Hello Write Queeners,

What better way to get back into blogging by writing a rant piece about a video I saw on UpWorthy. In a post titled, "A Dad Took These Photos Of His Daughter. They're Raising Some Eyebrows," we find a video about how a dad, who is a photographer, took photos of his daughter while they were on a trip. She is nude in some of them. He posted some of his favorites on Instagram and it started a controversy that inspired his exhibit and video about the situation.

This man's name is Wyatt Neumann. He is a pretty fantastic photographer. If you look at some of the photos on his site and in the video, you'll see that the moments he captures were ones where his child was carefree. Don't we all snap one or two of those ourselves of our children? Sometimes we post them. Sometimes we just send them to friends. As a photographer, he posted them because they were beautiful moments he wanted to share.

Then people started to say things about the photos, calling Wyatt sick and much more that you can hear in the video (I don't want to promote the negativity of it). Protesters of this even questioned the child which really is irksome. In one photograph where her hands are down her pants, do you think she is doing something? Why would you automatically think that? Kids do crazy things all the time. She may have ran outside like that and Dad said "Hun, look at the camera," and she may have been cold and decided to put her hands in her pants!

If we took a picture of our child taking a bath in the tub and they suddenly grabbed their crouch mid-shot, is it inappropriate? Or is it funny and innocent?

It's not like the man took his child and decided to pose her in 50 million provocative poses. She was acting naturally. I've seen parents dress their little girls in clothing that doesn't look appropriate because it looks too "adult" off the bat and some people don't bat an idea because it's a kid's version (which obviously covers parts and so forth). Any different?

Take a look at the video before we continue. I have a few questions that I would love people to respond to and start a dialogue with (which you can in the comments).

This was so innocent. It's amazing what people turn things into.

Questions: Had this been a woman photographer, would this had happened? Had it been their son and not their daughter, would there have been a different response? Do we automatically demonize men in situations like this?

If the father of my children was a photographer, I would be okay with photos like this because it's innocent. I would know him and his love for his children and his art. If it was anything otherwise, I would kill him. The only thing I would want is for him to run it by me because I am their mother and if I don't think it should go up, then it shouldn't go up.

Which brings me to this point: If Wyatt's wife is okay with the photos, no one else should care. Parenting is between two people if there is such a partnership in the family unit. If both parents feel that it's okay, why the grief?

They say that a child should have the right to consent to things like this as well. Which they should because it teaches them the freedom of choice. If they have been raised in a certain way, then their yes or no's will reflect on if they want something out there. If they have been taught to cover up or are scolded when they have been running around naked, then they may say "No." But if they haven't been taught that, then they may say "Yes" because they like the photo. They still may say "No" because they feel like it. But what parent is going to post pics if they actually ask their kid if it's okay and they say no? I'm sure if consent was present in the situation, he wouldn't have posted it based on what his daughter said.

His intention wasn't to take these photos and have this kind of exhibit; he was creating memories and wanted to share BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT ARTISTS DO! This came about from the Internet's response and what happened to him. ALSO HIS RIGHT AS AN ARTIST AND A PARENT.

I don't like the fact that the person who posted this on Upworthy says that he can't decide what to think in the description on Facebook. You think something. You expressed it. "Some of the images definitely feel creepy; don't get me wrong. I definitely was shocked when I first saw a couple of them." You showing bias and expressing it to your viewers before they even get to watch this. Poor sharing and reporting on your part Joseph Lamour. At least save that opinion for later on in the post if you have to have it. But that's another issue for another time.

Wyatt, you are a great photographer and dad. I hope that as an artist, when I have kids, that I can turn negativity into something powerful like this!

Thoughts, comments? Share them! Let's talk.

Til next time!

Sometimes you meet a poem that renders you senseless because that's exactly how you feel. Experienced this in Barnes and Noble the other night. This poem is by Louise Labe.

This is to someone who just doesn't know...

