NOTES
NEWS About My Upcoming Book: Ghosts of New Amsterdam
I'm excited to share news about my first book due to be released in October.
TriBeCa, Manhattan
“In one aspect, yes, I believe in ghosts, but we create them. We haunt ourselves.”
I'm really excited to announce the release of my photography book, Ghosts of New Amsterdam. It's a visually lyrical collection of photos that together compile my experience of living and visiting, New York City, the spiritual home of capitalism during a post-9/11 era; a time in which many of us have begun to wonder what the American Dream really is and what traditional values have changed and why. The visual text is subtle and I leaned more on metaphor than literal interpretation, which gave the project a dreamlike narrative. It's photojournalism if photojournalism was taken literally as a personal visual journal, like a diary.
The book is slated for an October release and will be available on Amazon as well as my site. I can't wait to share the cover, which is beginning to look exactly as I wanted.
As always, thanks for reading. Stay in touch.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Fourth of July on the Levee
Fireworks along the levee in New Orleans.
I'm a fan of going to the Bywater levee in New Orleans, sometimes called "The End of the World". People often make campfires there while the bright lights of Downtown sparkle in the background. On the 4th of July, many people gathered, danced, drank, lit fireworks and mingled with strangers as large boats streamed past us on the River.
About an hour before all of this, my wife and I were relaxing in the backyard, drinks in hand and listening to the pop of firecrackers coming off the Mississippi. I wasn't in the mood for a party but we left anyway, hoping that my mind might change. I danced for a little bit but didn't feel like socializing. I grabbed my camera and participated in my own way.
For more info, email: info@carlosdetres.com
Notes on AD/CD Studio in New Orleans
Looking for a professional editorial and commercial photography studio in New Orleans? More info here.
Photographers often experience the same predicament that I previously faced: How to separate personal photography projects from the ones that consistently put food on the table. I've been fortunate that I've been able to survive off both but I struggled with what to feature on my website (www.carlosdetres.com).
I recently decided to compartmentalize my projects into editorial and commercial photography projects for spirits, lifestyle and hair-related companies looking for strong imagery to brand their businesses -- from portraiture to photojournalistic style coverage -- which takes much of what I've learned from the last several years. AD/CD Studio (www.adcdnola.com) was born from the need to supply these industries with options that are both affordable, high quality and with excellent service. There seemed to be a need for this in the South.
Thankfully, I'm not alone in this endeavor. I have a team of people whom I trust that contribute to every aspect of this creative venture. From makeup artists to retoucher to studio manager and obviously and lead photographer, we have everything taken care of from the bottom-up. I'm excited to work with new clients while providing a deeper well of services that have not been previously offered (the team).
In the meantime, I'm working on a s-load of personal projects on my current site www.carlosdetres.com, which include books, prints, stories and a portrait series. I'm excited to share all of these works with you and I hope that we can work together in some way.
Thanks for reading this post. Please email your questions or comments to info@carlosdetres.com
Visit www.adcdnola.com for more details.
Best wishes,
Carlos
There's Nothing Like the Streets of New York City
Photography throughout New York City including the Occulus, 9/11 Memorial and Midtown.
On a recent trip to New York City, I took a couple of days to wander from Midtown to Downtown Manhattan for the purpose of photographing it with 100% focus. I'd previously do these trips half in/half out with a more carefree approach rather than a rigorous work, bleeding out a scene until I got a photo that I wanted. I wanted to put my all into this recent expedition. The street gave back.
It's not a secret, among my close friends and family, of my love/hate relationship with the City. After nearly thirteen years of living in this metropolis, I had developed a reserve of animosity for the place I had once dearly loved. I admit that when I spent those two days out there in Manhattan that I couldn't help but focus on the negativity, the feeling of invisibility among the throngs of people bumping into each other, wearing sullen faces and walking in the shadows of godlike, stone faced buildings. A feeling came to me after the end of the second day, one that I hadn't felt in a long time. It was like the story of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas when his small black heart became filled with love and compassion again. I actually started feeling a pang of "love" for this place that I had been so happy to now be away from. It was an old feeling, an old love.
