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2012-05-21 21:41:59 (14 comments, 1 reshares, 32 +1s)

All I am is yours

#MacroMonday curated by +Kerry Murphy +Kelli Seeger Kim +Jennifer Eden

2012-05-20 17:16:08 (23 comments, 1 reshares, 51 +1s)

I see you, I'm here for you

#HappyThoughtsForLeeDaniels

2012-05-18 18:42:12 (20 comments, 2 reshares, 45 +1s)

No darkness can hide the light of your beauty


#floralfriday +FloralFriday curated by +Tamara Pruessner

2012-05-16 21:47:00 (28 comments, 4 reshares, 51 +1s)

Though weather worn and weary, he stood defiantly against the winds of time...

2012-05-15 19:12:55 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 20 +1s)

Another day, another person glad that +Alan Shapiro is catching up to them in age

Happy birthday, my friend.


#happybirthdayalanshapiro

2012-05-15 18:13:48 (7 comments, 0 reshares, 11 +1s)

Finer Feathered Friends: Beatriz, Queen Mother of the Andean Condors

Renaissance Portrait Artists had their patrons: Popes, Royal Families and the members of their Courts, the wealthiest members of society. I am not fortunate to have heads of state or vast religious institutions supporting my passion save for a Belgian Collector and the Ritz Carlton Hotels (who are none to shabby, believe me.) What I do have are some cherished friends for whom I have begun creating some smaller works for their pleasure and as a thank you for their kindness, support and continuous encouragement. +William Rainey is one of these cherished people in my life and, dare I say, a prince among men (I say this because it is true and it qualifies him as royalty which delights me no end)
This is for Prince William.

P.S. This is made with 47 separate textures and 63 separate layers.
P.P.S. The... more »

2012-05-13 15:08:52 (25 comments, 2 reshares, 31 +1s)

Happy Mother's Day!


No language can express the power, and beauty, and heroism, and majesty of a mother's love. It shrinks not where man cowers, and grows stronger where man faints, and over wastes of worldly fortunes sends the radiance of its quenchless fidelity like a star.
~Edwin Hubbell Chapin

2012-05-11 17:11:48 (69 comments, 0 reshares, 31 +1s)

Behind the scenes action

Who encourages you? There are some individuals here on G+ who, while being talented photographers in their own right, really excel in their ability to encourage others behind the scenes in the comments. Dropping names is always dangerous because one is sure to leave someone out or hurt someone's feelings, but there are a handful of people whom I consistently see praising other's works with more than a "nice job" or "cool image". These individuals are so important to me because they've empowered me to step further and further out of the shadows of self-expression and explore my art. Thank you to (in alphabetical order) +Lee Daniels +Christophe Friedli +Khrystiane Friedli +Shelly Gunderson +Sharon Jeannette +Sarra Robinson +Frances Schermers +Tom Tran. A special shout out to +Sandra Parlow, a.k.a. Miss Wonderful, because you gave the... more »

2012-05-08 21:22:17 (73 comments, 2 reshares, 32 +1s)

What do you see when you look at me that way?

Do you ever wonder what people see in you? Do you ever think about what you look like from their perspective? I probably think about these things a lot more than I used to since the advent of Google+.

On Google+, I'm a photographer/visual artist and sometimes stalker/creeper. At work, I'm the boss and all that can imply like friend, mentor, obstruction to getting real work done. Then, at home, I'm husband and father. There's overlap in my worlds as I'm also known as a photographer at home; and, at work, I'm known as a husband and father.

But still, I feel segregated within my worlds wondering if anyone really knows the real me. Worse, sometimes I wonder if the real me really exists. Someone very important to me wrote this recently: "I am real, it is you who are the fantasy and myth." ... more »

2012-05-07 15:12:34 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 23 +1s)

Fleur de Lee for You

You know how it is when you make a loud mistake? How you get flowers? The bigger the mistake the more unusual the flower or bigger the bouquet. Notice I said you, not me.
These were very unusual iris. In case you were looking for ideas.

