Over the Labor Day weekend I had the pleasure to photograph the Eaglesons on Parson’s Beach in Kennebunk, Maine.  We had great weather and I’m really happy with the results.  Shown here are David, Alice, sons Will and Andrew and their chocolate lab Leroy.

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing and all images from my website are available for purchase as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc.  To view a slideshow of the images, please click on the blue text that says, “View with PicLens.”

I’ve selected just a few favorites from our photo session.  If you would like to view all of them, click here to go to my online ordering system.  Click on “Family Portraits” and then click on “Eagleson Family”.

To stay updated on my latest portraits, Fan, Like or Follow me on Facebook Liam Crotty Photography or Twitter LiamCrottyPhoto.

I’ve been a big fan of Cuban jazz after being introduced to it through the music of the Buena Vista Social Club (my Mother used to listen to their album at least once a week) When I first came to Miami, I asked around for similar music and was steered toward Miami’s own, Conjunto Progreso—they are awesome.  Nominated for a Grammy in 2006; honored by the City of Miami 2009 and voted “Best Latin Band” by Miami New Times Best of 2010.

I’ve now seen them twice as they have a regular gig at the Van Dyke Cafe in South Beach and at Transit Lounge in Little Havana each month.  Because I can ride my bike to (and more importantly, from) the Van Dyke, that’s where I’ve seen them.  What a show.  And this last time I decided to bring my camera.  Most of the photos here are of Rolando Perez but the group’s leader and manager is  Johnny Aguiló. These are not traditional portraits–just me photographing at the show.  In the business world, this is referred to as “Event Photography.”

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing and all images from my website are available for purchase as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc.  To view a slideshow of the images, please click on the blue text that says, “View with PicLens.”

One of my other on-going projects is doing portraits of “Interesting, Accomplished & Prominent People” and some of these portraits find their way into my exhibits.  If you personally know an “Interesting, Accomplished or Prominent” person and would like to recommend them to be photographed by me and included on my website, please send me an email.

To stay updated on my latest portraits, Fan or Like my Facebook page: Liam Crotty Photography.

I first learned about Cuban-born Miami artist Pablo Cano through an article in the Miami New Times about his exhibit which just concluded at the Kelley Roy Gallery. The article intrigued me so I visited Pablo’s website and was amazed at his truly unique work.  Pablo creates marionettes, puppets, like you’ve never seen anywhere.  And he makes these wonderful artworks using scrap, discarded materials so every piece is completely unique and cannot be duplicated.  His work is some of the most original I’ve ever seen.  He tells a funny, and frightening, story about having a pistol stuck in his ribs one time while he was dumpster diving!

So I contacted Pablo and we set a time to do a portrait of him.  Before the portrait session, I visited with him at his home in Little Havana to get ideas on how to stage the portrait.  Pablo’s studio is at his house and he gave me a complete tour of every room which is like a living museum, marionettes everywhere.  I felt like I was taking a private museum tour but I was in Pablo’s house–spectacular!  My favorite piece is his hippopotamus where the head is created using an old guitar.

At that first meeting, Pablo mentioned that he had created a marionette of himself for a previous exhibit but a private Miami collector now owns the piece.  I was disappointed because I thought, “Wow, wouldn’t that make a great portrait—the artist controlling a marionette of himself!”  Pablo said he could probably borrow the marionette for the photo shoot and sure enough, 3 days later he had it.

Pablo and I had a good laugh doing this shoot because, we both had to admit, it became narcissistic–the artist, admiring his own work which is a marionette of himself!  But we had fun with it and I’m very pleased with the end result.  I hope you enjoy the photos.  To view a slideshow of the images, please click on the blue text that says, “View with PicLens.”

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing and all images from my website are available as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc.

Pablo is considered one of Florida’s premier contemporary fine artists and his work is in many impressive museums and private collections.  I encourage you to visit his site and stay updated on his work through Facebook or look for one of his regular performances featuring his marionettes at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in North Miami.

One of my on-going projects is doing portraits of “Interesting, Accomplished & Prominent People” and some of these portraits find their way into my exhibits.  If you personally know an “Interesting, Accomplished or Prominent” person and would like to recommend them to be photographed by me and included on my website, please send me an email.

To stay updated on my latest portraits, Fan or Like my Facebook page: Liam Crotty Photography.

Update: the South Florida Daily Blog profiled my portrait of Pablo!

