"Shadow of David" by Wes Aldridge
On the way back from dinner in Evansville, Indiana, with one of my best friends, I saw this cool sight. We were driving through a lower income section of town and I see this cast of David. I did somewhat of a double-take because I didn't expect to see this in someone's yard in this neighborhood. I looked a little harder and saw the shadow of the figure projected on the brick wall and knew this was my shot for the night.
"Scallions on Bass" by Wes Aldridge
Tonight I saw "The X's" at 12th & Porter. Fuel frontman, Brett Scallions, played bass and handled some backing vocals. Well, here is Brett.
"Face of Fire" by Wes Aldridge
This is the final image from our excursion in Cloudland Canyon State Park. My brother was kindling the flames of our campfire and it made for a great scene. It was pitch black dark late at night and as I watched him work the fire, all I could see was his slightly lit face and the blazing fire. I think this one has almost a ghostly feeling to it. But it twas no specter, tis the brother of me, merely!
I came back with none of the types of photographs that I had envisioned I would get on this trip. No waterfall shots and barely any nature photographs, but the ones I have brought back are well-pleasing to me in a quite unexpected way. That is one of the most exciting aspects of the world of photography. Many times I think I "know" what I am going to shoot and kind of plan it all out in my head. More times than not, those plans end up changing and the adventure to get the shot begins.
"Off" by Wes Aldridge
Well, we had to travel to a nearby family friend's home to get the blog up tonight because the cottage we are staying in doesn't have a phone line. We are about 30 miles from camp right now in Mentone, Alabama. Oh yeah, it was uploaded by a dial-up modem tonight too. I am just glad its up now.
This shot is, of course, a bottle of Off! insect repellant. I think it is pretty killer though. I didn't do this shot in the studio. Nope, it was done on the picnic table outside of the cottage. I put a fairly bright flashlight behind the translucent bottle and it lit it pretty nicely. I shot it with the 50mm f/1.8 and washed over it with a 550EX flash. I think a person could believe it was shot in the studio and given that rustic look. But no, it was just some fun while having some Evan Williams around the campfire with the fam.
"Golden Rays" by Wes Aldridge
The family is having a mini-vacation at Cloudland Canyon State Park for the next few days. My brother had to work tonight so I drove him back to his gig in Dalton for the night. I had a guy ask me to come and shoot photographs of his family farm and decided to go tonight and give it a few shots and scout it out before we head back to Cloudland Canyon.
This shot is in the loft of an old barn standing on the Gowin Farm in Walker County, Georgia. I was pretty sure I would get some nice shots down on the farm tonight, but I think this one really is a gem. I am very well pleased with it.
Now, time to pick up the brother and head back to Lookout Mountain.
"Structural Distortion" by Wes Aldridge
A cool distorted reflection of a building in downtown.
Time to go on a little holiday.
"Spirit of Nawlins" by Wes Aldridge
Tonight I shot Dancin' In The District on the bank of the Cumberland River. Better Than Ezra was the headling act, and they did it well. They played with Cowboy Mouth who suprisingly were extremely good. The kicker of the show, though, was that both bands are from New Orleans. I think they were playing to Nashville, but they were doing it for the ravaged homeland. They gave it all they had and I was satisfied.
This is the guitarist/vocalist from Better Than Ezra, Kevin Griffin. I like this shot because of the Pedestrian Bridge in the background. I think it really makes the shot interesting and it totally says Nashville. Also, the shadow of Kevin's hand on the guitar body strikes me as pretty neat too.
"King's Eyes" by Wes Aldridge
Tonight I stared into the King's Eyes. They became a mirror and I saw myself in them. Sometimes decisions are tuff, especially when a beautiful blonde is involved in the scenario. But I am home and the blog was posted once again. I was wanted elsewhere, and believe me, elsewhere was looking mighty fine tonight.
I knew one thing though: If I didn't make it home and post a shot for the night, I would have failed. It doesn't mean much to some people, I assume. I don't think that most people can grasp the importance that this daily offering of my work is. I will definetly never win a Pulitzer Prize for anything posted here. I rarely make a sale of any prints from this, although the rarity does happen and is welcomed. No, this site is about a commitment to a very important person in my life. That person is me. I promised myself that I would do this daily posting for an entire year and now that I am into the ninth month of it, there is absolutely no turning back now. This sight owes nothing to anyone. It isn't here to please or entertain anyone. It isn't here as a political statement. It doesn't gain any revenue. Hell, it doesn't even have a visually compelling amount of artistic creativity in the site's design. But it is a piece of me. I would even go as far as to say that it is a testament to the devotion that I have for the gift of photography that I feel I was graced with.
I said that I had to go and do this posting because one day I want to see my work in National Geographic and if I missed posting this commitment that I have to myself, if I let myself down, then I would never achieve this awesome goal that I have set forth for myself. I don't think that I will accomplish it because I am "that" good. I think that I will get there because I won't settle for anything less and I refuse to let anything stop me.
So, The King didn't get Graceland because he thought one night he would let everything go on hold and forget about it. Graceland stands on top of a mighty empire because a young kid from Tupelo gave it everything he had, everyday of his life. And there you have it, he was The King. I don't want to be The King, but I don't want to settle for anything less than the absolute fullest measure of my devotion.
Men aren't created great... but some give it more than they have and one day they walk away with the prize.
"Broken Glass" by Wes Aldridge
Tonight we went to the rockshow. My ears will ring for days.
