1000 WORDS: NOSTALGIA

There are certain sounds that are synonymous with hot weather and a summer in New York City. First on that list, at least in our neighborhoods are the dirt bikes. Once there is a peep of sunlight and warm weather, from avenue to avenue, block to block... all that you hear is dirt bike engines blaring.. "baaaaaaan, ban, ban,baaaaan". Packs/groups of guys of all ages riding together dipping in and out of traffic, going through red lights, hoping onto sidewalks.. going the opposite direction of traffic... its crazy.

The next sound(s) are the fireworks and fire crackers... Weeks before July 4th has even arrived, you begin to hear loud explosions randomly going off.. morning, mid-day, middle of the night, it doesn't matter. You could just be walking down the block and then BOOM!!! lol. You see people jump, babies start crying, car alarms going off, lol.. guys ducking down real quick but they trynna keep it cool because they thought it was a gun shot.

And Last but, never least.. the sound of ice cream truck. The music is pulling... And you always hear the ice cream truck before you see it (I wonder if the people driving the truck are tired of that song.) And when it bends the corner to turn down your block it seems/feels like everything has slowed down. You begin to hear kids in the background "oooh, mommy can I have ice cream" or the grandmother yell to the kids "here! (hands the kid some money)... ya'll get what ya'll want but bring me a double cone with sprinkles"... You begin to see the fathers reach deep into their pockets, trying to bypass the knot of cash they have to try to find those 2 straggly ass dollars they got back at the corner store to give to their daughters.

A line begins to form.. it's not really a line.. more like a group with it's own internal understanding of order. Those that order first are usually the young mothers in standing at the ice cream truck window, in her short shorts, air max 95's, matching lime green shirt, bending down trying to hear what her 3 and 5 year old's want from the truck. Then its the loud little bad ass kid that's at the back of the line, that just pulled up on his bike trying to skip everybody.. Minutes later, the crowd has dispersed, kids are off in their small groups, standing in circles or sitting on the bench, eating their Sponge Bob ice cream, the classic vanilla ice cream cone with sprinkles, or the all time hood favorite, strawberry shortcake. lol.

Model: @nani_oe

T-Shirt: Troubled Youth

I know you don't think I'm going to type 1000 words, right? Lol.. The 1000 Words article is in reference to that old saying "a picture is worth a thousand words". This article will explain the meaning, idea(s), or influences behind each photoshoot. I prefer to do things with purpose, significance.. Doing a random shoot, at a random location, holds no value.. Everything that I do.. will be done, with intent.

Since the development of Troubled Youth, it has been my idea to use our life experiences as the backdrop for the imagery in Troubled Youth photo shoots. Each shoot has an element or reference to our life(s), whether past or present, the association is relevant.