This is an old film piece. A derivative image of this is a popular print, but this original has never seen the light of day. I just kept it for me and l love it much more than the other. I love it for its generosity of color and petals, for its dark mystery and mood, for its warmth and reflected light.

It is probably my favorite of my film flowers, but then it is my favor rite flower of all: the fleur de lee

Pentax pZ-1P, 50mm 1.4, Provia film, natural sunlight, manual exposure. This is close to SOOC.

2012-05-05 03:56:51 (37 comments, 1 reshares, 23 +1s)

This is a companion image to Tuesday's post Living in Freedom. It is marred by my inclusion, but I enjoyed the connection made with these and others in Tepito.

2012-05-02 16:34:29 (21 comments, 3 reshares, 28 +1s)

You see right through me

+#Window Wednesday curated by everyone, or almost everyone including +Jules Falk Hunter +Cheryl Cooper +Jason Kowing +Simon Kitcher +Martin OBER

2012-05-01 19:52:25 (30 comments, 6 reshares, 25 +1s)

Living in freedom

The opportunities I've had to work with the homeless of Mexico City challenge me in ways that I've not previously experienced. Witnessing firsthand the lowest depths of human experience--individuals covered in their own urine and feces lying in the gutter dead, or just perhaps wishing to be; men, women and children inhaling pvc pipe cleaner not to get high, but to escape, for a moment, the squalor and hunger that defines their daily existence--causes one to lie awake at night feeling guilty for the thankfulness they experience that it isn't them who is living this nightmare.

And then there are the children. The babies born into a life they've not chosen and parents who either want to exploit them or protect them. This little girl is one of the protected ones. Her parents fussed over her like birds over their nest, watching, protecting, alert to any... more »

2012-04-29 05:42:12 (36 comments, 0 reshares, 39 +1s)

Wishes really can come true

I just realized that there was a #DandelionDay happening and that +Ricardo Williams, who has always broughtened it was saddened because it was late and he had no dandelions to bring to the party. So, this picture is from Ricardo and me for +LaDonna Pride +Sandra Parlow and +Gary Munroe because wishes really can come true.

2012-04-27 20:54:41 (21 comments, 1 reshares, 37 +1s)

You're all I think about anymore...

2012-04-26 22:13:45 (35 comments, 0 reshares, 28 +1s)

Spring erupts

Thinking of a great friend, +Alan Shapiro, and sharing an image that's a result of his demand encouragement to go crawl through the garden. Alan's the kind of person that no matter the season, when he's around, Spring erupts.

2012-04-24 22:29:17 (25 comments, 0 reshares, 27 +1s)

Sun kissed

2012-04-25 19:23:09 (22 comments, 1 reshares, 21 +1s)

Remembering better days

Some days the palace seems more like a prison than others and though gilded, the bars are still bars.

+Moody Monday curated by +Philip Daly and +Carole Buckwalter
+Monochrome Monday curated by +Charles Lupica +Hans Berendsen and +Jerry Johnson

2012-04-22 16:38:29 (107 comments, 0 reshares, 25 +1s)

The connection

I've been absent from Google+ for the last couple of weeks as I've traveled here and there spending my life in endless meetings. Whenever I'm away, I find myself questioning what I get out of G+, and why I invest so much time and energy into the community. Ultimately, I always come back to the same thing: It isn't the viewing or sharing of images (though I've grown immensely as an artist); it's you who keep me coming back here.

There is nowhere else that I get what I get here, the community of other creatives who so selflessly share their knowledge and so freely extend their friendship. It's the connection" I have with other artists around our common interest in photography that is so strong it transcends any differences we might have in age, religion, race, culture and even language. It's the connection with those who enjoy... more »

2012-04-11 15:28:51 (26 comments, 3 reshares, 27 +1s)

The dust bath

+Chrysta Rae's photo scavenger hunt is in the reveal stage with wonderful contributions from everyone. I was thrilled to take second in the bath category with this image of an Asian elephant getting clean, errr, dirty, uh nevermind.

