Monsters Under the Bed...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are all well out there!

Let me start off with some business news, I have listed the entire Everything's Alright Here series in my shop! I have gotten some really positive feedback on this series which is great. It's encouragement like that (mixed with a love for it), that keeps me at it, so thank you all!

You who've followed for awhile know I'm a sucker for a carnival (or circus). So, it was with glee that I went to one over the weekend with some friends and one of my nieces. I got some great shots of the kids enjoying themselves. Perfect summer day. Here are some fun shots of the day:

Speaking of fun carnival related stuff. Have you guys stumbled across The Secret Fun Spot site? Brainchild of artist and designer Kirk Demarais, the site is chock full of vintage dime store packaging, vintage Halloween photos, toys, jokes. It's nuts, in a good way. Go do yourselves a favor and peruse, I dare you to take less than an hour.

Do you use a wallet? Do you know someone who does? (I realize that includes almost everyone on Earth.) The Poketo store has a ton of artistic, fun things, but their limited edition wallets are top knotch. My two current favorites are by Andrea Wan and Gary Baseman, pictured below. (You can't really go wrong with naked ladies running through the woods led by wolves...) Take a peek!

Let's wrap up with some movie talk. I was perusing old sci fi posters for source material for my big secret project, and I came across this little gem of a movie: Bedazzled, starring Raquel Welsh. I have it on my docket for viewing this week, but I have not done so yet. Suffice it to say, it should be interesting and cheap, just the way we like it around here. I read she seduces Dudley Moore in one scene? Gross. I'll let you know how it goes, or you can tell me in the comments if you see it first!

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Manly Man Father's Day Print Sale

Hello Lovelies~

So, I decided (since boys tend to like my prints) that I would run a little storewide Father's Day print sale for the dudes/men/husbands/brothers/sons/dads/boyfriends out there (and ladies who want to treat themselves).

Here are the details: 25% off all prints storewide (that's $15 a print!), June 14-19th. Enter "MANLYMAN" in the coupon code section of my store at check out to receive the discount. Simple as that. I'll ship as quickly as I can. (You're welcome, Ladies.) :)

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

A Little R & R

Hello Lovelies!

I was on vacation last week and took a ton of pics and did some really fun stuff with a friend who was visiting. Here are some random shots from the week:

And, I discovered some great things while I was out and about. First, if you're local to Portland, you may have heard of the International Cryptozoology Museum. Well, I went there with my friend and did the tour and it was fascinating. In addition, there is a great book store attached that's well organized and had a ton of stuff that was right down my alley, including 2 Ray Bradbury books I didn't have! Both the museum and the bookstore are worth a trip.

I also did a bit of junking and found this really fun scarf that has good luck charms all over it. I'm probably not going to use it, but it may show up in a future shoot, so keep your peepers peeled.

Speaking of shoots, I am working on my big annual photography project and it's going wonderfully so far. Those of you who have followed for awhile may remember my Cigar, Creeper & Dark Circus and Sideshow Series and my Zom-B-Vex Series last year. This year's project is the biggest and the best so far and I'm keeping it under wraps until I release the whole thing October 1st. But, I will give you a hint, it sort of involves this:

I will give more hints as we go along and maybe do some other fun promo stuff. The shot above is from a great Galactically Hot Women of Star Trek Flickr stream that you Kiddies may enjoy. So many neat characters from that show.

And let's wrap up with a movie recommendation. This one is not for the faint of heart (or those who hate clowns/marionettes). Dead Silence is a surprisingly good thriller that I just bought because I liked it so much. The plot is good and has some twists, the characters are terrifying and the mood is dark and creepy. All these things equal at least 4 corn cobs out of 5 on my scale for this one. Check it out and don't watch it alone...

...and don't scream.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams.

Killer Jello...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are all doing well out there! A ton to share as usual. To start, I hinted about a new shoot last week and it is finally done and posted! This mini-series is entitled Everything's Alright Here and it features killer jello and crocodile smiles. You can see the rest of them here. I would like to send out a special thank you to Susan at North Star Vintage, who rented some of her vintage clothing to me for this shoot even though she usually just sells it. She's wonderful, stop by her online shop if you get a chance.

And while we're talking photography, I have finally gotten around to putting out a price list for sessions in my studio! (Link here.) If you are local, or are traveling to Maine this summer, feel free to drop me a line if you're interested in a sitting. I have more tricks up my sleeve than most and I can honestly say, whether I'm making a man wear tights for a lucha libre shoot, or giving a scythe to a child, everyone has a great time and comes back for more!

Oh! And more exciting news! My Sweetie has been wanting a tattoo for a really long time and over the weekend, she finally went for it. And never being one to do things halfway, she got a huge piece featuring Bela Lugosi on her upper arm. It came out amazingly. If you're in Maine anytime soon, or if you're local, Chad Chase at Venom Ink Tattoo in Sanford is a truly amazing tattoo artist. He specializes in horror and portraiture but he does a ton of other styles. Plus, he's a great guy. Thanks Chad!

And let's wrap up with a cool product I found last week that I wanted to share with you Lovelies: the gun blow dryer. Yes. That's right. It's a blow dryer, shaped like a gun. I found it on this site. Apparently, they aren't being produced yet, but when they are, I'll be the first in line. What a morbidly funny appliance, don't you think?

