Overboard 9

Heidi is a girl after my own heart.  She has a heart as big as I've ever seen and she is one of the sweetest girls I have ever seen.  Heidi also has 11 dachsunds.  That means she has 2 more dogs than I do...that's a lot!!!  Heidi also loves her crafts, especially her scrapbooking.  In fact, she's turned one of her bedrooms into a scrapbooking room - complete with racks purchased from a store that's gone out of business.  Heidi's house is a beautiful log cabin, and in order to light her, I bounced a flash off her closet doors.  She was definitely a joy to work with and a wonderful addition to the Overboard series.

Overboard 8

I met Terri when we worked together for a period of time.  When we first met, Terri was not as fit as you see here.  She certainly wasn't a big girl, but she was not as sculpted as she is now.  Terri became interested in the self-defense of krav maga in the last few years, and the result of all her hard work can be seen in this photo.  She was a prime candidate for the Overboard series since she has certainly taken her training to an extreme.

Overboard 7

We have all heard people use the words, "as cuddly as a teddy bear."  But, what about a teddy bear that's wrapped in plastic.  Lorraine can probably tell us something about that because she purchases teddy bears all the time...teddy bears from various stores and places.  When she gets her new stuffed friends home, she quickly wraps them in plastic and stores them away in a spare room.  And....that's where they stay.  All her bears are white and most of them are Christmas bears.  In shooting Lorraine's portrait for the "Overboard" series, I created a wall of teddy bears on her living room sofa and floor.  We then placed Lorraine in the upper right corner of the frame and the result is the shot you see here.

Overboard 6

As they say, the only difference between a man and a boy is the price of his toys.  Barry, however, might argue that his collection does not constitute toys, as the many tools in his workshop can certainly come in handy for fixing things around the house.   During the time in which I was shooting Barry and his tools, he was concentrating on passing his testing to get into the police academy.  With that in mind, I chose to have Barry hold two of his favorite "toys" in such a fashion that suggests he's shooting at the viewer.  There is also an underlying message, which is meant to convey that Barry does not want to share his "toys." I would venture to say that most men feel that way about their tool collections - they don't want to lend anything out for fear that it will never be returned.

Overboard 5

Dom loves to make and enjoy homemade wine.  He has turned his basement into a winery, where he houses all the essentials to produce his beverage of choice.  This is by no means a business for Dom, but instead a favorite past-time or hobby that he enjoys with friends and family.  In working with Dom for the Overboard series, I staged several scenarios over the course of 3 days of shooting.  The final image incorporated into the project really illustrates more of a natural setup.  He had just received the boxed grapes seen in the shot and was truly going through the crushing process.  As is seen in this image, I chose to not have Dom look into the camera so as to illustrate his complete engagement with his passion.

Overboard 4

As I've said, I've met some wonderful and interesting people while searching for subjects to photograph in my Overboard series.  Another such person is Red.  Red was brought to my attention by one of my high school teachers Donna Joseph.  Donna was involved with the high school track team at Shadyside High School for many years.  She was a potential subject for my series, and I did take some photos with her.  In working with her for the series, Donna mentioned Red.  She told me that Red had been a track coach for many years in the Columbus, OH area.  Red had, in fact, purchased the house next door to where he lived in order to house all of the track memorabilia he had acquired over the years.  I was able to track Red down, and he very cordially agreed to allow me to photograph him in his element.  The resulting photo was staged in that house next door to where he lives - all of these items belong to him, and there was an obvious  connection to the color red throughout.  There are actually a couple of other rooms that cannot be seen in this shot.  These rooms are also filled with track items.  Red shares his collection with the current high school track teams, as he hosts gatherings at this property every year.  As you might imagine, the entire house is a great conversation piece and place to gather and learn about track history for these kids.

Overboard Part 3

Dale was another gentleman I photographed for my Overboard series.  I met Dale for the first time when I arrived to shoot his image.  To explain, I had been speaking with Jackie, a dear friend of mine, about my project.  Jackie insisted I must meet Dale, as he had a collection of tractors that was second to none.  It turned out that Dale was married to a former co-worker of mine.  (Small world, isn't it?!)  I called Dale, introduced myself, and explained what I was looking for with respect to adding his photograph to my series.  Dale happily agreed.  Upon arrival, I found the room featured in the picture in very much the same shape that it is seen.  Dale, as you can see, likes things neat and orderly.  Everyone of his tractors is lined up in a specific direction, and all like-type models are grouped together.  That is evident from the colors of the collection.  I did move a few of the tractors from their homes on the shelves, and arranged them on the floor.  The overarching theme of the shot relates to a boy with his toys - though Dale is obviously a man with some very expensive toys.  The natural light in the room was wonderful to work with as was Dale.

Living in the Woods

I'm working on a project related to a high school senior who's living in the woods for a year for his senior project.  At this point, I have yet to meet the young man, but I have met and interviewed his mom and one of his teachers.  The student, who will remain nameless at this time, is quite an extraordinary young man - definitely an individual who lives outside the box.  I asked friends on Facebook and Twitter how they thought they might fare if they were tasked with living in the woods for a year.  One said she could do it without problem, while most others said they probably wouldn't be able to do it.  The student has heard cries from a fox at night and has found a copperhead snake near his campsite.  I know I wouldn't last the moment I heard or found either of those critters, and most of my friends feel exactly the same way!  In preparing himself for what may come to be over the course of this next year, the student recently attended a seminar at "Earthskills."  I made a trip there to see check it out - met some interesting folks - but did not run into my subject.  The student's camp is about 1 mile into the woods, and for those of you who know me well, you'll appreciate it when I say that I'm a bit leery about making the trek there in the upcoming week.