2012-04-09 14:25:59 (32 comments, 0 reshares, 31 +1s)

Just like a dream

This is for my secret stalkers Jeana, +Rickye Pool and Pam... I know you're there, lurking in the shadows, and I thank you for your encouragement around the office. I can't imagine anyone with whom I'd like to work with more than you ladies... now go pick up my laundry. :D

2012-04-07 03:42:19 (25 comments, 5 reshares, 32 +1s)

Tyger, Tyger

So +Barbara Matthews, +George Fletcher and +Lauri Novak all gave Tiger Lilies to +Chrysta Rae as thanks for the hard work and lengthy hours she puts in as she organizes the +Chrysta Rae's Photography Scavenger Hunt and breaking Google+. I don't want to get left out of the love or seem ungrateful, so here ya go Chrysta Rae. It's Lily. She's a tiger. You probably shouldn't sniff her.

2012-04-06 23:41:46 (27 comments, 1 reshares, 29 +1s)

You light my world

At +Alan Shapiro's behest, I've been out laying in the yard, hanging with the flowers, communing with the bees and caterpillars and scratching. Now it's your turn; grab your cameras (even if it's just a phone) and get out there, for as Alan says, Spring is springering!

2012-04-03 22:27:20 (25 comments, 0 reshares, 16 +1s)

"Sit down, have some wine"

His invitation surprised me as he lived in a country whose religion forbade such indulgences. We had stopped at the roadside stand outside of his home to purchase figs and ask for directions. "You're American, aren't you?" he stated/asked. "Come, sit down, have some wine" he encouraged. He must have picked up on my surprised expression. "We are not so religious around here" he volunteered without my asking.

I asked him through my translator if we might have Çai (tea) instead. "But I thought that all Americans drank alcohol," he said with some bewilderment and even disappointment. It was as if I was breaking a longstanding, internationally recognized code of American ethics by choosing tea over wine. He motioned to one of his men and said something quickly and before we had even sat down... more »

2012-04-02 19:22:44 (29 comments, 1 reshares, 40 +1s)

The house that built me

I know they say you can't go home again,
I just had to come back one last time.

Ma'am I know you don't know me from Adam,
But these handprints on the front steps are mine.
And up those stairs, in that little back bedroom
_is where I did my homework and I learned to play guitar.
And I bet you didn't know under that live oak
my favorite dog is buried in the yard.

I thought if I could touch this place or feel it
this brokenness inside me might start healing.
Out here its like i'm someone else,
I thought that maybe I could find myself
if I could just come in I swear i'll leave.
Won?t take nothing but a memory
from the house that built me.
~Miranda Lambert

For +Sarra Robinson who wants to know what really happened in this... more »

2012-03-28 21:23:33 (15 comments, 3 reshares, 25 +1s)

Though his eyes stared vacantly, and time had robed him with the patina of age, the strength of his character was evident to those who knew him

+#Window Wednesday #windowwednesday

2012-03-27 21:23:27 (28 comments, 3 reshares, 36 +1s)

Whether good or bad

There is a bond between a father and daughter that defies definition, and with that bond comes a heavy responsibility. The father, whether good or bad, is the one against whom she will judge every boy she meets. The way her father treats her mother, whether good or bad, will impact how she will allow herself to be treated. Every father, whether good or bad, is a knight in shining armor, an invincible superhero to his little girl. Fathers, whether good or bad, influence their little girls every day, shape their little girls every day, lead their little girls every day into the woman that she will someday be... whether good or bad.

