Saturday

Saturday, originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

It's very nice to be back at school.

From a party this weekend.

Jesty Beatz Show

Jesty Beatz Show, originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

Ohio University's own hip hop star came back to Athens for a show at 19 South this Friday. As much I don't listen to his music, and have never been to this bar (I would say it is slightly notorious) the show was mostly enjoyable. After entering the door, it seemed like this would be something difficult to shoot. The size and density of the crowd was overwhelming to say the least. At times like this I find it almost best to completely tune everything out and realize you are there to make a picture, you need to do what you're there to do, don't let the sweaty drunken masses get in the way of that. Despite a lens that wouldn't stop fogging up I managed to get some alright shots and call it a night.

Hostage Situation

Hostage Situation, originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

Jeez what a let down.

At around 7 last night there was a call about a hostage situation in a Nashua neighborhood. What had happened was a murder fugitive from Florida had made his way up north and was squatting at someone's house (relation wasn't clear). When I arrived that situation was pretty much diffused. The SWAT team had thrown tear gas into the house and were able to arrest him. What I ended up seeing was people not being allowed back into their houses. They hadn't been able to go back into their houses (some still had their stove's on) for four hours. What I happened to come upon was a bunch of cold people patiently waiting. Not as juicy a story as I had thought.

"I fell in love with a female assassin"

From the UK newspaper The Independent, via PDNPulse

Photojournalist Jason P. Howe writes about his experience documenting the FARC and the paras in Columbia, and how his lover ultimately became as violent and entrenched in war as the people he set out to document. An astonishing read.

"Watching her take the pistol from her belt, unbutton her jeans and slip into bed I somehow couldn't quite equate the woman in my arms with the bodies I had seen in the local morgue, their heads shattered by gunshots at close range, murders she confessed to having committed. High on a combination of the heady tropical climate, local rum, grade A cocaine and in the arms of nubile 22-year-old, fantasy and reality became blurred. It felt like I was living in a Quentin Tarantino movie."

Full text here

By the river.

By the river., originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

Another one from the river today. This was my first spot news assignment in awhile. For the last few months, when I'm called to a breaking news event its usually a car accident or fire in the middle of the night. This time I spent two hours in the middle of the day watching the entire story unfold. For an hour...nothing. Not a word from the EMS, police, or firefighters. It was a good deal of waiting from something to happen. The woman in this shot kind of just showed up. No real explanation. There were some others like her as well. One guy even owns a police scanner and just goes when he hears something interesting. Like some weird blood lust. Do they just want to see a dead body? I was judging then in my head a lot but then I realized I was kind of doing the exact same thing. It's good to keep things in perspective and think about how to separate yourself from the gawking masses.

By the river.

By the river., originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

Emergency workers suiting up a diver to retrieve a body from the Merrimack River in Nashua.

Discarded Bread

Discarded Bread, originally uploaded by Johnny Simon.

A quick snap walking home from lunch today.