Wide Prime

Jer's Barbershop, Choteau

2009-11-19T16:25:00.001-08:00

Backcountry Hunting, Sun Canyon

2009-11-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

Game Check Station, Augusta

2009-11-19T15:45:00.000-08:00

Ron the Taxidermist

2009-11-15T10:00:00.000-08:00

Ron's been hunting and doing taxidermy for over 50 years. He's got quite the collection. Its not like thats his prize corner or something either. Every corner of the room is like that. Its crazy. He's been hunting all over the world including Mongolia and Alaska. Ron was kind enough to come over for some portraits yesterday afternoon. I was pleasantly surprised that he was well informed about Tiger conservation. He said, its such a shame that the chinese have those old folk beliefs about tigers, because they are the most beautiful animal in the world. Coming from Ron, I think thats definitely worth something.

Words of Wisdom from Augusta, MT

2009-11-10T18:28:00.000-08:00

Huntville, USA

2009-11-10T18:21:00.001-08:00

Speaking of hunting. I spent some time in Augusta, MT today on my way back from the bull riding competition in Helena. This was the most hunting oriented town I've ever been to, at least in my limited hunting town experience. It was amazing. I talked with people who moved there from the east coast simply because the hunting was good. I'll have to revisit on the weekend sometime when the hunters really come out.

Fishing in Columbia Falls

2009-11-09T13:35:00.000-08:00

Hunting Season

2009-11-08T16:29:00.000-08:00

Hunting season is a real big deal around here. Its sort of hard to tell whether hunting camouflage is everyday fashion or if about a quarter of people I see are going to or returning from hunting outings. Camo succeeds in either hiding or distinguishing a person depending on where they are. But surely this buck was not a fashion accessory. A trophy of sorts though until returning home.

Waiting on the Boys

2009-11-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Get back on the Bull

2009-11-07T14:18:00.000-08:00

I'm at a miniature bull riding competition in Helena MT to photograph a couple of Blackfeet kids who are competing. I'm holding back from posting stuff from that project, but here are a couple of others.

I'm not saying this with any moral opinion here, but I've never witnessed something so potentially terrifying to a young kid in my life than bull riding. At one point the announcer said jokingly something along the lines of mini-bull riding is a Montana approved form of child abuse.

This kid was pretty darned scared to get on the bull. He hesitated for a long while, but after some encouragement from his pops, decided to go for it. What followed was pretty brutal. The kid got flung all over the place by the bull, tangled up, thrown off and then got his arm stomped on. Sometimes the bull will continue flailing around after the rider has been thrown to the ground, at which point generally about 10 cowboy dads all rush out and pile on top of the bull together. Its quite a site, and it shows how protective the dads are albeit in their cowboy way. The picture to the right is from after the ride. I talked to the kid's father a bit, and he said that he'll will probably ride again tonight. Wow.

For the most part, the kids seemed to love it, in addition to the parents, so I think its cool. It did definitely make me aware of the still 'tough' values of neo-frontier life.

Along Highway 2

2009-11-06T23:49:00.001-08:00

Tibetan Buddhist Cows Grazing in Montana

2009-11-02T01:42:00.000-08:00

'Fall' is Code for 'Winter' in Northern Montana

2009-11-02T01:29:00.000-08:00

And so is spring. Which means that winter lasts for about 9 months a year. Well, actually spring is like the last two weeks of June. Fall is the first two weeks of September. You can figure out the rest.

Red Eagle Trail

2009-10-25T23:37:00.000-07:00

I used to hike the Red Eagle trail in Glacier NP a lot before a huge fire transformed the landscape it walks through. And I've continued to hike it since the burn. It doesn't even feel like the same place (wish I had before and after photos). I can't really say I have a preference for either one. Before it was one of those inviting idealic forests you could get lost in and yet somehow feel reassured and nurtured by the trees themselves. Now the forest edge is like a curt and opaque statement from the inhuman world. One that says you may live here, but it hasn't been for that long, it may not be for that much longer, and it was never your place alone to begin with.

