documentary photography
Age and ability are a moot point. The Ackland Museum offers affordable hands-on art workshops for those who lean into pencils or pastels, sculpture or still life. The image above captures the Drawing for Tweens program for 10- to 13-year-olds. An instructor demonstrates techniques using the museum's collection as the classroom.
(photograph taken at the University of North Carolina Ackland Art Museum in Chapel Hill)
In these images, firework light trails appear to bounce off the night sky forming shapes in streaks of color. This effect occurs at a slow camera shutter speed enabling a photographer to paint with light.
The fireworks seen here illuminated the sky over Governors Club in Chapel Hill on Friday evening. The display was originally scheduled for Independence Day, but due to inclement weather was postponed until August.
(photographs taken near Governors Club in Chapel Hill)
“A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.”
(photograph taken near Columbia/Franklin Streets in Chapel Hill)
"At night, when it was completely black, no one was around you and you can pretty much reach into the stars," Trenton reminisces."There were just moments when you were away from everything for so long with minimal communication with the outside world. And you'd catch these glimpses when we'd surface the boat." Last month, Trenton completed a six-year duty with the US Navy. He returned home to Charlotte from his station near Jacksonville, FL. Trenton was a periscope operator on a submarine. On a whim, he decided to accompany a friend to her job interview in Chapel Hill. His memory of his tour remains vivid.
"Everyday we'd see the sunlight though the periscope. We'd have to go to the periscope and do our sweeps to make sure no one was around. Then we'd come up and we'd go swimming, grill on the boat, smoke cigars, shoot guns," Trenton says, voice heartfelt. "It was pretty awesome actually. It's very hard to put into words."
I remark on the dedication he has to his friend, to drive from Charlotte to Chapel Hill after returning home from a long voyage.
"I've seen a good bit," he says with a sigh. "It makes impulsively traveling to Chapel Hill seem like a short journey. "
post script: Ari, the greyhound in the previous post, belongs to Trenton
(photograph taken on Columbia/Franklin streets near Ben & Jerry's in Chapel Hill)
Name: Ari. "Short for for Alcohol-Related Incident. She was our first baby and we said we would probably have our first baby as a result of an alcohol-related incident," quips owner Trenton. Seen: Near the corner of Columbia and Franklin Streets, across from Ben & Jerry's in Chapel Hill
Breed: Greyhound
Age: 5
Pet Peeve: "When others get a little frisky with her she doesn't like it... She's a prude," says Trenton.
Interesting fact: Greyhounds spend about 18 hours of the day sleeping.
(photograph taken near the corner of Columbia/Franklin Streets in Chapel Hill)
Local artist Michael Brown -- best known for his murals scattered throughout Chapel Hill/Carrboro -- partnered with elementary school students for his latest installation. The bold 3-D paint brush streaks red paint across the facade of the newly constructed Shortbread Lofts building on Rosemary Street. A former elementary school math teacher himself, Brown collaborated with fifth graders at Northside Elementary School to create the magnificent piece, crafted from sheet metal.
(photograph taken at 333 W. Rosemary Street in Chapel Hill)
Vintage mailboxes are still in operation at the Chapel Hill downtown branch of the United States Post Office. A look inside mailbox number 147 reveals an active manual postal system. Small P.O. boxes (as shown) rent for $31 for six months. The post office building, which also houses the courthouse and teen center, is located on 179 East Franklin Street.
(photographs taken at U.S. Post Office, downtown Chapel Hill branch on Franklin Street)