The shoot was a week full of non-stop photography, good food, friends and not-a-small-amount of adult relaxation aids (you know what I mean). We had a great time shooting the Polaroids (even though they’re now Fuji instant images) for the nostalgic opening spread of the feature. And, as much as I’d like to take credit for all those images, the whole crew (creative director Michael McCormick, photo director Zoey Sless-Kitain and assistant and Bro-seph-in-chief, Ryan Collerd) shared in that creative endeavor.

Michael had a rough go of it during the shoot of the toll booth, which turned out to be one of my favorite images. Poor guy was a little afraid of the heights (see video below), though, truth-be-told, the traffic was way scary. (Michael, I’ve been waiting a year to tease you with that one.)

We also had a great time hanging with the waitresses at Uncle Bill’s pancake house, coming away with mad respect for their steady hands and seemingly unlimited patience.

And we met tons of great lifeguards, including the crazy times at Wildwood beach where off-shore hurricanes kept the guards busy the entire time we were there. I’ve attached a special slideshow of my favorite lifeguard images, below. Use the fullscreen button on the bottom right of the slideshow in order to see them larger.

Thanks to everyone at Philly Mag and ‘down the shore’ for their help in making this a successful Shore issue.

With the risk of being accused of ass kissing, my intent with showing my latest feature clip from Philadelphia Magazine isn’t so much to show my work (which did require multiple days of sitting on cold streets photographing cabs, during which I believe I contracted Bronchitis), but rather to highlight Design Director Michael McCormick’s incredible design vision.

The page looks amazing. He had a vision for the page from the moment he asked me to implement it and he carried it through to the awesome type treatment and layout. He’s even built in a little puzzle: a duplicate taxi in there somewhere. Email me if you think you can find it. It took me a long time.

So a shout out to you Michael! There are some outtakes from the portrait shoot with Speedy, the driver, at the end of the post.

I also had the pleasure of photographing Norrinda Brown, who is the co-founder of Brown Betty Dessert Boutique here in Philadelphia. We photographed her in the kitchen of the boutique’s namesake…her grandmother, Betty. In addition to running one of the hottest dessert shops in Philly, Norrinda is also a civil rights attorney, a beautiful woman and all around nice person, who makes you realize that you’re probably not using all the hours in your day to their full potential.

Thanks to the talented Marnee Simon for helping make the photo sing with her great make-up and wardrobe work. And as always to Assoc. Photo Editor Jess Hawkes for moral and heavy lifting support.

Here are some outtakes from both shoots:

Flying through Pittsburgh the other day I happened on my portrait of Detroit cupcake magnate Pam Turkin in Money Magazine. We photographed Pam in December for a story about second careers. A former VP of of marketing for a merchandising firm, Pam left that career to cash in on the current (waning?) cupcake craze with a new chain of stores called Just Baked. It was a fun shoot in in the former bread bakery that houses the round-the-clock cupcake baking enterprise. Thanks to Pam and her husband Todd for hosting us and to Aleene, Josie, Gysta and Matt for all your fantastic help on set. And of course to photo editor Shayla Hunter at Money for making it happen.

The  über-awesome agency Bransch has highlighted my Behind the Curtain polling project as “inspiration” for it’s readers. I’m quite honored to be keeping company with the likes of Olaf Blecker and the rest of the talented photographers and illustrators represented by the Hamburg-based agency. Thanks Bransch.

And Dear Readers, please go check out their artists. You’ll leave totally inspired.

Of course, when Colin’s visiting, for any decent amount of time, it’s become tradition to reshoot his acting headshots. This is not something I do for anyone other than Colin. And of course, this time around, he and I put it off until the absolute last day we both had time to do it.

So, as an excuse to post some images to my blog, here are some images from our 2-hour, bare-bones shoot. (We didn’t even get to finish one glass of whiskey during the shoot!) He IS a handsome devil, ain’t he. Check him out, he’s on The Facebook. I’m sure he’s going to be the next big thing, or at least star in a commercial or two someday.

I got into this business late and was myself forced out (or never let fully in, not sure which) from newspapers. It was all I had ever wanted to do. Journalism had become respectable by the time I got around it. Journalists, even photojournalists, had graduate degrees and Ivy League pedigrees. During my short tenure at the DMN, though, I got to listen to guys like Randy, John, Jim, Juan, Irwin, etc., tell stories of the old days. Jesus, it sounded fun.

So, while it might take you half a day to read Randy’s farewell, it’s worth reading as a wonderful recap of what sounds like a wonderful career and could almost be a eulogy for newspapers in general. Here are few teasers:

Some days being a news photographer is like being in a dream. One memorable shift, I photographed a cop killing in Grand Prairie, then Chuck Berry and Elizabeth Taylor at the Meyerson, and finally a botched burglary where a pathetic robber was trapped in a chimney trying to enter a house. One morning I was climbing a West Texas mountain with paraplegics in wheelchairs, that night I was photographing prostitutes in Juarez. If you love life and its wonderful tapestry, this job’s for you.”

Photographers are much like drummers in a rock band. Somewhat crazy and unpredictable, a little Keith Moon is in every one of them. In the 70′s, for those who remember, it might have been something in the fixer or ferrocyanide. Personalities, twisted humor and camaraderie always abound in photo. And the old farts there stay a bit young at heart.

I showed up one morning for work and was promptly handed an amateurish camera and told to get some gym clothes and go workout with Jane Fonda. What, excuse me? The class was private, the press was barred, and I was posing as an excited fan snapping a shot after the workout. I have to admit – the picture was exclusive, great idea.

So, thanks for the laughs, Randy, and welcome to the freelance club. Here’s hoping you end up in Philly some day, so I can buy you a beer.

Thanks to my buddy Nate Johnson for sharing this. He always sends the best photos.

Philadelphia Magazine. March 09.

Photo Editor: Zoey Sless-Kitain

Design Director: Michael McCormick

Here is a link to this story on Philly Mag’s website. I really think the writer, Steve Volk, did a nice job looking at what it will take to help save the upcoming generation of inner-city children. Philadelphia Magazine has done some really nice work, examining the complexities of urban issues recently. I hope they keep up the good work and, of course, I’ll be happy to contributing to that effort as they see fit to allow me.

Creative Director: Maria Sese Paul