I hope you enjoy the photos below. There is certainly surreal elements within the framing and juxtaposition. It was a lot of fun doing these and I'm glad I walked away from this mini project with an old flame reignited.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Besides Jazzfest...
Photos from things that happened outside of Jazzfest.
I couldn't muster the strength to make it Jazzfest this year. I couldn't negotiate my disdain for crowds. I instead ventured my neighborhood with my wife and friends for a couple of nights and had a great time. It was good seeing, from outside, the bars packed with people going long into the night, whether here on vacation or visit.
There are only a very few photos from these nights here but I figured I'd share anyway.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
French Quarter Fest 2017
Photos from French Quarter Fest 2017.
The weather was perfect throughout the four days of festivities. Much of South Peter Street was closed to traffic, allowing people to meander between stages without feeling too confined to the sidewalks. As always, the people and the scenes around the musical performances were most interesting.
I like doing these little projects, like covering the FQFest because it's a great setting to work on compositions and light observations for future works. There are several projects in various phases of completion so this kind of practice is invaluable.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
She Dances without Clothes
Photos of burlesque dancers throughout New York City and New Orleans.
I don't know how far back the art of burlesque goes but I know that it's entertained generations of men and women. The first time I saw a show was probably in the mid 2000s at some late night party, in the bowels of Brooklyn. It was probably dimly lit in close quarters. I was probably drunk too. The scenario may not have been so different than what perhaps my grandparents experienced so many years ago.
These photos were made throughout New York City and New Orleans.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
The Path: Super Sunday in New Orleans
Photos of young Mardi Gras Indians from Super Sunday shot Uptown at A.L. Davis Park.
This past Sunday, Uptown was treated a gathering of Mardi Gras Indians called Super Sunday. If you don't know what it is, it's a tradition that dates back to 1880. It's passed down from generation to generation of boys and girls who begin learning the tradition at a very young age. You can read more about Mardi Gras Indians HERE.
I tended to focus myself on the young men, wondering what it was like to have this over-century old tradition passed onto me. There wasn't a baton passed to me when I was a kid. We played baseball, war and video games so I'm intrigued by the path of a young man or woman becoming a Mardi Gras Indian. I wanted to get a story, or at least the foundation of one that I could continue in the years to come.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Let's Be Bored at the Airport Together
Get that camera out if you're stuck at the airport.
We got stuck at MSY (Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport) for the day last Wednesday. I'm thinking of those stuck today at airports throughout the Northeast due to the wintry storms battering the area. If you've got a camera, go explore the airports. It's a lot more interesting than I previously thought before last week.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Bayou St. Blonde, New Orleans
Some snaps from the Left Brain Group's Bayou St. Blonde event in New Orleans.
Bayou St. Blonde was an event that took place on January 29th and 30th 2017. It was hosted by The LEFT BRAIN Group (my wife's company), which also does a chunk of my bookings throughout the year. Spread across five locations throughout the city, BSB hosted guests from all over the country.
I don't work in hair but I found it inspiring to see so many creative people gathered together to share new ideas and have more control over the future of this industry. I was especially proud of my wife who put this massive event together in relatively short time. Covering this event was a highlight of 2017 thus far.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
The Happiest Day of the Year is Followed by its Saddest
In case you feel like reliving the celebrations.
...I'm exaggerating, of course, but the post-Mardi Gras blues is real.
Only 348 more days until Mardi Gras 2018.
(Photos arranged in sequence of events.)
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Krewe of Oshun
The goddess Oshun, associated with water and love bless us last night.
“Oshun, also spelled Osun, an orisha (deity) of the Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria. Oshun is commonly called the river orisha, or goddess, in the Yoruba religion and is typically associated with water, purity, fertility, love, and sensuality. She is considered one of the most powerful of all orishas, and, like other gods, she possesses human attributes such as vanity, jealousy, and spite.”
