If you’ve been following along with my blog, you may have noticed some foreshadowing at the end of my previous article. I had spent the day with Aubrey Johnson, taking some great photos of her at unique locations, but they were almost exclusively done indoors. We could see in the forecast that good weather was on its way, so a decision was made, a second session was in order.
Blue skies, warm weather and Aubrey making the trip to Lafayette afforded me luxuries we didn’t previously have. The last was critically important, as I knew the locations we would shoot at and I knew some would surprise her. To start, we walked around beautiful downtown Lafayette, using some spots I’d previously scouted but of course, we improvised along the way.
Aubrey had an affinity for 90s clothing and Coca-Cola, which just so happened to work perfectly with a classic Coca-Cola advertisement painted on a wall near Main St.
Next, we made the trip south of town to an antique car lover’s heaven I had spotted on a trip coming back from Indy. I stopped by earlier to talk with the owner of the vehicles and he gave us carte blanche to explore and use whatever vehicles we wanted as back drops. As Aubrey admired the views, I noticed a tear come to her eye when looking at some of the classics. Mission accomplished.
Lastly, we made the trip back to my yard for a fun way to finish the day. I’ll let the pictures do the talking but I think it perfectly summed up how I felt about spending time creating this truly epic senior shoot!
Sometimes you schedule a session far in advance and when the day comes, the weather is hot garbage. Well, perhaps in this case, it’s better to describe the day as cold garbage because the temps were freezing and it was incredibly windy. To top it off, the pictures were being taken out of town in an area I wasn’t familiar with. Generally, this isn’t a recipe for success and I was truly worried.
I’ve heard adversity can create opportunities to excel and once I met up with Aubrey, my hopes were buoyed by her creative ideas and positive attitude. The terrible weather meant that any outdoor photos would have to be taken quickly and with the ability to duck back inside immediately. With this in mind we formulated a plan and did what any red-blooded American would do in uncertain times, head to Walmart.
Once we arrived Aubrey headed off to change and I wandered around, trying to come up with ideas. When she emerged she completely floored me by wearing a truly wicked, pink power suit. At that moment I knew the shoot was going to be fun! Given the strong Legally Blonde vibes, we searched high and low to find matching and contrasting colors so she would pop against the wall-to-wall shelves honoring capitalism. Amazingly, there were plenty of aisles seemingly dedicated to pink. God Bless America!
Walmart employees are the true heroes. These patient souls walk the store with a been there, done that countenance normally reserved for a military veteran. Us running around the store, laying on the ground, taking pictures and trying all sorts of dumb ideas was met with simple, steely gazes. Perhaps they’d seen it all, perhaps they were just apathetic, either way, they were extremely cool with us. Many thanks!
A quick wardrobe change was made before heading off to our next location but we couldn’t help but take a few photos before going back out into the bitter cold. We stumbled upon a Minnie Mouse bow while Aubrey was wearing her Mickey Mouse jacket. The cuteness couldn’t be ignored.
Do teens still go to the mall?
I really try to incorporate a senior’s personal interests and vibe into any photoshoot I do. The pink suit obviously meant Aubrey would have no issue taking care of the vibe but upon learning she was into gaming, we just had to go to the local arcade. The greasy-haired boys inside didn’t know what was in store for them.
Like any good mall, the food court was close to the arcade and with us feeling a might peckish, we sampled some of the finer treats Kokomo had to offer. Turns out, if you tell people you are doing a senior photoshoot, they’ll let you do just about anything! We got to go behind the counter for some extra “sweet” photos. Pun intended. The day just kept getting better and better, what can I say.
Let’s be serious here
When I was a kid, senior photoshoots weren’t meant to be enjoyed. They were meant to provide mom, dad and relatives with a few posed “awww” shots meant to embarrass our beloved teens in the not so distant future. With this in mind, I thought we had to shift gears and get some of the “classic” seniors done. Turns out, I don’t think Aubrey will ever be embarrassed by these though. Bummer.
Defying gravity
After rushing back into the warmth of the mall, Aubrey and I decided to see how far we could push the, “we’re taking seniors, would you let us do whatever we want?” idea. With Gravity Trampoline Park right next door, what was the worst that could happen?