Been reading a lot of Cormac Mccarthy lately. Can you tell? LOL.

The Big Bigness

2009-10-25T23:25:00.000-07:00

The Less Wild West

2009-10-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

Roadside Refuse

2009-10-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

Bearcentric

2009-10-17T12:54:00.001-07:00

I love how bearcentric Montana is. Every time a bear related event happens anywhere, the montana papers pick up the story from the wires. However, the small town papers generally have enough bear related news that they don't have to pick up anything from the wire. The picture below, from the barber shop in Choteau, shows a bear who by accidently jumped into a basement as he tried to run away from the owner of the house. Poor guy.

Diner/Dino '09

2009-10-15T21:30:00.000-07:00

We finished up our Dino/Diner roadtrip. We had wraps stuffed with veggies and smoothies with real fruit for our first non-diner meal in almost 10 days. Detox time. That was a great trip. Now for some serious editing to make a little sense of it all.

A Dino in Progress

2009-10-10T22:08:00.000-07:00

Some thoughts part way into the Dino/Diner roadtrip:

--its hard to show the inherent interrelatedness of dino's and diner's (even if it is indubitable:)

--I repeatedly have to remind myself that these surreal giant lizard things actually roamed our same planet earth

--thinking about Dino's give's me the strange and humbling feeling that human beings are just a blip in time

--having this broad historical timeline in mind gives me a sort of absurdist appreciation for human culture, quirks, drama, triumph, struggle, joy etc.

--looking for ways to cast characters we meet along the way as absurdist heros living on the same unfathomable timeline as Dino's

--This October in Montana feels like February in most other states

--Eating from 'greasy spoons' every meal is sort of intoxicating and invites lunacy

--even the cheapest hotels are luxurious after sleeping in the car for a week and a half of below freezing nights

--rural Montana inspires much curiosity (What do people do out here? What do people do anywhere?)

--the sky really is inexplicably big out here. yes, even bigger than it is in your state.

--cold weather road trips are a completely different activity from warm weather road trips

--both are good activities

--I've managed to get myself into a rather difficult project that I have no idea if anyone would be interested in

--a good absurdist venture, no?

We are all Dinos

2009-10-07T08:08:00.000-07:00

Some of you might remember this post about the eternal relevance and coolness of dinos, and the necessity for taking a road trip to document dino things and eat diner things. Well, my friend Brendan and I have begun our pilgrimage in ernest. So far we've driven along the east side of the rockies from St. Mary to Bozeman, and we've yet to visit our first open dino museum. The first three sites were closed for the season, so we were left outside in the cold wind to admire the newly frosted dino statues in near site-seeing solitude. I've begun to wonder whether Americana--with its BBQ's, County Fair's, roadside tourist traps, and tractor parades--isn't somewhat seasonal itself. Don't most American's choose the warmer months to bask in their own shamelessly cheesy national icons and traditions?

Luckily, for us, the answer is no. Americana is not seasonal. Diner's are open year round. They serve chicken fried steak in August as well as October. Those overly well rounded egg based breakfast dishes surrounded by meat and potatoes, are available on warm july sundays after church, and as respite from shoveling snow in February. Most of the time you can even order them in the evenings.

And from what we can tell, the rest of the dino sites on our itinerary are open for the public edification all year. Thank goodness. The dino/diner roadtrip will continue, and provided I find an internet connection, I'll be posting about it here. Great to be back in these united states.

Seafood Restaurant

2009-09-20T03:40:00.000-07:00

We stopped for seafood on the way back to medan from leuser national park. This is a picture of the servers at the restaurant as business wound down for the night. I couldn't help but to think about the park cafe in montana where I was working at the beginning of the summer to support my blackfeet youth project. Winding through the rocky mountain foothills on my way to St. Mary I was charged with excitement--about the freedom of summer, pursuing my own project and big sky country--but most of all because I had no idea what was in store for the coming months. What people would I meet/photograph? What experiences would I have and how would they effect me? The uncertainty of what would happen next--thats what had me going.