On two occasions in the last couple of months I’ve had the opportunity to meet Kathryn Moore, the Executive Director of the South Florida Bike Coalition .  The first time was at the Wynwood by bike Graffiti Art Tour and the second time was at the Hands Across the Sands event on the beach.  At both occasions, I was impressed with Kathryn’s flowing enthusiasm for her cause: promoting bike advocacy in South Florida.  As a portrait photographer I come into contact with many people in both public and prominent positions but I rarely meet someone with such zeal, energy and optimism.   So struck by this that I asked Kathryn if she would pose for a portrait and she agreed.  Only later did I learn that Kathryn is the Association of Pedestrian & Bicycle Professionals Young Professional of the Year, a Miami Today “Best of Miami” Award winner and the internationally renowned founding coordinator of the Southeast USA’s only ciclovia, Bike Miami Days.

To view a slideshow of the images, click on the blue text that says “View with PicLens”

One of my on going projects is doing portraits of “Interesting, Accomplished & Prominent People” and some of these portraits find their way into one of my exhibits.

Photographing Kathryn was a joy and she was a great sport because we had to do a number of “takes” to get the shot done right.  Panning shots, like this one, can be tricky because the photographer has to move the camera at the exact same speed as the subject and I asked Kathryn to bike as fast as possible.  Kathryn and I scouted locations for the background because I wanted something colorful and she wanted something urban: where she lives and works.  The graffiti art wall we used is located in Miami’s Wynwood District.

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing and all images from my website are available as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc.

To stay updated on my latest portraits, Fan or Like my Facebook page: Liam Crotty Photography.

If you personally know an “Interesting, Accomplished or Prominent” person and would like to recommend them to be photographed by me and included on my website, please send me an email.

****VERY COOL UPDATE TO THIS POST**** My photo was just printed in MOMENTUM – The magazine for self-propelled people with an article on biking in Miami, check it out by clicking on the magazine cover here and going to page 42 and 43.

Update!  My portrait of Kathryn was selected as the Photo of the Day by the Miami New Times! And the South Florida Daily Blog profiled the photo as well.

Some friends have been encouraging me to post some older portraits that are not yet on my website.  A couple of years ago I was invited by Golf Pro Ken Raynor to photograph the George H.W. Bush Cape Arundel Celebrity Golf Classic at Cape Arundel Golf Course in Kennebunkport, Maine.  The Classic benefits Gary’s House of Mercy Hospital.  The celebrities golfing at the tournament were former NHL defenseman Eric Weinrich and 5 time Olympic Gold Medalist Bonnie Blair. I talked with both Bonnie and Eric and they both agreed to let me do a portrait of them to use for a future photography exhibit.  Eric is now Assistant Coach of the Portland Pirates AHL team and shown here is Ken Raynor giving a tour to Bonnie Blair.

To view a slideshow of the images, click on the blue text that says: “View with PicLens”

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing.  All images from my website are available as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc.

To stay updated on my latest portraits, Fan or Like my Facebook page: Liam Crotty Photography.

This is the saddest post I’ve ever made to my blog.  A friend, Phil Sturges, from Kennebunk, ME recently passed away after a battle with cancer.  I only knew Phil for a short time but one of the special characteristics about Phil was that he would treat new acquaintances like old friends–I instantly felt welcome to his world.  Phil was always a gentlemen and went through life with such class.  Even during his illness, he showed such courage by maintaining a daily online diary through CaringBridge to keep family and friends updated.  Shown here are a few images I took during a perfect day sailing on John Getchell’s the Bon Marche last Labor Day.  Although I’m sad that we’ve all had to lose Phil, I will always remember this day and what a wonderful example Phil set for us all.  As you can see by the photos, Phil was truly in his element.  That smile you see, he had the entire day–he was happy for hours.  Also shown are: the Gingerbread Man a.k.a John Getchell–one of Phil’s closest friends; Jeffrey Martin-Zdunczyk an attorney from Kennebunk and Lisa Hagerman from Cambridge.  And if you look closely to the reflection in Phil’s glasses in the black & white image, you can also see Wendy Martin-Zdunczyk.

To view a slideshow of the images, click on the blue text that says: “View with PicLens”

Please note, these are low resolution images for quick uploading and viewing.  All images from my website are available as high resolution downloads, prints or enlargements, etc. by clicking here.

 I’m always on the look out for interesting people — you know when you meet them, they just have a charisma about them.  And I always know it when I’m in the presence of someone who has “It”.  Today I met Charlie Rose and he definitely has “It”.  As you can tell from the photo, he has a beaming smile and was wearing flourescent orange and green shirt and headband, army green shorts, and army green Croc sandals.  Charlie definitely has a presence.

