Shreveport Kids + Bo = EPIC SUCCESS

For the record, I am head over heels in love with the LSU campus. I have known this for quite some time, but I became much more aware of this yesterday evening during a spur of the moment photo shoot for my friends James, Conner, Daniel, Bo, & Laura. James, as I have come to realize recently, is a phenomenal painter, and he need some pictures for inspiration for a painting that he wants to do for one of his art classes. It was my pleasure to help him out. We started out at his favorite oak tree behind the bell tower in central campus. Posing was quick, although Daniel seemed like he wasn't crazy about having to sit on the ground and show his white socks. And Laura moved around a lot, with a few awkward leg moments, but we did manage to get a good "serious face" picture. I used the Pioneer Woman "Seventies" photoshop action for all three of these pictures that I used in this post.

James needed face shots as well, so we did close ups of everyone (I won't post all those, because they're rather unremarkable, just a color/bw photo of each person, one smiling, one serious). As the sun continued to set we hightailed it over to the Greek Ampitheatre just another 2 minute walk over to East Campus (thank you, Conner, for the great idea). It seemed like most of the pictures would have made awesome CD covers. Laura said they're gonna start a band now just because they have some awesome cover art now. ;) Here's the best one of the series at the Ampitheatre.

Then, of course, we had to goof off a little. Time for some silly pics. Had such a fun time during this brief hour with these amazing people. Can't wait to see James' painting!

Spring Break 2010 "Life in Texicolor"

The first half of my Spring Break has been busy, but relaxing. I've had some great time with good sweet friends and enjoyed some good ole Texas food. I adore this state and I adore my city. I love Austin, so much. The people, the parks, the food, the smells, the sights. All of it.

First big adventure of the week was a trip to the Barton Creek Greenbelt with my good friend Sarah Macias, former Zilker Park manager. We took a nice 5 mile hike through the greenbelt at sunrise, enjoying the sights and the sounds of God's beautiful creation. As Sarah said, "this preaches to me." God has always been so present to me in nature. His perfect and beautiful creation always blows me away.

Next adventure? Trip to the cliffs overlooking Lake Austin and the 360 bridge with my old photo buddy from high school, Barrett Wilson. I had never been there before, so Barrett directed me up the trail to the main clearing, and down the short trail to some better views. It was gorgeous. We spent a good amount of time up there, including watching Barrett climb down the cliffs and jump across gaps in the rocks. He seriously must have been trying to give me a heart attack. Well, he's always been a little crazy, so it didn't surprise me, just that motherly instinct jumped in. Anyways, here's a pretty successful panoramic.

And the next one? Another trip to the cliffs. This time I went up by myself at first, enjoyed some awesome alone time with God and my Bible. It was a perfect evening. 72 degrees and breezy. Brought my iPod, enjoyed some praise & worship music, and some time alone with God. It was perfect. Later on, Katie came and met me and we just talked. We caught up, chatted, talked about life, and enjoyed some great conversations. And naturally, just as the sun was setting, I had Katie "model the outline of her body" as she called it. I got her to pose with her arms outstretched on the cliff overlooking the lake and a gorgeous sunset. I was very pleased with the outcome.

And quite possibly my favorite adventure of the week: Drew & Ellie Holcomb's concert at Stubb's. Ever since Drew & Ellie played at Fronteir Ranch Young Life camp the summer after my junior year of high school, I've absolutely loved their music. They make their own style, their own genre. I love it. They have amazing stage presence, they're fantastic musicians, and they're even better people. What an awesome example of a great Christian marriage, glorifying God through their talents and their relationship. I hope that Ellie and I remain friends for years to come. Here's a favorite from the concert.

All in all... it's been a great week. Now I have to study? That's not fair.

Roommate Bonding Time

So I got a new Sigma lens in the mail today. So basically that meant that Syd and I took the afternoon/evening off and just played around with it. We went and parked by First United Methodist Church in downtown Baton Rouge and just walked around Memorial Park and the surrounding businesses. Got some nice shots. We laughed, we danced, we joked, we took pictures. Such a great afternoon. We found some Japanese Magnolias that we named Lily & Rose.

Later on we met up with our neighbor, Kate, at New York Bagel. Then we came home, sat on the floor, listened to music, and talked. Just talked. About life. Goals. Ambitions. The future. Our fears and what we are excited about. It was one of those moments in our friendship that I know I'll never forget. A couple hours later, we both realized we were hungry again... so we ventured out for some Taco Bell. Yes, we're college students. We eat a lot. And when we arrived at home, of course, I wasn't done taking pictures. So we went around back of Herget and took some crazy creepy pictures on the lawn by the lake.

