I’ve been down in Florida over the past week doing a few shoots (Southern Living, Forbes) and spending some time with my family in celebration of big milestones for my younger siblings. My FL home is sea turtle central this time of the year and my dad has become very passionate about tracking and helping out the mothers and babies. There are lists of the nesting sites and dates, lots of conjecture on possible birthing nights, and multiple daily walks on the beach to check the progress. Last night (I was dead tired and so missed it) Dad found some babies hatching in a transplanted nest and help rescue a few turtles who had gone the wrong way (towards the condos).
Walking on the beach at night is one of the main reasons for anyone to endure the many annoyances of south Florida. On a walk a few nights ago there were storms in the distance to the east, west and north but the air was completely still and silent but for the pounding of the waves. People like my dad who walk on the beach everyday can feel the way that the waves shape and reshape the sand under their feet. They become friends with the birds who claim a spot as their own. It’s very rewarding and beautiful in the faint light, briefly illuminated by distant lightning and the stewarding beacon of a lighthouse.
Also along our stretch a beach I’ve been trying to add a few snaps to my project Moving Pictures which is still trying to find its way. Here is one from this week… I’m not sure what genre movie I envision there yet… if you don’t remember, Moving Pictures is a personal collection of images that scout locations in the Miami night for a movie that will never be made. The project is about potential and emptiness, and the strange voodoo of my birth city (the Magic City) that reveals itself once the sun sets.
