My Jubilee! Fantasy

One of my Las Vegas photo fantasies came true this week. One of our writers decided to do a story about the dancer auditions for Jubilee! at Bally's (Thank you, Andrea Dominick). Jubilee! is basically the last classic Las Vegas showgirl show left in town. They let me wander around as I pleased, and I now vow to go back every six months and photograph it again and again just for fun. Photographing things like this make me realize how lucky I am to live and be a photographer in Las Vegas, where showgirls still roam wild and free.

Little Lady Rebels

I've said it before, and I'll say it a million more times: I'd rather shoot a rec league or  a prep basketball game than professionals any day of the week. A couple weeks ago we did have USA basketball and the NBA Summer League in town. I shot the Lady Rebels helping out at a downtown Henderson U10 game and I could not have been happier.

The Eldorado

I love being able to hang out in casinos and take photos freely. It is a rare occurrence in this town. Usually at the fancy Strip casinos the PR machine keeps an eagle eye on any visiting media. The Eldorado Casino in beautiful downtown Henderson recently celebrated their 50th anniversary. It's a casual local place with a pleasant, if not slightly seedy vibe. They also have bingo. They let me wander around and it was awesome to not feel the hot breath of a high heel clad PR woman on my neck at all times (no offense to PR ladies who wear high heels).

Miss Nevada Pride

Being backstage at a pageant is not glamorous. That's why I love it. The women and girls vying for Miss Nevada and Miss Nevada's Outstanding Teen last Tuesday, July 3 didn't have spacious dressing rooms and fruit platters awaiting them backstage at the Casablanca Resort in Mesquite. The Miss contestants crowded into the two hot dressing rooms, which left all the Teen contestants vying for mirror space in what looked like a supply closet for the tech crew. What I enjoyed most about the pageant and all the contestants is that, despite the adverse dressing room conditions, they still managed to look beautiful and put together on stage. There was no backstage sabotage, only the sharing of hairspray, helpful assistance with the application of fake eyelashes, hugs, support and general camaraderie.  I must admit that I felt a tiny swelling of Nevada pride at the time.

If crowning photos are your cup of tea, check them out here. 

Sport of Kings

I only have one thing to say about photographing professional arm wrestling: It was amazing and I want to do it again.

Nine Minutes of Explosions

I feel like July 4 didn't even happen this year because it was on a Wednesday. Also, I hate shooting fireworks. They make me nervous and I always manage to overexpose and underwhelm with my fireworks photos. I don't think I did a stellar job last week, but it was definitely an improvement for me. Station Casinos didn't help me out at all, with a show that only lasted a measly nine minutes. There were some bright spots of the evening though. The weather was awesome. High 80s for just that one night. Also I got a shot of the full moon with some fireworks. Not all bad.