Back in Black...Well, Blue...

Well, it's official: I've crossed back into the blue.

After a five-month layoff from a six-year stint in the United States Air Force, I am now a member of the Air Force Reserve. That's right, I get to dust off the ol' flight suit and BDUs and give it another go for Uncle Sam.

There will be no immediate effect on SunArcher Photography or Ninth House Photography. All shoots in the pipe are still as scheduled. But now I get to utilize the skill set attained in the Air Force to achieve other goals I have for myself. Who knows...maybe some Reservists may want to spend some time in front of the lens. :) My time in the Reserves will only spawn new and more creative ideas, themes, and opportunities, so stay tuned as I get it all sorted out! Hooah!

From London With Love

London Andrews gives SunArcher a shout out! Woo-hoo! Check it out here on her blog.

London makes mention of what she calls "the Super Wal-Mart of churches." lol That would be Summer Grove Baptist Church here in Shreveport, which is located at what used to be South Park Mall. And yes, that sucker is HUGE!

She also humorously mentions foods where she swore I was making up the names. Not I, said the cat. lol But she's referring to things I told her about such as boudain, jambalaya, grits, etoufée, beignets (which she kept calling bunyons or Ben-Gays), Nehi soda, Faygo soda, RC soda, Moon Pies, pralines, and andouille sausage. For my Southerners reading, am I making those up? And aren't ALL of them just the bomb?!

Out of Turbo in Houston

Sometimes things happen for a reason. You may worry about certain decisions after you make them, but at times, the events that follow make you glad you trusted your gut.

I was originally scheduled to go to Houston, Texas, for the Champ Car World Series race. I was also going to schedule a photo shoot there as well. For whatever reason, the excitement that I had for going to that race for the second straight year just wasn't there this year. I honestly was a little perturbed at Champ Car. And as it turns out, I'm glad I didn't buy that ticket.

It appears that the civil war in American open-wheel racing is coming to an end with the rumblings that the Indy Racing League will absorb three Champ Car races this season, and after the Grand Prix of Long Beach, what we now know as the Champ Car World Series will cease to exist. Itself a series that broke away from USAC in 1979, Champ Car survived a bankruptcy in 2003 after taking numerous hits to its prestige after the formation of the Indy Racing League in 1995. IRL founder Tony George held the ultimate trump card: he is also president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And quite frankly, there's no open-wheel race that matters more than the Indianapolis 500 with the possible exception of Formula One's Monaco Grand Prix.

The Grand Prix of Houston is not one of the three races that the IRL is rumored to absorb this season. With that said, I feel sort of bad not to be attending the race weekend in Houston, as the American Le Mans Series will be running the Lone Star Grand Prix the same weekend, and those cars are just the shit to look at and listen to. But at the same time, who knows if ALMS will even hold the race now that the headline event (the Champ Car race) will not take place.

Meh, sometimes the effects of the decisions you make don't show themselves for a while after you make them. But my point is this: once you make the decision, go forward. Don't go tentatively, put the gas on the floorboard and get moving. When you recognize that perhaps it wasn't the right decision, tread lightly and adjust. If you have to backtrack, well, do it. But don't play "what-ifs" for the whole journey. Just do it.

Presidential Candidate Decided Tonight

After watching the Democratic presidential debate last night on CNN, one candidate impressed the hell out of me moreso than in any of the other debates, both from the Democrats and the Republicans. And after seeing the performance in the latest debate, it's official: I will be casting my 2008 presidential vote for Illinois senator Barack Obama.

Obama's positions on relations with Cuba, illegal immigration, and foreign relations are in line with what I believe. I simply do not have the confidence that Hillary Clinton will make an effort to unite the parties and push an agenda that is not awash in the same ol' partisan politics. Obama seems more willing to cross the aisle and not alienate Republicans, and his ideas and proposals seem to make the most sense to even some moderate Republicans. Though John McCain appears to be the front-runner for the GOP nomination, his stance on the war in Iraq and the economy are completely turning me off to him (if I had to choose a Republican candidate, I would have voted for Ron Paul).

Since 1988, the United States has been led by someone named Bush or Clinton. I do not think that the vigor and popularity of Bill Clinton translates well to his wife (I had a couple of issues with President Clinton, too, so I'm not one of these folks that fawn all over him in adoration), and I totally believe in Obama's thoughts of the need for change and a return to a focus on America first. With that said, I encourage each one of you to get active in the political process and vote for who you think can best lead America forward. My choice happens to be Barack Obama.

London and The Prince

February 19 was one of my most hectic days of shooting since the Houston Megashoot in October. And the model for the day was London Andrews.

The day started on a not-yet-finished road. Let's just say that a couple of Louisiana's finest saw a breathtaking view of the United Kingdom's capital city. ;) After returning from that look, it was off to Bossier City. We shot on the perimeter to Barksdale Air Force Base with the 8th Air Force Museum airpark behind us. It was my first time bringing my strobes on location, and it was a fun and learning experience that I hope to repeat soon!

After an on-location shoot near Cross Lake, it was time to head home. London is a very personable person, so we were cracking jokes all night and all in all having a good time. But London is a Northerner, and she wasn't quite familiar with the cuisine that us Southerners dig, so I had to introduce her to some of me and my wife's culinary skills. On the menu was seafood gumbo (with Creole roux, if you're wondering), beignets, Nehi Peach soda, and RC soda, none of which London had ever even heard of, let alone consumed, in her life! Man, we gotta get her down here more often!

It was one of the most educational and fun shoots I've done so far, and I hope to work with Ms. Andrews again in the future! :-)

The Prince and a King's Ransom

It's time to stop bullshitting and step my game up. Pretty pictures are all well and good, but I'm ready for the next step: producing images that add value to the shoot experience. It's no longer enough to be able to convince a model that shooting with me is enough. The end result is key, and I need to get better in that arena as far as post-processing, model selection (for my personal projects), and shoot coordination.

The plane ticket's in hand, and it appears that I'm headed to Las Vegas, Nevada in mid-April to apprentice under one of Model Mayhem's most popular resident smackdown artists.

It is an honor and a privilege to be gaining valuable instruction, critique, and guidance from published urban glamour photographer Ransom J. Rockwood, II (sounds like an attorney, doesn't it?). His imagery of model Amber Fox is how I found him on Model Mayhem, and I am very humbled to be his apprentice for a weekend.

I originally had written a little tangent here about my goals and aims for my photography. But I edited it out. The good thing about Model Mayhem is that sometimes you find kindred spirits. They want to be the best in what they do, even if they have to carve out their own niche to do that. I like folks who think like that. It's not about outdoing this person or that person. When you're doing your thing, sometimes you don't haveor need competition. You're just doing you. Thanks for the words, Will! ;)

I joined Model Mayhem to network. Networking also means to seize opportunities when they present themselves and to find ways to create opportunities as well. This is by far one of the best opportunities I have had come my way, and I'd be a damned fool to pass it up.

Mad shouts to Ransom for taking time out of his schedule to help The Prince.

The First Words...

Well, it looks like it's time for me to add to the blog kingdom. The Port City Prince officially welcomes you to my blog.

I say what I mean, and I mean what I say. If you don't want me to step on your toes, move your feet out of my path and come correct. It's that simple. I can dish it, but I can take it, too.

Big shout-out to my Model Mayhem peoples with whom I have networked since July 2007.

I hope that you like what you find here.