Burning Daylight

DONKEY LIKE TRUCK AND OTHER SENTIMENTAL MOMENTS

2009-09-16T08:17:00.002-07:00

I have re-written this post at least half a dozen times. I can't seem to find the words that best say what's on my mind. But here goes. Funny story. I am covering the Afghan elections in Mazar-E-Sharif . I shoot a man coming by in okay light riding a donkey. Not the greatest picture but a I was really trying to make a scene setter that says "Hey everybody, I'm in Afghanistan." Watching me do this is a member of the Afghan National Police. He nods at me and asks if I like donkeys in a tone reminiscent of a friend convincing me of an ill advised trip to Mexico. I say "sure, kinda". He then asks if they have donkey's where I come from. I reply yes. He smiles and nods again before replying, "Here donkey like truck". I laugh. He laughs. I'm laughing right now. It's probably a lot funnier to me than anyone else. The point of this is that I was recently told by a friend newly dear to my heart that I am sentimental. I doubt it was meant as an insult. It was more like half critique and half compliment. At least that's how my sentimental self remembers it.

I'll own up to it, I am sentimental. I think it makes me a better photographer and a better person. For me sentiment is the fact I laugh out loud when I remember my own stories even when no one is around. Sentiment is remembering the taste of a good meal or a delicious wine and what song was playing when it happened. I have this soundtrack playing in my head no matter where I go. Sentiment is not being able to let go of a friend despite constant arguments and an inability to communicate. Sentiment has taken me all the way around the world to places I never thought I would see, to people I never would have met because I told my mother I would before she died. Sentiment calls me home sometimes to long absent friend and a distant family when I hit the wall here. Sentiment is seeing, color, shape, light, and those moments that make my pictures special to me. Sometimes my pictures wind up being special to others and that is the best sentimental feeling of all.

I am trying to focus those sentimental feelings into the energy I need to push forward in what, despite having gone through some hardships, has been the best year of my life. I usually finish the final months of my year with a bang. I produce my best work in that time. Sentiment tells me that this year will be no different.

FRIENDS IN FAR OFF PLACES

2009-08-13T06:18:00.000-07:00

As always I am rambling with my thoughts here going in no particular direction. I have been here for almost a week and as a dark cloud started to cover my heart I go to meet Atta Ullah. The short version is he is a rug seller that has taken a shine to my friend, colleague, Delhi drinking buddy, and all around cool chick Line Wolf Nielsen. She introduced me to him when I mentioned I needed help with as story. Like I said, she's cool like that. He took me out showed me the market, introduced me to migrant day laborers, had tea with me, and when we parted ways he hugged me and kissed my cheeks as if I was his own son.This may have been the best day here so far. I keep saying that I'm a decent photographer but my best skill is making friends. No matter where I go people look out for me. I am trying to continue my efforts to pay the kindness forward. It's the epitome of wishful thinking to hope that the rest of my days are like this. I have a little over a week and a half until the election is behind me(more wishful thinking). Til then I'm keeping my head down and my wits about me. More later.

Atta Ullah being his charming self.

IN AFGHANISTAN

2009-08-09T09:45:00.001-07:00

I am out of Delhi and away from my usual downtime shenanigans. I'm back to work on my third election in the last year. I have landed in Kabul and will be in Afghanistan for the elections until August 25th at the earliest. If any of my favorite editors need an assignment covered please give a ring to either of my Afghan numbers: +93-799-244-383(primary) or +93-787-598-436(what self respecting international photojournalist only has one) or email at me@keithbedford.com. I am checking it a few times a day.

WOULD YOU LIKE WINE WITH YOUR DINNER?

2009-07-20T19:17:00.000-07:00

Note: I wrote this a week ago. I just could not post it until the NYT story ran.

In rare display of in flight lucidity I am awake through a haze of scotch and Xanax. One prescribed and one not recommend with the other. Usually I am not a happy flier. This time I find myself awake, charming and a just a bit flirty as my air hostess hands me a glass of wine and my in flight meal over my reporter as we glide along mid-way between Colombo and Delhi. I managed to pull out a few hours of sleep from my pharmaceutical induced coma before being awakened by Ritika asking if I would like wine with my dinner. Why yes my dear I would like a glass of wine. It was been a trying twelve days and a glass of wine and your pretty smile would certainly wash away some of my aches, pains, and frustrations for a trip that was only partially successful. After several days of asking we were finally given the go ahead to visit the IDP camps that house the nearly 300,000 people displaced by the war between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers. We spent roughly 11 hours of travel by car and five hours of waiting before being escorted by a military press handler for a little over an hour of time spent in the camp. Below is some of what I made as the aforementioned press guys screams at me to only make positive pictures. Lovely. For a better idea of the situation see Lydia Polgreen's story here. She's a pleasure to work with it, a much better writer and delivers more insight than I do. I am after all sleepy and enamored with my air hostess.

WHERE AM I AGAIN? OH!!! RIGHT. SRI LANKA.

2009-06-30T10:06:00.000-07:00

I am in Sri Lanka for the next week or so on assignment. I have been dying to make my way back here since 2006. It's been well worth the wait. I can be reached at +94 .77 . 663 .5339. I am not sure what the week after brings. If a gig comes through I will be in Southern Punjab until the end of the month. We will see.

MONDAY MORNING

2009-06-15T01:44:00.000-07:00

I may be the world's worst blogger. After three weeks my Sunday is over. I took a little more time off than I intended and have been spending my time drinking, partying, eating rich food, hanging out with friends, and looking a pretty girls. To say the least I have not been shooting much. It's the polar opposite to being in a funk. I have just been letting myself live a little(okay a lot). All I have I shot recently a little more on kushti. Despite the fact that is is fun and kind of interesting I think I am moving away from it for a while. I'll revisit it later but for now my heart is telling me to get to work on something of greater substance. A long Sunday has been nice but I think it may finally be Monday and I need to get back to work.

