LIFE AS A HUMAN

Jack’s Video Sports Bar

Guest Photographer — Tue, 07 May 2024 19:24:03 +0000

Deindustrialization has resulted in widespread social and economic changes. The remnants of Jack’s ornate sign and building architecture serve as a reminder that this fallen neighborhood was once vibrant and alive. It is both fascinating and bittersweet to imagine past times here. Now, a single set of footsteps in a dusting of snow pass by without stopping, in juxtaposition to the workers from the East Cleveland Railroad Power House, visible in the left background, who would have once gathered here after a hard day of making things. In the distance, the top of the modern Key Tower skyscraper shines like a beacon against sympathetic skies, contrasting where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re heading.

Jack’s Video Sports Bar, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, 2015 – © Bret Culp

Photo Credit

Photo is © Bret Culp

Guest Photographer Bio
Bret Culp

Bret Culp is a distinguished fine art photographer known for dramatic black and white photographs that evoke nostalgia, contemplation, and appreciation for the fleeting nature of existence. Additionally, he has gained recognition for his colourful solargraphs, a unique technique capturing the sun’s dynamic movement across the sky over months, transforming the passage of time into mesmerizing, abstract visual records.

Blog / Website: The Beauty of Impermanence – Bret Culp Photography

Follow Bret Culp on: Twitter | Facebook | Linkedin

Invito Romantico

Marco Zecchin — Sun, 21 Jun 2020 11:00:24 +0000

Your table is ready…

Invito Romantico – Venezia

In the city of Casanova, Restaurante ai Barbacani keeps this table for two ready for your gastronomic and romantic delights.

Photographs from my book “Momenti Italiani“

Photo Credits

All Photographs Are © Marco Zecchin

Il Leone Triste

Marco Zecchin — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 15:19:16 +0000

There is no better way to see Venezia than wandering around aimlessly.

Il Pozzo Chiuso – Venezia

A number of years ago, while providing my daughter a grand tour of Italy after graduating from high school, we found ourselves in a small campo right on the Canale Grande called Campiello del Remer. At its center was a sealed ancient pozzo – fresh water well. Ascending on two walls is a grand external stairway to the entrance of Palazzo Lion Morosini – now a hotel. Beside the stairway and grand view up and down the Canale Grande, what caught my eye was a weathered sculpture on the base newel post of a rather sad looking lion guarding the stairs.

Is he sad or just dozing on duty…

Il Leone Triste – Venezia

Photographs from my book “Momenti Italiani“

Photo Credits

All Photographs Are © Marco Zecchin

Tarmac Meditations #203: Images From the Road

Michael Lebowitz — Tue, 19 May 2020 11:00:22 +0000

Once I was sports photographer. I loved it, save for the commercial pressure to deliver images of value. Some good images would become failures if they never became cover images for the magazine of choice that day. Here are a couple that I truly like for the the interaction of the subject and me.

High end track competition is filled with more losers than winners and, for some, the losing on the day may be the end of years of discipline, practice and dreams. I looked for effort , focus and the “agony of defeat”.

Photo Credits

Tarmac Meditations #202: Images From the Road

Michael Lebowitz — Tue, 12 May 2020 17:31:51 +0000

I took these the other day, constrained as I am by the “virus’ to stick close to home and out of other peoples’ faces in the street photography that seems to be my next photographer development stage.

In the instance of the color image I was taken by the purples and the”flop” of the ripening petals.

In the black and white I was taken by the shading of the light in the surrounding leaves, indicating but not pointing to secret places just out of sight.

Photo Credits

From Landscape Photographer To Wedding Photographer

Guest Photographer — Sat, 01 Dec 2018 12:00:30 +0000

I began my journey as a landscape, lifestyle and travel photographer, the same way most do. This was partly due to the fact that my subject was laid out in front of me, all I had to do was step outside. There was no pressure and plenty of room for error as I learned right from wrong. Over the next three years I worked hard and put all my energy into learning everything there was to know about this craft.

Knowing that I wanted to pursue photography full-time I began trying to figure out ways that I could earn an income. It was at that point that I decided I wanted to sell my personal work as framed fine art prints. I wanted my prints to be used to decorate the walls of interior spaces. In order to make this happen, my next move was to set up an online print store where customers could buy my work.

Que Dramatic Wind

While I managed to achieve this, I slowly began to realize that I was trying to sell a luxury product which wasn’t a necessity for people to own. That in itself is tough and something which I then knew was going to take time. Unfortunately, time wasn’t something I had on my side as everyday bills began to roll in.

