Second to the last addition to the studio

I've been looking at a corner of the studio for some time now and have had reservations about the treatment I was going to give it.I do most of my creative thinking between...regrettably...between 3:00 and 4:30 in the morning. I have thought about the style of the wall and have run the treatment over and over in my head. Nothing seemed to trip my trigger....until last Friday. I came up with the idea and built it in this past weekend. In the process of doing that I resolved the other corner that I was considering and I completed it last week also. I have only one wall to finish. Business is starting to flow in and it looks like I made the right decision in opening up in the PhilTower.

I have had several consultations for Senior Portraits and once that starts and previews are passed around, and the Seniors can see that they can get a different "look" here that at other locations can't offer, business will be rolling.

Hot RODZ !!!!

I just talked to Alan Mayes, Managing editor of "Ol' Skool Rodz and Car Kulture DeLuxe" Magazines.Some images I photographed from the Mo-Kan adventure I had last year will be published in the upcoming October 5th issue. The gathering this year is on Sunday October 3rd at Mo-Kan Drag strip in Asbury Missouri, and promises to be a really great time again watching some fabulous cars from the 40's and 50's run down the quarter mile. The cars range in style from Rat Rods, apparent rust buckets with bad paint, to highly polished and chromed low riders with dazzling paint and 40's style. The Rat Rods are generally FAST and look like a lot of fun to drive because they are such sleepers.....especially at stoplights. The customs are just Kool. They are so far over the top in paint and style that they are in a class of their own. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to the event.

RadioLand....N.P.R.

I had my interview with "The Story" with Dick Gordon yesterday. Interesting interview and I'm curious how it will edit. I could come out looking like the village idiot or maybe looking like I'll go anywhere for a free trip.....time will tell. Also interesting that it happened almost 20 years ago. Time has given it a different perspective. I'll keep you posted as to the airing date.
Steve Clem was the engineer and a tremendous help. A very nice faciity.

Back again....NEWS !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm back from the second trip to North Carolina. It's really a hop, skip, and jump as the connections are close and all across the terminal. I got wind of a session that may take place in October. It will be fun. It reminds me of of a call I got several years ago from one of my clients that ask me to shoot a friend of hers, a country musician that she wrote a song for that he recorded. He was traveling from California to Nashville and would stop in my studio on the way for a session with me. I asked who it was and she told me that she couldn't say as the word might get out....and that would not be good. As I have said many times in this blog, I am the luckiest guy in the world. She said he would be in between 11:00 and 2:00, I was to wait. I agreed and had some reservations. I was told he would pay the necessary amount, and to shoot a lot. As the clock rounded 1:15 it became perfectly clear that I might have been had by some of my friends.I was hungry, the clock was ticking and no one had even opened the door.

My studio was about two blocks north for Souls Harbor, a rescue mission in town. Periodically some of the clients would be walking to the North and pass the studio. They were just people that were down on their luck and passing through. They all had a story to tell, you could see it on their faces. The second hand on the clock hadn't paused and it was about a quarter till two. How could I have been so easy. A call out of the blue, a former client claiming to have written a song that was recorded by a country western singer. I was to photograph that famous singer, HOOK, LINE , AND SINKER !!!! I took it all.

I stood looking out the window and saw a man coming up the street......North. He had on a long coat, knee high boots and a very broad brimmed hat. Hadn't shaved for a long time, what a day. The man made a right turn, stepped into the studio, took his hat off and said, Hello, I'm Merle Haggard, is Mike Morgan available. I told him he was. It was a fun shoot, ya just gotta have the faith.

Senior Portraits

Looking back, "The Senior Portrait" I had taken in "68", was something of a touch of new territory for me. My parents weren't big picture people. Granted we had the new clothes for Easter shots, Christmas, birthday pictures, and a couple of professional portraits taken growing up, but that was about it. I started my first "stash" in the fall of 1968, much to the dismay of my Mother and disdain from my Dad. It lasted a week. I transferred to SMS in the summer of "69"and started it again. It's been with me ever since with the exception of the three days it took to go to KC for my physical for the Army, but that's another story. The changes we go through as we grow up and the memories the old images bring up give meaning to the portraits of our lives.

