5.1.24One Stop ShopShe wanted a bottle of rose to drink on the porch this evening.

5.2.24The Last ScoutsTravis’ new band, The Last Scouts, played their inaugural show at MOTR tonight. They did a solid 45 minutes and sounded awesome. The stage was tight and getting photos of Travis was tricky, but I managed to optically scooch between the frontmen for a few Trav-focused frames.Looking forward to their next show at the Oxford Wine & Craft Beer Festival on June 1.

5.3.24Brendan’s Night OutBrendan and Caitlynn are getting married in 8 days. The girls went out and did karaoke, so we went out with Brendan for a short photo walk, Camp Washington Chili pizza at Taglio (to die for), and drinks at Level One (formerly 16-Bit) to wrap up the evening. It’s impossibly hard to get a crisp image without resorting to unimaginable grain in an arcade, but Adobe Denoise worked its magic and turned out a decent version of this image.

5.4.24Backyard RompsKiran’s 8th birthday is today. To celebrate, everyone came down to our house for a backyard gathering complete with pizza, fizzy drinks, and a pinata filled with candy for the birthday girl.I was so concerned about having everything in place, I didn’t take many photos. The pinata was strung on a string at the end of a pole that I held up, so I couldn’t get any photos of that, either. I did capture this sweet moment where Esmeray, Kiran, and my mom were playing together, though.

5.5.24De Mayo of the Cinco VarietyFor Cinco de Mayo, we walked down to Los Potros and dined/drank on their exquisite patio. For the first time ever, it was nearly full—a phenomenon I haven’t personally seen this restaurant experience. The energy was much improved with people around.Afterward, we walked a little further into Dayton before casually making our way to the B-List for a night cap (or two).

5.6.24Don’t Get Up, Myrt“I’m not getting out of this bed unless the promise of cheese or throwing ball is on the table.”

5.7.24Shoot Before the StormI had to photograph two Airbnb units in Ludlow today. While there, I got an alert that the weather was about to take a turn; a huge storm with a bright red front on the radar was incoming. My car was parked two blocks away and it didn’t look like I was going to finish before it hit my location, so I went and moved the car right up behind the building in the alley just beyond the door you see in this image. It wasn’t exactly a proper parking spot, but I took a chance anyway.Just as the final frames were in motion, I looked west out of the window and saw a navy blue wall of clouds in the distance. Lightning and thunder began, and the window of time I had to finish was just about up. As I loaded my gear into the car mere feet from the door, rain began pouring in buckets. The drive home was chaotic and slow with visibility not much greater than a single block in some instances.

5.8.24From Shanghai to OhioFrom Shanghai to Ohio: Woo Chong Yung opened tonight at the Cincinnati Art Museum to a small, intimate crowd. There were four performances beforehand, one of which involved this sword master.

5.9.24Ronny and EgyptA portrait of Ronny and Egypt in front of what remains of the mural on the side of Holiday Spirits.

5.10.24Good LightAfter visiting Studio Kroner for Brad Davis’ art show, I saw this scene across the street and thought it was photogenic.

5.11.24Calm Before the PartyWe stopped by The Lodge in Dayton, KY this morning to check out a pop-up farmer’s market. I dug the eclectic decor on the way out the door.Tonight is Caitlyn and Brendan’s wedding. It’s going to be a load of fun with good friends. Cannot wait to celebrate.

5.12.24Legendary HangoverThis grainy image taken at 12x on my iPhone from within a moving vehicle is the best I can do in my current state. I am extremely nauseous and want to lie still for an eternity. However, it’s Mother’s Day, and I have a mother to visit. Apparently, if you combine an open bar with endless cabernet and friends getting married, I have no choice but to let loose and over-indulge.The wedding was so fun. I don’t remember getting home or anything about the end of the night, but everything leading up to it was incredible.While on the way to mom’s house—with Ashley at the wheel and a 5-gallon bucket wedged between my legs—I saw this blimp.