"The Mantis" by Wes Aldridge
So tonight I stopped at Walgreens to find a rubberband for my hair. Nothing really eventful inside, just made the purchase. When I got to the cashier she was laughing and looking outside. She mumbled something about a bug and I see a kid dancing around on the concrete in front of the sliding glass doors. My interest was caught.
I walked outside and this little boy was dancing around wearing a Native American feathered headdress while cupping his hand around his mouth while mocking Indian chants. This was strange, I mean the child romping about in Indian garb by himself at 9:30 p.m. with no parent in sight. I finally saw the bug: A praying mantis, a very large one, scaling the brick wall of the building. I ran and grabbed my camera and the rest is in the details.
"Tie Your Shoe" by Wes Aldridge
Today was the voyage home. Tired. Worn down. Sleep needed.
Always remember to tie your shoes.
"Rugged Fiddler" by Wes Aldridge
Well, my analysis of Asheville... I love it here. Everything is free and accepted and people are their own people, no matter how far from society's norms they stray. A great T-shirt that I saw gives a great summary: "ASHEVILLE where normal is weird." I really enjoyed this place and felt perfectly at home.
This is a shot of one of the many street performers I saw here. She was incredible and I think I almost fell in love. if you know me, the girls that I go for are not exactly like this one: Blonde, raggedly dressed and with armpit hair. No, I generally don't go for the earthy ones, but this girl was incredible.
She played an accordian from the 1930s and a violin. I can't really describe the music except that it was enchanting and almost dark. It kept me mesmerized while I listened. It made me want to shoot and shoot and shoot. So I did and here she is, as happy as she wants to be.
"Strained In Glass" by Wes Aldridge
Well, I decided to go with another shot from St. Lawrence tonight. Not because I didn't shoot anything else today that wasn't good, but because everything I shot today is no more.
I had 128 photos on my memory card and when I got back to the hotel, they were all corrupted. When digital photography files are corrupted, then you have no more photos. That really sucks for me. Oh well, I really love this stained glass. I couldn't decide between it and the shot of the candles I posted last night.
So here is a look at what last night's shot could've been.
"Flickering" by Wes Aldridge
Today was another long one. I love it. I walked all over Asheville today and eventually ended up at the Basilica of St. Lawrence. I thought the prayer candles were great when I walked in the door. Moody. Cool.
"A View In The Big Truck" by Wes Aldridge
Today I drove the Coach and myself to Asheville for a shoot for a few days. We were in a huge Ford Expedition so we could carry all of our photo equipment. The drive wasn't bad at all. We had good laughs and conversation and I really enjoyed the trip.
We had finished a shoot today and were trying to figure out what the next destination was for the following shoot. The Coach and I were getting into the Expedition and we needed to make room in the vehicle for the other members of our group (that had drove to Asheville in a serparate vehicle). As we were loading in, I was sitting at the helm of the Expedition and had noticed earlier that a drop-down wide-angle mirror was in the roof of the vehicle. I popped it down and took a semi-self portrait and group shot with my 50mm lens at f/1.8.. I like it. Sybil is scheduling something for the trip on her cell phone in the background and the Coach is being straight-up chill with his shades on in the passenger seat. It was simply a true moment in our present reality.
I feel good about this trip and the group we are with. I think things are really working together and feel like an important part of a team on this assignment. It is a stark contrast to the normal photo shoots we do out on the road all alone. It is great to be with another photographer, who is pretty damn good, and assist on his portrait shoots and learn the mannerisms of his photography. I think this trip will be a great expansion and enhancement for my photographic skills... and it also looks to be some fun too.
"Red Sea" by Wes Aldridge
The horror of a red splattered wall. What happened? When? How?
We don't know. We don't care to know. We don't fear it. We don't even trust it and we surely don't believe in it.
So, we wonder about it. Think. Analyze. Try to see the truth through all the smoke. Can we? Will we be able to find it? Cna we possibly look hard enough and never find?
Yes.
"Steel Wool" by Wes Aldridge
Steel wool with a flipped 50mm for macro with a bounced flash.
"Sweet Roses" by Wes Aldridge
Tonight was the final episode of Sex Feet Under. I have to say that it was probably one of the greatest television series ever created. Some people look at that series as a show about death and morbidness, but that isn't close to the point. I think watching it really was an affirmation of life, love and family. It was pretty uplifting and an incredible journey to feel a part of. I wonder how long before the box set comes out?
"Free to Roam" by Wes Aldridge
Today was spent in south Alabama. There were many angry animals surrying about. We swerved and dodged them and they had the Fear.
Actually, today is a monumental day. Hunter Stockton Thompson's creamated ashes were shot out of a gigantic cannon on his farm. He was my hero and the sole reason that I became interested in journalism, and eventually picked up a camera. Tonight, we pay homage to this incredible life force with Wild Turkey, Chivas Regal, Monte Alban Mezcal and anything else that comes about in true Gonzo fashion.
If you don't know of HST, pick up a novel of his, perhaps "The Rum Diary" or "Better Than Sex," or you could always go for his cult classics "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" or "Hell's Angels."
"There he goes. One of God's own prototypes. Some kind of high powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die." - as said by Raoul Duke about Dr. Gonzo in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," written by HST
"Warm Monuments" by Wes Aldridge
I spent 13 hours traveling today. Wake at 3 a.m. and get to Nashville at 4 p.m. I am beyond tired. I had dinner with an old friend and we went to the Nasvhille city cemetery. Some markers were so old, the dates had been erroded off of them. The end of the day in the cemetery. Wasn't I around one of these places last night about the same time? Strange how things come about.
Goodnight.
