Over the last few weeks writer Harriet McLeod and I have been working on a cool real estate story for Reuters. We visited SC coastal plantations documenting life on the properties and the outlook of the market that sells them. Altogether I visited 4 plantations and had the opportunity to see a living history up close.

These are not properties that have been subdivided and turned into modern gated communities but ones that are close to the way they were when they were originally built.

One property was 7000 acres in size and the main house was built in the 1680s.

I walked into slave quarters once occupied by the ancestors of our first lady Michelle Obama and had the opportunity to talk and visit with the dedicated staff that keep these places going.

The MSNBC photoblog did a good job of using the images and here is a link to their presentation.

Click here to go to the MSNBC photoblog

Sunday I went on a rainy day visit to the Wat Carolina in Bolivia, N.C. It had been a while since my last visit but the the changes were many. If you haven’t been in a while it’s worth the trip to see the upgrades to the grounds and buildings. There is even a new resident hall for the monks under construction. The Abbott Chow Khun is still his kind self and always an inspiration to all who visit. Contact me if any of my new friends would like to travel with me on my next visit.

Click here to view more photos

It was a surprise for the kids and a hard one to keep during the ride downtown.

rlh

After leaving the newspaper, one of the things I missed most was shooting sports. There is something vital to photographers when you are able to become part of the action and work through the time lag between when you hit the shutter and when the shutter trips.

Tuesday night I photographed the CCU-LSU basketball game for the sports information department at CCU. I was able to help them get images for their website and to post them immediately after the game.

Best of all I got paid for doing something I love.

It was cool when I first saw my name tag on the press table noted as “Randall Hill Photography” instead of the normal “Photographer / The Sun News”. This more than anything gave me pride that I was on the road to Independence and I could make it on my own.

rlh

I just finished upgrading both my websites with a new feature that expands the images to the size monitor the sites are being viewed on. This is in anticipation that folks are moving to web viewing on the road via their phones or Ipads and at home via large screen TV that are web enabled.

Please feel free to check out the new sites and let me know what you think.

www.randallhillphoto.com is my editorial site filled with images and video from work I do for media and magazine outlets.

www.randallhillweddings.com is my wedding and portrait site.

rlh

Saturday I was honored to cover the Native American wedding service for Scott and Betty Lawrence of Myrtle Beach. Thirty-five years have passed for Scott and Betty since they were first childhood sweethearts in West Virginia in the mid-1970s. In a ceremony mixed with Cherokee and Christian beliefs, the two finally got a chance to come together after other relationships kept them apart.

Lead by Rev. Dr. Craig Talbot and Mother Earth Beat, (an all-female Native drum circle) Betty and Scott took their vows on a remote farm outside of Conway. I hope my photos tell the story of the day and give an indication of how great a ceremony it was.

Click here to see more photos and to view my gallery.

Also if you get a chance check out my new facebook page and give me a “like”

rlh

]]> http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?feed=rss2&p=578 http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=575 http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=575#comments Tue, 06 Sep 2011 01:57:40 +0000 rlh http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=575

For our first wedding anniversary, Chris and I traveled to New York City and I got the opportunity to do a little city street shooting. Check out my gallery of images from the trip.

New York City/Sept. 2011

rlh

]]> http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?feed=rss2&p=575 http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=572 http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=572#comments Mon, 27 Jun 2011 21:50:04 +0000 rlh http://www.randallhill.org/webblog/?p=572

Last Sunday I did a portrait session at the Myrtle Beach Train Depot for Betty Mathews and her kids visiting for the summer vacation. Her daughter Jamie had beautiful brown eyes and a warm spirit. We spent an hour taking various photos of Betty and the kids and the best part was I was asked to include their cool hats.

rlh

Today I finally went live with my weddings site www.randallhillweddings.com. Please check it out and keep me in mind for any friends or family that might need my services for the summer season.

Also for those that might need my services for editorial and music photography and video, that site is at

www.randallhillphoto.com

Randall

Sunday I visited my temple the Wat Carolina in Bolivia, N.C., for the last day of the 27th monk conference of the Dhammayut order of Buddhism in America. Just under 100 monks from all over the world attended the conference. It was the most monks I’ve encountered in one room including my trip to Thailand in 2004.

The energy level at the temple was high and one could see the pride on the face of our Abbot Chao Khun. I was excited to get a chance to visit with many former resident monks who have since moved to other temples after their stay in North Carolina.

Click here to see a gallery of my images from Sunday.

Randall