Three months later, and its funny to think just how little certainty I did have. I feel a lot like I've been living someone else's life for the last few months. Or due to the fragmented nature of our trip, more like I've been living many other people's lives. haha.

The airport pictures and the road series that I've been working on have sort of been a way to express that feeling of being 'all over the place', but in no particular place. There's a sense of mutual anonymity I feel between myself and the people I'm photographing, since I'm decidedly an observer, rather than a participant in this culture.

I don't really have any conclusions to draw or particular lessons I've learned, but for certain, this trip has changed me. I'm looking forward to returning to the states in a couple of days and I have a feeling that the US is going to look a lot different.

I've posted two sumatra galleries on my website. So far, they are more like first drafts, so I'd love to hear suggestions.

sergegiachetti.com

Banda Aceh to Medan

2009-09-08T05:08:00.000-07:00

Aceh Coastal Road

2009-09-07T20:57:00.000-07:00

Elephant Camp

2009-09-07T07:20:00.000-07:00

Jakarta to Medan

2009-09-03T03:15:00.000-07:00

Asleep, On a Fairy to Java

2009-09-01T09:28:00.000-07:00

Indonesians possess the supernatural power to stretch out, make themselves comfortable, and go to sleep almost anywhere they choose. I deeply admire this. I imagine they must have some natural bodily antiseptic that Americans seem to lack, because surely otherwise they would be afraid of germs. No?

Jakarta Hotel

2009-08-27T22:37:00.000-07:00

The day before yesterday we photographed the aftermath of this. So tragic. Yesterday we followed rangers who were busting illegal loggers and burning their camps down in the jungle. Today I'm quite satisfied to be fiddling around on the internet in a hotel room in Jakartawhile we wait for our visas to be extended.

Jambi Roads

2009-08-27T22:03:00.000-07:00

Errands

2009-08-24T07:41:00.000-07:00

River to Berbak

2009-08-24T06:49:00.000-07:00

Medan Airport

2009-08-19T00:22:00.000-07:00

I have absolutely no desire to see what my carbon footprint is right now.

Visitors

2009-08-16T04:45:00.000-07:00

We spent an afternoon in this beautiful mountain village that had success with tiger proof enclosures for their cattle. Its humorous the crowds we draw who come to gawk and find out what we're up to with our big cameras and foreign faces. Without a shared language, we stare at one another, using our imaginations to connect the dots of our novel appearances.

Most of the children in the village would chatter to and about us in Indonesian, not really expecting to communicate, but for entertainment. But this child below approached me in this very deliberate manner, speaking slowly and looking right into my eyes. I felt on the cusp of comprehending his meaning without understanding his words. His presence was strong enough to express something on its own. Whats strange is that my co worker Gabe (videographer) had the same reaction to him. "He's speaking a different language then the other kids," he exclaimed. And I guess he was...

A Visit to the Village Head

2009-08-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

This picture is from a meeting with the head of a village in his home to discuss recent tiger related conflict. His two daughters were eavesdropping on us from the kitchen.

Sumatran Road Trips

2009-08-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

Been doing a whole lot of driving all over the island over the last couple of weeks following leads, so its given me a chance to continue shooting from the passenger window. I like being able to freeze these very transient moments that would normally pass by my window, and probably slip quickly from memory.

Forest Rangers

2009-08-15T13:32:00.000-07:00

We spent a couple hours at the forestry police department before heading out to shoot pictures of loggers the other day. There was this hilariously modern moment where we were taking pictures of each other taking pictures of each other. So few (western) tourists visit this particular town, that we literally had people stopping us in the grocery store, to pose for a cell phone picture with us.

Still Not in the Jungle

2009-08-03T09:17:00.000-07:00

But if all goes well, we'll be heading there tomorrow. Although we've gotten a couple of chances to photograph human/animal conflict related situations so far, we've yet to really get out into the tigers natural environment to do some work. So far we've gotten caught in one bureaucratic entanglement after another in order to get access to key tiger locations on the island. Steve keeps reminding me, this is why no one has done this story yet. I'm learning more and more that probably about %90 of this job (depending on the story) does not involve taking pictures. Its behind the scenes research and networking that allows you to take the pictures. Although certainly challenging, its all interesting and new to me, so I'm happy to be along for the ride, even if I had to spend three hours in the Medan police department today to walk out with a slip of paper, stamped and signed, that may or may not help us do work in a region somewhat autonomous from the rest of Sumatra.