This is for my friend +Khrystiane Friedli and for +PortraitTuesday #portraittuesday curated by +Laura Balc

2012-03-26 21:33:48 (36 comments, 2 reshares, 50 +1s)

Trouble In The Fields


Baby I know that we've got trouble in the fields
When the bankers swarm like locust out there turning away our yield
The trains roll by our silos, silver in the rain
They leave our pockets full of nothing
But our dreams and the golden grain
~Nanci Griffiths from Trouble In The Fields


+Moody Monday #moodymonday curated by Mr. +Philip Daly
+Monochrome Monday #monochromemonday curated by +Charles Lupica +Bill Wood +Hans Berendsen

2012-03-26 21:39:52 (32 comments, 1 reshares, 21 +1s)

Patiently, I waited for her to open her heart to me

#macromonday curated by +Kerry Murphy +Kelli Seeger Kim +Jennifer Eden

2012-03-24 13:42:36 (15 comments, 1 reshares, 19 +1s)

Some days are longer than others

2012-03-24 02:37:08 (32 comments, 0 reshares, 22 +1s)

Powering up for the night

#purplecircle curated by +lynn langmade +Sinead Sam McKeown +Alexis Coram +Craig Szymanski
#powerlinefriday curated by +Natosha Davis

2012-03-23 17:08:24 (15 comments, 1 reshares, 25 +1s)

Will you still find me beautiful after time has ravaged me?


+FloralFriday #floralfriday curated by +Tamara Pruessner (Can't believe you curate this all by yourself, amazing!)

2012-03-22 22:05:21 (19 comments, 0 reshares, 11 +1s)

Never smile at a crocodile...

No really, don't do it, there are plenty of other things to smile about like today's birthday girl +Sarra Robinson. Happy Birthday Sarra, and I apologize that this is three hours late (the world revolves around her and she demanded 3pm EST) and that it's not a box full of colorful snakes. The snakes got loose... on the plane... so I brought you these crocs instead in a semi- +Alan Shapiro textured/inspired style. Blows party horn and smiles

2012-03-21 22:33:28 (29 comments, 1 reshares, 43 +1s)

There's a brighter day ahead


#windowwednesday +#Window Wednesday curated by +Jules Hunter +Jason Kowing +Simon Kitcher +Cheryl Cooper

2012-03-20 14:56:32 (18 comments, 0 reshares, 23 +1s)

Past, Future, Present

+PortraitTuesday #portraittuesday curated by +Laura Balc

2012-03-19 23:43:06 (27 comments, 2 reshares, 20 +1s)

You came to me as if out of a dream


#macromonday +Macro Monday curated by +Kerry Murphy +Kelli Seeger Kim +Jennifer Eden
#purplecircle curated by +lynn langmade +Sinead Sam McKeown +Alexis Coram +Craig Szymanski

2012-03-16 02:50:49 (24 comments, 0 reshares, 19 +1s)

For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, 'til death us do part

This is Wanda and Ervin, and their son, my friend, asked me to take this photo and others as Erv isn't doing so well. Erv is a pretty tough rancher who's successfully fought through a heart transplant and a liver transplant, but he is now losing his fight against Parkinson's. Because of his transplants and the ongoing risk of of organ rejection, he's unable to take the latest and best medicines for his condition and it's affecting his overall level of health to the point that he only has a few months to live. I feel privileged to have been asked to capture this special moment and wanted to share it with you.

2012-03-14 02:52:13 (58 comments, 5 reshares, 37 +1s)

When others saw weeds, I saw you

#purplecircle

2012-03-11 17:28:39 (34 comments, 0 reshares, 11 +1s)

Angels watching over me...

This angel watches over a fourth century Byzantine monastery high in the mountains above Turkey.

#sacredsunday +SacredSunday curated by +Charles Lupica +Manfred Berndtgen +Bill Wood

2012-03-10 00:19:16 (22 comments, 4 reshares, 29 +1s)

You always light up the room when you enter

Thinking of my friend +Lee Daniels and wishing her the best...

