Cast Iron Collection

Last year I photographed my cast iron collection for a creative lifestyle magazine project with a friend of mine.  We discussed different ideas for the magazine and one of the ideas we came up with was to do a feature on collecting in every issue.  Because I already had quite a collection of cast iron insects we started with them.  It was so much fun to work with these metal creatures.  Many of them have moving parts and each one has it's own story.  I was also able to work in some of my favorite vintage fabrics.  I love the way the red petals in the photo above suggest pincers. 

Although the print magazine is on hiatus, the idea of creating a creative community has morphed into a new and exciting project called The Juice Cast.  Check it out here.  I just participated in a podcast with the Juice Cast where we interviewed Gina Weathersby, an amazing local photographer.  Listening to Gina talk about her passion for photography reminded me how much I enjoy it too.  She talked about the importance of doing work where she was her own client and free to do exactly what she wanted.  (And when she put that work out there the response was amazing - you can see it here.)  That is why I enjoyed this photo shoot so much... it was very much me.  So I encourage you all to get out there and do the thing you love, just for the joy of it.

"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do.

When there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong".  

-Ella Fitzgerald

(click on images to enlarge)