It was a wet night in New Orleans yesterday, which is fitting considering that the Krewe of Oshun is represented by the Yoruba goddess usually associated with water. Rain to an adult may seem like an inconvenience but to a kid, it's play time.
Lesson learned: Be a kid.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Autumn in the Swamp
It's not New Hampshire but it's still pretty!
In one of the few nature outings I did this past fall, I focused on the dying leaves and other evidence of seasonal change that occurs here in Louisiana (yes, THAT Louisiana). It's not the rust colored beauty of the mountains in Vermont or New Hampshire but it's still nice to look at.
I photographed this short series in the early evening. The croaking of frogs and the crunching sound of squirrels scrambling across a blanket of orange and red colored leaves resting on the cool ground accompanied me as I set up my camera on the tripod. I love these moments, being alone, breathing in the cool air and listening to nature doing its thing undisturbed by my presence.
*Click on photos to view full frame.
Email info@carlosdetres.com
Wandering the Old Streets of St. Augustine, FL
Anthropological photography through the historic streets of St. Augustine, Florida.
My shadow and I walking the grounds of the old Spanish fort, Castillo de San Marcos.
After a ten hour drive from New Orleans, I was in St. Augustine, visiting family. Although it took a few days to get going with my camera, I imagined the kinds of photos I wanted. The best part of photography is the time alone when it's just you and your camera, wandering a street, looking for something that tells a story. A detail such as a wall marked with old graffiti or a wall pocked with bullets from musket fire due to the executions that occurred on the side of an old fort.
It’s an old, old city, the oldest, continually operating European city in the United States of America. If you turn a corner and you’re paying attention, you could be treated to artifacts left behind from people who are no longer living. This is the kind of anthropology I love. The leftovers of our existence, resisting the change of the years. St. Augustine's rich history includes a significant role in the colonization of North America, the tragedy of the plight of Native Americans and the Civil Rights movement, from Frederick Douglas to Martin Luther King, Jr. and more. So much more.
One hypothetical thought that haunted me throughout my day of shooting in St. Augustine was of time travel. Can you imagine if a Native American or a Spanish colonist was resurrected from the 1500s and taken on a tour through the northeast coast of modern Florida?
For more info, please email info@carlosdetres.com
The Old Things of the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum in St. Augustine, FL
Photos from the old things of this museum in St. Augustine, Florida.
About a week before Hurricane Matthew brought it's climatological terror up through the eastern seaboard of Florida, I was in St. Augustine, visiting my family. My mom had recently begun working at the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum in the old part of town. It was a side of the city that I had rarely gone into. I fell in love with its old homes, buildings and super narrow streets.
My mom gave me a tour of the building where these very old things were placed throughout representing different eras of the building's history. Some of it was original to the previous occupants while others were brought in later.
At the time I photographed in this building, I thought, "I don't need a photo of the exterior." I kinda regret that now.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Upcoming Events
Information about my current exhibit at The New Orleans Tattoo Studio and Museum as well as my signing at Jewels.
Adam Montegut of the New Orleans Tattoo Museum hanging prints from the Black Ink photo series.
"Michael, The Marigny" will be available for purchase at The New Orleans Tattoo Studio and Museum on October 14, 2016.
Hey all,
I just wanted to quickly make you aware of a couple of events coming up within the next couple of weeks.
Friday, October 14, 2016 (6-11PM)
The Reopening of the New Orleans Tattoo Studio and Museum (1915 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd)
When I first conceived my art-on-skin series, the only place I could think of in which I’d like it to be seen was the New Orleans Tattoo Studio and Museum. Over a year later and it will now be displayed in their gallery. Purchases of prints from this collection will go toward the completion of this project. My ideas are getting bigger and that requires a little funding. It’s a IRL Kickstarter!
Black Ink will be on display as well as a tattoo museum exhibit curated by Adam Montegut, Saigon Slim's food truck, music by The Wicked Son!
