.: introductions :.

Meet a few of my favorite things (mostly people)

2009-12-15T01:21:00.003-06:00

I'm finally catching up with my blogging and have a few random pictures from the several trips I took to Boston this summer while living in NYC. I decided just to lump them all into one post. Enjoy!

A Holga sunset on Comm. Ave. I miss BU.

Andy's always got his head in the clouds, which is why I love him. One of the freest spirits I know.

Cal & Kym after we napped in a park in the North End during their visit from Australia. Love love love these two and was so very glad I could see them while they were stateside.

My friend Tyler is preparing to be a minister and let me tell you, he's already a pretty darn good one.

Toward the end of one of our many deep conversations, this one in the basement of Marsh Chapel.

Meet the Bronx

2009-12-15T01:03:00.005-06:00

While living in New York City this summer, my explorations took me to all five boroughs and, not surprisingly, the new Yankee stadium was my excuse to visit the Bronx. As a Red Sox loyalist, however, I had a rule that I would go only if I didn't have to pay for the ticket. As it so happened, a friend I met in the city called me about three hours before game time one Sunday with a free ticket (in a really, REALLY good section), so I scrambled to get myself up there to see this new billion dollar stadium.

And, there it is, shot with my Holga. Pretty nice place and, though it pains me to say so, I got to see ARod hit a home run in his home stadium.

I strong-armed my friend Cassie into joining me because I thought the phrase "I have tickets" meant two tickets but it didn't, though she got in with a ticket anyway after a really hilarious story that, sadly, can only really be told by her and she hasn't blogged about it yet. She had the best sunglasses for making fun pictures.

Meet Mr. & Mrs. Bennett

2009-11-25T13:58:00.005-06:00

Here, finally, are some pictures from when my friend Staci got married in August in Iowa. It was a beautiful (albeit sweltering, temps were definitely three digits) outdoor ceremony and a lovely indoor reception at her parents' place in the country. I had a lot of fun shooting these two crazy kids, having fun especially with my film cameras - Holga, Minolta Autocord, Pentax K1000 and even a Lomo fisheye.

Ode to Grant Wood

From the pseudo engagement photos, taken the day before the wedding.

Cute!

Hangin' out, gettin' ready, bein' shmoopy.

BRIDEZILLA!

Just before the ceremony.

New suit.

Married smooch.

"And they lived happily ever after."

Meet Mr. & Mrs. Smith

2009-11-24T16:46:00.002-06:00

Continuing along with summer wedding posts, here are pictures from when my friends Emily and Austin got married in August. Though they live in NYC now, they tied the knot in our home state of Iowa and were kind enough to schedule their wedding on a day that let those of us in town for the wedding also hit up the Iowa State Fair. (And if you're from Iowa, you know how big of a deal the fair is.)

I've known both of these kids since middle school--14 years total--and actually knew them both independently before they started dating at the end of our senior year. Again, it was so cool to reconnect with our high school crew and to see a couple so happy and in love. The reception was amazing and I was too busy dancing and laughing to take many pictures, though I think the shot of their first dance together is my favorite.

The ceremony.

Picture time!

I really loved those ties.

Such simple elegance - the whole wedding was gorgeous.

I think this sums them up pretty well.

This picture always makes me laugh.

Aw...

Meet Mr. & Mrs. McLeod

2009-11-24T16:16:00.002-06:00

I'm sorry for neglecting the blawg, dear readers. I found a bunch of photos from the summer that I forgot to post, so during this Thanksgiving break, I'll be putting up some catch-up posts for you to enjoy with your turkey.

So, I'm reaching that age where my friends are starting to get hitched, which means I can actually attend weddings, rather than just photograph them (Don't get me wrong, though. I actually LOVE photographing weddings! Hire me for yours!)

The first couple whose nuptials I witnessed this summer (was invited to five, made it to three) are Chris and Alex, who I know through our time served at BU's Daily Free Press. It was great to see them and to see some friendly faces from the newsroom. I got to go to the rehearsal dinner and actually chat with them a bit and then had a great time the next day at the DFP/BU table. Chris and Alex have been one of the greatest, kindest, most inspiring couples I've had the fortune of knowing and I was honored to get to share in their big day.

A quiet moment at the rehearsal dinner.

Such a lovely bride!

Hitched!

First dance.

The groom and his mother break it down.

Basically, this is how our table was for the entire reception.

Meet the MU Homecoming Step Show

2009-10-24T18:23:00.003-05:00

I went to a step show today -- my second, I think (I went to one of Boston University's Soulstice shows). It was pretty awesome to finally witness first-hand all the stepping and strolling and traditions of the various fraternities and sororities. I brought my camera, because that's what I do, and ended up capturing a few images I thought I'd share with you here.

