A LIVING SOUL

typically, i pick up my camera when i want to intentionally set out to capture beauty. i don't take my camera to family reunions. i don't randomly photograph parties. i've never been crazy about photographing moments that i should be experiencing with my five senses. the reason being, that anything less than an amazing photograph just seems like a disappointing one-dimensional depiction of a very real experience.

 this weekend i lost My Inspiration. i find myself looking through pictures of her that have been posted online, but contrary to giving me happy memories, it creates a deeper sense of loss. Carlleena wasn't a dreamer. She was LIVING - spending all day of each day learning, loving, creating, and touching the lives of real people in a very real way. now that she has passed away, i know that i can never again experience Carlleena through all of my senses. It's too early to look at photographs of her. i'm not ready for my relationship with a real, full of life person to be relegated to flat one dimensional photographs. the memories - and even more so, her work - serve me better.

but to some extent this experience is also changing the way i think about photography. i don't have any of MY OWN photographs of Carlleena. we made plans for me to capture her for my In Her Own Skin series, but she only wanted to be captured nude in a very specific way and we never got around to it. and that's cool. but I never want to lose someone i feel so affectionately for without having an opportunity to sit them in front of my camera and capture them in a way that shows how real and beautiful they are to me.

Our Last Interaction (via facebook) 
Saturday May 19 at 3:26pm
CHD:WCK!: "who will get in front of my camera first thing in the a.m. tomorrow? info@chdwck.com"

CARLLEENA: "Might be the only time you can pin me down Lol You need a car :/ so you can get to my house Lol #onedaysoon"

meet Netchem

in 2009 when i took a trip back home, i stopped at a show i heard about online of work by artist/photographer nakeya b. i had met nakeya online going to the show was my first time meeting her in person. also meeting nakeya for the first time was emerging artist and photographer netchem hairston. nakeya briefly introduced us, but through keeping up with nakeya i began keeping up with netchem. mutual respect for each others' photography as well as desire to grow as working artists, has built a very positive relationship between netchem and i. now when i go home to visit Jersey, i always try to go over to Brooklyn to connect with netchem. last time we got to roam around, build, and capture some images. (she was craving a soy cheeseburger, but when her favorite place was PACKED! she dragged me through three neighborhoods before we settled on a great burrito spot. lol)



there are certain activities that lend themselves to getting to know people better, and walking around and shooting with new people is definitely one of them. of the things that i love about netchem here are three.

1. she's a lot bigger person and personality than her small frame reveals.
2. like me, she loves to eat and not gain weight.
3. she's a soldier: she shared some negative experiences in her life, with no sense of bitterness or complaint. she wants to be better, and just keeps her eyes focused on being that.



and since i'm done talking, check out netchem for yourself.

the beauty of man...

"masculinity" can't really be this frail. men are beautiful too.

BAZAAR-LE VOGUE

i’ve been inspired to push ahead with a lot of old ideas that have never fully come to fruition. in the words of the old Japanese sage/shoe maker, “JUST DO IT”.
running off a limited edition of 10 12 x 18 prints. available at chdwck.com

AphroWoman: Bizarrely Vogue

http://chdwck.com/artwork/1712476_AphroWoman_bizarrely_vogue_study.html

CHD:WCK! Photography: The early years

(click on image to enlarge)

before i moved to charlotte, nc, i was very on-again-off-again with my camera. i came across some images from my early shooting days (circa '04ish?) when i was still in new jersey.
i'm still really diggin' a lot of these. i would love to shoot with all these people again soon.

SIDENOTE: all of these people are incredibly creative and gifted. only one owned a business at the time we shot. now all but one (maybe all) are entrepenuers.

still in progress

few experiences have been more beautiful and engaging than being allowed to photograph women who are comfortable being photographed in their own skin - no make up, no costumes, no disguises, no pretenses. it's an honor to know that people are trusting me enough to let me show them to you as i am seeing them.
i've been growing with my portraiture for a few years now, but i have been very surprised to find that the most comfortable, liberating, and engaging photo sessions have been nudes - for the subjects, as well as for me as the photographer.
for the "in her own skin" series, i've captured eight (8) subjects so far, and i'm very interested to see what else i learn and what continues to unfold as the series progresses.

good morning.

good morning.

confrontation (an over-analyzation?)...

today i realized i don't actually fear very many things.
but i do fear confrontation.
i don't fear change.
i fear INITIATING it.
i don't fear what's unfamiliar.
i fear APPROACHING it.

fear of confrontation is one BIG fear,
but it's only ONE fear to overcome.
baby steps...

let's get it!!

with more to come...

i feel myself getting stronger...

just thought you might want to know.

grinfactor part i: carlleena person

this past friday night i got to check out the work of Carlleena Person at the Arthouse on Cullman Street in NoDa. i love her simple yet explosive use of line and color. i already have some of her work in my home, and this show made me realize that i need more.

grinfactor part ii: featuring the art of michele hoffman and friends

some more images from the Grinfactor Gallery at NoDa's Arthouse on Cullman Street.

...in her own skin.

...In Her Own Skin is a celebration genuineness, variety, and beauty. I’m constantly in awe of the variety in which beauty is found. but i'm also intrigued by a lot of the insecurities surrounding the female form, though the source of insecurities are common (sagging breasts, cellulite, stretch marks, weight). I’m looking for female subjects to capture nude for a series I’m creating about beauty and female body image. I want everything - i'm not looking for “ideal”. I especially would like to capture full-figured women, very thin women, older women (40’s 50’s), women in their late 20’s/early 30’s with more than one child, young women (18 – 25), and a woman immediately (within a month) post pregnancy. I don’t have a photo studio, so most of the shoots will be on location (outside) though if that discourages anyone, I’m willing to try to find somewhere indoors to shoot. This project is not erotic. Final images will be flattering and edited - but "flaws" will not be retouched.

Below I’ve posted comments from a critique of the first shoot from the series.

“I knew you were going to have a completely unique approach to this series. I find the "human being just being" vibe expressed through the facial expressions and body language appealing. I love the shots conceptually, the purely playful body language, the irony. I'm left with a feeling that the overall set is expressing discovery and the fact that this discovery isn't based on any self awareness, the feeling of her comfort with her own form is even more apparent. “
–Develon Douglas, photographer

If this sounds interesting, please check out my online portfolio and contact me through the CONTACT tab on my website:
www.chdwck.com