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Freighter leaving the Port of Laem Chabang, Pattaya, Thailand
Holy no posting Batman. Hard to believe that more than two months has passed since the last post. OK, so actually it's not so difficult to believe. A good chunk of May and nearly all of June was spent out on the road or in the field. Back-to-back-to-back assignments and a number of other things going on outside of work/ photo stuff left little time for updating this thing.
Well, first I spent some time in Thailand. I was there for a little more than a week, which is coincidentally nearly the same length of time it takes to get there from the east coast of the U.S. Well, not really, but after 20 hours on a plane, it starts to feel that way.
I was there to cover disaster response and port operations agencies as they went through training. Did that, but there was quite a bit of down time, so we were able to go check out Bangkok and Pattaya, the two main cities that we were in. Thailand was not at all what I expected it to be like. I expected there to be more trash strewn about and much more obvious prostitution. Perhaps I just wasn't visiting the right parts of town.
Bangkok. More scooters, mopeds and motorcycles than you'd ever know what to do with.
It's like Chips, but no Erik Estrada.
Downtown Bangkok.
Outskirts of Bangkok.
Wading into the Gulf of Thailand, Pattaya, Thailand
Mending fishing nets, near Pattaya
Unloading freighters, Port of Laem Chabang
Firefighters training at the Port of Laem Chabang.
Firefighting training. I got soaked when a hose broke loose from the nozzle portion.
Firefighter, Port of Laem Chabang
And while in Thailand the world ended. Or, at least the sky looked like that was so.
Off and on I've been working on a project shooting at night using long exposures--like several minutes to several hours. OK, maybe not several hours, not yet anyhow, but some of the exposure times have been up there. It's been something I started playing around with as a way to see things differently and to simply try new things. It's also got me thinking of different ways to light things-- using car headlights, or flashlights or painting with light. So, now the next step is to take that and apply it to say portraiture. Or not. Anyhow, it's a different way of seeing the commonplace, and adds a new element, though I've been trying to stay away from the ol' cars on the highway motif that so often gets used. I remember doing something similar for a photo course when I was going to school. At the time, I was in many ways a little too impatient and tried to rush things. It's a little different this time around. So, here's a few form the series. 
Just got back in from spending a few days down in Key West, Fla., on an assignment. I know, I know, pretty rough, eh? Needless to say, the warm weather was a nice break from the low-mid 40s blahness that's been going on in Maryland for the past few weeks. Sure, a few days have hinted at the warmness to come, but I'm getting antsy for nicer weather.
I was down in Key West photographing aircrew members from an Air Force unit going through water survival training, which included, amoung other things, being set out in a raft for a few hours and hoisted aboard an Army UH-1 helicopter. Upon returning, I tried to convince my boss that it was a arduous, difficult assignment and that because I was looking out for the others in the office, I'd volunteer to cover it next time around. I think it would have been more believable had I not had a pretty nice tan going on.
Air Force Chaplain (Maj.) Sarah Shirley
Andrews Air Force Base, Md.
Portraits. I like shooting them, though I haven't always. For years they were, in many ways, the bane of my existence. I was used to just kind of following the action and then when it came to shooting a portrait all of a sudden it wasn't about following what was going on and waiting for the key moment. With a portrait, unlike documentary work, the photographer is in control of where the subject is positioned, lighting etc. But, in a way, it's still the same sort of thing. You're still waiting for that key moment. It's still about interesting composition and storytelling. So, I've grown to enjoy shooting portraits, though Arnold Newman I am not.
Anyhow, this is Air Force Chaplain (Maj.) Sarah Shirley who I recently photographed to go with a feature about the Military Saves campaign, something she started as a way to assist servicemembers with paying down debt. She is an interesting woman who I enjoyed talking with.
It was a long cold day, but one that was packed with a great many things. I'm not going to belabor the historical significance of the day, I think that's already apparent, but it was interesting being a part of it all. 
In the days leading up to the inauguration, I really wanted no part of it, at least in the sense of going to the Mall. That's not to say I didn't appreciate the nature of what was happening, it's just I hate the cold and large, giant crowds so the idea of being outside for 12-plus hours and having to deal with an overcrowded public transportation system, and a huge massive crowd many of which were from elsewhere didn't really appeal to me. I would have preferred watching it on the TV, where at least you'd be guaranteed a good vantage point and apple juice in the fridge. But, I was slated to go for work. I had press credentials for the event, but it didn't even really matter as there were so many people there getting to the designated entry point proved to be impossible. Even in the wee hours of the morning when I got there. I'm sure I could have fought my way through, but I opted to change course and just focus on other things that were going on. By sheer randomness, and knowing a few key folks as well, I was able to get myself onto the Mall and into a key location about 40 minutes or so before the oath was said. 
The energy of the crowd was crazy, even with the temperature hovering somewhere in the 20s. (My co-worker, who is from New Hampshire and swears that 20 degree temps are "just a little chilly" as if all one needs is just a sweater, would laugh at me if she read that.) 
Getting back out of the Mall after the event was another story entirely. Imagine 2 million people trying to cram themselves into the subway system at the same time. And half of those people don't know where the stop is located or how to get to it. It was like one of those Volkswagens that seems to fit a never ending supply of clowns in it, only on a colossal scale. 
I'm glad that I was there for it. Though being there, for me, wasn't the religious experience it seems to be for some. I'm glad I got to take part in it, even if my role was pretty small compared to the rest of the day.
This is Emma. She's a nice dog, but got stuck with the cone around her head so she could heal properly after being spayed.
I guess I'd look like this too if I had to wear that thing around my head.