He begged her 
to 
keep it 
on 
paper 
because
cuts heal.

The memory
of 
the spine 
of 
her hands 
won't.

Her shaky hands

handcuffed in ransom notes

holds on to bridges.

I look at pretty girls
and torture myself
with thoughts
of your lips
on theirs.

I find my stomach
wrapping tightly
around the eyes
of your future
muses, seeing you
love the red
of another's mouth.

I see a future
of trembling
hands, clutching
another wrinkled
love letter,
not knowing when
to let go

even when you
push me into moving
cars and tell me to
get home safe.

Hello my lovely readers,

I can tell you the story of how I became a writer a million times, but the story I struggle to find the beginning of is my affair with photography. I recently learned that the urge to photograph came from both of my parents, but mostly my mother.  While she mainly photographed events of our lives, I found a couple of scene shots among the piles of photographs. That surprised me greatly. 

Let's look back to the ages of eleven to thirteen, when I began to beg for cameras of my own. First it was the disposable ones. Then I got to use the family camera occasionally. It was a trial to get people to develop my film. Once my parents split, money was tight, so that was a luxury. When it did happen, I was so happy - I stared at my pictures for hours. 

The things I like to photograph are people, clouds, dusk, and light. I remember one particular picture that started the need to photograph people was one I took in eighth grade of my first love. Looking back, I see that I caught the look that defines one of the stages of his personality. Sometimes I almost miss moments with my own eyes because I am busy capturing a person's essence through the lens. I could be with a person and all I want to do is photograph their every move. 

That has helped me capture some pretty amazing moments that others often ask me to send them before I get into my door and sit down to look at what I've done. That should say something of my talent (especially since I practice mainly mobile photography now), but honestly, it just makes me happy to snap a shot to hold on to for myself. Maybe it's my obsessive need to preserve the good parts of a person or a moment in life, but tell that to my crew.

Now clouds...well come on. They are beautiful. Shape shifting at its finest. What would the sky be without clouds? Other than sheer beauty that I cannot describe, but certainly can capture, the most important thing about clouds is their role with manipulating light.

I have been chasing light for as long as I can remember. Light is what makes magic. It may have started way before the camera, during trips to and from the Ponderosa (the restaurant, not the place on Bonanza haha!) when I was a kid. Most of the time, we would be traveling during sunset and we would drive towards this dying light which gave birth to a slew of soft colors twisted around moving clouds. Sunsets/dusk is one of light's greatest productions. It's natural art. To this day, I have to stop to capture this stunning movement whenever I encounter it. But my love of light goes beyond that.

It's the way it hits the skin of one's hands. It's the strips of artificial light bouncing off of dark bedroom walls. It's the way shadows and objects play with light's path. With the right lighting, anything can become beautiful, even myself (but that's a whole other story!).

I thought I was a weirdo for this love of light until I read The Bridges of Madison County when I was in my early teens. The main male character, Robert Kincaid, was a photographer for National Geographic. Other than his days long affair with Francesca, what I love about the character is his theory of light and photography.

What teen-aged girl who was exploring her love for photography wouldn't fall for that description? I know for a while when I was younger,  I was secretly looking for my own Robert Kincaid. But while I never found him, I found myself becoming more attached to image than ever before.

When I was fifteen, my dad gave me a beautiful SLR Film camera that I could barely function. During harder times in my family, it became an outlet when the pen was too weak. Two years later, during my senior year, I took a photography class where I learned how to develop film in a dark room - messing up tons of film along the way. I spent many afternoons walking around my neighborhood, shyly taking pictures when I saw the right light. I also spent many hours taking pictures of my first love (yes that same one referenced earlier - a whole other story!) during that time as well. My favorite place to take pictures was when I was looking out my bedroom window. Other than the fact that my mom was very overprotective at times (or I was being grounded for shenanigans with boys), I stood home to look out my window to capture the movements of sunset and how light created this mystic image of my South Ozone Park home. 

