Newsweek holds a party for American Lion.

Sorry I haven't updated in awhile. Last time I attempted to update I fell victim to a vicious attack of censorship. But we shall not speak of such things. I just want to move on.

These pictures are from an event I shot over a year ago! Unfortunately I have a serious backlog of pictures and with each post I say that I am going to attempt to pick up the pace with my editing. This time is no different. I sincerely want to move forward because I have been shooting some extremely fun and exciting new projects. These pictures are from a book release party for American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House. Jon Meacham, editor of Newsweek, won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography with this book. I have not been able to read it because of all my other obligations as an English teacher. However, I would like to get a chance to pick it up. The New York Times loved the book. I've included a review of it above. I also want to add that if Mr. Meacham or anyone from Newsweek reads my lowly blog please do not censor me. When giant media companies become scared of a high school English teacher's blog, I feel like I've entered the twilight zone. And I don't mean the movie with all those model-esq vampires.



Brian Williams from NBC's Nightly News was also at the party. I had to do my paparazzi impression and grab some images of him. This is the closest I will ever come to experiencing Anchor Man. By the way, clicking here or on any of the above pictures will take you to the whole gallery of images that I have uploaded.

I know that my work needs to move beyond just having rich people making funny faces at the camera. These images prove that to me. I do think that these pictures are important and perhaps one or two of them deserve a place alongside a larger project like American Pastimes. But alone, these just do not cut it. I have also heard that I need to get closer to my subjects. I'm not sure that is the problem. I'm more convinced that I need a better context with which to place the images. Another way of saying it is that I need a larger idea.

I hope that some of the newer work I have shot will address that. I've been traveling with Matt Baum in search of pictures. Some of the work from those trips I feel will address this issue. I just need to catch up enough with my editing to begin to work with it.

Last but not least, I will be in an upcoming group show called No Hands. It will be at Hiding Gallery. More information about submission to the show can be found here.

Miles From Home

I would officially like to welcome all of my blog readers to the upcoming group show Miles From Home. This show is the first in an upcoming collective involving SVA Alumni. Personally I am very excited and proud to be a part of this fine group of art-makers.

The official press release is as follows,

"In the group show Miles From Home, twelve artists explore the fragmentary and shifting nature of the world around them in correlation to their own development as a newly established collective of creative individuals. The typical notion of 'home' is one of safety and stability; but 'home', particularly now, is subjective, constantly changing, and often based on illusory memories.

Within this realm of uncertainty, these artists utilize the photographic medium to explore the roles that risk play in their lives and work. An artist coming into their own at any time faces the unknown, gazes into the void, and takes a risk by plunging in, by making work, by not giving into society's obvious structures, and by creating their own community within which to create, inspire, and take chances. As the models around us undergo a series of great shifts— in the economy, in the art market, in technology, in distribution modes, in communication itself—these artists see themselves presented with opportunity.

This collection of work does not try to provide answers, or to prophesy the future. Rather, these artists are building their own maps, creating their own pathways through the world and their work, and seeking the roads that will move them forward. They are taking hold of an unpredictable future with a firmer grasp, this show being the first result of their collective strength and inspiration."

The show will be open until September 20th, however only on Saturdays and Sundays. If you want to meet me in person and speak with me I will be at the opening on Saturday, September 5th from 2-5pm and I'll be gallery sitting on Sunday, September 20th from 12 to 6pm.

I would love to meet other artist and I also hope I get to make some new friends.
Cya at the show!

Frank Cisneros takes me to a wine tasting.

My favorite sommelier (yes I had to look up the spelling) took me to a wine buyers tasting in Central Park. The way I saw it my favorite part was taking pictures of all the people attending. When it comes down to attending recreational activities everyone seems equally engaged. I think that is apparent when viewing these photos against my previous NASCAR images or any other images from my collection.



I've started the National Park Service project. I've been shooting it all month and will have images up from some of these first shoots up on this site shortly.

I'd like to also mention that a show I will be exhibiting in will be opening this Saturday, September 5th. The website to check that work out is www.milesfromhome.us.

NASCAR at Richmond International Raceway.

Here is a gallery of photographs from the NASCAR Sprint Cup in Richmond, VA 2008. Jimmie Johnson was the winner. Why do NASCAR drivers all have names like that? Jimmie Johnson...doesn't sound like much of a way to broaden the demographic of people who watch the race. But as these pictures show, it's business as usual there. That isn't to say it isn't fun. These people totally know how to party. In fact they arrive at the track, bright and early, around sunrise in order to secure a parking spot, crack open some beers, and get the festivities rolling.

