I had the opportunity recently to cover an event where guest where able to drink with the devil.  This event was a marketing idea for a wine called Diablo.  The wine is absolutely delicious! It a dark red blend and man it goes down smooth with a bold body flavor.  I brought my vlogging camera along for the ride and the following video is for you to enjoy. Special thanks to Chris Mclellan with the Fetzer group for having me on their event, along with Frenchmen street productions for the awesome talent in full costume.  Muriel's set the tone for the event with it's red rooms and historical architecture.  I love my city!
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Well this beach trip was a little bittersweet. You see, we're only weeks away to school year beginning which means the next chapter in my kids lives is happening.  Our oldest, Julia will be a Junior in high school.  Ellie will be in 8th also in high school.  Jack will be in 3rd grade as our caboose.  In the midst of all of this happening, Elizabeth and I are just be getting older by the day.

We tend to take things for granted when you are in the middle of them.  Take for example; graduating from high school.  The next step of college or a job seems like you'll have all the time in the world.  Once you get through that step and begin your next chapter in your life...the past chapters seemed so quick.  The older you get the further away they are your past.  It's hard to get excited about your future when you are older because the things we look forward to become fewer and fewer.  I think this is why so many people live through their kids.

I am so grateful for how much I love my job.  The images posted here are the real example of how I like to photograph people.  I hate super posed imagery!  Perfect does not exist in the world so why do we want perfect smiles or perfect poses??? Let your subjects be who they are and provoke emotions within them that will allow their true self to shine. I love these images of my kids because they look true to self.  I love their silliness, free loving, wild spirit at the age they are now.

Enjoy the time of your life you are in. Each phase goes by so quickly, don't blink!

I love creating images that capture life as it is at this moment in time.
​See you in the car-pool line!

This is Angela.  Angela was a high school senior years ago and now she is a beautiful bride.  Angela married Pat last night and I'm still high with energy from the party!  I'm finally able to show off her bridal portraits now the wedding has passed. 

To see more images click HERE

 My family and I went to the smoky mountains just last week for our summer vacation. It is always a beautiful sight to see and a great way to hit your reset button before coming back home and hitting the ground running for work. The best part of this trip was understanding this place and time where my kids are in their lives. Those days of going to Disney and the girls being super excited to see princesses and dress up just like them are now gone. This isn't a bad thing, it's just the simple fact of watching them grow up is happening right in front of my eyes.  
 Seeing all of the old houses churches in small towns that existed 200 years ago is fascinating to see. The one thing I took away from these experiences who is being aware of how spoiled our human generation is! We are absolutely living like kings and queens compared to how they lived 200+ years ago and yet we still find ways to complain.  

I enjoyed Dollywood as well, but I have no footage from there to show off. I took it as a day with the kids to completely have fun with new social media attaches whatsoever. We do some kind of get away during the summer for every year because we are well aware that once these kids are grown up these summer vacations will just be memories.  Make sure you take the time to create memories for you and your family because yesterday is already gone but today you can create amazing!

I need to stay FOCUSED just like everyone else on my imagery.  When I work for a client I have to be creative on the spot.  This isn't easy when you are not in the mood.  I have learned over the many years how to get into creative trance quickly.  It's like flipping the switch and you are ON!  My method consists of allowing my mind to dare myself to be good.  "I dare you to create something amazing right now!", I would tell myself.  

It's like bringing yourself to those beginner days of photography when everything was difficult but you knew if you applied yourself you could do it.  For me, now that I have all the knowledge I need to create whatever I want...I dare myself! I guess the point of this post today is to allow yourself to push yourself when nobody else will.  Your clients will love what you do on a half as good day, but you'll know better.  Hold yourself accountable and great things shall happen.  That's my theory at least. Love what you do, allow it to ooze out your pores like garlic and everyone else around will smell it to.  Ok, that  cool food analogy but you get my drift.  

If you are not getting good at something...take a class...ask the right questions and be ready for the knowledge because nobody truly wants you to succeed more than you do for yourself. Stay Focused on the things in life that drive you to be better!

One of the most difficult things to do as a photographer is learn how to tell a story through an image.  Sometimes the moment happens and you are lucky to get it and other times you need to help create it.  The push to creating a story telling image can be frustrating to say the least.  If you are a wedding photographer then your relationship with your clients will set the tone for your images.  

When I was in my 20s, I was setting the tone more to have fun and party.  These days I can relate to the fathers of the bride and the bride's themselves. I have many more emotional experiences to refer to in my life compared to when I was in my 20s and it was just time to party. I truly believe my images look more emotional because I am more emotional but I share that with my clients.  When I tell the father of the bride how beautiful his daughter is in her dress and I cannot wait for him to see her in it, I know he's thinking since I have daughters of my own. I always refer to my own daughters and my storyline of Conversation because it makes me relatable immediately. I earned their trust because they know I'm coming from a place there familiar with. When I tell the father of the bride, I'm not sure what I'll do with my daughters get married and they are in their address for the first time…  Then we bring the dad into the room to see his little girl in her bridal gown for the first time and the emotions are set to be unveiled. 

