Today, or yesterday rather, was GMU’s senior art show. A number of my art friends had been tirelessly working (dying) for a whole semester to get through their classes as well as find time to develop, build and launch this senior show. Needless to say I was blown away with what everyone brought to the show. These were people that I knew, if only for a brief semester, and had watched grow as artists and people and to see their culminating works in this gallery setting was simply proud-happy-blown-away-teary-eyed all at once, haha. I recall the last semester’s senior show as being a very bittersweet goodbye for me. I was embarking on a life journey to find my place in the world after school and I didn’t know what or where I would be by the time I saw these friends again. Of course, fast forwarding I am still in the area but I felt like so much had changed. In an indescribable way, walking through what was once my favorite building felt so empty and different. It was the people I was there for. God, how did I digress this much. Ok.

     The first piece I saw ended up being my favorite of the night. It was a piece entitled, “thus” by my good friend Sua (www.kimsua.com). She wasn’t by her photos but I stood there for 15 minutes nonetheless. There was something about the images. The frames within the frames. The transition from a blurry glistening ocean to a suddenly vast ocean. The washed up frame next to a frame capturing a rushing wave. There was something in the spaces within the frame. To me the piece resonated with a lot of the things happening in my life, most specifically the second photograph of a picture frame floating in the ocean. It reminded me of how much I’ve learned since leaving school and experiencing life. Being on my own and having to create my own structure. Having to create my own new friends and opportunities. It made me think about how we are living in frames of times, people and places floating in a vast ocean. At one moment a focused picture of a life, the next moment an obscure nothingness. But as I looked at the photograph I began to realize that was the point of it all. To float on and realize that everything is nothing. That we need not worry or hold onto people or places for we are all just floating, limitless, pulsing beings…we are nothing. Now, after reading her artist statement I realized the purpose of the piece was for us to realize the existence of non-existence. A buddhist idea in which one is able to see something out of nothingness. The fact that we all live in the illusion of how things appear. The fact that we are reality and that we are nothing. Needless to say after that I really REALLY wished she was there!

     The first friend I ran into was Mr. Taylor Reiman (graphic design/photography) who created an entire book inspired by a post-surgery health cleanse he undertook. The book served as an amusing, yet incredible informative instruction guide on how to “Eat Like a Caveman”. He has been a friend since high school and we always had this uncanny way of running back into each other’s lives in the weirdest of places. He was an old face I could count on for random life talks between classes. I’m so happy that he’s done and accomplishing so much. I hope he takes off and never stops going! But first he really should sleep. 5 days straight is inhuman.

     The second friend I saw was my good good friend, fellow photog and soon to be fellow cyclist, Mr. Jerry Jones! I had spent the earlier part of the day helping Jerry look for a new road bike and was much anticipating his piece. It was a uniquely interactive piece in which observers were encouraged to grasp the image cubes and rearrange them to their liking. The photographs were of everyday objects taken in unique points of view immortalizing the beauty and texture of such impermanent things as the raindrops on a leaf or the crystalline lattice of frost forming across a car. Ever the detailed, exacting, artistic gent I know him to be, Jerry did not disappoint with his piece.  

     To end the night I decided to try to catch Sua again and to my luck she was back at her artwork! She was looking absolutely lovely in front of her artwork I wasn’t sure what to say haha. It was amazing catching up with her and hearing her plans for the future. I got a chance to catch up and tell her about what I’ve been doing and hopefully that we’ll see each other more now that school is finished for her. I didn’t get a chance to talk to her more about her piece but that will be taken care of over coffee soon. 

     It was a good, yet brief, night. I got to see and catch up with a lot of old faces I had missed. But most importantly, I think. I got to walk away from that old art building with a feeling of closure. I got to walk away for perhaps the last time. The old thoughts, memories and pains of that building felt as if they dissipated into the night with the fading sounds of the gallery. It was, a good night. 