Drive around Medan

2009-08-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

Photographing from a moving car is not typically something that I find very effective or satisfying. I prefer to spend some time with my subjects or at least have some sort of brief interaction. But somehow driving through the chaotic and unfamiliar streets of Medan, this approach seems like a fitting way to express the sort of cultural distance inherent to traveling to a place like this. I can get physically closer to my subjects; I can talk with them and get a feel for who they are, but ultimately (at this point) what I have are my very limited observations as a foreigner of what this culture looks like. Here's an example of what I've got so far: Sumatrans crouch and sit back on their heels for long periods of time without showing discomfort. This ability I envy, as it allows one to sit nearly anywhere without having anything in particular to sit on. The universal unchair. I'll definitely have to pursue 'the crouch' as a photo investigation. I'll post my findings here...

Repose

2009-08-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the WCS Medan workers that we are involved with for the story (including our new driver at the bottom left). Without furniture, this crew still knows how to relax in a way that seems uncommon in the states.

In and Out of Bangkok

2009-08-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

Bangkok Traffic Cops with Face Masks

2009-08-01T10:20:00.001-07:00

Since its clearly high time that someone did a project on bangkok traffic cops wearing facemasks, I decided to start my own. No, not really….but I suppose I could. But seriously, I must revisit this city and certainly this country. Really dug it.

So Many Flights

2009-08-01T10:11:00.000-07:00

Celebrating Aceh

2009-08-01T10:08:00.001-07:00

These hotel workers were preparing a banner for a local festival in Aceh yesterday morning.

Durian!!!

2009-08-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

We were expecting the truck to be empty so we could load our luggage and head back to the hotel after a long day of convening with scientists and conservation workers. Instead we got Durian. “Whats durian?” you ask. Well as I learned yesterday, Durian is a local fruit, resembling a pineapple, that has mysterious power to effect sheer joy from every Sumatran in its vicinity. Moments after the truck arrived people started emerging from the house, most of whom I had no idea were inside, to get a taste of this strange happy fruit. In no time the driveway was full of laughter, smiles and the type of unabashed joviality that you might see in a coca-cola commercial in the early 90’s. Some workers could be seen slyly stowing durian fruits away for later; others lined up for instant gratification, while we were left to wonder is Durian drugs? One scientist later giddily admitted that he was drunk off Durian, which only deepened our suspicion. We’ll have to do some good sound empirical testing on this one…

The Calm before the Tiger

2009-08-01T09:47:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks into our trip, and I hardly know where to start. We just got back to Sumatra after a week long tiger conference in Thailand, and it looks like we’re finally ready to move on from hotel buffet’s, airport lounges and debates about the best ways to count tigers (scat, tracks, or camera traps?) and we’re ready to get out into the field and take some pictures. We’ve definitely witnessed some exciting (and definitely tragic) moments so far as we’ve chased the tiger’s tail. But since those photos aren’t mine to share, I’m gonna go ahead and post pictures from the many moments that take place between those which will end up on the pages of nat geo sometime in early 2011.
The busy days and constant movement has held back my blogging, but I’ve got plenty of pictures to share, so I’ll start from today and trace backward. These first pictures are from the airport in Bonda Aceh today.

Real Tigers

2009-06-10T11:01:00.000-07:00

This is sort of old news to some of you, since I've know for a couple of weeks, but it looks like I'll be assisting Steve Winter on his project for national geographic documenting Tigers. We'll be headed to Summatra at the beginning of July to photograph the summatran tiger and the culture surrounding the tiger (i.e. its societal threats and allies). There's a list of other places we're slated to travel, which I won't go into just yet, but its pretty much all the places that tigers still live in the wild. Its worth mentioning that I have not been to any of these places, nor have I ever ridden an elephant into the jungle to track tigers, nor have I ever been so excited about something in my life. I'll try to keep you guys posted through this blog as much as possible, although I imagine there won't be many wifi signals floating around in the jungle, so we'll see. Here we go...

More from the Border

2009-06-08T19:06:00.001-07:00

More pictures taken from the border of Glacier National Park and the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Most of the park looks nothing like this. Much more verdant and postcard-worthy, but there was a large fire here (natural causes) a few years ago. Can you believe its snowing in Saint Mary, Montana?

Dinosaurs are so underrated

2009-06-08T18:15:00.000-07:00

Yeah. Sure. Back in pre-school and elementary dinosaurs were all the rage. But whats become of them since? Well I'm here to tell you that Dinosaurs are just as neat and just as awesome as we always thought they were when they first captured our imaginations as little people. Lest we forget once more, my dear friend Brendan and I are hitting the road for a grand Dino-Diner roadtrip to chronicle in word and image the modern day dino. The date of this trip is yet to be determined, but I can tell you that we will be exploring the great american west for traces of dino and dinomania, and we will eat at diners. Many of them. Stay tuned...

New West

2009-05-22T20:24:00.000-07:00

Burnt Forest

2009-05-21T16:20:00.000-07:00

I came across this burnt forest on my way into the park and got sucked in. I think its enchanted...I'm car camping down a dirt road beneath the peak in the top picture. The forest is right on the border between the park and the reservation. I'm thinking about incorporating pictures from the border of the park into my a broader project on the Blackfeet. Any thoughts? P.S. Does it make me a dark person that I find this burnt forest deeply beautiful? lol.

No Place Like this

2009-05-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

....not even Wyoming.
...just plain gitty to be back in Montana.

Don't let this happen to you

2009-05-20T11:03:00.000-07:00

But wait...they were just hanging out at the pump on Monday night....

...but sure enough, on tuesday their car had been appropriated for a gorilla marketing scheme at an auto salvage yard. I've seen it happen all to often...

Love of Diners

2009-05-16T21:16:00.001-07:00

Wyoming
Ohio
Colorado
I love diners. Thats it. But, country diners in particular.

(Hyper) Wildlife

2009-05-14T21:26:00.000-07:00

We are so into our "wildlife" out west, aren't we?

Art Speaking for Itself

2009-05-14T21:11:00.000-07:00

I was so intrigued by the art outside this man's house, that when he came out to chat with me, I didn't even ask him any questions about it. I sort of preferred to be pleasantly mystified about it, and to make up my own stories to explain it. If part of the American dream is to own a home, shouldn't we take up this guy's example and find more unique ways to express ourselves with them besides freshly cut lawns?

The Trifecta!

2009-05-14T21:04:00.000-07:00

Beer, Lei, Bocci. This from my roomate/friend Cheryl's Bday party.

Tango!

2009-05-14T20:54:00.000-07:00

These two again, embodying summer, tango dancing in a gazebo.

Summer in the Mountains: Carbondale, CO

2009-05-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

Spent a few days doing some landscape work up in Carbondale, CO. Even car camping in the parking lot across from the library made me nostalgic for summer in the mountains. So psyched I got to hang out with Justin and Cassandra the 2 lovely folks lying on the lawn above. Justin pretty much embodies perpetual summer--in his attitude certainly, but also because he's spent the past couple of "winters" down in the southern hemisphere, while spending his summers up here.

Field Trip: Rocky Mountain Ghost Town

2009-05-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

Went to this amazing ex-mining town up in the mountains with J and Ben. Country diner, driving down random dirt roads with no agenda, and wandering around ramshackle buildings strumming on the guitar--a great day!

To VisCom or not to VisCom

2009-05-14T19:33:00.000-07:00

I planned to visit Ohio University for about 3 or 4 days to see if I liked it. I ended up staying there for 7, because I figured out that I like it a lot, thanks mainly to the fine specimens of humanity that I met there, some of whom are shown above. Hanging out with these folks reminded me of my college friends so much, that it felt oddly nostalgic. We took a field trip to rural Ohio, ate at the local diner and built not just a sand castle, but a sand civilization. We even had windy theoretical conversations for hours on end, albeit about photography instead of philosophy.

