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Days like today make me wish I had a more sizable income to share with amazingly talented artists like the ones in this photograph. This group is called the Coyote String Band, and they were playing at the Pearl Street Mall today. They sang and played their folky, soulful music with an intoxicating passion and I couldn't help but stay and listen for a while. I gave some money before I took the picture, but after a few minutes I decided I needed to buy a CD as well (which I never do). 

These guys made my day and served as today's reminder of how powerful music can be. Check them out on Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/coyotestringband

A dose of selfish honesty for everyone on this Friday: part of the reason I enjoy photographing homeless people so much is that I often feel like I’m helping individuals by providing a listening ear. It feels good to know that maybe, just perhaps, I helped brighten someone’s day. In a community where people have often been conditioned through various circumstances to feel insignificant, it's nice to be able to remind individuals that they are significant and that their stories matter.

Late yesterday, a cloudy, rainy evening in Boulder, I experienced something I hadn’t before while approaching strangers for portraits. The woman pictured below is a fixture here in downtown Boulder. She sings and hits a rubber-headed drum with loosely gripped drumsticks on one of the street corners of the Pearl Street Mall. She also appears to be extremely mentally impaired. First reactions to her loud, screechy, off-pitched singing and wild appearance are often laughter. I’ll admit that was my reaction as well. But it doesn’t take long to realize this isn’t a joke for her.

When I approached her, she smiled and allowed me with welcoming gestures to take a few photographs, but was unable to articulate any sort of response to my questions. Her only words involved – with a blank look in her eyes – repeatedly offering me some small apples that she had for sale. I'm not sure she knows her own name. To say that this encounter was disturbing would be an understatement.

Maybe it’s because it hits so close to home. Maybe it's the way people so predictably avoided walking near her and exchanged uncomfortable glances with others passing by. Or perhaps it’s because for the first time, I had to walk away without having any idea what I could do to help this woman. Regardless, I thought this was an experience worth sharing.

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Atlanta

My most recent destination was Atlanta. I went out to visit my sister and her husband this past weekend. As many of you know, one of my favorite things to do is simply explore a new area and find people to talk to and photograph. There was no shortage of interesting people in metropolitan Atlanta. Here's a few of my favorites from the weekend. As always, I hope you enjoy!

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Seen near Centennial Olympic Park.
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Five Points Kiss
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Bill and Erica at the Atlanta Food Park.
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Haunting Confederate graves at Oakland Cemetery.
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Mozzie, Erica and Bill's puppy.
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I saw this woman from a distance at Inman Park. She was making jewelry out of recycled and found materials.
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She had one of the kindest faces I've ever seen. I had to get through a crowd of rowdy homeless people to approach her but I really wanted the shot.
She took off before I could get her name but I really love this one.
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Steve, the first tattoo I noticed was the "Sink" or "Swim" on his hands.
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Steve was formerly homeless and in a train gang. Before he quit drinking, he said he was consuming half a gallon of whiskey every day. Now he's working in construction.
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Bill, doing his thing.
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Digger. He was hesitant at first to let me take his photo but he warmed up to me after a few minutes.
Digger was kind and polite, but one of the most heartbreakingly defeated looking homeless people I've met.
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The bird's name is Chiquita, like the bananas.
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These two have been together for 14 years.

Buster

This is Buster. He's a soft-spoken, resourceful, subtly witty, gentle-natured but tough man who hangs around Magnolia in the Near Southside part of Fort Worth. I met Buster last year during a stint working with the great people of Schaefer Advertising Co. Buster tends to stick around near the Schaefer office on Magnolia and the good folks at Schaefer have welcomed him into their family.

Buster is the type of guy you can sit down next to and have a long conversation about pretty much anything. Inevitably, the conversation journeys through Buster's past experiences in a series of often surprising, novel-worthy stories (check out the January, 1970 edition of National Geographic for a shot of him in an Igloo he built). Every time I talk to Buster, I feel like I'm talking to family. He speaks with a respect, familiarity, and bluntness that seems to come naturally to people I've met who have lived on the streets. I managed to stumble across him close to the sunset last night when the light was getting nice and he (with a quick, indifferent shrug) voluntarily let me shoot a couple portraits.

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Colorado: Portraits at the Cabin

Here's a little series of photos from my recent Colorado trip that shows what you get when you mix a summery outfit with snow and temperatures that a Texan only sees on the news. I got to drive with my friend Morgan and her Great Dane, Monty, up to her family's cabin in the mountains near Winter Park. The cabin is on a huge plot of beautiful land with a view you could never get tired of. Despite the cold and the issue of walking (falling) around the property on snowshoes, I had a great time shooting in the snow and relaxing in the mountains. 

And no surprise, Morgan was stunningly glamorous as usual. The radioactive pink ombre hair doesn't change that a bit. Nor does the fact that, incredibly, she's actually wearing skis in the outdoor photos.

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Israel: Jerusalem, part II

After Tel Aviv, I had a choice. Do I go see Haifa? Maybe Bethlehem or Nazareth? Journey into Jordan to see Petra? I purposely hadn't planned ahead because I wanted the freedom to spend my last days in Israel in a meaningful place. Fortunately, there wasn't any debating necessary. 

Back to Jerusalem.

