YMKE PHOTOGRAPHY

South Florida - Savannah based photographer

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I was in Wynwood, Miami last night for the art basel. Protests had been going on all week about the police voilence, and while I was there another one happened on the streets of Wynwood. The protest was peaceful and they got their word across. I was impressed with how they did it and how they got people involved. The police blocked the streets to help regulate traffic. The parents of Trayvon Martin were there to speak to everyone. Asking them to keep this protest peaceful and to keep going and spread the word. Overall they left a positive impact on everyone that was around.

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music midtown 2014

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So today I got to meet and hang out with Karen McCullah; the writer of "10 things I hate about you", "the Ugly Truth", "Legally Blonde", "She's the man", "Ella Enchanted" and some others. She's really funny to talk to. The man interviewing her is my speech professor. One thing I though that was cool was that she mentioned she wrote a screenplay for a movie about a surfer girl. So she thought she should learn to surf if she was going to do that. So now she surfs and she's going to Hawaii on a surf trip soon. How cool is that?! Only at SCAD do you get to experience these cool things!

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Yesterday may have been one of the coolest surf sessions yet. Again, just like the last two weekends we suddenly decided to head to Jacksonville halfway through the day. We get there and the waves are small, but they looked fun so the five of us grab our boards and head for the water. After about half hour surfing, we recognize the one and only Josh Kerr. The man with the "kerrzy" airs and turns (even on florida's tiny waves as you can see). So Chris and reacted as any other surf photographer would react; we dropped our boards, ran to get our cameras and headed back to the water. lucky enough he was still there and we shot away. These were some of my shots. 

After shooting for about another half hour we followed him to his movie premier "Kerrzy" at Aqua east surf shop. We met and talked to him a little bit, grabbed some food and were treated with his surf film. 

All in all, yesterday was a day I'll never forget!

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My friend allowed me to borrow his Nikonos and shoot film in the water. These are the results

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Tybee Island.

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A night on Tybee.

Unplanned nights are always the best. It started with dropping a friend off at the airport at 3 in the morning. Our plan was to go surfing the next day, but since we were up why not go right away, sit under the stars, watch the sunrise and surf all day? We headed to fancy parkers first to grab breakfast. (Fancy parkers is a gas station in Savannah, GA, thats like a tiny whole foods with wonderful snacks and worldly food.)

We arrived at Tybee at 4 a.m. sat under the stars, talked about random things until the sun rose. The morning was beautiful. After the sun was up we napped on the beach for a little bit, grabbed our boards and headed for the water.

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It's a lifestyle. // Jax beach

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Hey everyone! New surf blog post (finally)! So last Sunday, my dear friend and surf photographer, Christopher, sent me a text whether I wanted to go shoot some surf down in Jacksonville. And well, of course I had to say yes and go! So at around 2 in the afternoon we headed down. We got there at around 4, shot for 2 hours, surfed for half an hour, and these are the results! I usually never really do all that much to my images, but I really enjoyed the feel these photos gave. 

Enjoy! 

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Charleston provided us with a little bit of everything. The day started with Morgans alarm not going off, about 20 missed calls, and conning our way into her dorm building (which is the only building students cannot get into unless they live in there). Finally after she was up we were on the road in Maddie's Jeep Wrangler. 

We arrived to Charleston in awe. The city reminded me of a mix between Key west and Savannah. Surrounded by harbors and beautiful architecture we parked the car and set out on foot. We saw everything from the main shopping street, to the farmers market at the park, where we stopped every other step to pet and photograph the cute puppy's which are the must have accessory for Charleston. 

After being in the city we left for Folly, the waves were there, so of course as if a natural response we rent two boards and go for the water. 4 jellyfish stings and several waves later we crash on the beach. Several guys came up to ask about the waves. One thing let to another (this is not a bad meet up story I promise), and we were talked bad flemish (Dutch) to each other. It turned out that these guys were on a reunion trip with everyone they met while they were all expats in Brussels, Belgium. It was a strange but fun conversation. We then parted our ways and went for supper back in Charleston. 

If you ever go to Charleston or have already been, it is hard to miss the young men in the white uniforms roaming the streets. These young men are freshman at citadel, a very well known military school. The school is well known for the hazing conflicts that many freshman and their students deal with when they go there. As curious as we were before we decided to leave, we drove by the citadel to see it in person. The school looked like a mix between a castle and a prison. Theres several movies about this school and a book that are apparently a good read and teaches you a lot about the hazing conflicts that stay happen to this day. 

We got back home at 12, and slept like babies.

till next time!

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Portraits is not really my thing and yet I know I will have to learn a lot about portraiture during my time here. This was not a planned shoot. My close friend Morgan is running a fashion blog and wanted a shot for her #ootd. 

I am going to start planning shoots, especially since I'm not in a photo class yet, I need to inspire myself to keep shooting and doing what I love. 

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after my third day of school a little bird (magicseaweed) told me the waves were firing in tybee. So well I found my way there one way or the other. and was able to get very few shots. Because very smart me left my sd cards at home. I managed to borrow one from a friend and was able to get some shots. Not too happy with them. I dont know why but the water on my lens keeps distorting my pictures (yes even after using the spit and lick technique). So thats something I need to work on. It didn't take long until I grabbed my board and looked for some waves myself. Very very great day it was. I did however get stung by some jellies which, dramatically said, look like 3rd degree burns. I heard my skin sizzle when I grabbed it and threw it off. Which was not the best idea because now my hand stings too. 

Other than that, SCAD is treating me really well. The people are awesome and my classes are simply amazing. I do have a lot of work to get done. (100 different designs of lines) Don't ask its complicated. 

This weekend I'll be going to music midtown with my two closest friends here. 

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Exploring the everglades. Not my favourite place to shoot, but it has its own personal beauty.

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The last two days have been great for surf. I mean not the swell of SoCal great, but the kind of swell that if you're in south florida and the Bahamas blocks any possible swell- great. 

Waves ranged from knee to head high, slightly choppy except for the inlets and some secret spots. Either way, they were good enough to wake up at 5 for two mornings and be in the water by sunrise. 

Sadly my car broke and so I was not able to go north more for the better bigger waves, but after a good three months of flat waters, I can not complain. Now lets hope there will be some swell when I get to Savannah Georgia. Tybee, I will see you soon.

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Yesterday's shoot in Miami, Lincoln road of Payton. 

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Engagement shoot of Bre and Steven. 

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Had some fun experimenting today in the pool with white sheets and my close friend Kalene to model for me. 

Its not as easy as it looks, we ended up lots of blooper shots that are hysterical.