AN OFF DAY IN DELHI

2009-05-18T10:00:00.000-07:00

photo by Sanjit Das

I have had a pretty busy couple of weeks. I have been to an different state every week since the start of the elections here and I am really tired. A few days ago I helped my friend Sanjit light portrait of a CEO for a matrimonial website where this picture was taken. I look like such a man of leisure lounging on his estate in this picture. The sad part is it only reminded me of how tired I am. Since I don't have an estate of my own with a pool to lounge by I did the next best thing an exhausted photojournalist could do. I took the day off. Keep in mind it is 110(f) here. II went to the pool, took a swimming class, flirted with a pretty blonde, grocery shopped for a dinner party, and had several beers and dinner with Sanjit and Suzanne.I pretty much fucked off the entire day. No archiving, no editing, no shooting, no research, just an day off. After weeks of politicians, rock throwing, flash bangs and tear gas, writing, archiving, researching, shooting, early mornings, and late nights, I think I earned a little break. Tomorrow I am back to work. Today can be my Sunday.

BACK TO THE GRIND

2009-05-13T23:28:00.001-07:00

It's been a busy week since coming back from Kashmir. I've been to one embassy or another to work on a j-visa to Pakistan, hosted a new friend, prepared for the Stumping Grounds gallery show, and spent a couple of mornings at an akharas (wrestling gym) to shoot Kushti. Kushti, is a traditional style of Indian wrestling that takes place in a clay pit on a soil mixed with ghee(denatured butter). Each wrestler is responsible for tending to the soil as well as adhering to a strict regimen of exercise, a diet of mostly milk, almods, ghee, chapattis, and eggs, and celibacy that is meant to give them both physical and spiritual strength. It's been fun to watch. I'm trying to get back to a promise I made to myself in an earlier post that I would do more portraits. I'm also working on a short multi-media piece that I hope to have finished before heading to Pakistan next week. I'm crossing my fingers. I have been behind on my archiving, captioning and photoshop work the last couple of weeks and really need to catch up. I've had more fun working and living here the past few weeks, but I really need to get back to the grind.

TEAR GAS DAYS AND H*@H H@%H NIGHTS

2009-05-11T12:27:00.000-07:00

In Kashmir covering the fourth stage of India's election. It's been four days of long days of shooting, walking, eating, drinking, the more shooting, walking, eating drinking, and then more shooting eating, drinking, topped off by a pretty wild day of tear gas, rock throwing, and angry threatening rock mob. What more can you ask for? Despite all of this, Kashmir has given me some of the friendliest and giving people I have ever met, the most beautiful mountains I have ever seen, and the best time I have since being in India. Srinagar,how I love you.

A GOOD WEEK

2009-04-27T09:11:00.000-07:00

Today I got a nice surprise. I am in both Time and Newsweek's Asian and Middle East editions. I have been hitting the pavement pretty hard the last two months working on a project and trying to cover the election issues a bit(see below). I got a double truck in Newseek and half a page in Time. To say I am over the moon is an understatement. The ego boost helps but it's really good to get the sense the I have good news judgement. After being sick for the better part of the week and suffering a great deal of heart ache this is the sort of thing to lift the spirits.

THE STUMPING GROUNDS MASALA STYLE

2009-04-27T04:10:00.000-07:00

After all the ramblings on politics and elections for the last two years, pretty apparent that I like elections. Hell, I love elections. I honestly believe in the idea that good government can make a difference. The idea of by the people, for the people means something to me. In my mind, if there is access to the polls, to health care, and to education that the playing field is leveled for all of us. No matter what our station is life is. Rich, poor, black, white or what ever. I'm not sure if India is the place for me in the long run but I am enjoying seeing it go through this transition. It's the world's largest Democracy and I am getting a front row seat to a pretty heated election. I don't quite understand all of the issues or parliamentary politics, but by putting myself on a familiar story in unfamiliar territory I am helping myself understand my new "home" a bit better.

SEPARATION ANXIETY

2009-04-11T02:07:00.000-07:00

It's easy to see why I would be so home sick as I write this post. I am in the state of Orissa to cover Christians celebrating their first Easter after secular violence against them last August by Hindu fundamentalist. All of this with the upcoming election as a backdrop. So far things seem pretty quiet with everyone on their best behavior since there are a ton of para-military soldiers keeping watch. I am sitting around boiling because we are going through the second power outage in six hours. Another reason to get a wireless card and a bgaan asap. It's not just the feeling of missing home but the loss of high speed internet, the cool breeze of an AC or at least a fan, Starbucks coffee(yeah I know it's corporate evil, but I'm addicted), and consistant power. All these things I take for granted at home. All of these things come here when they come and not a minute before. People stretch out relax in the shade and wait it out. I stress that my pictures have not filed. My pal Scott Eells who spent years in the trenches here says patience needs to be my new mantra. With that in mind I am taking a deep breath, drinking chai on a hot street in a dusty town and enjoying the site of beautiful women in pretty saris. I realize I am actually starting to like it here.

THESE FRIENDS OF MINE

2009-03-28T23:00:00.000-07:00

I have always thought that my greatest talent was the ability to make friends. I have been kind of lacking in that department since I left New York. I've been so moody lately that you can see the dark cloud over my head clear as day. As luck would have it a few people from home are in town and a few new people have stepped up to the plate to help me though the transition. I usually only post work that is"serious' but we had a great time taking pix of each other, drinking, laughing and catching up. I feel I get a little more creative when I have other people to bounce my ideas off of. It's good to hear other voices sometimes and not just the one in my head. I need to remember that no man is an island.

NEW DELHI FASHION WEEK FOR DUMMIES

2009-03-22T17:56:00.001-07:00

Like I did not get enough of fashion in New York. My agency said I should go and make features of fashion week since it's always good for sales. I've covered fashion week for 9 years in New York and was never that much of a fan. This is about the same but as my pal at a world wide wire service put it New Delhi fashion week is like a high school musical while New York is like a big Broadway show. I'm not that cynical. While production value may be lower the clothes seem pretty nice and they did have free Grey Goose. Hooray for Alcohol!!!! Sponsoring Fashion Weeks worldwide since 1989.

A DISQUIET FOLLOWS MY SOUL

2009-03-22T17:25:00.000-07:00

A title that is heavier than it really needs to be but I just watched Battlestar Galactica and that was the episode title. Rip-off I know but I hate coming up with titles for blog posts. It kind of fits my mood as New Delhi has been rough. I feel like I can't get a moments peace or things to work properly. I am trying to lower my expectations and learn patience. I found a flat share so I finally got out of the cell of a room that is Hotel Bright. They really need a Best Western or some other mid-range hotel here. It goes from shit hole to five star with very little in between. But after moving into the flat with dreams of a hot shower and a good night's sleep I found my shower does not work and it's 5:30 as I write this.