#floralfriday +FloralFriday curated by +Tamara Pruessner

2012-03-09 16:41:00 (15 comments, 0 reshares, 17 +1s)

I'll wipe away your tears

The female flower of the banana plant becomes the fruit we enjoy peeling and eating. An unusual submission for +FloralFriday #floralfriday and +Tamara Pruessner, the beautiful Arizona wildflower.

Oh, and for you +Laurent Coppée and +Tom Tran, I present tears, tongues and bananas!

2012-03-08 01:00:00 (17 comments, 4 reshares, 48 +1s)

The brightness of your personality makes me smile

2012-03-08 00:47:07 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 7 +1s)

Make Kony Famous

Because if people know of him, they can stop him.

You will have seen this video doing the rounds please watch it, then send it on, it needs to be out there but if you can, do more than just watch it, do something about it, I know I will get involved.

2012-03-06 18:20:29 (17 comments, 0 reshares, 14 +1s)

The Gatekeeper

Every day he sits in his chair just inside the gate. It's his job to know who's coming and going, who's allowed to come in and who isn't, so that the residents of his apartment block aren't bothered. When deliveries come, he's the one who jumps up and opens the gate just as he does when residents come and go in their cars. But mostly he sits, mostly he smokes while watching a different world go by than the one in which he lives a few social stratas down.

Strangers theme for +PortraitTuesday curated by +Laura Balc

2012-03-04 23:59:52 (28 comments, 1 reshares, 23 +1s)

Pelican Portrait

Tonight my buddy +Alan Shapiro will be doing Episode 2 of PhotoKarma (https://plus.google.com/u/0/114056084994793924628/posts/3ZjvWjKwdnQ). Filled with inspiration from the last show, I treated my new friend Pete the Pelican to a makeover. Thanks, Alan, for the friendship and inspiration! This is for you as well +Chrysta Rae since you're the fabulous co-host and white rat afficianado!

2012-03-04 16:32:36 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 7 +1s)

One from my upcoming book "Trippin' in the garden on Miracle-Gro"

Will be showing how I process images like this on tonight's episode of PhotoKarma

PhotoKarma Episode 2: "One flower 4 ways"
We'll take a single image and process it 4 different ways. We'll start in Lightroom and discuss some basic developing techniques, take a trip to Photoshop for some LAB Processing fun (Way #1) and then back to Lightroom for some monochrome conversion discussion (Way #2), and some split-toning fun and games(Way #3) and then back to photoshop for a refresher on adding texture to an image with layers and blending modes (Way #4)
We'll also have a live chatroom for questions and discussion.

We're totally committed to helping folks of all experience levels get a little inspired, learn a new thing or two, grow their skills and... more »

2012-03-01 23:23:05 (25 comments, 2 reshares, 31 +1s)

Cutting through the fog

A sunrise on any body of water any where is always guaranteed to fill me with joy, and it is with joy that I share this image of a sunrise in China with the inimitable +C. Corey Fisk and ask her #howwasyourdaysweetie ?

2012-03-01 01:18:33 (19 comments, 2 reshares, 23 +1s)

You only lock yourself in when when your fears try to lock everything out

#windowwednesday +#Window Wednesday curated by +Jules Hunter +Jason Kowing +Simon Kitcher +Cheryl Cooper

2012-02-29 20:33:27 (13 comments, 0 reshares, 18 +1s)

And they call the thing rodeo

Well it's bulls and blood
It's dust and mud
It's the roar of a Sunday crowd
It's the white in his knuckles
The gold in the buckle
He'll win the next go 'round
It's boots and chaps
It's cowboy hats
It's spurs and latigo
It's the ropes and the reins
And the joy and the pain
And they call the thing rodeo
~Garth Brooks

#wildwestwednesday curated by +Nicholas Pappagallo Jr

2012-02-27 23:16:06 (10 comments, 0 reshares, 13 +1s)

The Path Ahead

Feeling kind of vintage today after last night's success of the "The Artist" at the Academy Awards. Also, feeling kind of moody so what better theme to post to than +Philip Daly's +Moody Monday?