[chit chat]on the other side of the lens

I am home now and trying to remember the events of the third day. It’s quite honestly a blur. Workshops are so intense: the relationships, the discussions, the image making. What I do remember is a fantastic discussion with my group in the morning, a lunch at the local burger joint, an enlightening conversation with Carlan, and meeting some great people sitting on the boat in the bayou. After all that, we took a two trip into the darkness of the bayous and looked for alligators. What a day.

What a day. We started out early this morning and headed to Fred’s in Mamou to listen to great Cajun music. The music club opens every Saturday (and is open only on Saturday) at 8 am and fills up gradually, until it’s completely full at 10 am. It was wild. Harley Davidson riders, retired tourists, buses of locals and a handful of regulars.

Then, we headed to Eunice and listened to an impromptu jam session of musicians. I had the opportunity to sit in the center of the musicians and I just closed my eyes and felt the music seep through every part of my body. It was the most moving experience and the highlight of my day. After a meal, we headed to a place where they race horses and buggies. Something I have never seen before. I ended talking more to the spectators than watching the horses.

The last stop of the day was a cajun dance hall. I was getting to the point of being tired, but managed to pull off some images. The ones posted here are from throughout the day, but are from my digital. My film will be ready in the morning…

Last night was the first night of the workshop. Every time I land in Louisiana, I am always struck by the unique culture here. It’s certainly a place of it’s own. The food, the people, the way of life. Unfortunately, just like in the rest of America, big box stores and the homogenization of culture is slowing eroding the fabric of this area.

It was an early morning with a 6:30 flight out of Madison. Once in Baton Rouge, I need to drive over to Breaux Bridge – a good part of the ride was on one the longest bridges anywhere – 20 miles through the bayous. It was at times an unnerving experience since there was no real escape or way to get off it.

I arrived at Debbie’s rambling southern house at 6 p.m. and was greeted by an amazing group of people. There are seven of us in the workshop – hailing from California, Colorado, Arizona, New York and Philadelphia. All of us are from different backgrounds, but there is one thing we do have in common: the love and desire to create images. After getting to know each other for awhile, we enjoyed a fabulous meal of gumbo, potatoes and banana pudding. Then, a dance lesson of zydeco let us burned off some calories!

Our day started at before 8 o’clock with a boat ride through the bayous. Many people used to live in houseboats, but today, with the rise of gasoline prices, it’s cheaper to live on the land. There were a few houseboats here and there, but for the most part, the bayou is an stunning vast, empty landscape of majestic cypress trees. These large trees were like statues dipping their feet in the water. Delicate, yet strong.

When I click the shutter, I can only hope that my images capture the fragility and tranquil beauty of this landscape.

Sunday was a day beyond words. My day started at 9:45 when I arrived at Olin House, the Chancellor’s residence. I greeted and passed the chancellor on the way into the house as she was leaving for the day. It took my brain a few seconds to connect her face and the fact that this is her home, as well as a place for special events like this.

Once inside, my equipment was inspected by the UW Police officers and then I was given a quick tour of what was about to happen. My responsibility at the house was to capture the preparations for the luncheon with the Dalai Lama, Governor and Chancellor. After about an hour, Heather arrived and I took her cab to the Overture Center to capture the events as they unfolded before the curtain rose. The line of people waiting to get tickets, the making of the slideshow, the security, the writing on the cards – those were the parts I was documenting. Eventually, the children’s choir arrived, the governor, and His Holiness arrived.

All this time, I was trying to absorb what was happening and telling myself that this is an incredible moment. The presence of the Dalai Lama is incredible and the energy in the theatre was so peaceful.

Of course, over the course of the day I took 700+ images and there are many moments to be shared. But since I can’t put them all on the blog, I just decided to post a few overview images and those show part of the story…the luncheon preparations, children’s choir practicing, writing on the cards*, the discussion and His Holiness.

And lastly, a big, big thank you to Mike and Heather Krakora for letting me be their assistant for the day. It’s been about five years since I worked for Mike (or any photographer, for that matter) and it was really nice to be a part of a team.

* All the guests were invited to participate in the discussion and were encouraged to complete the sentence – “Imagine if…”. Before the show, a slideshow was continually being updated with the responses.

As I sit at the computer and do production work (which is often), it’s easy to forget the amazing opportunities, and even more amazing people I have met, because of what I do. I’ve been behind the scenes of ballets, on the streets of parades getting candy thrown on top of me, and in the middle of muddy farm fields.

Well, tomorrow another very cool experience is about to happen and the butterflies in my stomach are starting to grow bigger. I’ll be part of a photographic team for the grand opening of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds and the visit of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. As an assistant to my good friends, Mike and Heather Krakora, I’ll be at various locations during the event capturing the little details. The significance of this event is starting to sink in and I am equally nervous and excited!