Saturday, October 22, 2016 (time TBD)
Jewels (905 Decatur Street)
I’ve been selling prints from this art shop for over a year but this will be the first time that I’ll be doing a public signing. Two new prints will be available for purchase and signing. Neither one have ever been released — online or otherwise. The size is a perfect 8.5x11.
This print, "Underworld" will be available at the signing on October 22, 2016 at Jewels.
New Orleans Based Art-on-Skin Photo Series Will be on Display
My photo project Black Ink will get some wall space at Downtown New Orleans museum.
I started Black Ink over a year ago with the intention of creating a project that showed art-on-skin in various, unusual locations throughout New Orleans. Starting on October 14th, three prints from this series will be on display at the New Orleans Tattoo Museum. This is where I wanted to show this work when it was initially begun and I’m happy that it’s where it will be first shown.
There will be smaller, non-limited edition prints sized at 8.5x11 available on site.
Info:
The New Orleans Tattoo Museum
1915 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
New Orleans,
New Orleans Through Peace and Turmoil
A city known for its carefree lifestyle and inclusive culture becomes center stage in a national controversy as protesters and David Duke and his supporters converge at Jackson Square.
It sometimes seems as if the outside world has no bearing on New Orleans. The culture, government and music is different here. Jazz musicians are pop stars and chefs are celebrities but sometimes they are the same such as Kermit Ruffins who is renown for both his musical talents and his famous BBQs. On Saturday the outside world made its way in when the protesters of Black Lives Matter, Take ‘Em Down New Orleans and even David Duke and his supporters assembled in the square in front St. Louis Cathedral to argue the case for or against the removal of the square’s centerpiece landmark statue of Andrew Jackson.
Prejudice has no boundary in America. In a city that is mostly African American, the statues commemorating the deeds of Confederate generals, white supremacists and slaveholders become highly contentious. It has pitted neighbors and friends against each other as we argue the relevance of these effigies in modern New Orleans. Among my black friends here, it is clear that race continues to be an issue despite African American heroes who have contributed significantly to the culture and development of New Orleans and thus the U.S. While I have my own opinions about these statues, I mostly keep them to myself because I feel that being here for only two years doesn’t yet give me a voice for which ones stay and which ones go. My perspective is that of an outsider’s.
The photographs below were not intentionally made to correspond with each other. These are from separate outings, however I decided that I wanted to show what it was like to live during this tumultuous time in this enclave on the Mississippi River that has more in common with the Caribbean than the rest of the United States. I feel confident that when the parades and festivals kick off, we will celebrate together, despite our opinions.
PROCESS:
This collection was organized as a montage to reinforce what I wrote above. I wanted to arrange these photos to indicate as if these events were happening at the same time (of course they didn't actually). I wanted to show that we agree more often than disagree, with the exception of David Duke. I left him in here because of what he represents.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
A mural on St. Clause in the Marigny neighborhood of New Orleans.
A full moon over New Orleans, LA.
Losing Myself in Joshua Tree
Salvation in the desert while the U.S. is in conflict.
In the darkness of night, we had lain on the blanket, covering the desert sand that had begun to cool. The coyotes had been barking and howling at the crescent moon but then it stopped, the wind followed soon after, no longer brushing the dry leaves of desert plant life. Aryn fell asleep and then I was alone, staring at the scattered patches of tall grass and cactus. It was silent. My heart began to race and soon I could hear it, blood coursing in my ears set to the rhythm of my ever-increasing heart rate. My body and mind had never before experienced true silence. I was caught between panic and relaxation of a world without sound; the rhythm of the desert at night.
Before this day, I hadn't experienced the desert. I wasn't even sure that I'd like it, knowing that the wilderness of trees, brooks, hills and mountains was my preferred natural environment but I wanted to see it. I wanted to experience the dry heat and the hundreds of miles of sparsely inhabited land, a temporary isolation knowing that my stay wouldn't be long. It was like holding a firecracker and letting it go before it could explode in your hand.
Joshua Tree, California was an unexpected stay during the last week of our trip through the West Coast. We had wanted to see the desert but had figured we'd pass right through on our way to Las Vegas. I felt that I wanted to see more of it so we booked a room at a desert bungalow on the outer border of the Joshua Tree National Park.
