K. Vaughn, his hat and guitar. Promo work for a man who rocks not only the guitar, but the hat.

In the years of covering the Memphis Grizzlies basketball team, I still love it when they do the player intros with the pyro and flames. Sitting on the baseline, you can feel the heat and its fun to watch the opposing team who sometimes have no idea a loud bang with a blast of fire is about to go off – the startled expressions are hilarious.

I post this in honor of the Grizzlies making it .500 with a win over the Washington Wizards (at which this photo was taken)

Recently, I was asked to photograph a University of Memphis Pom-Pon squad member (whose squad recently placed #1 in the nation, thank you) on rather short notice.

So combine some Canon speedlights, sandbags and a parking lot with a very cooperative cheer squad member and you get one of my favorite shots of the evening.

During the lighting setup, I noticed she was lost in thought and this photo captured that moment beautifully.

Needtobreathe brought their brand of gospel and country infused rock to Minglewood Hall in Memphis, TN last week and brought the house down. The brothers Rinehart, Bear (lead signer, guitar) and Bo (guitar) from Possum Kingdom, South Carolina (yes, its a real town) along with Seth Bolt (bass) and Joe Stillwell (drums) put on a show that was as rocking and is was intimate.

Stuck between the crowd and the stage was pretty amazing. Seeing the band play the songs they are known for with fervor and the crowd sing along just as passionately made for one incredible experience. I couldn’t help but find myself singing along as my shutter ripped through the amazing performance going in front of me.

Thanks again to the band and their management for letting me partake in this awesome show.

The rest of the show photos can be found here, thanks for looking!

Trying to find a place to start this post is a bit hard. If you were to Google the words “Prince Mongo” and you’re not from Memphis – you’re in for a shock. For those who live in Memphis, its the simple love or hate affair. He is entertaining to say the least.

Memphis Sport Magazine, who I frequently shoot for asked me to come own to the radio station where they had Robert “Prince Mongo” Hodges as their guest host on the weekly sports radio talk show to get a few photos in the studio.

The hosts of Memphis Sport Live – Kevin Cerrito and Marcus Hunter asked the Prince a range questions from sports to local topics and if you were tuned in, you were entertained. I don’t think I can do the subject matter justice here on my blog, so take a listen for yourself here.

Thanks again for my photography gracing the cover of the magazine, its an honor.

If you were to meet him, you wouldn’t assume anything about him. You would easily understand the demeanor showcased by glasses that frame very studious eyes and not be shocked when he relates that he is a production scientist at St. Judes Children’s Research Hospital. In talking with him, if for any length of time, you will be captivated by his spirit and by the grace in which he tells you his passion for life and his community. The passion that seems to gently steer you away from what you thought you knew about him to what lies beneath the eyes to his heart.

I am proud to announce a project that has been locked away in my heart and head for years now – Why I Skate. As a photographer and artist I have been slowly letting this idea incubate for a long time. A project that would take my adolescent love for skateboarding and its culture and combine it with a mixed-media presentation of still photography with video. In the recent years I have been unsure how to present this project in a way that hasn’t already been done. Then I met Air Shafer and everything fell into place.

Though this project is in the pre-production phase, I am excited to share this journey – Why I Skate.

I want to give a special shout out of thank to Jeff and The Rock Sugar Band for the privilege of the photo pass, the band was awesome. You can see the full Rock Sugar set here and the Scorpions set here.

When a photographer is asked for some dramatic hair, there’s plenty of interpretations and many ways to go about it. Fans, flips, good ol’ fashion head bangin’ and often about 10 – 20 frames to get the “one”. I was lucky enough to get “it” with one frame. We took several and I want to thank Christine for enduring the process, but we ended choosing our first take.

Christine, your ice pack is on me!

It’s a popular phrase among portrait photographers, and Kim is a perfect example. Another popular phrase is “the eyes have it” – need I say more? It was beautiful working with Kim.

Theres a group of guys that I know that get together for every MMA/UFC fight on pay-per-view. It’s a pretty intense sport, that usually involves blood and while I consider myself a tough dude, I still wouldn’t want to step into the ring with my subject here, Nina.

Nina is a local Memphis MMA fighter and from what I have seen, she packs a mean punch. Great job Nina, its a pleasure to work with you!