Jeffrey Michael Walcott Photography

Aurora - Enviromental Portraits - 4/2/11

2011-04-03T08:03:00.000-07:00

Meet Aurora.

This is the second in a series of environmental portraits meant to celebrate the girl next door, and how beautiful she is in her own surroundings. Emily was the first to pose for me, and she introduced me to Aurora who was also willing to sit for the project. Aurora works as a costume designer and splits her time between New York City and upstate. She was working on some gigantic wings for a client and was just finishing the project when I arrived. Feathers were everywhere.

I was able to capture some photos of her and her project and then some portraits. I'll look to post additional photos of her in the future on a new blog dedicated to this project. I hope you enjoy the theme and comments and questions are welcome.

This amazing old thread spool case with some of her materials in it.

As seen through the giant wings on the left of the first picture above. The vantage point actually gives the appearance that Aurora has a set of wings of her own.

Posing in her studio. Another set of wings in the background.

Portrait while Aurora puts up her hair.

Portrait in her studio.

Aurora sitting in the downstairs section of the house in which she works, tape measure draped around her neck.

Great afternoon light. Cool shadows. Beautiful model. Nice image.

A Half Hour in Ireland - 3/29/11

2011-03-31T12:10:00.000-07:00

This past week I traveled to Ireland for work (not photography related) and amid my busy schedule of meetings, flights and not so much sleep I was able to spend about a half an hour walking through the small seaside town of Crosshaven. I was lucky enough that the person I was meeting in Ireland, Caroline, was willing to drive me around on the way to the airport or else I wouldn't have seen much of anything. The village was exactly how I pictured it would be from my mental image of Ireland that has been constructed over the years of watching movies and seeing pictures.

I think my favorite memory of the entire trip though, was the smell of cow manure as we were getting off the plane in Cork. The airport only has five gates and is nestled amongst farms. So instead of the smell of concrete or gasoline, I was greeted in Ireland by the smell of farms. Then, my cab driver, who spoke in an accent so thick I had to fake understanding at points, had no problem squeezing in his, and the city of Cork's, entire history in the ten minute ride we shared together. When describing the economic troubles of Cork and the 14% jobless claims, he only said that he had to believe in the words of his parents, "The apples will grow again, they always do."

This photo, I think, describes some of the changes in Ireland. The man seems to be a quintessential Irishman, with his glasses, tweed cap and newspaper. He seems to belong on a small lane in a small village but here is surrounded by the hustle and bustle of a city that perhaps has grown up around him instantaneously.

My favorite. Many of the roads in Crosshaven were one only one lane. The double yellow line suggests that at some point these were two lane roads that houses covered when they fell from the sky.

Power lines are everywhere. So are TV antennas.

The Irish have the best pub signs. Each is a work of art.

Great lines and geometric shapes.

The Detail of Alcatraz - 3/24/11

2011-03-26T09:00:00.001-07:00

Last week, during a trip to San Francisco with friends, we took the ferry across the bay to the former maximum security prison, Alcatraz. The place is incredible, although small, and even though no prisoners have been incarcerated there for over 50 years, the place still seems to echo with the stories of life behind bars. I had my iPhone with me, and while taking the audio tour, tried to find small detail photographs that spoke to the larger theme of jail life. Comments and questions are always welcome. I hope you enjoy. Should be back with more environmental portraits in a few weeks time.

Emily - Environmental Portraits - 3/13/11

2011-03-13T16:13:00.001-07:00

I've recently been looking to do more portrait work. My favorite type of portraiture is what photographers call environmental portraits, or images of people in surroundings that highlight the subjects personality or lifestyle.

Additionally, I've been struggling with the idea of body-image in today's media. It's very obvious that most of us men will never meet, date or marry a model from Victoria's Secret even though that image seems to be the basis for our idea of the perfect woman. But does that mean that the women we meet in the coffee shop or at the gym are any less perfect or attractive? No. And so this next project is all about the girl next door, and how beautiful she is, even though she doesn't grace the pages of a magazine.

Enter Emily.

Comments and questions are always welcome.

Images from Wandering - 2/6/11

2011-02-06T12:09:00.000-08:00

I try to grab my camera and wander the streets of nyc as often as possible. You honestly can never predict what you'll encounter, who you'll meet or what images you will pass by. It seems every time I don't have a camera I'm wishing I did. The below images were taken during the last few months when I was lucky enough to have my equipment with me. I hope you enjoy.

Somewhere on the west side of Manhattan. This image reminds me of that American past-time of heading west into the unknown for adventure and fortune.

This is an image of an impromptu game of tag that broke out one weekend down on Wall Street, right outside of the Stock Exchange. The core group was inviting passers-by to join them and the game grew.

A Third Avenue doorway.

