The Naked City

Photo Bait and President Obama

2012-01-27T12:18:00.000-08:00

The president came to town yesterday. Me and another local newspaper photographer were granted access to shoot inside the coveted "buffer zone" during his speech. The buffer is that space on the ground in between the stage and the gates that keep the crowd at bay. This was my first time photographing Obama as the president. Political events such as these always involve a certain amount of stagecraft. Everything is beautifully arranged to lure us unsuspecting newspaper photographers into taking the photos they want. A carefully placed American flag is commonplace. But I always feel a little bit guilty for taking the bait. A tightly framed photo of Obama looking contemplative and wise with the American flag in the background is exactly want they wanted from me. They granted us access to the buffer zone precisely so we would take photos such as these. This is a campaign year after all. Am I a pawn in their game? Probably. But I still like the photo.

The New Homeless

2012-01-26T13:04:00.000-08:00

These are the faces of the new homeless. Families who once had it all, and because of circumstance, the economy, the foreclosure crisis and bad luck, lost it all in a blink of the eye. We do a lot of stories like this in the media business, especially lately in Nevada. But I never tire of hearing these tales. I shot portraits of three amazing families for this week's cover story by Ken Miller for Las Vegas Weekly. These families have come through dark times together and have made it through to other side. Meeting people like this, who band together in rough times and become stronger, is always an inspiration to me. I know it sounds cheesy, but they have made me appreciate what I have now because it could easily be gone.

(Cover and feature design by the always awesome Ryan Olbrysh)

Porn Favorites

2012-01-23T15:36:00.000-08:00

Now that the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo 2012 is behind us. I wanted to reflect for a moment and pick out my favorites from last week's porn madness... shoe photos included!

Circus Vargas

2012-01-03T17:36:00.000-08:00

Here are my favorite shots of Circus Vargas, which ran on a photo page in the Las Vegas Sun today along with excellent portraits of the performers by fellow GMG photographer Christopher DeVargas (no relation to the circus). Enjoy!

Favorites of the Year 2011

2012-01-02T14:08:00.000-08:00

Now that 2011 is far behind us, let me dwell on it one last time to present my all-time favorites of the year in all their Naked City glory. Onward and upward to 2012!

The Revelers and the Drunks: Fifth Anniversary

2012-01-01T20:21:00.001-08:00

For the fifth year in a row, I walked the sticky streets of downtown Las Vegas on New Year's Eve. Revelers drank from yard-long cups in the shape of sexy ladies and jammed out to the sounds of some of the best tribute bands in the country: Led Zepagain, Red Not Chili Peppers, No Duh, Rolling the Stone and Fan Halen. Like last year, I complained about having to work on New Year's Eve, but Fremont Street has never disappointed. Not once.

Happy New Year!

Ballet Behind the Scenes

2011-12-19T13:27:00.000-08:00

Having photographed Nevada Ballet Theatre's production of "The Nutcracker" many times before, I decided to take a different approach this year. After the first act and the photos of Holly Madison, who did a guest cameo, were out of the way, I wandered backstage for the rest of the opening matinee production. As I wrote in the copy block for today's photo page in the Sun, the controlled chaos backstage at the ballet is a photographer's dream. Cute kids and ballerinas backstage, how can you go wrong with that?

Holiday Cocktail Mania

2011-12-16T12:26:00.000-08:00

I love, love, love to shoot cocktails! And holiday cocktails are extra fancy and therefore extra fun to shoot. The Chandelier Bar at Cosmopolitan is a great backdrop for shooting because the ambiance is beautiful and there are varied backdrops and nice tabletops to choose from. Also, everything looks sparkly, twinkly and holiday-ish because of all the chandelier glitter. Here are four holiday cocktails you can get there if you want to get drunk in style. See Las Vegas Weekly's reviews of more holiday cocktails here.

Accidental Awesome

2011-12-16T11:49:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure what I did to make this photo happen. I was taking a long exposure of a local holiday lights contest winner in Henderson (check out the published photos here). I must have accidentally kicked the tripod or something. I didn't notice it until I was editing later. I love this photo. I'm having it printed really big and hanging it on my wall! Accidents can be amazing.

Nostalgia Photographed

2011-11-19T12:05:00.000-08:00

Families huddle together for warmth in the bed of pick-up trucks for the latest Adam Sandler comic romp. Couples share popcorn and snuggle under blankets inside parked SUVs. Multiple projectors whirl and spin films from the top floor of the ramshackle concession stand. Bright projections of Ben Stiller close-ups light up the darkened evening sky. I sneak around, trying not to disturb the scene as I photograph it quietly. Welcome to West Wind drive-in, nestled between Fiesta Rancho and the North Las Vegas airport. Once numbering over 4000, the drive-in movie theater stubbornly clings to existence like that last bit of ice in a soda cup. The West Wind drive-in, opened in 1966, is one of an estimated 370 motor movie palaces left in the U.S. If you find yourself photographing this nostalgic scene, one word of advice: Don't forget your tripod.