If you're really interested in the subject, check out the work by my friend Jarrad Henderson.

Meet an Iowan sunset

2009-10-19T09:50:00.005-05:00

[ Note: This post looks best/most accurate when viewed on the most recent version of Safari. But I hope you enjoy them no matter what browser you're using. --Management. ]

Yesterday, I was driving home from a visit to my mother up in Iowa and I kept noticing how beautiful the fields were and thought about how amazing the sunset would be. Since I had a camera and was in no great hurry, I pulled off Highway 163 onto Route 14 near Monroe and drove around through the back roads (all gravel), essentially chasing the sunset.

It was worth every second. This was one of the best sunsets I've seen in a long time and my photos don't even begin to do it justice. A hundred and eighty degrees of technicolor neon brilliance. At one point, it didn't even look real.

The last shot was taken right after the sun sank below the horizon. I didn't add that vignette, that's how it came out of camera. I dig it, though, and think the image feels warm and cold at the same time. What do you think?

Meet some MPW outtakes

2009-10-14T20:24:00.007-05:00

Below are some of my favorite pictures from the Missouri Photo Workshop in Festus, Mo., that didn't make my final edit. Enjoy!

Meet Main Street USA

2009-10-04T00:29:00.008-05:00

Tonight was the final night of the 2009 Missouri Photo Workshop, which was such a tremendous, heartening experience for me that I can't yet put it into words. But I do have my final collection of pictures, an essay on "Main Street USA." I'm very happy with my images and very happy with the final product of my first attempt at a photo essay. Infinite thanks to my faculty members, Maggie Steber and John Isaac.

(I very, very highly recommend viewing this in full screen mode. Click the icon with four arrows in the lower right corner of the display.)

More photos from the workshop will be posted eventually.

Thanks for looking! What do you think?

Meet Charles

2009-09-26T02:40:00.001-05:00

Meet my Minolta Autocord and the PhotoJ picnic

2009-09-23T12:54:00.004-05:00

I finally got the film back of the photos I took at the previously posted Photojournalism "Welcome Back" picnic. I shot a roll of Ilford 50 ISO on my Minolta Autocord, metering with my Weston Master selenium meter. Nerdalicious. I'm still getting a hang of how best to shoot with the camera, particularly the focusing method, but here are some fun pictures.

Proof that Jakob Berr has successfully transitioned to American culture.

It wouldn't be a proper photo gatheration without a few photos of photographers photographing themselves taking photographs. (Yes, you read that right.)

See what I mean? Clint, with Kevin lurking in the background.

Photojournalism has never looked so cool.

Rita and Calin talk about serious things.

Rick is grillin' like a villain.

David and Calin made fire. They are proud.

Meet the St. James Grape and Fall Festival Parade

2009-09-12T20:58:00.005-05:00

--OR--

"We're On A Float! Winnin' plaques 'n' s***. We've got our spandex, and our flippie-floppies"
(To understand the reference, see this SNL digital short: On A Boat)

So my friend Josh Bickel edited a photo book on St. James, Missouri, for his Master's project and it was just published so he and his adviser/our professor Rita Reed and those of us photographers with work in the book who are still in the state built a big book float and rode in the town's Grape and Fall Festival parade today.

Photog's note: I shot these on 400-speed black and white film with a red filter.
Hellooooo, grain.

A giant book, which was then tethered to Josh, who was riding on a bike, "Bookin' it to St. James."

A Romanian and a German looking very American.

He's such a cherub.

Josh and a whole lotta spandex.

The float won first place among groups/organizations!

Josh is ready to go.

Rita said "we need to make sure to get shots of this float from the ground," so Jakob leaped off the bed of the truck, hit the deck and took this picture. She trained us well.

The photogs hit the pavement.

"We're on a float!"

Josh pulled that book for the whole parade. He was plumb tuckered out.

Meet the Missouri State Fair

2009-09-10T17:34:00.004-05:00

Sorry for such a long delay in posts. I've got a ton of photos from my last weeks on the East Coast, plus a pile of weddings, but my last semester of grad school is underway and I'm still trying to figure out how to balance my time. Anyway, that's not why you're here. You're here for photos! And photos I've got.

Before classes started, I went to the Missouri State Fair with some fellow J-School nerds. I am a true-blood native Iowan and will defend the superiority of its state fair to the death, but the Missouri State Fair surprised me with its offerings and "quality" food. The only thing we couldn't find were deep-fried candy bars, but something tells me that was for the best.

I've been playing around with my Pentax K1000 and the various lenses I have for it. I must say, I'll always love film more than digital. I just like the way the pictures feel and the mechanical sounds of the camera when I use it. You just can't beat it.

Deep-fried cheese on a stick for $4. It was like a grilled cheese sandwich but without the pesky bread part. Worth every penny.

I went to my first-ever circus and it was both free and AWESOME.
To quote myself, "That was the best first circus EVER."

DUDE, she almost touched the top of the BIG TOP!

This is a picture of 1900 people setting the Guinness World Record for most simlutaneous soda-Mentos geysers. As my friend Chad said after witnessing the feat, "That makes me really proud to be a part of Missouri."

We took in a few pig races. In the final, music-themed round, our corner was assigned to cheer for Squealy Nelson and our pig won! (Photographer's note: this was taken in the "Hail Mary" position and I am quite proud of the results.)

Time to go home after a long and fulfilling day at the Missouri State Fair. (Don't worry, Iowa State Fair, you will always have my heart.)

Meet the PhotoJ cookout

2009-09-10T17:54:00.006-05:00

To kick off the new semester, the Photojournalism department here at Mizzou had a gatheration of sorts at Stephen's Lake Park with some food and fire and shenanigans. Stay tuned on this event, though, because I took (what I hope are some) sweet photos with my Minolta Autocord, but I won't have them until next week. Until then, however, here are a few nice pictures.

"DRINK THE KOOL-AID!" says Keith, my thesis chair.

Jarrad is one of my favorite shining faces in the department. He gives great hugs.
Check out his photos here at his blawg.

Considering this film was ISO 200 and I didn't have a tripod and the sun had set, this image isn't that bad...

Meet my Andykins

2009-07-20T15:21:00.003-05:00

While visiting Boston, I always sleep on the couch of my good friend Andy and in my time with him, there's at least one impromptu photo shoot, if not more. At the beginning of the summer, we managed to work in two, one while he was ironing his clothes for work and one while we were playing on a nearby playground. Love this kid.

Meet ISO 6400

2009-07-18T13:24:00.003-05:00

The hooligans of Daily Free Press past assembled at the end of May for an alumni event, but I couldn't get there until after the gig I was working that evening. I showed up just after midnight, after the party had relocated to a rooftop in Beacon Hill, which had absolutely no light.

Using a borrowed 5D Mark II set at ISO 6400, I made these three pictures in what, to the eye, looked like almost pitch black settings (safety note: the rooftop had a very high ledge; don't be worried). I had to focus using distance, since I couldn't tell and the auto focus certainly couldn't tell if anything through the lens was in focus. Not the greatest shots, but pretty cool that I was even able to make them.

The Boston sky at midnight.

Dave, lit by his iPhone.

I think this is a fairly accurate portrait of beloved former editor, Dan Atkinson.

Meet Holga fun, part 2

2009-07-18T13:57:00.005-05:00

I got the second roll of my Holga photos back the other day. The roll was Fuji Reala ISO 100, a film I've known to be a bit hyper-saturated. Unfortunately, as indicated by ten of the 12 images, I have lost my sense of light metering and had no idea how much light was really needed for a proper exposure with such a low ISO. I blame my extensive work last semester with the Nikon D3 and nighttime/indoor photography. The good news is, however, that I made two pictures that were properly exposed. So, here they are:

This is the view from out my bedroom window, during a sunset that peeked through after one of our many summer rain storms.

This is the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village. This landmark, like a lot of the points of interest I've seen in the city, was one I stumbled upon almost accidentally. Everywhere you go here, there's something historical or interesting or both. (The other day while waiting for my bus to Boston, I found myself standing outside the death place of Nikola Tesla, one day before his birthday.)

Meet Sarah at the Seashore

2009-07-18T12:16:00.004-05:00

My favorite part about visiting (or living in) Boston is easy access to the seashore. Growing up in Iowa didn't afford many opportunities to visit and splash around in a vast body of water (shocking, I know), so if the weather is decent, I try to say hullo to the Atlantic when I'm in town. Earlier this summer, my friend Sarah took me to a nice beach in Nahant, which is north of Boston. It was a perfect day to kick around in the waves.

Meet New York City Tourism

2009-07-18T13:39:00.004-05:00

About a month ago, I had a delightfully touristy day with my friend and Mizzou colleague, Cassie, who is also in the city, but being far more productive than I as she works as an intern at a magazine. We walked the Brooklyn Bridge, got some ice cream at Brooklyn Ice Cream factory, took the Staten Island Ferry, saw the Statue of Liberty and spent 40, uh, lovely minutes on Staten Island, waiting for the boat back to Manhattan.

(A Canon 20D isn't quite as good at a high ISO as the 5D Mk II...)

Meet the Boat Mitzvah

2009-07-08T03:02:00.011-05:00

I worked a really fun gig at the end of May when I was back in Boston: A bat mitzvah...on a boat, which sailed around Boston Harbor. Ergo, "Boat Mitzvah."

I successfully avoided sea sickness, dropping things/self into ocean, losing my balance. And while I was working hard to not mess up in that respect, I made some nice pictures. It was pretty easy to do, though - this group knew how to have a good time. Here are a few of my favorites:

When I made this picture, I finally relaxed. This felt like THE picture of the event. And I got it.

The lady of the hour.

Whenever I look at this picture, Paul Simon's "Father and Daughter" starts playing in my head, though that wasn't the song to which they danced. (It was a rare James Taylor track...same difference, right?)

He was doing the ad-libs for "Shout!" and, may I say, he was KILLIN' 'em.

Like I said, these people knew how to enjoy a great party.

Meet my summer Holga and New York City

2009-07-08T04:06:00.005-05:00

The last two months of this past spring semester were the hardest two months of my entire life, Red Sox experience included. I got to New York City for my summer excursions and was beyond burnt out.

So, I decided to buy a Holga and some 120 and make some fun pictures for myself. I just got my first roll back today and thought I'd post my five favorites (out of 12...also known as the five that turned out; shot on Ilford XP2 400). I just took in a roll of color film, which I'll pick up and post next week when I return from Boston. But for now, enjoy:

A jazz trio in Washington Square Park

When the weather isn't so great, the LaGuardia flight path pays us a visit.

Thanks to all the June rain, I can actually drown out the sound of a 747 30 seconds before it touches down.

Times Square, to which I have a curious attraction. I like the giant man "on the street" in the left, a byproduct of me not winding my film far enough.

People just chillin' in the middle of Times Square, where there are tons of folding chairs available for your sitting pleasure.

Meet Momma Sexton (again)

2009-07-08T02:59:00.003-05:00

I think Mother and I have figured out this photographer/subject duo.

Here are my two favorites from when she drove down to Columbia to help me pack up my apartment for the summer and we did a quick "Facebook photo update" session.

Meet deliciousness

2009-07-02T10:48:00.003-05:00

I've been baking these brownies for as long as I can remember. In fact, yesterday, when I called my mother for the recipe, she told me she bought the book that the recipe is in when she was pregnant with me. Yesterday, we had a guest stay at our house, so for that occasion, and because I was hankerin' to bake something I knew would turn out, I made these (all from scratch, frosting too):

(Doesn't it look like the plate is happy? I'd be happy too, if I were that plate.)

Meet Dean Elmore

2009-07-02T10:05:00.003-05:00

While having a fun night out with a pile of BU/Daily Free Press photogs, we found ourselves in the same bar as Dean Elmore and some of the lovely gentlemen from his office. We said hi, we joined them and it turned out to be a really fantastic evening.

The best, most poignant part of the evening was when, while we photographers were photographing something or adjusting something photographic, Dean Elmore said, "You guys are so cool," and I said, "I think you're the first person ever to tell us that."

He is the coolest Dean of Students ever in the history of life. Seriously, if you don't go to BU, you need to be very jealous of us.

Meet a gaggle of BU photogs

2009-07-02T09:31:00.004-05:00

When I was in Boston, I was able to put together a small assembly of BU photo students and alumni at BU's classy Dugout Cafe for a night of joy and merriment and shooting each other in the face with cameras. I do believe it was a 5:7 cameras-to-people ratio. It was a really lovely time and we eventually got around to talking about important things and hanging out with Dean Elmore, once we were tired of photographing ourselves photographing ourselves photographing...

Point-blank portrait session. She had a flash. I did not. Ow.

There are about 3829 photographs like this from that night, just different people and different backgrounds. This one features Brooks Canaday, Sarah Beth Glicksteen and Kristyn Ulanday.

Brooks, sporting the poor man's ring flash, a decidedly un-lightable roll of gaffer's tape.

Yes, we did rig some lighting at this event. Obviously.

Now tired of photographing one another, the photogs switch their focus(es) to photographing photography equipment on the table. It's the only way we could have gotten nerdier.

Dominick, eyes glistening from the the hope and opportunity stirred up while speaking with Dean Elmore, the excitement of the night and maybe a few other things.

It's Brooks! And he's happy to be here!