Trek On,

Chris

     This past weekend I had the honor of photographing Reston Association’s Spring Festival! I never get tired of volunteering for local organizations like this, especially for environmentally focused events such as the Spring Festival. From my pictures one probably couldn’t tell that the event was a huge success featuring numerous nature education games, live music and a nature trail scavenger hunt where kids solved clues at educational kiosks manned by local plant and animal environmental groups. Basically, the event made me wish I had kids so they could be exposed to the overflowing amount of positive, nature loving community I was seeing. I never knew there was such a vibrant eco-conscious community so close to home! The Walker Nature Center was a beautiful complex surrounded by forest and a nature trail. The trail led through the forest to a lake where visitors could fish (if licensed) and kayak. I didn’t even feel like I was 10 minutes away from home! As if the free eco-friendly bags and live music wasn’t enough, vendors provided free information on native plant species. Visitors could then buy native virginia plants from a local farmer (how often we overlook our native plants!). The entire event lifted my spirits and calmed how stormy my mind has been becoming lately. It reminded me that there are good people and good things in this world.

     In other news, TODAY WAS MY FIRST FULL DAY AT REI! It’s been weeks and weeks of sporadic training but today I was able to put in a full 8.5 hours, 5 of which were spent stocking various sections of the camping department. How fitting that the first section I ever stocked by myself would be the water bottle wall. It was the camelback bottle that got me to become more active. It was my camelback bottle that reliably held my water through Cambodia and France…Things always find a way to come full circle. Sometimes good, sometimes bad, but always for a reason. Alas, cheesiness aside, it was so incredible to return to the workforce. In all honesty, through my aching back and legs and sweat I haven’t been so happy in a long long time…For the first time since I spilled into this shark tank after graduation, I have structure and purpose in my life again. I stocked the hell out of those shelves, I memorized the hell out of all the camping supplies, I politely helped the shit out of those customers! I put in the work and the hours and I went to BJJ tired and satisfied. I missed work so dearly. I may be looking into this too deeply, or maybe not deeply enough. All I know is that I have a direction and a purpose and that I love this place I call work! I love learning about the equipment, I love meeting the customers, I love hearing about adventures and I AM DYING TO HAVE SOME OF MY OWN! I don’t know what I’m typing anymore. I’m sleep deprived from editing pictures and am bruised as hell from BJJ…I just know that I’m finally at a good place again…and that I really am excited for what the future holds…

Here’s to never giving up, and knowing when to let go…

Trek On.

 

Chris

   This past weekend I had the opportunity to help family friend, Dr. Frederick Zamon, with the youth fishing program of the Fairfax Springfest at the Occoquan Regional Park. It was probably the most I’ve ever handled fishing lines, bait and children in my life but I have to say that it was incredibly fulfilling. It was nice to see so many happy families out and about enjoying something as simple as fishing. And that was just it, not one family caught any fish but as the parents returned the rods I could see smiles across their faces. It was a chance to share an experience with their kids on a beautiful day.

     I got to meet fellow volunteer, Anastasia. I don’t exaggerate when I say she was the brightest high schooler I’ve met in a long time. She wants to become a photographer, more specifically, a wildlife photographer! You can imagine my excitement! I was basically holding myself back from barraging her with a mountain of life advice (I think I did anyways). I essentially told her a little bit about my journey thus far and how important it was to follow your dreams. Corny, yes, but I told her how much time I feel like I wasted not doing what I wanted from the start. When something grips you enough to be called your passion there is really little else you need to think about. Pursue it, engulf yourself in its art, become the best and never stop chasing it and you won’t regret where you end up. Not to say that it won’t be hard - hell it will be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. But what is a life spent walking a prescribed path? What is a life spent “working now so I can enjoy life later”? Not everyone has the same definition of a happy life, and it’s taken me this long to see that. Alas, I digress. Between wanting to become a photographer and her love for choreography, I hope Anastasia never stops pursueing her dream. I really look forward to the awesomeness you will be growing up to be!

(I don’t know if she will ever find this post)  

Here’s to keeping on going.

Trek On,

Chris

     Today I revisited an old, memory laden trail - the Capital Crescent Trail (http://www.cctrail.org/). My good friend, Tim, and I road the path from Bethesda, Maryland all the way to Washington, DC. In total we covered 26.69 miles in 3 hours and 4 minutes. There was a lot of stop and go in the city but I am really getting a better grip on aggressive city riding. I really have to thank TIm for the invaluable training, I love cycling and traffic was always a big fear of mine. 

