Urban Marinade

Caption This!!!

2009-07-09T17:19:00.003-04:00

Obama to Sarkozy: "Kinda hard to blame Berlusconi when they look like that." Sarkozy back to Obama: "Uh huh...see what I'm saying!"

U.S. President Barack Obama (C) and France's President Nicolas Sarkozy (R) take their places with junior G8 delegates for a family photo at the G8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, July 9, 2009. Leaders of the Group of Eight major industrial nations and the main developing economies are meeting in the central Italian city of L'Aquila until Friday to discuss issues ranging from global economic stimulus to climate change and oil prices.

But clearly Obama and Sarkozy are thinking of a different type of stimulus in this photo...

How would you caption it?

Sounds of a City

2009-07-09T11:26:00.005-04:00

This morning while walking into the office, I was reminded once again why I love DC. I had just turned the corner at 7th and F Streets NW, walking past the Verizon Center. It was closer to 10 a.m., so the streets were more quiet than usual as most of the foot-traffic had found their way to their respective offices for the day. That's when I noticed the slight hum of the city. It's a sound so exclusive to city life that sometimes we forget it's there. It's every large building for blocks running a/c or heating units on their rooftops, creating a buzz that never seems to go away. And it's a sound I can remember hearing whenever I would visit a city considerably larger than my hometown.

I was very lucky to grow up in Dover, Delaware. Dover is probably the perfect setting for a child to be raised. We had safe streets, good schools, a good mall and we were really close to the beach. But Dover has a population right around 30,000. It's not a large town at all. When sitting outside, it's very easy to relax and enjoy a peace and quiet not found in most major cities. I notice this every time I go home to visit. Last time home I literally fell asleep on my parents patio because the only sounds to be heard was the wind and the birds (okay, maybe an occasional car with an obnoxious sound system). But you get the point...it's quiet.

Living in DC we're surrounded by sounds all the time. We hear emergency vehicles, motorcades, car horns, and people just out and about walking. There is an energy of living in the city that makes walking out my front door in the morning so exciting and enjoyable. So when all of those ancillary sounds disappear, you're left with that hum of our buildings. I used to hear this when I'd visit Allentown, PA for drum corp performances. We'd walk out the front door of our hotel located in downtown Allentown and there it was...the hum of a city. I'd hear it while enjoying dinner on the rooftop of my office in downtown Tampa after most of the city had gone home. I'd hear it walking from the Tribune Building to my gym most evenings in downtown Oakland. Next time you're in a city, try to find some time to walk around when the rest of the population is either sleeping or hard at work. See if you can't notice this sound of the city.

2009-07-07T14:22:00.003-04:00

Well a small little era of lindy hop in DC has come to an end. And it's a bitter-sweet moment for me after working so hard to build a weekly night of dancing at downtown nightclub Muse Lounge.

After much discussion with the folks at Gottaswing and assorted players in the DC swing dance world, we all agreed to postpone our new series of classes and weekly dances until September. If Muse Lounge is down and we can attract more students, we'll return to this downtown venue before we know it.

But that brings me to the bitter part of all of this. I have to be perfectly honest with you all in saying I'm highly disappointed. Sure, I finally get one night off during the week to myself now. But that's not really the point, nor is it a true silver lining in all of this. The fact is, Tempo at Muse is postponed until September because very few were willing to support it. We started out very strongly with an average of 10 or 12 students in each class and about 30 dancers showing up. The range went from ridiculously good to fresh out of our first class beginners. The venue has a nice, strong air conditioner, a full service bar and a pretty darn nice sound system. Even the floor was pretty nice, soft and above all, clean! There were couches along the wall for people to relax in and you really couldn't beat being one block from 3 metro lines. I had even booked a solid rotation with some of DC's best swing-era DJs.

Our high point was having The Loose Marbles come through town. We had over 100 dancers squeeze into this venue with a bevy of the top names in Lindy Hop tearing up the dance floor right in front of the hot jazz combo. In my opinion, it was one of the better nights of dancing in DC because it was a combination of amazing music and dancers all thrown into this beautiful nightclub. I remember saying to some folks, this is quite literally what the social life was like back in the days of the Savoy in Harlem. Ballrooms were to dancers in the '30s what nightclubs are to so many today. So here we were, blending these two era's into something that really worked.

Fast forward a few weeks. Our dance has a total of 6 people. I can't even remember how many actually paid because I think 2 or 3 were from the class. We couldn't even pay our DJ for an hour worth of time so Lily took money out of her own pocket. How does a dance go from over 100 to 6 within just a few weeks? Maybe it was a just one of those nights? Maybe it was the rain? Who knows???

It didn't get any better the next week. Or the next. Or the next. Finally we book the Red Hot Rhythm Chiefs for the final week of our classes. We get about 30 people to show up. It was fun. The music was great! The venue rocked once again. But it was nothing like the success we had captured before. And clearly there was a large segment of the DC dance scene avoiding Muse Lounge.

At this point I guess there isn't a whole lot to be said other than I'm definitely confused. I'm confused at how a lindy hop scene can sit back so proudly and pat themselves on the back for having such a vibrant scene, yet won't support the majority of dance nights thrown their way. I'm always so embarrassed when people come from other cities thinking DC is "the shit" when it comes to having a dance scene. They know about the Jam Cellar. That's a no brainer. But they're always so surprised and disappointed when there isn't more dancing options throughout the week. Sure, we have CCB. We have Glen Echo. But we all know there is a large number of people who won't support those venues either. And frankly, some times the music leaves a whole lot to be desired.

Such as it is, we have venues. We have sheer numbers that other cities would die for. We have talent between DC and Baltimore that is unreal. But for some reason we can't seem to build upon these things. I have no clue why. Maybe it's politics? Maybe it's personal? As far as I'm concerned, politics and personal beefs have no place in dancing. Dancing should be that outlet to forget all that crap and simply have fun and be moved by amazing music. It's why we do this. It's why Frankie and his crew did it in Harlem.

Hopefully in September we'll return. Maybe we'll have a better marketing approach. Maybe we'll figure out the key to getting more dancers out. Who knows. For now we just lost another chance to engage in one of our passions in this great city.

Boring Sunday Afternoon

2009-06-22T15:01:00.003-04:00

Boy was it a boring Sunday yesterday! I mean, gosh... all I did was go trapezing and eat burgers at the No. 1 burger joint in the DC region. I'm kidding of course. It was hardly a boring day at all. In fact, to quote May Kanti, it was probably one of the best weekends ever.

My Sunday start was fairly typical with cats, a cup of coffee and lounging. But I got moving quickly and met up with Sup, May and Michele Maxson for a day of trapeze. Yes, we signed up for a class with Trapeze School New York, a high-wire act school that has outposts in DC, LA and Boston. The first class taught us the knee hang, flip dismount and a standard catch. The photo above is Sup being successfully caught near the end of the class.

I can't tell you how much fun this was. I was definitely nervous the first time up because you're suddenly throwing your body into a situation it's not really used to. Swinging from a trapeze looks fairly easy, but it's a little different when you find yourself 50 ft. above the ground ready to go. But it was probably one of the most addictive activities I've done since getting into dancing. And because of that, Sup and I have already signed up for two more classes.

There is video on Facebook and hopefully I'll have something to post real soon.

And like all great activities, trapezing makes you hungry. So Sup, May, myself and my roommate Jon all jumped into the car and set off for Ray's Hell Burger. I had heard these burgers were no joke and the place was winning all sorts of awards. Our own president even made his way there one afternoon, so it was only natural for me to want to try it. Below is what I ordered... a standard hamburger with Vermont white cheddar cheese and a side of mac & cheese.

Below is what was left...

A very happy and full Sup...

Apparently a delicious Ray's Hell Burger makes you act silly and make faces, courtesy of May and Sup...

So yeah, a typical Sunday turned into a high-flying trapeze act, burger consuming afternoon. Or as I like to call it "one of the best weekends ever!"

Exploring The Meatpacking District

2009-06-18T12:04:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago a group of us from DC traveled up to NYC for the Frankie 95 memorial celebration. This was a 5 day Lindy Hop festival celebrating Frankie Manning, the man we all look up to as one of the original Savoy Ballroom dancers and a true ambassador of Lindy Hop. The event was inspiring, exciting, moving and at times very hard to enduring knowing we had lost such a great person.

But like all true lindy hoppers, we took the celebration as a chance to do what it is we do best... have fun! If there was one thing I know Frankie Manning would have wanted of the weekend, it was that everyone was dancing, smiling and having the time of their lives. With that said, the weekend was a massive success.

One thing that I knew would bring a smile to my face was the chance to explore Manhattan with my camera. I knew time would be limited, so I had to pick and choose when I could seriously enjoy the urban fabric of this great city. I was given a golden opportunity to get my start shooting nightlife photos at Cielo, one of the powerhouse clubs of New York on Thursday night, May 21st. I figured this would be a great way to kick off the weekend because Thursday night events at dance weekends tend to be the slower of the evenings activities. So Manuel Ferdinandus and I hopped a cab for the meatpacking district and found ourselves shooting photos in what is regarded as one of the top house music clubs in the U.S.

Shooting photos in Cielo was a bit challenging because it's not a very large club. And the DJ booth is actually quite small. The best way to describe this venue is it's a glorified recording studio. Seriously, it's one room about the size of a moderately sized clothing store with one of the top sound systems ever constructed. The walls and ceilings are covered with a soft material and padding, giving the room the acoustics you'd expect in a recording studio. One giant crystal ball hangs in the center of the sunken dance floor which is flanked with VIP tables facing out around the room.

The club has a small patio for those wishing to get some fresh air or smoke, but that's basically it. I think the thing I really enjoyed about this venue was that despite the high-level design and attractive people coming and going, it's clear Cielo is all about the music. After shooting for several hours and shaking hands with house music ambassador Frankie Knuckles, Manny and I decided to wander the neighborhood and see what we could find. It was clear the Meatpacking District was a see and be seen type of district. Most of the clubs had long lines of trend-setting style mavens hoping to squeeze their way past NFL sized bouncers upholding an iron-fist like command of guestlists and tables.