The Spouse Factory

2011-11-18T17:05:00.000-08:00

People like to get married in Las Vegas. Last week, on 11/11/11, A LOT of people got married in Las Vegas. April Corbin wrote a very nice story for Las Vegas Weekly aptly titled "Welcome to the Spouse Factory." Here are some photos from Little Church of the West and the Welcome to Las Vegas sign from this year's spouse factory. See you on 12/12/12!

Elevens

2011-11-11T10:26:00.000-08:00

Savanna turns eleven today. She also didn't mind wearing a birthday hat for the photo shoot. Is that the cutest? Happy 11/11/11 everyone!

Vegetables, Fruit and One Goat

2011-11-10T19:09:00.000-08:00

I can't stay away from a good farm shoot. Close-ups of freshly picked vegetables and fruit, goats, nice light, rural Nevada... you can't go wrong. Quail Hollow Farm in Overton was the subject of a Health District crackdown for having a farm-to-table dinner a couple weeks ago. I got to travel out to the quaint farm this week to see how they do things, Overton-style, on harvest day.

Backstage at Absinthe

2011-11-04T11:53:00.000-07:00

Don't tell anyone, but Absinthe is my favorite show on the Strip. I know I'm not supposed to voice my opinions about things and remain neutral, but I can't help it. That show is awesome. So I was extremely excited to photograph Absinthe performers backstage for a Las Vegas Weekly story. They are a very friendly, very welcoming and very photogenic crew. Here's the layout as seen in this week's issue of LVW, as well as my fav snaps from the evening.

Creative Halloweening

2011-11-03T18:12:00.000-07:00

I can count the number of "sexy" costumes I saw at this year's Las Vegas Halloween parade on one hand. That is a very good thing. Creativity abounded in downtown Las Vegas on Monday night, a refreshing sight indeed. So much better than the people-watching I did with friends on The Strip last Saturday night. That was like a boring/sexy parade of sluts and store bought lameness. Gotta love Vegas locals!

Portrait of a Gigolo

2011-10-24T18:48:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my favorite portraits from last week's shoot with Vin Armani, a male gigolo. Some may know him from the Showtime show "Gigolos." I didn't know what to expect meeting him, having a seen a couple episodes of the show... but he was such an awesome and down to earth guy, and such fun to photograph. I can see why people pay to hang with him. See the Las Vegas Weekly article here. And see Vin Armani's website here.

The Homecoming I Never Had

2011-10-20T14:48:00.000-07:00

I would love to say that photographing the Chaparral High School homecoming dance brought back fond memories for me of high school dances past, but that would be a lie. Yes, I went to homecoming once (I think it was my sophomore year). But it wasn't a romantic and magical memory. For me, it was mostly awkward and a little drunken. Anyways, enjoy the photos of these great kids dressed to the nines and having fun! To see more photos and the Dave Berns story, part of our Turnaround Schools porject, click here.

The Oldies Rodeo

2011-10-11T16:24:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are some choice snaps from the Senior National Finals Rodeo last week. They ran in a photo page today and to see more photos go here. I tried to get a bit more action shots this time, and ended up with one action shot that I liked. That's more than I can say about the last time I shot rodeo at the Clark County Fair in 2010. We shall not speak of that day.

Little Wrangler

2011-10-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

I could not resist taking this photo of three-year-old Boedy Lambert of Wiggins, Co. holding the hand of his father, a contestant in the Senior National Finals Rodeo. After I took the photo, little Boedy demonstrated to me how quickly he could rope a calf by pantomiming it in the grassy picnic area. Probably the cutest thing I've ever seen. Watch out for this kid... he's gonna be a contender. I'm going back for more Senior NFR action tomorrow, so stay tuned!

Strip Sobbing

2011-10-03T20:06:00.000-07:00

Why was this woman weeping while walking down The Strip today? I was stationed in front of the Venetian after shooting G2E setup inside the Sands Convention Center this morn, waiting for the rain clouds to drop their fury upon the Monday tourist masses, when it started to pour. The streets quickly emptied as people dashed through the closest casino doors. I was waiting to get pictures of the brave souls soldiering up the boulevard when this sad woman in purple came down the road, looking slightly upset and limping. Then suddenly, the purple lady just started sobbing. It was very strange, but I kept taking pictures. I stopped her as she passed me to ask if she was OK. She said, "I'm fine," gave me a weak smile and wouldn't give her name. What happened to her? Did her boyfriend just leave her? Did the rain bring to light some past emotional trauma? Was she upset that it was raining and she didn't have an umbrella? We'll never know. All I know is that the emotional highs and lows of the Strip are quite something to observe.

Here's more rain pics, including the one of her that I submitted for publication. I thought it would be a little strange to have a photo of someone sobbing as a rain feature.

Portrait Hating

2011-10-02T22:17:00.000-07:00

Like any good newspaper photographer, I've always been a vocal portrait hater. But inside, deep in my darkest heart of hearts, I love taking portraits. Don't tell anyone. Here's the latest fun, including, but not limited to: yard sale entrepreneurs, gays in and out of the military, Zen Buddhists, and politicians.

