On July 25th I had the opportunity to spend some time with Morty (Morten) Gaskill, Ocracoke’s youngest commercial fisherman. He was 8 years old when he first got his commercial fishing license and he is now 17.
Morty was supposed to show me around Ocracoke island while I took shots of resting areas, traffic congestion, tourists on bikes, No Trespassing signs, and shots in that nature.
But it rained. It rained almost all day and there weren’t many people on bikes or in cars, so I asked if he could take me on his boat and show me how he fished. He was happy to be on his boat and away doing what he loved to do, plus he later told me that he was getting a head start on his next day of work. It was a win-win situation and neither one of us had to wait around for the rain to stop.
Below are a few portraits of Morty in his boat. I enjoyed his company greatly, and I hope you enjoy the photographs.
Tell me what you think!
Morty beside his Wall of Fame.
Sheepshead fish we found in an abandoned net.
The front and back of his fishing boat.
Crabs. He threw it back in the water because it wasn’t full enough.
This fish was some sort of pest. We threw him back in the water too.
Relaxing on the boat. Enjoying the quiet.
Taking in the last few minutes before it was time to go.
I’ve recently started working for Resourceful Communities Program of The Conservation Fund as their documentary photographer. They ask me to travel with them to different counties in NC and meet their partners to photograph some of the work being done through the grants they’ve provided. I have seen many poor communities find hope through some of these projects; it’s very heart warming and I’ve been enjoying this job more than I can express in words.
The images below are from our travels to Dunn, NC to visit our partner at The Episcopal Farmworker Ministry. We first visited Father Tony, who is the executive director and responsible for most of the help that goes to the farmers. We then visited the camps that the farmers were living in, we did not visit the farm itself. All of the farmers were Mexicans and lived in horrible conditions. They would leave for the farm at sunrise and come back to the camps at sunset. About 3/4 of the children living there were not listed, but spoke 3 languages: English, Spanish, and their indigenous language. The adults only spoke Spanish, and were the hardest workers I’ve ever seen.
The images do not show much of their living conditions, I shot in the sunset after the workers piled out of the bus that brought them back to the camps. They were hungry, tired, and in need of a shower but they were all smiles the whole time we were there. There was a lot of movement and not much light, but I shot what I could.
I hope you enjoy the images, and please don’t forget feedback.
Father Jesus Antonio Rojas AKA Father Tony.
Their kitchen. Only one stove was in working condition.
The only showers in the camp. Each camp held about 200+ farmers.
The refrigerators. Some groups would lock up until they got back at sunset.
A young farmer.
An adoring father. An adorable daughter. (This is my favorite image that came out of this visit.)
Father Tony and his wife, Lucia, would bring bags and boxes of donated clothes, shoes, and toys from camp to camp. I was surprised at how little the workers were taking. Each family would take only a few pieces of clothing and the children would grab a toy or 2 then help Father Tony and Lucia load up their van with what was left. There was nothing greedy about these communities.
Boy with toys.
The bathrooms. They were just holes in the ground with no water.
2011 started in Ghana for me this year. I was in the air New Year’s Eve, and landed in Accra New Year’s Day. I traveled with 5 other photography students, 9 IARC students, and an IARC professor from UNCG. We were to document the process of us building a school in Kyekyewere village in Kumasi for 2.5 weeks.
The trip was amazing beyond words, the experience was delightful, and I made many beautiful, smart, and caring friends.
A special thanks to Rescue Aid Foundation (RAF) for making this trip one of the best adventures of my life. Thank you Selasi, Edmund, and Zuki for all you’re doing for Africa.
Below are a few photos I took while on this trip, I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
A little boy getting his hair cut. He was not happy about it.
This is my final project for my Photojournalism class. I followed Sarah McDavid of downtown Greensboro, NC. She’s a small business owner and a practitioner of Paganism. She was very sweet to allow me to follow her in her busy life.
I used iMovie to tie to photos together and I recorded audio from my iPhone. I think it turned out pretty well. I Can’t wait to produce similar works!
