hold•life•still
It was not the original plan they told me about last year, but this new version got Jake to the beach for a great wedding. So it was meant to be. Congratulations to Tasha and John for a beautiful ceremony and a great party this past weekend. Jake stole the show and everyone enjoyed Lobster.
tr/trp
Spent the sunset on a Sagamore beach with an old friend, her family, and my camera. A perfect evening to hang out by the shore, with posing, running, laughing and a good old fashion Star Wars Force Choke.
tr/trp
Allow me to go too deep and personal for a few. 2018 has been a year like no other. I enjoy all the years, I have said it in this space before the alternative is not getting the year, so I choose they are all good no matter how the days are spent as long as I can spend them. This year started with me realizing that more than ever. I am at that age where you are not as old as you think, yet you are not as young as you may feel. The reality of the program we are all signed up for seeps in, louder with each passing year. In January I was sick, specifics are not important, but sick enough to need to see a doctor, and sick enough to avoid one at the same time, know what I mean? After the avoidance tactics and excuses ran out, I went to the doctor. Monday, January 22nd. That led to an MRI on Tuesday the 23rd, that led to a 6:45 am phone call on Wednesday the 24th that no one ever wants, “We need to you go see so and so, there is a strong chance you have cancer.” Now spoiler alert, I do not have, nor did I at time of that call, have cancer.
It would be 7 days until I knew that. Tuesday, January 30th, as I rested on a gurney waking up from a procedure there was a doctor in my face with two thumbs up saying “You are good” is the bookend to that phone call. The week I ‘had’ cancer. What does this have to do with a photo of a sunrise in Cuba? Well as I took that photo, sitting on the far side of a beach in the dark, overlooking the Cuba shoreline with 12 other strangers I just met 72 hours prior, I thought of how I got there? I snapped 13 photos of that sunrise from that location, camera on a tripod three feet back from a cliff that blocked my view of the waves. In 12 of the photos, there is no visible water splashing. Frame #7 there is. It is the photo above, the waves hit the rocks, sprayed it up above the cliff, the water curling around the sunrise, all at the same time I pushed the plunger on the cable to release the shutter. I would love to say it was planned, it was not, I mean I set up, pointed the camera, knew the setting that was needed, the exposure, etc. but I had not known what I got until after. I could sit at that spot for the remainder of my life and never get that shot again, so it got me thinking about how I got there, to begin with. A root cause analysis of the opportunity and it was directly related to that phone call, those seven days and the two thumbs up.
Since that call and thumbs up, I have lost people to cancer, I have had friends unfairly lose loved ones to cancer, I have had friends bravely fight cancer, it seems to be everywhere, and I only had to deal with it for 7 days. The least I could do is go to Cuba. I like to think I am here to document and share things. My tagline for my business is Hold Life Still, I love those three words, it sums up my objective perfectly. That’s what this sunrise photo is, it Life being Held Still. Without those 7 days in January I am not sitting on that beach getting this photo. Or meeting those 12 strangers who I was able to spend 10 incredible days with, or meeting the country of Cuba.
This is why Cuba, a question I have been asked 100x since I said I was going. Why go anywhere? Because you can. Because there are those who can not. Those 7 days changed me, I am lucky it was only 7 days, I am lucky to have had those 7 days. I am even luckier they led me to Cuba
tr/trp
Can you hear the Chariots of Fire music? A quick trip to Maine for the day, tune in tomorrow for lighthouse photos.
tr/trp
The dogs played on Scusset Beach while I droned a bit.
tr/trp
The thought was Minion would be hanging out in a puddle since it is raining. It led to some complications, one the Minion floats, so he was not cooperative at all. Then the shots I got were kind of boring, the puddles were dirty, the reflection was not as I liked. I settled, see below. I was going to post one and then I saw the mini Barbie on the shelf, yes I have a mini Barbie on a shelf, no I am not sure why. So, I figured new photo, they that turned into its won challenge, getting the Minion to stand, to be at the same height so they could hold hands, what would the background be, Barbie does not stand at all. So, a few rocks from Iceland, used Gum to stand Barbie, a notepad, a wallet and some change to prop things up and here we are, the Beach Date.
tr/trp
Barbara, Josie, a couple cameras and I took a beach day. Negative 2° when we left the house this morning, we headed to Scusset Beach. No traffic, easy parking and the feel of Iceland. Tucked in the corner of the beach, next to the jetty, is a pocket of frozen ocean. Ice, foam, snow, and birds all making a beautiful scene. After that we headed to the Bourne Bridge and watched sheets of ice navigate the canal.