5.13.24CNU Yard PartyCongress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Cincinnati this week, and to kick off the festivities, Yard & Co. hosted a party at its headquarters on Pleasant Street. I was originally scheduled to photograph two of the three days of CNU’s events, but about an hour before I went to photograph this party for Yard, I received an email from them saying they “accidentally hired someone else” and that I wouldn’t be needed. So now I have two days open with no work this week.I’ll keep my real opinion about working with CNU out of print, but all I’ll say here is that I won’t be working with them again.

5.14.24XTREME FASHIONSI don’t know if there’s an architectural term for it, but I love how this corner shop has a little detached display case in lieu of a structural pillar with a walkway separating it from the front door. It’s xtremely unique and fun.

5.15.24Building a MountainHad to go to Home Depot for something and stopped to marvel at the colossal mound of dirt across the highway.

5.16.24DahliaWork took me to an early-childhood school in Anderson where I was tasked with capturing the way adorable little kids play on the playground for a creative agency. It’s not something I’m used to doing, but I treated it like any other event and the photos turned out nicely, I think. I shouldn’t share any of those images here for privacy reasons, but rest assured I got about 10 frames out of the hundreds that I took that I think are great. It’s hard to keep them in focus, but it’s not difficult to capture pure, innocent joy. Super thankful I got to work on that project.So here’s a freshly watered dahlia in my backyard instead.

5.17.24Evening SurpriseIn January, a large tree fell in our neighbor’s side yard. I documented it in this daily photo project at the time (the date was the 13th), and despite crews cleaning up the street that weekend, the bulk of the tree lay across the public steps for months afterward. It screamed, “We cannot possibly impede people turning around on this dead-end street in their cars, but everyone who uses the sidewalk and steps can be patient.” It's not a great look for the city, to be honest.Anyway, that was winter. It’s late spring now. As the sun’s arc slowly changes as the year wears on, so do the highlights and shadows in my home.We used to get sun through this amber-colored window on the steps in the morning when the sun would illuminate the alley. Now that the tree in the neighbor’s side yard is gone, we get a glorious encore in the evening. It’s so beautiful to me.My mood has always been susceptible to change based on the lighting in the room I’m in. This is like a concentrated injection of serotonin straight into whatever lobe of my brain is feeling poorly at the moment.

5.18.24Perennial EventThis morning, the vacant lot across the street from my house hosted an awesome pop-up. Local artist Devan Horton assembled a seed planting and painting event that included coffee, art, live music, and local plants for sale.She infused paper with flower seeds before the event, and people would paint whatever they wanted before planting the seeds in the lot. I used to try my best to maintain this vacant lot in past years, but I was the only one doing it and couldn’t keep it up. I’m so glad someone else took some initiative and got permission to do something with it.I popped down for a coffee, and Ashley painted/planted. We sat on the porch from 9 AM to 4 PM, enjoying the festivities. It was a treat to listen to music and wave to neighbors (and meet new ones) so close to home. If I'm honest, I would love to see this lot programmed regularly.

5.19.24FPV FlyingSteve needed to practice flying an Avata 2 drone, so we went to Devou Park, found a quiet spot, and fired it up. He needs to master it before a job in June for a big client. The benefit of an FPV drone is how precise it can be flown, allowing dynamic and fast recording from perspectives only tiny drones can offer.To practice precise flying, he flew it between our legs a few times, around tree trunks, and between us as we sat at a picnic table. If I were ever to get a drone and acquire a license, I think I’d like one of these. They’re so small and easy compared to other drones.

5.20.24Seminary SquareFrom a real estate shoot in Seminary Square today. There were two lovely cats and a good dog inside.

5.21.24Pendleton SliceThe morning was surprisingly sweltering for spring. I went out to photograph murals for ArtWorks and snapped this photo on the way back to my car.

5.22.24Planning StageWe’re planning a New England vacation this August. This first stop is Boston. I spent hours looking stuff up and figuring out what we could do in a day and a half there before realizing that a return trip was required. There’s no way to even remotely scratch the surface of a city that size in such a short amount of time.We went to a wine tasting at Merchant’s Club later in the evening. Our planning efforts followed.