That said, I decided to defer, not b/c I couldn’t imagine myself there, but because I feel compelled to continue work on this native American youth project. I'm now on the Cheyanne River and Pine Ridge reservations in South Dakota to shoot an assignment for the Lakota Language Consortium. After that, up to Montana for the summer and fall. I don't think I'll be posting from my ongoing project, but I’ll make sure to keep the imagery flowing in some capacity. Thanks to anyone who is still paying attention to this slow lurch of a blog :)

New to the Fam

2009-05-10T21:45:00.000-07:00

Over the past month I’ve shared too many cool experiences with great people not to be posting photos. And since I’m in adventure mode again with a working camera, I figure it’d be a good time to start updating this blog again. So, I’m going to do some backtracking to catch up, starting with this picture of one of three new genetically similar members of my extended family (yes, that means triplets).

J & Su

2009-04-08T21:08:00.000-07:00

These are two of my lovely friends in Boulder, Jason and Su. Just FYI, Jason has a great new music blog, where he posts reviews and commentary (and downloads) of some recent indie releases. Besides having great taste in music, J has a real gift for describing what he hears. Check out his blog, and definitely take a listen to Micachu and the Shapes, the subject of his latest post.

Black Hawk

2009-02-28T19:39:00.001-08:00

So, after 3 months I finally got around to sending my camera to canon for repairs, and now its back and fully functioning. To celebrate I took a little photo field trip to Black Hawk, CO. I was curious about black hawk because its a remote mountain town, its the least populated town in the state, and its a former mining boomtown. I also knew that there was supposed to be "a casino" there, but I had no idea that the entire town was pure casino. I walked around for much of the afternoon with a bit of a sick feeling in my stomach from all the debauchery going on in such a beautiful place. Everyone seemed so zombified and oblivious to the mountain scenery surrounding them--they'd come for a different fix. Only about 150 people live there, and yet thousands of visitors flow through everyday to gamble. I find this town pretty interesting, and I'd like to explore it a little more with my camera, but I feel like doing this kind of work involves a little too much soul sickness for me. Also, in the casinos I literally have to shoot from the hip with my arm hiding the camera, so that no one knows I'm shooting. This makes it rather difficult to focus and compose in a deliberate way. The one's above worked out half decently, but I suppose I could get better with this method with some practice.

On a side note, I got an offer to work on an organic farm from mid-March to May in Paonia, CO. I'm psyched. I've always wanted to experience what its like working closely with the land like that and learning more about the food process.

Also, check out my new website edit at sergegiachetti.com if you get the chance. Feels a lot more 'me' then my last portfolio.

Around the Bend

2008-10-22T21:50:00.000-07:00

Oregon Coast: Thea

2008-10-15T00:26:00.000-07:00

Montana Nostalgia

2008-10-14T00:56:00.000-07:00

If you're ever in the area, Polebridge MT is a truly special place. Although at least 1/5 of the town is portrayed within this frame, I assure you its well worth the 15 miles of dirt road it takes to get there. Just to give you an idea of the laid back earthy attitude that permeates the place, my brother and I were taking refuge in the shade of a nearby yard as we waited for a hitch into the NW part of Glacier national park. When the women who lived there walked out on her porch I apologized for sitting on her lawn, to which she responded "if its a good place for you its a good place for me." Wow.
And the baked goods at the mercantile are delectable.

Portland Lowlands

2008-10-13T20:28:00.000-07:00

Feeling blessed with great old and new friends.