At one point, with camera's in hand, Manny and I were mistaken for paparazzi. As you'll see in my "Meatpacking District" gallery, we found several beautiful cars parked in front of one of the more popular clubs. It wasn't the fact that a Lamborghini was parked in front of a club that caught our attention. It was the orange construction cones that were placed on top of said fancy car that had me grabbing my camera. It was at that point a large group of nocturnal participants began mingling close by. One of them coyly asked, "are you guys paparazzi? who's inside???"

Manny and I simply said... we can't tell you, it would compromise our jobs.

Long story short, this trip to New York City was dedicated to shooting photos in this ultra-hip district that was once known more for butchers rather than bling. But after spending Thursday evening and part of Saturday in the neighborhood, I think I captured some of the spirit as best I could on limited time. Enjoy...

This Hood Called Arlington

2009-06-12T00:46:00.002-04:00

I came across the funniest darn video tonight on DCist and just wanted to share it. In fairness to our friends across the bridge in Virginia, Arlington really isn't that bad. I've been spending quite a bit of time over there with Sup in neighborhoods such as Court House, Clarendon and Ballston. Aside from the hills you have to walk up and down, it's actually a pretty neat part of our metro area. Enjoy...

Crazy How Things Change So Quickly

2009-06-09T11:40:00.002-04:00

I found myself reflecting the other day on a ton of things that have changed in my life over the past two-plus years I've lived here in DC. I moved across country, got separated, lived with rednecks, started dancing, moved into the city, got divorced, traveled a ton, moved again, and made more friends than I could have ever asked for. In a nutshell, the past two-plus years has been some of the best and worst in my life.

When I moved to DC, there was so much uncertainty in my life. My marriage was on the rocks and I didn't really know where it would go. I had just started dancing but still sucked and really didn't care to social dance while feeling like a swing dance reject. Even my job was on contract and wasn't going to last more than three months. The only thing consistent in my life was my photography and my friends...of which two of my closest (Dan and Matt) lived right here. I rented a room in a small townhouse in Annandale because it was close to my contract work and because I still had an apartment in Oakland. My first roommates were awesome and a joy to live with, but they moved out 3 months later and I was left with an empty townhouse and two other redneck roommates who had their friends get drunk and pass out on the empty living room floor. Life kinda sucked at that point and I missed the days of tearing up the town in Tampa with my crew at some of the hottest clubs in one of my favorite cities. That was when I had to make some hard choices and make a change...

Fast forward one year from that. I had moved into a one-bedroom apartment off Connecticut Ave. I had all brand-new furniture, a new LCD TV, new Macbook Pro, and a new car. I had fully immersed myself into Lindy Hop, started traveling to dance events in other cities and had even thrown myself into a competition. I was back with my soon-to-be-ex-wife, had really gotten into exploring and living in DC and even found some friends who enjoyed house and trance music as much as I did. Life was good.

Fast forward to today... The marriage didn't last. And I'm not sad about that. We both grew apart and had different priorities in life. We remained friends after the divorce and even still dance together on occasion. I certainly don't wish a divorce on anyone, but it was probably the best thing to happen to me since that move across country. I now live in a new apartment in downtown. I teach dance, travel extensively and compete on a regular basis. I shoot photos for some of the best clubs in the world and have a resume that includes photo shoots of 5 of the top 10 DJs in the world. I've shot photos in LA, Boston, Chicago, New York, Austin, SF and many other cities. I work for the AARP, the largest lobbying organization and one of the most powerful in Washington, DC. And later this summer I'm moving into a brand-new apartment right next to the ballpark. Dan and Matt still live in the city and even more of my friends are moving to town this summer.

It's crazy to think that in that short period of time I've changed so much. But it happens. When people come to a crossroad in their life, they can keep going down that one road or they can make a sharp turn. I made that sharp turn several months after I arrived in DC and I couldn't be happier with the journey.

The photo above of Lily and I was taken recently in NYC in the meatpacking district. We were trying different things to create an image to promote our teaching and weekly dance, Tempo at Muse Lounge.

Pool Party...DC Style

2009-06-02T12:05:00.003-04:00

So my coworkers and I decided to take in some sunshine yesterday and walk down the street for coffee. Michael turns to Tina and I and gasps about a great pool party he attended on Sunday at the Skyline Hotel. I'm thinking to myself, the Skyline Hotel is pretty dumpy, how could they host a "great" pool party. Crap, I didn't even know they had a pool.

He explains that the hotel is under new ownership and is hosting a pool party every Sunday with Top Chef alum Spike Mendelsohn. He tells us the crowd is pretty chic and they even have a DJ.

Now you have to understand why I was so suspicious of this. The Capitol Skyline Hotel used to be a Best Western. It's located on the corner of South Capitol and I Streets SW. It was one of those forgotten hotels in a corner of DC that rarely sees any tourist activity. In other words, it was the hotel that comes up at the bottom of a Hotels.com search result because it was super cheap and lacked one star, let alone 4 stars like some of our other DC accommodations.

But then again, that was before the city invested millions of dollars in a new baseball stadium and a posh condo neighborhood. Within the 2-plus years I've lived in the District, this area went from despised haven of drugs and liquor stores to one of the hottest neighborhoods on the DC map. And so I guess this hotbed of activity attracted new owners to the Capitol Skyline Hotel who decided to bring in master architect Morris Lapidus to splash a little Miami flare on the building. After a complete renovation, you now have a high-design boutique hotel right in the heart of a hot new neighborhood full of activity. And with the new design came the renovated pool.