From Orange Portrait to Orange Cover

2011-09-22T16:56:00.000-07:00

When I shot this portrait of Brandi Harris, senior at Chaparral High School, I didn't think it had a chance for cover of Las Vegas Weekly. Though I really liked the way the portrait turned out, and knew the story was going going to be the cover story for this week, I thought the actual cover would turn out to be a collage of images or an illustration of some sort. I was overly excited to say the least when I spied Weekly art director Ryan Olbrysh mocking up the cover last week with my portrait front and center. Below you can see how the original portrait looked and then see the final cover. Ryan did an amazing job. I will never get over having one of my photos printed on a large shiny piece of paper and distributed all over the city.

Male Strippers, Mitt Romney, Elvis and Horse Portraits

2011-09-19T11:06:00.000-07:00

To say the least, it has been a professionally strenuous couple of months. August and September have seen the departure of many respected work colleagues. And although I haven't blogged consistently these past fews weeks as much as I would have liked, I still want to share this stuff. Better late than never. So, in one big lump, here are some of my very latest pics. They remind me why I love this job. Even with the ups and downs, I still get paid to take photos. I must not take that for granted.

Sausages and Accordions

2011-09-14T22:53:00.000-07:00

Just a few reasons why I love the San Gennaro Feast: Sausages, lasagna and aggressive accordion players.
See more feast fest love here.

Lonely Favorites

2011-08-27T16:17:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month, I took a five day trip to document and explore Highway 50 in Nevada to commemorate the 25th anniversary of its designation as "America's Loneliest Road." I took 4,919 photos in those five days. The edited photos were all divided into galleries to go with specific stories by the talented J. Patrick Coolican, which can all be viewed on the Highway 50 topic page on the Las Vegas Sun website. I, however, really wanted the chance to put together all my favorites from the trip, regardless of topic, into one place. I got it down to 39 favs, which is pretty good considering I started with 4,919 photos. They include such standards as the Nevada "long road shot," the requisite row of mailboxes, starscapes, shoe piles, big mac pinatas, fruit markets, ancient trees, rushing creeks, sad children, happy children, men with canes, coal trains, desert dunes, hitchhikers, glowing crosses, sunrise, sunset and, of course, big game trophies in the grocery store. So here are my lonely, and not so lonely, favorites from Highway 50.

Party Pits

2011-08-27T15:45:00.001-07:00

What are party pits, you ask? They are sexy casinos within casinos, of course! With sexy dealers and sexy dancers and....that's about it. Party Pits!! Here's the Hell's Belles Party Pit at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, the self-proclaimed first party pit in town. Read more about party pits and see more party pits pics here.

The Muhammad Brothers

2011-08-27T15:45:00.000-07:00

It was nice to get back to shooting some prep sports practice, something I often enjoy more than games. These photos were for separate profiles of local brothers Shabazz and Rashad Muhammad. Older bro Shabazz has been ranked the No. 1 basketball player recruit in the entire country in his class of 2012 by Rivals.com. His little brother Rashad is no slouch either. All I know is that both brothers are sweet and courteous teens who didn't mind being dragged outside into the 100+ degree heat for some golden light portraits by an annoying newspaper photographer.

Bestest Pools

2011-08-27T15:44:00.000-07:00

I spent a toasty part of July roaming the best pools in Las Vegas for this photo essay, being jealous of those on vacation. Check here for more photos and info on the bestest pools in Vegas!

Animal Attractions

2011-06-30T18:07:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, I was given the task of taking photos of all the places you could go to see live animals in the Las Vegas area. There is definitely a variety, from aquariums inside casinos to aquariums inside malls, to lions inside casinos and mermaids swimming in a large tank next to a Bass Pro Shop. You can watch flamingos fight during mating season while eating at a casino cafe. You can also ride a water slide through a shark tank a one local casino pool. Not to mention the little noted Las Vegas Zoo on North Rancho and the Bonnie Springs Petting Zoo out in Blue Diamond. There are definitely plenty of animals to see around here, if you are so inclined.

Wrestling for the Love

2011-06-28T17:10:00.000-07:00

After seeing an article about Future Stars of Wrestling by April Corbin in Las Vegas Weekly a couple weeks ago, accompanied by awesome photos by Bill Hughes, I knew I had to go to their next event. FSW is a couple steps above a backyard wrestling club, and have their own 2 a.m. Sunday morning show on the local CW station. I went to last week's Friday Night Fight, and was not disappointed. These hardworking young wrestlers are definitely not doing it for the money. They do it for the handful of hardcore fans that lined up outside the arena an hour and a half before the doors opened with handmade signs. They do it for the pure joy of performing ridiculous scenes in often hilarious costumes. They do it to hear people laugh and scream, to hear children curse and shout. They do it for the love of the sport.

