Passport!

Well, after all the nasty stories I have heard about people not getting passports or it taking months on end to get them, I was terrified at the thought of not getting mine in time for my honeymoon. However this afternoon, 6 days from when I applied, I arrived home to find my passport in the mail!

Fran and I are really excited about the prospect of building houses for people to celebrate our new life together. Not to mention the beach in El Salvador is supposed to be pretty nice ;)

Anyhow, here is a little video overview from The Fuller Center of Housing about the project at St. Joseph's Home for the Poor. 

Thousands of Light Painters

Sometimes we get to slow down a bit and have a little fun with our assignments. This was one of those times. With the Tulsa area overtaken by tiny flying lanterns I drew the assignment to make a photograph to accompany the story. 

It took me more than two hours sitting in the pitch dark to make a handful of photos decent enough to turn in. Partially because of the frustration of focusing the dark, but also because the wee things are harder to photograph than you think. It took me so long that the interns who went with me soon tired of me standing around contemplating the assignment while they got bit by the not nearly as friendly mosquitos sharing the airspace with our green glowing subjects.

After they left I took a deep breath and then stepped off the deep end. I used a technique called light painting to make the two photographs you see here. Basically a long exposure (30 seconds) captures the movement of the bugs while bursts from a small flashlight are used to "paint in" the details the photographer chooses (hand, weed, boots etc)  

Now I am off to fetch a little anti-itch gel and some sleep!