Best of 2010

I started 2010 in a power outage in Montana, searching for puppies in the snow. I'm writing this now from my parent's home in Georgia. Later this week I'll back in Montana to start the new year and hopefully it won't involve lost dogs or being stuck in the dark.

Looking back at the start of this decade it's strange to think that in 2000 there was no 9/11, or orange alerts, or Katrina. I wasn't in college when this decade started and people were worried about Y2K. I wasn't even a photographer yet. Not really. Lots can change in 1o years - or just 1.

What the last 365 days have involved is family, friends, travel, and fantastic food. I've put together my favorite photos from 2010 - both personal and professional. For me there isn't a way to separate them. I hope wherever you are (home, stuck in an airport terminal, toasty in a coffee shop) you get to celebrate the end of this decade with people you love. Happy New Year and enjoy the photos.

Olney, Montana

Watkinsville, Georgia

Serenbe Farms

Athens, Georgia
Nick & Ginny, Park Slope - Brooklyn, New York


Serenbe Farms

Ginny - Brooklyn, New York looking into Manhattan

Lido - Yellowstone National Park

Hayden Valley, Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Olney, Montana

Yellowstone River, Yellowstone National Park


Trego, Montana

Cheers to 2010

Hayden Valley, Yellowstone National Park 2010

I think there are so many blog entries out in the interwebs that start with "I haven't been good about updating this blog." Let's just both give a nod of recognition and move on.

2010 brought a lot of changes for me personally and professionally. The more I've embraced my own photography the more opportunities and changes I've been presented with. I'm now a contributing photographer with Redux Pictures. I'm really excited about this partnership and how nice they have been to work with so far. Travel continues to be a major part of things: Atlanta, St. Thomas, New York, Tennessee, St. Louis, Wyoming and of course Montana and parts therein. That won't be changing next year and I'm looking forward to putting together the schedule in the coming months. You can also expect some changes to the website and new work as well. But as far as this year goes I got to spend so much time working on projects I really care about and seeing people I love. If those two things continue into next year I can't wait.

Here's to 2011 - cheers to you and yours. I hope the end of the year brings happy memories to you and excitement for things to come.

Isn't it pretty to think so?

Since 2001, I've lived in Georgia, France, South Carolina, England, Tennessee, and Montana. When I left college in 2004 I thought I'd be living in France right now working on whatever it was I was supposed to be working on. Turns out, life went a little differently and now I'm working on whatever it is I'm supposed to be working on in Montana. A little different, but pretty none-the-less.
The funny part of it is, in all of those places I was always ready and planning on being in the next place. The next fence over, the next job, the next thing. It hasn't been till recently that I started to get more comfortable with the idea of being right where I am the moment that I'm there. But that place is more like my actual seat than my current longitude and latitude. I'm not sure if that's really all that healthy but I'll take what I can get.
I realize that I've been struck with a certain kind of wanderlust that only a few a really hit hard by. I'm one of those lucky ones. Lucky in that I know I won't stop wanting to see just what's over the horizon. Not-so-lucky in that the members of my wandering club seem to dwindle more and more the closer I get to "adulthood." The farther I look down the line the more I see marriages and babies and responsibilities and bills. And I'm not against those things, it just seems to me a easy way to get trapped in one place. And one place was never on my itinerary. My feeling on the that life being fantastic was more "Isn't it pretty to think so?"

So it has come to a surprise to even myself to be walking further and further down that path. The trick, so far it seems, is to have a great travel companion. Or at least one who is understanding of needing to go those few extra blocks, have that extra drink, or stay out a little bit longer. Just a little. So today, with less than a week before I head out again into the world of airplanes and long lines and unknown roads, I'm thankful for that understanding. Here's to that extra drink with a lifelong travel mate.

What the Geyser!

If you haven't been to Yellowstone National Park and visited the geysers you are really missing out. I was kind of pessimistic on geysers in general, but after seeing the surreal colors in the ground I was sold. I'm a sucker for color anyways and I have never seen anything else that compares to the vibrancy of these. It really is worth the trip. More posts to come on Yellowstone. And Nate -- I swear I'm getting close to sending you pics from Lido and me from this trip. :)

a girl could get lost

It's easy to see how a girl could get lost out in the Tetons and not want to come back. I'm home now from the Yellowstone adventure. More photos and stories to come.

Opening & Out of Town

Two quick updates.

Update one: Tonight (September 3rd) I will be at Miss Zula's in Missoula, MT for a show of my photos as a part of September Gallery Nights. Stop by and say hi if you are around town.


