People

Joe

This is my first Portrait.  At the suggestion of the fine little book Michael Langford's 35mm Handbook, I asked one of my friebnnds in Izmir if I coulod take his portrait,

He agreed and gave me a lot of advioce ofor the shot.  He was the Public Affairs NCO at 6th Allied Tactical Aurforce In Şiringer Garrison.

It turneed out well and I was hooked.  Taking photos of my people remains one my favorite things to do.

LR

My firstborn, by my first wife, is happily back in my life, thanks to her efforts and those of my other two.  I love how she has taken on her Big Sister and Godmother roles.

Jay

An Iraq veteran, Jay used his GI Bill wisely, earning a master's degree in information security from Carnegie Mellon.

It's ridiculous how few photos I have of him as an adult.

CE

My Daughter never lets me take her photo.  What a shame.  She's adorable.  I took the shot below in Winston-Salem when we attended my brother's art show at Renalda House

My Photo of my little girl is from our time in Aldershot, England, about 1988 or 1989.

KS

My daughter-in-law has always supported my photography; she is always willing to sit for me.  I've had some success but capturing how I see her has escaped me.  This shot, taken during one of our coffee dates, comes closest.  

KS was my daughter's college best friend and part of the family, long before my son took an interest  She is proof that angels are real, entering Jay's life at the perfect time.  She saved him and he is a smart lad.

Bee

Though no longer my daughter-in-law, Bee is forever my daughter and mother of my grandson.  She was always my favorite of my kid's high school friends and remains one of my favorite people.  

I've taken photos of her since she was about seventeen.  What photographer in his right mind wouldn't?

JK

My Grandson is most likely the most photographed young man in the world.  The family took thousands of photos of him growing up.  Even the VMI Public Affairs Office got in the act.

He is an amazing young man - smart, funny, quick-witted, and great at everything he does.

ES

I try to spend as much time with my ES as I can.  She's super intelligent, with a near photographic memory, and into science like I am.

I enjoy taking photographs of her and she enjoys posing.  She knows what she wants and must approve every shot.

SGM

This baby and I are great collaborators.  She is usually ready anytime Granddaddy wants to take photos, as long as she gets to review each shot and then push all of the buttons on the camera.

When she has had enough of my camera and me, she gives me an emphatic "All Done!"  This also means, "Let me have a go with that camera."

I took a load of her out in her backyard using my new Nikon 200-500mm lens.  This lens is amazing.  I shot this hand-held at 200mm, f/8, 1/800, ISO 400.

TS

While Kady's niece lived with her grandparents, I asked her to sit for me.  

I underexposed and was never able to make a decent print in my darkroom.  I kept the film.

Technology Improved.  I found the negatives, scanned them individually, and worked on them in Photoshop.

Finally.   Amazing!

Never give up on those old negatives!

CFN

I've taken photos of this beautiful woman, twice, once for her Father's birthday, and again in Charleston when I was there for a VMI - Citadel game.

Both sessions produced some of my favorite portraits of one of my favorite people, but that was years ago.

I need to work with her again.

Mitch

I've known this guy longer than I have known Kady.  We were in the 82nd together.  If you read my stories, many of them include him.

Yeah, This is Pigg!

Mitch is the finest soldier I have ever known.  He is the fittest, strongest, and the best navigator, shot, and trainer.  He is the second-best Jumpmaster.

I am honored to know him but he is an Alabama Fan.

SS

The day after Christmas, 2017, I took a few shots of SS to test my new, fast, 50mm lens.  I was happy he agreed.  The man has such an interesting face.

I took it in Available Light, which worked nicely.  I should have shot from a little farther back.  The tree lights are a little distracting, though I like them.

We met him on the Internet way back in 1999 or 2000.  He has become a member of the family.  We enjoy time down in Tennessee on his farm.

Sally

There are few people I love as much as this lady.

I took these photos when she visited us in Church Crookham, England in 1988 or 89.  I shot about three rolls of Tri-X and destroyed two by turning on the wrong tap and rinsing in hot water.  

This photo is from the few I managed to salvage. It took all of my Photoshop skills.

Ed

Ed is my oldest friend.  We met in 1974 through The Cult.

Though we never served together, we went into the Army about the same time.  He spent time in the Rangers and Special Forces, leaving as a Major.

During SF Training, he lived with Kady, the Kids, and me.  He always comes to Virginia for big Neel events.  Eddie is family.

I took this on Post while he was in town for Jay's wedding.

Colonel John

John was the Band director at VMI.  I traveled with him and the band to Savannah, Florida, New Orleans, and Passadina for parades.  He learned to take me along as his enforcer.

This is the man who got me into Hockey.

He is also my Battlefield traveling partner.  We've been west to Shiloh and north to Gettysburg, and many of the battlefields in between.

He is very knowledgeable and talks about battles in his best Shelby Foote voice.  Not bad for a kid from Philly.

The man is the consummate musician and plays a mean trumpet.

Ken

There are few people I respect as much as this guy.  I met him when his son was a cadet.  He once recruited cadets from his adopted state of North Carolina, supported by scholarship money gifted by a prominent alumni family.

His cadets were a quality group of young people, most going into the service, all becoming shakers and movers within the Corps of Cadets.

He kept up with each one, encouraging them, speaking on their behalf, helping them solve their problems, and insisting on academic excellence.

For my part, I made sure he had unfettered access to his cadets during their important milestones.

He is the only person with whom I will discuss VMI.

The Girls of Summer

During my last Turkish Summer, I met and photographed three of the sweetest and most beautiful women I have ever met.  These women loved posing for me, a nice change.  Their attitude was refreshing.

Sevda, a former model, and Berna, a former flight attendant, ran Divas Ajans, Managing Nannies and Show Hosteses in Izmir.

G'ser was fresh out of college beginning her career as a grade school math teacher.

Sevda put me to work photographing her business.  All three adopted me as a cultural orphan, becoming great friends, including me in work, family, and friend activities.  

I took many of my best portraits of them.  That wasn't difficult, but saying goodbye was.  Over twenty years later, Sevda and Berna remain true and faithful friends.  I've lost contact with G'ser.

Ann

I once used this photo as an example of my work.  It is from a series of film photos I took of her just before I left for Kosovo.  

Still a big part of my family, she is usually present at Neel gatherings trying her best to bring me into the 21st Century.

Boyce

I've known this guy since high school.  We were best friends for a long while and almost went into the Army together.   That's a good story!

I looked him up while we were in Arizona and took this shot.

Be Prepared

I met Ayşe and her family at Kultur Park in Izmir while taking photos of the city with Ellen and Vern.

This young lady had striking jade-green eyes. and beautiful chestnut hair and I was loaded with  B&W.

Not long after, I bought a second Canon Body. I kept one loaded with color and the other monochrome.

Digital is so much simpler.  Ah, but Film!

No Pets, Please

A few years after her graduation, Brother Rat Erica visited me in Lexington. We took the photos we had talked about, forever.

I took some good photos of Erica that day.  I like this one the best.

Sarah

One of my daughter's college friends, Sarah worked in the Commandant's office at VMI for a while.  Now she's living in California.

We took this shot on the Blue Ridge while we skipped out on work.  She was a natural.

Ashley Ryan

A former VMI Cadet and friend, Ash was my perfect photo subject until life interrupted the collaboration.  That's normal, I think.