Extreme Nail Art

2011-06-23T15:30:00.000-07:00

Hired for a freelance gig last weekend, I found myself at one of the most interesting and undiscovered (by me) annual events in Las Vegas: the Nailpro Cup & US Invitational at the International Beauty Show. This indeed is the World Series/Super Bowl/Stanley Cup of nail art competitions. I have no regrets about waking up a 5:30 a.m. last Sunday in order to catch the start of the Fantasy Nail Art category. This year's theme was mythology and the nail artists dressed up their models in full costumes to go with the elaborate hand decorations. I say hand decorations because to call them nails is an understatement.

Big Thrills

2011-06-17T19:03:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my favorite photos from a feature we ran online about the 10 best Las Vegas thrill rides. I rode all of them (except for the one where you jump off the side of the Stratosphere). The only injury I attained was on the ride shown in the first photo. The Desperado roller coaster in Primm, Nevada was one of the most killer coasters I've ever ridden. I was not prepared for it's severe G-forces and extreme drops, and I may have tensed up a bit and tweaked my back while trying to clutch onto my G11 for dear life. I lost my notebook during the ride, but at least I kept my camera safely clutched to my body. That was my first ride. I smartened up for the next rides and had my little camera taped to my hand.

My favorite ride was Insanity at the Strat, which is described as follows by the reporter: "Imagine a giant mechanical arm carrying you 64 feet over the edge of the Stratosphere Tower. You dangle in a chair 900 feet above the Strip (that’s one-sixth of a mile), then spin at speeds that reach three G. Suddenly, the arm shifts and you tilt 70 degrees to face the Earth below." You can see that ride in photo #5.

Richard Simmons and Beauty Queens Shake Their Hips

2011-06-13T13:01:00.000-07:00

When I found out that the contestants for Miss USA would be participating in a hula hoop contest hosted by Richard Simmons, I could not pass it up. I knew the event was going to be a lame, staged and controlled media opp inside of a badly lit mall. But I just had to see Richard Simmons in person. So we decided to use it for our weekly Monday photo page. The event was just as lame as I thought it would be, yet somehow still really fun to shoot. And FYI, Richard Simmons somehow has more energy than he did 30 years ago.

Movers and Shakers

2011-06-03T14:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some scenes from last night's Movers, Shakers and Innovators Showcase at the annual Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend at the Orleans. I love burlesque!

Burlesque Rainbow

2011-06-02T14:58:00.000-07:00

My task for this week's issue of Las Vegas Weekly: take photos of beautiful and sultry local burlesque performers for our burlesque cover story by Kristen Peterson. My inspiration? Alberto Vargas, of course! Sadly and pathetically, I had never heard of Vargas until early last week, when Weekly art director Ryan Olbrysh sent me a couple dozen of the famous pin-up painter's images to work from. We decided to shoot each performer on a different candy-colored backdrop, and used the Vargas poses as inspiration. The best thing about photographing performers is that they already love the camera, and the camera loves them right back. I hardly did anything at all. I am in love with the rainbow effect of seeing all the images together. Below is a key to who's who.

red = Miss Karla Joy
pink = Dixie Evans, the Marilyn Monroe of Burlesque
orange = Vi Vacious
yellow = Kalani Kokonuts
green = Tempest Storm, Burlesque Legend
blue = Cha Cha Velour

Sahara's Last 24 Hours

2011-05-17T17:22:00.000-07:00

The Sahara closed its doors for good at 2 p.m. on Monday, May 16, 2011. I was there to document the last 24 hours of operation inside the historic hotel casino, starting at 2 p.m. on Sunday. It was one of the toughest and most physically exhausting assignments of my life. But it was also one of the most rewarding. Here are 24 photos from the Sahara's final 24 hours.

(find tons more Las Vegas Sun Sahara coverage, including awesome stories and historic photos here)

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 2:21 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 3:28 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 5:03 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 5:53 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 6:52 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 8:07 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 8:21 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 9:51 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 11:22 p.m.

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 11:51 p.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 1:05 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 1:50 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 2:02 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 2:57 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 5:33 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 6:33 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 10:02 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 10:11 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 11:00 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 11:17 a.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 1:36 p.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 2:00 p.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 2:06 p.m.

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 2:13 p.m.

My Second Viva Las Vegas

2011-05-17T15:21:00.000-07:00

Viva Las Vegas came back to town a couple weeks ago. I posted last year about my new fascination with the cute retro fashions of that scene after attending for the first time. After this year's event, my fascination has now expanded to vintage swimwear as well.

Angst at the Fair

2011-05-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

Last year, I went to the Clark County Fair and photographed the rodeo. My photos sucked. This year I had a plan: to focus only on teenagers (a favorite subject of mine) at the carnival/midway part of the fair. I went there on a chilly Friday night ready for the kind of teenage drama that only sugary fair food, dizzying rides and twilight can bring out. I was not disappointed this year.

Food and Family Fun

2011-05-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

My favorite photo from the San Gennaro Feast this year is the top one in this blog post. This is "Fat" Sonny Marks, 8, the proud owner of Fat Sonny's food booth, one of the many featured at the semi-annual Italian eat-your-face-off festival and carnival. This eight-year-old was the actual owner of the booth, his grandmother bought it for him when he was just two years old. They make a mean meatball.