Now the owners could have just sat by with their new look and been happy. But they went a step beyond and decided to host parties. They've seen the success other venues have had with such an idea, such as The Raleigh in Miami, The Standard in LA and the Phoenix Hotel in SF. And so now DC has a new Saturday and Sunday afternoon home to the young and chic looking for some sun.

Brightest Young Things is now hosting a Saturday afternoon party with DJs and live music. Every Sunday, Spike Mendelsohn grills burgers with a DJ spinning lounge and house. Hopefully we'll see some evening events in the near future as well. Regardless, what was once a no-name eye-sore just south of the Capitol is now a hip and happening venue contributing to a thriving social scene in our nations capital.

The Magical Bouncing Kaskade

2009-05-20T14:49:00.004-04:00

I'm sure some of you are reading this and wondering, what in the world is a magical bouncing Kaskade? Well, it's pretty simple really. Kaskade is one of the top house music DJs in the world who hails from San Francisco. His style and skills on the turn tables make him a magical artist in the electronic music world. And when Mr. Kaskade, a.k.a Ryan Raddon, gets going behind the decks of a major nightclub, he bounces.

This is great for the hoards of dance music aficionado's who were packing the dance floor of FUR Nightclub last Saturday night. But not so great if you're a photographer trying to capture the perfect shot in low light. Seriously, it seems as though every single week is a new challenge facing me in these clubs. Two weeks ago it was the incredible dying flash. This week it's trying to get Mr. Kaskade to appear without the crazy blur surrounding his head. Needless to say, I found a few ways to make this work in my latest nightlife gallery.

To be perfectly honest, aside from the bouncing, shooting Kaskade is always a joy. His style is so perfectly suited for a live performance because he has such energy during his sets. Though I can recall from my first time shooting Kaskade at the Electro-Techno-Disco Popsicle show in SF, he didn't bounce quite like he does today. Either way, both times I've had the opportunity to shoot photos of this world-class DJ, I've walked away with something I would gladly display on my walls. The 3 photos you see here are my favorites and will probably grace my walls one day in the near future.

Hockey Invasion

2009-05-12T14:20:00.005-04:00

The NHL continues to press themselves into my life with the Washington Capitals facing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. For hockey fans, this is a dream match-up because it puts the game's top two players, Caps forward Alex Ovechkin vs. Pens captain Sidney Crosby face to face. For sports fans in general, it's pure excitement at it's highest level. And for me, well...I can't get enough of it!

The series has not disappointed and it's not for the faint at heart. All but one game has been decided by 1 point. 3 games have gone into overtime. Crosby and Ovi have combined to score 13 goals and 10 assists. It has been drama in every single minute of play. And the best part of it all... the series is tied 3-3 and it comes home for game 7 in DC tomorrow night. Yeah...a sea of red will welcome back our boys for one more night of chaos on ice.

The photos you're seeing here are from game 5 last Saturday night when I got the chance to take Sup to her first hockey game. I mean, not only was it her first game...it was the darn playoffs. Talk about being thrown right into the mix. And she fit right in. She wore a Caps hat and emptied her lungs trying to will our team to victory. The Caps lost that game, but they play on once more. And hopefully they have a new fan in Sup.

Loose Marbles Packs Tempo at Muse

2009-05-12T14:05:00.003-04:00

I'm falling behind on my blog updates, so I figured it was time to get everyone up to speed on all the happenings in DC. Last week was absolutely incredible in the amount of energy and things to do. We had dancing, we had playoff hockey, we had great food and we had mothers day. No rest for the weary!

So as most of you know, I've started hosting a weekly lindy hop dance at Muse Lounge. We call the dance "Tempo" and it's typically DJ'd by some of our local jazz music talents. About a month ago when all of this was announced, Lily Matini sent me a note asking if Muse could handle a band. This is a lounge/nightclub in downtown that usually has house music DJs pumping tunes while go-go dancers strut their stuff on perfectly positioned podiums throughout the venue. So my first reaction was... nah!

But Lily kept after me, we talked with the GM and we quickly learned they in fact could handle live music. So the table was set to bring in New Orleans jazz band The Loose Marbles. Most dancers in the lindy hop world know of Loose Marbles because they were the band who performed the music for the competitions this past year at ULHS. So when we announced this band was coming to DC, reception was very broad and positive.

Well last Wednesday night the Marbles performed to a packed house at Muse. We had over 100 people show up on a rainy night in the middle of the week to see this band. I didn't even dance that much because I was too busy socializing and just enjoying the sight of so many dancers showing the DC love to the band. It was a special night to say the least.

I want to send out a special thank you to Lee Tucker for DJing the band breaks, Paul Roth for taking these photos, Debra Sternberg for booking the band and Ms. Lily Matini for being the thorn in my side to make all this happen. And thank you to the 100-plus dancers who came out to support one of the truely talented bands of our time!

