This was from 2 years ago on a cold Sunday morning as I went to meet a friend for breakfast. Given how (relatively) cold it’s going to be this week it seemed appropriate.

From a family shoot I did Saturday. When I get hired for a shoot it’s usually for smiling color photos, but I always sneak in a few of these black and white portraits because I love them and my subjects usually love them too.

Continuing to work through the backlog of sets.

This one was shot in May of 2017 at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Phoenix, AZ.

Makeup was performed by Becky Jo Harris of Becks Aesthetics.

Models were Audri, Purrversia, Lexi, and Nichole.

We shot for two hours after the garden closed as the sun was setting. The reservation wasn’t cheap but was totally worth it to have the place to ourselves.

Check it out at the link below.

Japanese Friendship Garden

Due to all the travel and life in general I haven’t been able to create much new work the last few months. But the last couple days I went back to the vault and added one more volume of Cosmonauts photos from the summer of 2016. Click the link to check them out.

Cosmonauts season 07

 

The above image was on display at 5th Base Gallery in London the first weekend in December. I was selected as 1 of 15 shortlisted photographers from which 5 finalists were chosen. Wonderful to have been on display across the pond again : )

Sunday I got to work with this lovely young lady again in my (almost) complete studio. It’s a small black-box room with a picture window that allows for these high-contrast B&Ws.

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to shoot. This is largely due to performing in a comedy troupe and a shadow play of Rocky Horror Picture Show, but I found a couple more gems from Italy (backwards) and have a shoot tomorrow and one Sunday (forwards). It’ll be good to get back to work.

I made a few photos while in London in October during my trip to display some of my underwater photos. Check them out ; )

These are definitely not selfies. Normally I’m averse to self-portraits for myself (totally fine if others like doing it) unless there is reason or humor for it. I seem to have started a tradition of birthday self-portraits and this year I shared them on Instagram (MRP_Visionaries). I did this partly because it struck me as meaningful work; the release or exposure of pent up emotions. It also may have made one person feel like they’re not alone in their personal struggles.

I wasn’t going to share here / FB except that it seems counterproductive to share in one area and not another. This is some of the sort of work I’d like to do; help people release and cope with their metaphorical demons (if real demons, call a priest).

I also wanted to share because I’m not sure I expressed myself properly with the series. The final image is meant, as perhaps some interpreted, not as a post-life image but as a post-crisis image. I’ve re-edited and toned down the blow-out here and I think it improves the image but that I still didn’t quite succeed on the message. 

So why post it? Because as part of growing as an artist (if I may flatter myself a moment) is to realize where one’s message may have failed. I think the over-editing of the first version was not only a technical failure but also perhaps an artistic one. Also the pose will take the viewer immediately to prayer and on reflection (get it?) maybe I should have used a pose slightly less associated with a monotheistic religion and something slightly more universal or meditative.

In either event the point of the series was to get some raw emotions out, but also to show that it can get better if we get through the rough patch. I have been very fortunate in my life to have relatively few of these, but it can still be hard to remember that it is only the PAIN that I want to end. I still have work to do even if I don’t know for sure what that is.

In honor of the season I’m reposting this series from a couple of years ago.

Check it out : )

Day of the Dead