To say everyone really enjoyed themselves would be an understatement. Asheville has a pretty tight group of chefs and they turned out en masse to help celebrate the occasion. As for the food…. lets just say if you want  fresh, farm to table southern fair with a twist, then you will be well taken care of. This is comfort food at its finest!

I hope this little teaser will hold you over till your fortunate enough to have Mike set a plate for you. Enjoy.

Mike Moore of Blind Pig dropped the gauntlet to challenge seven chefs to step outside their proverbial box and create something unique. Something that would represent a culture or a place of their choosing…. and wouldn’t you know, these chefs were more than happy to oblige!

Mike and I took some time, going to each chef on location and interviewed them regarding their history, passion and plans for the dinner. It was a real treat stepping into the various restaurants and having them play along for the camera. (They were a wonderful bunch of folks to meet and film.)
If you have a chance, I highly recommend checking out these talented folks and their amazing culinary creations. You can find the links to the various establisments below.

Also, very important to note that this meal was held to raise awareness and funding for the Autism Society of North Carolina. A worthy cause indeed!!

Mike McCarty- The Lobster Trap- thelobstertrap.biz
Camp Boswell- The Junction- thejunctionasheville.com
Meherwan Irani- Chai Pani | MG Road- chaipani.net
Aaron Manter- The Owl- facebook.com/OwlRestaurant
Terri Roberts- The Southern- southernkitchenandbar.com
Adam Hayes- The Red Stag Grill- bohemianhotelasheville.com/dining/
Joe Clark- American Grocery- americangr.com

Many thanks to Cindy Kunst for the still photos- clicksphotography.net/blog/

All Cinematography-Motionography & Post Production Aaron Morrell, Grae Skye Studio.

So , you could say, this would be a monumental competition. Which, of course was an understatement, being that they received entries from 69 countries and I’m sure the seven judges had their hands full just trying to view them all. Without any expectation, I went ahead and gave it a shot.

Being that I already had one documentary in the works, the “Preserve” project with Blind Pig. As well as my obligations to this past summers wedding clients. This needed to be quick and fairly strait forward. So who could I choose as subject matter for the chosen theme? Being that I’m 30 min from Asheville and one of the best known movers and shakers in the field of musical synthesis is headquartered there. I couldn’t help thinking of Bob Moog! I could go on and on about how this all fell together on a crazy short schedule, but let me just say that if it weren’t for the help and generosity of Michelle Moog-Kousa & Mark Doty at the Bob Moog Foundation, August Worley, and the folks at Moog Music, It simply would not have happened! These folks bent over backwards to make this process happen and it was definitely a run-n-gun shoot, so I have nothing but appreciation for them letting me invade their space to get it filmed.

Even though it wasn’t choosen for the competition, I’m still hugely proud of the finished piece and feel thankful to have met the folks that shared their knowledge and passion about Bob and what he contributed to the world of music.

Enjoy the film.

If you’d like to help further the study and outreach of Bob Moog’s legacy please contact the Bob Moog Foundation.

If you love the gear and wanna see all the new toys go to Moog Music.

What an interesting story these two have. Both are in the military, in fact that’s where they met.

Kris, a self proclaimed “Peter Pan”- green tights and all, is a fun-loving party animal, noted for his Lady Gaga impressions, this dude has a real zest for life.

April on first impressions, seems slightly reserved, measured, perhaps a little shy..?? (I say that with a smile on my face.) I think it’s her stature, she carries herself with a certain elegance and grace. (Side point- she outranks Kris, which his groomsmen enjoyed commenting on). When I realized she was going to surprise Kris with a song, I knew this would be GOLD, and found that she is not at all reserved, or shy!! (I know I couldn’t sing in front of that group, even if I did have an amazing voice like April’s.)

These two love each other WHOLEHEARTEDLY!! They wear their passion for one another on their sleeves and its a beautiful thing to see! My face was aching from all the smiling I did that day.

(Hint- If you have more time to view this film, click the “HD” at the bottom right, click “play” then “pause” to allow some buffer. After the bar loads a bit, press “play” again. Enjoy some HD goodness!)

The beauty of the day was orchestrated by-
Emily McCollin with Occasions by Emily

Venue- Castle Ladyhawke

The incredible eats- Black Eyed Susan Catering

Spinning the tunes- Nathan White with Parkway DJ.

Clicking the photos was Aaron Hogsed- Aaron Imaging.

April’s hair and Makeup- Candace from Adorabella.

Ceremony music by Corrine Brouwer and the team from Allegro Music.

An amazing cake by Tiffany’s Baking Co.

Fun at the PhotoBooth provided by Rachel DeBarnardo with ShutterBooth.

And last but not least, thanks to Adam Raimond, my PA and assistant cam-operator for the day.

Music for film- “Sun in the Racoon’s eyes”- By Drew Barefoot (Licensed through With Ettiquette)

The weather, the music, family and friends to direct, the Bride and Groom’s stress level, everything has to be timed and orchestrated just right. (Of course, Emily and her team are masters at this). Fortunately for Grae Skye Studio, this was one of those rare days when everything seemed to come together in such a perfect way.

The Bella Luna Inn and Montreat College were the perfect back-drop for the Ceremony and Reception. The weather was warm, without being overly humid. Birdsong filled the air, and everything seemed to glow… including the bride and groom!

