Crazies

Pro-English, A.C.L.J., Troops Needed on the Boarder and The Heritage Foundation... all the crazies are sending me mailing like I once got credit card application. At least with the application the was a don’t bother me page I could register on. And each of them have their own focused hatred for some special group of people, the most popular seems to be Muslims. Each group of crazies seem to have a 501-c, mailing privileges so they don’t pay squat to spew their hatred. I dutifully open each piece of shit they send, put all that shit back in their envelopes and mail it to them “postage due”.... makes me feel better at least.

Before my doctor moved her offices it was located at a medical center along with the hospital. Lots of East Indian’s work there, some wore head-scarves, some may have been Muslim as well. I didn’t know or care because I was getting the test I needed. As an added bonus I could ask where the best Eastern food was, where is the place they like to eat. I got all sorts of tips most of which I never heard of before, the India places were the best. When it comes to eating were are all one race... the human race

So imagine my utter surprise when one morning while having coffee a group of people sat down next to me, a couple of whom had head-scarves. Without even thinking about it I started checking them out looking for suspicions packages they might leave behind. Only then did I recognize the absurdity of my reactions and started laughing. These were healthcare professionals, maybe some were doctors and a few were obliviously students not bombers for heaven sake It’s a sign of the time we live in, the fear that’s generated by the media that conditions us all to think that way.

Which bring to mind Juan Williams, of his remarks that got him fired from NPR. I certainly don’t agree with the racist sentiments that regularly pass for news at FOX NEWS. But as you can see by my story above we all can make mistake in judgement. My momentary fear, my momentary lapse of judgement was a private affair, his wasn’t. So that’s the prism we all look at the world today, Muslim equals terrorist, plain and simple.... simply wrong. I feel like we target Muslims because we have been conditioned to react that way by the media. The fact that they’re so easily identified make our suspicions of them so much easier.
When Timothy Mc Veigh murdered all those people in Oklahoma we didn’t start dragging young white men with short hair off planes, we didn’t have an instinctive fear of sitting next to them at coffee shops , not cast so much as a glance in their direction. I think that we fail as human beings, we do a disservice to the whole human race by giving in to these fears. Unknowingly, without thinking about them, without questioning where our fears really reside. No one likes to think about being blown up in a building, having a plane crash into where you are innocently working. These are the acts of two or three madmen who hate the system, who hate humanity and not a whole class of people. Personally I feel that these for the most part are poor, uneducated people with no hope of a better future, no hope of a brighter tomorrow. It’s long past time that we got a handle on this idea and start working on the problems we all face.

Keep In Touch

I am the most fortunate of men, I don’t collect “friends”, but I’m really blessed that most of my models keep me in mind when their address changes. One young model, she was twenty when we shot, took great umbrage at some advice I was giving her. She no longer keeps in touch, much to her determent; if I have no way of keeping in touch I can’t let you know how the images we created are being used. I’m religious about letting my model’s know when I use an image on my blog, on various sites and for any shows I enter. My feeling is we created this work together, you are an integral part of what we did, you are entitled to know (even years later) how and where your images are being displayed.
Any advice is freely given, I’m not offended if you don’t take it to heart don’t listen it’s your life not mine, my world will not stop. I really enjoy the women who pose for me, who take the time and interest to make images with me. Some work much better with my overall vison, it seems like second nature to them. I take my time to get an idea of who this person is that I am going to photograph. Usually we have coffee, I show them my book so there are no surprises when we work. An important part of the way I work is to get to know something about them, how else can I capture the essence of that person. So many of the girls that I work with are young, twenty-something. Most still think they work/live in a vacuum, that no one will look up there photos or get an opinion of their character from the images they lend themselves to.
I on the other hand have lived a goodly long time, I no longer think I’m invincible, I know that actions beget reaction no matter how private you may think those actions are. We don’t live in a bubble of our own choosing, the internet has forced us to live a very public life. I’m very conscious of the images I am posting, I want for my model's to be able to make that choice as well even though I have a release. When I am posting to Facebook I know what’s appropriate as far as they are concerned. I have learned the hard way that for my model appropriate for one venue isn’t appropriate for them. I do not wish to embarrass them in front of their family or friends.
This blog is different, here I may show the kind of work that I do unedited, but it’s not likely that any members of my models family will see the posts. Here it’s a more private setting, my friend come here to view my work and to read what I have to say. Just as you have come here to see my work and read my words/thoughts as well. Nothing gives me more pleasure then to have someone comment on my blog, or for it to spur other thought. I love that free flow of ideas and comment that are well thought out. So please keep visiting my site and by all means, keep in touch.

The Littlle Deaths

My thanks to my friend Carla Johnson for her post on “La Petite Mort”, the Little Deaths as an orgasm is known is a subject long though to not be mentioned in polite company. I leave the final word to my friend, I want to talk about my photographic experience with the orgasm as seen above. I met this young lady at a modeling show I attended. She was very green and needed someone to invest the time with her and show her the ropes. Long story short we did at least six or seven shoots before she was comfortable enough with herself and me before we could shoot so intimately. When we started she was very nervous about what would happen. I took her through her first mini-orgasm, then she got more relaxed, I could see the tension go out of her body. Remember I shoot film and still had a third of a roll left when she told me to get ready. Whoa, whoa I told her to change your rhythm, let me finish this roll and then you can come. At this point I felt like I was a part of her orgasm, I was asking her to draw it out so I could get the shots I wanted. I’m not going to say I hurried, but I knew she was ready to get some release. I ask her to get comfortable, to change position slightly and to feel it building. Then I reloaded my camera, I said OK kiddo go for it. I could almost hear her thinking I wonder what he’s getting, then the pre-orgasm started and she was gone. I got close ups of her face, her body, all the important parts. I dragged the shutter, I was trying to get the beauty of the moment, but without the graphic details. I want to make it clear that she is a nice girl, not someone who masturbates for just anyone. After her release I got some nice shots of her coming down from the high of it. For minutes after that she’d shudder, those post-orgasm shudders. In a strange way I think that she was please that she’d be able to climax, so too there was a certain pleasure in getting off with someone watching. I’m really proud of the shots I got and the trust that grew out of that experience. I’ve marveled at the capacity that women have for wave after wave of pleasure and the small role I may play.