Getting in touch with our feminine side
Next on the docket was a trip to Jo-Ann’s Fabric to find flowers to match a cute dress. A soft balance to the all powerful pants suits. We approached a kindly grandmother- esque employee with our plans to use some of the decor to create a few shots. Unsurprising to us at this point, she was all thumbs up and told us to use whatever we wanted. With our newfound confidence, we had no problem with the occasional customer walking through our set.
Downtown Portland Kokomo
One thing I did not expect was how cool downtown Kokomo could be. The initial plan was to go to Mo joe Coffee House for our first stop. They weren’t open when we first arrived, which meant we made the audible to go to Walmart. Aubrey insisted we come back and we weren’t disappointed. If there’s such a thing as a small town, Midwestern hipster, they’d get their caffeine fix at Mo joes.
It’s what it’s.
While driving to the coffee shop, I spotted a sweet vinyl shop by the name of Black Wax Cafe that I figured we’d return to. Turns out Mo joe isn’t the only cool spot for coffee in town. Half record shop, half café, half music venue and half antique store, it’s far more than meets the eye. Turning loose Aubrey in such a place was a mistake. The results speak for themselves.
So there you have it. What I honestly though might be a wasted day due to poor weather turned into one of my favorite shoots ever. It makes me wonder what we could have done with good weather though… we’ll never know. Or will we?
With the weather starting to turn cold, it was nice to get in a senior photoshoot on a lovely weekend before everything freezes. Unrelated, but it should be known that I hate cold weather.
Aaron is related to a friend I go way back with so it was my pleasure to take his senior photos. He came prepared with plenty of style and confidence, the perfect subject for a downtown Lafayette shoot.
Without further ado, here are my favorites from the day!
The saying goes that a picture is worth a thousand words and with the photos I took after my most recent shoot, you would think I wouldn’t have much left to say. If you spent a day with the absolutely confounding Helen Mills, you’d agree that 24 pictures just aren’t enough.
So, why is Ms. Mills confounding? Her combination of intelligence, humbleness, beauty and joy was just a treat to be around and left me, as a mere mortal, contemplating if I was the result of a failed branch of the evolutionary tree. No one human should have so many positive characteristics.
To top it off, she was not the only stunning woman I would spend time with that day. It was the first time working with the fabulous Abby Prather. Abby provided an amazing hair and makeup session, skillfully applied to last the entire day of 90 degree heat Helen and I encountered as we explored the lesser known parts of Bloomington, IN.
It may be surprising but I have never sat and watched a professional hair and makeup session from start to end and I can honestly say, it was miraculous. Watching Abby take Helen, an already beautiful canvas, and transform her into an honest-to-goodness work of art was spectacular. Men, we are missing out on something here. I can honestly say I was jealous. Here was an amazing craft and experience that half of the world would likely never experience.
The three of us immediately connected and a great vibe filled the air while getting prepared for the day. I hoped this would yield positive results later as I generally have a bit of apprehension before starting a shoot. This time in particular I felt the butterflies, as I knew I had to step my game up when working with these two superstars that I didn’t want to let down.
Driving a little over an hour from Indianapolis, we found ourselves surrounded by the beautiful rolling hills of Monroe County. As someone who has spent the majority of his life in Northern Indiana, it’s easy to forget the natural splendor the rest of Indiana has to offer.
Upon arriving in Bloomington, we stopped for a quick bite. I only mention this because our server pulled Helen aside to comment on how beautiful she was. I had no clue things like this actually happened in real life and I assumed that management would come by at any moment, think I didn’t belong at the table and ask me to leave and stop bothering their guests.
First stop, the Zoom Flume.
Our first location to shoot at was the Zoom Flume. This abandoned water slide operated in the late 1970s and early 1980s near Lake Monroe. This is a relatively well known spot to explore, is frequented by locals and easy to find. My intent was to use it as a warm-up to get comfortable, pass some time and wait for better lighting to be utilized at locations later in the day. Little did I know that some of my favorite shots I would ever take would come from here.