tr/trp
A common request I get is, “Do you have any photos from the Cape/Beach/Ocean?” Sadly, not many, I am not sure what happens when I go over the bridge, I take less photos. It is not a secret, if you are close to me, that I am not a fan of the Cape. Some are beach people, some are not… I am not. I do enjoy the occasional visit, in the same vain of I take a sip of coffee now and then… to remind me why I do not drink it. One day at the Cape is a reminder for me. With all that said I really do need to get some shots of the cape to add to the portfolio. It is pretty and the demand is high. Maybe some February I will take the time to head down and shoot it and enjoy a coffee.
tr/trp
On the South coast of Iceland (my favorite part) is the coolest beach I have ever seen. Basalt sea stacks situated under the mountain Reynisfjall line the outside of this cave. The beach is all black with smooth rocks and the caves are incredible. This photo and the others below are all blown up and look awesome. All ready for next Thursday’s show. I am on track to have at least 50 framed photos, a bunch more matted and about 100 unframed photos to be viewed.
I am working on refreshments, I will have the talent of Kelley McCauley playing music for us. Every person who buys a ticket will get a free matted print when they arrive. Tickets are on sale online (link below) and I will be at my studio 9-noon this Saturday for an open house where you can also stop by and pick up tickets – or drop me a message. In addition to the Iceland photos I hope to display my other work too, as space allows.
Tickets $10/$5 for under16 and seniors: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/3033477
tr/trp
I truly do not know how long I have wanted to go to Iceland, I just have… for a long time. It was on the bucket list. I had seen a photo of the US Navy plane on the black sand beach, it got me looking into it more, from there I uncovered photos of waterfalls, sheep, horses, geysers, landscapes that looked out of this world, I knew I would go. Then over Christmas break 2013, we saw The Secret Life of Walter Mitty as a family and Anna fell in love with the scenery – much of it was shot in Iceland, the locations we found on this trip. That sparked the interest again. Add in a few years back we tried to take a road trip as a family, we were to head west, take 2 weeks off and drive to Yellowstone. the plan fell part when Barbara’s employment situation took a detour. So a year ago this week we were in NH, a simple quiet lake house vacation, we had just gotten Josie and was a perfect week. This lovely couple owned the house we rented and they came to see us and asked us if we wanted to book it again for next year (would be this week)… and without really thinking about it, I said “No thank you, I think we are going to Iceland.” That was the first time the words really came out of my mouth, the first time the family heard me say it, and the plan began. Iceland in 2017.
And here we are on the last day about to leave, it has been a great trip. Better than great, I feel like this will stay with me in ways I have not thought of yet. It is hard to put into words. I hope more than anything that one day, 5, 10, 25 years from now my kids will look back at this adventure as a milestone. Hell, we all got tattoos. I saw my plane, my waterfalls, sheep, horses, geysers, out of this world scenery and so much more. What started as a once in a life time trip, quickly became a scouting trip for future locations to visit again. Maybe it will be with just Barbie, maybe it will be just me, or a group of friends, or the kids and their families, but it will never be like this trip. The trip we got our road trip, the four of us, 950 miles in 9 days.
As for the photos, I have barely shared any, I have so many more, I was prepared, I knew what I wanted and I got them. I love these photos, yet I left so many here, it is impossible to get them all. I am not sure how to share the ones I have. They will be displayed, I have already been asked – and the answer is yes, I will have some for sale. I would love to have a show for them. Maybe rent a place and put on a true photo show. We will see, and I promise you will get to see them too. I just need time to get the right set in order. For a person that takes and posts photos daily, having a set of photos that need to be worked on ‘later’ is tough. I am open to suggestions on how you would like to see them.
I wish each of you the chance to go somewhere, wherever it is, not matter how close or far, that can add to your story. That is always my goal, add before things are subtracted. That’s the best we can do. Thanks for looking, more soon.
tr/trp
Today (Day 3) was a ‘cross something off the bucket list’ type of day for me. This abandoned plane has fascinated me for years, I have seen photos of it many times, just sitting on Sólheimasandur Beach in Southern Iceland. It crashed in 1973, it was a US Navy DC Plane that ran out of fuel, everyone walked away. The US Government stripped it, but the body was left behind and there it sits. It is beyond cool, the family took ATV rides today along the black sand shoreline and this was a stop. More photos from the ride later, but this was my highlight today. It has been sitting there since the year I was born and today we met, I even snuck the drone up for an aerial view. And yes, if you look close, you might notice someone put a timricephoto sticker on the inside…
tr/trp
OK, some photos out of order, it has been a crazy busy week… and with today’s Local Music Awards at Liz’s Diamond in Hopedale (tune in tomorrow for photos) I am posting photos from yesterday’s Bernese Mountain Dog meet up in Dennis. It was our first time at the yearly event on Mayflower Beach and Josie had a blast. Berners, and a few friends, everywhere, taking over the beach and water. It was a blast, met some great people and dogs, it is amazing how similar yet unique each Berner was. Might be time to consider adding another to the family now knowing how much fun Josie has playing with Berner friends. To see the whole set from the day click here.
tr/trp