5.23.24B&W ModeNikon put a B&W option on the mode dial of the Nikon Zf (full frame version). Figuring I'd use it once and dismiss it as gimmick, I was thoroughly surprised when I didn't want to stop using it. Especially on overcast days, seeing images in monochrome as they're snapped kind of wedged a new layer of vitality into photography for me. The best part: if shooting RAW, images retain all color info behind the preview, so if you decide you want to re-colorize them, you can.Due to this novelty, I’ll probably be posting more B&W images.

5.24.24Sunset on the August FerryWe took the ferry from Higginsport over to Augusta tonight to eat and drink at Beehive Tavern. We didn’t have to take the ferry, but it was a picturesque evening on the water and seemed like a fun idea. After arriving on the southern shore minutes before one of the last rides of the evening, I turned to face the boat one more time and snapped a photo of others loading up to head north.

5.25.24The Ripley SticksLast night, we went to Augusta, and today, we went out to Ripley—a relatively tiny blip in the sticks in Ohio. Vince co-owns a farm out there with acres of land, some of which is shrouded in forest. We packed up our camping gear, loaded Myrtle into the car, and ventured out over grassy hills until we found our spot at the edge of the woods. We met up with Vince and Chelsea, set up camp, placed fold-out chairs around the fire, and began slamming Pacificos like we’d just returned from war.Homemade burgers eventually made their way to our plates, followed by brownies. We saw loads of stars and a rising moon that looked bigger and more orange than usual. By midnight, we were all tired enough to climb into our tents, fire up the battery-operated fan for white noise and air circulation, and saw logs until morning.

5.26.24Hidden Rot-GutAfter waking up in the woods, we boarded a UTV to explore the area further and check out some different vantage points. With Vince at the wheel, we snaked around the property, exploring the ruins of 1800s single-room schoolhouses, secluded hand-built log cabins, and other areas of interest.At one point, we came upon an old stone carving engraved with a crow that almost resembled a tall headstone. Though it wasn’t to mark a person's grave, it was a marker to remember a fellowship of forest lovers. At the base of the marker was a stone box with a flat rock on top. Vince lifted the rock, revealing a deep cavity with an old bottle of bourbon bearing a weathered label.“We all know this is here,” Vince said, talking about everyone who co-owns the property. Even still, the look of the bourbon and the condition of the bottle didn’t fill me with confidence that it was potable. Vince proved me wrong, however.He unscrewed the cap, carefully eased the bottle back, took a swig, and blinked at the ground a few times while holding back a grimace. He returned the bottle to its hiding spot, hopped back aboard the UTV, and we headed back to the campsite.He suffered no ill effects from the drink.

5.27.24OverlookAfter returning from our overnight in the country, I felt the urge to enjoy urbanity from the comfort of my bike. With no destination and impulsively choosing when and where to go as I approached every corner, I eventually found myself bypassing the blockade at the top of the Brighton Approach and riding down as far as possible to this point. I’d never gotten a photo of this place before tonight.

5.28.24Porch CatsThis B&W mode on the Nikon Zf is too fun. I haven’t shot many color images lately as a result. This novelty may pass sooner than later, but I’m enjoying it while it lasts. It just makes viewing the world a little weirder; familiar things look and feel different in real time, adding a level of freshness I didn’t realize I needed until I saw it. Seeing these scenes through the EVF in B&W is even better than the stills themselves. There’s just something special about it.Monochrome cats, unsurprisingly, look great in monochrome.

5.28.24Peeking ThroughDown by the tracks, from the public steps.

5.29.24Portrait of a DoodleHad a hard day today. Lost my biggest client due to them pivoting away from what I was working on in favor of something less labor intensive. Stuff they can do on their own. It’s not a good feeling. But there’s a possible portrait job on the horizon that I’m aiming for, and it requires some pretty dramatic lighting, so I tested out a new setup in my basement to see if I could make it work. Taking my own portrait is difficult, so I had fluff ball sit in for me. I like doing this style of bold, color-rich, contrast-y portraits. They feel very late-90s to me.

5.30.24Paddock Hills MuralPhotographed for ArtWorks.

5.31.24Practice Makes PortraitMore portrait practice, this time on people! Erica (pictured) and others stood in for a few snaps so I could figure out the lighting for this possible upcoming gig. I would normally move the key light to fill more of the face, but the example image they provided was lit more like this.