I continued to chip away at my online store but new I needed another line of work to help stay afloat. It was at that point that I turned to the wedding industry in the hopes of offering a service rather than a product. It was this new field where I developed an unexpected sense of appreciation for working with people. I began to thoroughly enjoy capturing these special moments for couples, knowing they would look back on them for years to come.

I soon came to realize that the wedding industry could offer me just about everything I was hoping to get out of selling prints. So I began applying what I had learned in my first three years as a landscape, lifestyle and travel photographer to my wedding photography and I think the results speak for themselves. Now, not only do I have a steady income coming in which allows me to continue my passion for photography but I also get to work on selling my fine art prints when I am not shooting weddings.

I’ll Walk With You

If you would like to get in touch or would like more information, please contact me at Lonely Hunter Weddings.

Photo Credits

Guest Photographer Bio
Richard Johnston

Richard is the owner, creative director and award-winning photographer behind Lonely Hunter. He is one part fine art travel/lifestyle photographer and one part professional wedding photographer.

Blog / Website: Lonely Hunter Weddings

Tarmac Meditations: Haiku # 4

Michael Lebowitz — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 11:00:25 +0000

From “See to cain’t see”
The creek rolls down the canyon,
Creek, I am here now.

Photo Credit

New Johnson Street Bridge by Drone

Guest Photographer — Sat, 07 Apr 2018 16:11:14 +0000

Construction of Canada’s largest single-leaf bascule bridge began in 2013, and opened to the public on March 31st, 2018. Life As A Human Guest Photographer Bob Jestico captured these great images and video using one of his drones.

New Johnson ST Bridge looking from the west to east.

New Johnson ST Bridge looking towards the south (Parliament Buildings).

New Johnson ST Bridge Looking straight down.

Johnson St Bridge opening March 31 2018

Photo Credits

All Photographs Are © Bob Jestico

Bob Jestico Photographer Bio

Drone and ground based Photography/Video enthusiast.

Blog / Website: IslandPhotoDrone

Follow Bob Jestico on: Facebook | Linkedin

Living History: Lexington, Virginia

Guest Photographer — Wed, 14 Mar 2018 21:12:55 +0000

The first president of the United States laid his body down on many a mattress. So many in fact that the saying “George Washington slept here” soon became a useful publicity tool in colonial America and the early years of the United States. We also know the famous river he crossed, the Delaware. But what’s less known but equally fascinating is the location for a daring youthful climb.

Hidden in the magnificent landscape of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley is the 215-foot high “Natural Bridge,” a limestone gorge carved out by Cedar Creek. It was here that the future president scaled up one of its sides to carve his name into the rocks – a bit of historic graffiti preserved to this day. The area is now Natural Bridge State Park and has miles of hiking trails. Nearby is Natural Bridge Caverns where visitors can venture into the earth’s surface on guided tours to see an underground landscape of stalactites and stalagmites.

Natural Bridge (left) became one of the most famous natural attractions in the United States in the 1700s. Hikers on the Appalachian Trail (right) near Lexington.

To explore both the natural and cultural history of the area I based myself in the town of Lexington at The Georges, an elegant boutique hotel offering the epitome of Southern hospitality.

Within walking distance of the hotel are a number of historic sites including the Stonewall Jackson House, the only home that Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson ever owned. Jackson and his second wife, Mary Anna Morrison, lived in this brick and stone house before the Civil War. Since 1954, the structure has been a museum and historic site. In 1979, the house was restored to its appearance at the time of the Jacksons’ occupancy, furnished with period pieces including many of Jackson’s personal possessions. Tours of the house focus on Jackson’s civilian life as a professor, businessman, and husband.

Lee Chapel on the campus of Washington and Lee University (left) and the Stonewall Jackson House (right).

Before the Civil War Jackson taught Natural and Experimental Philosophy as well as Artillery Tactics at the Virginia Military Institute, the oldest state-funded military college in the U.S. The school has two fascinating museums focusing on different aspects of history, the Virginia Military Institute Museum which collects, interprets, and exhibits the heritage of VMI ranging from a Revolutionary War musket to the mounted hide of “Little Sorrel,” “Stonewall” Jackson’s favorite horse. Nearby, the George C. Marshall Museum tells the story of Virginia’s first 5-star general during World War II and its aftermath.