Update two: I will be traveling in Bozeman and Yellowstone park September 5th-12th. If I don't return your call or email immediately it is because I'm camping and without cell service. Don't be offended -- I'll be back in the office September 13th returning calls and emails. We will catch up then.

Mental Vacation

I don't know if, for me, there is any way better to relax than with the sand between my toes. Growing up as a kid my family took a yearly trip to Florida where there was usually no agenda and lots of beach time. As an adult, I miss having a whole week to just hang out by the water, eat seafood, and read. This summer has been non-stop, full-tilt, busy-to-the-max. But it did start off with some beach time.

These are a couple of out takes from my trip earlier this year to St. Thomas for work. Don't worry: we were able to squeeze in some margaritas between work. From Trunk Bay to Maegens Bay it was like being in Florida all over again, only with prettier water and more Rum. So from here at my desk I'm taking a little mental break and pretending I'm by the water again. If only for a couple minutes before heading back to my to-do list. You should too.

What Can You Get for $25 Million?

This island in the US Virgin Islands. You know...if you're into owning a whole island. Just thought you should know.

Stop - St. Thomas Time

More from the St. Thomas outtakes file. I just loved these colors.

Young Farmers Project: Jason and Laura Mann

Say hello to Jason Mann, 33, and his wife Laura, 32. Together this young couple owns Full Moon Farms in Watkinsville, Georgia. Originally a history and philosophy major at Berkley, Jason has spent the last 11 years involved in farming. Now he runs Full Moon Farms and owns Farm 255, a restaurant serving the farm's organic food in downtown Athens, Georgia.

In addition to running the farm and dealing with the restaurant, Jason is committed to bringing more people into farming. "My best crop is future farmers," says Mann and it seems to be the case. Among the twenty-somethings crew working at Full Moon Farms is Jared Pickard, 25, originally from New Jersey. Pickard left a job in finance to pursue farm work and has been doing so since February. He now works as a Farmers Apprentice on the farm and has started a blog documenting his time there.


From left to right: Jason Mann, 33, Moose Terry, 24, and Jared Pickard, 25 work the field on an early morning in May.

A place setting at Farm 255 in Athens.



Left: Farm 255 entrance. Right: Farm 255's Bloody Mary made with farm fresh ingredients.

Farm 255's Butcher Board: housemade pork sausage, pastrami, pork liver mousse, trotters, 
boiled egg, sauerkraut, housemade pickles, grilled casatillo brea.

Farm 255's Mojito with mint from Full Moon Farms.

Digging in to the Butcher Board.

Mann is committed to bring his organic food to as many people as possible. The newly opened Farmburger in Decatur, Georgia is now serving his grass fed beef burgers nightly. For Mann this is just the next step in connecting people with their food. Mann is commited to "a new role for restaurants and transforming our food systems." Between his farm, his staff, and his two restaurants he's off to a good start.

St. Thomas :: Outtakes

It was rainy when we landed in St. Thomas, USVI. But despite the rain it was ridiculously beautiful. The islands, the people, the water. In the coming weeks there will be more images to come from this trip (once I have time to sit and edit them all out). But for now here are a couple of outtakes. Cheers to the islands.

Planes. Cars. Boats.

I'm back in Montana after a month of travel in the South and Caribbean. In the next coming weeks look for travel focused posts here as well as more profiles on Young Farmers across the country. I'm so happy to be back in Montana and am hoping to zip through some major editing projects so I can get back outside where it is sunny and beautiful here. It might be a while but I'm really so happy to be back in the mountains.

Left: View from a villa in St. Thomas, USVI. Right: Cacti at Trunk Bay, USVI.

Young Farmers Project: Hitting the Road in Georgia

I'm currently in Atlanta and have been for the past week working on my Young Farmers portrait project. For each Farm I'm shooting a portrait of an organic farmer under 35 and then a portrait of a dish made with their food.

Earlier this month I headed to Palmetto, Georgia where I met Paige Witherington. Paige is 28 and has been farming since 2002. She currently is the Farm Manager at Serenbe, a 3 phase development committed to sustainable agriculture and development south of Atlanta. The farm she manages supplies food for CSA members in the Atlanta metro area as well as to restaurants within the development including The Hil and soon the Blue Eyed Daisy Cafe. I spent some time with her out in the field taking portraits. The plot of land set aside for the farm where she is now working was originally used for cotton farming. "It's really nice to see the positive change you can see on a really run down piece of land," said Paige about what she enjoys about farming.

Garlic and Spinach Flathbread at The Hil.

Wedge Salad at the Hil.

The dining room at The Hil.

The Blue Eyed Daisy Cafe.

Check back for more updates as I travel the roads this summer from Georgia to Missouri, Montana and places in between.