Waiting for film to be developed was trying at best. I like being able to see my results instantly, which is why when I got my first digital camera around the age of 18/19, I was in my glory. 

With a digital camera, I was able to capture a moment and see how well I did in a matter of seconds. My first digital camera was a Polaroid, which was about the size of a Klondike bar. With it, I discovered what we now call selfies, in addition to taking more scene shots. Being a young girl in college with a long distance boyfriend, the art of the selfie was to remind both him and myself that I was beautiful (decent looking at least). With every other semester's generous financial aid check, I managed to grab enough money, before it was handed over to my mother, to buy a better digital camera (mainly Kodak point and shoots, but most recently I have decided to try a Canon). 

When I was starting to embrace myself as an artist around the age of 19/20, I started to share my photos online via Blogger and MySpace. As I became more conscience of my online presence and built myself a website, I added a photo gallery to my site. It felt like enough until I got my first mobile phone with a camera. That's when life changed. 

It started with my T-Mobile Sidekick. That little device helped shaped me as an artist as much as learning more about every art medium I dabble in (we'll talk about that later). In terms of photography, being able to shoot and post became an obsession. Throughout the years, with each new phone, came the increase of photos I would take. Now with an iPhone and Instagram, I easily fill up my memory within days. Especially when a sunset is involved. If I am out with loved ones, most are tolerant of having to wait for me as I stand there and take 20 shots of the same thing, each time changing an angle, zooming in and out, using a filter or bearing focus on a certain point of the screen. 

While I aspire to get a DSLR camera one day, I have made mobile photography my medium. Writing is my number one passion, but photography comes a close second. In addition to taking pictures, I also collect photographs. A folder on my computer (or even my phone) can easily hold 4000 of my own pictures and a 1000 from others. 

One of my best friends is a photographer and I am in love with his work. Some of the best moments of my life in the past couple of years have been when we are out and about together and we both see the potential of a shot. You can easily find us with the cameras of our choice, taking pictures of almost the same thing. Sometimes, I just like to watch him at work. There's something about a photographer and the way he (or she) holds their camera that is sensual and intriguing. 

But then again, you're talking to the girl who has been looking for her Robert Kincaid. 

Or maybe, she has a little of Robert Kincaid in her.

A slideshow of random shots throughout the past year. Some are from Instagram and others are unedited shots.

Thanks for listening Write Queeners. It's nice to talk about what makes me tick other than writing. Embracing the artist is something we have to do for ourselves every day. I will be posting more stories soon.

Leave a comment or subscribe in the meantime!

Hello Write Queeners!

Yes, you are reading it right. An e-book! In a decision to self-publish my work, I decided to start with a little experiment titled Beloved. The reason I call Beloved a mobile e-book is because everything was written on my phone AND the e-book was created on an app via my iPhone. The app is called Creative Book Builder by Tiger Ng, who not only has this wonderful little app, but a few more that help you create interactive e-books on the go! I do promise that you will get a review of these apps within the week.

Beloved is an e-chapbook of poems and musings about opening, swimming through, and drowning in floodgates. This is a mobile e-book creation and experience that was complied between the condensation of Summer and the chill of Fall. It's FREE for a short period of time (or indefinitely...still deciding!). You can also pay-as-you-wish, where the funds would be used to put out Late Night Feelings, Home Sweet Home, Sweltering Sugar and other projects. Beloved is available in .EPUB and .MOBI formats (i.e. iBooks and Kindle) and a special edition web app for the iPhone and iPad.  

Be on the look out for a post on the Late Night Feelings blog about the process of creating Beloved.

Don't you just love the cover? The photo I used for the cover is by my wonderfully talented best friend and business partner, Alshawn Rushing. He is the Head of Photography and co-founder of EAT Media. If you want to use his awesome skills, head over to EAT Media's website or check him out on his website NerosisMuse Photography.

Look out for an update on the link to the web app. Still working on getting that up!

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