Overboard Part 2

While riding through Alabama a couple of years ago, I saw a field or "graveyard," I should say, of old Volkswagens.  I asked my husband Jim to pull over, as I "saw something."  He saw the cars but couldn't figure out what on earth I was seeing.  I explained that somebody had to own those cars, and I wanted to meet him...see if he'd be willing to allow me to photograph him with his "collection."  Jim never meets a stranger, and was up for the task of tracking down the owner.  He started knocking on the doors of the houses sitting next to the cars.  It only took a few tries and we were pointed in the direction of Bobby, the owner.  We drove up to Bobby's house, knocked on his door, and explained that I was working on a photography project - asked if he'd be willing to participate.  Bobby was more than eager, in fact he was downright excited.  He quickly slipped on his best bib overhauls and his shiny black shoes.  (I didn't ask him to do that...but he felt it necessary to dress up for the occasion.)  I took his picture while standing in the back of Jim's pickup truck.  I then printed a copy for Bobby, as we had my photo printer hooked up in the back of the truck.  Bobby was ecstatic.  This was one wonderful opportunity afforded to me in pursuit of the completion of my imagery.  Many more were to come...

Overboard: Personal Collections and Behaviours

I have been working on a photography project for quite some time.  It began as my thesis project while in pursuit of my MFA in photography at the Academy of Art University.  This series of photographs features real people with their collections and/or behaviors.  I staged each photo using only items that belonged to the subjects (people) being featured.  The project is meant to be presented from more of a humorous aspect as opposed to anything negative.  Everybody goes overboard with something, though some do so to more of an extent than others.  With that in mind, everyone can relate to the imagery in some way - be it from a personal aspect or from the fact that they know someone similar to those in the photos.  The project began with a self-portrait, as I can most definitely relate to the overall objective of the series.  I have various collections, i.e., "Wizard of Oz" memorabilia, Barbie Dolls (most of which are still in original boxes), Precious Moments figurines, etc.  One of my more recent "obsessions" is with the color pink.  This sparked the completion of the photo seen here.  (No my bathroom does not normally look this way.)  It took a lot of trips in and out of the tub to get just the right lighting, and my neighbor was very intrigued as to what was going on in my house with all the "flashing" she saw over the course of the three evenings of shooting.

Video test

New Jersey 2

My time in New Jersey has been quite an experience - not all of which has been positive.  The first hotel I checked into turned out to have bed bugs.  That's right...bed bugs.  I have never encountered these things before this trip, nor do I ever want to encounter them again!  I won't even go into the entire story on that front; instead I'll tell you about this evening.  I came back to my hotel room after working my 12-hour shift.  I settled into my room, got ready to begin working on homework and decided to have some popcorn.  I put my little popcorn package into the microwave for 2 minutes and decided it needed just a few seconds more to ensure all the kernels had popped.  Well....less than a minute later, I opened the microwave door and realized my popcorn had burnt...not badly...but it was burnt.  Just then, the smoke alartm went off in my room, and I mean it went off!  I immediately called the front desk and let them know what had happened.  I asked them how to please reset the smoke alarm, but the gentleman who answered told me it wans't something that could be reset.  He said that I should grab a pillow and fan the alarm to make it quit.  I tried what he suggested, however after about 20 minutes, the thing was still "screaming" loudly at me, so I departed my room - computer in hand.  I decided I'd wait it out in the hotel lobby.  As I sat in the lobby doing some work, I see the fire department pull up to the front door.  The doors fly open and about 15 firemen in full uniform, along with 4 police escort cars, come running in the door.  I thought...oh no.  As soon as the firemen entered, they were greeted by hotel staff, and I immediately made my way over to them.  I explained that this was my fault - recounted my story and the call made to the front desk.  They asked me who answered me at the desk, to which I could not provide an answer - just a man.  I apologized and said again that I had tried to avoid something of this magnitude happening, but obviously it didn't work.  I sat back down in the lobby and continued to work, all the while my co-workers and co-horts were coming in and out of the hotel lobby - making jokes and having a ball with the chaos of it all.  I'd love to have gotten a picture of the scene, but I felt it was bad enough that I caused the commotion...didn't want to appear rude and take further advantage of the situation.  In closing, I learned today that my work here will most likely end this coming Sunday.  I have had a great time with the work and the people, but I am exhausted and ready to move to my next location. 

New Jersey

I have been living and working in New Jersey for the past 3 weeks.  I am typically working alongside my husband Jim, however since Hurricane Irene made her way up the east coast, I have been assisting new catastrophe insurance adjusters in a support room.  (Jim has been working in Tennessee since April.) Work hours are long for me - 12-hour days, 7 days a week - but this is a feast or famine business. and those of us involved know that we must take it as it comes.  I've been very fortunate to have met many wonderful people since my arrival in NJ.  My co-workers are great - 2 women & 2 men from Texas and another woman from Louisiana.  One of the men is leaving tomorrow, so we took the opportunity today to capture a group photo this afternoon.  Though we have only known each other a short time, I feel as though I have made some wonderful friends that I will treasure for a long time to come.   We have all come together for a common good - to assist new adjusters in their new career venture.  In a situation such as the current, i.e., mega-catastrophe, the need for assistance with new adjusters is great.  As I've said, the hours are long, but the rewards are great.  It is a wonderful feeling to be in the position of helping someone to succeed.  This is a very competive business, and I know of people who feel providing help may hamper their own opportunities for work.   I, on the other hand, don't feel that way.  I feel blessed to be able to give to others in need.  I will, however, say that I am pretty exhausted...have been living on energy drinks to stay awake.  I have no idea how much longer this work opportunity will last, but I do know it's not permanent.  I may be here another week, two weeks...possibly even three weeks, but after that, I have no idea where I will, but after last year's bitter/snowy winter weather in Ohio, Tennessee sounds pretty good to me...