The Old City provided me the solitude and atmosphere to begin processing the tour of Israel. Potentially even more importantly for me, it offered a chance to take out my camera, slow down, and go at my own pace for a couple of days. No racing around. No being told (albeit with a smile) to hurry up. After seeing so many missed photographic opportunities while traveling on the tight schedule of an organized trip, a little free time was desperately needed.

It's difficult for me to describe the draw of Jerusalem's Old City. You can find yourself greeted with "Shalom," "Salaam," or simply "Hello" depending on which crowded, cobbled corner you stumble around. It's fascinating and mystifying, ancient and beautiful, welcoming and joyful, but also tense and tired. No matter where you are in the city, if you stop and look around, there's a good chance you'll be able to spot at least one young Israel Defense Force soldier with an automatic rifle.

I reserved a couple nights at Abraham Hostel, which I found simply by chance after talking with a young woman on the late-night sharut (shared taxi) from Tel Aviv who happened to know where I was going (I certainly didn't). At the hostel, I had a series of thought-provoking long conversations with a German woman; we worked together to try to get our heads wrapped around the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. I also had a chance to spend quite a bit of time traversing the narrow streets and talking with a kind, intellectual New Zealander who also loves photography and, unlike me, speaks Arabic (Sophie's the one below with the backpack). I spoke with Don for about an hour one morning (he's the third photo down, the one with a beard), an American Christian who made a pilgrimage to Israel a little over a decade ago and now lives on the streets of Jerusalem. He comes from Hollywood and referenced a '70s or '80s movie just about every time he would make a point about something ("It's like that Marlon Brando movie. What was it called..?"). I visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, got violently shouted at by a child eating chips after taking a photo of him, and made friends with the proprietors of a small cookie shop in the Muslim Quarter (second to bottom photo). 

These last few days in the country were personally revealing and emotional for me. I tend to be unsettled in many ways. Friends joke that I'm a traveler, a man without a nation. There are not very many cities in the world where I feel a tactile connection between my identity and a location, but Jerusalem is one of those places. I'm not sure I could ever see myself living in Jerusalem, but it does feel, in a small way, like home. 

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Hostel: Overstay Tel Aviv

Valentine's Day Shabbat Speed Dating Party. An odd combination, but that's exactly what I encountered on February 14th upon reaching the first hostel of my post-Taglit stay in Israel. Needless to say, it was a lot of fun. A group of the Taglits came for one night at one of the most lively, artsy, community-oriented hostels I've ever stayed at. The volunteers who worked there during my stay were wonderful and welcoming.

Shabbat dinner was attended, to my surprise, mostly by non-Jews. There was a genuine interest from both guests and volunteers in learning about and taking part in the tradition and communion of the Shabbat dinner.

Our speed dating experience took place in their "Green Room," which seemed to be a converted soundstage in the basement with a giant green screen taking up one of the walls. Now used as a hangout area and screening/projector room, it contained us as we took turns drawing portraits of one another on our "dates." The artwork is undoubtably gallery-worthy and can be seen below.

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If you find yourself in Tel Aviv or Jaffa, I highly recommend this place. It's inexpensive and you'll certainly have some great conversations with fellow travelers. In true artistic form, there are no signs on the building, so navigating there can be a bit of a challenge. When you find it, however, you're sure to get a warm welcome.

The Proposal: Spencer and Sarah

Very few things are more exciting to photograph than a proposal. Add to that a ranch, lots of horses, the sounds of nature, and a setting sun, and you pretty much have the most incredible setting ever for a proposal. I had the recent chance to photograph Spencer and Sarah, newly engaged as of last night. If I could just shoot evenings like this every day, I would would be thrilled. My hope is that these photos transport you and convey the joy, love, and beauty of this moment.
Thank you, Spencer, for having me there to capture the moment (and thank you Sarah, even though you had no idea I was there). It was truly an honor and I wish you both the very best in this next chapter.
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Israel: Tel Aviv and Jaffa

The majority of the time I spent in Tel Aviv was in the older area of Jaffa. It has great charm and I enjoyed wandering the markets. I had some incredible conversations with fellow travelers, met wonderful people, spent tons of time people watching, and of course ate amazing food. As this was our final night as a tour group, we all watched a beautiful sunset together over the port of Jaffa before closing out an incredible trip.

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Israel: The North

The next few blog posts will center around the amazing journey to Israel from which I just returned. For those of you who don't know, I had the unfathomable opportunity to go on a paid-in-full trip through Taglit Birthright via the Israel Outdoors trip organizer (Google it if you are unfamiliar).

Our journey started in the northern part of Israel, around the Sea of Galilee. We stayed in a Kibbutz to the east of the sea, hiked in the Banias, and ventured up to the fortified northern border that overlooks Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon.


Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo Portraits

Today, I went to shoot some portraits at the Fort Worth Stock Show. This was the first time I've made it to the show in all the years I've been here in Fort Worth. Needless to say, it was great to walk through the stalls and meet some people that work in the business. These are just a few from the day that I particularly liked.

It's been quite a while since my last blog post. I've been away from my camera for about a year now working in other fields, but I'm excited to get back into shooting.  I'm currently gearing up for a trip to Israel so stick around for photos from my upcoming adventure.