Now we're both still awake, and planning where to go to take pictures of the sunrise. Syd has been such a blessing this year, I've loved getting to know her and sharing life with her. What a blessing. Love this girl. Thank God for her every single day.

Baseball Opening Night

What a night what a night. Alex Box Stadium welcomes back defending national champions, the LSU Tigers. I had planned on attending this game with my friend Chantal as a spectator, enjoying the opportunity to be an LSU student and cheer on the Tigers as they faced Centenary in the first game of the 2010 season. Clearly, this was going to be a big game.

I planned to arrive at the field around 5pm for a 7pm first pitch. Sounds crazy, right? Think again. Students had been lining up outside Alex Box since around lunchtime that day. Hundreds and hundreds of students were already in line when I arrived. Oh well, I was willing to wait. As the winding line inched forward at a snail's pace, the time neared 6 o'clock. That's when a guy passing us walking back to his car hollered that it was "standing room only" now. Well darn. I had my press pass so I could get in... but I didn't want to force Chantal to stand the whole game. She really wasn't even that into baseball to begin with. So I took her home.

I raced back to my dorm, grabbed my camera bag, and I was back to the Box. I mean, this is baseball we're talking about. I wasn't about to miss out on Opening Night.

I hadn't planned on shooting that game, so my batteries weren't charged. Needless to say, my camera was dead by the third inning. It was cold. Martin and I were hungry. So after watching Louis Coleman throw out the first pitch, and a record-crowd cheer on the Tigers in a sluggish start against Centenary, Martin and I left to go get dinner. I did catch up with the game later on and discovered the Tigers squeaked by in the 9th to win 5-4. It was sloppy. But they got the job done. (They would later roll to a 25-8 win the following evening)

Overall, good day. It's baseball season ladies and gentlemen. Grab your peanuts, your cap, and a six-pack. Sit back, and enjoy America's game.

Historic Moment

Seimone Augustus entered the Pete Maravich Assembly Center Sunday January 24 donned in purple. But no uniform, no gym shoes, no trademark cornrows. The former LSU standout was dressed in professional attire and a bowling cap, and wore a few extra adornments of tattoos on her hands and arms. Augustus became the first female athlete in LSU history to have her jersey retired. #33. When the pendant was unfurled and her jersey was displayed, Augustus could barely contain herself. In a brief but moving ceremony just before tip-off, she thanked her family and her friends and Tiger Nation for all of their love and support during her four years at LSU.

Augustus was one of the most highly-touted recruits to ever come through LSU... in any sport. The PMAC's top 5 attendance dates all fall during her four year career. The Olympic Gold Medalist, WNBA 1st round draft pick overall, and three-time All-American led the Lady Tigers to three straight final four appearances. Her electrifying ball skills and crowd pleasing playmaking abilities dazzled LSU basketball fans from 2002-2006. What a pleasure it was to be in attendance when all of her efforts were recognized in front of a large crowd at the PMAC Jan. 24.

Engagement Shoot

Although it is now January 2nd, I took these shots December 22nd, almost a full two weeks ago. I was fortunate enough to have Mitchell Franz on hand to teach me a thing or two about posing and about off-camera flashes. I learned an immense amount about portraiture in just a few short hours. Had a nice time with Cait and Ryan. It was such a joy to see one of my dear friends so happy. 

Parkview Baptist vs. Redemptorist Football

What a night. I was so thrilled to finally be assigned to an actually GREAT football game. It reminded me of my days under the friday night lights of Texas high school football. I struggled to find parking, but ended up getting a really close spot. I was so lucky. I'll be honest, I was a little uncomfortable. It was in a pretty bad neighborhood, so I was nervous being out there by myself and walking to my car by myself. I was stressed and tired and nervous, because as soon as I came within 3 blocks of the stadium, I realized this was a HUGE game. Redemptorist was hosting the Parkview Baptist Eagles. But after the first quarter, the game was clearly dominated by Parkview. The offense was firing on all cylinders, the only thing I was bummed about was not being able to stay for the 2nd half (I had a 9pm deadline with the Advocate). The energy was exciting, the fans were so pumped and the players were fired up. What a game. The band played LSU's rendition of Oh-wee-oh! It was a blast. I ran into my dad's old friend Barry Spears, and it was such a nice surprise. He was very encouraging of me and my abilities. It was a nice change.

What a night! Here's a couple shots.

The picture above made the front of the sports section in the Advocate today! The photo below is a Redemptorist player watching in disbelief as Redemptorist QB throws yet another interception.