Wednesday, May 11, 2011

animal spirits: praying mantis



one morning I decided to finally pull all the crab grass that took over the lavendar plant and to give the lavendar a trim so the walkway to the house was clear. I came upon a praying mantis in the lavendar. with fascination, i watched it be still during all the commotion of pulling the grab grass. The following morning I saw another praying mantis on my car and thought "this is a message!" and looked up its symbolism.

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/animal-symbolism-mantis.html


Praying Mantis Meanings in the Realms of Animal Symbolism

The mantis comes to us when we need peace, quiet and calm in our lives. Usually the mantis makes an appearance when we've flooded our lives with so much business, activity, or chaos that we can no longer hear the still small voice within us because of the external din we've created.

After observing this creature for any length of time you can see why the symbolism of the praying mantis deals with stillness and patience. The mantis takes her time, and lives her life at her own silent pace.

* Stillness
* Awareness
* Creativity
* Patience
* Mindful
* Calm
* Balance
* Intuition

These traits have lead the mantis to be a symbol of meditation and contemplation. In fact, in China, the mantis has long been honored for her mindful movements.

The mantis never makes a move unless she is 100% positive it is the right thing for her to do. This is a message to us to contemplate and be sure our minds and souls all agree together about the choices we are making in our lives.

Overwhelmingly in most cultures the mantis is a symbol of stillness. As such, she is an ambassador from the animal kingdom giving testimony to the benefits of meditation, and calming our minds.

An appearance from the mantis is a message to be still, go within, meditate, get quite and reach a place of calm. It may also a sign for you to be more mindful of the choices you are making and confirm that these choices are congruent.

Monday, May 09, 2011

Union 206 Studio: April 2011

"the world is black." - charles butler, owner of Union 206 Studio

charles explaining the science behind light falloff. i like to refer to him as "light macguyver".




the beauty dish.

photo courtesy of lori esque


behind the scenes set-up.

photo courtesy of lori esque


in front of me.


the ring flash.

Saturday, May 07, 2011

slick rick



the perks of shooting my friends' band performing right before the headliner = securing a spot right in front of the stage.

Friday, May 06, 2011

The Draft Lottery: 757 B-boy Event 1-29-11

this exhibition of b-boys was sponsored by radioactive cardboard created by my homie ron, a.k.a. johnny breaker. we recently teamed up to promote this organization and i'm honored and excited to be part of it.



i've been an avid fan of break dancing since 1995. i took my very first photographs of a b-boy senior year of high school for the annual student gallery show. i won two awards for them. a decade or so later, me and photographing b-boys have become synonymous.




for more information about radioactive cardboard <== click there.

Union 206 Studio: March 2011



this was my first time at Union 206 Studio in Alexandria,Va. i came up to hang out with my buddy rob and my old time photography partner in crime, lorimar. she introduced me to this studio and i was giddy the whole time.

behind the scenes photo taken by lorimar, the master mind behind www.lorimaresque.com

it's a playground for light sculpting.



lorimar and i kickin' it on the cyc wall.

my goal is to come up at least once a month to shoot at this studio. three words... heaven on earth.

Thursday, May 05, 2011

Asa's 3rd Life Anniversary

this lil' nugget is growing up so fast!

dinosaur themed party. how awesome is the cake decoration?!!



Dupre's Salon: London Punk Theme

this shoot was a collaboration of hair stylists & make-up artists from dupre's salon and models from wilhelmina.



diisha



she texted me one day and asked if i could take photos of her because she was having a good hair day.

she makes me laugh and she makes awesome pies crust.

www.diishahicks.com

K Scott





a sneak peak from a series of portraits i created of my dear friend, k scott.

i remember the first time hearing her voice. i said, "i want to take her home so she can sing me to sleep!"

p.s. i heart stage lighting.