Here’s another backstage portrait from @pilgrimagefestival. This time it’s @townemusic. They were a joy to work with! #pilgrimagefestival #pilgrimage2017 #makethepilgrimage

I am a huge huge fan of these girls and their band @thebandjoseph. Their song “White Flag” is such a powerful anthem and a must listen. So i was beyond excited when I got the chance to photograph them at @pilgrimagefestival. And to my delight, they were an absolute joy to meet and photograph. They were literally squealing in excitement when they saw these portraits haha. I can’t say it enough... shooting portraits backstage at Pilgrimage might have been my favorite portrait shoot I’ve ever done for a variety of reasons.... #pilgrimagefestival #pilgrimage2017 #makethepilgrimage

An upcoming speaking gig needed a new color headshot from me so I shot this one minutes ago. That’s the fun and ease of literally working and sitting in the middle of all my lights.

There are a LOT of photos out there that I’ve shot that I’m not proud of. In fact sometimes, I’d pay the client to remove my name haha. It’s just inevitable as a photographer. Even over the last few years, I’ve created a lot of work that I don’t like. But a few weeks ago, something really rare happened. I spent 2 days shooting portraits backstage at @pilgrimagefestival and I was able to create a body of work that I’m extremely proud of. I only had a 15x15 foot outdoor tent to work with but sometimes limitations can help yield the best work. . I can honestly say this is the most fun I’ve ever had shooting portraits. You won’t really understand until you see the whole body of work and the variety that I was able to create within those restrictions. Time-wise, I only had minutes, sometimes seconds with each artist but I was able to do a lot with the time constraints due to a crazy system of rotating @ProfotoUSA lights, backdrops and Canon projectors that I’ve invented over time. (This small backdrop behind her was hand-drawn on my #iPadPro and printed out on my Canon printer. SO FUN.) . Today I finally get to start releasing the series. First up is the beautiful @ivorylayne. I’ve heard amazing things about her for quite some time now so it was a blast to finally meet her and get to photograph her. #pilgrimagefestival #pilgrimage2017

Wizard of OZ comin atcha!! (Swipe to see the full collection)

Here is the final image I’ll be posting to social media from my Resilient Light project. This is my own message I wanted to put out there: “Allow yourself to dream in times of need. Your creativity may be your greatest contribution.” . I think, as artists, we should always put on our thinking caps when hard times hit. Sure, we need the massive organizations to respond. We need to give our money, we need our hands to show up and help each other and we also need our thoughts and prayers (yes, still needed) . But the thing that’s most often overlooked? New ideas. Innovative thinking. . What NEW idea can be applied in a time of need? We’re in the most technically advanced time in the history of the world. How can all the NEW things be used to help in hard times? That’s where I enjoy applying myself and that’s how the idea for this project came to be. . It’s been hard though. The news cycle is moving so fast these days that everyone has (seemingly) moved on from the hurricanes. People are still hurting and in need in ALL of the hard hit areas. . So how can you respond? Well, go buy a print from this project. I promise we’re giving 100% of the proceeds back to the community we served. You can buy a print at ResilientLight.com. Thanks for listening.

“A Nation’s culture resides in the hearts and souls of its people.” - Mahatma Ghandi . To learn more about this project and buy prints of any piece, please visit resilientlight.com. 100% of proceeds from the print sales of this project will be going back to the communities we served in. . The handwritten messages in this project were first drawn on the #iPadPro and then projected in thin air using a #pixelstick. They were all shot on a 20-30 second exposure with a team of 3-4 people handholding color gelled @Profoto B1 strobes and lighting the scenes during my long exposures. . Thanks to The Weather Channel for featuring this project. You can see the interview here: https://facebook.com/TheWeatherChannel/videos/10155913876870921/

“Every note belongs in the symphony.” - @bradmontague . To learn more about this project and buy prints of any piece, please visit resilientlight.com. 100% of proceeds from the print sales of this project will be going back to the communities we served in. . The handwritten messages in this project were first drawn on the #iPadPro and then projected in thin air using a #pixelstick. They were all shot on a 20-30 second exposure with a team of 3-4 people handholding color gelled @Profoto B1 strobes and lighting the scenes during my long exposures. . Thanks to The Weather Channel for featuring this project. You can see the interview here: https://facebook.com/TheWeatherChannel/videos/10155913876870921/

When we stopped to talk to Ernesto, he was in the throws of cleaning out his house. Him and his family have been staying at a shelter for the past two weeks — their house currently unlivable due to serve mold damage inside. Ernesto explained to us how he'd saved up to buy this house in cash 9 years ago, and that he doesn't have another option but to stay put and work to rebuild. When we walked into his garage, we noticed the water line had risen to almost 4 feet — the mold eating away at the walls. It will soon need to be gutted. Ernesto and his family don't have flood insurance — in this part of Florida it's almost unheard of due to being in a high risk area and the costly expense it creates for low-income families. When we asked him what was helping him get through, he told us, "I have my family. Everything else is replaceable.” . To learn more about this project and buy prints of any piece, please visit resilientlight.com. 100% of proceeds from the print sales of this project will be going back to the communities we served in. . The handwritten messages in this project were first drawn on the #iPadPro and then projected in thin air using a #pixelstick. They were all shot on a 20-30 second exposure with a team of 3-4 people handholding color gelled @Profoto B1 strobes and lighting the scenes during my long exposures. . Thanks to The Weather Channel for featuring this project. You can see the interview here: https://facebook.com/TheWeatherChannel/videos/10155913876870921/

“What devastates us will never define us.” - @cadenceet . To learn more about this project and buy prints of any piece, please visit resilientlight.com. 100% of proceeds from the print sales of this project will be going back to the communities we served in. . The handwritten messages in this project were first drawn on the #iPadPro and then projected in thin air using a #pixelstick. They were all shot on a 20-30 second exposure with a team of 3-4 people handholding color gelled @Profoto B1 strobes and lighting the scenes during my long exposures. . Thanks to The Weather Channel for featuring this project. You can see the interview here: https://facebook.com/TheWeatherChannel/videos/10155913876870921/

“Now brace for hope.” - @jesscatesmusic . To learn more about this project and buy prints of any piece, please visit resilientlight.com. 100% of proceeds from the print sales of this project will be going back to the communities we served in. . The handwritten messages in this project were first drawn on the #iPadPro and then projected in thin air using a #pixelstick. They were all shot on a 20-30 second exposure with a team of 3-4 people handholding color gelled @Profoto B1 strobes and lighting the scenes during my long exposures. . Thanks to The Weather Channel for featuring this project. You can see the interview here: https://facebook.com/TheWeatherChannel/videos/10155913876870921/