On this historic inauguration day, I have found myself wondering what the future will hold for my family, myself and my dreams. Photography is often more than just taking pictures, it is about vision. Seeing things in your mind before you ever see them through the camera. This can also be said about life.
I took yesterday off from work, Martin Luther King Day and spent some time with my 8-year-old son, Lucas, looking through the book, Powerful Days, The Civil Rights Photography of Charles Moore. It was amazing to see the reaction Lucas had as he saw, for the first time, images of dogs attacking people, fireman spraying people with hoses and the KKK burning crosses in the night sky. He could not understand why the police and fireman were hurting people. He had studied about Martin Luther King in school, but I don't think was until he saw these images that he really understood what was happening in our country at that time. The images of Charles Moore continue to have the same reaction today as the day he made them and without any doubt these photographs have helped make our world a more compassionate and educated place to live. Please take a moment to look over and appreciate some of his work, http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/features/moore/aboutCharlesMoore.shtml
In December, Golf Magazine ran an image they assigned me of Lee Elder. 33 years ago, Elder was the first African-American to break the color barrier at the Masters. Although his life was threatened, in the face of hatred he teed off in 1975, leading the way for Tiger Woods who was born in December of that same year. Today Lee is pushing hard to get more African-American kids into golf and his dream would be to see Tiger Woods in his 40's, slipping a green jacket onto the shoulders of a young African-American. "That would be going to the mountaintop."
I have been blessed that through my photography I have been able to meet and photograph some of my heroes, those who could vision and dream of the world in a better way, long before it was a reality. Thanks Charles and Lee for your inspiration.