Noches Calientes

2011-05-05T15:27:00.000-07:00

In honor of Cinco de Mayo this year, me and a reporter did a Latino club crawl last weekend to find the hottest dance spots for Las Vegas Weekly readers to celebrate Cinco de Mayo all year long. I haven't done club photography for quite a while, and I had an excellent time staying up until the wee hours snapping shots of the gyrating dancers and colorful environs of this vibrant scene. Gear-wise, I decided to go a little bit lighter than I usually do. Can you guess which shots I took with my G11?

Terry Spieker

2011-03-23T13:46:00.000-07:00

One of the many college student that may be affected by the upcoming budget cuts: Terry Spieker is a CSN nursing student who takes care of his two severely autistic daughters full time when he's not studying or in school. His patience and calm is breathtaking to observe. There should be more people like Terry in this world.

Not Drag Queens

2011-03-22T11:27:00.000-07:00

What I learned most importantly a few weeks ago when I shot portraits of David de Alba and Paul Cummings, two amazing female impersonators who worked at the famed Finnochio's in San Francisco: Please don't call them drag queens.

The Patron Saint of Ireland

2011-03-17T18:09:00.000-07:00

Oh, annual drunken hordes in green, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

The Big Sleep

2011-02-03T21:25:00.000-08:00

It's so nice when things come together perfectly. For the past six months, we've been following a hotel suite design competition at the historic El Cortez Hotel in downtown Las Vegas. Four designers, four suites, $22,000 each. I have to admit that I was not as excited about this project as the other members of the team working on it (the videographer and reporter). But in the end, the design team that won was the team I had coincidentally spent the most time photographing. It all worked out and looking back, I actually got some decent photos. I will not complain so much next time.

Tina learns her design "The Big Sleep" has won.

The original suite without renovations. Bleck.

Tina's fabulous shoes with the ugly carpet.

"The Big Sleep"

They used bullet casings as decoration to go with the mob theme. Brilliant.

Learning About Hernias

2011-01-24T15:04:00.000-08:00

I always have this nightmare scenario in mind when I'm photographing surgery: I lean over to get a closer shot or a more interesting composition, trip on my own feet and land on the surgical table, on top of the patient, and manage to either kill or maim everyone in the room.

This has never happened, and did not happen last Friday when I photographed two hernia repairs performed by a doctor that does cash-only surgeries. The anesthesiologist let me get pretty damn close to the patient though, just on the other side of the sterile drape. It made me nervous, but no one was maimed in the end.

From Russia

2011-01-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

Vadim Bolotsky and Nikolai Melnikov are classically trained Russian circus performers. They are part of a group of Russians who came to Las Vegas in 1993 to perform a flying trapeze act in "Mystere" the first Cirque du Soliel show in Las Vegas. Many of the dozen or so performers still live in Las Vegas, doing various things and living various lives. Vadim was a flyer and Nikolai was a catcher. These days, Vadim lives rural life in Pahrump and helps out as a stage manager at the Amargosa Opera House in Death Valley Junction, Ca. Nikolai still performs. He is part of a two-man hand balancing art in "V The Ultimate Variety Show" at the Miracle Miles Shops in Planet Hollywood.

To see many more photos, read the story, and see a great video by Katie Euphrat check out the Las Vegas Sun.

The Naked Expo

2011-01-08T10:55:00.000-08:00

Here are my favorite shots from this year's AVN Adult Entertainment Expo. It was my first time, and a very overwhelming (in a good way) experience. The expo can best be described as a visual diarrhea of pornographic imagery; an excellent challenge for a photographer. The hardest part was keeping it PG-13 rated for a family newspaper.

WARNING: Some of these photos show breasts, so don't look if you don't want to see boobs.

The Revelers and the Drunks

2011-01-02T18:23:00.000-08:00

This was my fourth year in a row working the Fremont Street Experience for New Year's Eve. I always whine about having to work on New Year's Eve, but Fremont Street makes it all worth it. I hope you can see my joy in these photos.

Happy New Year!

Year of Nosh

2010-12-29T20:24:00.000-08:00

Part Four: Edibles of the Year

Regularly photographing food with lights and high expectations was a new challenge for me this year. Casino buffets, farmer's markets, fine dining and everything in between; here are the food shots I am most proud of from my inaugural year of nosh.

The Little Ones

2010-12-28T19:36:00.000-08:00

Part Three: Kids of the Year

Citizen of Nowhere

2010-12-25T20:39:00.000-08:00

Photographing someone without showing their face is always a challenge. But, it's a challenge I very much enjoy. Here, for a story by April Corbin called Citizen of Nowhere I photographed a local college student who has lived here for most of her life but was born in Mexico. She didn't want to reveal her identity, not because she isn't proud of where she came from and who she is, but because she was concerned about racist and unpleasant comments directed toward her and her family. Because of her undocumented citizenship status she has faced many challenges in pursuing higher education. I've met few students with so much passion for learning and scholarly pursuits. She wants to do so much with her life, and I hope she achieves it all and more.