Sleep has been a big problem for me since I left New York that just keeps getting worse. The good is that I am always exhausted when I put my head on the pillow and drift off pretty quickly. The problem is that I usually fall asleep around 1AM and find myself wide awake by 5AM. I'm spending the time refreshing my photoshop skills and skulking the neighborhood at night. I am so tired of being in a dark place here. I've been sick, run over, sleepy and lonely. I think I am back in Bikaner next week to follow up on the cancer trials and train story. I need the diversion. Work is slow right now and being able to do something for myself is a lift I need. Right now I miss friends, love, comfort, and medium rare hamburgers. I am also stubborn and am really trying not to let this get me down.

ROAD RASH AND CLINICAL TRIALS

2009-03-12T01:48:00.000-07:00

I'm in kind of a weird place as I write this. In the last week I've spent time in a hospital shooting the first part of a story on patients taking part in a clinical trial for chemo therapy treatment. There has been a 65% rise in trials in India in the last two years due to the number of potential subjects and loose regulations.

As if that weren't enough taking a 20 hour train ride to get to where I wanted to be I got sick myself. As I tried to continue with the shooting with a bad tummy and a fever, I wound up getting run over by a motorcycle as I was leaving the hospital the hospital. Fortunately I was a few hundred yards away from decent medical care. Nothing broken. Just bumps, bruises, and scratches. This as I was considering getting my own motorcycle. I was exhausted,lonely, sick, and sore on a dirty hospital bed surrounded by the people who's story I wanted to tell. Everyone looked perplexed by the situation I found myself in. Wasn't I just there with a camera? What happened? Who did this to you?

With all that I have seen and the care that people had received I was trying not wonder if the sheet I was lying on was going to make me sicker. Despite the lack of so called Western conditions a great deal of care goes into the treatment of patients here. Why should I feel the need for something better? I felt a bit ashamed of myself. Doctor dropped what they were doing just to be sure I was taken care of. Patients came over and smiled. Nothing terminal like my bunk mates. Just a few bumps, bruises, and damaged pride. I said I wanted to do this project because one of the things I thought that leveled the playing field for all of us is health care. I should put emphasis care. This was not the most modern hospital bed I have ever been it may have been my best I've ever been treated in a hospital any where.

DOES EVERYONE STARE THAT WAY AT YOU?

2009-02-24T11:37:00.000-08:00

India is kind of an odd place some times. It's beautiful, weird, smelly, and humid. One thing I keep noticing is every time i look up or turn around someone is staring at me. I know I'm funny, charming, and handsome but com on. Is it because I'm bald?
I usually smile and wave. No one ever waves back. When I looked up from glancing down at my map while sitting in traffic last night I looked to my left to see my friend here just staring. Traffic really backs up here some times so I smiled, wave, nothing. I glanced down at the map again, looked back up, still staring, smile and wave again. Nothing. This goes on for ten minutes. I'm a little embarrassed to say it took that long to before I sheepishly capture the moment. He actually looked shocked when I took his picture.

BANANA LASSIS AND A WEDDING

2009-02-21T16:39:00.001-08:00

I couldn't sleep this morning so I decided to get some tea and try to relax my way into my third day in India. I strolled up the road and got talked into having banana lassi and going to a wedding instead. All this before 8AM. And before having my coffee.I miss good coffee. My current neighborhood is a backpacker's heaven, but that is one thing that is lacking around here. Plenty of patchouli incense but no good coffee. It's been strange my first couple of days here in India. Sleep has been difficult and it's weird not having a network of hundreds of like minded friends to fall back on. At least getting good light and wedding invitations.
The groom hands out money to people dancing at his wedding.

I wish I could pull off looking this stylish.

SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION 2: PHOTOSHELTER

2009-02-19T16:14:00.000-08:00

I am now one of the featured photographers on the Photoshelter home page. For those of you that don't know Photoshelter is the best thing since sliced bread as far as the photographer is concerned. It is in simplistic terms and online archive for images. They offer as safe home for my images that not only allows me to store them securely but also sell and distribute not only prints but to push my stuff to editors and art buyers. This post in not only shameless self promotion for myself but for those guys as well. Allen, Grover, Burf, Tom, Marc and the rest of the team have not only made my life easier, but they have been dear friends not only to me but to the rest of the photo community. Thanks for everything guys.

THE STUMP REVISITED

2009-02-13T03:58:00.000-08:00

I spent the better part of 2007 and 2008 covering the election(I know. Broken record). I am going through my archive and cleaning up my hard drives to make room for new stuff and backing up the old. I came across this and a few other pics I liked that did not make it to the stumping grounds site or into print. Easy to overlook this since I barely remembered Mitt Romney running for president.
Supporter Oscar Poole listens as U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign stop in West Des Moines, Iowa January 1, 2008.

FUJI COLOR STATE OF MIND PART 2

2009-02-08T05:58:00.000-08:00

I told myself I was going to get better at making portraits this year. To that effect I spent a little time working on that today. Harajiku is a fun little neighborhood in Tokyo populated by some of the coolest and uniquely fashionable people you will ever see. I spent the day there milling about and enjoying the light. I found a few people to let me shoot portraits of them. I'm going to stick with this diptych set of portraits for a while and see what shakes out. I really like Hirajiku. It's definitely something I'll have to shoot more of the next time I'm here. It's been a fun month that is finally drawing to a close. I have my first couple of stories planned and an assignment for when I get of the plane in India. No rest for the weary.

FUJI COLOR STATE OF MIND

2009-02-02T06:12:00.000-08:00

I finally turned the monochrome setting off of my D700's today. My mood is improved as I am ending my time here with a good assignment. I thought of my time with the Trenton Times today and remembered the Fujicolor 800 we used to use for everything no matter what the light conditions. Funny where your mind drifts.

Shopping for a suit during lunch.