That's one way to get those tangles out...

Until next time: Unpleasant dreams...

Bowling You Over...

Hello Lovelies!

This is going to be a long one, my Dears. There's a lot going on here. First, I have some new work to show you hot and fresh from the studio! Here are a few of the shots from my Shriner Bowling Team series. We had such a good time and so many laughs, these boys were great. It's shoots like this that make this so much fun for me. Find the rest on my Flickr stream here.

We've had literally weeks of rain up here, but Saturday, I went down to Boston for the day and the sun was out all day long and I snapped this shot called Star Spangled Banners. I just listed it in my shop. Perfect art photo for summer!

I just shot yet another mini-series last weekend that I know you'll love. I will give you a hint, it involves the 3 things below in some way. Can you guess what the series is about??? Give it a shot and post your guesses here. I may give something to the person whose guess is closest to the idea.

And speaking of going to Boston, I actually went down just to see the Elegant Enigmas: The Art of Edward Gorey show at the Boston Athenaeum. Wow. I was blown away. The level of detail and pure creativity I saw was truly unparalleled. Gorey combines the ingenious lingual turns of Dr. Seuss with the unique imagery of Salvador Dali in my opinion. It's like nothing your eyes have ever seen probably. If you live close, I highly recommend checking it out. It closes this weekend. Great stuff.

While we're talking about artists, I wanted to introduce you to Alan Plowdrill's work. Alan is a photographer and he does work that I adore. He has a great eye and a great sense of humor and I want to be his friend. Check out his portfolio, especially his Pipe Up, Shut It, and Tashmen series. It will make you laugh and your eyes will like it. (Especially that dummy down there...)

And speaking of dummies, I'm going to wrap up with this epic photo I found in the LIFE Archives the other day. There really isn't much to say about it, except it's hilarious, oh, and it's my worst nightmare come to life.

Never turn your back on a dummy (or a clown for that matter).

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Shriners with Shiners...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are all well out there this week! We've been having a wet spring here in New England, which is great. (It makes me feel like I'm not missing much when I'm shooting in the studio on the weekends.) As promised, here are the latest shots, entitled Shriner with a Shiner (yes, those are parakeets), and Crazy Band. These were so much fun to do, the model was great and the outfit was drop-dead. I just listed them for sale in my shop if you like crazy things (which, if you're here, you do).

I just did another wonderful shoot this past weekend that I will share next week, so prepare yourselves, I'm cranking them out these days!

My Lovely and I just spent two wonderful days at the Brimfield Antique Show in Massachusetts, digging through boxes, climbing into tents and haggling with dealers and it was a ton of fun as always! I found some amazing pieces I'll be using in future shoots, as well as the loot pictured below. (I am getting those dark framed glasses converted into sunglasses for summer. I've been looking for a neat vintage pair for years and I'm really excited I found some!) More pictures on my Flickr page.

I just found an amazing artist: John Frame. He is a sculptor and stop-motion animation director who is making a film called The Tale of the Crippled Boy, a feature-length piece comprised of vignettes. His work is beautiful and amazing as you can tell from the stills below. He is taking donations to help him finish the project and I gave a little. If you like what you see and want to see the film finished, you may help out here. Amazing work.

Speaking of amazing, have you heard of Lisa Swerling's Glass Cathedrals? Wow you guys, she's neat. She takes little people and puts them into little worlds and then makes profound statements. It's been done, but never this concisely in my opinion and the little people are almost heartbreakingly wee down there. Take a peek, good stuff.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Shipwrecks, Closets and Shriners...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are all well out there. Things here are crazy busy, but going really smoothly. (Which means a lot of work is being produced in a short period of time and it's all looking really good!) As promised, here are some of the shots from the sexy shipwreck shoot I did last weekend. You can see the whole series on my Flickr page. I want to thank the entire team of people who helped me and the models for being such troopers. It was a pleasure.

And here's a teaser for the shoot I just did this past weekend. I found a wonderful vintage Shriner parade outfit on Ebay and I couldn't pass it up. The outfit inspired the shoot and I think this one is going to blow your minds.

And speaking of mind-blowing photography, I discovered Eric Schaal via Etsy's Craft + Style Blogosphere post this past week. Schaal did a ton of work for LIFE Magazine among many others, and all of his work is compelling, but it's his Experimental Housing Storage photos that really amazed me. When closets were coming into vogue in homes of the 40's and 50's, LIFE commissioned Schaal to document as many as possible via scale models and real home photos. The results pop with Kodachrome hues and are deliciously voyeuristic. Take a look:

And speaking of amazing photographers, Celeste Canino does some amazing conceptual work that I've been enjoying. She seems to have some really fun clients who let her play with bright colors, over the top personalities and cutting edge concepts. She also uses a ton of different approaches (black and white, filters, hyper-saturation) depending on the project, which I admire. Peep it out:

Let's wrap up with some funny news, shall we? We all know the royal wedding was a huge deal, millions of people were watching and there was a lot of pressure to get everything perfect. Which is why it's hilarious to me that apparently, a very young bridesmaid snuck a "Wiggly Worm" into one of the group shots. Best. Photo. Ever.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...