The Terrace Ringleader: Cedric Gervais

2009-05-05T13:55:00.003-04:00

I've been shooting nightlife photos for over 4 years now. I've been in big clubs, little clubs, well designed clubs and holes in the wall. I feel like I've seen it all when it comes to the nocturnal experience. But never before (luckily) have I ever experienced serious technical difficulties while shooting...until this past weekend.

On Saturday, May 2nd, Club Glow and FUR Nightclub hosted Space resident Cedric Gervais from Miami. Gervais is one of these DJs that's easy to hate on. He's French, looks incredibly cool in sunglasses, is resident DJ at one of the top clubs in the world, has hit dance records, has worked with several major rock stars, and is followed by a clique of unnaturally good looking female fans known as "The Gervettes."

There is, however, more to the Marseilles native than meets the eye or the ear. Recent years have seen the Miami DJ/Producer catapult into the ranks of electronic music stardom. His snowballing success and rock star persona is as intriguing as it is evident. In a time when its normal to speculate about the artistic validity of artists that have "the look," Cedric boldly accepts that he's a product and demonstrates that he's got the substance to back up the style. Just ask Deep Dish or Lenny Kravitz what they think of him and his music.

So you can understand how frustrated I was when the first few shots I took of opening DJ Sultan failed to produce a decent image. Were my settings off? Did I get bumped while taking the shot? What was going on here??? That's when I realized my camera wasn't focusing. I looked at the front and noticed my light meter wasn't firing upon focus. When I removed my flash, it worked. All I could think was, am I going crazy here??? Did I mistakenly turn it off somewhere?

Long story short, the external flash batteries had died. The external flash has a meter that typically fires for auto-focus. Because the batteries were dying a slow and painful death, I was able to manually focus a few shots while still using the flash. But then after about 20 minutes into Gervais set, the entire flash was dead in the water. So I went back to my roots and took what I could using the stock flash on the camera.

Sometimes it's good to just turn your flash off if you're trying to capture lighting effects without much attention on your subject. So I think overall I was able to capture some pretty decent shots considering. But man is it frustrating when you're in a DJ booth with a world-class DJ, trying to do your job and suddenly your equipment fails. Ugh!

The good news is, I now have back-ups. I also have a decent set of pictures from the night and a lesson learned. And if you're wondering, Gervais put on a great show. His set was ripe with hard-hitting electro and progressive house that I could feel in my bones hours after I left the show. Just another night on the DC nightlife beat.

Roller Coaster Week So Far

2009-04-29T12:00:00.004-04:00

As most of you already know, this week has been quite the emotional roller coaster. On Monday morning the Lindy Hop world lost our beloved Frankie Manning. He touched all of us dancers more than we could have imagined and so his loss hit pretty hard. So we spent the day mourning and then honored his legacy by dancing the night away. We continued remembering this amazing man last night with a memorial tribute at The Jam Cellar. Ann Mony and Steve "DC" Grimes put together a beautiful video, several dancers told personal stories about their time with Frankie and we all did the Shim Sham.

Between all the reflection and memorials, I had tickets to game 7 of the Capitals Stanley Cup playoff game against the Rangers. On one hand I felt like I needed to mourn longer. But on the other hand, Frankie lived his life with such joy and happiness and would want us to do the same. So last night prior to The Jam Cellar, I attended what I think goes down as the greatest sports event I've ever seen in person.

Last Wednesday night, the Caps lost to the Rangers, 2-1 in game 4. The loss put the Caps down 3 games to 1 in the opening round series. Teams coming back from a 3-1 deficit is about as rare as finding a democrat that lowers taxes. It just doesn't happen very often. So I think the entire DC region shrugged off the loss and figured it was yet another first round exit for this incredibly talented hockey team. I mean, how would the Caps come back from this?

Two games and five days later, the Caps find themselves battling the Rangers in game 7 with the series tied 3-3. The Caps were at home. DC was rockin' the red! Everything was in their favor. We had tickets to the game and you can bet we were going to scream as loud as humanly possible to help bring our franchise a playoff series win. But the Caps didn't show up for the start of the game. Oh, the players were on the ice. But the team was thoroughly dominated in the first two periods. The Rangers scored first and the Caps followed to tie the game, but clearly New York wanted it more.

Then the third period began. You could sense the Caps finding their game. You could see simple possessions were now on the Ranger end of the ice and not stuck behind the Caps net. The Caps had 2 shots on goal in the first period while NY had 8. The Caps had 13 in the 3rd period and held NY to just one. It had to happen. It was going to happen. Caps nation was about to explode as scoring chances mounted. Then with 4:59 left in the game, Russian superstar and NHL veteran Sergei Fedorov beat Ranger goaltender Henrik Lundqvist to give the Caps a 2-1 lead. I've never seen an arena erupt with such celebration and emotion. You just knew the team that scored would win. For the final 5 minutes of the game, the crowd stood chanting C. A. P. S. Caps, Caps, Caps!!! I've never seen anything like it.

The Caps won. DC moves on in the playoffs. And in honor of Frankie Manning, I danced, cheered, and laughed all night long. What a roller coaster ride!

Below are two more small and crappy images I shot with my phone. The one above and just below are from inside the arena and the third is the crowd spilling out into the streets of DC.

Goodbye Frankie... and Thank You!

