Photo By Joshua James

08/05/2023

08/01/2023

"ABOVE THE LAw" photo by JJ

07/21/2023

"DOIN TOO MUCH" photo by JJ

At some point ima go back through my Iceland trip and re-edit my shots, I was doin way too much. Or I'll just go back to Iceland. I still like this shot, but its a reminder what Instagram does for photography...nothing.

05/23/2023

🐐 🥛

05/09/2023

Today marks 30yrs since our mama was violently taken from us. Folks are often surprised by my candicy, but theres no healing in hiding. Those who seek God in times of suffering will find strength of the greatest kind, and to seek God we must do it naked.

It was a Sunday, Mothers Day, May 9th, 1993.. the day my step-dad would murder my mother. The same man tormented me since I was 5, almost killing me multiple times... so imagine me fearing anything as an adult man?!

I recently broke down talking to my baby sister, thinking about our mom never knowing her grand babies, she was robbed of that, and so were her grandbabies. And as her oldest child its my responsibility to keep her spirit alive, to pass on the tough, honest, blunt, accountable love she gave me. Her soft love got given to my siblings, its like she knew what I was gonna need to survive...God definitely did.

I know she can't hear or see me, because my first time hearing from God started off in a conversation trying to reach her. I was alone, laying in the middle of a dead-end road in Mississippi, looking up at the night sky. I clearly got told, "she can't hear you son, but I can." I would continue the crying conversation with Him, even as it rained on me, I didnt move.

People talk about God all the time, but I've been talking to Him since I was 14. It would take another 5 ½ years of talking to Him, hating Him, crying to Him, before I would give my heart to Him. Crazy thing is its His anyways, but He won't steal it, it has to be given back freely. Its important to know God isn't in social media prayers, church, your favorite religion, good vibes or your universe bs... He's in us. Then we become His presence in those places, like all great men of faith have done. But if we're not being a vessel He can pour into, He won't. If our feelings, plans, self identity, etc., matter more than His purpose, truth, love & will, well we are of no use to His Kingdom--here or there.

Very few folks have experienced what I have, but I am not a victim, my precious mother never let me be one...even when I was. So I share what I learned from her, rather than stories about her.

Gone, but never forgotten. ILYXO

03/01/2023

"FIREFALL?!" photo by JJ

This was my first trip to Yosemite to shoot Firefall, and this is my first edit. It's a Stacked image in which I merged a total of 4 images together to create one. I used 2 shots for El Capitan, and 2 shots for the sky.

*This image may look much darker than it is if your screen lighting is dim; This image has much more depth/detail than can be seen from a dark screen.

02/13/2023

"FIRE FALL?!" photo by JJ

So here's my second day in
trying to capture the illusive turning of Horsetall Falls into Firefall. Tbh im not sure it quite caught fire like ive seen in other photographs, but with all the photoshop, filters and fakery on IG...im not sure what I've seen in photos is even real. Either way, idc... the trip was worth it regardless, and it gives me a reason to come back and try again.

It will be months--if not years--by the time I get around to editing, and posting my camera shots... so here's a quick phone one.

02/12/2023

"FOG FALL" photo by JJ

This is my first trip to Yosemite to shoot . "Unfortunately" a snow storm came in early this morning and left the whole park & all its amazing peaks clothed in fog. Im not at all disappointed, because on previous trips I got blank blue skys...which are not as dramatic as these views.

I'll be staying another night as the clouds have lifted, the stars are out, and we're forecasted for open skys tomorrow for sunset. Hopefully then I'll be able to get my Bucket List shot...though we did get about a 20sec tease this evening as the sun did its best to poke through the mist(not pictured).

This was shot on my phone btw*

02/06/2023

"VERY SPECIAL" photo by JJ

Back in the gap when we did / Meet Ups...this one was sponsored by

01/19/2023

"JUST THE TIP" photo by JJ