Being a popular spot, we had people respectfully coming through our photoshoot. Some would be intrigued, watch for a moment, offer a few nice words and then carry-on with their own exploration. A few brought spray paint to add to the ever-changing graffiti landscape but one particular couple struck us as odd.
A guy and gal, perhaps in their late-twenties to early-thirties and looking as though they had ventured from the safety of the suburbs, were spraying their own messages. Helen and I paid them no mind until we saw a previously positive message now covered with hate speech. The paint seemed fresh. We weren’t positive they were the ones that had written over the art but as we were wrapping up, we saw the perpetrators using the same color paint to write other, racist messages.
Needless to say, we were shocked and saddened that “normal adults” would feel the need to venture out into the woods to spread a message of hate. Luckily, Helen is an artist herself (again, too many positive traits for one human to have) and we found spray cans that had just enough paint to cover up the negativity that was just applied. Consider yourself thwarted Becky and Chad.
A quick aside.
On our way to the next photo location we stopped at the Knightridge Space Observatory. This now abandoned observatory was constructed in the mid 1930s and utilized as an alternative to the still in use, Kirkwood Observatory. The telescope was removed in the 1960s as Indiana University started to encroach on the site and the additional light pollution hampered its effectiveness. While cool to explore from the outside, it was really falling apart and I wouldn’t suggest getting too close as the combination of gravity and decay was starting to create a dangerous situation.
Quarries, quarries everywhere.
Made famous by the coming of age flick, Breaking Away, Bloomington’s quarries are a site to behold. An earlier trip to a location next to the well-known Empire Quarry was the inspiration for this photoshoot. Bloomington seems to have a love-hate relationship with their unique lagoons. IU students and locals regularly swim at the “Rooftop” and “Beach” quarries but exact locations are hard to find and no one will really help point you in the right direction. Additionally, locals that live near the quarries are frustrated by all the traffic and people they attract. You know you’re in the right place when you see “no parking” signs up and down the street.
After spending far too much time using Google Map’s satellite view I found what I believed to be a promising spot. Near “Rooftop” was a sea of limestone slab and my intent was to photograph in this alien landscape. I wasn’t exactly sure how to get there but we found a nice empty parking lot, behind a chain, to use as a starting point. More on that later. According to the satellite pictures, the walk to the field of stone had us going through a thick, wooded area and involved us walking over a small field of limestone before getting to our preferred location.
Upon arriving at the “small” limestone field we were greeted with ENORMOUS stone slabs. Each was about 10 feet long, 5 feet wide and 5 feet thick. They were all stacked on top of one another as if God was playing Jenga and toppled them down while going for a particularly risky move. We would have to scale this limestone mountain, perhaps 40 feet tall and hundreds upon hundreds of feet wide, to get where we wanted to go. Apologies in advance to Helen’s parents if they’re reading this now.
The great thing about working with Helen, who is about the same height I am, is that whatever I can do, she can do it better. While carrying all of the clothing, a changing tent and more, she scaled the rock with ease. This meant that I HAD to follow, along with the plethora of equipment I thought was wise to bring.
After getting over the limestone and walking through more dense brush and trees, we arrived at the second photo location. What we were greeted with was a STUNNINGLY beautiful body of water which I wasn’t aware existed. We had it all to ourselves and it truly felt like a gift for our short but treacherous voyage.
We started shooting at the water, then headed to what I thought was going to be a field of relatively small limestone slab but was actually made up of more titanic sized Lincoln Logs. Finally, with the 90 degree temperatures dictating our decisions, we returned to the water and jumped in for more shots. It’s a rough life, I tell ya.
The man, always trying to keep us down.
I had intended to save the best photo spot for last, utilizing the waning sun for the best lighting of the day. We left our secret pool to head back to the car and go to the original location next to “The Empire” quarry I had mentioned before. Side note, going back down the limestone mountain was much less fun than going up.
We arrived back at the big empty parking lot to find a disgruntled gentleman who informed us the sheriff and limestone company had been alerted of our presence but he graciously decided not to have our vehicle towed. Luckily, he was willing to chat and we understood his reasoning for being upset. He told us about people using the property for drug deals and rambunctious youths causing issues but seemed to be less upset upon seeing the innocence in our eyes. We humbly apologized for causing any issue and headed out… on our way to trespass at another quarry. Hey, we’re not perfect.