That first day, we sat on the porch with the owner of the bungalow as well as another guest. We stared out into the desert. After some talk, we dipped into silence. A large-eared rabbit hopped throughout the front of the property. Mourning doves sitting on a power line cooed overhead and the wind blew intermittently as I inhaled and exhaled my breath. It was a peace I hardly knew. Meanwhile the outside world seemed to be falling apart with bombings, absurd statements from presidential candidates, shootings of American civilians and more. I felt then that I had no desire to return to the world from which I had come.
We stayed for two nights and although it was so very hot, I hardly remember what it felt like. Years ago, when I had gotten my first tattoo, I had wanted to get a piece that meant something to me. It was of a gecko. I later learned that it was a symbol of the desert, synonymous in some Native cultures with freedom. That's exactly how the environment of Joshua Tree and its surrounding region felt -- free.
Inquiries and info: info@carlosdetres.com
The Last Time New York Was Hardcore: B-Sides (Photos)
The b-side photos and backstory of my experience shooting The Last Time New York Was Hardcore written by Michael Stahl for Narratively.
Mike Stahl wrote an excellent article on the NYC hardcore scene of the 1990s that was published last week by Narratively. He'd been working on it for a long while before he asked me to get on board to photograph the story. He and I began freelancing within a year of each other and in all this time, we had yet to do a project together. I was excited to finally work with my friend on this story.
He and I had grown up on hardcore punk. Most of the bands I listened to were from California and Miami although we had some overlap with artists such as Sick of it All and Madball. Much of the NYC hardcore world didn't make it south to Florida so I discovered what I could. Biohazard was a big one, a band whose bassist previously replaced me in a band that I started in high school. There were other ones as well but that world was very far away during the pre-social media days.
This story began for me in Santa Monica, after a phone call with Mike Stahl when I offered to cut my monthlong West Coast trip short to photograph this piece. I had to. It was a subject I cared about and the chance to work with my pal was too good to pass. I was able to complete my trip uninterrupted. Once I returned home to New Orleans, I was back on a plane heading north to New York.
******
A group of ten to twelve people had gathered around a tour guide who was explaining the history of St. Marks. "This is where punk bands, you know, like grunge, played in the 90s." Mike and I chuckled as we passed them. We were walking to meet the subjects of his story in front of the former location of a music club -- now a sushi restaurant. Many of the people in the story trickled in, greeting each other, some for the first time in several years. I was able to put faces to names of those I had read about in previous drafts of Mike's story.
We walked to several of the old locations, all turned over to the dark side of New York; a gentrified reconstruction of a developer's idea of how the modern residents wants to live. Nearly every location we visited was polished, varnished; a smooth coat of stucco on the wall or worse. It was my romanticized vision of New York in the '90s that I missed but these men and women who went throughout town to see their favorite bands or play shows at these venues actually lived it.
I imagined gutter aroma wafting in the air, triggering a memory of a beer stained, old bar. A broken window or a smashed face, blood on the walls, a rumbling street, heaving with the energy of wandering hardcore fans going to church. That was all gone now and that's okay. New York changes. We change.
My favorite moment was walking into John Varvatos, the former location of CBGB's. The new store preserved a surprising amount of the old space that CBGB's had occupied, including the bar, wall paneling, fliers tacked onto the walls, and even the stickers on the air ducts. I watched these musicians and fans who played their asses off here, drank with friends, saw unknown and favorite bands, that smell of that stinking legendary bathroom, recall memories and seeing, for the first time, what this high end clothing store had done with the old place...THAT was special. There wasn't any amount of photography I could do to capture that. You had to be there. You had to drink it.
I knew that many of the photos from our trip to CBGB's wouldn't make it into the final cut of the article. Some of the context didn't make editorial sense. These photos were for us -- Mike, me, Lenny, Cesar, Dean, Kent, Alan, Virginia and whoever else's name I've forgotten.
Enjoy.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