DAZE JAPAN

2009-01-28T04:42:00.000-08:00

I got a little weirded out by always seeing people with masks on. Initially I thought that it was because of poor air quality. Surprisingly it's usually because the wearer has a cold and does not want to spread his germs around. I wish the guys who coughed on the back of my head for the twelve hour flight here thought of that.

It's been a bit of a process staying here so long when I really only wanted to be here a week or so. Work, work, work. Kind of nice but I long for real Indian chai. One week and counting and then I will be sipping it from some shady cafe in Delhi.

SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION

2009-01-22T19:25:00.000-08:00

I'm in Japan spinning my wheels a bit as I wait for an assignment to come together. I've been busy shooting a piece on the economy and teaching myself Final Cut. With any luck I will be posting my first video in my next post.

My excitement comes from an interview I did right before I left New York for Zoom-In's Viewfinders series. They interviewed me on my experiences covering the 2008 Presidential campaign. Below is a preview. I promise to get more recent stuff up and keep my posts more up to date soon.

JET LAGGED AND OUT OF SORTS

2009-01-02T23:50:00.000-08:00

I am in Tokyo for what was supposed to be a short lay over that turned into a one week assignment that became two weeks since I never bothered to learn that everything is closed with it being a holiday and all this week.To add to it I can't seem to sleep at night unless I nod off at inappropriate times. After 5 days this is the worst jet lag I have ever had. I have half a mind to turn around, go home, and pretend I never left. Fortunately it's only half a mind. The other half says work through this. I'm trying. More later.

SPINNING MY WHEELS

2008-12-10T20:14:00.000-08:00

I a few short weeks I will be pulling up stakes and moving to Asia. New York has been home for so long that everything just seems easy. I feel a little complacent. It seemed like a great idea a few months back as the presidential campaign was winding down to look for a different path. The problem is I have been spending the last few weeks tying up loose ends. Looking for new clients, moving stuff to storage, selling other stuff, saying goodbye to friends. It's been so overwhelming that I have had no time to do what I moved here to do in the first place. Luckily I got a gig to cover the opening bell of the stock exchange. Nothing like covering a financial downturn to clean out the cobwebs.

Two weeks to go. I'll try to get all I need to get done, but I really do need to spend more time shooting as well. More later

WORK:2008

2008-12-10T06:23:00.001-08:00

I took the plunge and published a blurb book. So far so good. I am packing and preparing for my move. I should be back to my (semi)regular posting soon. Cheers.

work:2008

By Keith Bedford

Book Preview

TODAY IS THE DAY

2008-11-04T06:44:00.001-08:00

The last week has really been an exercise in how resourceful I can be on very little sleep. I've been to six different states chasing the Obama campaign for Bloomberg. There is something to be said for losing my spot on the press plane. I've gotten to challenge myself daily in trying to make it to the next event in some other state at the last minute. I've had to pick and choose where I think the best event of the day will be as I have very little time to file, travel to the next event and still make it to the next state before the campaign does. I have spent more time in airports, hotels(although an average 3 hours a night), and rental cars than I have photographing. So much so that I think I am falling for the voice of the woman on my GPS. I am really tired but this is worth it.

I have met tons of people as I said in the last post. One in particular stood out for me the other day. As I have mentioned as nauseum I spent months in Iowa last year covering the run up to their caucus. Three days ago or was it yesterday. Wow it's hard to remember. Anyway, I ran into Peggy, a woman I would see at campaign stops everywhere last year. She listened to every candidate. In the end she caucused for Hillary. She is now knocking on doors for the Obama campaign. She said she was happy to see me and to know that I was still doing this. It made me especially proud to be recognized by someone who takes the political process so seriously.

I did get a treat last Wednesday by being able to join up with Ron Antonelli from the Daily News. Ron and I started out at the News together as freelancers nine long years ago. It's nice to reconnect. We have been going in different directions for the last several years and don't get to see each other as often as we did when were using film. By writing this Gary He will mock me for getting emo on the blog again, but I am about to get a front row seat to history and low and behold it's with one of my best friends. You can't ask for much more than that in this business. Today is the day. It's election day and I am not only here with Ron but with most of the people I worked with in Iowa. Michal, Eric, Allison, Yana, and Josh. We've been through a lot the past year. Up, down, and sideways but here we are at the goal line. 16 or so hours to go. What will I do tomorrow.

THE HOME STRETCH

2008-10-27T08:24:00.000-07:00

Twenty two months and twenty six states later I am near the end of the line. I've had a nice hiatus the last few weeks since the conventions but now I am making that mad dash to the finish line of "that journey I started that cold day in Springfield".

Through all of this I have made a ton of friends, learned that I am more resourseful than I ever gave myself credit for, and seen American democracy at it's best and worst. I've seen way more of the best than the worst fyi.

In six days and quite possibly as many states if not more, I'll see how this whole thing turns out. This has been a blessing and a curse all at once. I wouldn't have traded it for the world.

MOOD SWINGS AT THE 20 MONTH MARK

2008-09-17T13:32:00.000-07:00

It's been over two weeks since I started this posting and to be honest it feels like a year. I have had time to go in way too many directions. When I started the first draft of this I had only a vague idea of which pictures I would pictures online since I had the benefit of an onsite editor at both conventions and never really looked at my stuff. I started writing in the airport waiting for my flight but I was groggy from an early wake up call that followed the final late night of the RNC. Then I was too nervous from a bumpy flight due to turbulence brought on by hurricane Hannah. I never got around to finishing it as I spent the whole flight clutching the arm rests.

After two crazy weeks on the road covering both the DNC and the RNC I had the brilliant idea that when I returned to New York I would cover the wonderful world of fashion. That lasted 8 grueling 15 hour days in tight photo pits. I immediately followed up with 3 more days of Wall Street turmoil. Again, I blew off the blog.As I type this I am now a cranky, sleepless little photographer with achey knees that really wants a vacation but is really not in to the idea of flying for a while. After the aformentioned ride home from Minneapolis I feel like I could use a break from air travel. Why on earth did I choose this profession that has recently involved so much travel if I hate flying so much?

