This week, I had a little bit of spare time before meeting a client for a photoshoot in Atlanta. We were shooting near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Park. So naturally with time and being around one of my favorite places in all of Atlanta, I had to run around and get some shots. This time, as I’ve been doing a lot recently, I decided that one lens would be fun. So I took the Rokinon 12mm f/2.8, my old reliable, out for a spin.
I love using this lens mostly because of the ridiculous amount of stuff I can fit in the image. I love capturing these huge compositions. I like how vast it makes reality feel to me. Tell me what you think!
This week, I decided to take one more walk around Atlanta for pictures! And… Well, let’s just say it was a perfect reflection of how 2020 has treated everyone.
Last week, I told you all about the history of Morris Brown College. Make sure you check that out here if you haven’t already. This week I wanted to feature the coolest views specifically of when I was climbing around Alonzo Herndon Stadium. So I thought I would tell you a little about it and the man after which it’s named!
The stadium itself is was built in 1948. It was used by the Morris Brown College Wolverines, The Atlanta Beat (women’s soccer team), and the 1996 Olympics! It was also played the part of the demolished Fairfield Stadium during the filming of We Are Marshall, released 2006. Once a pride of Morris Brown College, it now sits abandoned, trashed, and graffitied.
The man for which the stadium was named had a little more triumphant story. Alonzo Herndon was born a slave in 1858. He was the son of a white slaver and Sophenie, an enslaved woman. He and his family were emancipated after the Civil War. They were cast out by their former enslavers and left homeless with nothing.
The Herndon family became sharecroppers, as many emancipated people were forced to do, and tried to live a better life. Alonzo’s entrepreneurial spirit showed as he worked his hands to the bone to provide for his family and save to leave his small hometown for a better life.
In 1878, he did just that. He moved from Social Circle to Senoia where he worked on farms and learned the trade of barbering. From Senoia, he migrated to Jonesboro, and this is where he started his first shop.
After a few years of thriving business, he eventually settled in Atlanta in early 1883. He began working as a barber in a shop on Marietta Street. 6 months later, he was a partner of the shop. By 1904, he owned 3 shops in Atlanta. His all-Black staff were widely known as the best barbers in the South. He also owned many houses, a large block of commercial property on Auburn Ave, and real estate in Florida as well.
As he grew his fortune, he bought a failing mutual aid association and turned the business around. He helped the company achieve legal reserve status, joined only by 4 other Black insurance companies contemporarily, and then expanded to 6 new states. He made it a point to save Black businesses where possible. He would merge businesses into Atlanta Life to conserve confidence in Black businesses.
He grew his fortune and his influence. He was even among the 29 men who attended the founding meeting of Black leaders to organize the Niagara Movement, called by W. E. B. Du Bois. He was also very involved in his local community in Atlanta, and he donated support and resources to the YMCA, Atlanta University, orphanages, and the First Congregational Church.
Alonzo Herndon died on July 21, 1927. He was born into slavery. He was thrown into poverty. He was illiterate. He was Black in the South, and he created an empire of wealth and a business that still runs to this day. He was even one of this country’s first Black millionaires. Now that’s a wild life!
As always, all of these photos of Alonzo Herndon Stadium are available for prints and merchandise. Check it all out in the store.
This week, I share a collection of street photography taken in Atlanta in August of 2020.
I try to make it down to the city at least once a month for a day of shooting. I love the buildings, graffiti, streets, and views that the city has to offer. The month of August was amazing.
COVID-19 did bring the entire world to a halt, but in August the city of Atlanta is still pretty busy. The streets are less crowded, which makes it easier for me to take pictures without pedestrians in my shots, but it also makes the city feel a little empty.
But that feeling doesn’t last for long. It felt like the more we walked and rode around, the more city seemed to come to life!
Maybe it was the wild amount of caffiene in my oversized coffee, but this trip, Brianna and I covered a ton of ground.
The goal for this trip was some cool shots of the capital and the church that’s close to Underground and The Masquerade. That of course did not happen, but we went just about everywhere else in the area!
To finish out the journey today, we rode by one of my favorite spots, the Jackson Street Bridge. I know, it’s a stereotype for instagrammers and tourists, but it’s a very beautiful view of the city. Rest assured though, I am on the lookout for the perfect view of Atlanta.
This week, I’m sharing the behind the scenes of one of my favorite portraits: the Rainbow Crosswalk Long Exposure.
I love this photo. I love the composition. I love the location. I love the rainbow crosswalks in Atlanta, and this shot is one that I’ve been after for a while. I’ve even tried to get it before. The angle in this one was one of the most hard parts. The camera needed to be as high as it could safely be in order to get as much of the crosswalks as possible.
The next problem was the lighttrails. I wanted a ton of lighttrails in the background, which means a longer shutter speed. Well, the longer the shutter speed, the less likely my subjects are of being in focus because people naturally move. That’s where a good 2 hours of photoshop and camera magic comes in.
After all of my work, this is the shot I got. I love it, but I have learned from this picture. I even want to try the concept again!
We know that creating a budget for a vacation can be daunting, so we made a video that tells you our step-by-step process of how to create your budget. We also sprinkled in a little knowledge about how to save yourself some money. Click this link to check out our video!
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