I spent a few hours on the Mall this past Saturday, covering Glenn Beck's Restoring Honor rally and meeting a lot of nice people from all over the country who are genuinely concerned about the direction this country was headed. Beck has shown himself to be a master at tapping into that concern, fear and anti-government sentiment. He also has a relationship with truth and facts that might charitably be described as unhindered.

Here are a few of my favorites from the day, the full set can be seen on my Photoshelter Gallery

Luke getting ready to go swimming

We've just been through the hottest July on record here in DC and I'm already pining for the cool nights of Fall. In the meantime, I've been embarking on some personal projects here in the city that I hope will get me more in touch with a city that most people see through the spectrum of politics and power.

I'd also like to thank the good folks at Mamiya for featuring my on their blog, and now that I have their attention, I'd like to humbly request they get started ASAP on a digital Mamiya 6.

Just got my film back from the Gulf Coast and took a quick look. I was hoping to shoot mostly film on my trip, but had a camera malfunction as my Mamiya 6 got doused with water while I was out kayaking one day. Thankfully the camera survived, and the result was a few altered images including the first one here.

Last week, I spent some time covering the oil spill along the Gulf Coast. One beach on Grand Isle, LA was especially hard hit and I decided to shoot a small series of the affected landscape on white. Here's what I found.


Rock


Styrofoam boom


Sand


Hermit crab


Plastic water bottle


Plant

As usual, these images are available on the Redux Pictures Archive.

I was saddened to hear about Manute Bol's death last week. I remember watching him play basketball and blocking shots like no one I'd ever seen. This clip encapsulates the player I remember - sometimes blocking multiple shots in one possession and occasionally lofting a 3 pointer.

I met and photographed Mr. Bol last year in DC and in preparing for the shoot, did some reading about his life and work. It turns out that basketball was really just the first act for him, and he devoted his years after basketball to the plight of Sudanese refugees and worked to find an end to the genocide in Sudan, often at great personal risk and sacrifice. In person, he walked slightly stooped over from the injuries he suffered in a car accident, and was slow to lower himself down in the chair where I photographed him. He was also kind, with a gentle handshake and soft voice.

When we wrapped up, I remember saying something like "Thank you for all of the work you do," and he smiled, touched his hand to my shoulder and walked out.