Okaaaaay. Kinda off topic. Moving on.
The point of this posting was to be a follow up to the DNC posting. The problem is that after 20 months of covering the U.S. presidential election I feel like I am either at the goal line or the end of my rope. I'm not sure which. The week covering the DNC seemed inspiring and historic. A few weeks later the whole process seems so silly. All the cheap shots(screw you for trying to help people community organizers. Fucking losers.), backstabbing(talking about you Lieberman), flat out lying (Kindergartners taking sex ed? C'mon? Really?) is not what I was expecting from this election. We supposedly have two mature candidates that were supposed to rise above it all in a year when the sky seems like it's falling. Sue me, I'm naive. I hoped to hear more on the issues. I may be a journalist but I do vote. As a photographer I am supposed to be eyes not ears but to be honest with all the stuff I have heard recently I don't really care about what shade of lipstick the pig is wearing. Right now I just want 8 hours of sleep, a juicy steak, and a long overdue vacation. Maybe after that my mood will swing in the other direction.

MILE HIGH DIZZINESS PART 2

2008-08-31T20:54:00.000-07:00

Even though I'm a little late with this post I'm still putting it as I wrote it last Thursday. I'm at the RNC in Minneapolis now and will try to stay up to date.

My grandfather is 90 years old. He has told me how he remembers when as a black man he could not vote in this country. Since he's 90 I take his call even when I am super busy. He of course decided to call a few minutes before Obama accepted the nomination and ecstatic is hardly doing justice to how good he sounded. He sounded so proud. Not just for Obama but for me. "Boy that must be something else. I never thought I would live to see the day. I sure wish I could be there." I felt guilty after making sure that he and my grandmother were okay and telling him I would call him the next day(I'll do it tomorrow. Really). To which he responded: "I won't keep you. I just wanted to be sure you were there."

He sounded proud just for the fact I had made the journey to Denver. Almost as if I was making a pilgrimage. Like the candidate, I get to be one of those that stands on the shoulders of those that struggled during the civil rights movement. And while he never marched, he is one of those people who worked long hours doing jobs I could never imagine or endured abuses that I would never tolerate just to be sure my parents and by extension I got better opportunities. My grandfather never finished high school but is the smartest person I know. Because of him and my grandmother I get to take what I do for granted. I get to take how I live, where I live, where I go, and the fact that I can vote for granted. We've come a long way as a nation. From maginalizing a people to nominating the first African-American candidate for president.

Looking out on the crowd and seeing the number of people overwhelmed by emotion, laughing, dancing, and crying was stunning.The Last time I checked in here I said that the environment here is infectious. I was trying to fight off the infection and be the good objective journalist I'm supposed to be, but with my grandfather's words ringing in my ears I find I'm still dizzy in the mile high city.

DIZZY IN THE MILE HIGH CITY

2008-08-25T21:44:00.001-07:00

I've been in Denver for nearly three days covering the DNC and I am told that my sluggishness and headache is probably from the change in altitude. I'd feel kind of wimpy if I had not just rocked the last 16 hours on the convention floor. After a year of covering politics I think I am at what is the equivelant of the third quarter. Less than 70 days until election day and this little party has given me the shot in the arm I needed for covering politics. I've beeen laying low on the campaign trail since May. Being here reminds me why I wanted to cover this election in the first place. Peoples' passion for wanting a better America and how their expectations for their future leader is infectious. I really do see the hope that people have when they believe in a candidate. Republican of Democrat. It's nice to be a part of it. Maybe there's more to my dizziness than the altitude.

A BITCHING AND MOANING INTERVENTION

2008-08-21T09:54:00.000-07:00

Last time I talked about creativity vs. making a living and about how lately I get paying work at times I had scheduled for personal work. Blah, blah, blah. I came to a pretty quick realization that this is a cop out. I think I am in the club of photographers that cries the blues when it's slow and work is at a premium, but I am also one that belly aches about "not being able to pursue my creative vision man!" or "there aren't enough hours in the day" when I do get work. I also realize that I spend a little too much time in bars, on instant messenger, or watching Law & Order. So to prove a point for I shut off the TV, I skipped drinks with friends and shut down my computer(at least for a few hours). Instead I packed up the 4x5 and headed off to Coney Island with my good friend and fellow traveller Lucian Read to find the people that make Coney Island, well Coney Island. It's nice having a best friend do what you do and one who has a similar idea in mind. It gives you a support system and you get to play assistant for each other. He was also the person that got me out of my funk. By making me feel guilty and lazy with a polite "whatever man" when I said I did not have the time he managed to push me out the door and into a summer time project at the beach that I am really enjoying. I always say we are in this together but rarely do I act like I am in it for myself. Instead I give the advise I never take. I am finally listening my own advise by taking the helping hand of a friend when I needed an extra push to make me do more for myself. Besides the the days with that great summer light are getting shorter and shorter and I can find Law & Order pretty much anytime.

KILLING TIME: THE RETURN OF THE SUMMERTIME BLUES

2008-08-17T08:21:00.000-07:00

This week I am short on the rambling. I spent a little time the other day feature hunting for the Times as they needed a day floater to fill a little space. Later in the week I got to cover the All Points West concert. It's still slow and I am trying not to die of boredom or forget how to use my cameras. I am really fighting to get over the hump of this painfully slow period. Ironically I have wanted to go back to Coney Island and shoot more with my 4x5 but every time I make plans to head out there I find myself with a paying job. Money vs. creativity. Ahhh, the age old conflict.

New York's Skyline. Why else would I go to Jersey?
Radiohead at it's whiney best.
Stiltwalkers try to grove to Underworld

A CURE FOR MY SUMMERTIME BLUES

2008-08-04T08:35:00.001-07:00

On the boardwalk

Summertime in the city tends to slow for we photojournalist. Government stops, everyone goes on vacation and it seems that news all around has headed off to the Hamptons for a dip in Diddy's pool. After a few days of archiving and catching up on Law & Order re-runs I really needed to get out of the house.

Despite my current hermit lifestyle I am trying to get out and make pictures where ever I go. I try to take a camera everywhere. A party here, a bar hop there, and finally an assignment. I went to Coney Island to shoot features on the Boardwalk for the Times. Ahhh NYT, just when I think you don't love me no more. I get paid to shoot pretty pics on a great day at the beach? Tell me that's not love.