2009-04-27T10:57:00.004-04:00

Today is very sad day! This morning, April 27, 2009, Frankie Manning, a friend, teacher and inspiration to myself and dancers around the world passed away. He was 94 and is survived by friends and family and the dance he helped create.

There has been so much said about Frankie over the years that I can't possibly begin to sum up everything he meant to us. What I can do is explain what he meant to me and why this man was such an inspiration to the world of dance. You see, Frankie was one of the original Lindy Hoppers. Little did he know back in Harlem, running around with his friends and hitting up ballrooms to dance his butt off, that he was creating an American dance that would be alive and well decades later. Frankie was creating moves because he loved dancing and performing. He tore up the Savoy Ballroom floor so many times because he loved the spirit of Jazz and Lindy Hop.

When I first started dancing Lindy Hop, I knew very little about the dance, the history, or this man who helped cultivate it. My ex-wife passed along a photo she had taken with him while she was still out in California. It was then I started looking into the history of the dance to learn about Frankie. I then found out I'd have the chance to meet Frankie myself when Tom & Debra of Gottaswing announced their annual Frankie Weekend Workshop. Around that time, I bought his book and started reading. I finished the book about a week before he arrived in town with the utmost respect for this man. I almost felt, because of my passion for Lindy Hop, that Frankie was like a brother to me. Reading his stories and hearing how down to earth this living legend was, connected you to his soul. Here he was, 93 years-old, teaching, dancing and living life to the fullest surrounded by the dance he loved eternally. And because of this, dancers all over loved him eternally.

I had an amazing opportunity to interview Frankie for the AARP that weekend. And of course I took many pictures from the events. Talking to him about his life was one of the coolest things I think I have ever done. It was such an honor to sit there, cameras rolling, listening to this man talk about all the things he did, the people he knew and places he went. Words can't even describe what it's like meeting a legend like that, knowing this person had such an impact on the very hobby you love so much. Half the time I wanted to listen, the other half I just wanted to thank him...for being Frankie.

Today is a very sad day. The dance world lost a true legend. And for Lindy Hoppers all over the world, we lost a friend. But we all share his spirit in our hearts. We know Frankie lived every day to the fullest with a smile on his face and in his heart. And we know his passion and energy was communicated to us through his feet every time he moved. Even up until a few weeks ago when he led the Shim Sham at Lindy Fest in Houston, Frankie was moving with the energy of a 21 year-old. He was happy. His job here was complete. He inspired us and gave us that passion and energy to carry his message of dance forward. From this day on, we will live and dance for you Frankie! We'll miss you!!!

The Jokes With Guitar

2009-04-22T12:38:00.003-04:00

My friend Amy passed along an absolutely hilarious video this morning that I just had to share with everyone. Enjoy...

DJ Dan Lights Up Ultra

2009-04-10T17:18:00.002-04:00

Ultra Bar and Club Glow hosted DJ Dan, one of America's most beloved and hardest working DJs on the electronic music scene last night. My good friend Laura Jackson was in town and wanted to tag along with me on one of my usual club photo gigs, so we hit it up.

My knowledge of DJ Dan comes purely from my associations with fellow American DJ Christopher Lawrence. DJ Dan and Lawrence worked and traveled together a few years back and so I had heard some great things about Dan's abilities as a master of the turntables.

What I didn't know was that DJ Dan has been pushing the envelope with electronic music lately, blending hard house with breakbeats and beyond. His style is exactly what I love about dance music...full of energy. From the moment he started his set last night, you could feel the deep and dark energy pulsing from the sound system inside of Ultra Bar. Standing near the speaker boxes along the wall was like having a personal masseuse right there in the club. I'm talking hair on my arms standing up straight...

The good news of the night was DJ Dan threw down a sick set for true dance music lovers. Laura was dancing her butt off all night long and I think I captured some pretty amazing photos. The bad news was the crowd seemed off. While standing in the DJ booth, Dan turns to me and asked me if it sounded distorted on the dance floor. He couldn't understand why certain tracks generated little to no response what-so-ever. I told him the sound was perfect and the tracks were sick...so he need not worry. But clearly the Ultra Bar crowd was more interested in gyrating to their own music and throwing back the alcohol. As I told DJ Dan, I can't say I've ever seen a crowd like this at a Glow event, so it was just as surprising to me.

The other good news was true Glow supporters were out in full force. I saw so many familiar faces that it felt like one of my standard nights at The Jam Cellar where you walk in and see all your dance friends from all over. Regardless of the overall crowd, DJ Dan ripped it and he should be proud.

These last two photos are kinda special to me because as Laura and I got ready, we talked to our good friend Amy Tran on the phone. Amy was stuck on a work assignment in some random West Virginia town and was seriously down about not being able to join us for the evening. So we took one photo of us actually talking to her on the phone and one photo with a sign telling her we love her. It was actually pretty cute because we emailed the images just before we left for Ultra.

We miss you to death Amy!

We'll Miss You

2009-04-07T14:32:00.004-04:00

Uncle Hilly (in green) with my father in 2004.

This past Saturday my uncle, Hilly Purnell, passed away. He was 83 and is survived by his wife of 64 years, Doris Purnell. You can read the full obituary here.