     The reason I say the trail is memory laden is because it was the nameless trail from my early childhood memories riding with my father, uncles and cousins. It was the same trail that I revisited in college to do my first stop action project. And it was the trail that I drove to to practice dragon boat racing in the Potomac for my ex’s chinese school. An ex that set up the framework for the impenetrable, trust robbed walls around my heart. Quite a trail! However, coming back to the CCT as I am now really opened up a new opportunity for me. With a newer, more mature mindset I looked at the trail as a closure with a lot of my past demons. As I pumped my legs and (made incredible time ~7 miles in 28 minutes) zoomed past trees and fences and memories I felt like I was finally saying goodbye to these memories. The good and the bad. I felt I was riding ahead and away from the younger me. Riding away from my dad and my uncles and my brother…I felt like I was finally old enough to lead my own trail and to discover my own paths. I felt like I was riding away from every poisonous relationship I’ve ever had. Literally running over and killing every “other guy” (god why is there always another guy). The trip was emotional and physical and amazing. 

     I have to hand it to Tim. He rode a single speed bike, only had a front brake AND was wearing long commuter pants sans chamois. I don’t know how his legs or prostate made it the 26 miles but they did! Riding through DC this time was more intense because I got to lead a couple of times and we got separated a couple of times. There was some seriously legit bus weaving done today! Our first break was at Union Station for smoothies (we discovered milkshakes were a bad idea last time). I saw a photo opp with the station’s hallway’s architecture and pulled out my DSLR to capture the moment. At first I took a test shot to gauge the exposure and then set up Tim centered and posed. As I looked through the pictures tonight I realized I liked the test shot so much more. Touching on the photographic conversation Tim and I had over beers and burgers after the ride, I thought about what makes a picture and what makes a photograph. I thought about photo journalism, I thought about composition, I thought about the rules and how to break the rules. I thought about fine art and I thought about a maturing photographer and I realized, yes, I definitely like this test shot more. Not to be that guy that analyzes his own picture, BUT. I saw the uncentered composition so much more intriguing. Tim is not the center of the picture, and one could argue, wasn’t even the subject. The mix of people at the end of the hallway, the homeless man passing Tim, Tim’s bike and Tim’s outwardly gaze cause the viewer to arc across the picture from the back to the left foreground. Even the overexposure fills the frame with a pure light that contrasts against the gritty, contrasty textures of the hallway’s ceiling and floor stirring yet more intrigue. The only thing centered and uniform about the hallway is the hallway itself and it encapsulates a variety of off-centered, busy subjects, as a hallway should! Both physically and artistically the hallways presents itself as a vehicle of transport for the viewer. Be it to the other end of the hallway to where we locked our bikes, or be it through the silent chaos of frozen action that is this picture. I may be looking too deep into it, but I think Tim, his teacher and my favorite professor would be proud.

     I, of course, had to take a picture of my personal setup. A photographer’s glory is from behind the camera but sometimes I like to let the viewers see a little bit of me. What I’m currently working with is my blue/silver 2012 Trek 2.1 Compact aptly named Tuna.

     After Union Station we decided to ride down to the historic Eastern Market area (hence the strange rhombus shaped detour we took on the bottom right). We ended up getting lost in a sketchy neighborhood, replanning and then ending up at a closed bar. So we gunned it back to the city center and decided to head back to Bethesda for food. It was getting overcast and we were afraid of rain. On the way back I couldn’t help but stop ever so often for instagram opps (@chrissogram). One particular spot had me turning around and calling for Tim to follow me. On the left of the trail was a uniform fence and on the right was a chaotic mess of dying trees and roots. Separating the two was a smooth endless pathway - I HAD to put Tim in the middle of it! What resulted was one of my favorite pictures of the day. A gentleman and his trusted iron steed standing unabashedly between industry and nature. Emblazoned on his chest, a stunning call to all those around him, “For the Greater Good”! Call me crazy, but when moments shout themselves out to me I cannot but help to shout back.

     It was another fantastically spent day with an equally fantastic friend. I am really biking more and more and I have to say that I am loving it (at the cost of my BJJ gym time). My posts have been becoming much more happier and, I have to say I am becoming much more happier. Out of a long drought I have suddenly been refilled with hope and, dare I say it, excitement. Excitement for what there is to come. Excitement for how uncertainly beautiful the future is. 

You get what you make of it.