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN

2008-07-25T09:04:00.000-07:00

WNBA's first outdoor game at Arthur Ashe Stadium

It's funny I've been back in New York for three weeks now and for the most part all I've shot is events put out by press release. Now that's not to say I look a gift horse in the mouth since this is of course the source of my income, but I find myself laughing at some of the things I have photographed lately since people take things sooooo seriously here.
Posting up under the stars.

Recently I got taken to task for my criticisms on this city I call home. It's not to say I don't still love it here. I do. After all following a press release lead me to the picture with this posting. The New York Liberty played the first ever professional basketball game outdoors at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens. It's one of those hard to pass up things that as the saying goes "Only In New York". Sure this city is irritating, especially now that it's summer, and I do plan on relocating by the fall, but no place on earth has the culture or entertainment that is this over the top. Only in New York.

HOME AGAIN HOME AGAIN? I'M NOT REALLY SURE.

2008-07-08T05:58:00.001-07:00

My well worn boots.

I left Kenya in the wee hours of the night. I am now sitting in terminal 5 at Heathrow in what will be a 9 hour layover. If I weren't so tired and had not had such a painless entry through customs I may consider dragging myself to downtown London. With luck I'll pass through London again in a few months and actually see the city for a change. Four times in this airport in the last two years and this is my experience with London. Uggghhhh.

I feel a little heavy hearted going home after practically starting a new life in Nairobi. When I left New York in May I felt I had fallen in love with the city all over again, but now I am not so sure. New York has given me so much, but I think I may have outgrown it. I really liked the life that Kenya provide me. Another community of the like minded but with more of a sense of humanitarian journalism. The pace is slower, the assignments are richer and more along the lines of my idea of what a journalist should be doing.

I know there is community journalism to do in New York, but there are days I feel like I am only following the press releases. Is it too much to want more out of a life in journalism.

I've been to some shady places these last six weeks in Kenya and in myself. I think I've grown as both a photographer and a man. Prime lenses are the best, a good pair of boots are a real life saver, and ten year olds are really hip to what's going on in the world. Simplistic I know but if it works it works.

I am rambling and really tired, but the funny thing is that after seven weeks in Kenya, the sight of a Starbucks here at Heathrow has made my morning. I know there is good coffee in Kenya, but I still had not adjusted to slow service and slow internet.

Thanks to the gang at Kitisuru road who adopted gave me and gave me a home away from home and made me a brother, a friend, and and uncle. I really have been changed for the better by getting to know Brendan, Dan, Bertha, Francis, Alessandra, Vincenzo, Sylvia, Emily, Nik, Flea, Andrea, Moeni, Jane, Game, and Zuffa.

THERE GOES MY HERO

2008-07-01T00:16:00.000-07:00

A boy sifts through garbage at the Dandora Dump

My flat mate Emily introduced me to George Ocholla on a trip Villa Teag the other day. Villa Teag is an orphanage in the Dandora area of Nairobi. Remember, that's where I fell into the ocean of sewage in week 46. Anyway, Villa Teag house about 30 kids who have lost their parents to HIV. Unfortunately after the election violence that went on in Kenya last December their founder Melitus Mugabe was murdered. There has been a struggle to keep funding going and the kids together since the loss of their benefactor.

My other flat mate Alessandra has taken it upon herself to keep the lights on, the water running, and secure other funders. She spent 8 months living here while working on a documentary. All the kids here are smart, talented, and hopeful of a better life.

George stands out to me. After both of his parents died from AIDS George found himself in the position of caring for himself and his one year old brother. They began living in the dump in Dandora. He was searching for food and things to sell in the the dump with his brother strapped to his back for months. After eating a meal of refuse from the dump, George noticed his brother, still strapped on his back was not moving. He was dead. As Emily put when he tells this story it's like he's recounting what he had for breakfast it's so matter of fact.

When he retells me this story and how important it is for him to go on and get an education I tell him he's my hero. He just laughs asks me why. Here is a ten year old giving me more insight into the world than most adults. He's suffered more in his ten years than I will probably will the rest of my days yet he is resilliant to the point it almost seems defiant. He makes me laugh with his singing and his imitation of Kenyan President Kibeki. He talks about finishing school and maybe one day being the head boy a Villa Teag. He is thankful for the opportunity given to him despite missing his family.

For me after my sewer incident I swore I would never go back to the dump again. Who really cares I thought. There were a number of people that have done stories on dump sites that become mini recycling industries for the poor. Why bother? I made my way back there the before I left Kenya just to walk a mile in George's shoes and see what he saw every day for months when he was the tender age of five. My sewer swim is nothing more than an anncecdote I'll retell at parties to friends that will laugh at my misadventures. For George it was everyday life navigating the dump which to me is like visiting ninth circle of hell. He not only had to rummage through the garbage but compete with adults, older kids and scavanger birds for the best stuff. Vendors pay 3 Kenyan Schillings for 1KG of plastic bottles after all. George is not only surviving, he's thriving. I look in his eyes and I think that he's one of those people that will probably go on to do great things. Yeah George, you are my hero. Go ahead Laugh if you want to, you've earned it.

George Ocholla

Emily's original NPR story on George and Villa Teag is here.

FUJICHROMING AS BEST I CAN

2008-06-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

Catching the Mat

My dark mood is somewhat on the run thanks to a brief flash of sunlight today. Could this be the start of something new? Would I see the sun or was God just messing with my head? I've seen glimmers of it today as it peeks through the tiny holes in the clouds. I am still waiting for call backs on stories I want to work on. I am trying to have patience since a bit of sun is giving me some relief from my Tri-X blues. Hell really is other people and their quirky whims. The irony of my next project is it would take me from the outside world and put me in an environment with florescent light mixed with window light. If ever there was a time to need Tri-X? I am not sure why all of the film analogies are coming up lately. Do I really miss the stuff that much? Certainly not the smell of D-76 or Dektol or whatever developer was on sale that week. Maybe I am a little sick of the instant gratification digital gives me. It's made me more impatient with each technological advancement. Gimme, gimme, now, now, now. I like to think I was more patient at one point but that may be looking at my memories through rose colored glasses. Waiting for a return phone call right now is slowly killing me. It's been two days since I put in a request and all I've done is shoot matatus(cheap vans system everyone uses to get around). 6 days left and I am suddenly feeling like the stop watch is ticking on my time here. At least I can sort of see the sun today.

