Sunday, April 25, 2010

Karl Rove Ignites Audience at UT


Leading Republican politcal strategist Karl Rove spoke at the Texas Union Ballroom in an event hosted by College Republicans monday night. Rove is lauded for his poltical ingenuity but criticized for what many consider unethical behavior throughout the many administrations he has worked for.


Code Pink member Heidi Turpin yells in dissent during Karl Rove’s speech moments before she is removed by police from the Texas Union Ballroom.

Vintage Car Round Up, South Congress Ave.





Polo at Magic Hour


Kocian washes her horse in a stable adjacent to the playing field following practice. The UT polo team will host their Spring Invitational fundraiser on April 24 at Rio Vista Farms Equestrian Center in Dell Valle and will play a match against the Dallas Polo Club.



Kocian gallops alongside the edge of UT’s polo field at Rio Vista Farms Equestrian Center in Del Valle during practice. Kocian, the vice president and captain of the women’s UT Polo Team has 12 years of riding experience and has spent the past year and a half learning to play polo.


Kim Kocian instructs Christine Achico and members of the UT polo team to canter, a controlled three-beat gait, as she critiques their form. Though Kocian grew up in cities across America, her passion for riding remained constant.

April Photos





APD Sgt. Keith Bazzle prepares for a brief press conference following a bank robbery at a Wells Fargo on Guadalupe St. The incident was Austin’s 8th robbery of the year and the 3rd robbery in four months for the bank.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Monday, March 8, 2010

Portraits of a Legend: Eli Reed, Magnum Photographer





http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=XSpecific_MAG.PhotographerDetail_VPage&l1=0&pid=2K7O3R133SSV&nm=Eli%20Reed


"How far will human beings go before they find out what it means to be a human being?" - Eli Reed, a true inspiration.

There photos were taken to accompany a phenomenal story written by Gerald Rich.

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/top-stories/through-the-lens-of-a-visual-storyteller-1.2186728

Tyler Krasowski and Megan Chambers stand on their East Austin porch on a grim March morning.

At the New Hope Missionary Baptist Church on Monday, the first day of the week of prayer for the healing of AIDS, Carlos Carter, an Austin resident and activist living with HIV listens to Tracy Jones discuss the impact of HIV/AIDS on the black community. “If I know one person who is suffering with HIV or AIDS, that means I’m suffering with HIV and AIDS,” Jones said. “We need to understand when one of us suffers, we all suffer.” The prayer group will meet at noon daily until Friday, March 12.


Mike Harris bows his head in prayer for victims of AIDS at the New Hope Baptist Church.


Five members of the Austin community came to the New Hope Baptist Church on Monday morning for what they hoped would be a community conversation.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Balmorhea



Last December I had the pleasure of photographing one of Austin's most dynamic bands, Balmorhea. I shot portraits of one of the guitarists, Michael Muller, a month earlier. He liked my pictures enough to return to Red Bud Island for another round of photography.

Rob Lowe, Michael Muller, Aisha Burns, Travis Chapman and Nicole Kern. They are fantastic musicians and wonderful individuals.

http://www.myspace.com/balmorhea

Graduation


An Israeli cadet greets her mother outside of Bahad Ehad military base before the graduation ceremony. Graduating from an officer’s training course is often more appreciated than finishing high school.


A soldier converses with a friend from her guard post on the second floor of army base Bahad Ehad.


750 cadets stand at attention during a graduation ceremony at the Bahad Ehad military base. Soldiers trained for three months to complete a preliminary officer’s course before graduating to another base where they will train in their specialized field.


Soldiers prepare for the graduation ceremony. They are disciplined to always look their best when not in combat uniform.


An Israeli soldier climbs the steps to the on base synagog an hour before the graduation ceremony.


An Israeli army soldier sits along the walls of the base prior to the ceremony.


GRADUATION

Straight out of high school, American teenagers receive a diploma. Israelis receive a gun. To Israeli citizens, enlistment is not a matter of choice; it is a facet of their culture known since birth. The army is as familiar to them as college is to high school graduates.

On Jan. 20, hundreds of Israeli soldiers anxiously wait to march onto the ceremonial grounds of Bahad Ehad, a military base dedicated to training officers. The afternoon graduation is the culmination of three months of grueling training meant to prepare soldiers for positions of leadership.

Soldiers are ecstatic because they did not have to run today. Before the ceremony, one Navy cadet helps a friend straighten the collar of his wrinkled uniform. Another soldier fixes her boyfriend’s beret. A group of religious soldiers dance and chant in celebration.

Regardless of cultural and regional conflicts, the narrative of the Israeli army is a coming-of-age story similar to the American college experience.

Before a crowd of thousands, the soldiers stand proudly at attention, their lives forever shaped by the discipline, moral code and camaraderie they will carry into their future.

- Tamir Kalifa

Aaron Williams - Director of the Peace Corps


Peace Corps director Aaron Williams, center, speaks with former colleague Samuel Scott, right, and volunteer Ben Freelom, who served in Guatemala from 2007 to 2009, following a moderated interview at the Etter-Harbin Alumni Center.



Bonnie Drenik, a Peace Corps volunteer in Bulgaria from 2003 to 2005, listens to Corps director Aaron Williams at the Etter-Harbin Alumni Center.

Neko Neko Photoshoot








Today I had the pleasure of photographing a talented group of young lads from Houston, TX. Jono Foley, Harrison Smith, Derek Beck and Trevor Smith. They are NEKO NEKO FILMS. I shot them on assignment for The Daily Texan; however, we happen to be best buds and I live with the ugly bastard on the left.

http://www.nekonekofilms.com/Neko_Neko_Films/Home.html

Check them out. They will make you laugh.