We headed to our final location, which was about 20 minutes south, only to find a sheriff’s vehicle cruising for troublemakers near our planned parking spot. We hadn’t yet done anything wrong, to his knowledge, so we drove passed, waved and found a spot to hangout and wait so we could go back and create our pièce de résistance. Fun fact, while we waited, we discovered we were infested with ticks after our jaunty stroll through the deep woods.
After an adequate amount of time had passed, we headed back to discover that the quarry wasn’t abandoned and actively in use with workers currently on site. This I hadn’t anticipated, particularly with it being so late in the day. Being the friendly soul she is, Helen waved at the employees, we explored a little bit and decided we had pushed our luck enough and should head back home.
We should have trusted our instincts.
On my previous trip to explore and plan for the photoshoot I noticed that Interstate 69 was under a large amount of construction. I later learned that that it is currently being widened and extended to connect Bloomington and Indianapolis. Because of this, numerous houses were boarded up and getting ready to be torn down.
As we headed back home, a little earlier than expected, the perfect golden hour light hit us about halfway back to Indianapolis. This is where I had the bright idea that we should use one of the abandoned houses as a quick little backdrop to make up for the lost quarry location. Unfortunately, most of the houses had already been removed and just as the sun went down, we spotted the perfect home, right off of the road and in plain view of everyone driving.
We hopped out of the car, quickly scoped the place out and Helen was on the roof in a matter of seconds. The lighting was perfect, we took a handful of shots and got back in the car, truly pleased with the results of the day. As we exited the driveway, our escape route was blocked by the fastest responding security guard I have ever laid eyes upon. That guy certainly deserved a raise.
He waited in his car for what seemed like hours and we assumed the sheriff was called, on their way and we would finally pay for all of our earlier misdeeds. Finally, the guard opened his door and he approached us. Again we apologized, acknowledged we read the sign that said do not enter and respectfully played the semantics card. “Sir, we didn’t enter the building. The sign said nothing about being on TOP of the build!” The stern, but fair, gentleman told us we could leave. As he headed back to his vehicle I noticed a rather large revolver tucked into his waistband.
This time, we decided we had truly pushed our luck as far as needed. Now we actually headed home, although I can’t get it out of my head that Helen said she wanted to get a shot at that final quarry location we missed out on…
The story of one
hometown newspaper printer and how it portends the fate of an industry
By Emma Ea Ambrose Photos by Morgan Joy Woodard and Daniel O’Donnell
THAT’S ALL FOLKS.
The decree is written in big block letters on the wall calendar in
packing manager Randy LaGuire’s office. It marks the final day of the Journal
& Courier Production Facility LaGuire has managed for almost a decade and a
half.
LaGuire is stoic as he recites what he’s been told.
The printing press, located at 1501 Veterans Memorial Pkway.,
Lafayette, IN., which prints Lafayette’s daily newspaper the Journal & Courier, several smaller newspapers for outfits in Indiana
and Ohio and a number of commercial products, will be ending production on
March 2.
The Journal & Courier, one of the 100 daily newspapers owned
by mass media holding company Gannett, will now print
at a Gannett facility in Indianapolis, part of the company’s effort to
consolidate and save on costs.
Then there are the things LaGuire hasn’t been told but knows for
certain.
For example, he’s not starting another career, this is it for him. After nearly fifty years in the printing industry, LaGuire says he’s ready to retire, even if it’s a little earlier than anticipated. “I never thought I’d work in a place like this that’s so nice, so high tech,” LaGuire reflects. “This job, it’s been good to me and working in a place like this has been a good way to finish out my career.” The press was installed in 2006, and for the time was state-of-the-art. Still is, LaGuire adds.
Another thing he knows? This isn’t the end for the J&C, despite the local outcry that ensued after the announcement about shuttering the press. LaGuire has seen dozens of cuts across all sectors of the newspaper, from the printing floor to the newsroom, and he’s witnessed J&C circulation drop from 40,000 to what it is today, just under 9,000.
