Anchorage Press Illustration Fills

Here are a couple ad illustrations that I did for the Anchorage Press, a free weekly newspaper that kind of like the Anchorage equivalent of the Seattle Stranger or the LA Weekly. I'm interning there now, and so far I've done a couple of these "freelance photographers and illustrators wanted" ads/fills and an ad for a hotdog stand. It's pretty fun work, and the people are fun to be around. I'll replace these tiny pictures with larger ones soon.

Wilderness

I think that nature, while beautiful and awe-inspiring, is dangerous. I went and saw Gregory Colbert's "Ashes and Snow" exhibit when it was in Santa Monica. It was big and fancy and boring. Every picture was some ethnic child cradling a leopard or having a hawk land on its small brown head. It was the stereotypical "communing with nature" bit, and it (along with the "Where's Waldo" and "I Spy" books) inspired me to make these two prints, which--I think--are a little more real. Nature isn't something to dilly-dally around with, because it will try to kill you. Every time I go backpacking here in Alaska (so far every weekend this summer) I'm frightened by the prospect of running into a bear or falling down a mountain. They're real fears and should be respected. For these photos I went out to Joshua Tree National Park for the first image and the Santa Monica Mountains for the second. All the animals were photographed in the National History Museum of Los Angeles.

backyard photos (L.A.)

This is our stray cat. His name is Oilspill and he is friendly. And gross.


Backyard mood-lighting:


Fun with flash: