the feminist photographer

In my life before portrait and wedding photography, I was in graduate school for sociology.

In undergrad, I didn't know what opportunities there were for sociology majors. I just loved the subject matter and had some incredible professors that I never put much thought into what would happen after graduation. I learned that the main route for sociology majors who are really into sociology is graduate school so you can make more sociologists. This was prefect as I loved being in the classroom and I was pretty good at being a student (graduated magna cum laude and a member of Phi Beta Kappa).

My shtick was family and gender roles and social psychology. So off to graduate school I went and ended up at NC State University studying under Barbara Risman, a nationally recognized feminist author and researcher. I had planned to focus on the gendered division of household labor, something I studied a bit in undergrad. I eventually left NCSU, partially due to my father's failing health and partially because the department was changing around and Dr. Risman had accepted a position in Chicago.

During that heavy time, I would seek solace in photography and eventually realized that photography had been a constant in my life for years. I never thought twice about it after I became fixated on the academia track.

But I still keep a look out for gender study issues and social psychology topics.

This brings me to an article I want to share with you that came out earlier this week in the New York Times about the gendered division of household labor, i.e. the imbalance of housework and childcare between spouses. I actually learned of it during my daily blog-stalking; this time on Weddingbee.

So why do I bring this up? I figure my readers are 1) good friends or family who will read regardless (Hi Mom!) 2) future brides who, like the Weddingbee gals, find this relevant in their current life stage and/or 3) forward thinking women who also happen to like pretty pictures.

If this interests you, you may also want to check out Sociological Images, a blog that points to visual media and deconstructs it sociologically. Some of the examples are a stretch, but interesting nonetheless.

And for more info on shared parenting or parenting equality or whatever you call it, here are some sites that I found: Equally Shared Parenting and The ThirdPath Institute. Definitely food for thought.

I like hugs and I like kisses,
But what I really love is help with the dishes!
~Author Unknown

I Heart San Francisco

Sometimes I get bummed about living in San Francisco. The parking is atrocious; I drive a stick shift and live on a hill and I can't even count how many times I've stalled out. The cable car runs right outside my window til 1am every night. And I live in an apartment the size of a shoebox (and that's being generous).

But… I really do love this city. I live near the top of the hill and the view from my rooftop is amazing – I can see all around – Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge, SOMA… And how cool is it to say that the cable car goes right past my house!? And my apartment is small but it has hardwood floors, bay windows, really cool old-timey elevators, and that view… I look out my window to the east and see the Transamerica building and Grace Cathedral to the west. I can see Coit Tower and a sliver of the bay to the North.

And sometimes the city surprises me like it did last week with one of the most stunning sunsets I've ever seen. As I was busily working away, I see these cotton candy pinks and purples out of the corner of my eye. I turned and saw the most spectacular colors and since I'm a photographer, I couldn't let these moments go without some digital proof…

to the east


And then I had to go to my roof and get the whole scene! Too bad my tripod was in the trunk of my car (blocks away).



to the west (The Mark Hopkins on the left, Grace Cathedral and the Fairmont on the right)


Over the bay (Angel Island, Alcatraz, Coit Tower)


The Fairmont


The view to the south towards SOMA


The city itself is incredible too. I've never lived anywhere like it. (And I've lived in Missoula, MT, Raleigh, NC, Greensboro, NC, Main Line, PA, Springfield, VA, Tucson, AZ, Coppell, TX…)

Where else but San Francisco will you see an annual 12K race featuring fabulously costumed and utterly naked hordes of people. Of course I'm talking about Bay to Breakers. I have been the past two years and it's such a fun scene to watch and be a part of.





Rich and I walked the last few hours of it from Ocean Beach to the end of the party so that we could go against the race and see more of the spectacle. Not surprisingly, the end of the "race" tends to get a bit sloppy as the crowds stop marching forward and just continue drinking in the streets of the panhandle. A really crazy scene compared to what I saw last year as I walked with the crowd from very early in the race.

There are those who go all out with elaborate, creative, and just plain fun costumes…





And there are those who are there mostly for the partying and drinking…



And then there are those who are there for both…



It's simply a scene unlike any other.



We got to the end where the police were slowly moving people along so that the street cleaners could tackle the solo cups and trash left behind.



So thank you, San Francisco, for being such an amazing place for a photographer such as myself. There's more to see every day.

“There may not be a Heaven, but there is a San Francisco” Ashleigh Brilliant

Jack Attack meetup

Emma and I went to a Jack Russell Terrier meetup today and had so much fun. There are pug and boxer and chihuahua and all sorts of other dog meetups so I'm surprised it took this long to get one together.

Today was their second get-together. They're held at Mountain Lake Park in San Francisco at 4pm every other Saturday. Unfortunately, I won't be able to make most of them due to a busy wedding season, but you can bet Emma and I will be there on my free days. If you have a Jack, or really any kind of dog, you should definitely show up next time. The people are so friendly and welcoming and so are the pooches (especially Bacon!).

Here are some of the sweet pups we met…

Sweet little Daisy was the first JRT there.