These two were High School sweethearts (took some investment on Christine’s part!)
In Chris’s own words- “At 15, any other girl would have given up on a boy who didn’t think that he wanted anything to do with her. She knew it was just a matter of time before she could wear me down enough to admit that I liked her, and I’m so glad she did.” Christine says she “won him over”, which I think is to say, she captured his heart.
Being around these two- I can see how their love was inevitable!

I Hope you enjoy this little romantic peek into their special day.

(Hint- If you have a little more time, hit the HD button)

The beauty of the day was orchestrated by-
Emily McCollin with Occasions by Emily
Beautiful B&B- Bella Luna Inn
Montreat College
The incredible eats- Black Eyed Susan Catering
Spinning the tunes- Nathan White with Parkway DJ.
Clicking the photos was Neil Ladner- Gulf Portraits.
And last but not least, thanks to Adam Raimond for helping wrangle cameras on the day of.

Music for film- “Fireflies- instrumental”- By Marie Hines (Licensed though The Music Bed)

Whether it be editorial or fashion, portraits or urban life, Micah’s been blessed with quite an eye when it comes to capturing the heart and soul of his subjects.

I’m pleased to have captured a small sampling of the festivities- Pisgah Brewing of course, had their signature Micro-Brews on tap. Suzy and her Gypsy Queen Cuisine food-truck provided the delicious nosh…..An extremely talented, traveling Didgeridoo player (Name???) started the evening and local rockers “Grammer-School” closed it down. It was a fun night!

Micah Mackenzie- www.micahmackenzie.foliohd.com

Pisgah Brewing- www.pisgahbrewing.com

Gypsy Queen Cuisine- http://gypsyqueencuisine.com/home.html

Grammer School- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Grammer-School/120245499612?sk=app_2405167945

Leigh Glass and I sat down over a cup of coffee at the Dripolater in Asheville to discuss capturing some live performance footage of her band “The Hazards”. Of course, being a big fan of all genres of music, I was definitely on-board! That morning I learned quite a bit about Leigh’s background. She grew up in my neck of the woods (her family is from Cold Mountain in Haywood County) She’s got an amazingly big heart and a troubadours mentality when it comes to wrapping her real-life experiences up in her music. While re-counting one particular event in her life and how she wrote that into one of her songs, she started to tear up and laughed at herself for all that emotion being so accessible. You can tell she FEELS it, and the audience at her shows…. they get the payoff!!

AND, by all means, lets not forget “The Hazards”. These guys are are a MEGA- talented group of musicians! Corey Bullman on guitar and vocals, Bryan White on bass and Patrick Wells on drums. When you hear these guys live you can tell they click!

So without any further ado, check out these vids filmed at The Lab in Asheville, NC.

Over the last week I’ve been in Cataloochee Valley with the family. The location is isolated, surrounded by 6000-foot peaks and was one of the largest and most prosperous settlements in what is now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

One of the huge attractions in recent years have been the reintroduction of Elk. Elk once roamed the southern Appalachian mountains prior to the 1700s. They were eliminated from the region by over-hunting and loss of habitat.

According to the National Park Service, one of their primary missions is to preserve native plants and animals on lands it manages. Reintroduction of elk into Great Smoky Mountains National Park seemed a natural fit and began in 2001 when 25 elk were brought from the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area along the Tennessee-Kentucky border. Since then, they have continued to thrive in the area.

As you’ll see, these animals are large and can be very dramatic against the beauty of the valley. During the fall breeding season, known as “rut”, the Bulls make their legendary bugling calls to challenge each other and attract cows. Large bulls use their antlers to intimidate and spar with other males. I spoke with the local Biologist, who has witnessed these guys kill each other by breaking their opponents backbone. I didn’t realize it was that serious and glad it didn’t come to that! Most encounters between Bulls happen after dark, are ritualistic and involve little physical contact. Which makes this battle at sunset even more spectacular.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t geared-up very well. Only having my 7d and the 85 1.8. Shooting handheld made it difficult especially with the adrenaline rush from watching this guys duke it out. (You’ll notice the “Camera Smooth” I had to apply)

Thankfully, I happened to be in the “Right place at the Right Time” and feel very privileged to capture one of Nature’s dramas.

(Hint- turn on HD if you want the highest quality image, be aware it takes longer to load.)

Enjoy.

Being that it was winter, the weather outside was a bit nippy, BUT indoors we were warmed by the love shown for Katie and Alex on their wedding day.
Hope everyone enjoys this brief re-visit, it certainly was a great day!!

Wishing you two, many happy years to come!
AM

Soundtrack- “Always Be”- Holley Maher

Ian strikes me as a kind of walking, talking time-machine. He approaches his music as if he’s right there, in those days gone by. If you happen, by-chance to wander too close to his rift in the space/time continuum you’ll probably get sucked in. When he’s ripping through one of his numbers it’s hard to look away. I think it’s because he strikes a chord in most of us. After all, everyone needs a healthy dose of nostalgia from time-to-time, and he’s one heck of an entertainer!! That said, turn’s out if you check out his studio work, he has quite a broad range of musical interests. Worth a listen!

One thing’s for sure, when you see him perform, you won’t soon forget it.