TRI-X STATE OF MIND

2008-06-18T03:45:00.000-07:00

I am using weather as an excuse for being a few days behind in my weekly posting. I have been living with drab weather for the last week and a half and was advised "Enough with the black and white!!!!! You're in Africa for crying out loud." Normally I would agree, but it's been cloudy and dreary and I am in a dark mood with a heavy heart despite my good fortune of being here. I have not seen the sun for a week now and I am in a Tri-X state of mind(If you can consider the monochrome setting on my 5D a reasonable facsimile). I really do miss film.

The dark days have made my mood nearly as dark. On top of it no one returns phone calls when doing research and subjects always want money(I'm so shocked). I'm trying, trying to get out of theTri-X state of mind and back to a Fujichrome one. At least I can count on the night life, fine dining, good company, and surprisingly good South African wine with my roommates to make being Tri-Xy easier to bear. We'll see if the sun comes out before I leave Kenya in 14 days. Should adventure ever come to an end? I got to get out of this mood. More later.

ON THE STUMP IN NAIROBI

2008-06-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

Today was a day of celebration of sorts in Kenya. U.S. Senator Barack Obama became the first African American nominee for a major U.S. political party. There is so much pride in the achievement here. As a son of Kenya, Obama is everywhere. On t-shirts, on the matatus(Kenya's van service), and in store windows. I am told it he becomes the U.S. President they will mark the event with a national holiday. It's strange seeing so much interest here in an election so far away. I thought I was taking a break from presidential politics, but I have to say it's nice to be on the stump so far from home.

WEEK 46: ANOTHER OFF DAY

2008-06-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those days that I did not want to be an off day. At first. It is Kenyan Independence Day. It means the country comes to a standstill. So much for getting any work done or having calls returned. Luckily it is also Italy's Republic Day. As I mentioned earlier I am now living with 4 Italians and another American. It not only means that dinner is top notch, but that you get invited to said Republic Day celebrations at the Italian Embassy here. It's a welcome relief to drink wine and have a good meal a day after sinking waste deep in what felt like an ocean of sewage while working on a recycling story in the country's largest dump. Opposite ends of the spectrum.
Looking for recyclables at Dandora Dump

Nun taking flowers from the Italian Embassy

WEEK 45 PART 2: AN OFF DAY

2008-05-29T08:26:00.000-07:00

Waiting for the matatu.

Today is cloudy and dreary. Instead of venturing out into the quarry or the camp I have been shooting I decided to wait until tomorrow for nicer light. It give me a chance to run the errands for the the things I forgot in New York. I guess a fresh towel is a good idea. It’s been an interesting experience getting to slow down and work at my own pace. I’ve moved into a house of some pretty cool Italian film makers and an American photographer who have graciously taken me in. So much for the idea of being my own sounding board. They are a great bunch. Bonus: everyone cooks, there’s a baby that is alway laughing, and the market in the is part of town has prosciutto. The only thing that’s missing today is a clear sky. There’s always tomorrow. More later.

WEEK 45: "CHASE THAT LIGHT YA KNOW"

2008-05-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

"Nice but kind of flat don't ya think? You got to get up early to chase that light you know", said the snide bitchy photographer from a paper out west glancing over my shoulder as I looked over the take from my first day in Haiti. Despite wanting to club her with 70-200 I silently agreed. It's two years on now. After a week working for Operations Smile I got up this morning at 5AM to "chase that light" for my portrait project on those displaced by Kenya's election violence. First stop Mathare, one of the poorest sections of Nairobi, where in one city block 400 families were chased out and had their homes destroyed by people they used to call neighbors.

Sadly since being in Kenya I have not had more than three hours of sleep at night. Trying to be coherent storyteller and chasing that light is an exercise in masochism. Even though I may be giving myself heart palpitations from too much caffeine and seeing nothing but thick dark storm clouds in the sky, I schuffle off to chase that light. Half way there I feel as dark as the clouds as my driver Franics says "you'll never see sun on a day like this". I try not to scowl. I don't want to hate him this early into my trip. Lucky for him five minutes into my visit to Mathera the sun comes up big, golden, and beautiful. I can't help but think of you snide bitchy west coast photographer.

WEEK 44 PART 2

2008-05-22T07:25:00.000-07:00

I am feeling a little bit proud of myself since I have been able to update this thing twice despite the fact I have just spent the last 24 hours traveling and very few sleeping. Part of that is my own fault since I can't say no to my new friends and their obsession with watching the Manchester Chelsea game until the wee hours. I am exhausted and have not even finished downloading my cards. Instead I am rambling to myself here.

I feel a little out of my comfort zone. I am usually surrounded by other photographers most of whom are my friends. Here I'm all by myself. I realize how much I rely on the sounding board of others and not on my own instincts. It's kind of nice. Jarring, but still nice.

I started shooting the Operation Smile job this morning following around one doctor, a nurse, an administrator and a line of parents and kids. So far my mission has required a lot of waiting around. I spent time in the hospital with the doctors today waiting to see patients. I spent time with patients waiting to see doctors. The first time I did this for Operation Smile it was a little more buzz since I saw the front end of the mission before kids had their surgeries and before the scars healed. I am happy to say six months on these kids are gorgeous. It makes me pretty happy to see the end result turn out so well for such a great group of kids.

The people are friendly despite all they have gone through in the last few months since the violence erupted during the election. Kenya still seems to me coming back. I hope to start working a little on repatriation as soon as my time with Op Smile is done. By then this should be my new comfort zone.

RAMBLING ON BA FLIGHT 112 OR WEEK 44

2008-05-20T00:45:00.000-07:00

I am sitting on British Airway flight 112 to London listening to a surprisingly good Red Hot Chili Peppers album on my Ipod. As always I am wide awake for an overnight 8 hour flight. “Just in case something happens.” It’s not like I am going to open my shirt and find a red “S” and a cape and save us if the plane goes down. I am going to fall out of the sky like everyone else “if something happens”. God, I hate flying.

