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About Me Premium Member Wannabe Admin VelvetEchoes27/Female/United States Recent Activity Deviant for 5 Years
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by *fb101

I absolutely love your depth of field here. I've always thought that DOF helps a photograph tell a story. The colors are fabulou...


I love this. The color is very warm and inviting and it sets off her skin and her hair nicely. I might have added a fill light (or di...

One Year

Journal Entry: Sat Oct 24, 2009, 10:10 PM
The greatest man I've ever known suddenly died one year ago today. His name was Ken Akers and he was a riveting photojournalist...and he was my mentor and best friend.

I had to work 12 hours today. I requested the day off because I knew that I would have trouble pulling it together. I was nearly half an hour late to work this morning. The day just got worse and worse, but I'll spare you the details.

Ken introduced me to my first digital camera. He loaned me his Nikon DH1 - a large, steel reinforced, heavy monster of a thing. He also trusted me with his beloved - the 105mm f/1.8 lens with a very low serial number. I fell in love. With Ken and with the Nikon Digital. He allowed me to make payments on the D70s I have now (which he had never done).

His death was sudden. It was a heart attack that left him without oxygen and thus, brain dead. I suppose I really lost him on October 19th; the day of his heart attack, but the 24th is the day they shut off his life support.

Ken taught me ... "a lot" is an understatement and "more things that I can count" is cliche. So I'll just say...

Ken taught me.

He taught me just about everything I know about photography today. And more importantly, he taught me to TEACH MYSELF. RTFM was his favorite answer for everything.

He taught me to live life. There are VERY few things in my life that I regret. Ken made that cliche about regretting the things I haven't done ring true for me. I never told him how much I loved him or how I enjoyed our time together. YES I KNOW! that he already knew it. But that doesn't fucking matter, does it?!

I went to his funeral and regretted it. But I probably would have regretted it more if I hadn't gone. You see, Ken was my first dead person. Until him, no one in my life who was really close to me had died.

Ken taught me about death. I'm still not sure I know how to deal with it. But who does? The last time I saw him was around September 8th or so. A little more than a month later, he was on life support. What I did learn is that I should ALWAYS tell someone how I feel about them because I may never get another chance. That's the reason my godmother is speaking to me again and why she allowed me to shoot her daughter's senior portraits this summer.

I worry sometimes that I'll forget things. Details. Memories. Tiny little things that meant so much. It's only been a year, but I can't remember what his voice sounded like anymore. It took me a moment to remember the name of the Nikon he loaned me. I fear that time and age will rob me of these things that are precious to me.

I think I am going to stop here. This subject leads me to things I'm not ready to think about yet, like when my mother will die.



Tomorrow, I'm going to go to Ken's favorite bar, where we spent most of our time. It's called Time Out Lounge. A couple of his friends will probably meet me there. I'll have a Coors Light for him.

G'night everybody.





Features



  • Mood: Tearful
  • Listening to: She's Always a Woman
  • Reading: soon, the inside of my eyelids.
  • Watching: Return to Oz
  • Playing: with life.
  • Eating: soup.
  • Drinking: a boiler maker for the old man.

Devious Info

  • Current Residence: Underground bunker in the Arizona desert.
  • Interests: Photography. And the life that surrounds it.
  • Favourite movie: Quills, Donnie Darko, American Beauty, Requiem for a Dream, Aliens, Equillibrium, The Mist.
  • Favourite band or musician: Dave Matthews Band, Elton John, Journey, Blue Eyes, Nina Simone, etc.
  • Favourite genre of music: Most music including Opera. Really good Blues and Jazz.
  • Favourite artist: Morgan Russel. Warhol, Picasso, Royo, Vallejo, Michael Whelan, Monet.
  • Favourite poet or writer: Stephen King, Yeats.
  • Favourite photographer: Ken Akers.
  • Favourite style of art: Photo-j. Fantasy, Abstract, Art Deco. Anything with real emotion.
  • Operating System: XP
  • MP3 player of choice: My brain. Always a song in there.
  • Shell of choice: The one you should crawl back into.
  • Wallpaper of choice: At the moment, my sweetie.
  • Skin of choice: Living.
  • Favourite game: Sanity.
  • Favourite gaming platform: Reality.
  • Favourite cartoon character: Brian on Family Guy.
  • Personal Quote: Get busy livin' or get busy dyin'.
  • Tools of the Trade: Nikon D70s, CS2, Lightroom, hands, oxygen and that THING.

Comments


:iconallenjmiller:
well, isn't that special. thanks hun :heart:

--
People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shit which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. ...we're not that fucking stupid.

--Welsh
:iconvelvetechoes:
Yep. Might be gone over the 31st. Any chance you're coming back by on the flip?

--
Serena Murno
Ethereal Images Photography

There are two kinds of people on Earth: Those who make pictures and those who take pictures.
:iconallenjmiller:
nah. going the north route on the way back. yellowstone, glacier, tetons, etc.

that's cool. next time.


--
People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shit which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. ...we're not that fucking stupid.

--Welsh
:iconvelvetechoes:
Haha that is awesome!

--
Serena Murno
Ethereal Images Photography

There are two kinds of people on Earth: Those who make pictures and those who take pictures.
:iconlaninicole:
shooooooooooooot?!?!?!

--
: if you live your life too seriously you'll never get out alive :
:iconvelvetechoes:
Erm....what/where/when?????

--
Serena Murno
Ethereal Images Photography

There are two kinds of people on Earth: Those who make pictures and those who take pictures.
:iconlaninicole:
are you alive still?

--
: if you live your life too seriously you'll never get out alive :
:iconvelvetechoes:
Yeah....I'm in Oregon still. Been busy. I'll be back by Friday evening.

--
Serena Murno
Ethereal Images Photography

There are two kinds of people on Earth: Those who make pictures and those who take pictures.

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