“It’s not over, though,” LaGuire says. “It’s never over. It’s
always the company adjusting to what’s happening, adjusting to the decline in
sales. Some of the things we’ve done over the years haven’t been viewed as very
customer-friendly, but that’s just the industry trying to adjust as quickly as
it can. Some of the services, like door delivery, just aren’t possible anymore
and as much as people want to stamp their feet and yell that’s just the
reality.”
LaGuire is not alone in his lengthy tenure at the press. There remains a core staff comprised of employees who have been there for decades, keeping their feet under them, despite the ever-shifting tides of the newspaper industry.
Unlike LaGuire, many employees, such as print operator
Michael Hale, won’t be retiring when the press issues its last paper in March.
“Closing feels like a loss,” he admits. “I’ve been well taken care of by this
place, but I think I’m going to have to find a new career.”
“Everyone knew this day was coming,” Hale adds. Most employees agree that the writing has been on the wall since 2008 when, at the height of the recession, advertisers across the country pulled money from newspaper advertising. “That was at the same time digital really started taking off for newspapers,” Hale states. “We never got those advertising dollars back and the recession just sped up the demise of the print newspaper. From there on, it was just a balancing act between creating content and making a profit.”
Unlike Hale, Ashlyn Hudson hasn’t been in the printing
industry long; she estimates it’s been about a year and a half. At seven months
pregnant she’s still working on the line and, she says, still enjoying the
work. The press will close roughly around the time Hudson is set to take
maternity leave. As for now, she assumes, she’ll be using the up-coming time
off to care of her newborn and look for work. “Even though there’s an age gap
between me and everyone else here it still feels like a family,” Hudson says.
“It’s upsetting because I probably won’t see these people again.”
That familial air softens the harsh industrial surroundings. People socialize, even over the rowdy machinery. Two employees working at the end of the line laugh with each other as their hands make quick work knotting twine and stacking bales of papers on pallets. Workers sigh in resignation when discussing the closure. Most employees say they won’t stay in printing, mainly because the opportunities just aren’t there. And beyond the immediate wreckage of the press’ closure – loss of friendships, income and accumulated expertise – pulses an existential fear no one can wholly articulate.
“Closing this print and redistributing the print jobs just
feels like staving off the inevitable, which is when it all switches to
digital,” Hale muses. “But my personal opinion is that digital, just digital,
that’s no good. Where does the record go when you lose print? It’s like photos
on your phone; even though they’re more accessible immediately, long term
they’re less accessible.”
“I’m going to miss the smell,” Hale adds. “My wife says I
have to save one of my shirts from my last day so she can smell it whenever she
wants.”
Mathew Benham, another press operator, says he’s
apprehensive about the print operation moving to Indianapolis. “There is
already such distrust among the public of the news, even for local news,” he
states. “Pushing the printing further away is going to aggravate this phenomenon.”
LaGuire adds, “People say they don’t want their news coming
from Indianapolis, but it’s no different. The news still comes from here. It’s
not like reporters come to the printing facility like in the old days. Stories
will get sent to Indy the same way they’re sent here. I don’t think we’ve done
a good job letting people know they’re still going to get a paper.”
But a discrepancy many people will notice, LaGuire says, is
that the J&C will look physically different. “The Lafayette paper is one of
the few remaining Berliner newspapers in the country, shorter than the standard
broadsheet. When printing moves to Indianapolis, the J&C will gain about an
inch and a half on top and bottom margins. That is a lot more waste, a lot more
cost,” LaGuire contends.
The 14-year-old, 225-ton press, which required a 7-foot-thick concrete floor, remains groundbreaking in many ways. Manufactured in Germany, the press has the ability to print a full newspaper at a remarkable 35,000 copies per hour. Most of the employees had never seen anything like it.
In terms of what’s going to happen to the $24.1 million
production facility, LaGuire says he hopes that it’s utilized. Someone could
buy it for commercial printing but there’s also a chance the 47,000 square-foot
facility will stand empty. LaGuire is pretty sure, however, that whatever comes
in won’t be a newspaper.
“Like the blacksmith and horseshoes, the newspaper is slowly going the same direction. It’s a dying breed,” LaGuire lamented.
