Hannah, Natalia, & Kristina

With the Thanksgiving holiday behind us, I'm wrapping up a few portrait sessions from last week before moving on to some new sessions this week. These images are from my appointment with Hannah, Natalia, & Kristina. We started inside as I wanted to do some cool black and white images, and then made our way outside to roam the neighborhood and create some color images. The trees down here are finally starting to turn, so I was really excited by the colors we were able to capture. Towards the end of the session the girls said they wanted to play in the leaves, so that's what we did!

















And the slideshow. . .

Henry & Charles

I met up with Henry and Charles at their home in McComb. It was the first "real" photo session they'd had in a while, so I really wanted to get their mom and dad a nice collection of different types of images--black and white, color, and a decent variety between somewhat posed and totally candid moments. We spent about half of the time inside, and a lot of that was just spent letting them play in their bedrooms. A little later, as the sun was going down, we went outside so they could run around a bit and I could take advantage of the great light that was spilling through the pine trees in the yard.

And this is what we came up with.

A few on the sun porch. . .




And upstairs hanging out. . .





The light in the backyard was incredible. . .










And the slideshow. . .

Adam & Elliott

During my trip last week I stopped in McComb for a few days. One of my appointments was with Adam and Elliott. We had a blast! We went out to the family farm, which covers about 100 acres. The 4-wheeler came out and we just roamed the property. It's so much fun when I get to relive some fun moments from my childhood while "on the job". We spent several hours in the woods, roaming the huge field running the length of the property and playing around the pond (which is stocked, by the way. Next time I need to bring my fishing gear!)

Adam and Elliott--thank you. I had a blast and y'all were great.













And the slideshow:

OSP NOLA

Part of my trip last week was spent in New Orleans. I met several other photographers in the French Quarter and we spent three days listening to great speakers and roaming the streets. We had several great models assisting us, and boy were they ever patient with us! I can't imagine how tough it must be to model in the first place, much less in the middle of Bourbon Street with 10 photographers yelling different directions at you. Thanks to all of our models for all of their hard work.

On Monday night we had a night shoot in the French Quarter, and Tuesday we went across the river to a cemetery in Algiers. Here are a few images from those shoots.

A little trip down memory lane

I'm still on my 10 day trip through south Mississippi and New Orleans.
One more night in Jackson and I'll finally be back home.

I had a little free time this afternoon and decided to head out to my
alma mater, Millsaps College, to watch my old team play a little
football against Birmingham Southern. The campus looks incredible, and
while small, the football game day experience is really special. If
you've never been to a small college ball game, do so. It's great to
see kid's playing for no other reason than the love of the game.

This year's version of the Majors is a ton of fun to watch. Much more
so than when I played. I arrived today at halftime with the Majors
already holding a commanding 52-0 lead. The final score, of course,
can be seen in the photo I posted.

The squad finished the season 8-2, and would be 9-1 and headed to the
playoffs if it weren't for a heartbreaking last second loss to Trinity
(TX) two weekes ago. If you haven't seen the incredible play that
ended that game go to YouTube and search "Millsaps-Trinity". Iit is
absolutely unbelievable and will live on ESPN highlights forever. But
you'll have to search on your own, I just can't bring myself to post
it here.

It was great to see some faces I haven't seen in a while. And it's
always good to just take a little time and consider where you are,
where you're going, and where you come from. If you haven't done that
lately I encourage you to do so. It'll make everything you do going
forward even more meaningful.

Harry Potter. . . perhaps?

Well, actually this is my nephew Wayne. For the last week I've been on a whirlwind tour through south Mississippi, culminating with a three-day stay in New Orleans for some workshops, client meetings, and "brain-picking" along with several other great photographers. (I'll post more about all that very soon)

So on my way back north, as I slowly head home (I'll be back on Sunday after a few more appointments and meetings) I stopped today in McComb for a portrait session (the Sanders. . . .more to come) and a chance to spend some time with my sister and her family. Nights like this are one of the benefits to my job, and I am grateful for them.

My nephew Wayne is one of the most intense, most brilliant children I know. He is 10, carries a book with him everywhere (and I mean everywhere), and has written more stories in his 10 years than I'll write in a lifetime. He is his father's child (brother-in-law Charles is a brilliant writer himself).

Tonight, he was reading away and I couldn't resist snapping a few photos before he went to bed.

Katie & Spencer

Lynn and Angel Hardin are very old friends of mine. We attended high school together--Lynn and I played ball on the same teams, he was a few years ahead of me, and Angel and I were in the same class from elementary school on. Lynn and I also serve on the fire department together. So it is always a pleasure when I am asked to photograph the children of my friends.

Angel allowed me to wander off with Katie and Spencer, and they were great! Spencer is too funny--he's very much a boy. He's curious about anything and everything on the ground, and all he needs to have a good time are a few sticks and some rocks. And Katie? What a sweetheart. She treats her younger brother so lovingly. And she was such a big help keeping up with Spencer.