Detail of old records at an East Village music store.

After one of the large snowstorms we've been blessed with this 2011 winter, someone apparently lost a bag full of shoes.

Venice (digging up the arcives)

2011-01-21T06:23:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to work through all my images from the past ten years (sadly I've lost digital files for a lot of early work) and organize them better in my computer archives. I came across some photographs taken while in Venice, Italy, when I was a senior at Ohio University and studying abroad. I think I've probably only shown these to three or four people before, so I thought I'd share on this snowy Friday morning. I hope you all enjoy.

AJ fights her way through the pigeons in Piazza San Marco.

View through the spotted window of the water taxi.

A canal as seen through the railing on a foot bridge.

The high tide mark is visible on a rotting door that leads only to the waterway.

Windows on the street.

Surf, Snow and Lighthouses - Montauk 1-16-11

2011-01-17T17:12:00.000-08:00

My girlfriend, Britt, and I decided to get away from the city this weekend. We were planning on skiing but after thinking of the crowded east-coast mountains on holiday weekends decided against it. We got into the car and drove the length of Long Island out to Montauk, and specifically the lighthouse at the tip of the island. I've never been on a beach when there was snow on the ground, so this was a new experience. In reality, there wasn't much snow. There were however, some 8 ft tall reeds that served as a backdrop to some photos, and the previously mentioned lighthouse. The pictures below are from a fun and low key day of winter exploration. I hope you enjoy. Comments and questions, as always, are welcome.

Chesney Dog Shots - 12-26-10

2010-12-26T20:31:00.001-08:00

I had the opportunity to try out some new lighting equipment and chose a dog named Chesney as the subject for my shoot. I had seen her playing with a tennis ball earlier in the day and noticed how adorable she looked when holding the ball in her mouth. She's only about a year old and decidedly small for a Lab, only weighing 45 pounds, so she can't fit the whole ball in her mouth and chews on half of it with the other half out of her mouth. Unfortunately, dogs don't speak English, and therefore don't take direction very well. I did the best I could, however you'll notice there are no cute photographs of Chesney holding the tennis ball out of the side of her mouth. I hope you enjoy what I was able to capture and the new equipment worked well (small victory). Comments and questions are always welcome.

Hands 12/13/10

2010-12-20T16:21:00.000-08:00

This is part of an ongoing project that I keep expanding upon. Someone once told me about how a person's hands tell as much about them as their clothes or the expressions on their faces. They show what type of life a person leads, whether or not they are married, if they are old or young. I'm working on a specific type of abstract portraiture that tells the story of a person or a family through their hands only. The below images are a couple I took while playing with some lighting and a black background. Stay tuned for more and as always comments or questions are welcome. Enjoy.

Price Family Photos 11/20/10

2010-11-21T06:18:00.001-08:00

One of my brother-in-law's close friends lives with his wife and two children in Westchester County New York. I took the trip up from the city on Saturday to photograph them for their Christmas card. They have a beautiful backyard and I was able to spend time around the kids as they played together. One of the photographers I worked with at The News-Times in Danbury always spoke of being unobtrusive, or as she liked to put it, "shooting like a woman". I have always tried to incorporate this style into my photographs so that I'm able to record people without my presence affecting their behavior. I think the photographs below capture the Price family as they are without a photographer present and if so, I've been successful. I'll let you all be the judge however. Comments are always welcome. Enjoy and thanks to Chris and Sara.

Katie Headshots 10/30/10

2010-10-31T13:59:00.000-07:00

My friend Katie is applying to graduate school for theater. She's got alot of talent and needed some headshots for her application and resume. I was able to help her out over the Halloween weekend and think we came up with some solid images. Good luck to Katie and I hope you all enjoy the photos. Comments or questions are welcome. Enjoy.

60th Birthdays and Scarlet and Gray

2010-10-11T05:40:00.001-07:00

My parents are quintessential baby-boomers, both being born in 1950, and as such, 2010 has brought their 60th birthdays. My mom graduated from Ohio State in the 70s and has infused our family with her love of the Buckeyes. Over the weekend, my parents, sister and brother-in-law, and my girlfriend traveled to Columbus, OH to attend the Ohio State football game against Indiana as a celebration. I had an article and photographs published in the local newspaper chronicling my dads 60th birthday and although I'm not going that far for my mom, below are a couple of the photos from the weekend. I hope you all enjoy and as always, comments and questions are welcome.

Early morning walk to the stadium...

Trying on new clothes at the college bookstore...

The year my mom graduated...

Buckeye hat detail...

Entering the hallowed halls of the shoe...

Official attendance was 105,216...

My family cheers...

My mom cheers...

My mom sits outside of her sophomore dorm. Happy birthday.