Ladies of the Year

2010-12-22T23:03:00.000-08:00

Part Two: Lovely Ladies of the Year

Animals of the Year

2010-12-21T20:28:00.000-08:00

This is my favorite time of the year. I get to look through my work from the past year and pick my favorites. I love it. The holidays are great too, but this is what really gets me excited during the holiday season.

Part One: Animals of the Year

Green Boneyard

2010-11-16T21:23:00.000-08:00

The Neon Boneyard now has a sign! Very exciting news. And ironically, it's made completely with LED lights for energy savings.

Recent Reid Rallies

2010-11-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

Without showing any photos of the actual candidate or his famous stumpers as of late, here are some of my favorite shots from the past two Harry Reid rallies. Also included are my two favorite baby photos from said rallies.

(Please go to the respective Las Vegas Sun galleries if you want to see photos of the actual Harry Reid, Manny Pacquiao or Michelle Obama.)

Feet and Signs

2010-10-21T19:55:00.000-07:00

Once again, I go to an assignment trying to do a good job as a photojournalist and take a decent photo for the newspaper of people making signs for tomorrow's rally with President Obama...and my favorite photos are of feet. Sigh.

The Best Beer Model

2010-10-21T12:18:00.000-07:00

I just want to thank Jack Belden at the Freakin' Frog for being the most awesome beer model ever! He's such a natural.

Horses, But No Reining

2010-10-12T22:45:00.000-07:00

I had no idea what horse reining was until I went to photograph the High Roller Reining Classic at the South Point Equestrian Center September 12-18, 2010. The National Reining Horse Association defines it as a judged event designed to show the athletic ability of a ranch type horse within the confines of a show arena, running patterns which include small slow circles, large fast circles, flying lead changes, roll backs over the hocks, 360 degree spins done in place, and sliding stops. It all sounds very exciting. I didn’t end up photographing any of the actual competition though. I was struck by the horses, their beauty, and the trainers and riders relationships to the animals inside the stalls and the indoor practice arena. So, for those curious to see actual reining competition photos, you won’t see them here...just pictures of horses standing around.

The Wilds

2010-10-09T20:00:00.000-07:00

I've been to a lot of Renaissance Fairs in my day, and I'm usually not attracted to the Ren Fair lifestyle...until I met these guys. They called their camp The Wilds. Looking like some sort of crazy indigenous tribe-like mixture of medieval and post-apocalyptic, they mocked and cackled at passerby. It was awesome. This tribe made me want to run away to the forest and drink mead all day, pulling various pranks and being generally mischievous with my life.

Here is a link to more photos from Age of Chivalry Renaissance Festival at Sunset Park. These photos may include: pirates, fairies, scary animal head man playing drums, and a camel.

Near-Disaster with Extra Gaga

2010-10-05T23:51:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited about my first Las Vegas Magazine cover. But, this was the photo shoot from hell and I must share this experience. Two lights out of five broke, then another wouldn't sync. Imagine five celebrity impersonators (Michael Jackson, Elvis, Lady Gaga, and two country singers I couldn't identify from the American Superstars cast), one makeup artist, one art director, two graphic designers, at least two PR people and another few Stratosphere execs stuffed into a studio while you're shooting... the main light won't fire four times out of ten and you have to pretend you aren't sweating through your shirt! A near disaster turned into a pretty good learning experience and, I think, a very nice looking cover shot. Many props to art director Erik Stein for making this look so snazzy and professional.

Meet the newest member of the American Superstars cast: Lady Gaga.

R.I.P. Tony Curtis

2010-09-30T10:30:00.000-07:00

Actor Tony Curtis passed away last night. Here is a portrait I took of him inside his Henderson home in June 2007.
May he rest in peace.

Tanner

2010-09-30T00:21:00.000-07:00

Today was the first anniversary of the shooting death of 15-year-old Tanner Chamberlain by Metro Police. His friends and family, including his mother Evie Oquendo who holds the dove in the top photo, gathered in Sunset Park, released doves, shared stories and held a candlelight vigil after dark. See the story and more photos here.

I Love Goats

2010-09-28T17:10:00.000-07:00

I learned many lessons after photographing goats on a ranch last week:
- Goats are very photogenic. They will gladly take pause from their busy day and pose for photos.
- Goats are hungry and love the taste of a nice L series lens.
- I love goats.

The Delicious Bounty

2010-09-23T12:48:00.000-07:00

And yes, all of this beautiful produce was actually grown in Nevada.

Liberace Rally

2010-09-22T21:02:00.000-07:00

Another day, another rally. This one had more puppets, hot pink clothing and sequins, however. Today was a rally to protest the closure of the Liberace Museum, which is set to shut its doors on October 17 after operating since Liberace opened it on April 15, 1979. It's a sad time for Las Vegas culture. But if they're going out, at least they will go out in style.

Dream Rally

2010-09-21T23:21:00.000-07:00

Demonstrators took to the streets of downtown Las Vegas today in defense of the DREAM Act, a measure that would offer a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants who entered the country as children and enroll in college or enlist in the military. The DREAM Act hit a snag today in Congress. Here are my favorite shots from the rally. See more photos and read Rich Coleman's story about the rally here.

Bill Clinton Gives Rory Some Love

2010-09-15T17:22:00.000-07:00

I love it when politicians hug each other. It's so sweet.

Belly Dance Trance

2010-09-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

Belly dancers are amazing. Not only is the dancing super sexy and fun-looking, but the people that seem to gravitate towards that type of dance are very cool. After spending a couple days hanging out with belly dancers and feeling their awesome vibe, I must say that I want to try it out. These photos are from the Viva RAKS Vegas Saturday night show; part of the Las Vegas Bellydance Intensive & Festival that took place at the Flamingo this past weekend. Check the Las Vegas Sun tomorrow (Monday) to see more photos from Thursday's preliminary round of the "So You Think You Can Belly Dance?" competition.

East Coast Tour Diptychs

2010-09-08T22:06:00.000-07:00

My favorite photos (arranged in artful and fancy diptychs) from my east coast tour of 2010:

Jones Beach + New Studio

Temple + Lady Rizo

Yankees + Evelio

Kaveh + Laili

How Goicoechea Lives

2010-09-07T13:52:00.000-07:00

There are my favorite photos from a recent trip to the loneliest part of Nevada (and possibly the country) off U.S. Route 50 near Eureka, Nevada. The ranch I visited, which is about 30 miles northeast of Eureka in the Newark Valley, is the home of State Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea, possibly soon to be the most powerful Republican in the state. He farms alfalfa and ranches on about 3,000 acres by day, and does all his legislative and reelection business at night. He also swallows his chewing tobacco instead of spitting it out. That's a hardcore third-generation Nevada rancher for you.

The (Non) Debate

2010-08-12T16:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I showed up for what I thought was going to be a lame event: Two gubernatorial candidates making separate boring speeches, not taking questions and maybe shaking hands afterward inside of the dimly-lit casino conference room with bad carpet. It turned out to be a little bit more fun. Rory Reid, the Democratic candidate, challenged Brian Sandoval, the Republican, to an impromptu debate during the Nevada Subcontractors Association annual luncheon. I got some funny pictures of them crowding a single podium and Sandoval's surprised face when Reid made the challenge. A much more interesting afternoon, photographically...

Arboreal Census of Big Bear Lake

2010-08-09T17:21:00.000-07:00

Just before I left on a camping trip to Big Bear last weekend, I saw some very interesting tree photos in a New York Magazine article about the arboreal census of Central Park. So I had tree photos on the brain before I even left the dry, treeless desert. Needless to say, trees were abundant at Big Bear Lake, which is located in the San Bernardino National Forest in California. So here are my tree-inspired vacation photos from Big Bear!

The Collectors

2010-08-03T22:28:00.000-07:00

These are the collectors I photographed for Las Vegas Weekly's collector story by Abigail Goldman. Shaun Wayne (top photo) collects Barbies. But what does Gia Ray collect? Beard hair, of course! Beard hair stored in lockets. How nice.

The Stinkiest Place on Earth

2010-07-24T09:04:00.000-07:00

A hockey room after practice: The place where smells come to die. Why do age 55+ adult male hockey teams always let me into their locker room after practice? Is it my charming smile?

Mr. and Mrs. Big Elvis get ready

2010-07-21T21:18:00.000-07:00

Why are the "getting ready" photos always so much more fun than the actual event? Pete "Big Elvis" Vallee married Amanda Lasham last Thursday night at Bill's Gamblin' Hall. It was an amazing event. But, of course, my favorite photos came from the preparation. See more photos and videos here.

Little Ballerinas

2010-07-19T19:58:00.000-07:00

There is nothing more adorable than little ballerinas. That's all I have to say.

(more cuteness here)

Air Force Amy

2010-07-02T20:41:00.000-07:00

Her clients call her Air Force Amy because she used to be a U.S. Air Force servicewoman. Now, she's one of the world's most famous legal prostitutes. We hung out with her at Sheri's Ranch in scenic Pahrump and wrote about her in this week's issue of Las Vegas Weekly.

The Circus Debate

2010-06-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

Personally, I have very mixed feelings about the circus. But I am a journalist and try to put most, if not all, of my personal feelings aside while working. I shot the Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus last Friday. We ran a circus photo page today in the Sun. Click here for some more photos...and a raging debate in the comment section.

Brad Garrett Lurks

2010-06-15T16:14:00.000-07:00

During a Las Vegas Magazine photo shoot today, Brad Garrett (of "Everybody Loves Raymond" fame) kindly suggested that he should be "lurking behind a tree" in the photo. These are the kind of excellent ideas that I could never come up with myself. Thank you Brad Garrett. You are awesome.

