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Monday, 02 November 2009

  • It's a wrap, the Mountain Workshop is complete!

    Ricochets

    Ricochet's Family Fun Center in Murray, Kentucky because why wouldn't you want your family entertainment to have a word association with errant bullets? My hotel (what little I saw of it) was next to this place and I did a double take upon first seeing it, going so far as to look up the word ricochet to make sure there was not a similar word to the one associated with a shooting that I'd somehow mixed up the meaning of. Nope, same word, same spelling and as it turns out, Ricochet's is a laser tag themed venue, so I suppose it's somewhat appropriate. However, judging by these Facebook images, it's general ambiance, and the kids and employees that inhabit it, it appears as if taking an actual stray bullet to the groin may be more entertaining than ever stepping foot on the premises. Anyway, all family fun centers aside, my experience at the 34th annual Western Kentucky University's Mountain Workshop was ultimately extremely trying but exceedingly worthwhile and rewarding. Murray is a beautiful little town and everyone there was gracious to let a stranger from Florida into their lives to photograph them for several days. While I will likely not be able to post the best of all my images from both of my stories on this blog for another week or so, my primary photo essay about a third generation Murray blacksmith and heart attack survivor is posted to the Mountain Workshop website, and I encourage you to visit it as well as view all of the other stories photographed while you're there. The Mountain Workshop is a special collective visual document about authentic small town America that can be appreciated by all who love great photography and stories about people. The link below is to my story about the blacksmith Gene Knight, and in the coming weeks I'll post a more complete version of it as well as my other story about a popular Murray hangout and the assortment of characters who inhabit it. In the meantime, enjoy this link and be sure to thoroughly explore the Mountain Workshop website.

    Click Here To See My Mountain Workshop Images

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About Me

  • I'm a twenty eight year old aspiring photojournalist living and working in Gainesville, Florida. Since July of 2007 I've worked as a full time photographer for the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences department, while continuing to pursue my writing and photography aspirations at leisure. I've also launched my own private photography venture called "Exile Photography," and I've begun booking local (and some not so local) event jobs such as weddings and fashion shoots. In August of 2006 I returned home from a year of teaching English and living in the Guangdong Province of Southern China. I'm currently trying to gather some savings, update my camera gear, and professionally market my abilities, all while considering returning abroad in order to attempt some freelance work. I have a number of local projects that I'm juggling, including a Gainesville rephotography project, of which I'll update on this site when it becomes more involved.