The Weekend Shoot

What a weekend...super weather at the beach...family everywhere and running amuck and all is well!  We planned a big shoot with my wife's sister and her family; let's see at last count...12!  All beautiful girls except for the handsome men.  My timing was off...but the sun and mosquitos were not.  We had planned to do some portraits at the beach and that didn't workout too well due to the mid day sun and very overcrowded beach.  So we decided to move on to a secluded trail with a bridge and walkway to a cool part of the beach with dunes, grass and fence.  We got to the spot and were greeted by a swarm of malnurished mosquitos!  We were a little overwhelmed by the turnout, both family and mosquito!  We did however manager to capture most for the family and render some really neat stuff.  What did I learn...family first, planned shots second and always have plenty of bug repellant on hand.  The photo above is of my niece Savanna, and this was one of my best unplanned portraits of the weekend!  Despite my best efforts in planning, sometimes the best image is right in front of you, just waiting to be captured.

Finding me....

I want to be original, not a copy cat!  But... it is very hard when you are influenced by so many talented photographers and their work.  So I have taken a trip down Finding Yourself Lane.  It's a little scary jumping out and looking for a look that pleases you and ignites emotion in others. At least that is what I feel when I look at the work of others that motivate and inspire me.  I am late to this trip, but nevertheless it is an exciting adventure and you are welcome to be part of it.  Over the next little while I will be posting images that have developed as part of my quest to find me.  Tell me what they do for you...does an image excite you, bring back a memory or make you throw up a little in your mouth!  I am looking for honesty (and praise) in your thoughts.  So turn on your GPS (compass for old folks) and accompany me on my journey.

Updated Website...

Just updated my website: TK Edens Photography.  Please take a look at it and let me know what you think!  I still consider it a work in progress, but really like the direction it is going.  As for me, just trying to push my new business out the door and learning to cook, but more on that later.

Layovers

There are two types of travelers; those who have experienced airport layovers and those that will!  A layover is sorta like life, it is what you make of it.  And like life, it presents challenges, color, interactions, stress and joy.  A layover will bore you to tears and excite the senses at the same moment.  Depending where you are will also provide you with a duplicate image of life. From the highly pampered first class guest to the nameless coach occupant layover life mirrors real world life, from 5-star guest facilities to sleeping on benches.  Dinning pleasures go from catered 5 course meals to waiting in line in the food court.  Shopping offers something for everyone too.  Watches...Rolex to Timex, Wall Street Journal to Mad magazine, beverages available from water to ridiculously priced wine....hell both are available at a ridiculously high price!  Sounds and spoken words are from a baby crying to a group of travelers conversing in their native languages; the drown of the woman on the public address system announcing flight changes and gate times to the beep-beep of the service carts racing up and down the concourses amazingly missing all the thousands of individuals walking (or running)  in the paths of the daredevils controlling those damn carts.  Colors and costumes also run the gamete; from bright multi-colored robes and head dress to the lifeless business goer splashed in gray.  Wherever you find yourself experiencing a layover you are also experiencing a special slice of life that many will never experience.  Embrace a layover, not with dread and frustration, but with the drive of an explorer!  Seek out the new and unique, the different and exciting opportunities that are part of the airport life.  Again, just as in life, your experience and journey is what YOU make of it...enjoy! 

Time to Think?

How do you know where you are if you can't see yourself on the map?  In other words, you may know where you stand, but finding that location in reference to the world around can be very difficult to do unless you can pull back to a point to where you can see both.  Being able to see yourself and the immediate world around you can be very very insightful, such as today.  I was on a nearby camp waiting on some team members to exit the PX.  I just sat on a traffic barrier watching the community of soldiers, American and British milling about the out-door market operated by vendors from many of the middle eastern countries surrounding Kuwait and it hit me!  I may be soon departing this environment, leaving behind these many individuals and their many missions, but whatever I do, wherever I go, I will never escape who I am and what I have become...a warrior, a leader!  Neither of which I chose, but what I am.  As I reflect on my recent past and approaching future, I am troubled with the thoughts of where do I fit in.  I am a husband, a father...a friend?  In the world I am about to rejoin, where do and where will I belong?  I am at home in hostile environments, where young men and women serving our country carry weapons and are not afraid to use them to protect themselves, but also the individuals on the left and on their right.  We are all joined together by a bond of war and hardships.  A bond where life or death is a normal as Starbucks and self-serving people move about believing they are important.  My initial thoughts envision myself as a tourist in a foreign land learning the customs of it's people.  How will I survive in this land...by living one day at a time and not getting caught up in the culture that rules this land, but by observing from a distance and learning and exploring.  What I need to remember is that the land I travel to, is no less dangerous than the land I am leaving! 

Blowing Sand

Sand Storm