No pics until my return

No more pics until my return in March. I'll post some images from the trip once I'm back in the states.
Later.

Me in Iraq

IED Blast

(a note from me: My newspaper requested I take the photo that was here down, so I have taken it down.)

Our first night out on a patrol was suppose to be a night of checking up on check points manned by the Sons of Iraq. Not long after we rolled out of Combat Outpost War Eagle there was a call over the radio that a VBED exploded down the street. So the paratroopers in their MRAPs tore down the street to the explosion. When we got there flames were shooting from the remnants of a van with debris covering the street. It took a few minutes for the paratroopers to realize that their was a body inside the van and half a body lying 10 feet from the van. Photographing the scene was nearly impossible since there was no lights except for flashlights quickly passing over the scene.

Seeing the body lying there in the gutter never felt real. Like it was just a movie set and the man was going to lift his legs out of a hole after the scene was filmed and go over to the craft services table for a cup of coffee and a muffin. But it wasn't. After the fact I'm more disturbed by the picture than the actual scene I laid my eyes on.

Later we found out the two were killed when an IED they were transporting went off in their vehicle, after members of the Sons of Iraq fired shots at them for failing to slow down for a check point.
--------------------

Here are a couple of pics from the event that doesn't show the bodies.

Crystal Water

This one is for my girlfriend, Crystal. These bottles of water were sitting on the table next to empty tea glasses at a tribal support meeting. Now she can learn to write her name in Arabic.

Heathrow Airport

I finally made it to Baghdad. Now I'm sitting in CPIC (Combined Press Information Center) waiting to catch a helicopter up to Camp Taji in northern Baghdad. So I haven't been able to start taking pics here yet. So I thought I would post a few pics from my 14 hour lay over at Heathrow Airport in London.

The Auto Zone

My New Canon G9

I bought myself a Canon G9 the other day because I hate lugging around a SLR on vacation and for random non-work stuff. I'm hoping this will encourage me to take more pictures of family and friends. Here are a few frames from the office after I opened it up and charged it up.

NC Photographer of the Year

For those of you that haven't already hear, I was named Photographer of the Year by the North Carolina Press Photographers Assc. It was quite an honor and a surprise. So it seems 2008 is off to a good start.

Here is the portfolio.

Back to Iraq

For those of you that don't already know, I will be heading back to Iraq for a few weeks on Feb. 11th. It should be exciting as always.

My Favorite Pictures of the Year

A few of my favorite photos from 2007. It was a good year career wise last year. I took my first trip to Iraq and Afghanistan and I also won a few awards for my photography. On the personal side of life, It wasn't such a good year since my mother passed away after a long bout with cancer.

Anyway here are the pics.