Golden Hour Shot Put Practice

2010-05-28T14:33:00.000-07:00

This was my first time shooting shot put. Luckily, it was a practice so I could play around a little and get used to it first. It's a pretty hard sport to shoot. The photos will run in tomorrow's Las Vegas Sun. Here is one of the photos that is not running (a very similar one is running instead) of a female shot putter getting ready to throw.

I Love Art

2010-05-25T17:39:00.001-07:00

How have I never seen this before? There is an artist who painted the bottom of the Stratosphere onto two separate building walls near Colorado and Third Street. If you stand in the exact right spot, the paint aligns with the actual building and magic happens. Brilliant. I love art.

Brief Sadness at the Little League Game

2010-05-24T21:05:00.000-07:00

Running this photo made me kind of nervous. It ran in today's Las Vegas Sun, part of our new weekly photo page. I thought Peter's mother would get mad at me for showing a photo of her son crying. But, I thought, she WAS standing right next to me while I was taking the photo, and the whole situation was way too cute not to share. She hasn't yet contacted me about the photo, which I take as a good sign. I hope they keep this clipping for years to come, and show it to Peter when he's older.

Here's what I wrote to accompany the photo page:

Wednesday night's baseball game was going well for the Angels. Then, near the end of the game, the tears started. Peter Fisichella walked into the dugout crying. He had struck out. Catcher Austin Price rushed over to console his teammate.

"It's OK, Peter don't worry. You'll get it next time."

He leaned in, his hand softly patting Peter's back.

"Hey Peter, don't cry. We can practice together in my backyard."

The tears stopped and the Angels went on to win the game against the Mets, 7-0. They advanced to the next round of postseason tournament play in Henderson Little League's rookie division for ages 6-8. The spring-season tournament, and the high drama, will play out through May.

Debate Moments

2010-05-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I attended a debate between Republican U.S. Senate candidates. It was being taped for Face to Face with Jon Ralston on KVBC. These are the front runners in a tight primary race to see who will run on the Republican ticket to try and unseat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the general election this fall. This is a group of pretty interesting people, and the off-moments were definitely more interesting than the actual debate.

More Stripper Extremities

2010-05-13T16:02:00.000-07:00

While spending time backstage at Badda Bing Men's Club for a story about their strip club house mom, I became a little obsessed with shooting the hands/feet of strippers (see previous blog post). It's just comforting to know that strippers also eat Doritos and cut their toenails.

Stripper Shoes

2010-05-12T12:26:00.000-07:00

I've been all about strippers for the past couple weeks.

The bikini you didn't see

2010-04-27T17:41:00.001-07:00

Last weekend I posted a link on Facebook to a gallery of photos from the International Bikini Team Aloha State Finals. Please don't ask me to explain what actually happened at this event. I left there more confused than when I arrived. After viewing the gallery online, I noticed that one photo had been deleted by the online editors. Was this detail photo too scandalous for online publication? Probably. So here it is on my blog. Let the people decide!

Food Shooting

2010-04-26T21:20:00.000-07:00

I recently started shooting food. Not just shooting food, but shooting food for people that actually gave a shit about how the photos turned out. With the pressure on, I called my friend, the amazing food and "stuff" photographer Levi Brown to find out how the hell to make food look edible. He gave me some sage advice. It was something too simple to think of myself, though I employ the exact same technique for everything else I photograph whenever possible. He told me to find a window and put the food near it. That's it. The big secret is out. Obviously, food photography is a lot more nuanced than that. But, I've found, window light is the best ever. As usual, Levi was right. I hope he's proud of my fledgling food photography.

Photo-Op

2010-04-14T16:55:00.000-07:00

I guess I'm a sucker for "photo-ops" at the children's hospital. When Elmo and Cookie Monster are making sick kids smile, I can't help but feel a little bit happy too.

Click here to see more photos on the Las Vegas Sun's website.

The Iranians

2010-04-09T16:06:00.001-07:00

This is story about two Iranian refugees. Both fought in the Iran/Iraq war, both have lost family to the Islamic regime in Iran, and both have struggled immensely. This is also a story about kindness, loyalty and friendship in a city where it's hard to find. One man is homeless, and the other is not. I've been working on this story for a while. Please check out Las Vegas Weekly for Tim Pratt's accompanying article.

My First Viva Las Vegas

2010-04-08T00:33:00.000-07:00

As a born and raised east coaster, rockabilly culture has always been kind of a mystery to me. After attending Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend, the largest annual gathering of said counterculture, for just a few hours on Friday night, I learned two important things: I need to buy some cute rockabilly dresses and learn to dance.

Ballet

2010-04-02T14:47:00.001-07:00

I love shooting the ballet. The lighting is already sublime and the subject is beautiful and graceful. I hardly need to do anything to make it look good!

See more photos and Joe Brown's review in Las Vegas Weekly.

Portraits, portraits, portraits...

2010-03-29T14:55:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I love shooting portraits.

Downtown artists for Las Vegas Weekly's downtown issue:

Tattooed chefs for Las Vegas Weekly's food issue: