dreaming about another adventure in iceland.
someday I want to drive the ring road in summer—
just me
between the island
& the sea.
looking in reykjavik windows, 2018.
photography
dreaming about another adventure in iceland.
someday I want to drive the ring road in summer—
just me
between the island
& the sea.
looking in reykjavik windows, 2018.
downtown los angeles by night. experiments in long exposure.
holiday card portrait, 2019
happy winter solstice from us witches.
diving into my latest project. thinking about death valley & what it is to be a woman living a non-traditional life. BADWATER >> read more.
experiments in instagram poetry layout.
going through old photos & came across these film shots from the coney island mermaid parade. I’m not certain of the date, but I estimate it’s 2010, if the bp oil spill reference is any indicator. I didn’t attend the parade every year I lived in brooklyn, but I did go several times. always a highlight of my new york summer season.
the coney island mermaid parade began in 1983 as a launching of the summer season. it is now the largest art parade in the united states—attracting thousands of participants & even more spectators from around new york city & the world. nautical themed costumes are encouraged for viewers & required for participants. a range of contests & other festivities surround the event, including the annual crowing of a king neptune & queen mermaid. in 2019, arlo & nora guthrie received the honors.
learn more about the parade on its website.
shot on 35mm film with a vintage nikon fe.
trying out some tricks I’ve been learning via youtube & instagram. filling up my product photography portfolio on raymarkmedia.com
learning the art of taking photographs of people.
see updated portraits in the gallery.
follow my brand new media company, raymark media, on instagram.
or visit raymarkmedia.com as I build my portfolio.
-n
keeping secrets
I’m the part of the canvas
that’s been painted over—
another image hidden behind.
someone asks:
what would it take to reveal yourself?
& I answer with laughter
like a threaded strand of lies.
things found while strolling the hollywood hills in early summer…
joshua tree national park straddles both the colorado desert & the mojave desert in eastern california. the park was originally declared a national monument in 1936 & re-designated a national park in 1994 after congress passed the ‘california desert protection act’. taking up nearly 800,000 acres, the park itself is slightly larger than the state of rhode island. joshua tree is named for its trademark vegetation, the yucca brevifolia, which is native to the mojave desert.
I spent the morning a few days ago wandering the California Poppy Reserve, despite almost 35 mile per hour winds! The superbloom happening in Southern California right now, however, was more than worth the chapped lips & wind-whipped hair.
Put together a short video (of very wobbly windy footage) of my explorations. Look for more photos & videos from this gorgeous adventure on my instagram in the coming weeks.
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The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve in Lancaster, California is home to the most consistent blooming of the state's flower, the California poppy. The department of California State Parks does not water or stimulate the flowers in any way, instead leaving the blooms in their strictly natural state. It is against state law to remove flowers from the site & veering off the established paths can result in a hefty ticket. The traditional blooming season for California Poppies is mid-February through mid-May.
The so-called "superbloom" of 2019 was caused by an increase in rainfall during the winter months in Southern California. Parking on-site at the reserve, which is currently open 7:00am-7:00pm, is $10 per passenger vehicle, or you can opt to park on the shoulder of the road for free, provided you are at least 100 feet away from the park's entrance.
the fire burns against the water
the fire burns against the sea.
I wake in hills surrounded by kindling
I wake in california breeze.
mecca california is an unincorporated community along the north shore of the salton sea in southern california's colorado desert. the sea & the surrounding settlements are almost directly on top of the famed san andreas fault.
the area surrounding the salton sea had a short life as a resort town in the 1950's, but the ever-increasing pollution of the lake all but ended tourism in the area. the sea is now surrounded by the sun bleached corpses of fish & water birds poisoned by its toxic waters, as well as the remains of shops, resorts, & motels either totally abandoned or repurposed by the community's handful of current residents.
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.
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.
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.
Megan's dress is made of paper shopping bags, old CDs, binder clips, plastic bags, a vegetable tie, & a scrap of wrapping paper.
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!