Dangerous roads

The tire marks behind Angela Sullivan lead towards her home, back left, on the corner of Orient Drive and Ashmore Bridge Road after a car crashed barely missing her home on Sunday, August 8, 2010.

Cat lovers...check this out!

I made this photo while working on a feature story at the National Cat Groomers Institute of America. I decided to post it because I had heard from many people how it made them laugh....so if you need a good laugh, here you go!

The Sanfords

I was sent to Columbia to photograph South Carolina republican candidate for governor, Nikki Haley, on the night she accepted the republican nomination. That night it was one picture of current Governor Mark Sanford and his ex-wife, Jenny, greeting each other with a quick kiss that caused quite a buzz. The Greenville News ran the photograph (as well as other local papers), but The News chose not to release it to television.

Primary Election: Haley

The evening of the primary election in South Carolina, I was sent to Nikki Haley's celebration party in Columbia. Haley is one of the republican candidates for governor. Here was my favorite shot from the evening. It was even published on MSNBC and Yahoo news.

HRH Prince Edward visits

In this photo: His Royal Highness, The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex is welcomed to Stevens Aviation in Greer on Thursday, May 27, 2010. So, I have to admit that I was a little excited to photograph HRH when he arrived (and also before he left Greenville, SC) since my grandmother immigrated from London and I even lived there for a short while.

Soccer champs

I was sent to shoot two local high schools competing in a championship soccer game. After one team scored a goal, I started looking for reaction pictures. I liked this photo because of the different reactions captured in the same frame.

Washington, DC: Honor Flight

On Tuesday, I followed 82 World War II veterans to Washington, D.C., as they participated in the Upstate Honor Flight. My favorite photograph, which ran on the front page of The Greenville News, is of Fred Rector. In the photograph, he places his hand over his heart while standing at the the WWII Memorial.

Mr. Rector told me the story of how he was captured and interrogated by the Germans. I just stood quietly, in shock, and listened. At this point his guardian, the volunteer in charge of looking out for his well-being throughout the trip, noticed my very German name. I explained that, yes, my grandparents had come over from Germany, but that they were Jewish. They had been forced to flee their homes. Mr. Rector paused and reached out his hand. I walked alongside his wheelchair - the two of us hand in hand - back to our bus.

My first gallery show

For the first time, I am showing my work in a gallery setting. It is a dual show with artist Jackie Shapiro Rosen. As most of you who visit my website know, I traveled to Germany in search of my family history. I will be showing 14 of those photographs. If you have the opportunity, please come to the opening reception this Friday at Village Studios & Gallery in the Pendleton Street Arts District from 6-9 pm. And, if you can't make the reception, the show will be on display through the end of April.

Thanks for all your support!!

Surprise engagement

A friend asked me if I would be "in" on the surprise engagement of his daughter, who is also a friend. So, I hid in the corner of the room and when the groom-to-be popped the question, I popped out of the corner and began to shoot. It was so much fun to be part of a special day of a friend.

Fallen soldier returns to Upstate

The family of Sgt. Jeremiah Wittman react to the sights and sounds of the plane carrying Wittman's casket as it pulls up to the hangar at Stevens Aviation on Monday, February 22, 2010. It was an emotional morning watching the casket of a soldier return home to his family. I think many of us were a little teary-eyed when leaving the airport.

For more photos, check out The Greenville News.

As the weather gets colder...

This week temperatures dropped extremely low here in South Carolina. I was interested in finding out what people in our community who don't have heat and/or shelter do in the colder weather. I found that one of our local ministry shelters opens their gym when temps reach below 40 degrees. So, I pitched the story and then went to hang out there one evening. It was a pretty eye-opening experience.

Wrong Way

I was sent out the get pictures of a demolition crew tearing down the old Woolworth's building. I got some neat shots from down on the ground and I decided to shoot down on the building from a nearby parking garage. After getting the shots I needed, I saw this sign. I just had to shoot it because I liked how the garage was a little sketchy and the hand-painted sign just added to the ambiance.