It's been awhile

It’s been awhile since I've posted on here, the first quarter of school tried its best to destroy me, but here I am, as Rolf would say, "still kicking!" I thought this quarter would be easy, with two 101 classes, but I didn't take my two upper level classes into account, or the amount of work I'd have with Reach Out on Campus and the Post, and trying to find internships for next summer (which reminds me I have a ton of work to do once the first week go break.)

I have been shooting for the Post but not doing nearly as much photo work as I would like, although this quarter has not been a total loss, as I took one of the most interesting classes I've taken in my time at OU, History of the Middle East from 1800 to present. I think everyone should take that course, because you really need a little history to understand the situation in the Middle East today.

It’s so easy to just make assumptions about people you don't know, about a culture you don't understand. I consider myself to be a fairly open minded person, but I realized I was stereotyping without even realizing it. When all the stories you hear coming from the middle east have to do with terror attacks and protests, its hard not to have this very negative image which in no way reflects the entirety of the population. Ask yourself this question: how much do you really know about the news you hear/read/watch?

Just something to think about

Last night in Scotland

Arthurs Seat, Edinburgh

I have been incredibly lucky to have spent the last 5 weeks in scotland with some truly amazing photojournalists. I've realized yet again that this is definitly what I want to do with the rest of my life and I am so glad to be a part of the viscom program at Ohio University because of the talent which is there. Although we are all great friends we're also incredibly competitive and push eachother to photograph better than ever. I've improved the way I shoot and go about photographing a situation so much over this trip that most of my portfolio will be turned over from this trip and what isn't will soon be replaced in the following months.

North Berwick Highland Games

Terry says he takes the field school to Scotland because there are hundreds of good pictures to be made, Its not like its hard to find a story or great light here, the challenge is to shoot in ways that we've never shot before and at a level that is much higher than our normal shooting. I have been stunned by the work that has come out of this program.

William Kerr, has been a piper for 40 years

Our last day in Edinburgh Sara and Kristin and I walked down the royal mile and princes street, picking up a few presents for friends and family back home. Its weird to look back and remember coming into town right after we arrived and figuring out how to get around this city which I'm very comfortable in. I have to say though that knowing that our last ride back to Queen Margaret College on the 26 bus was over was a relief as the buses have become slower and slower since the festival started. Its going to be odd coming home and not seeing men in kilts walking down the street everywhere you look and not being able to hear bagpipes 24/7.

The Fringe Festival on the Royal Mile, Edinburgh


Thistle

Cheers!

Linlithgow and the Burry man

One of my favorite places in scotland I ended up at by accident by missing my bus to where I was going, so I decided to make the best of it and just photograph the city I was in, Linlithgow. I ended up lucking out because the day I came they were having the Linlithgow scotch hop, which is a huge dance in the palace Mary Queen of Scots was born in and then having retreat that night with their pipe band. The palace there is beautiful because it sits right on the loch.



The Burry Man

The burry man is a tradition which goes back hundreds of years in Queensferry where during the summer one day a man dresses up in all burs and walks through town all day and is offered whiskey and money. The money is given to charities although it used to be to pay the two people who help him by holding poles covered in flowers which the burry man holds onto because he has to keep his arms outstretched the entired day. He drinks the whiskey, which you can imagine gets interesting after several drams and no way of going to the bathroom the entire day. The burry man and his whole family are all really nice people and the whole community knows them so they make stops throughout the day to just talk with people.

Scotland

I've been in Scotland for the past five weeks and I cannot even begin to describe what the expierence has been. This is an amazing country which continually stuns me with how beautiful it is, and the people are willing to let you into their lives like no one else I've ever encountered. I've been living in Edinburgh and most of my time has been spent in and around the city although I have had a chance to travel to several other parts of the country including St. Andrews, Inverness, North Berwick, Pittenweem, Dundee, and Dunbar.

The Fringe Festival is going on in Edinburgh right now which is advertized as the largest arts festival in Europe and it lives up to the hype with around 50 street performers daily, many shops and hundreds of shows going on, not to mention the thousands of people who've come into the city over the past two weeks to see it and Edinburgh's Military Tattoo.



Edinburgh from Carlton Hill at sunset



Amelia and Francisco are street performers from Seville, Spain who are in Edinburgh for the Fringe Festival. I have had such a great time talking with Amelia about the fringe and being a street performer.




Elaine Davidson is the world record holder for body piercing and is from Edinburgh. She doesn't like photographers that much which I couldn't understand at first but another one of the photographers who is here in the same program I am talked to her and she doesn't like photographers because she feels like they use her, just taking her picture and then not giving her any money. Many people watch the performances of the street performers and then dont give them any money, not realizing this is how they make all their money



Linlithgow retreat




Edinburgh Military Tattoo


Linlithgow Castle and loch

Why I'm a Photojournalist

I am a photojournalist for a lot of reasons, although sometimes I forget why I do it. Ultimately it’s because of the people I meet because of my work. Everyone has a story, and I am continually amazed by the stories I get hear and to be a part of telling.

The Post at Ohio University is doing a series of stories on OU graduates including Rick Hicks, a 44 year old music education major who came back to Ohio University after working for several years. He took classes for one year at OU after graduating high school but wasn't able to stay because of financial issues, and five years ago he decided to come back to finish what he started.

He is married and has five adopted children including triplet sons, and is one of the most easy going friendly people I've ever met, as well as an amazing trumpet player. He's going to be a high school band director.

Entering my third decade

so yesterday was my 20th birthday and it was amazing! It may sound cheesy but more than cards and flowers the best present I got was being able to spend time with my friends going out to eat, and seeing spiderman 3, and the next two days are going to be more of the same. I can't think of anything better.

of course, flowers are pretty great to get too.

WGI World Championships

Last weekend I was able to photograph at WGI World Championships for the second year for Innovative Percussion, and as always it was a great experience. As a former bass drummer it's always great to be able to come back and be around indoor again. For more pictures check out www.innovativepercussion.com

The Beginning

So with all the blogs going up from diffrent photographers from commerical photographers to photojournalists I thought I would join in for several reasons; first of all it's a great way to get input on what I'm working on as well as keep up to date with what projects others are working on. That said, I hope you enjoy it!

I've been working on a few things lately but one of the most meaningful to me was photographing the candle light vigil Ohio University had for the victims of the Virginia Tech shooting. As a photojournalist I've learned to distance myself somewhat from my subjects, because in my line of work sometimes things can just get too intense, but when I first heard about Virginia Tech I didn't feel anything, it wasn't until the Wednesday after when I watched a presentation someone made which was simply the names of the victims with snapshots of them that it hit me; these were college kids, just like me. My prayers go out to all of their families and friends.