and before I knew it, she was so sick she'd stopped performing. I'd sent words of encouragement thinking she'd recover before long and resume performing. But that's not to be...

While it's tragic when someone like Katie passes, it also serves as a wake-up call to the rest of us that our time is short, and that friends often leave us too soon, and that we'll wish we'd made more time for the important people in our lives. This lesson tends to hit home, but as things return to normal, it's easy to get caught up again in the daily demands of life. I'm going to do my best not to let that happen this time.

Goodbye Katie, your remarkable life and talent will live on in your many fans, friends and family.

For more information, click here or here or visit the band website.

Evearella More

The lithe Evearella More, from our first shoot at Collingwood... hoping for more in the future!

Trapped

Miss IXI Burlesque in a couple tight spots in a filthy hotel in Detroit.

Missy

4th of July

4th of July (by Dave Alvin, performed by X)

She's waitin' for me
when I get home from work
oh, but things just ain't the same
She turns out the lights
and cries in the dark
won't answer when I call her name

On the stairs I smoke a
cigarette alone
Mexican kids are shootin'
fireworks below
Hey baby, it's the Fourth of July
Hey baby, it's the Fourth of July

Whatever happened I
apologize
dry your tears and baby
walk outside, it's the Fourth of July

That's a song I've listened to every year on the 4th of July for at least 10 or 15 years now, and its always spoke to me of being a song about reconciliation. I was just now outside watching the neighborhood fireworks, and my mind drifted to how the fireworks are symbolic of "the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air" and how the 4th of July really commemorates the start of the country's pursuit of independence, whereas we really don't celebrate September 3rd, when the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783.

The fireworks also brought to mind another song lyric, from XTC's All of a Sudden:

Life's like a firework,
You're only lit once,
And you must stand and radiate correctly.

For almost nothing is more fleeting than a firework -- ignited, flying to the sky, exploding into brilliant colors and thunder, then cooling to embers and ash and falling to earth. The XTC boys are right... in many ways, life is fleeting, and you really just have the one chance to do it, so make the grandest display and noise you can while you can, for soon your ashes will fall to earth.

July 4th weekend really marks the start of my current photographic endeavors, three years now. As I've said before, I'm slowing down the shooting for the next couple months to try to catch up on editing, avoid the worst of the summer heat, and try to start planning ahead for year four...

...and whatever happened, I apologize.

July Already?

Sometimes, she goes by Rabbit...