KROQ's Epicenter 2009 - Backstage Artist Lounge

It was quite the week going from shooting the event of a newborn baby's first hours of life to the event of rock star gifting at KROQ's Epicenter 2009. Never a dull moment, that's for sure.

So basically a ton of sponsors set up shop backstage at these rock festivals and hang with the musicians, show off their rad products and give away fun stuff. All the musicians were really cool and I had fun hanging out and getting the shots for the sponsors with their product in talent hands.

So we got the guys from Wolfmother getting hooked up with clothes and jewelry, then of course, reading REVOLVER with Christina. Then everyone was stoked that some of the Alice in Chains guys hung for awhile...so I was sure to follow them around with my camera...

Just a taste of the broad range of events I get to cover...miracles to musicians...fun, fun, fun...

Evan Nicholas

My second blog update coincides with my second birth - that I shot - or - tried to shoot anyway.

Patricia called me a few weeks ago to hire me to shoot her water birth at South Coast Midwifery Center in Irvine. I joyously accepted the assignment.

Then her due date came, last Thursday, and the midwife reported she was dilated 8cm, yet no sign of labor at all. So for six days, I had my appointments prepped for postponement, my gear charged and ready for action, my comfy clothes folded and ready to throw on and my attitude eager and excited to document another miracle. Patricia was on the phone with me, her midwife, her doula and I'm sure countless other friends and family members as we all waited anxiously for the labor to begin. And it never really did...

After feeling some 'minor cramping,' Patricia and her husband John got in the car to head to the Center late Thursday afternoon...knowing that the prolonged dilation meant a quick labor was probable. And quick it was! Evan Nicholas popped out in the front seat of their car while they were sitting in traffic on the 405. She delivered him within ten minutes after her water breaking...the fastest delivery I've ever heard of!

I make it sound fast and simple and easy. And I know Patricia would agree it was fast, but simple and easy? No way. She's one of the strongest women I know, and I'm so glad she called me (from the front seat, minutes after the birth, by the way) to come running to their home to shoot the first hours of Evan's life.

Life is truly such a beautiful thing. And I'm so thankful I have been blessed by this experience to illustrate such a wondrous occasion of its amazing beginnings.

Introduction

I am an artist. And for the first time in my life, I can say that without feeling awkward. I feel nothing but comfort knowing this path of discovery is finally leading me to some conclusions about who I am and what I do. I hope art can open your eyes as it has opened mine.

I am a photographer. And I am finally able to say that with stability and confidence. While words have always been a dramatic form of self-expression, I am excited at the drama that imagery has recently brought to my table. My hope is that it can touch others as it has touched me.

I am an editor. And through that I have come to understand that nothing is perfect and there is never just one ‘right’ way. My way is my way and yours is yours. With corrections, modifications and metamorphoses galore, I have grown to love the process of change. May the changes in life come to move you as they have moved me.

I am a lover. And my eyes have just been opened to the unscathed purity in that. I do not fall in love, I arise to greet it—in every rose I sniff, in every human I meet, in every dream I remember—I accept the pain and fear and love it all. The love of life is a choice, and I hope you choose it.

I am a woman. And at last, I can indulge in it. I am sensitive, I am compassionate, I am intuitive and I am in tune. I have realized the strength in these characteristics and have embraced them as a part of my build. And I will keep on building. And I will keep on sharing here, in hopes that we might build together...