Far and Away

2008-10-06T00:42:00.000-07:00

Hello, again. Please excuse my long blog absence. During my month and a half in Glacier National Park, I had very little internet access (rather nice, actually). And to think, I subsisted without constant snacking on those little tidbits of web simululacrum we're all so hooked on. I worked, I walked, I met and photographed interesting people, and I breathed in the bigness of the Montana sky.
My project on the Blackfeet Indian Tribe is still very much a work in progress. I've got pictures to show, but I really don't want to post them out of context on this blog. It looks like I'll be going back to continue work on it next summer, and possibly even this winter. We'll see. Feeling good about the interactions, but less so about the photos. Thats OK.
As for now, I'm on the road again visiting friends. Missoula MT, Bellingham WA, Portland OR (now), Eugene OR, Zion NP UT, Carbondale CO, Boulder CO and back home to Chapel Hill NC. Somehow enamored with the NW in a way that I wasn't when I lived here. Its probably just the people I'm spending time with. Lots of nice moments.

Back to Montana

2008-08-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

In brief: I'm done with my internship in IN, just came off a wonderful roadtrip with my brother toby (shown above catching a hitch in a truck bed in Glacier National Park), and now I'm working at a cafe on the border of the park which I used to work at in college. I'm splitting my time between hiking, working on a project on the nearby Blackfeet Indian Tribe and spending time with the wonderful crew here at the cafe. Oh, and working. That too. This is the good life. I would write more, but internet is $3 per 15 minutes here. So for now I'll just include a couple more pictures.

Dog Show

2008-07-18T22:40:00.001-07:00

At the Zoo

2008-07-07T15:51:00.001-07:00

There's a tube that goes right through the otter tank at the Evansville zoo.

Ruthless...

2008-06-23T22:29:00.000-07:00

but,
he cannot escape his kharma.

Kanna's Fight

2008-06-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

I had a pretty neat assignment over the past couple days to photograph a model who's training to be a mixed martial arts fighter. She's struggled with being hearing impaired from a young age, and she's sees her training as a way to sort of overcome that. A really cool person.

Kid Leisure

2008-06-16T21:27:00.001-07:00

Shadow Chorus

2008-06-16T21:10:00.000-07:00

Grief Camp

2008-06-08T18:36:00.000-07:00

These pictures came from a 2 day long grief camp. It was designed for kids who have lost a family member to get together, share their experiences and to let loose and have fun. I did get some fun pictures, too, and thats what ran in the paper.

Little Dragons

2008-06-04T00:10:00.001-07:00

This is from a photo column I shot and wrote about a tae kwon do class for 4-6 year olds. Actually, it was mainly about the hard-core martial arts instructor who taught the class. "I'm not your baby sitter, I'm your martial arts teacher," he'd tell those little guys. Damn strait. Put 'em in their places.

Buddy Ball

2008-05-31T21:07:00.000-07:00

A couple things: 1) I just finished my multimedia project on Buddy Ball, a T-ball league for kids with special needs. 2) I also just finished my portfolio website. You can find it at sergegiachetti.com
Take it for a spin and let me know what you think. The interface makes it really easy to adjust the site content, so hopefully I'll be replacing and adding content to the site frequently. If you care to to take a peek at my buddy ball piece you can find it on my website under multimedia. After photographing these kids for a few sunday's, I'm hoping to get out there and volunteer to be a Buddy in the next couple of weeks. I already miss going out there.

Safe at Home Base

2008-05-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

Graduation Weekend

2008-05-13T00:45:00.000-07:00

I photographed 3 graduations this weekend, two of them back to back. Fun. Tiring. Good practice for the high school graduations I'll be shooting next week.

Hurdles

2008-05-09T02:36:00.000-07:00

Mattie

2008-05-03T23:13:00.001-07:00

I've got a little mock portfolio setup to show others what I'm thinking about submitting for The Eddie Adams workshop. 100 newish photographers get accepted every year and are treated to an all expenses paid workshop with a lot of tops people in the industry. Feel free to comment if you have preferences on what I should submit. I'll let ya'll know how it goes.

Rain Feature

2008-04-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

Just when I was resigning myself to the idea that I'd have to go back to my editor with a pretty standard umbrella weather picture, this girl with a super cool transparent umbrella walked by. I guess they designed it so that the dome could come right down over your face and you could still see where you're going. This girl was one of those people who seemed ready made to be featured in the newspaper. It turned out that it was her birthday. No hesitation, she said, "well if its going to rain on my birthday, I guess I'll dance it." How cool is that?!

A Hula Natural

2008-04-26T18:43:00.000-07:00

This kid was a total hula natural. He spun 7 hoops at once, and he just picked it up for the first time. And since his name is Jordan, I'm gonna go ahead and say that he's the Jordan of Hula-Hooping.
...................
Correction: After further research, it has become clear to me that she, and not Jordan, is the true "Jordan of Hula-Hoop."

Peripheral Primaries

2008-04-23T23:52:00.001-07:00

Yeah, at this point, thats how I feel about the primaries too.
Or, like this.
But, I'll end on a more hopeful note.

Where's Waldo: Deluxe Photographer Edition

2008-04-22T22:22:00.000-07:00

This from tonight's Obama rally in Evansville. Funny story from tonight: about half way through Obama's speech a reporter who was doing video came up to me urgently asking for one of my memory cards, so I gave her one that I hadn't used yet from my pocket, thinking that she had run out of memory. After the speech I went back to the Courier table where my editor was submitting remotely from a laptop. He asked me why there was no Obama pictures on the card that the reporter had retrieved from me. What I thought was a request for a card to use, was actually a request for Obama pictures to update the website with. Whats funny, is that while there certainly wasn't any Obama pictures on the card, there was some left over personal shots, such as my photo collage panorama of sauteed veggies.
A couple weeks back while cooking up some fresh vegetables I couldn't help but notice how pretty the vegetables looked, partly sliced red, green and yellow peppers splayed out across my wooden cutting board, with some already in the black pan (you're just going to have to trust me on that one). So I took like a 40 small macro shots of different portions of the scene, to eventually combine into one large photo collage to put on my wall. The thought of my editor frantically looking for Obama pictures to post online, only to find dozens of arty macro shots of sliced veggies just makes me laugh.

Clowning

2008-04-17T23:08:00.001-07:00

As I've mentioned to some of you, this job tosses you into some pretty strange and otherworldly situations. I count bowling with clowns as such a situation. Trying to have an earnest conversation with a clown in character can be a little tricky (not quite as tough as mascots), but engaging in an activity for a couple hours with like 6 clowns is a different matter entirely. So, instead I just did as clowns do, and celebrated with gusto, acted deeply dismayed at small failures, and just generally smiled a lot. I had a great time and even got an honorary clown nose on my way out (I wasn't even going to try to say no to a clowns nose). I got invited to go out to dinner with the group, but unfortunately I was on deadline. Next time, right.

Playground

2008-04-08T21:54:00.001-07:00

Chicago: Under the Bean

2008-03-17T10:08:00.001-07:00

Whew...after roughly 2 1/2 months of visiting friends and family across the country, I'm finally getting settled in for my new internship at The Evansville Courier & Press in Indiana. Thanks so much to all you generous people who helped put a roof over my head and for your excellent company. As I just rented out a new apartment, I'd be glad to return the favor for anyone who might pass through the area (or if you just want come visit me in E-ville). My new address is: 950 S. Spring St. Apt. C, Evansville, IN 47714. (My apartment is in the house with 2 red cars parked outside the garage.)

Chicago: Evan Online

2008-03-17T10:00:00.001-07:00

NYC: Park Trees

2008-03-17T09:59:00.001-07:00

NYC: MOMA

2008-03-17T09:58:00.001-07:00

NYC: Subway Moves

2008-03-17T09:54:00.001-07:00

NYC: Chris

2008-03-02T16:58:00.000-08:00

Chapel Hill: Courtney

2008-02-25T22:25:00.000-08:00

Chapel Hill: Toby

2008-02-25T22:22:00.001-08:00

Chapel Hill: Pidgeon

2008-02-18T23:05:00.001-08:00

Chicago: O'hare

2008-02-17T23:19:00.000-08:00

Chicago: Skyline

2008-02-14T13:56:00.001-08:00

Chicago: In the Field (Museum)

2008-02-11T00:29:00.000-08:00