Sadly I will not be able to attend the family gathering to celebrate his life because I'm hosting 6 people for a major dance event in DC. But I really wanted to do something for Uncle Hilly, so I decided I would write a small tribute in his honor.

Obviously I wasn't as close to Uncle Hilly as some of my other cousins because my life and career has taken me (at times) pretty far from the state of Delaware. I would see him and the rest of the family during holidays and such, but that was the extent of it since graduating from college. But I have to tell you, I always jumped at the chance to see my Aunt Doris and Uncle Hilly. They are two of the greatest people one could know. Their personalities, their open-hearts, and their love for their family could be seen from the moment you were in their presence.

I can recall growing up in Delaware and having my parents take me down to "the river" to see my aunt and uncle. Doris and Hilly live in a beautiful house in Oak Orchard overlooking the Indian River, which spills into Indian River Bay, only a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The location was exactly what I would expect for my uncle, who was an avid outdoorsman, loved boating, hunting and his dogs. It was quiet, peaceful, and the sunsets are something out of a postcard.

Ever since I can remember, Uncle Hilly called me "bub." I used to love it because as a child, you're somehow always trying to grow up. Being called "bub" made me feel like one of the adults, almost like I could have been sitting there enjoying a beer with my dad and the rest of the men of the family. Uncle Hilly also had quite a sense of humor. There wasn't one time while visiting "the river" that I can't recall my dad and Uncle Hilly sharing a laugh. It was almost like the two men shared a bond of exact personalities. Of course, my dad had to have liked Hilly since he let him marry his sister. She was big sis, but I can promise my dad wasn't going to let just anyone walk in and sweep her off her feet. So yeah, I see a lot of my father in Uncle Hilly and a lot of Uncle Hilly in my dad.

Honestly, I don't really know what else to write here. I'm not real good at expressing my sorrow in words because I tend to wear my emotions on my sleeve. I do know that words can't really describe how much I'll miss my uncle. But I can be thankful to have had so many great years of knowing him. And I can be even more thankful that both my parents and my Aunt Doris are still around. And if I know Uncle Hilly at all, he doesn't want us to be sad. He wants us to celebrate him just like he would have lived his life...doing the things we love, sharing it with our families and laughing every day.

We'll miss you Uncle Hilly. We love you!

Walter H. Purnell: 1926 - 2009

Thinking About Lindy Hop

2009-03-17T15:05:00.003-04:00

So I thought about posting this photo in the "Random Photo of the Day" section but there was just too much of a story to go with it.

I just returned from Lindy Fest in Houston and was greeted by this photo waiting for me in my inbox from my buddy Stephen Grimes. The photo comes from Lindy Focus, which a large group of us attended in Asheville, NC over the New Year's weekend. I honestly can't recall which night the photo was taken, but the band performing was our favorite Boilermaker Jazz Band.

What makes this photo so absolutely hilarious was the fact that we noticed this cat walking around with the Boilermaker t-shirt. As James 'Droz' Andrews (Jeremy Piven) says in the movie PCU, "Gutter, don't be that guy. Don't be the guy who wears the shirt of the band you're going to see!"

Seeing this as a photo opportunity, Stephen and I put on our best rock-on pose with the guy wearing the shirt of the band he's going to see.

...I just love the stain in the middle of his shirt. Priceless!

Random Photo of the Day: Mar. 7th

2009-03-07T15:38:00.004-05:00

So the above photo seems fairly mundane. Nothing more than a bunch of suits hanging out in a random DC pub. But look closely. Notice the teeth. Notice me mugging it up in the background of the shot. As much as I'd love to say, this isn't by accident.

The photo was taken this past Thursday night at the Media Bistro Happy Hour at Porter's in Dupont Circle. Dan and I decided to head over there and mingle and network with our fellow media-types. I noticed the photographer wandering around earlier in the evening. I then noticed his lens was pointed right in our direction, obviously shooting a few people closer to him in conversation. I said to Dan, I'm gonna mug for this shot!

Sure enough, there I am... big old smile crashing a photo that I shouldn't be in. Fun stuff!

That Can't Be Good

2009-03-05T10:26:00.004-05:00

It's never a good sign when your company starts offering training on "Creating A Winning Resume."

Seriously? C'mon guys. Are you serious??? You're in the middle of a budget crunch. Every full-time employee has been asked to take 5 furlough days. There are "voluntary buyouts." And we know you're doing "involuntary buyouts." (code word for lay offs) Stress is high enough as is. And now something like this shows up on our internal communications newsletter and site. We get the picture folks, you want us to leave. =)

In fairness to the company, they are taking every possible step to lessen the financial burden on the organization. And if they can accomplish this, more people will keep their jobs than lose them. But the timing was just a bit suspicious...don't ya think?

Jason Greene at Gazuza

2009-02-28T12:39:00.002-05:00

My friend Jason Greene informed me one afternoon that he'd be spinning some records at the Dupont Circle lounge Gazuza on a recent Friday evening. Excited to help my friend get some exposure, I went out and shot some photos to add to the collection. Gazuza isn't a large club with an extensive light show and nocturnal atmosphere, but it was a cozy venue that worked well with the soulful house Jason was spinning.