Lexington is also home to Washington and Lee University, a private, four-year liberal arts college where another general, Robert E. Lee, became president (when it was still Washington University) at the end of the Civil War. Lee is buried on the campus grounds underneath Lee Chapel. The school also has the unique distinction for being the location for student George William Crump’s naked campus run, making it into the history books as America’s first recorded streaker in 1804.

“Recumbent Statue” of Robert E. Lee in Lee Chapel.

Visitors to Lexington have a number of options for escorted tours of the town and its environs. Lexington Carriage Company offers a narrated horse drawn tour through its historic downtown and residential areas while Mark Cline offers his Haunting Tales Ghost Tours inspired by London’s Jack the Ripper tours.

Since one cannot live by history alone, Lexington offers a number of great culinary options and explorations ranging from tastings at the Great Valley Farm Brewery and the Lexington Valley Vineyard to homemade ice cream and hand-rolled waffle cones at Sweet Things Ice Cream and artisan creations at the Cocoa Mill Chocolate Company, as well as casual and upscale restaurants including Rocca Bar Ristorante, Bistro on Main, JJ’s Meat Shak, The Sheridan Livery Inn and Restaurant, The Red Hen, and Haywood.

A visit to Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley with Lexington as its cultural epicenter will leave visitors full of great memories, historical knowledge, and great cuisine.

Please visit Lexington Virginia

Photo Credits

Mark Edward Harris Photographer Bio

Mark Edward Harris’ assignments have taken him to 97 countries on six continents. His editorial work has appeared in publications such as Vanity Fair, LIFE, Time, GEO, Conde Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, AFAR, Wallpaper, Casa Vogue, GQ Thailand, Money Magazine, Architectural Digest, The Los Angeles Times Magazine, and The London Sunday Times Travel Magazine as well as all the major photography and in-flight magazines. His commercial clients range from The Gap to Coca-Cola. He is the recipient of numerous awards including a CLIO, ACE, Aurora Gold, and Photographer of the Year at the Black & White Spider Awards. His books include Faces of the Twentieth Century: Master Photographers and Their Work, The Way of the Japanese Bath, Wanderlust, North Korea, South Korea, and Inside Iran. North Korea was named Photography Book of the Year at the International Photography Awards. Mark’s latest book, The Travel Photo Essay: Describing a Journey Through Images was released by Focal Press/Routledge in the fall of 2017.

Blog / Website: Mark Edward Harris

Follow Mark Edward Harris on: Instagram

Hells Canyon: The Cooler Side of Hades

Guest Photographer — Tue, 16 Jan 2018 17:16:37 +0000

A two-hour drive from Washington State’s Spokane International Airport is Lewiston, Idaho, the western gateway to outdoor adventure in “The Gem State.”

While the well-deserved nickname comes from Idaho’s mountains containing veins of gold, silver, lead, zinc, cobalt and copper, and gems including star garnets, opal, jade, and topaz, its latest jewel might be the grape.

The Snake River, America’s deepest river gorge

While its neighbors to the West – Oregon and Washington – are known for their wine countries, Idaho is delving into the market in style. Fifteen minutes out of Lewiston is Lindsay Creek Vineyards, an elegant winery located on the McIntosh family’s 4th generation farm. With the success of their wines Lindsay Creek is transitioning from growing wheat to growing quality wine grapes.

Another short drive from Lewiston is the Nez Perce National Historical Park. Its visitor center is a must stop for those who want to get a sense of the history of the area’s first human inhabitants. An interpretive trail leads visitors to significant Nez Perce sites along Lapwai Creek and the Clearwater River.

LEFT: A bighorn sheep under Permian rhyolite columns along the Snake River
RIGHT: Buffalo Eddy Petroglyphs along the Snake River

Many visitors to Lewiston come to explore the Snake River with its waters rushing through Hells Canyon, the deepest river gorge in the United States. A great way to experience the dramatic serpentine turns of the river, especially for those with limited time, is on a Snake Dancer Excursions jet boat tour through North America’s deepest river gorge. Its tours depart from the dock for Hells Gate State Park. Unlike the Grand Canyon, it is not possible to drive to the edge of Hells Canyon for dramatic overlooks.

One of the magnificent natural formations along the Snake River

Both natural and written history – with a nice side of culinary experiences thrown in – can be part of an extended weekend to Lewiston.

Visit Lewis Clark Valley Website: Gateway To Hell’s Canyon

Photo Credits

Mark Edward Harris Photographer Bio

Blog / Website: Mark Edward Harris

Follow Mark Edward Harris on: Instagram