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You can also tell a story through capturing images for the journalistically and not speaking to anyone at all. Photojournalism used to be just for the newspaper photographers because they had jobs to go on site quickly capture images that told the Story for the headline they were trying to capture. So in a way they are looking for certain things to happen that would support their headline. I guess you can say were doing the same thing on weddings just in a different manner. I have always respected photographers who knew how to do this. I always thought it was pretty hard to walk into a room full of people that you don't know and capture images that supported the headline your editor wanted to publish. It may sound easy to most but I guarantee you it's not that simple.  I actually almost majored in photojournalism in college then change my mind. I'm too much of a people person to watch from the outside in so, I chose otherwise.  

 I think one of the hardest things new photographers have to deal with is the over saturation of the same thing. I know when you're starting off you have other photographers you admire you want to capture images like them but when you get to an age where you want to be known for your work and not somebody else's style, then telling your own story is more important than ever. When you look at my images on my Instagram and see for my website you'll notice a common thread. I love emotional/fun/interesting images captured in the way that shows you the love I put into them.  I do not use a special effect for my images trying to make them look like a particular style.  I think if you are doing this you are having a harder time separating yourself from the pack.  

My suggestion to you is to display yourself and your imagery is much as you can and that is all you show off. Do not show the special affect images that look like somebody else because it'll just separate you further and further from all the photographers who are doing just that. Tell your story.  Figure out what your story is and it does not matter what age you are. If you were young excited happy and then let that shine in your imagery. If you are an older photographer in your true passion is colorful sunsets then do it.  If your having a hard time looking at your own images and that seem yourself in them and maybe it's time to "Tell Your Story!"

Well it's the summer and this is the time of year when it's crazier then usual.  The reasoning is because you would think you would have more time to get the things done you really want to do besides regular work but not so much.  I'm still finding time to be creative in other areas outside of my normal workflow but it's hard.  When you get to the point in your creative life when you realize the calendar is your best friend then that's where all the magic happens.  

I now have to get the things I want to do on the calendar or it doesn't happen.  My clients come first in my mind so the creative things I want to do get delayed.  when I delay my creativity I cannot stay focused on my passion and I surely cannot apply them to my clients which in turn brings me down.  As an artist I need the balance of staying creative yet productive within my workflow.  If you could take a bird's eye view of my life you would ask " How in the heck do you get it all done?"  

​I'm here today to share with my fellow creatives to take control of your life by scheduling yourself as much as you schedule your clients.  I have some balance now that I did get one important project of mine created.  My good friend Chuck Credo and I have started a podcast called "Creative Smack."  He has been a working musician for over 20 years and I've been a pro photographer for over 23 years, so our knowledge in this field is incredible.  I wanted a podcast that would celebrate the working creative person on how they do what they do and earn a living.  I think it's easy to get someone pumped up about your line of work but nobody talks about the trials and tribulations that come with it.  I don't think being self employed is for everyone and this podcast may help those people who want to do what they love for a living.

My life is one big example of never stopping your passion, never taking no for an answer and dear Jesus stop listening those who don't want you to succeed and make friends with people who do!

Join us on the podcast and I'll see you on the next episode.  now...back to cleaning the studio.  :)

Listen to 1st Creative Smack podcast here!

This was the perfect way to practice composition and finding the light.  True street photography is as photo journalistic as it gets.  You never stop anything from happening to pose , you are simply a by-standard in the crowd capturing life all around you.  This type of photography is one of my favs because I get to pay attention to what's happening and finding the angle that best showcases reality.  I usually like these images in black and white rather than color, but New Orleans is full of color which seems to be part of the story.  Here are a few of my favs...enjoy!

I am so proud to be the local photographer who experiences the most good will in New Orleans.  The owners of Mulates are fantastic people with a family heritage this city is lucky to have.  So many wonderful stories of how the restaurant started and evolved over the years is always wonderful to hear.   This upcoming cookbook will share those stories along with some delicious food you need to cook for yourself.  New Orleans evolves around food because it brings people together.  We have family over for meals, we share our food with out neighbors and our kids cannot wait to have their own homes so they can continue the traditions we instill in them. 

I haven't seen the cookbook yet but from what the owner, Monique Christina tells me it should be a great cookbook for your kitchen.  In New Orleans our kitchens are the place we hang out, share stories and enjoy delicious meals we love to cook.  The following images are some of my favs we photographed along the way. 

Last week I had the pleasure of working with these men for there reunion here in New Orleans. These are the kinds of jobs I love working with my partners at the BBC Destination Management Company. These images show you the fun, the brotherhood and excitement these guys had in New Orleans.  What a better way to walk to your dinner reservations from your hotel then to 2nd line and dance in the streets as the city cheers you on.  I love my New Orleans!  :)