.back to basics.

Film.  These are just a few of the shots that I took with a Canon AE-1 that I recently acquired from a friend in exchange for photography lessons.  Yay!  There's something to be said about shooting with an old manual camera.  The fact that you know you've only got X amount of frames to work with, having to get your exposure settings right, manually focusing, and then after pressing the shutter button. . . the wait.  Well, I was pretty pleased to find that this camera works perfectly fine and I'm anxious to shoot more!  Got a photo shoot in the morning so we'll see the results in black and white!  

.good morning sunday :: n˚8.

Well hello friends!  It is Sunday and I am so glad to tell you that the sun is out here in Wilmington this morning.  It's been a rough several weeks for me, trying to get back into the swing of things since my visit to Nashville.  Emotions have been high, and so has my blood pressure apparently.  My Grandfather would have celebrated his 80th birthday a few days ago and that fact I think brought on a wave of emotions.  But I'm okay.  It's sunny!  It's the start to a new week so =good vibes=  only  =good vibes=.  And here is my Sunday list:

• Plan this week is to get the "art room" of the house cleared of unnecessary clutter so that I can actually have this space to get creative!  
• Found out that the new Polaroid 300 (aka Fujifilm Instax Mini with a different name) along with the film is now available at Target.  Personally, it's more expensive to buy the Polaroid version of this camera and the film there.  I'd stick with the Instax for cost efficiency.  But if you find yourself in a position where you have ran out of film and need it ASAP, it's nice knowing you can pick up a pack of 10 for $10.  The Polaroid 300 film will work in the Instax Mini.
• Got a Canon AE-1 last week from a friend who wanted to learn how to use her camera.  It's been sitting on a shelf for a while so I'm going to try to put it to use in the next few days!  Plus, we'll be doing a photo shoot later this week so yay, more photos!
• I'm loving these two rather new eZines:  Toffee and Rue.

Wow, this list is shorter than it was the last time!  I need to live life a little more geez!  Haven't had my morning cup of coffee yet so that may be part of the problem.  I hope you all have a fantastic week and hey, tell me what's going on in your world.  Anything new YOU want to share?

.a footlocker full of history.

 A few weeks ago, while at my Grandfather's old home, I went up into the attic to clear it out what had been left up there for so many years.  It was while I was up there that I realized many of the things that should see the light of day more often are usually stored up there for safe keeping, like a footlocker that belonged to my Great-Grandmother Sylvia.  My Uncle had gone up there with me and was the one who pulled it out and opened it up.  I was busy sorting through other things when I heard him say, "Oh. . . wow. . . "  In this old piece of luggage, its metal hardware covered in rust, was a collection of old photos and letters, some of them dating back to the early 1800s.  We sat there on the dusty floorboards of a tiny attic gazing through some of these photos, trying to decipher who these faces were that stared back at us.  We recognized Grandma Sylvia easily.  She had a distinct look and from what we could tell, many of the photos were of her side of the family.  But then, we also came across a photo of two little boys sitting in an old wagon hitched to a goat.  The oldest boy's face looked familiar.  We turned the photo over and noticed the words "Bill and George," Bill being my Great-Grandfather.  Half of the photos had inscription on them, and the other half did not.  Some of them had black paper backing on it, as if they had been torn out of an old photo album.  And so, a new journey begins.

Well I was very honored that the family allowed me to have not only the footlocker, but a suitcase also filled with more family history, as well as old family albums.  My plan is to scan many of the photos to share with the family, but also, I really want to delve more into the history of this side of my family tree.  There was something so . . . I can't even find the right words . . . neat, interesting, intriguing about the people in these photos.  Their attire gradually changing over the years.  Grandma Sylvia was a character.  I still remember her from when I was a kid.  When I wanted a snack, I'm thinking candy, she'd come back with a plate full of celery sticks, peanut butter and raisins running down the center of them.  "Now this is what we had for snacks when I was a little girl."  My first response of course was Yuck!  And now, it's one of my favorites.  She loved Peanuts, Linus and Snoopy being her favorites, and Winnie-the-Pooh.  Her parents opened up one of the first theaters in the state of Iowa.  Her brother Lewis fought in General MacArthur's Army in WWII.  It was pretty neat finding a younger photo of her and her brother sitting against a backdrop of what looks like an earlier model airplane.  This would be my favorite, along with the "goat wagon" photo.  

What I found so comforting and amazing was the sheer amount of photographs that we found.  It was very obvious to me that the folks in my family loved to make photographs.  This has truly inspired me.  The main reason why I wanted to become a photographer in the first place rested right here in this box.  Photographs.  The evidence of time gone by.  My only heartbreak and regret was that the only person I knew who could definitively tell me about the faces in these photos had also been swept away with the tide of time.  Visit your attics, my friends.  Pull out those old photos.  And if you can, find out their history before it too quickly fades away.  

.the village smithy stands.

