Yelle at Jack Rabbit's (RGB)

I left this year's Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar with hundreds of ideas spinning around in my head. David LaBelle told us to photograph our lives and document everything that's around us; Mike Davis told us to take qualitative photos, to use color to create moods, to keep our subjects out of the center of the picture ("See what happens when you put stuff in the dead center? ...it just dies.") There was so much inspirational work being done, too many powerful images and ideas to process in such a short weekend.

As soon as I got back to Jacksonville, I met a friend to see Yelle, a super-fun French dance-pop group. Jack Rabbit's has long been one of my favorite local venues (In 2008, while on crutches, I met Nada Surf there). The light, fog and energy during the show was really great, and I couldn't help pulling out the camera for a few snaps when I wasn't shakin' it. Yelle in RGB:

After War, from Wife to Caregiver (for the New York Times)

Here are some of my favorite images from a really compelling story I worked on with Catrin Einhorn. The Markums are a wonderfully kind and welcoming family in South Georgia. It breaks my heart to think about how many families have to fight through hardships like theirs long after our soldiers return from foreign wars. Catrin's article, Looking After the Solider, Back Home and Damaged, is really touching, and the audio she gathered drives it home. View our audio slideshow on NYTimes.com: After War, from Wife to Caregiver.

Vacation in Puerto Rico, feat. special guest: Hurricane Irene

Last month I went to Puerto Rico with a couple of close friends. Hurricane Irene decided to tag along. Aside from the nasty weather, difficult driving conditions, closure of the national parks, and dearth of electricity and hot water, it was a wonderful vacation. Here are some snaps from San Juan on the eve before the major storm hit.

Plastic Surgery for Senior Citizens

I spent some time last week in Tallahassee and Thomasville, Ga., working on a New York Times story about senior citizens getting cosmetic surgery. Mary Graham is 77 and had a facelift and breast implants earlier this year. She's possibly the most eccentric person I've ever photographed. She works seven days a week, running one restaurant and making plans to open another. She has boundless energy, plenty of money, and doesn't take 'no' for an answer. She certainly does not look 77.

Jacksonville Beach 4th of July Fireworks, Motion Blur

My family got a late start heading out to watch the fireworks at Jacksonville Beach and landed a very mediocre viewing spot on Beach Blvd. That's no reason not to experiment with long exposures and motion blur, though. Can you tell those are bicyclists in the second picture? Check out the rotary motion of the reflectors on their wheels.

Happy 4th of July from Jacksonville Beach

Neptune Beach | Peaceful waves, Pelicans, and a Paddle Surfer

Travel Photography: Scenes from Greater Phoenix, Arizona

On my Phoenix trip last month I met a bighorn sheep, chilled in a wonderful donut shop, and didn't cry over spilt milk.

Puss & Boots

Just an odd picture I liked from my friend's kitchen before a night out back when it was still boots weather. (From left) Mr. Loggerfeld, Whitney and Meghan.

Foreclosure Art in Gainesville

I felt a small sense of triumph when I read this story last week about a Florida couple foreclosing on a bank. It reminded me of a Florida foreclosure story I worked on last year but never blogged. It's always inspiring to see folks take back power and make a statement after being foreclosed upon.

Last year, writer Matt Shaer and I met a local artist and professor named Jack Stenner who turned his foreclosed house into an interactive public art project. Matt's story, Open house: Foreclosure art meets the whims of the web, describes our visit to the house and includes encounters with squatters, Mormon missionaries, stray cats, and a spider 'the size of a child's palm'. Definitely not my typical CSM assignment, and well worth the read.

The Cutest Boston Terrier In The World

I puppy-sat for Cassie last weekend. I'm in love.

Islam in Northeast Florida: Women on Eid

These portraits are part of a personal project I started last year about Islam in Northeast Florida. After spending much of last summer in the Islamic(/secular) countries of Turkey and Bosnia, I was shocked to return to my hometown and learn that an angry evangelical pastor was threatening to burn the Koran right in our backyard. I thought back to the one Muslim girl I knew in high school, and to the rhetoric she had to endure as we discussed the War on Terror in our US History class shortly after 9/11. Although I'm unfamiliar with Islam, I am all-too-familiar with feelings of alienation and religious discrimination. I decided to shift my focus away from the controversy and anger in Gainesville. Instead I spend some time with Muslims in Jacksonville during their annual Eid festival (which is delightfully redundant), marking the end of Ramadan. The celebrations were full of color, joy, gossip, and family. Here are pictures of some of the girls and women I met. I'm not sure what's in store for this project after this post, but it was time to start sharing these images.

Nature Photography - Beautiful Trees of Sedona, Arizona

I did some hiking in Arizona's Sedona desert earlier this year, and I couldn't get enough of the wildlife. Sedona is remarkably green for a desert, and so full of life. I was also really inspired by the quality of desert light. Anyway, here are some pictures of trees. Some were alive, some looked pretty dead, and some of them had bark peeling off of them in fascinating patterns that were either symptomatic of disease or simply part of their life cycle. I was hiking, not reporting.

Clay County Fair - Green Cove Springs, Florida

Here's a bit of eye candy from the Clay County Agricultural Fair out in Green Cove Springs last month. It was the first time in I-don't-know-how-long that I went to a fair for fun instead of work. I made pictures and talked to strangers anyway, but possibly not as many.

My classy friends (part 1)

Here are a few pictures of two of my oldest friends, Meghan and Lee, getting ready for a night out. Besides being hilarious and fun, they are two of the most stylish people I know. Lee works for a local interior designer and always seems to have a pulse on the latest trends ("Popsicles are the new cupcakes"). Meghan is a thrift store maven who runs an adorable Etsy shop and occasionally acts as my personal shopper. I'm always proud to be seen with them.