Freckles, Brulee, and Brownie had also shown up after a long walk.

Freckles is a people-dog and a recent adoptee. She's a bit timid but not afraid to come around if you have a snack or two. And just check out her eyes!





Brulee is one of the sweetest dogs ever. He was just so personable and soft and adorable. He is apparently quite the cuddler too.



Poor Brownie had to deal with Emma. Emma is quite annoying at the park – soon after she shows up she'll find a dog that will run and she'll chase. Once the dog stops, she'll bark incessantly at him til he gets up and goes again. The problem is that she just won't keep quiet. Sooo annoying, but Brownie took it well and made sure to keep her in her place.



Bacon, an old man of a dog, was particularly friendly and I'll leave it at that.



Chooley/Chew-li/Chuli was the spunky JRT whose owners organized the whole shindig. She was well trained and had quite an affinity for sticks.





This scruffy Jack mix (I think her name was Safari) was just a happy little thing with a long un-JRT like tail.



And cute little latecomer Spike was trembling a bit from all the newness and dogs but was really adorable. Just look at that face!





No offense to the others, but long haired jacks are definitely cuter. I mean, look at my dirty little thing. Totally filthy with a mouth like a sailor but the most lovable pooch in the whole wide world.



Thanks, guys! Emma certainly got her exercise - after falling asleep on the ride home she'll probably remain sacked out til the next one. Can't wait!

“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.”
Josh Billings

Cooking with Lindsay

Every now and then my partner and I decide to celebrate a certain food for the month. We usually forget about it but when we remember, it's a lot of fun. In an effort to expand our palettes, we try to make different dishes with the food and experiment with different types. In the past we've had a months devoted to mangoes, hummus, grapefruit, sweet potatoes, spinach, cantaloupe, watermelon, and kiwi.

Here are some pictures from previous months.

This month is pear month. I purchased eight varieties of pears for us to sample and decide on our favorites. Who knew that there were even eight varieties of pears in the first place?


(For those who are curious, the pears from left to right are: seckel, bosc, red d'anjou, comice, forelle, concorde, bartlett, green d'anjou.)

For Valentine's Day, I attempted a pear pie. I visited the ever-trusty, AllRecipes.come and found a well ranked Pear Pie. It smelled great while it was cooking and certainly looked the part when it came out.

But then Rich and I had some. It tasted pretty bad. I got the sympathy eyes from him, the ones that said, "Sorry, Lindsay, another baking flop. Score one for the kitchen."

For some reason, I cannot bake for the life of me. I enjoy it and I get really excited to try out recipes, but the end result is just miserable, especially cookies. Cookies should be simple, right? Not for me. All cookies turn into hard, tasteless discs.

Oh well, I'll stick to what works for me: photography. Even if they taste terrible, no one can tell from the pictures!

"I don't like gourmet cooking or 'this' cooking or 'that' cooking. I like 'good cooking.'"
James Beard

Holiday 2007 Part II

Fast forward a few weeks to December 22nd when Rich, Emma, and I traveled to Berlin, Maryland (basically Ocean City, MD) to celebrate Christmas with my mom and uncle. A good time was had by all. There was the obligatory putting-the-santa-hat-on-the-dog and fire potatoes my uncle swore by (yeah, those black nuggets aren't coal).

We watched Scrooged, a family tradition, and opened all of the gifts Christmas Eve since we had to leave early on Christmas. My awesome gift of the year is my brand-spanking new photography case with wheels and everything.* I now have license to bring even more stuff. Yay!
*Cancun was the Xmas gift between Rich and me. That might have been a bit awesomer than the camera case…

We woke up bright and early Christmas morning, bundled up, and took the five hour trip down to Raleigh, North Carolina to spend Christmas afternoon with Rich's family. Emma slept in Rich's lap as he drove down there.

We arrived in Raleigh, NC Christmas afternoon. They had very patiently waited for our arrival to open up the gifts. Rich's sister was the "Santa" and handed out all the presents one by one. I really love Rich's family and they have always made me feel 100% like family.

There were some very cool gifts this year. Katherine, Rich's sister, got a shiny new red laptop. Brian, Rich's nephew got a North Carolina Hurricanes jersey (they are big hockey fans) and a remote controlled car. Darlene, Rich's mom got a beautiful sapphire and diamond ring that she had been eyeing for quite a while. The kids chipped in and got their parents a gift certificate to a bed and breakfast. As is customary, the kids played video games while the adults relaxed (or, in some cases, passed out!).

I've got to show the sweet pups, Emma and Raleigh…

We went down to Charleston, South Carolina for New Year's Eve with some of Rich's buddies. They try to find a new place in a new city every year. I brought our itty bitty digital camera which I haven't used in eons – seems like it has passed it's prime as the bright whites are now bright pinks. We got there the day before and had a nice dinner at a very charming house-turned-restaurant, Poogan's Porch and then checked out a neat daiquiri bar, Wet Willie's. We got dressed up and watched the ball drop from Mad River bar. Poor Rich didn't have a great trip back the next day, but that's New Year's for ya!