Hopefully other venues will get word of Mr. Greene and we can help spread the word of House to the fine residents of DC. Enjoy...

Roger Sanchez Photos From Josephine

2009-02-28T11:29:00.005-05:00

Sometimes I'll bring my camera along to events that are slightly more low-key or in venues I'm not as familiar with. And in many cases, this means I come away with far fewer images than I normally shoot in the larger clubs. Such is the case with the above photo of DJ Roger Sanchez at Josephine in downtown DC.

Sanchez is a world-renowned, Grammy Award winning DJ. He's remixed superstars such as Chic, Daft Punk, Diana Ross and The Police, contributed to the soundtrack of Hollywood movie Blade, and founded 3 record labels. So calling this man a superstar isn't a crazy concept. Unless of course you're at Josephine. I hate getting all down on clubs and/or artists because I feel nightlife should be enjoyable. But we all know there are nights that just don't work and leave us feeling like we've wasted our time and our money.

I had been to Josephine once prior to this night and knew the venue was pretty small. But small micro-clubs are pretty common in the district. And in some cases (like Tattoo), the space is used wisely and creates an intimate and enjoyable party. So when I heard one of the top 20 DJs in the world would be spinning at Josephine, I was quietly optimistic. Small venues with world-class DJs can be amazing. I've been in places like Duplex SF, Bambudda Lounge, HPC and Sullivan Room NYC where a top DJ can connect with the audience and really get into their craft. Sometimes you hear things you wouldn't normally find in major clubs because the DJs feel they can be creative and push things a bit for a smaller, more dedicated crowd.

But these venues all have something going for them Josephine does not. They are all house music temples. The crowds show up on various nights to hear the music and see the DJ. They show up to Josephine to hear themselves and be seen by others. Look, I know there is that "I want to be a celebrity" element of nightlife in every city. Dudes roll into a club wearing their shades and printed t-shirts flashing money while standing at their VIP table. (Side note: why do douchebag wannabes stand the entire time at their VIP table? I've often wondered about this phenomenon. Do they think it helps them be seen above the crowd?)

I digress... I shouldn't have been surprised at the lack of interest in Roger Sanchez on this particular night. Before we could even get inside we had a young lady at the door act like she was doing us a favor by letting us past the line (even though we were on the promoters list). Her exact words were "we'll expedite you into the club but you still have to pay the cover charge." Now repeat that with a bad fake Eastern European accent and you get an idea of what we were in for.

Inside wasn't any better. Josephine is decorated with the tackiness of a French brothel thrown into the basement of a sterile office building. They have plastic chandeliers hanging over the bar, in a room with what seems like 7 ft. ceilings. And the venue is all VIP tables. So unless you feel like dishing out 1K to sit in the French brothel basement, you get to stand around like an outfielder in a no-hitter. Add to that the douchebags with hot chicks element and you see why I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy about this particular night.

Long story short, Roger Sanchez comes in. He sets up his gear. He begins mixing tracks. No one in the club notices. They're too busy standing around with their money clip exposed adjusting their sunglasses to just the right position on their heads. My friends and I feel like we've walked into the twilight zone of nocturnal excess. Dan says to me, "this place is dead anyway." I shoot a few photos of Sanchez and we're on our way. Needless to say, I salvaged two shots from the night. Oh well!

Random Photo of the Day: Feb. 18th

2009-02-18T16:55:00.004-05:00

The above photo was found on the 360nightlife.com entertainment site. It was shot on Friday, Feb. 13th at The Muse Nightclub.

As you can see, it's the usual crew enjoying yet another VIP table and bottle service. This time we were celebrating Mr. Dan's new job with the DC Examiner. And don't ask me what's up with the goofy pucker-lip smirk I have going on.

More Washingtonian Photo Submissions

2009-02-17T12:25:00.003-05:00

I've blogged about this before here and thought I would share again. These are images I recently entered in the monthly Washingtonian Magazine photo contest.

Last month the topic was "black & white" so this month the editors went with "color." Any subject would do, just make sure the image pops. I had a bunch of nightlife shots I thought would qualify, but I didn't have a ton of time to find them and so I went with these. I definitely think they "pop" with color and excitement.

Dolce Gallery Finally Goes Live

2009-02-15T18:32:00.002-05:00

I used to have a really bad habit of taking my camera with me to clubs in SF and never getting around to cropping and posting the images I shot. So I try to take advantage of the winter weather to dig into the archives and post galleries from the past. So today I'm finally posting a link to a gallery from Dolce.

Dolce was a lounge-type bar in North Beach that myself, Jarvis, Craig and Bernie used to visit on a fairly frequent basis. It really wasn't anything special other than the fact that I was friends with the promoters who owned the venue and it attracted a good-looking crowd. Plus North Beach was the closest thing SF had to a true nightlife district, which always made for an adventure.

Dolce has since closed and has now reopened as Apartment 24. The Apt24 concept is essentially what a "rock-star's condo" would be like. I can't really say I'm surprised Dolce closed. While the web site suggested it was a unique club experience, there was nothing that set it apart from other venues. The music was the same. The decor was rather bland and like many SF venues, people got tired of it. I suspect Apt. 24 will follow a similar path.