There, in a town called Lebanon, not too awfully far from Nashville, a little historical village sits.  Made up of a collection of old cabins and tiny shops, all donated by various patrons, it's a special place we call Fiddlers Grove.  In that village, one of the more active spots you'd see there is the blacksmith shop.  On my last trip back there, I popped in to say hello to some of the wonderful men my Grandfather called friends and fellow smithies.  It was a beautiful day, the kind of Spring day when folks can open up their doors and let the fresh air in.  In this case, the door might've been pushed wide open to let the smoke out!  As I peeked in, the guys at the Fiddlers Grove Blacksmith Association (or FGBA) were busy chatting away with one another, working on projects, stoking flames in their coal forges and pounding away at the anvil.  Immediately, I felt at ease there.  

Amongst them, was Bret Hampton, a member of FGBA for 7 years, whose day job consists of working mostly with marble and granite, showed us a project he was working on.  Using an old piece of wrought iron a few kids from his neighborhood found, and three railroad spikes, Bret was in the process of making a rustic coat rack.  Since I had my camera with me, I thought I'd take a few photos.

I honestly was mesmerized by the whole thing.  Unfortunately, I couldn't stay long enough to see the whole piece completed.  With "metal art" running through my veins, I seriously could see myself picking up the trade, which delighted my Uncle Vince of course who proceeded to set aside tools and supplies for me.  So, I asked Bret, who also helps with instruction there at Fiddlers Grove, "If I was someone who wanted to take up blacksmithing, specifically here in Middle Tennessee, what would I do?"  First, he told me that I should look into ABANA, the Artist Blacksmith Association of North America.  Then, after finding some papers for me that gave both the history and specifics of FGBA, he mentioned that once a person joins the association ($50 per year, which includes both the annual dues and costs of materials) you can sign up to take the Green Coal Class, a beginner's course that introduces one to the basics of blacksmithing, which takes place every Tuesday from 7PM to 9PM.  There is also an advanced class that takes place on Friday evenings, also from 7PM to 9PM.  There is no charge for the class, however, students must come prepared with the basic tools.  A list of these tools are available for those who are interested.  

So for anyone who may want to delve into the ancient art of blacksmithing and happen to be in the Middle Tennessee area, contact instructors Danny Parsons at (615) 444-4431 or Broadus Weatherall at (615) 773-4436 for more information.  Also, the famous Wilson County Fair is only a few months away, and these guys will be in full demonstration mode throughout that week so be sure to stop by!  

.coming home.

Inside an old cabin at Fiddler's Grove.  Lebanon, Tennessee

It was a nice, somewhat hectic, refreshing and yet draining trip to Nashville.  Time definitely flies.  It seems almost months ago since we drove up there.  Myself, my two younger cousins, my Uncle and his wife, and my Aunt joined up in Nashville to sort through and clean out my Grandfather's home.  It was a rather fun trip as we all joked around and still managed to work at the same time.  For the most part.  There is a comfort in knowing your quirks are hereditary as other members in the family are just as strange as you are.  The "artistic Evans" side of the family.  For me, being there with all of them really made me realize just how fortunate I am to have this quirky family.  Not just for their artistic talents, but for their humor and sincerity.  It was like being back at the house in Kailua where everyone gathered together, lost in each others' company, anxious to share their stories.  When my grandparent's moved back to the Mainland, we seemed to have lost that connection.  Everyone was so spread out, from Hawai'i all the way now to North Carolina.  But being there with family, despite the sad circumstances, was like coming home.  Even now, I feel myself getting choked up as I realize it is up to us now to keep the family connected, inspired. 

I've been home for almost a week and every emotion has flooded over me.  Tonight, I'm a little melancholy and simply "out of it", partly due to the fact that I had a cracked molar pulled out yesterday that was infected so my face is swollen and still hurts.  I'll quit my crying.  ha!  I am glad to be back here in my own home with my family.  I was grateful that my little one was able to come with me to Nashville.  She enjoyed every minute of it.  And so did I.  I'll share with you more soon about some of the neat things I was able to take home with me, like a suitcase and footlocker of nothing but old family photos dating as far back as the mid 1800s, maybe even earlier.  Another reason why I love photography.  

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend my friends!

.be back soon.

Hello friends.  I'll be away for just a little bit.  I'm back in Nashville taking care of some things so I won't have the time to post and shoot like I had planned.  More for you when I get back next week.  Take care!  

.my heart wanders.

Really, I am writing this as a reminder to myself that come May, a copy of this beautiful book by Pia Jane Bijkerk will need to make its way into my hands.  When I gaze at her photographs, my mind wanders to thoughts of soft lighting and quiet moments.  Of distant travels and treasured experiences.  I love it.  If only you could literally crawl into the pages of this book.  . . . sigh. . .   Here is a lovely post about Pia.

My heart wanders to a place far away.  I am thinking about you Japan.  We are embracing you in our prayers. . .