.at the lake.

36::365

In my earlier post, I mentioned having taken some photos at the lake this morning, only find that the images were missing from my memory card. Weird. My tutoring class was canceled this evening so I took my new camera (instead of the old one I was shooting with earlier) and headed back to the lake. Honestly, I don't know what I was thinking I was going to capture. I felt a little weird because I had my camera bag strapped to my back, and this big camera hanging from my neck. I felt too "obvious". Ever feel like that? The sun wasn't as bright due to the clouds that were starting to move in. [sigh] I finally sat down for a moment to just soak in the scenery. I watched as the tiny glimmers of sunlight danced upon the surface of the water. I miss the beach. A flock of geese squawked loudly as they flew above me in the distance. A pair of seagulls glided in front of me, and then back towards the tree line across the water. Maybe this is what I was meant to do. Sit. Listen. Absorb. Reflect. I guess, things happen for a reason.

.at the parthenon.

17::365

A trip to Centennial Park meant that we had to stop and snatch some photos at the Parthenon. As the sun began its descent, it cast its warm glow over the Monument. Both the wee one and I pulled out our cameras and took a few photos. This one I took of her. Below is the photo that she captured. When I created a diptych of the two photos side-by-side, I knew this of course meant that a new photo project must be started. Diptychs made up of photos between myself and my little photographer. Let's see where this new journey takes us!

::by A.

.help-portrait.

Vision. (n) the act or power of seeing.

Compassion. (n) sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it.

When these two come together, something beautiful happens. Barriers are torn down. Hope is strengthened. Connections are formed. Lives are changed.

On December 12th, hundreds of people across the globe will be taking part in a photographic experience known as Help-Portrait. A vision inspired by Nashville based photographer, Jeremy Cowart, photographers off all levels, make-up artists, and just folks that want to lend a helping hand will be working together to create a portrait of someone who may not otherwise be able to afford one. The soul of this project is not just about pictures. It's about connection. Community. It's about bringing to light the beauty of people and helping others to see that beauty. Both inside and out.

.on a mission::nashville.

So I need a project. Seriously. I am more motivated now than ever to take on something that will keep my camera from thinking that I've abandoned her. Today, I began reading the chapter titled Photographing Places in David duChemin's book, Within the Frame, and it got me to thinking. Scary, I know. Now most of you know that I currently live in Nashville, Tennessee. Already you've got words floating in that noggin' of yours (I've lived here too long!) like "country music", "The Grand Ole Opry", "honky tonk". I know you do because that's what comes to mind when I say Nashville. With that said, there are SO many images out there that reflect what most people perceive of this town. I think that's why I haven't shot any more images of Nashville. In my mind I was aiming to get shots that people could relate to. Suddenly the word "postcard" comes to mind. "Okay, so here's a photo of another music venue downtown." Really, do we need more? Granted, downtown is a colorful place, especially at night on a weekend. NashVegas, as some folks call it. This time though, I want to capture this town differently. I want to see Nashville without the rhinestone studded sun glasses. I want YOU to see the Nashville that I see. But in order to do that, I will need to slow down, stop looking and start truly seeing. How about you, when was the last time you truly explored where you live?

.exploring nashville.

Ahh. . . Nashville. My home away from home. Why have I never really noticed you before? Well that's going to change!

In an attempt to get to know my surroundings better, I decided that I needed to take a different look at Nashville. I say different because I've lived here off and on for a total of almost 10 years. I was always too busy and too indifferent to really see Nashville for it's groovy self. Yes, it's Music City, but what else is it? Why do I always find myself moving back here?

I guess I'm going to find out. One thing is for certain, I'm determined to get out there and shoot some sights. Yeah, some of it is going to be cliched like the honky tonk bars and boot shops with their fancy neon signs that run up and down Broadway. It's no wonder this town was also nicknamed NashVegas.

On this journey, I plan to record some of my personal favorite spots. There will be no photos of Target, Hobby Lobby, etc. I'm talking more along the lines of Sam & Zoe's, The Beaded Bungalow, Bongo Java, Chef Yang's, you know, the cool local places!

Now considering this is Music City, I'll have to catch some shots of well known music spots like the Exit/In, Printer's Alley, the Ryman. . . well, you'll see. I'm excited to share this place with you, and maybe as I do, we'll both make some new discoveries along the way! To check out what I've captured so far, look here.

Hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday weekend! And happy wishes to you all for this upcoming week!

.nashville...my how you've changed.

We have moved back to good ol' Music City USA and in the short time I have been here (about a month) already I am seeing some of the changes since leaving 3 years ago.  Now I know that as with any city that is growing by leaps and bounds, there will be changes taking place continously.  So, on a trip to downtown with Alex, I noticed that the "Batman" building, also known as the "BellSouth Tower" (above photo) no longer held the BellSouth logo.  Instead, there was a very well known circular symbol for the company AT&T.  Hmm... what else has changed?  Oh!  Behind me is no longer the Gaylord Entertainment Center but the Sommet (still not sure how to pronounce that) Center.  And what is that across the river?!  It's not the Adelphia Coliseum, but the L.P. Field.  Wow.  The Schermerhorn Symphony Center is built and beautiful.  What else?  The lanes that make up Briley Parkway towards Opry Mills is finally, drivable.  Oh!  Can't forget the I-65 towards Gallatin.  Thank you TDOT.   

Nashville may have changed some, but then again, so have I.  And from what I've gathered, I think perhaps it's for the better.