I am still making my way through all of the photos from the trip. I have finished enough to put up a gallery of images that are less serious and more tourist oriented. For those who are interested, here is a more behind the scenes look at the conditions, camping and hiking that my brother and I were experiencing. Pretty soon I will have up multiple galleries splitting up the images by location with writing about my own experiences and impressions of the areas we visited. I have started working on re-tooling parts of the site as well. I was very ill last week which set me back in my work but I am back at it now. To view the gallery, click here or click on either one of the two images in this post.

I have been back from my Utah for about a week now. Being only a two week trip, it was the abridged version of what I am used to. I got my love for the region from my dad. When I was younger we used to take month and a half long family trips all over the west, with a big focus on Utah. It had been too long since I last went out there. When my brother proposed the idea to do it while gas prices were low, I jumped at the chance. He has had more experience out there since I last visited. We spent the two weeks without rest trying to see as much as we could. In southern utah alone there are some of the most amazing geological phenomena and rough, untamed terrain to explore in the world, all less than 200 miles of each other. And all of that is still just scratching the surface of what is out there. My brother introduced me to a number of new locations that I had not been to which he had found on his own trips. I really can't understate the allure of the west. In the two weeks we had out there, with all we saw, it was becoming hard to take in so quickly. Each day felt like two, and I had to start chronicling events and impressions in my notebook to try and remember it all. Needless to say I have come back from the trip with a lot of stories, and even more photos. These two are just a teaser for now as I process the over 3,000 images I came back with. It will take me some time but I will get up some good images once I have Finished editing them all down. In the mean time I will post a more touristy gallery of just John and I on the trip as a more personal behind the scenes look for those interested. Right now I am spending all of my free time sorting my life out, looking for new work and projects, and sorting out all of these photos. I still have to decide how I am going to be putting up all of the images. They will probably be split up into multiple galleries and I will also try and do a fair amount of writing about the whole experience to go along with it. So check back soon for more, I also plan to overhaul a couple sections of the site, Write a review for my new Tenba sling bag I used on the trip, and I have been talking to all of my illustrator friends about putting up a new web based comic site as a side project. I am certainly keeping busy.








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Photo by Michael Ravel

After spending a couple of months back home in North Carolina, I am long overdue for a new post. I had a good time slipping back into my old life. I got to spend the holidays with the family, get some work done at Carey Sound, climb a mountain, and go camping a couple times. I spent new years watching the stars instead of the clock. I can't really explain just how much I love sitting on the top of a mountain or being out in the middle of nowhere, too much time in the city just makes me claustrophobic.

It does feel good to be in Memphis again. I have been spending my time getting reacquainted with people and the city. Can't say I am looking for work at the moment because I am planning a trip to Utah with my brother for a couple weeks in February to visit Zion and canyon lands. I haven't been out west in six years and have been dying get back out there, so I can't pass up this opportunity. One of my life goals is to see the desert in snow. The landscape out there is absolutely beautiful. I will definitely have a good series of photos to post in a gallery after the trip, so be sure to check back for that update.

I don't have much new to post at the moment except for a few new entries for the photoblog. Photo work has been a little slow recently but spring is coming as well as new projects.

While weddings may not be my forte, I will not turn down the opportunity for the experience or the job. Weddings are not the direction I want to take as a photographer, but most photographers at some point submit to doing them. There certainly is good money in it as well a few other small perks. I was contacted a few months back to shoot this wedding and I believe I pulled it off pretty well. With the help of a good assistant and plenty of preparation, of course. With my almost compulsive planning I avoided a few would-be bad scenarios. There is a lot of stress that goes along with shooting weddings, mostly from the fear of messing up a shot because there are no second chances. A lot can be said for people who are really good at documentary style photography. It is certainly a challenge with so many variables up in the air to keep track of and try to control to produce good images. Anyone who says otherwise is either cocky or ignorant. I have much respect for photographers who have the natural eye to capture a scene perfectly. Even Cartier-Bresson, the master of the “decisive moment,” took multiple successive shots and chose through editing the perfect image that could distil the essence of an event. This style of shooting does take a lot of practice. Aside from the obvious technical aspects of taking the photos, ranging from all of the components of exposure control, to unpredictable and uncontrollable lighting, and not to mention the difficulty of framing and composing an image on the go that will never happen the same again, capturing truly great images becomes quite a challenge. I am no longer referring to just wedding photography but the art of documentary photography. With wedding photography, this is over thinking it a bit, but this is what goes through my head when I am in a situation that calls for documentation style of shooting. I have studied too many great photographers to know it is not something that just comes together with a simple click.

These photos are a little overdue. I took a trip to Mexico City back in March for a week. Being one of the world’s largest cities with well over 8.5 million people, it was a bit overwhelming. One of the most incredible aspects of the city is the sheer amount of artwork everywhere; all around were sculpture, murals, and mosaics. By comparison, it made the US look like it had no appreciation for the arts. There is an incredible wealth of museums and a lot of time can be spent hopping from one to another. The archeological site of Teotihuacan was truly amazing and my first experience climbing a pyramid. The food is also amazing, even the smallest fajita stand or churro vendor on the street is oh-so-delicious. The shock of vibrant colors everywhere made the city feel rich and alive, and made coming home feel incredibly flat and bland. From the Zocalo to Chapultepec, Frida and Diego's home and studio, and the beautiful architectural work of Luis Barragan, these are just a few of the sites I got to see and only a taste of what Mexico City has to offer. To keep this short and sweet, if you are even thinking of visiting Mexico, I highly recommend it. To view some of the photos, click on the image above to go to the gallery or go to the photography section of the web site.

It was another good year for the Horn Island trip and exhibition. The show came down a few weeks ago but this marks the end of my work for it, having finished and turned over an extra series of prints I was asked to do for the donors that help make the trip possible. For it I used a series of two of my prints that were used for the promotional media for the show this year in the ads, cards, and street signage. Two sets of 25 prints, signed and editioned were produced to be distributed as a gift. The images that I made prints of for this years show can be seen in an album in my photography section. Next years will mark the 25th year of the expedition and I really look forward to what will come of it, as something special can be expected for this anniversary.

Welcome to the new point of view point. I have finally started work on and finnished the povp site update. One of the big new additions is the start of a blog wich I will be posting on from time to time. I have added six new galleries in the photography section and the photoblog has been overhauled as well with a number of new photos and a sexy new look. These are exciting times. please come by and check often for updates. Also, please leave a comment with any suggestions about the site.