We had a great time on the East Coast and I can't wait to go back – especially now that my friends Vic and Kristen are expecting this summer!

Here are a few more pictures from our time in NC…

Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.
- Jane Howard

December Cancun vacation

Ack! It's about freaking time I posted something about my own holidays! Better late than never, right?

Holiday Season 2007 felt like constant travel. I can't complain because I saw some great things and reconnected with some great people, but it is sooo tiring to live out of a suitcase for weeks on end.

I never did get back to writing about our trip to Cancun in early December. Suffice it to say that it was excellent. I was originally a Spanish major back in college and I was really proud of myself for all of the Spanish I still remembered. Rich and I are total power vacationers – we had plans for every day that we were there so as not to miss the "essential" sights of the area.

We arrived on a Saturday evening and stayed at the very nice Clipper Club that was right in the middle of everything on the main strip. Kudos to Rich for picking the place.

The view from our windows…

We had a fabulous suite with a view and, though there were ants (and I absolutely hate ants!), it was an excellent place. It had hammocks by the pool and wireless internet. This was an area of concern before we arrived, and Rich and I came to the compromise of only being on the internet for 30 minutes/day. As it ended up, we were so tired by the end of most days, that the internet didn't even matter. Likewise, I didn't want to expose my camera to the sand and water so I left it home most days and brought a little waterproof disposable one instead.

Not surprisingly, almost every shop sold the same items. I got a kick out of all of the wonderful colors completely surrounding me.

Sunday we visited Xel-Ha (pronounced Shell Hah, I think), a very laid back "ecological water park" with tons of snorkeling, trails to wander through, rafts to float on, hammocks to lounge in, and just a generally great place. I am so accustomed to the amusement parks in the states that I was completely shocked by the way this was run. There weren't huge signs everywhere telling you 'don't do this' or 'don't do that'. It was extremely hands off. If you want to try out the rope swing and you slam into the wall, well… And it wasn't crowded either. No massive lines or water that has so many bodies that you can't swim a stroke.

Monday was a trip to go snorkeling around Cozumel island. We took the trip to Playa del Carmen and spent the day being carted around in a glass bottom boat and snorkeling in different locations. We stopped on Isla Cozumel for shopping and eating. The snorkeling was slightly disappointing, but it was still a wonderful day.

Tuesday we actually spent in Cancun on the beach and wandering around. That night we went to a really awesome club there, CocoBongo. It was the coolest club I've ever been to. They had several acts perform popular songs all throughout the night in elaborate costumes and fun dance moves. There were acrobatics from the ceiling over the bar and free drinks all night. Needless to say, I was not feeling my best on Wednesday when we went to Isla Mujeres.

The trip to Isla Mujeres was a good time. The rest of the small group were a lot of fun. Again with the free drinks, but there was lots of dancing and laughing on our catamaran. It also had a spinnaker that I would have loved to have gone on if I hadn't felt so icky. Unfortunately for one of our boatmates, there was a "wardrobe malfunction" while she was up in the air but she had a great sense of humor about it.

Thursday was one of the seven wonders of the world, Chichen Itza (not to be confused with chicken pizza). We had an incredibly knowledgeable Mayan archeologist/tour guide who really made the four hour trip worth it.

The great ball court…

We stayed late at night to watch the light show at the temple underneath a sky more starry than I had ever seen before. The little lights in the first picture are camera phones.

We stayed in Cancun on Friday and did some nice lounging, reading, and checking out the beach one last time.

We rounded out our trip Friday night with a fancy restaurant (Casa Rolandi) to give us reason to get dressed up. Wild mushrooms sautéed with polenta to start and I had a very tasty mushroom ravioli. I can't even remember what Rich had since I was so into my meal. The best part was the dessert. You can't go to an expensive restaurant and not order dessert. So we got fresh mango sherbet and the most amazing passion fruit mousse. This mousse was reason enough to return to Cancun. Eating it was straight out of a commercial: I took a bite, tasted the amazing flavors and looked up as Rich in amazement as he did the same. Our eyes met and we shared a common understanding without exchanging a single word: this mousse is magnificent! Truly heavenly. If you go to Cancun, you must try it.

Like I said, we are total power vacationers!

We returned on Saturday to a yucky San Francisco with much less money but a lot of memories to compensate. As for the pictures from the waterproof disposable camera – none of them turned out. Somehow the film got exposed and all of those images vanished. Very sad. : (

The next installment will be about our holidays on the east coast. Stay tuned!

Allí donde fueres haz como vieres.
- Spanish saying (literally "Where you may be, do as you see.")

Personal Session in Chicago

I spent this past week in Chicago where I met with the lovely Shelley to take some pictures for her. She's a gorgeous redhead with definite model looks to her. We got some great shots in Lincoln Park by the zoo and conservatory.


She's tall and thin and has such a friendly and natural air to her.
She's very easy going.
It took a few tries to get a serious face out of her (she just couldn't stop smiling) but she photographed well.
And she had an easy smile that I'm sure wows those Chicago men.

Thanks, Shelley; I had a great time!