Trek On,

Chris

This past weekend I had the honor of shooting the Copa Nova Spring 2013 BJJ tournament for my team. It was a harsh 8 hours but my amazing Silverback family gave it their all and I couldn’t be prouder. Personally, it was a life changing experience to say the least. Many of my team had already been to this competition and, as one of them mentioned later that night, it was really a tournament to get a fighter’s feet wet to go on to bigger competitions like the Pan Am’s. Regardless, I bore witness to an astounding variety of fighters and saw some of the most fluid, agressive, combination filled matches that I’ve ever seen. I fell in love with BJJ all over again. I think it was largely because I have spent all of my BJJ experience in the Silverback gym (http://silverbackacademy.com/). I work out and practice against my peers, I study YouTube and practice on my own but it took seeing this gathering of schools and unique styles in person to show me how huge BJJ is. Needless to say, the journey to black belt will be a life’s journey I won’t regret.

Anyways, like I said the competition was fierce in all divisions but what surprised me was how the women’s division was bringing it as hard if not harder than the men’s! These women were not playing around. They would jump guard, they would take you down and they would pull off some of the nastiest arm bars. As a matter of fact, I was lucky enough to catch some stills of 2009 world champ, Adrienne Adams! From her humble, brandless rash guards you couldn’t tell that she was a world champ and starter of her own (awesome) company of eco-friendly gi’s (http://thegreengi.com/)!

Something that stood out to me were the individuals that stood out of the crowd, go figure? Included in those would be my new friend Jaron Hampton who proudly wore his (beautiful) dreadlocks into battle, winning it for all the BJJ lions out there (http://jaronhampton.com/). Another man I saw, who I regret not finding and introducing myself too afterwards, was this agile elderly rastaman. In all honestly he looked like he would be making amazing music and spreading words of peace rather than throwing down at Copa Nova! He had a beautiful head of naturals and wicked skills to match, he was my hero of the day!

As the competitions moved on and we got into the 5th hour or so, the Brown Belts came out. Now, BJJ has one of the most grueling belt systems in the world, and I would have it no other way. It goes White, Blue, Purple, Brown, Black and Red (of which there are only 5 living holders right now). It can take years to get from White to Blue and even longer from Blue to Purple. In order to reach Brown you would have needed at least 5 years of pure dedication to the art. If you were a black belt at say, 19, the soonest you would expect to get your Red belt, if ever, would be 67. That being said, the brown belts brought a whole different game to the mats. In all honesty, it felt like I was a Private watching Spartan-III’s go at it (since I would reserve Black for S-II and Red for S-I)! They were laughing and smiling, they would start in the most bizzare positions that only a lifetime of experience would have shaped, they were amazing. One could tell them apart even in the No-Gi competitions. The whole gym could hear the throws being made by these two massive heavy weight Brown Belts. Without Gi’s they were doing more aggressive limb locks and throws and moved with such startling power it would humble any fighter right away…

My fan-boying aside, it was an amazing day and an inspiration. The techniques, pressure and fluidity I took away from it has already started to affect my game as well as my life. I’ve decided to start a more purposeful training regimen as well as a healthy (as possible) diet. The next competition is in October but if I get into the SMSC as well as REI I don’t know how it will affect my training…Alas, no excuses. The last picture is probably my favorite picture of the day. After making our team wait for at least an hour they finally placed two of our boys against each other. It was an outrage and a product of crappy bracketing. Viv (left) and Aust (right) were good chaps about it and respectfully gave it their all. The fight was powerful, emotional and fought by a couple of the best people I’ve had the fortune to meet. Silverback and BJJ are blessings that have come into my life at a point where I really needed direction and hope.

Here’s to a lifetime of improving oneself both as a fighter and as a person.

Trek On,

Chris

p.s. If you want to see more pictures of the Silverback team specifically check out my website under the “Volunteer Work” section!

http://500px.com/christophersophotography/sets/volunteer_work

What happens when you cross a Fox, Wolf and Lion? My baby, Leviathan. Going through the usual Monday applications and took a break to watch a movie with the mom and son and thought I’d take advantage of the natural light.

Let us travel the world together my son.

Trek On,

Chris

Starbucks

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image

     Earlier this week I went back to my alma mater to meet with a potential job/intern connection (oh the things that incite excited speeding now a days). I decided to make the most out of the 4 hours I bought at the parking deck and met up with my good friends Jerry and Sonja for coffee and catching up.

As I sat and waited for them to arrive, I had a lot of time to look around and think. Things had changed so much since I graduated. This was the same 24-hour Starbucks I used to spend all-nighters cramming for bio exams and, eventually, editing photography projects. This was the Starbucks that I used to buy for my ex when we would study late into the night, this was the Starbucks I discovered the Peace Corps in and this was the Starbucks where I fell in love. I looked around and saw students idly chattering with coffees in their hands, macs galore littered the walls with their serpentine plugs. I thought to myself,

“Damn, if only they knew how much work they could get done on a laptop with decent internet and 8 hours of dedication, do they know how many jobs and internships they could be applying to right now? How many companies and non-profits they could be researching?”

My own mind sickened me. I tried to focus back on my coffee. My Americano, rather.I thought to myself how sad it was that I regretted buying it. I could have gotten cheaper coffee at McDonald’s or Dunkin’, hell, I could have made better coffee from home and brought it in my tumbler. Again, my mind sickened me. Through the echoes and hum drums of the coffee shop I realized how close I was to collapsing in on myself. My dress shoes, dress shirt and tie didn’t make a damn difference. The reflection in the dirty window was of a hungry animal stuck in a room full of children. Rejection and routine had begun to chip away at my self-esteem, my being. Hell, the last time I sat in this chair I basically told the girl I loved her ex still loved her and to go for it! I don’t think a homeless celibate monk could stay jobless and loveless as well as me.

Alas, Jerry and Sonja arrived before I could really dig myself in. The world needs people as bright and happy as these two, I mean it. If there was a success story to be heard it would likely be of these two’s relationship. Neuroscientist meets Photographer, could fate have chosen a more interesting intersection of intriguing arts? We talked about school and about life. We talked about Jerry’s senior art project and Sonja’s second attempt at the beast that is Genetics. Oh how they breathed life back into my day. Hum drums sound completely different when it comes from good friends.

After Sonja left for class, Jerry and I caught up on man-talk. We talked about my next plans and my next moves. We talked about my future jeep. We talked about his future photography projects. And what would boys be without their toys? I let him try out the Mark II and showed him how to use a white balance lens cap, in case he wanted to borrow her, and I took the quaint hipster pictures you see above. 

Seeing my gent and lady was very very much needed. As we bid farewell over promises to go to the shooting range soon, I took one last look at the Starbucks and realized that,

“That was the Starbucks where I got my hope back.”

Trek On,

Chris

Visited DC’s Eastern Market with the lovely Brie Gobel this past weekend. The old market boasts the title of “Washington DC’s oldest continually operated fresh food public market” and is located in historic Capitol Hill (http://www.easternmarket-dc.org/). I was incredibly surprised to find such a lively and diverse market just a few steps away from a metro stop! The goods they sold ranged from finely aged meats and cheeses to fresh cut flowers and ready made seafood dishes. Surrounding the old building were outdoor stands filled with vendors selling odds and ends. While exploring the stands I was approached by an older gentleman named Dan. He was a local and had lived in the area for quite some years. He was interested in my camera and asked what I was shooting. As it turns out he, too, loved photography and had travelled extensively in Asia as a younger man, “When there were more honest things to shoot”. He told me about the area and how much livelier the markets are during the warmer weather. As it turns out the building we were in had, at one point, caught fire and had to be completely gutted out but because of its historic significance, was preserved and restored. Since it was first built in 1873 it has been a home for fresh produce and culture - I was simply honored to be there (http://www.easternmarket-dc.org/default.asp?ContentID=12). The best moment of the day, however, was when Dan bid Brie and I farewell and walked away into the market. It was at that moment that I realized he had been carrying a bouquet of flowers the entire time. My heart warmed to have met such a kind, and fascinating person.

Here’s to impromptu trips, good friends and blessed souls. 

Trek On,

Chris

Went on a spontaneous adventure into D.C. with my lovely photog friend Brie Gobel the other day. Though I wouldn’t normally consider somewhere so close as “travel”, I was surprised at how little I have explored D.C. and found wandering from cafe to cafe to pub to memorials to be invigoratingly adventurous! Whenever and wherever I end up finding myself these next couple of years, I know I will kick myself for not taking advantage of being so close to our nation’s capitol. I will surely kick myself for missing out on all the history and, of course, the fantastic brews and grinds.

Here’s to spontaneity and making plans happen! 

Chris

Picture taken at the flagship Busboys and Poets on 14th & V. The place was cozy, lively and filled with local art. It’s a artist/activist/lover of diversity’s dream place to eat and drink.