Nick Rodriguez aka NicDanger

I got to photograph NicDanger, a young Columbia rapper yesterday. We ended up running this one photo. But here are some of my outtakes.

Fall fun

This weekend I made another trip to West Plains, Mo. On my way back, I wanted to go to this brewery, Piney River Brewery, that my friend, Ben Zack, has recommended. I had to drive on gravel roads for a good while to reach this place that used to be a barn and now an amazing place with some amazing ales. On the way there, I had to make several stops to appreciate what fall has to offer.

Sunday portraits

I got to hang out with some good friends and met some nice people yesterday. Here are some portraits of those who crossed my path.

This is Becky. She is the bartender at Lucy's in McBaine, Mo. She is pretty much my favorite bartender. That little roadside bar has the best afternoon light ever. I made this portrait in the kitchen as she was preparing a double cheeseburger for one of the guests.

We made friends with her over the summer as we started going there almost every Sunday. She is one of those people who is hard to get close to. But once you are in, you are in for real. It is a quality that I admire in people.

After we became regulars at Lucy's, she lost her house to a fire. She and her family are still in the process of recovery. You are always in my prayers, Becky.

This is Han Cheung, a good, old friend of mine. He was in town to work on the Missouri Photo Workshop's website and to defend his MA project, which he successfully completed. He had couple free days before he heads out to Portland with his girlfriend. So we went for a hike in the morning, which was really refreshing for both of us, before we went to Lucy's.

Han and I started the program at the same time. And it took both of us a lot longer than our classmates. We both are hopefully graduating this December. Fingers crossed.

I hope your girlfriend and you find good jobs soon. Wish you both luck with everything.

This is Jimmy. We met him yesterday at Lucy's. While we were playing with the good light, making each other's pictures, he walked up to us and asked us to photograph him. He said he is an ex-Amish. He left the Amish community when he was 26. He said, because  he wanted to be a singer and make music, the community asked him to leave three times. And the third time they asked, he did it.

This is Martin Wulf, another new friend we met yesterday at Lucy's. He is certainly a character. He said he is married to his wife for over 50 years. He wanted to make sure that I wouldn't put his picture on the paper, because his wife would be really jealous. We talked about his farming and this year's drought that hit the Midwest. He lives down the road from Lucy's. When I asked him if he drove there, he said, "Heck, yeah!"

Nugget

Here is another sample from my holga boy. This is probably one of the best pictures I have ever made. And I really mean it. Pups are the best.

Excited for Holga

I got my first two rolls of holga films developed last Friday. Love the feeling they give. I had a lot of fun shooting these.

Shot this one during a summer afternoon bike ride. Country roads are always very poetic.

This is the big tree in McBaine, Mo. I triple exposured it. Just playing around with my camera while on the wheels.

I don't remember this guy's name. He was at Lucy's with his friends and wanted us to take a picture of him. He surely had some cool tattoos.

This bizarre image, my friends, was made last year in the small town of Rocheport, Mo. I was there on assignment to shoot this monster bike bash, that was organized for the Halloween. Besides the assignment images, I snapped couple pictures with my Holga guy.

From the same bike bash. Yes, what you see on the background is a group of beer bottles (six pack) and a bunch of smurfs.

A portrait from last year

Chelsea Wolfe in St. Louis

Last night, Leah Beane and I did a short road trip to St. Louis to see the Chelsea Wolfe show at Firebird. It was great to be able to listen to her beautiful voice live. After the show, I got a chance to photograph her outside the venue. She looks gorgeous in this shot.

 

Remembering 9/11

Another set of pictures from my archive. Remembering 9/11 after 10 years. It is hard to believe that it has already been that long. I can remember that awful day like yesterday.

From The Archives: High School Softball

Here are a few shots from a game I shot last fall.

Football For The First Time

     I shot football for the first time last summer. It was a scrimmage and we were only allowed to be there for the first hour. Not knowing anything about the game, I was very nervous that day. Here are a few shots from that shooot.