The Mother Of The Groom

This is an older picture of Patrick dancing with his mother at his wedding last year. The room we were in was not the most photogenic, thus demanding extra creativity in framing.

The Men of Bound4LIFE

I was going through some old photo sessions to find a classy, yet hopeful and inspirational photo of my good friend Ian Kelly for his blogger bio on moraloutcry.com. I stumbled upon a series of photos I took of Matt, Ian, and Craig in downtown Charlotte, NC. These are the men of Bound4LIFE.

the women

I was hoping that this photo from the Crane/Charlton wedding would compliment the photo of the men that I took earlier in the day.

Going for a Vanity Fair cover idea, this probably would have been easier if it wasn't 20 degrees outside.

CJ

This is a photo of CJ Hardee at Bright City Studios in Charlotte, NC.

CJ wrote and performed a song on an upcoming album that was produced at Bright City, and I am REALLY looking forward to it.

Celebrating One Year

I gave Heather a hard time about going to great lengths to decorate a cake for Zoe's first birthday. I can imagine a baby would think of it as an edible punching bag, but Heather treated it like a wedding cake. It really was beautiful.

Every time I would say something about it, Heather would respond, "It's for me" and I would assume she meant that she was putting work into it because she wanted something to do, and perhaps that was the truth, but I realized something else.

Zoe doesn't care about her first birthday. She like the attention, she likes playing with toys, but she really don't understand the concept yet. To her, it's not unlike any other day. However, I can say with certainty that she understands the concept of treats and toys.

Heather, on the other hand, understands the idea of birthdays and anniversaries. Heather understands milestones and accomplishments. Zoyenka turning one-year-old yesterday had less to do about her age, and more to do with what Heather accomplished one year ago, and the 9 months prior.

I love one-year celebrations. "It was one-year-ago since..."

So, my wife had proper reason to go to infinite lengths to decorate the cake and to make it as special for her as possible. And then, we watch as Zoe smears it into oblivion.

Happy Birthday, Mother Dear

Today is my mother's birthday. Being the second oldest of seven children, I cannot overstate how wonderful my mom is. How do you describe a woman who gave girth to seven kids, home-schooled them all, cooks, cleans, sews, writes, and works part-time? Seriously. What do you give that woman as a gift? Really, there's nothing that can come close.

My mother, Sara, is on facebook now, but she's not a stalker mom. I'm sure she would love it if you posted something on her wall.

The only problem with writing a blog post about your mother is that you're bound to get an email about how many grammatical errors there were.

The above photo was taken at Christmastime of 2008 in my parent's abode in Chesapeake, VA. Shot with available light and a 28mm lens on my old, trusty Nikon d50.

Right Before The Lions Got Him

This was taken on the Masai Mara in Southern Kenya. I snapped this photo seconds before the lions pounced and ruined our trip.

Just kidding.

It didn't ruin our trip.

I'm now offering 8x10 prints from my trip to Africa, as well as from various other photographic experiences at prints.levibethune.com but you can purchase limited edition prints straight from this blog.

Downtown Upstairs

I don't know why it stood out to me, but I really like the scooter at the bottom of the stairs.

Taken in downtown Winston-Salem, NC while I was down there for business.

Using only available light and waiting until there was no car or person walking by, I snapped this at an excruciating 1/25th of a second, handheld. Like some sort of Russian sniper.

Inside The Senate Building 8

This photo is the final image of a series from one hour in the Hart Senate Building in Washington DC.

Inside The Senate Building 7

This photo is part of a series from one hour in the Hart Senate Building in Washington DC.

Inside The Senate Building 6

This photo is part of a series from one hour in the Hart Senate Building in Washington DC.

Deeply

He was praying.

Inside The Senate Building 5

This photo is part of a series from one hour in the Hart Senate Building in Washington DC.

Out The Window

I snapped this photo during a friend's wedding reception in downtown Norfolk, VA.

That is my brother Jared holding my son Isaiah.

Inside The Senate Building 4

I really appreciate when an architect doesn't just design for necessity, but for art. When style compliments function, it is the best of both worlds.

Taken inside the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington DC. Part of a personal black & white series.

Inside The Senate Building 3

Along with the first two photos in this series, this was taken inside the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington DC. I'm going to be taking some more time to work on my personal editorial spreads in the near future, but this was a healthy warmup for me.

Inside The Senate Building 2

I know this picture has been done before, and I know it's been done more dramatically. However, the man you are looking at, with his head hung, and documents in hand, entered this building through a door, above which is inscribed: “A man of incorruptible integrity and personal courage strengthened by inner grace and outer gentleness…. He advanced the cause of human justice, promoted the welfare of the common man and improved the quality of life…. His humility and ethics earned him his place as the conscience of the Senate.” That is a description of Senator Philip Hart, a Michigan Democrat for whom the building was named.

I wonder how many senators and staff have read that quote. I wonder how many senators and staff would like to be remembered as such. I wonder how many senators and staff will be described in the same way.

Senator Hart died in 1976 and was one of only three senators to be honored by having a building named after them while they were still alive.

Inside The Senate Building 1

I spent the morning with friends of mine in our nation's capital, and part of that allowed me to visit the Hart Building. A lot of important things happen in this building every day. The confirmation hearing of the next Supreme Court Justice is just one of them.

Luke Stasi

This portrait was shot using the Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Diagonal Fisheye lens I bought specifically for my trip to Africa with The ZAO Water Project earlier in the year. I don't usually use this lens for portraits, mostly as an exercise in self-control. I want to use it ALL THE TIME, but I try my hardest to refrain. The sky and the subject were just too well suited for the angle this time around and I just couldn't help myself.

This is Luke Stasi being a good sport in 98% humidity during our little Zoolander excursion.

Yuri (1 of 2)

As part of the portrait giveaway on the Organic Visual Facebook Page, I booked Yuri for a last-minute session before he left the country. Yuri is part of the ministry group at MorningStar, and they are taking a trip to Mongolia. Today.

If you're interested in a portrait session, I'm currently running a '$25 per person, per look' special for Charlotte folks. Check it out on Facebook, and contact me at levibethune.com