Blar

This blog is d e d

2011-02-08T07:27:00.000-06:00

Well not quite dead, but it is moving to my website. Thanks for following Blar for all these years, please migrate to www.bensklar.com/blog. You will find old posts from Blar and new posts from Blar, we just won't call it Blar.

Celebrating 27 years

2011-01-17T12:12:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!

2011-01-04T08:45:00.002-06:00

These are some still images from a Chappo music video I shot with LA based director Patrick Pope. Hopefully we'll have the video out of post soon. The stars of the shoot are Scott, above, Drew, below, and Jason, farther below. It was a lot of fun, welcome to the New Year!

Guvna wins... again

2010-12-10T14:39:00.002-06:00

Early last month I covered Texas' Gov. Perry's election night victory party an an exotic game ranch run by Texas Disposal Systems... Still trying to figure that out.

Here are some b-sides of the coverage:

GUILTY

2010-11-24T19:07:00.002-06:00

Read about it in the New York Times... Happy Thanksgiving!

Snaps October

2010-11-12T10:08:00.001-06:00

Go Vote

2010-10-28T09:44:00.003-06:00

If you haven't voted early the deadline is this Friday, October 29. Election day is November 2. Please go vote.

Rick Perry voted on the first day of early voting 2 Mondays ago and gave a rally outside of a suburban Mexican cafe. The Times ran this photo I shot for Getty Images in relation to a story about his campaign.

Snaps

2010-10-27T08:03:00.002-06:00

Found this in my neighborhood, awesome.

Ditch the Fest Fest at Cheer Up Charlie's.

Finding friends before Phish starts.

Handy cams and Uncle Earl

2010-10-25T12:50:00.006-06:00

I just realized it has been 20 days since I posted on Blar. I'd say work has dramatically picked up in October, there was an 8 day period where I was booked everyday. From New York Times assignments to weddings to a corporate hoorah event for Hugo Boss.

There are lots of pretty pictures and wonderful moments from all these shoots, but I want to share some offbeat images of handy cams and wild card guests:

Wild cards:

I've been shooting a lot more recently outside of assignment work for myself and making snaps. Its been a lot of fun and refreshing to remember how much fun it is to make pictures, soon to come.

Niagara Falls

2010-10-05T10:49:00.002-06:00

I visited another one of the Wonder's of the World this summer in Western New York. Here are some snaps, video to come soon:

The weekend in pictures

2010-10-02T18:37:00.002-06:00

Can't sleep... make a picture.

I attended an event on Friday night inviting citizens to voice their concerns and opinions about the future of Austin. There was a guy from LA, NYC, or maybe both (above) who was really excited about it. He made a speech, wore a faux turbin and then wrote some stuff on the chalk board while Austin concert band Mother Falcon played. I'm skeptical of the city's purpose in organizing an event where they put up art, serve free food and beer simultaneously asking citizens to take part in a survey about traffic, development and budgets of the future. The exhibit is open all week in the heart of the lovely 2nd st. district.

Drew and I rode our bikes there.

Ian had an interesting comment about Austin style, something like; people take it to the max until its no longer hip and then you're wearing what you are told to think is cool whether or not it looks good on you. I guess this comes with the territory of a 'pretentious is cool' 20-something slacker crowd in a bubble of complainer culture among a for the most part content public.

Maria on Saturday morning.

My neighbors riding bikes down Kinney.

Nike Women's Training

2010-10-01T13:14:00.002-06:00

Last week I had a shoot for Nike Women's Training. There wasn't much direction given for this job and the budget was small because the photos were only going to be used in an internal powerpoint presentation as background imagery. The only instructions I had were "fun images of women around 20 years old working out." It's some of the best pressure and excitement going into a shoot without any expectations but to make good pictures.

I set up 2 shoots around Austin one early in the morning and one in the early evening that got moved thanks to me. I think the clients were happy, here's some snaps I liked:

Published in Pop Sci

2010-09-30T13:03:00.004-06:00

I think I shot this in July for this month's issue of Popular Science, which was published on September 16th. The Jackson's were really nice people and very accommodating as the elements pushed the partially submerged sub around. The sub is called the Argonaut Jr. and was made to replicate that of Simon Lake's submarine built in 1894. Read the story online here at Popular Science.

We shot on Skiatook (prounounced sky- tuk) Point, a lake near Tulsa and I had a great time taking in Oklahoma's rolling green hills that are home to some of country music's most prominent musicians.

Updating with snaps from Texas' loss to UCLA and last week's Nike women's training shoot...

Robert King for the Guardian Weekend Magazine

2010-09-15T07:43:00.004-06:00

I photographed former Black Panther Robert King for the The Guardian Weekend Magazine in London a few weeks ago at his home in Austin. King was held at Angola Prison in Louisiana for 31 years total, 29 of those in solitary confinement, after being wrongly convicted of a crime.

He's the only one of the suspected three men involved in the crime to be released. They are known as the Angola 3. He has been interviewed and photographed repeatedly since his release nearly 10 years ago and continues to spread the word about the injustice.

With this clip I was inspired to update the publications section of my website. Check out the newest clips!

Dyer Pond

2010-09-14T13:51:00.006-06:00

Recently, I went to Cape Cod with my girlfriend Maria to 'get away' for her birthday. I was coming from Las Vegas and she had spent a week in New York City with her sisters, so we were looking to find a peaceful place to decompress. We decided Wellfleet would be a nice place to stay and luckily found an available cabin at Chez Sven's bed and breakfast in the forest of the National Seashore.

The Atlantic Ocean was cold and crashing on one side, while the bay was calm and full of wild life on the other side of the cape. In between were countless freshwater ponds, one of which we sought during our stay. Very few people were there the week before the Labor Day holiday and the natural serenity and preserved scenery were perfect for us.

So perfect, I made a video capturing our time there:

As it turns out Cape Cod's ponds have been logged, charted, preserved and written about by many including Henry David Thoreau and even the New York Times.

A still image from Dyer Pond.

Flora on the bay side of Cape Cod.

A lifeguard stand on the Atlantic side of Cape Cod where Thoreau walked years ago.

Friends and Type 55

2010-08-25T16:14:00.003-06:00

I'm preparing to shoot a portrait project on the no longer produced but highly revered type 55 positive/negative film from Polaroid. I decided it would be a good idea to test the film with my Polaroid back, a Toyo view 4x5 camera and sync it to my Profoto lighting kit. This is my friend Eric Powell who has had some interesting and difficult life experiences recently, but has found himself in a good place going to school with a bright future. I've wanted to shoot some of his life story as it unfolded and was happy to make the first step with a b/w portrait while we were hanging out.

These are 2 of the positives from the 4 that I shot last week. Overall I was very pleased with the look of the images and the toning. I think a different lens in the future could be more effective.

My friend Drew recently moved back to Austin from Washington DC where he and his girlfriend have been hanging on to this newspaper clipping for almost a year. Thanks! It gives me a confusing mix of emotions to see the paper and these images again, but I'm definitely happy to have this clip in physical form and my friends back in town.

The Ogden Museum show, New Orleans!

2010-08-20T08:36:00.002-06:00

Big thanks to Karl for making some snaps of the show in New Orleans at the Ogden Museum which opened last night. Looks like it was a packed house and the walls were packed with photos. Personally the intensity of Katrina continues to resonate with me every day and I'm sure the victims of the storm and other photographers feel the same way.

Major props to Smiley Poole and the rest of the Telling Their Stories crew for putting the event together and coordinating an effort like this. It takes a lot of work and they deserve a major pat on the back for a job well done.

Also a big thanks to Lance Rosenfield, fellow Zilker neighborhood photographer compadre, for helping me out and making a headshot for the event!

Here are some snaps:

Karl checking out the images.

People looking at the photos.

A woman who looks really concerned about my photograph.

A band is a must at a New Orleans event as cool as this. Is that a Moog? It matches the chairs nicely!

Recovered film

2010-08-19T09:20:00.003-06:00

I was recently digging through a box of miscellaneous photo gear, leather scraps and old boxes when I recovered 3 sheets of exposed Polaroid Type 59 film. The writing on the film revealed they were exposed during a tour with the band Sunset in late 2007.

Anyway here's a positive from one of the sheets.

CEO Portrait

2010-08-18T14:47:00.002-06:00

I went to Smooth Stone Inc.'s headquarters last Thursday to meet Barry Evans, CEO of the underdog chip maker. His company has been developing new chips that will do some really important things for those in the technology business mostly by decreasing the energy needed to operate devices that control servers remotely. You can read about it in this article in the Times. The just received some major funding from global companies to release a chip that will contend with the chip giant Intel. The name Smooth Stone is a nice way of making an analogy between their small office outfit to Intel's power house operation and the weapon David chose for his epic battle with Goliath.

The headquarters are based in a '70s building shell in North Austin that is run by a few companies and the University of Texas for research labs. It was an odd place that gave me the impression people who made movies like Office Space and even Tron found inspiration.

Barry was very open to my ideas for photography as we walked around the building to various locations scouting light, position and pre-historic security cameras that monitored a relatively empty parking lot.

Enjoy!

Telling their stories exhibit

2010-08-14T14:24:00.002-06:00

A photo of mine from Hurricane Katrina has been accepted to be in the "Telling Their Stories" exhibit at the Ogden Museum in New Orleans next week. There's an opening on Thursday, August 19, a lecture the following day and a seminar on Saturday. I hope you can make it if you happen to be in New Orleans (check the schedule of events here).

This appears to be a nice event, but unfortunately it looks like its more about the photographers who made the pictures rather than the subjects of the pictures. I will say that the educational program is an outstanding thing to do and takes a lot of energy from everybody involved. I'm really not sure New Orleans with ever get out of the shadow of Katrina. It seems like it will always be remembered as a turning point or marker of history for the city. I wonder if these events, largely put on by outsiders of the community, reinforce Katrina's wrath or help heal the wounds it left behind. Will we ever get over it?

It's hard to believe the 5 year anniversary of Katrina is 2 weeks away. If you're interested, please have a look at the work I did in Hancock County Mississippi during Katrina and the 5 year anniversary project that I am continuing to work on.

I'm planning on posting some photos next week from a shoot I did with a CEO of a computer chip company for the New York Times Monday Business section and another shoot for the Guardian Weekend Magazine in London. Stay tuned...

ps: If you're looking for something to do, find you're nearest theater and go see Restrepo. It's Tim Hetherington's new film from time he spent in Afghanistan with the 173rd Airborne in the Korangal Valley. It's hard to watch, but absolutely worth it. I'm glad there are people dedicating themselves to this type of work that we all learn and benefit from.

Political Promos

2010-08-10T14:48:00.003-06:00

I shot these promotional photos for Texas Senate Candidate Jose Rodriguez back in January in El Paso. The political marketing strategy firm MAP hired me to photograph Rodriguez in a documentary-portrait style to show him as a well rounded candidate to represent El Paso.

We shot all day long, but were rewarded with a steak dinner in the end. I'm happy with how the photos were used on full page spreads and I think the client/candidate were pleased too.

Today I was in the darkroom for the first time in a few months processing some film I shot on a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye my sister gave year a few years ago. Turns out it works and works well. I also processed the first roll of film from Mark and Annie's wedding almost a year ago, yikes! It looks real sharp. The excitement of seeing film turn into photos after taking it out of the chemicals never goes away.

Stay posted for more snaps.

Snaps

2010-08-09T14:05:00.004-06:00

Here are some old photographs I found on my computer that I thought were interesting. I've mostly been working on promos and contracts aside from last minute shoots. Yesterday was a productive day as I made a scripted short film with some hired friends as actors and crew. We lit, shot and wrapped in under 4 hours; this will be a short short.

I'll post the video after we finish producing it and show some photos of the modified shoulder mount that I used with the 5d Mark II soon. I've been meaning to post these political promos too, so hopefully I can get them up tomorrow.

Dead Red Bird on my sidewalk.

Winnie the dog tranquilized at the vet.

Camino de Santiago, ruta de norte

2010-07-28T07:29:00.003-06:00

I'm back in Austin and finally found time to edit through and update my archive with photos from my recent trip to Spain. Four friends and I hiked about 500 miles in 25 days from San Sebastien to Santiago de Compostela in June. We did the Northern route and primitive section of the trail, which is regarded as the most challenging and oldest of all the St. James Way trails.

The weather was up and very down. The first week was perfect, it rained so much the second week that it caused a 100 year flood in Asturias and the last 2 weeks were fairly hot. Overall the trip was a lot of fun and was a good time with friends. We passed through small towns nearly everyday to collect food and indulge in cafe con leche, but maintained a renegade camino by camping in forests or fields half the time. Mostly when it was not raining.

These are some of my favorite photographs from the trip:

You can see whole set of photos from the Camino de Santiago in the archive. There is also a gallery featuring Spanish dogs that warmly welcomed us to the Spanish country side.

As I'm now back in Austin please stay tuned for more regular updates, including a recent trip I took to Tulsa for a new client!

Snaps de Mayo

2010-07-19T12:31:00.003-06:00

Since I got back to Austin 10 days ago I've kept myself busy with freelance jobs, editing, archiving and climbing. I've found a lot of photos of no particular theme that I made back in May. Check it out...

Mom with Teddy the cat sporting his lion inspired summer fur cut.

The Texas Capitol's North facing rotunda.

Mom's suburban backyard featuring Teddy in the window.

Vines.

Brandon Wilde of Austin Multimedia Group during a shoot for Active Life at the Dell Foundation in Westlake. I helped Wilde shoot a tv spot for the non profit that promotes fitness through its programs. We used the 5d mk II with an ican screen in the hotshoe, a beachtek audio preamp with boom mics, arri lights, and a teleprompter for the interviewees. Worked fluidly and was a lot of fun to shoot.

The best bbq in Texas from Cooper's in Llano!

Back in the US of A

2010-07-12T15:30:00.003-06:00

I returned from a month long, 500 mile walk last Thursday and have a lot of stories and photographs to share. In the meantime, watch these videos...

The first comes from my New York based filmmaker friend Willi Patton, who is seeking support for his next project. His previous film, The Big Fiddle, was a half hour project that made its debut and was very well received in March at the SXSW film festival.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/willipatton/monk-fish

This is a video MAP produced with my photographs for prospective Texas Senator Jose Rodriguez. We shot the photos in January and the video ran for a week locally in El Paso. I thought it was pretty unique to have a television commercial made up of only still photos. The MAP crew was really excited when they saw the photos and came up with the idea for the 30 second spot. Check it out:

http://pictureboxproductions.com/clients/MAP/JR_ENG.html

Stay tuned for more updates with photos of recent work and snaps from el Camino.

Oil Rig Explosion Survivor, Chris Choy

2010-05-10T13:22:00.009-06:00

Saturday National Public Radio.org sent me to Houston to photograph Chris Choy with his wife Monica and their attorney Steve Gordon. NPR partnered with PBS Newhour to do an exclusive radio-tv interview with reporter Joe Shapiro. The PBS Newshour video shows Chris and Monica telling their tragic and gripping story.

A few different portraits have accompanied the first and second NPR stories, but I had a few hours to make photos and listen to Choy's story. I felt like it was important for me to put my camera down at times and just listen to what he had to say and try to relate to him as a human, not just a subject to point my camera at. I feel that when a reporter or photographer takes a genuine interest in the people he/she surrounds himself with rather than just doing their job, the work they create with that person will transcend the person's experience. Sacrificing one's own personal interests isn't routine for any body, but I think it proves instrumental in good journalism when trying to tell a story that is difficult to understand and out of a normal person's comprehension.

I hope this commitment to people's stories gives viewers a better understanding of what is taking place around them.

Photographs of the Choys in the archive and a few of my favorite images from the hours I with the Choys:

Clip time

2010-05-09T16:28:00.007-06:00

Just got back from a photography shoot I did yesterday in Houston for National Public Radio. One of the survivors from the Gulf oil rig explosion gave an interview to NPR reporter Joe Shapiro and in cooperation with Newshour and their attorneys. More on this story tomorrow...

In the mean time... style:

Last month I met Ashley Chiles and made some photographs of her for the Statesman's Glossy style magazine. Chiles co-founded the Texas Huntress, a tv mini series about 3 women who globetrot, shoot to kill and then have the kill prepared for them by a well known chef.

We had time to do a few different sets with mixed lighting opportunities at Laguna Gloria in Austin. Marques Harper did an outstanding job assisting with the styling and working with Chiles to make the shoe fit. Thanks Marques!

It's ironic how the image we shot on the fly for fun in ambient light go the cover, but perfect for just that reason.

Brad Bourland lives in Lakeway and has compiled a list of nearly 10,000 english language films and ranked them based on public opinion and polling. The Times did a story on him and I shot some photos in front of his sisters home.

Ed Marcotte is starving cells to find links to genes that respond to drugs to cure cancer... capiche? He's really smart and works at the University of Texas with other bio researchers and a lot of graduate students. The Times ran a last minute story on him and the project. They have a secret lab full of frogs that they draw embryos from for their research. Good luck with you're research!

The weekend

2010-05-04T06:56:00.004-06:00

On Saturday Maria and I went to an art opening at Thunderbird coffee on Manor rd. featuring my logo designer and friend Maseman. We bought a few pieces of his work, which is awesome and had a great time hanging out with friends. He's been working recently with wood, paint and other mixed media recently that has really taken it beyond a 2 dimensional canvas level. Above are 2 of his 'little men' in our kitchen going on a nature hike.

Guy at the show who looks like Conan O'Brien.

This is my friend since childhood Eric Powell, looking good in some new frames and a healthy polished smile.

An assumed installation of painted high heels hanging on electric wires above Thunderbird Coffee.

Mi novia, Maria, back lit and camera shy.

Flower with sunglasses on table at Maseman's show.

Snap at Rio Rita.

Big thanks to the Drews... First, my web designer, Drew Teiken, above in a self portrait with Blar modifications for making some crucial changes to my photography website and new photoshelter online archive.

Secondly to NYC based photographer Drew Anthony Smith who has been making epic snaps and recently visited Washington for a wedding some cherry pie. I've been watching David Lynch's Twin Peaks tv series to celebrate its recent 20 year anniversary. If you don't know TP is credited for changing prime time dramatic television series that we watch today. Its kind of like a good soap opera, but not.

The Texas State Capitol.

Congress Avenue.

Yesterday, for the first time ever, I gave a private photography lesson to James, a photographer from New York who mostly shoots fine art in a controlled studio. He is trying to diversify his photography abilities and wanted learn about using his flash in different lighting situations for an event he has coming up. We talked and went over switches, dials and numbers for an hour or so and then walked around downtown Austin and made some snaps.

As a result of all the hubbub in DC regarding health care bills I've had many opportunities to shoot health care related stories. Above is a lit portrait I did to illustrate uninsured people who sustain injuries participating in recreational activities. Makes you think twice before you go skateboarding or rock climbing... I had the fortunate opportunity to work with stylist Robert E. Lee to make this image happen. He has a history of working in specialized make up for horror and action films. Pretty realistic stuff huh?

Congrats!

2010-04-23T12:07:00.001-06:00

To my friends MJ and Allison who got married earlier this month!

Earth Day

2010-04-22T11:32:00.002-06:00

Healthy stories

2010-04-10T10:47:00.002-06:00

I shot 2 stories for the NYT health section and they both published recently. The first was an audio slide show for a special online only section about living with autism. I met Ann and her 24 year old son John at their home in Northwest Austin recording a phone interview and shooting all after noon. It was an enriching experience for me and I enjoyed spending time with the Harts. Although it wasn't published my favorite photo from the shoot is above. John was very curious about my camera and continued to touch it as I was taking photographs. You can see the audio slideshow along with others from photographers around the country here.

A few weeks back I photographed Sarah Lynch at her parents home in the Dove Springs neighborhood of Austin. She needs health insurance to afford her medication for her bipolar disorder but was recently dropped under a pre-existing condition clause. Hopefully Obama care will get her back under the umbrella. I spent a lot of time with her listening to her story and askign her questions. I wanted to get away from a standard portrait of a person looking seriously at the camera. So i tried to be a bit more exploratory with her. The light in the backyard took my interest and I tried to work with it. You can read the story here.

The 2010 SXSW experience

2010-03-29T15:23:00.004-06:00

I had the opportunity to photograph supermodel Karen Elson for the New York Times. Elson, the wife of White Stripes star Jack White, is making a new career as a singer. Prior to her set I was able to have a short portrait sessions with her at the venue, the French Legation.

She was a real pro and lived up to her down to earth style as everyone claims. It was in the 40s and she posed for almost 20 minutes in a thin vintage gown and even more thin shawl. We did a few different looks and then I waited for nearly 2 hours for her set to begin.

It was great to work with Melena Ryzik of the NYT who's story I suggest you read here,

Later that night Melena and I collaborated again on a story for the NYT Arts blog by party crashing the SXSW after parties. Like a rockstar on the red carpet, I showed up with her and waltzed right through the crowd. Voka Redu, a bounce group from NOLa, opened for No Age, infamous LA punk band, at their exclusive post SXSW party. It was momentarily fun but we decided to roll out to the Green Owl record label party on a rented ranch in Oak Hill to find a different breed of SXSW revellers. Before we arrived the cops had already come twice as bands such as The xx and The Very Best jammed in a barn, that was rumored to be a rave. In the end we made it to 2 parties, retrieved my abandon bicycle and her towed car, and went to breakfast. I happily made it home at 930am!

Love the lighting team at the Parish.

The xx performing at Mohawk.

There were so many people wearing interesting outfits and they keep pushing the envelope of normalcy that I was motivated to start documenting this phenomenon of what seems to be Hipster style meets retro halloween in March. I submitted these photos as part of my assignment for the Statesman, but none were published until now.

The Very Best perform at the Fader Fort day party.

The final day of SXSW the temperature dropped into the 40s and a small crowd trickled into Auditorium Shores for the free shows. This couple did their best to stay warm.

After a week of recovery its now back to normalcy in Austin. It was fun, but I'm stoked its over.

Snaps

2010-03-18T09:39:00.004-06:00

The circus that is SXSW has come back to Austin and I'm in the middle of it. Before I upload a photo of psychadelic hipsters, over hyped rock stars and the fashionista poseurs that infiltrate our city for 2 weeks every year preaching what is now 'cool,' I'm posting some SNAPS of life over the last month. Enjoy and stay posted for an update shortly!

The Justman farm in Colorado

Campfire in Pease Park with friends

Austin's favorite bird, the grackle

The Black Canyon, Colorado

A slice of Palo Duro Canyon, Texas at dusk. If you're a Texan you must go here before you die

The rouge waves in a water crossing at Palo Duro

The watch tower at Palo Duro

What else do you do to kill time when driving through snow at 10mph?

The famed 72oz steak challenge at The Big Texas Steak Ranch in Amarillo. The guy on the left finished his.

A birthday song, "Amarillo by Sundown," for the jovial man on the left who's hat reads "these colors don't run."

Back in Austin at the 87th annual kite festival in Zilker Park. The neighborliness of Austin.

Shooting for the cover!

2010-03-16T09:44:00.003-06:00

The photo above ran on the cover of the magazine.

From a fashion shoot for the Statesman's Glossy magazine online, see link to right.

A basketball game for the Houston Chronicle.

High profile Athletic wedding

2010-03-05T11:39:00.002-06:00

Last Friday two of the University of Texas' most prominent athletes tied the knot in Austin. I was asked to cover the wedding, reception and after party for the New York Times vows section. Its kind of like the 27 dresses movie from what I hear.

The wedding was a luxurious, high energy and highly produced event. Nonetheless it was a lot of fun. My editor made it clear before the event "you are not a wedding photographer, you're a journalist." There were 5 total photographers, and 2 video crews, one was from platinum weddings. I couldn't keep track of how many stylists and planners were running around.

It was however very interesting for me to watch the other photographers work and frantically record every minuscule detail of the wedding. It gave me a unique view into how we all approach different events or assignments. I didn't feel like it was necessary to compete with the other photographers for "the shot," and I think that removed a massive amount of pressure and expectation. I photographed with open eyes if you will. You can see the 12 image slideshow here or pick up this Sunday's NYT for $5 anywhere.

Sunday cover in Dallas

2010-03-03T09:24:00.003-06:00

About a month ago I photographed Brent Krahn for the Dallas Morning News for a story Mike Brick was working on about his career. 9 years ago Krahn was selected very high as a goalie in the NHL draft and now he is playing in Cedar Park after being moved and traded as well as plagued by injury. Krahn is a great guy and the story ran this past Sunday in the DMN, you can find the link to the right.

I met him at the Cedar Park Center and photographed him on ice with lighting in multiple set ups and then outside on a berm of grass in a few different sets as well. He gave me a lot of time and his patience were outstanding. That same day I met his family and photographed them at their home to see the inside life of a professional hockey player. It was a lot of fun and very interesting to see how people's lively hoods revolve around talent and athletic ability.

Below are the pages from the DMN that Chris sent me, thanks! Additionally some other photographs I liked from the shoot.

Today!

2010-03-02T11:55:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Lance for giving me a heads up; my photo of the Gov. was on the cover of the NYT.com today. I shot it a few weeks ago for AP, first time in 4 years, during early voting. Texas politics has begun!

Read the story and see another photo here.

Party time

2010-02-25T10:16:00.002-06:00

The other weekend I was commissioned to photograph a dinner and after party. I don't market myself towards this type of work, but find it comes to me through work of mouth and referrals. I ended up having a lot of fun and made some images I was happy with towards the end of the night at the Mohawk's green room.

NPPA blog post

2010-02-23T17:21:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Anita Baca for helping promote Zulu at 100. I wrote about the opening reception and series for the National Press Photographers Association region 8 blog.

You can read it and see some photos here.

Runner recovers and runs

2010-02-22T18:00:00.003-06:00

A month ago I met Mark Hager for a phoot shoot near his home in Austin. I've worked with Statesman writer Pam LeBlanc a lot recently and enjoyed the off beat sports related features she pursues. Hager was hit by a truck while running 2 years ago. Since, he has recovered, continued running and set up a website for injured athletes to meet others of the like in a forum setting. He is a very positive person who gives off the impression that his spirit can't be damaged. Please read pam's article is here.

'Deni' Crawford

2010-02-20T12:35:00.004-06:00

A few weeks ago the New York Times hired me to shoot portraits of Ms. Crawford, the Texas Securities Commissioner, for a special business section. It was a successful shoot, but a challenge to work in her triangular office that was filled with awards and lots of work. I learned a lot about how big business is done and regulated during my time with her and was thankful for her patience and commitment to helping me make a photo.

She has an impressive resume, as she has been working with the Securities Commission for over 20 years. I was really enamored with the quilt she had hanging on the wall; her grandmother and her sisters made it many years ago. I was happy I could work it into the shot, I think it says something about taking pride in your personal/Texas history. The view from her office was outstanding, right across the street from the Capitol, so she can keep a good eye on the Leg. Here is a link to the NYT story.

Another tragedy hit Austin this week as a man, Joseph Stack, flew his plane into an IRS office building in a fit of rage. I covered the first day for Reuters and the second day for Getty. You can find links to some of my work from the tragic event to the right on in the recently published area.

Good news to share...

2010-02-15T09:34:00.003-06:00

No photos but good news:

My "Zulu at 100" book was accepted to the Harry Ransom Center's permanent collection of American history last week. I signed and sent 2 copies, as requested, to be on file in their library... forever!

This is a little late, but in December the Associated Press named this photo from Katrina to their photos of the decade series.

Both are rewarding achievements that I did not anticipate.

A political year...

2010-02-12T19:15:00.003-06:00

has arrived. I worked with a political strategy firm recently and was able to get my hands on some of the promos they mailed the last time the Texas Legislature for Rep. Ciro Rodriguez of San Antonio. I think I made these photos in 2008 and didn't get to see the final product. I think it's pretty neat to see my photography used for a purpose outside of a newspaper's pages. In the end, it's all meant to communicate a message. This isn't journalism, but it was a fun and exhausting day of work.

The same firm is working on producing a regional Tv spot for the El Paso area using primarily my photos from the recent shoot with Jose Rodriguez. Can't wait to see what they come up with. In the mean time here are the end product promos from Ciro's shoot:

Who dat say they gonna beat them Saints?

2010-02-10T09:19:00.007-06:00

If you haven't heard Black and Gold in the Superbowl, please have a listen... Geaux Saints!

There couldn't have been a better weekend to be in New Orleans. The opening reception at The Darkroom went very well. First off, I owe a big thanks to crew that made it happen Charles, Danielle and Cameron from the gallery, and my mom and Maria for their helpful opinions and culinary skills! There were so many small logistical issues that I never thought of encountering that the support crew really had a handle on, I couldn't have done it without them.

As we were competing with the Superbowl, Mardi Gras, freezing weather and a heated Mayor and local election I'd say we still did pretty well. We didn't get a huge draw unfortunately, but we had a great time and met some good folks who came to see the show. My friends Austin, Julian and Adam came and brought friends, who were great to see. In the end, one print sold from the evening and a bundle of hand stitched books. Having a red dot next to one of my photographs is a memorable experience that really made me feel honored and humbled. It's such a privilege to think that some one wants my work on their walls. Here are some snaps from the event:

The show with vinyl letters.

Maria, me and my mom.

Gurus Danielle and Cameron.

Sold!

The Saints won the Super Bowl and overall Sunday was a lot of fun:

Rue Bourbon before the game.

A local farmer holding a goat.

Jean Lafitte's, oldest bar in New Orleans.

Juice, left, getting crazy with Saints fans after the win.

Saints fans celebrating in traffic on Poydras.

Juice screaming from Austin's car.

S-A-I-N-T-S spelled on hotel on St. Charles circle.

Drew getting Breesy hoisting the trophy.

Austin during the game working his angles.

Monday afternoon a fan celebrating while driving on I-10 out of Nola.

A gas station I thought was cool near Breaux Bridge.

Zulu at 100 next weekend!

2010-01-29T14:01:00.003-06:00

amigos dogs and arrow frost

2010-01-26T21:10:00.003-06:00

I've been slammed lately with work, but can't update some of it until it publishes. Last week I shot portraits of a professional hockey player for the DMN and later in the week a runner who was hit by a truck 2 years only to fully recover and continue to run. Both great shoots with outstanding people. This weekend I was flown to El Paso by MAP, a political strategy firm, to shoot Texas Senator candidate Jose Rodriguez. It was whirlwind trip that encompassed an early flight, an all day shoot at 7 locations, an outstanding steak dinner, budding professional relationships, bomb promo photos and "good coffee."

These serious photographs are on the way, but in the mean time check out these snaps:

Some of the crew of dudes came back in town recently and we headed out to the lake for some R & R which included shooting a bow and arrow. I never hit the target, but my target was folded can on top of a carpet. Good times all around and a beautiful place even in winter during a drought.

Frost on Maria's car in winter. It hit 17 degrees this January and that's very cold for Austin.

Maria's dog Winnie demonstrates her sitting skills while sporting a French inspired bandana ensemble fresh from the grooomer's.

Nate Biggs clipping a quickdraw on Pee Wee's Big Adventure at the Great Wall on the Greenbelt. This ran about 5 columns wide on the front of the Life & Arts section in the AAS to compliment Pam Leblanc's story about the climbing scene in the greenbelt. Doing the climbs I regularly do with 2 or 3 lenses, a camera body, a flash and a flash transmitter makes them much more challenging. The climbers are a great group of people that were patient and accomodating to Pam and I, thanks!

Texas v Texas A&M

2010-01-18T09:29:00.003-06:00

Last week I drove to College Station to meet and photograph Texas A&M basketball player Derrick Roland for the Dallas Morning News. Roland key senior for the Aggies, but unfortunately suffered a horrific injury while playing against Washington in December. He was very well composed and sincere while we shot and had a lot of patience to shoot in multiple locations doing different set ups and positions. We even compared our college sports injuries - me: concussions, torn shoulder ligiments; him: torn shoulder ligiment, broken fibula and tibula, broken patela (high school). After shooting I watched the footage and thought it was remarkable how resilient his character was after a traumatic event like this.

It seems that his career could be over at this point, but he has decided to stick around TAMU for a medical red shirt season and play as a senior next year. He also mentioned coaching wouldn't be a bad thing at some point. I hope things work out for him. You can read the story here.

So this all came full circle when the San Antonio Express-News called that same afternoon asking if I was available Saturday to shoot the game between Tamu and presently No. 1 ranked Texas in Austin. In fact I was getting a coffee still in College Station when they called, odd. The game was very intense and scrappy. Texas didn't play 100% and Tamu came out "punching them in the mouth," according to Texas' Damion James.

I don't routinely shoot a lot of games like this, but really had a great time and was able to really turn all my energy to what was happening on the court to make some snaps. I feel like I shot well and filed quickly. It went into overtime and Texas barely pulled on out the W. You can read the Express-News story here.

Thanks Lisa for emailing me this clip!

End of 2009

2010-01-10T19:20:00.005-06:00

As 2009 came to a close I work really picked up. These last few photos came from some of my last assignments of 2009.

Freelance writer Michael Hoinski and I, as well as our significant others Kathy and Maria, went down to Gruene for a Saturday evening with Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis. The top portrait of the couple landed on the cover of the Statesman's 360 weekly special section and the bottom photo of Robison's very cool merchandise manager Gary sharing a dance with a stranger ran inside the special section. I think they ran 7 photos from the shoot!

This group of women formed a cabaret group called Carousel and gets hired to dance at various events and performs shows around Austin. It got the crowd moving at the Movember Gala, a mustache party to raise awareness about men's health issues.

The Euless Trinity football team won the 5a state championship defeating my high school rival Westlake in San Antonio. The game went into overtime and was decided by a lob pass to the corner of the end zone. The Morning News ran the catch photo inside pretty large. However, I had a great time shooting the Haka dance they performed before/after the game. The dance is similar to that of the New Zealand All Blacks if you watch rugby and was lead by the Tongans that make up about a third of the team. I found it interesting to see a large immigrant group unite with Texans on the football field to win State.

Stay posted for more posts as more photos are on the way.

Finally, time for an update

2009-12-15T09:16:00.005-06:00

Attorney John P. Galligan will represent Major Nidal Malik Hasan for his murderous rampage that left 13 dead and injured 30 at Fort Hood in November:

A few weeks ago the Dallas Morning News called about photographing Colonel Galligan, the attorney famous for representing soldiers on trial. After a few attempts to schedule a day and time we met at his office in Belton on a dreary Tuesday afternoon. He was very friendly, welcoming and accomodating as I explained what I was trying to accomplish in photographing him. He kept repeating himself saying with his native Texan accent something along the lines of "wow, what is all this stuff? I thought you were just gonna walk in here and snap, snap and be on your way... You're a real professional, I can tell, not like those other photographers."

It was a compliment I genuinely appreciated as I worked very hard to set up multiple sets and positions to give my editors options. Going into the assignment I knew I wanted try and shoot him on seamless to make a well lit, tight clean headshot. I set up the paper renegade style, measure the light and went to work with Galligan. It was a lot of fun working in this way and caused for a positive interaction between he and I as we warmed up the shoot. I set up another lighting set up near a waterway and walking path to do some full length portraits. I wanted to show him for who he is, just being himself. But also given the context of the story I wanted to highlight his own characteristics; adjusting the tie, diverse facial expressions, optimistic personality.

In the end the story ran on Sunday's A1 and jumped to the top diptych on A20. I was impressed that it ran as I envisioned. Read the story here.

Austin runner Jeff Lahr's wife, Erin, died last year during the Whiterock Marathon in Dallas as she collapsed at mile 23:

A few days later, I had the privilege to meet Jeff Lahr and photograph him for the Dallas Morning News. He was an incredibly accomodating person as I photographed him Thursday evening after he got off work and before he went back to work for an emergency. He gave me time and patience to do multiple lighting and location set ups throughout his condo. We talked a lot about his wife's unexpected death and I was impressed at his ability to be strong through such a tragedy. Photos of Erin hang throughout the condo and Jeff ran the race this past Saturday in a relay format with 20 plus friends and supporters. Its always impressive for a group of people, many strangers in this case, rally behind some one going through something challenging. The top photo ran as the lead on Saturday's A1 cover. Read the story here.

Disabled rowers training for the 2012 Paralympics:

Back a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to meet a diverse group of disabled people, learning to row and trying out for the 2012 paralympic rowing team. It was impressive to say the least. I was again working with Austin American Statesman writer Pam LeBlanc for her column and looking forward to making some powerful photos. It took 2 days to cover this story because the first day it was 50 degrees and pouring rain.

We went out on a boat with one of the staff at the Austin Rowing Center and I would make a few pictures of the group on the water then quickly hide my camera in my gortex jacket to keep it from getting soaked. It was challenging and wish I had brought my camera's raincover. As the athletes came in from morning practice I was able to interact and make some photos of them bringing in the boat or reattaching their prosthetics.

The second day I came back because I thought these people impressed me with their ability to overcome life changing experiences and channel their energy to a sport. I set up my lights on the row center's dock and made portraits before they started practice. My goal was to show each person and their injury or disability. They were all great sports about participating in the photo project and I was excited to have the opportunity like this.

A friend described the way I photograph as "taking genuine interest people that I photograph, committing myself to them with undivided attention and an almost (childlike) wonderment."
I found his analysis interesting and complimentary to me, my outlook on life and approach to photography. Similar to the commitment of the disabled athletes overcoming their own personal obstacles to pursue rowing. They a 2 page color spread on the cover of Monday's Life/Arts section, but you can still see some of the photos and read Pam's story here.

Zulu at 100 books on sale in New Orleans

2009-12-07T12:28:00.002-06:00

To coincide with PhotoNola week in New Orleans my Zulu at 100 books are on sale at 2 galleries in New Orleans; Coup d'Oeil Art Consortium on Magazine in the Lower Garden district and The Darkoom on Sophie Wright Pl. just down the street.

Big thanks to Ken and Charles for making this happen!

If you happen to be in New Orleans please check them out. They are handmade, limited edition series of 137, archivally printed from silver gelatin scans and each one has been individually typed on a Corona typewriter. Email me at Ben@BenSklar.com for more info. They make great gifts.

Photos of the books at Coup d'Oeil provided by Ken Capone! Thanks!

Grant W Anderson

2009-12-04T19:08:00.002-06:00

During Thanksgiving week I got to hang out with my friend who was in town from New York. After the dissolving of The Lords, for which Grant was the drummer, he is spreading his wings creatively and i gave him a few starting lessons about photography. We philosophized about visual communication versus music. I think he found it rewarding to see instantaneous results on the screen of a digital camera from an image he created. He really understood aperture, balancing light and shutter speed pretty quickly. Maybe he'll get a camera and start shooting?

The top photos is between Casa 808 and my 1950s Traveleze trailer. The bottom photos are the leaves growing on the vines on the side of Casa 808, pretty amazing sight. Thanks to Rachel for making stellar hot chocolate and holding a reflector!

Weeks away, working... MJ is back!

2009-12-03T08:45:00.004-06:00

I've been so busy and backlogged with work that it's been over two weeks since I've posted... As I mentioned I was with the Harris family who now lives in New Mexico for nearly two weeks until they had their third child. It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Often I'm photographing intense moments of sadness or grief, but this was the most intense moment of joy. I'm still working on an edit of the photos, but am happy I was able to shoot and participate in the birth.

I immediately after I got back from NM I produced the Slideluck Potshow multimedia event with Lance Rosenfeld and Kelly Lynn James. Thanks to Brandon Wilde of Austin Multimedia Group for helping us so much and letting us invade his space for days leading up to SLPS Austin II. The show was stacked with talent and an outstanding night overall; 500 people came out and we had a in/out line at the door. I even sold one of my Zulu books!

On Friday and Saturday I got to hang out in the rain with Statesman writer Pam Leblanc and photograph disabled rowers participating in a paralympic mini camp. Many of them were Veterans or associated with the military and others were born disabled. It will be an amazing story when i comes out. I was so excited about these folks I went back Saturday morning to shoot portraits of them all... the story hasn't run yet, so I'll have to wait to update the photos.

You may noticed some changes here, thanks to Drew Tieken for working hard to bring a fresh look to the website and adding new batches of work. I also worked my email to be Ben@BenSklar.com, so email me.

Thanksgiving was outstanding. My sister came in from LA and mom from BR. I made pumpkin pie from scratch with basic ideas i had from the Harris. No sugar! My mom called in Pumpkin Mousse, thanks Aimee and Jeff...

Back to work, on Thanksgiving I got a very considerate email from a NYT sports editor asking about my availability on Monday (this week). I said I was free and turns out I was going to meet and shoot Marion Jones. No details, just shoot Marion Jones. So I thought I was shooting a portrait until I arrived to a very nice community church gym in northeast San Antonio. Turned out she was getting back to her roots and going try and make a comeback as a WNBA basketball player. I was there with Bill Rhoden, NYT sports writer, to bring the news to the world. I was privileged to be a part of this story. She was super nice and a good person. Hard to imagine the things she did in her Olympic days, steroids and accomplishments. After photographing her in working out then shooting hoops for 4 hours or so, I finally got a few minutes to do a portrait next to a window. I told her representative that I wanted to shoot her outside on the street with some nice lighting set up. He thought it was a good idea. As she wrapped up her interviews with an ESPN crew and said good byes to Kevin Blackistone, who was writing for AOL, and Bill, I set up my lights one block away on a neighborhood street with a clean back ground. She came over with Rich, her rep., and I shot for probably a minute and a half. She was soaked from head to toe and exhausted from her workout. Not to mention she had to drive back to Austin to pick up her kids from school and daycare. Despite the 40 degree weather, she stepped up and let me make some portraits. Thanks Marion, good luck with hoops.

The story ran on the front of Tuesday sports with two photos, if you didn't see it you can read Bill's story here.

Slalom Champion

2009-11-14T17:28:00.003-06:00

Andy Mapple, 6 time world champion slalom water skier, was one of the most friendly and accommodating professional athletes I've worked with. He did an instructional camp at a ski ranch near San Marcos when I photographed him for the Statesman. I'm glad I was available for this assignment.

I'm still near Taos, NM waiting on the Harris third child to arrive and I've learned birth is totally unpredictable. I've thoroughly enjoyed being in their company and have the privilege to spend over a week in their new home. They've made massive steps in living sustainably and finding peace with the world and themselves as a "semi off the grid family." It has been pretty amazing to have witnessed this family's progression over the last two years.

Don't forget Slideluck Potshow is Saturday the 21st at the Shangri-La on East 6th st. in Austin. One Week from today! What dish are you bringing?

A day in November at Ft. Hood

2009-11-09T15:48:00.008-06:00

Last week was shaping up to be a slow week as I prepared to leave Austin, for Northern New Mexico to spend time with the Harris family, the people in the Voluntary Simplicity - America Downsizing project. On Wednesday I was asked to shoot an energy story for the Times on Friday morning in Taylor so I decided to stick around and leave from the shoot and file from the road.

Thursday, I was preparing for the trip and wrapping up a few things. Printing, typing, trimming and about to begin stitching Zulu at 100 books when I got a phone call... At about 2:20 an editor at Getty Images in New York called and asked if I could look into a suspected shooting at Ft. Hood in Killeen. I asked her when she wanted me to go and she said umm NOW. Immediatley after we hung up the New York Times called and then the Dallas Morning News... This was major and I was out the door not knowing what was going on as there wasn't much information available to the public at the time. As I approached Killeen I learned more from the public radio stations.

About an hour later I arrived in Killeen and went straight to the main gate of Ft. Hood. I had no idea what to expect and only knew that I had just missed a press conference. I hurriedly parked and immediately began shooting civilians, military family members and soldiers in the parking lot. I think a lot of hysteria in the parking lot near the main gate was result of a lack of information. We learned soon there after 12 people had died and 30 more were injured in what the radio was calling a massacre.

After making some images I left the main gate to file my pictures as it was nearing newspapers' deadline times. This was a very real situation that became serious quickly and the world needed to see what was going on, which was frustrating because it was so heavily restricted. No one can control any one's reactions to such a horrible event and this became the first photos I sent to New York.

The above photo was a very difficult situation as this distraught woman had no idea where her husband was and was unable to communicate with him. Monica Cain, above, explained in broken english that her husband Darren had only gone to the base that day for a minor doctors appointment. She was overwhelmed that after he was first injured in Iraq, now he came home to an attack within his own base. They had moved to Killeen only 4 months ago from Hawaii. A few journalists photographed her with long lenses and me and another got closer. I stuck around and although very difficult I found my presence with her more helpful than if she were alone with her children. As I was kneeling near her car, where this photo was made, she began to vomit from the stress and apoligized. I ran to my car and brought her my nalgene of water and she thankfully drank. She continued calling family members and tried to make contact to no avail causing her to burst into more tears, fearing the worst. When I came back after filing photos, she had gone, I found my water bottle on the curb where her car had been parked.

I came back and the sun was setting. A slew of journalists milled around the main gate at Ft. Hood waiting on a press conference where 3-star Gen. Robert Cone would speak about the massacre that took place. I found some soldiers waiting to hear from family inside the gates and stood with them until the general appearred. As I waited I began getting text messages from my editor that papers and websites were using my images on the fronts of their publications and friends from all over sent me words of encouragement. It was amazing how fast the images I made had made an impact. I felt strange to benefit in any way from the distress and trauma of others as messages of congratulations came, but I knew that I was doing a good thing telling these people's story. I was just doing my job.

Almost 3 hours after the announced time. Gen. Cone showed up for his press conference and explained the days tragedy. I filed and got home around midnight. Friday morning came and I did my morning Times assignment and went straight back to Killeen looking for community reaction photos. It seemed to me that the community had for the most part become numb to the previous days events. I went to churches, high schools, blood drives and restaurants searching for reactions. A moment of silence took place, but didn't resonate in the community off base. It was surreal to me, as if people weren't reacting. Eventually, i went to the home of the suspect Mjr. Hasan and photographed the owner of the complex who felt guilt for harboring such a man unknowingly.

I eventually learned that 13 newspapers had published my images of Monica Cain and the two soldiers hugging on their covers. I felt odd to be proud of this, but knew that it was a privilege I was able to tell these people's story and know that I did the best I could as a person and photographer.

I left Friday night for New Mexico after filing some follow up reaction photos from Killeen and have been here for 3 days. It was a crazy experience, but I felt comfortable and prepared for covering the story. I hope things settle in their community sooner than later.

Down in the Greenbelt

2009-11-02T23:19:00.003-06:00

Work has been very busy. I've been editing and preparing a wedding a shot last weekend as well as printing, trimming, typing and stitching my Zulu books to distribute to bookstores and galleries in Austin and New Orleans... I've had a few assignments over the past few days for the Statesman and the Times.

I've also been spending a lot of time in the greenbelt over the last week mostly climbing and doing some hiking. I've been bringing my digital camera along with the m6 to photograph various routes and other things along the way. Kyle and Scott Smith do a few different routes at the New Wall.

Zulu at 100 zine now on sale

2009-10-21T20:59:00.003-06:00

NOW ON SALE: "Zulu at 100" my 12 page photo zine to coincide wtih my upcoming show in New Orleans, February 2010.

Limited edition series of 137 printed with archival ink from silver gelatin print scans. The series captures the history and excitement of the Zulu Mardi Gras parade on its 100th anniversary (2009).

Please email me if your interested.

Today I tanned a hide for my new promotional books coming in December... Here are some photos thanks to Michael Jackson:

My hands are stained because they are leather.

Public speaking

2009-10-14T08:51:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow evening at 8:30 I'll join photographers Erich Schlegel, Andrew Loehman, and Thomas Meredith to speak at The University of Texas National Press Photographers Association student group meeting. The topic is freelancing. If your interested join us at 830 at CMA 3.124 near the corner of Dean Keaton (26th) and whitis.

The link is up! Check out the style piece I shot for AOL here.

The United Soviet State of College Station

2009-10-13T16:15:00.005-06:00

I spent this past Saturday in College Station shooting a street style fashion piece for Stylelist.com a website owned by AOL.com. The idea was to find people who dress interesting to tailgate for a Big12 rivalry football game and the day was equally as tame as it sounds until we found this group of tailgaiters.

Thanks to my John for holding reflectors for me that made it possible to make some great photos of our not so model prepped models. It was a great time in the end and the editors were really happy with the photos. I'll post a link when it comes up.

I got an exciting email on Saturday from Ken at Coup d'Oeil Art Consortium in New Orleans and one of my prints from the Zulu project sold during the Art for Art Sake night on October 3. I think I'm most impressed by the idea that some one is hanging something I created in their home.

On Friday I was in San Antonio to shoot a writers guild conference that helps veterans find a voice. The article ran today. It was held in the San Antonio public library downtown after hours as the sun was sunsetting after a mostly rainy day, making it a beautiful time to shoot. I had a great time running from group to group and shooting the empty architecturally sound building in the mean time. Here's some photos that weren't published:

Larry Coker

2009-10-01T12:26:00.002-06:00

Last Thursday I photographed Larry Coker, former University of Miami football coach, for the New York Times at UTSA where he is starting a football program from scratch. Coker won an NCAA championship in 2001 with the Canes. He was very friendly, accomodating and was even willing to get his shoes a little muddy for the portrait below. They didn't run the portrait but I thought it was a good idea. I mostly documented him doing what he does, which is mostly stuff behind the desk considering he won't have any players til next fall. Here is a link to the story.

Zulu at 100

2009-09-21T16:32:00.002-06:00

I've been scanning a few silver gelatin projects that I've recently completed. One of which is from last years Zulu parade during Mardi Gras in New Orleans. It happened to be the 100 year anniversary of the parade and the energy there inspired me to do a project.

A show is in the works at Darkroom a gallery, printer, framer locale in New Orleans for February 2010, during Mardi Gras. Here's a photo...

Hospital Installation

2009-09-18T11:28:00.006-06:00

Recently, I wrapped up hanging an installation for the University of Texas Medical Branch Internal Medicine residency program at Brackenridge Hospital.

I've done this project for about three years now and had a great time meeting the doctors entering their profession each time. It's consistently a challenge to photograph them while they work and capture natural expressions of concentration, curiousity, confusion, exhaustion or what have you. The theme of the work is 'face of the new doctor.'

This installation idea came from collaborating with Dr. Beth Miller and would not be possible without her support. Thanks so much!

Next week I'm starting a new installation commissioned by the Family Medicine department of UTMB...

To St. Pete and back

2009-09-15T16:01:00.005-06:00

Last Wednesday I began my trip across the country to St. Petersburg, Florida for the aphotoaday.org geekfest photography conference. On the way I stopped in Baton Rouge to see mom, dropped off my prints to Coup d'Oeil Art Consortium in New Orleans, photographed for my project in Bay St. Louis Mississippi and visited Brian Diggs in Tallahassee. The conference was laid back and stocked with outstanding speakers. Nights went late with lots of photo chat and drinking, even games of shuffleboard. Thanks to Melissa Lyttle and her crew for making it happen!

Just made it back to Austin today for a corporate event I'm shooting this evening. Below are a few snaps.

Clouds in Florida.

This is what I did while trying to stay awake on the drive back to Bay St. Louis from St. Pete. Shooting photos in the fog at 80mph.

A closed store in Bay St. Louis. Part of a series I'm shooting about buildings and left behind structures across Hancock County. Shooting the landscape has become an intriguing part of this project outside of documenting the people I was with during Katrina.

More from the Katrina series to come...

New-ish shoes...

2009-09-07T15:33:00.002-06:00

There's nothing super-photographically sound about this post, but I'm excited about a personally project I completed recently. I've been thinking about recovering my vans slip ons for some time now... finally I did after the original blue cover came completely off and massive holes opened in the toes. The right shoe (left) is left over acid wash denim I found in my friend Ian's free box and the left shoe (right) is a folded piece of a soft bandana I got at Wheatsville food co-op years ago. I used an upholstery needle, inspired by Noah, and hemp yarn to stich through the rubber sole and the materials. The soles have years left on them and I'm happy I was able to reuse the shoe.

My fingers got sore pushing through the thick rubber, but the project only took a few hours spread over 2 days. Small project, great satisfaction!

Back in Austin

2009-09-02T10:17:00.002-06:00

It was a lot of driving, but well worth it. I had an outstanding time in Mississippi reconnecting with some of the folks I was with during Hurricane Katrina four years ago. I actually copied the list of people who were at the same emergency center as me from Brice Philips, radio guru, and have started calling to photograph those people this year. Finding all of them will be a challenge, but I shot portraits of six of them near a place of significance to them or the storm over the weekend. I also shot 2 interviews recapping the storm, the last four years of reconstruction and the meaning of the anniversary. It was outstanding to re-meet these people with whom i have a bond and I'm thankful they were so welcoming to my presence, I can't wait to go back!

This week I've been editing, firming up a few different shoots with corporate clients and shooting an assignment for the Times on Friday.

I'm also having the website updated soon with an ongoing portrait project about Texans and the installation I hang each year for UTMB Internal Medicine at Brackenridge hospital. Stay tuned.

Katrina 4 years later

2009-08-28T13:30:00.002-06:00

I'm back in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi where I road out Hurricane Katrina 4 years ago August 29, 2005. I felt it was time to return to where a major event in my life took place and reconnect with the people who were at the emergency operations center with me. Although, I've been back previously, I feel that our story goes untold.

My goal is to photograph all of the people that were there in order to compile a photo story for next years' anniversary. I'm also trying to compile footage and shoot interviews for a documentary that will tell our story. So far I've photographed 2 of 35 or so people and have a long way to go in collection information and finding those who have relocated. But it has been a rewarding experience thus far. This morning after photographing Brice Phillips, radio guru, I was interviewed on the radio about coming back to the community by Wade Hicks, former BSL firefighter.

I'll update a peak at some photos from the project soon.

---

On my way to the Bay I stopped for an evening in New Orleans and met with gallery owner/curator Ken Capone at Coup d'Oeil (catch the eye) on Magazine St. He was excited about my silver gelatin prints, especially from the 100th anniversary of Zulu, and wants to hang 4 prints temporarily with the possibility of a show in the future.

That evening I went to dinner with my family friend Wade Welch at Frankie and Johnnie's, a NOLa tradition, for the first time. Thanks!

Boggy Creek Farm outtakes

2009-08-24T12:40:00.008-06:00

Here are some photos that you may have seen if you picked up this last WSJ Weekend Edition, or that didn't make it into the slideshow (link at right) about Boggy Creek Farm. It was a really fun assignment and Larry, Carol Ann, their staff and customers were great to work with. Thanks!

If you have time I would recommend checking out their operation in East Austin Wednesday and Saturday mornings. After 2 days of shooting and a variety of photos the editors in New York were happy. Especially, the lighting on the portraits and interiors of the house, which was built in the 1830s.

Larry tells a story about how he used a fallen pecan tree to make cutting boards, fireplace mantels, and furniture. This inspired me to build a box for my vinyl records out of birch. Although I didn't mill the wood myself, it was a rewarding project.

Always title posts

2009-08-18T10:20:00.006-06:00

Just finished a story about Boggy Creek Farm for the Wall Street Journal's Homefront section. Pick up Friday's and/or the weekend edition if you'd like to check it out. I'll post after it publishes.

Recently: WORLD magazine published a photo in relation to a gene patenting story, the Chronicle of Philanthropy published a photo in relation to a story about giving to charity. I also had a great time assisting Jay Drowns of the Sporting News while shooting Colt McCoy.

In the mean time, here's a recent shoot at Clarksville Studios (just opened). It's Andrew, a rapper in the NY-DC based group Double Dutch Oven:

Stumptown

2009-08-18T10:05:00.009-06:00

On a Friday in Seattle the trains were full, rental cars to expensive, and planes ridiculous... so we took a 2 buses to Portland traveling a total of 7 hours.

Portland is an outstanding city. Cycling proves a popular and acceptable form of transportation, so i bought a bike for $10 at a garage sale and rented another bike (above) for $20 for the weekend from a dude named Charlie near Tiny's coffeehouse at 12th and Hawthorne.

Maria's friends' (above) wedding included a bike parade through downtown Portland, ending at the ACE hotel where Indian food was consumed after ceremonies and pie (with our plastic bride and groom) for desert. Melissa and Drew had a typewriter for guests to write well wishes, a toast with homebrew beer and an old fashioned photo booth. Congratulations on the most unique and well done urban wedding I've ever attended

Thanks to Jason and Claire for being gracious hosts. I hope you got the bike Jason!

Seattle

2009-08-18T09:59:00.008-06:00

Took a trip to Seattle for the first time to visit friends on our way to a wedding in Portland.

Thanks to the soon to be newlyweds Mark and Annie for being great friends and hosts!

Le Tour Project por Brent Humphreys

2009-07-13T13:01:00.002-06:00

Go check out Brent's work from The Tour de France at Mellow Johnny's bikeshop during regular business hours or projectletour.com.

It's way better than lycra.

Paging... Dr. Miller...

2009-07-13T12:48:00.002-06:00

Moonlight

2009-07-10T14:57:00.003-06:00

Go to Granger

2009-06-18T17:01:00.010-06:00

take a photo of a girl who likes horses

see a donkey named Shadow

meet a farrier named Matt

find endless fields everywhere

and remember fuzzi wuzzi.

Krause Springs

2009-06-13T20:32:00.003-06:00

Hank's v8

2009-06-13T20:31:00.001-06:00

If you don't like where you are

2009-06-13T20:29:00.004-06:00

move to vermont

Women in goggles

2009-05-19T16:01:00.001-06:00

And this is Peggy Morton... my high school journalism teacher.

Hotel Master

2009-04-19T08:25:00.001-06:00

This is Van he does every job in the hotel there is to do... his last name is Valiant.

Black Joe

2009-04-19T08:22:00.003-06:00

Getting more work the last 2 weeks has been a good thing... These guys, Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, are really cool and fun to hang out with.

futbol

2009-04-19T08:19:00.004-06:00

It was pretty neat to be in a culture as diverse as ours where everybody, no matter where they are from is a fan of the same thing. in this case soccer brought all these people together to support the austin team. of course not enough ink for this photo, but i appreciate them and they made my night worth while. Juan Arias above, thanks.

a story about sitting balls

2009-04-19T08:19:00.001-06:00

red

2009-04-19T08:18:00.000-06:00

jobless

2009-04-19T08:14:00.001-06:00

what about Bob?

2009-03-25T16:01:00.000-06:00

xoxo Texas misses you

sxsw 2009

2009-03-25T13:43:00.008-06:00

The last week was intense and a lot of fun overall. These are some of the images you probably won't see the newspaper, but rather that I find appealling. I've been pretty excited about seeing what other photographers shot during the week for work and how they covered the craziness of the festival overall. It felt overwhelming with bands, people and things to be doing. Check out more SXSW coverage here: http://pa.photoshelter.com/usr-show/U0000fnvuaylzLSU

faces on white...

2009-03-09T12:28:00.004-06:00

Florida sky pictures

2009-03-03T13:39:00.003-06:00

destin

panama city beach

apilachicola or steinhatchee

recently in florida

2009-03-02T13:26:00.002-06:00

Thank You Chris Carson

2009-02-16T13:34:00.003-06:00

Wow, what an experience this was. I never thought I would really care too much about meeting politicians and celebrities, but this is a memory I'll never forget. I'm really happy my friend was there to make this picture and send it my way. After shooting famous people its actually really really neat to meet them like this in a humble way. Thanks Chris (and Bill).

Bill weekend

2009-02-15T14:50:00.001-06:00

What people do on Sunday

2009-02-03T17:32:00.007-06:00

I'm eating chocolate fudge cake at quacks, there's a neat looking dude outside and its 538pm
Sunday I walked for quite a while looking at what people do, people do a lot on Sunday
The weather has to cooperate for this to take place and this week worked out perfectly
Slackliners slacked as frisbee sprinters blaze as kite flyers flew as loungers lounged
Lighting it all up was a neat challenge as well and thanks to friends Sam, Kristen and Marcos
It took the ease off a hernia repaired photographer and make a new project about Sunday
Some people find holiness in other places besides buildings, preachers or candles
Celebrating your body the earth and having friends to share activities are noteworthy choices
Shooting photos of these experiences motivates me to do more for the sake of doing it
Just do it, as an aside the Nike Human Race book "The Day the World Stopped to Run"
Arrived this week, pretty privileged to be a part of, but I can't say I would have bought it. xo
Anyone reading this?

Mr. Friends in winter

2009-02-03T17:29:00.002-06:00

Recent photos of friends
Lighting candles with Paul Simon
Returning from Korea after losing a bet
And getting a new haircut.

time for dinner

2009-02-03T17:27:00.003-06:00

Working on a saturday would presumalby suck to most
I rather enjoyed the experience and was happy to be having work in january
Shooting socialites at a gala opened my eyes to a lot like people with a ton of money
Besides some aristocrats and artsy folks docents walked with bells
Chiming a specific tune to let people know that dinner was beginning.

breakfast breakdance

2009-02-03T17:22:00.002-06:00

Going to breakfast with friends is a pretty enjoyable experience
Especially when you get a new water heater and it comes with slick cardboard boxes
Really great for breakdancing on, but then you walk outside and overexpose it
So later you see your way and try to make it cool by adding contrast and calling it art
Coffee is delicious everything is wonderful and yarn connects us all.

808 salsa bar with cilantro, pico

2009-01-31T03:20:00.004-06:00

one more time to go
just wait til the next snow
black bean tacos with lettuce
preserve what you find
lack hunger more
desire the next one
but not
often days off
leave experimental endeavors
looking for a tribeca shoot
just chilling in mean time
the high pass from DC
going to bed

paying off

2009-01-29T15:39:00.003-06:00

having fun with photoshop techniqz and portraits recently. Chef Paredes...

tanglry

2009-01-26T23:05:00.004-06:00

Shot a basketball game over the weekend, 2 days post surgery.
Not recommended but an enjoyable saturday evening overall,
came away with this on borrowed cameras, thanks. BW filter, ye or ne?
Can't wait til february!

The Wonderful Organization

2009-01-19T14:28:00.002-06:00

retoned

2009-01-18T10:08:00.002-06:00

not quite a high pass

welcome to 2009

2009-01-05T14:58:00.002-06:00

surprised to work so early in 09 but excited
Enjoyable time at a travis heights hotel
Always fun to work in the hood
A borrowed 5d, thanks diggs...
happy to be home from korea
bags of film to process
and back to work we go...