This following picture pretty much sums up the political feelings of the people at the races. I bet the guy that took his gun to protest reform at the President Obama's Health Care Town Hall Meeting in New Hampshire on Aug 12, 2009, is a fan of NASCAR.


All politicking aside, I did enjoy myself at the event and taking pictures of the party and event was much more open to photographers than many other sporting events I have covered. The important thing to remember is that everyone has feelings and desires regardless of what stereotypes we choose to associate with them.


In other news I know these photographs are a year old. I'm making a push to get caught up with my work. Leaving the newspaper industry last year was one of the hardest things I've ever done. I loved doing it everyday but the financial realities are simple. It was unsustainable. Therefore I was put into a picture taking funk for about a year. Clearly I've been shooting again and now I'm ready to begin posting that work. FYI I am also enjoying my new career track in secondary school teaching.

Alright, well that about wraps this up. I do have a show coming out soon. I will be posting about it in the near future.

Shooting all Summer Long

Sorry I havn't updated recently. At least I have been doing lots of photography. I've been out on the road starting a project I mentioned awhile ago. So far its called NPS or National Park Service. I won't say more now (because I won't be posting photos from the shoots yet) but I am really liking where it is going.

I will post some pictures of my 2nd cousin Johnny and the wood carvings he creates. They are super good! Seriously, if anyone is in the Virginia Beach area and interested in checking them out, then hit me up. He carves them all by hand with simple, woodworking tools. During a brief interview I also found out that these skills developed through being self-taught. Anyway, enough talk. Check out these nautical themed wood-works.







One final note, I recently joined with a group of my fellow SVA alumni in an effort to create an art collective. We are currently working on our first show. It should be sometime next month. More details will be posted as they become available.

SVA MFA Photo Thesis Show 2009

I can't believe a year has gone by since I graduated from the School of Visual Arts. Time really hit me today when I went to check out this years graduates. While I had fun visiting my old classmates, hearing stories about how everyone was doing, and checking out all the new artwork, I must say that for the most part I was disappointed with the output from this class.

Overall I just felt that no one took any risks. I know I encountered this argument even when I was in art school but it just seemed as if all the photographers were scared of tackling their subjects. There were too many pictures of trees, abandoned buildings and people way off in the distance. My praxis is that if one has something to say about the subject, hit the viewer over the head with it. Otherwise it just becomes lost in the onslaught of images that one sees daily.

There were some notable exceptions. My personal favorite was Tina Schula. Her work seemed to be about the escape of Nazi war criminals following the end of World War II. The concept is packed with intrigue. The photographs live up the expectations as far as drama is concerned. My only critique is that I wonder if the viewer would understand if written documentation was unavailable. Some other artists worth checking out include Yiftach Belsky and Lissa Rivera. Both of these artists had theatrical pieces in the show but they came across neatly.

I'd say check the show out. It runs from June 12 — 27, 2009 and is located at
Visual Arts Gallery
601 West 26 Street, Suite 1502
New York, NY.

High School Girl's Softball

Once again I've been shooting for Five Boro Sports. They are great guys to work with and I admit, it's always fun to shoot the kids, especially now that I'm on my way towards working in a high school as a teacher.



While it may not be the most glamorous job, high school sports are at least very fun to do and the access I receive at these events is way more than I could ever hope for with pro-sports. It seems to me that in the Internet Age more and more corporations are going to be doing their own media promotion. Both the National Football League and Major League Baseball are perfect examples. Both have total control over the use of images that photographers take at their games as well as strong media arms that promote the sports in house, on their websites. The NFL has taken it a step further by forcing newspaper photographers to wear vests with advertisements on them, while shooting the games. The NFL has also refused to allow unconditional use of images to newspapers that they once did allow. Basically, as mass media looses readership, corporations are learning they themselves can fill this gap. The point here being, that while high school or college sports are no where near as prominent as professional sports, at least I don't have to deal with the bureaucratic machines that these higher level sports teams have become.



Check out the whole article on the game here. Or from the loosing perspective here.

Last but not least, here is my gallery of shots, and Five Boro's gallery of shots.


Next week I'm going up to Buffalo. Hopefully I'll be able to shoot a project there I have been trying to get done for six months. Keep you posted.