Finding amazing models and unique photo locations is sometimes as simple as asking. On the Instagram, I follow a few Indiana specific hashtags and I stumbled on Angie Miller, @birdgerhl_, a stunning yoga instructor from Studio You Yoga, where she practices in Greenwood, IN. I struck up a conversation and next thing I know, we were planning a photoshoot, along with my usual partner in crime, Morgan Joy Woodard.
For me, being creative means rare shoots. Angie, with her incredible talent, most certainly defines rare, but our Indiana winter meant my usual, abandoned themed shots wouldn’t work if we wanted to maximize her strength and flexibility. I had to find an indoor venue that would have a fun aesthetic and what better place than a laundromat!
A few days later and a trip south landed me at the Laundry Stop & Tropical Tan in Greenwood and the amazing manager welcomed the idea of a photoshoot immediately! As someone who is pretty shy and reserved, I couldn’t imagine finding a new model and location so easily, yet a few friendly conversations later had landed one of the coolest experiences I would later have.
If you stuck around through the introduction, thanks, I’m glad you didn’t throw in the towel… that was a terrible joke. Enjoy the pictures and if you’re interested in your own unique shoot, reach out to contact@dpo.photos.
Angie’s ability to hold these incredible poses was stunning. It was hard to remember to keep shooting, rather than standing, mouth agape, in amazement.
While thoroughly impressed with Angie’s athleticism, her personality shined through as well. We amused ourselves with a “normal” modeling session, literally climbing all over every prop we had on hand. On a side note, it didn’t hurt that she’s a beauty as well!
Thanks again for spending a little bit of your time with us!
In this world of Instagram, Facebook photographer groups and YouTube tutorials, it’s hard to see my work as unique. I want to take photos that no one has done before, but how is that possible when everyone has a high quality camera in their pocket and the ability to share their art instantaneously? With fall’s beautiful colors ending and the grey winter slowly creeping in, Lafayette, IN often feels like it offers little in the way of photographic creativity, but as I found out recently, I couldn’t be more wrong.
Amazing opportunities surround, and it took shifting my perspective to see what had been there all along. While researching locations to shoot, I learned about updates on spots I had seen regularly, yet never tried, as well as a few new places seemingly worth a look. I read that these sites would soon disappear and this was the catalyst I needed to grab the camera and hit the road. Along the way, I would reach out to fellow photog, Morgan Joy Woodard, for additional inspiration and see if I could convince Helen Mills, a model, who had never modeled before, to let us see if we could tap into her incredible potential that was apparent the first time we met.
Our first location was an abandoned diner, near Lafayette, that had recently had an SUV run through the front door. The crash sealed its fate, as it was announced it would be torn down and replaced with a truck stop in the near future.
Having scouted the locations a week ahead of time, I spent ample time on studying poses, expressions and how to communicate them effectively, hoping I could help Helen’s first foray into modeling be a fun and productive experience. Turns out this was absolutely not needed, as she impressed from the moment the first photo snapped into existence.
From the diner, we headed to an area northeast of Indianapolis, where a few passenger train cars were left near farmland, waiting to be explored. The only problem, these train cars were disappearing quickly, as they were being moved for unknown reasons. This left perhaps one chance to photograph them before they were gone for good.
Finally, with the light disappearing and the air getting cold, we decided we were all having such a good time, we would go for one last spot, a unique trio of school buses yet a little bit closer to Indy. The opportunity required hiking through a wet, wooded area, in near pitch black, but I think the results were well worth it.
With just a bit of research and exploration, Indiana had shown there were plenty of ways to be creative with my photography, I just needed to look. Many thanks to Morgan Joy Woodard @morganjoyphotography and Helen Mills @helen_m18 for the fun experience!
Morgan Joy – BONUS
Here are a few of my favorite shots by Morgan Joy Woodard.
On one of the hottest Memorial Days in recent memory Kaitlyn Evans and I spent some time enjoying Indiana’s natural beauty. We wandered throughout streams and wooded areas near Attica, taking photos and then cooling off in the water. A lovely day for sure, made even more lovely by the fact that Summer hasn’t even official arrived. Looking forward to spending more time with mother nature!