Charlie is Venezuelan but has lived in the States for years having first moved to NYC and now he’s been in Miami for 7 years.  He briefly told me his history and he’s done almost everything to make a living: cleaning kitchens, cleaning boats, selling bottled water on the beach and now making jewelry.  And his energy?  Wow.  Non stop.  He’s one of those people who is perpetually happy and upbeat–I mean he radiates optimism.  So, I asked him how he stays so happy all the time.  He says, “Look man.  I got problems too.  You think I don’t have problems?  I have bills, I have to pay but I come out here, and the sun is shining.  I mean, look at my office.  And I love making jewelry and I get to make people happy.  I’m an entertainer and I get to entertain all day long.  And the money from the jewelry allows me to do other things. I’m a musician and I have to pay for studio time.  I sell jewelry, I bring it right to the studio man to pay him.  Because that is where my real passion is.” He plays flute, percussion and many different types of music from classical to merengue.

This attitude is keeping him healthy because he’s 50 years old but he appears to be in his late 30′s.  He went on to tell me about his jewelry partner Fatima Jackson and I watch Charlie do his thing with the jewelry and people eat it up.  I mean all different types from young girls from Ohio to tough street kids from Miami—he’s selling to them all.  He’s an absolute natural salesman.  But it’s not fake–all genuine because he really loves what he does, he made it, he sells it.  If you’re interested in Charlie, check out his Facebook page.

This is part of an on-going project I do when I see interesting people I like to photograph them and then write up the experience.  It’s a perfect complement to my regular portraiture work.

 Something was telling me to take a break from working on the computer, grab my camera and take a spin on my beach cruiser bike around South Beach.  WOW!  Something was right.  Just about 7 blocks from my apartment I see a street blocked off (on 13th just off Washington Ave) with a film crew so I ride down there and who’s standing right in front of me talking to one of the security guards?……Gabrielle Anwar who plays Fiona Glenanne on Burn Notice.  I can see why in  1993, People magazine named her one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world.

Here’s the best part: I’m now on a first name basis with her  Seriously, I ask her if I can take a photo and she says sure.  So I take my camera out of my bag and she says, “Wow, that’s quite a camera.”  Yeah, I know what you all are thinking….but that’s what she said.  And I came back with the lamest response, “Oh, well…..I’m a portrait photographer and this is what I use on shoots.”  She seemed like she wanted to talk so I introduced myself, “By the way, I’m Liam.”  And she shook my hand and said, “I’m Gabrielle.”  I told her I’m a big fan and that I had seen every episode (I live in Miami Beach—it’s true.  I’ve seen every one!).

So, I got a couple of good shots and then an assistant gave me “that” look and said they had to be going.  Sure enough, the assistant came back and told the security guys, no more photos because they’re behind schedule.  So, I guess I got the last one of the day!

My favorite photo I took yesterday.  This is Laura Reynolds’ fist, Executive Director of Tropical Audubon Society, Inc.

Yesterday I attended a meaningful and moving event in South Beach: Hands Across the Sand which is a grassroots effort started in Florida by Dave Rauschkolb that has become an overnight, international success . Yesterday, in approximately 43 countries concerned citizens gathered on beaches all over the world to make a statement against off-shore drilling and the turnout was tremendous. You could feel the energy in everyone. They were so excited that the line of people holding hands reached over 10 blocks and they estimated over 1,000 in attendance just in South Beach.

Mike Gibaldi, Chairman of the Miami Chapter of Surfrider and lead organizer of Miami Beach’s Hands Across the Sand

Miami Beach resident Priscila Lopes doing her part

Laura Reynolds , Executive Director of Tropical Audubon Society, Inc.

Debbie Matthews and Jonathan Ullman volunteering today with the Miami Group of Sierra Club

And even babies attended this great event: Sara Cino and baby Layla.

Dario Gonzalez with Emerge Miami & Open Streets Project.

I ran into Kathryn Moore, Executive Director of the South Florida Bike Coalition who helped organize a group of bikers to attend the event.  Some of the riders shown here are the self-proclaimed “Miami Urban Rough Riders”, left-t0-right: Ulises Manzano, Juan C. Gallo, Carlos Rebenga and Barbara Manzano.

Joaquin Rodriguez and Jessica Bernabei volunteering for the Miami Group of the Sierra Club

One of the key groups organizing the event was the Surfrider Foundation.

Activisit Dara Schoenwald a volunteer with ECOMB (Environmental Coalition of Miami & the Beaches)

Dave Doebler, Miami Beach resident and with “Organizing for America”

And what event would be complete without candidates running for office?  There were a few yesterday including Glenn Burkett who is running for U.S. Senate in Florida.