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Natalie Raymond

poet | filmmaker | creator

  • About
    • Biography
    • Publications
  • Photo
  • Video
  • Art
  • Writing
    • Audio
    • Election
    • Manuscripts
  • Blog
  • Shop
  • Contact

Preservation of Mourning

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travel diary:

a tuesday morning strolling among the monuments to the dead in père lachaise. I have since discovered that the cemetery was opened exactly 184 years before my birth on 21 may 1804 (I come along on the same day in 1988). 

the altars to the dead in père lachaise are spectacular. many topped with elaborate sculptures, stained glass windows, & miniature gothic cathedrals. this was not a place meant to be left abandoned. the dead would be expecting their survivors to stop by for a visit.


“Be silent in that solitude,
Which is not loneliness — for then
The spirits of the dead, who stood
In life before thee, are again
In death around thee, and their will
Shall overshadow thee; be still.”
— Edgar Allan Poe

père lachaise cemetery is the largest of its kind within paris' city limits. it is the final resting place of a long list of celebrated luminaries including oscar wilde, edith piaf, marcel proust, & jim morrison. receiving more than three million visitors per year, père lachaise is the most visited cemetery in the world. 

tags: paris, cemetery, père lachaise, travel, travel photography
categories: europe, travel diary, weird world, france, travel photography
Monday 08.27.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Only at High Tide

I first learned of this cool sometimes island as a teenager, but never really imagined I'd find myself one day standing on the marshy shoals on the north western coast of france looking at it live & in person.

the mont is awe-inspiring to look at up close. rising out of the water like some kind of science fiction fantasy city. it's said to be the inspiration for minas tirith in the lord of the rings movies. it also has a long & fascinating weird history, including spending some time as an offshore prison.

tags: short film, documentary short, documentary film, travel, travel documentary, france, mont saint michel
categories: europe, travel diary, mini docs, weird world, france
Saturday 08.25.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Details - French Cats

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wherever I go, I find the cats.

slightly terrifying parisian brocante market cat paraphernalia. the french are known to love their dogs, but it isn't dog figurines lining the tables of street markets in the city.

tags: photography, cats, paris, flea markets
categories: travel diary, details, europe, france
Friday 08.24.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Paris Street

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travel diary:

in the summer sun, people are out on the streets of paris. not just tourists, but locals who, for whatever reason, didn't leave the city for the nationwide august holidays. the markets & cafes are busy despite the heat & the otherwise empty city chatters with french, english, italian, german, & spanish.

tags: travel photography, paris, street photography
categories: travel diary, europe, photography, france, travel photography
Monday 08.20.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Colours - Reykjavik

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spent a day walking around reykjavik. iceland is never particularly warm or sunny, even during their summer months, but instead of succumbing to the grey the residents of reykjavik paint their houses & shops bright colours. the whole city feels cheerful despite its weather.

tags: reykjavik, colours, travel
categories: travel diary, exploring, iceland
Sunday 08.19.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

La Ville de Rêve de Ma Jeunesse

when I was 15 years old I went to paris. I had been obsessed with france for several years, so when a school trip appeared I begged my mother to max out a credit card so I could go. I had traveled a small amount before, but this trip launched me into becoming a person who loves being somewhere totally new. though I've returned to europe on occasion, I've never gone back to france.

tomorrow I head back to paris for the first time in over a decade, stopping over for a day in reykjavik along the way. this time, I've been dreaming of iceland & walking paris' streets testing out the travel photography tips I've been reading about in books.

& also eating a lot of bread.

-N

paris, age 15.

paris, age 15.

tags: travel, diary, paris, reykjavik
categories: travel diary
Friday 08.10.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Red Sun + Midnight Sky

diary:

sitting on the manicured sand of balboa beach in orange country, watching the fat red sun sink behind palm trees & multi-million dollar homes. a lone lifeguard stand sits empty, dusk crawling in around it.

A post shared by N. (@natalie_raymond) on Aug 9, 2018 at 8:18pm PDT

tags: photography, shot on iphone, travel
categories: travel diary, photography, california
Friday 08.10.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Recycling

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My friend Megan made this amazing dress out of tossed away items from her recycling bin. On Saturday we set off to downtown LA to stage a fashion photoshoot to capture the dress in all its glory. We explored some of dtla's coolest locations, from the Biltmore Hotel to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

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Megan's dress is made of paper shopping bags, old CDs, binder clips, plastic bags, a vegetable tie, & a scrap of wrapping paper.

More photos.

tags: photography, portrait photography, recycled fashion
categories: photography
Sunday 08.05.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Creating Content - Surfsies LA

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Spent some time last week shooting some social media content with Surfsies LA, a local surf accessory brand. Slowly building up my branded content portfolio as part of a content creation company I will be launching shortly. Stay tuned!

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tags: photography, surfsies la, content creation, social media content
categories: photography, raymark media, branded content
Monday 07.30.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

California Aqueduct

aqueduct

The long stretch of I-5 south from Oregon to Los Angeles is mostly mundane. Cities & towns of varying sizes. Truck stops. Gas stations. Fast food restaurants. Here the interstate is just a means of getting from point A to point B.

But for a chunk of time you'll criss-cross a branch of the California Aqueduct. In late summer the rolling hills are golden brown from drought. The aqueduct flows over 400 miles from the Sierra Nevada Mountains all the way down to Southern California & it is the primary feature of the California State Water Project, one of the largest public water & power utilities in the world. Construction on the aqueduct began in 1963.

Somewhere along the way I came across this vista point just before sunset. I decided to stop to see if I could capture the fat weight of the sun & its rays sinking over the California hills. This is the result.

-N

tags: photography, california, travel
categories: photography, travel diary, california
Friday 07.27.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Exploring - The Golden Gate

A post shared by N. (@natalie_raymond) on Jul 24, 2018 at 5:28am PDT

travel diary:

dawn + fog + boats + bridge.
after spending the night by the ocean I woke up at 4 am to make my way to the presidio to catch the early morning light on the golden gate. the fog was so thick I had to drive at a snails pace. the sky turned deep blue just before the sun came up & bleached everything white.

-N

tags: time lapse, videos, golden gate bridge, san francisco, travel, diary
categories: travel diary, california, exploring
Tuesday 07.24.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Exploring - Haight-Ashbury

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travel diary:

just after dawn I get lost in the presidio & eventually find my way out into the haight-ashbury. the streets are largely empty, with only the odd groggy commuter clutching their coffee as they wait for the walk signal. I find a parking spot half a block from the intersection of haight & ashbury, which I'm certain wouldn't be there any later in the day. the morning is cool & the fog hangs in low & heavy. my los angeles blood can't bear to be out too long. I walk a half block in each direction, taking in the multi-coloured buildings & old victorian houses. the streets are quiet. none of the shops are open. I think about the east village in new york. I think about what these places used to mean, before you had to be a millionaire to afford their wood floor apartments & local coffee shops. I think about where all the art has gone, when profit becomes more important.

-N

tags: travel photography, travel, san francisco, haight-ashbury, diary
categories: exploring, california
Saturday 07.21.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Documenting Glass Beach

A place that has been on my bucket list since I first heard of it, Glass Beach is a fantastically weird little gem on the California Coast.

The beach is covered in multi-coloured pebbles of sea glass; a result of its past life as a dumping site for a nearby glass factory. Now a major tourist attraction, there are three beach sites accessible to the public. I spent a late afternoon exploring one & created this (very) short documentary about the beach & its history.

Read the full text from the video on Vimeo.

 

-N

tags: short film, documentary film, documentary short, travel, travel documentary, glass beach, california
categories: short film, mini docs, travel diary, weird world
Friday 07.20.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Details - San Francisco Florals

the presidio
lombard street
golden gate park

spent a couple of days last week driving up the california coast. briefly stopped in san francisco to explore. between the rolling fog, the pre-sunrise wakeup call, & the getting lost in sloped narrow streets I found some interesting plant life.

-N

tags: travel, photography, travel photography, plants, flowers, san francisco
categories: details, photography, california
Thursday 07.19.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Exploring - Long Beach

A post shared by N. (@natalie_raymond) on Jul 5, 2018 at 9:17am PDT

Wandering the south bay under the july sun.

tags: videos, travel, nikon keymission 170, long beach
categories: exploring, california
Thursday 07.05.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Details - Keep Families Together Rally LA

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more images from the day.

tags: keep families together, photography, protest, street photography
categories: details, photography
Sunday 07.01.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Textures - Hollywood

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walking around hollywood in the afternoon summer sun.

tags: textures, photography, hollywood
categories: textures, california
Thursday 06.28.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Details - Malibu

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El Matador State Beach, February 2018

tags: photography, travel, malibu, details
categories: details, photography, california
Tuesday 06.26.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 

Starting Fresh

The Salton Sea, one of the least fresh places in California.

The Salton Sea, one of the least fresh places in California.

As I learn to think more visually, & explore the world through my camera lens as opposed to through poetic ramblings, I'm transitioning to this imaged based blog.

This will be a place about travel, photography, the weird & wild. Stay tuned.

-N

tags: starting fresh
categories: admin
Monday 06.25.18
Posted by Natalie Raymond
 
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© Natalie Raymond