Hunter- 8/29/10 - NYC

2010-09-03T15:06:00.000-07:00

Jonathan is a good friend of mine from work and 8 months ago he and his wife, Tracy, gave birth to their first child, Hunter. During our daily commute I was talking to Jonathan about some business ideas that I had, namely the creation of documentary style candid portraits for families during their daily activities. The idea fell right in line with what he wanted for his family before Hunter celebrated his first birthday. So last weekend I met up with the three of them at their apartment and photographed their life and their son while they played together in the house and took a walk to central park. The images below are some of my favorites from the day. I'm hoping to continue this project during other events and for other families. Comments and questions are always welcome. Enjoy and thanks to Jonathan, Tracy and most specifically, Hunter, who may just be the happiest, most easy-going baby I've even met.

Shilana in Central Park

2010-08-28T20:04:00.001-07:00

Saturday was a beautiful day in Central Park and I was lucky enough to have a friend agree to come work on some images with me. I am attempting to find my own style through my portraiture and have been getting out of the studio and trying to work on-location. This provides a very natural feel to the images and allows me to be creative within my surroundings. Shilana really is fantastic and I take my hat off to her every time she makes the hour and a half ride from Brooklyn. I hope the images we come up with are worth the trip. Take a look below and you can judge for yourself. Thanks for stopping by. All comments or questions are welcome.

Grandparents Day at the Beach

2010-08-12T04:24:00.001-07:00

On Tuesday, August 10th I photographed my grandparents at the beach for an hour or so. They had flown from Arizona to spend time with my family during our vacation at Topsail Beach, North Carolina. The following pictures are from that day. Great memories to be shared. Thanks for talking a look and I hope you enjoy.

Images from Topsail Island, North Carolina

2010-08-10T04:56:00.001-07:00

I spent a couple of days at Topsail Beach in North Carolina this weekend relaxing with my family. I of course had the camera in tow. Here are a couple of the images that came out of those few days. I hope you enjoy and as always, let me know if there are any comments. Thanks for stopping by.

An Image for a Serviceman

2010-07-11T19:22:00.000-07:00

A very good friend of mine has a boyfriend who is currently going through basic training in the Navy. His final goal is to become a SEAL and we certainly wish him all the luck in the world with that. To help get him through the tough days during training my friend, Gemma, wanted to send him a couple photos. In the style of the Navy she wanted to send something like a classic pinup. I'm not sure that i did a good enough job to get to a classic image but Gemma was great and I hope at least that her guy will like the photos.

Thanks for taking a look and here's hoping for the safe completion of training of Gemma's boyfriend Jackson.

Mt Katahdin

2010-06-14T19:17:00.000-07:00

John Walcott climbed Mt. Katahdin, the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail and the highest point in Maine, with his son, Jeff Walcott, son-in-law Jared Leonard, and childhood friend, Pete Will. The climb was important as it was John's 60th birthday. He decided to celebrate climbing a mountain he had first summited in 1974 and has returned to over 25 times. The following are a few images from the day. I hope you enjoy.

Please send any comments or questions. Thanks for stopping by.

The Wedding of Brittany and Brandon Hayes

2010-05-23T16:40:00.000-07:00

I went to the wedding of a couple friends from Charlotte over the weekend, Brittany Gilbert and Brandon Hayes. I was not the official photographer for the event, but in hoping to get them some additional images I brought my camera along. The ceremony was beautiful and I wish them the best. Below are a couple of my favorite images from the day. I hope you enjoy. Let me know if you have any comments or questions and thanks for visiting.

Groom Brandon Hayes and his father and best man, Phil Hayes, wait outside of the sanctuary for the ceremony to begin. They are joined by Reverend David Williams, who gained special permission to come perform the ceremony in the midst of his retirement. David has been the bride's Reverend for her entire life.

Groomsman Troy Regan has his boutonnière pinned onto his jacket before the wedding ceremony.

Bridesmaid Britt Whitelaw practices blowing bubbles while waiting for the bride and groom to exit at the end of the reception.

The happy newlyweds, Brittany and Brandon Hayes, emerge from the reception hall under a canopy of bubbles.

Congratulations to the happy couple.

1st Post - Recent Portrait Work

2010-05-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone -

I thought I'd try my hand at this whole blogging thing. It's certainly easier than updating my personal portfolio website every time I shoot. Recently I've been trying to work more often and complete more personal projects. The few photos above are from models I solicited from Craigs List and worked with in my apartment/studio (about 220sq ft to work with, so we did our best). Over the three photo shoots I became surprisingly efficient in breaking down all my furniture and storing it in the corner of my room so we had space to work. Certainly a "ghetto studio" but we all start somewhere.

I have to give a big thanks to Jenna Lazzaro who did the makeup in all three shoots. Thanks for visiting.