Obama for EPA

RIO RANCHO - I got up close with President Obama for European Pressphoto Agency yesterday. As a professional photographer, I have been very close with President Bush and former President Clinton after he was out of office. It always makes for a long day, but it is always exciting.

The nice part is that, unlike most of my recent work, I can share these images on my blog. Enjoy.

Introducing Steven St. John Wedding Photography

ALBUQUERQUE - As a freelance photographer, I have documented many of my friends weddings. Weddings are a lot of fun, and a lot of hard work too. Well, I'm pleased to announce that I finally have added a division of my website dedicated to just weddings. Please stop by my documentary wedding site by clicking on the link and let me know what you think.

While I'm at it, I want to plug my website designer, Electrophonic Design, who have done a wonderful job with all my website design needs. I could not be happier with their work.

Here is the main gallery of photos from the new site.

Meet Coen

ALBUQUERQUE - Introducing Coen Wyatt Jackson, son of my good friends Dale and Eva.

Prints and personal use downloads of these photos (and soon all my entire archive) are available by clicking on the gallery which will take you to my online archive.

Searching for more

ALBUQUERQUE - Here is a set of photos showing the workers at the site where 13 bodies have been unearthed over more than a month long search southwest of Albuquerque. It has been a while since they have found any new victims, so here's hoping the 13 is the unlucky number and that now they can focus on catching the person or persons responsible.

How long has it been...

ALBUQUERQUE - Yesterday was the one year anniversary of the final publication of the Albuquerque Tribune. Alumni gathered to mark the occasion and catch-up on the many changes a single year can hold. For those who couldn't be with us, here are a few photos. I hope to see you all in the coming year. The paper and the people who put it together everyday are my hero's and have shaped me into who I am today.

Grainy goodness

The plan was simple.

My brother Mike was to lure his girlfriend Alisa into a pre-selected spot in the foothills where he'd ask her to marry him. I'd be waiting with a 300mm lens just at the edge of the sight line to capture the moment. They'd leave work after she finished tennis practice, giving me a great New Mexico sunset for light.

Simple plans aren't always simple.

They got away late, showed just after the sunset, only a hint of the days final glory still in the sky. As a result I had to crank up the film speed all the way. A few years ago, with my first digital cameras, this wouldn't have been possible. The result is a grainy, some not-so-much in focus set of pictures. You try manually focusing a hand held 300mm at 1/30 of a second after you've been standing in the cold for a while.

The pictures are technically flawed, yes, yet I love seeing them. They feel like a grainy contact sheet I might have made back in college. But more importantly, it's the love in both of their eyes.

Safe to say that I and the rest of my family could not be happier about having Alisa join ours, and I am so happy to be documenting this part of their lives.

Cockfighting in Mexico

I made these images in Tulum Mexico on my way back from Guatemala. I decided to leave them more or less as they came out of my camera, grainy and a little red. I'm going to let the photos speak for themselves, and I trust people can make their own judgments as the if this is cruel and disgusting or just a harmless tradition.