I came across the Senior portraits of an old friend of mine that I took and I thought that I'd pass them on to my readers. This guy is one of the best Jazz drummers in the Mid West and one heck of a great guy. The memories I have, other than of him, are of the studios I took them in. The white wall and door shot was taken in my available light studio in Carthage that had been in use since the late 1800's. It originally was the first "Steward Studio" just off the square. In 1975 I bought my studio building at 340 Lyon Street. It was a great 2 story brick building that had been built in 1883. As a matter of fact Onis Hutchins used it to store his business supplies in. His daughter was a year younger than I and later married the Manager of (and now business partner ) with Graham Nash, of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. Check out Nash Productions for limited edition prints and production services. Sorry about the wandering conversation but memories are memories. Anyway, the day after I bought the building at 340 I walked south and turned left, AND LOOKED UP. I grew up in Carthage, I thought I knew everything about it. To my south was the Skylight of old. The studio I had never seen, never knew of and would have killed for if I had known it was there. It was sitting silently 2 and a half stories up....I had just NEVER looked up. Bill Grey owned the building and I rented the studio from him and used it in the Spring and Fall. If it rained you were out of luck as the skylight leaked, and if it was winter you froze as there was no heat. But....when the weather would allow shooting in it...it was fabulous. Sam and the drums were taken in my studio at 340.

In my new studio here in Tulsa I am able to take full advantage of the natural light as two of my walls. East and South are floor to ceiling glass.....one story above the street.

NPR Talk on "The Story"

On my way to Wilmington I was listening to National Public Radio and heard a new program called "The Story" with Dick Gordon. He interviews individuals with a story to tell and it sounded really like something that I could add a widely unknown story to. I gave them a call and gave a brief outline of my trip to Baghdad, Iraq in 1990. On this trip I photographicly documented the group "Peace Wave" which I was a part of, and our efforts to secure the release of the Japanese Hostages that were being held by the Iraqis. The event we were participating in was "The International Sports and Music Festival for Peace from Iraq. It was a cover for countries to retreive the hostages that were being held by the Iraqi's for the previous 6 months and allow them to return to their home countries. We were to try to get the Japanese, and the Japanese were to try to get the Americans out.

I had received a call from Byron Morgan, a business partner of mine in California, the day after Thanksgiving asking me where was the last place in the world I'd want to be. I calmly replied...Iraq....and he ask me if I wanted to go there. Tune into "The Voice" over National Public Radio on your computer or radio if it carries "The Voice" on on your local station
to hear the complete story. I will be interviewing on August 25th and I'll tell you the play date as soon as I find out. I'll also scan some of the images from the trip and post them on the blog. What a Hoot.

Carolina days.....

Well...it seems like years but I'm back to drop some notes into the blog. I'm in Wilmington North Carolina on the Coast and it is a visual candy store. It seems that whenever I travel my senses go on high alert to new images.....and new foods. Being on the coast the grasses are going to be fun as I can pre-visualize an image of them that will express time drawn out....you'll see that image soon.The light is not right now as it is too bright....even at a slow film speed. I need it to be a REALLY low light.

Before I left Tulsa I came to the conclusion that I needed to change the direction on the treatments of two walls in the camera room of the studio. I'm changing from brick to Tin and a "rock " treatment in one area to two types of paint. Primary concerns on the change were the "look" and time.

The Senior Portrait season is upon us and I am having clients book consultations right and left concerning the ideas I have for the Senior portrait "style" I'll be offering. Every Senior is different and I have always tried to create a unique portrait collection for that individual client. I can think of nothing more boring OR unfair to the client and myself than producing "cookie cutter" portraits of my clients. It is not my style and I just won't do it.

If you want to follow what I'm saying visually sign up as a follower on my blog as I'll be posting images throughout the "season" giving you an idea of what I'm talking about.

Back again..

Been out of pocket getting my web site up...I've been searching for the right images..and that takes a LONG time. Ought to be done getting the first one done and up soon. Sorry for the lost contact...I'll get more on tomorrow.