I traveled to Northern California, checked in to our motel room and no more than five minutes after getting settled in I saw this man getting out of his truck. Shirt off, cowboy hat, sweet beard, big belt buckle...having been busy this past month with paid work, I really haven\'t had the time to dedicate the personal work I love to create.
I grabbed my camera, took my shirt off to fit in, and headed in his direction. I saw his Marine sticker on his rig and thanked him for his service. From there our conversation branched in to all subjects of life. The Cowboy, who\'s name he wished to remain anonymous (but he did consider himself a cowboy and his nick name includes Cowboy), owns a horse ranch in Northern California as well as around 70 peacocks. He served in Vietnam and is currently taking the stock market for all it\'s worth. He has survived multiple heart attacks and open heart surgery. To top it off, he is a bounty hunter for some pretty serious clients and wanted people. 95% of all money made through that goes into his foundation (again that I can\'t name it, however it basically makes the world a better place)
We spoke for an hour about all sorts of things. There was never a dull moment. It was a extremely insightful and beautiful conversation. Despite the 97 degree heat beating down on my back.
Towards the end of the conversation I mentioned my love for capturing interesting people in photographs, and said I would be honored if I could take his portrait. He agreed under the condition that I kept his name private. We walked 10 feet away from where we were standing and created this frame.
I only shot for about 2 minutes, I knew the image I wanted in the location we had. He finished our conversation about a story from his experience in Vietnam.
He was assigned to take care of a small village. While there he handed out supplies to the people there. When he gave a small girl a wrapped bar of soap, she took it, and began eating it. At this point in the story, the hardened cowboy started to cry. This image was only captured by my eyes and only stored in my brain.
Traveling speaking, learning, befriending and capturing complete strangers. Every one of these encounters is an experience I take something important from, more than just an image. The worlds an amazing place and I am humbled by some of the people that inhabit this place.
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May 15, 2012 at 08:05 PM
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