With that said, this is my making an effort to to get back on track with the blog entries. On track means that i need to put a little more into this. My last entry was in week 5 roughly 44 weeks ago. Classic right? I could blame it on the rigors of a 7 month stint in Iowa shooting politics and that I have been busy being one of the producers of another blog, but let’s face it I get distracted.

As we lurch at 30,000 feet across the pond. I can’t help but think of how I got here. I got a call a few weeks ago to ask if I would be going to Kenya for Operation Smile. I had done some work for them in Brazil a few years ago. They do great work and it’s the type of thing that can get overlooked between the floods, campaigns and earthquakes. It’s small and a cliche, but to see the look on some child’s face that’s suffered with all kinds of deformities is one of the happiest moments I have had.
On top of that It’s kind of hard to pass up a free trip to the mother continent. I have spent the majority of the last year covering the election and since returning to New York, I’ve had the feeling I was spinning my wheels.

I’ve been walking round with a frown on my face lately. Something is missing. That's not to say that I hate my city, but it is a little bit of a downer after spending so much time covering the presidential campaign in Iowa. Funny right. It’s strange to miss a sleepy state where you can’t get dinner after ten.

I came home with a bit of contempt for my once beloved New York. I hate your crowds, the attitudes, the velvet ropes at your bars, the two hour wait for a table at a restaurant that used to be my place and now you pay attention to everyone but me, the the publicists that look down on me(I’m a nice guy), On top of it I say Reuters not Rooters you moron. God, what do I see in you New York? I have so got to get out of here has been my battle cry.

This trip comes at the right time. The perfect summer romance during the slow season for the New York freelancer. Oh Kenya you are so beautiful with your fragile power sharing government, your repatriation efforts. In the worse case scenario, I’ll go on safari. You will be my summer love.

Since I was on taking this trip I needed to stock on a few things. I had to look good for my new love right? Off to Paragon I went. I needed a dry fit hat, travel locks, a new bag, a travel sleeping bag, and that oh so special last minute impulse buy, wash and wear synthetic underwear. How can I survive with out those. Wash them in the shower and supposedly they dry after a few minutes in the sun (we’ll see).

After spending way more than I intended. ($150 sunglasses did the trick), I headed back to Broadway to find myself in the middle of the New York Dance Parade. Kind of silly right? Not really. I saw ballet, flamenco, salsa, tap, and my personal favorite roller dance. I tossed on my press pass( why stand behind the barricade when you can walk the street with the marchers right) and took my new 50 mm for a spin. Funny how a sunny Saturday can turn around here. It’s not much but, it was just what I needed to turn that frown upside down. Crowds, attitudes(the ones that give you character), dancing in the street. How can I hate you New York. You have always given me everything. My wife, my friends, the work I love, culture, diversity, a community of the like minded, dinner after 10PM, even the temperament and abilities for someone to call me and send me to Kenya. I have no idea what my problem was. What was I thinking. I still love you New York. I’ll see you later in the summer.

WEEK 5

2007-07-20T17:25:00.001-07:00

It's week five. I'm still having fun with this little blog of mine. Unlike last week I'm a little early as I have to head out at 5AM to shoot golf. I'm in NYC for the rest of the week, but I'll be back on the stumping grounds by the middle of next week. Thanks to all of you for the comments, support, and the extra motivation to keep this up. Talk to you next week.

"A good way to spoil a walk in the country." -- Mark Twain on the "sport" of golf
Rudy Campaigns - Sloan, IA July 2007

WEEK 4

2007-07-16T12:25:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late with posting this week's picture, so I am making up for it by adding 4 pix this time around. I've been following the campaigns in Iowa for 2 weeks now. I'm starting to find the people in the crowds are just as fun and engaging as the presidential hopefuls.

2007 Clayton County Dairy Princess Leah Henkes - Caucusing for Obama

Sydney Bolsinger (5) - Eligible to vote in 2020

Allen Troester - Caucusing for Obama

Don P. Buckman - Undecided

WEEK 3

2007-07-07T07:50:00.000-07:00

It's week 3 and I am now have dual citizesnship here in Iowa and back home in New York. Strangely Iowa feels more like home than NYC does. The people are super friendly, the sun stays up until almost 10 and I can actually see stars when I look up to the sky.

It is a good place to feel inspired as a photographer. Here's this week's offering. Talk to you next week.

Cheers,

Keith
Waiting for HillBillary

WEEK 2

2007-07-01T23:14:00.000-07:00

It's week 2 and I finally made it to Iowa to start covering the run up to the 2008 presidential election. Six months until the Iowa Caucus. See you next week.

Cheers,

Keith

The Martini

WEEK 1

2007-06-24T20:22:00.000-07:00

I started this blog a year ago to introduce myself to my team at the Eddie Adams workshop. Sadly I have been lax at keeping up with it. Starting today I am trying to get a little more perspective on my work and have decided to submit one picture a week. Hopefully I can keep up with this. Let me know what you think.

Cheers,

Keith
New York Gay Pride Parade 2007

EDDIE ADAMS

2006-10-02T14:36:00.000-07:00

Since the rest of you have put yourselves out there I figured I'd climb aboard and post my first blog.

As you all know I am in my sixth year of being a stringer(I like that title) here in New York. I pretty much work for the New York Times and for the last two years Reuters. Between the two I get to cover a wide variety of things. Just to keep it interesting I have also been a volunteer photographer for NGO's like IOM and Operation Smile. In the last few years I've gotten to cover things like the RNC, the US Open, the elections in Haiti, recovery after the tsunami, and the life of a slain taxi driver in Afghanistan.

I guess I have been very lucky to have stumbled onto photography. It's changed my life, giving me a chance to see thing that most peole only dream of.

That being said, I would not be at this place if it were not for this workshop. Coming to Eddie Adams helped me turn a corner. I was inspired to work harder, be more creative, and trust myself as a photographer. For that I owe first Eddie Adams, and then Bill Frakes and Jimmy Colton a debt of gratitude. Not only with my career, but in life in gerneral. I have a pretty big extend family which you are all now a part of. You are my sixth team and as of Friday I will now have 59 brothers and sister. That does not even include the rest of the folks that are on the Black Team or the rest of the faculty. Through this work I've seen the world, made best friends, and even met my wife.

I'll see you all on Friday.

Cheers,

Keith