I shot an up and coming poetry slam in Lafayette on Wednesday. 12 poets performed for a decent sized crowd of very enthusiastic supporters. Hopefully the slam will become a fixture in Lafayette.

This link will take you to the audio slide show I produced for the paper. CLICKhttp://www.dennyculbert.com/publish/0529PoetrySlam/index








More to come... dc

  

The Angola Prison Rodeo comes around twice a year, once in the spring and every weekend in October. The prisoners put on a show that is a little different from your everyday rodeo for a packed house every weekend. The events are more man vs. beast rather than a test of skill. Coinciding with the rodeo is a prisoner created arts and crafts fair where the public can buy everything from paintings to hand made wooden rocking chairs.

The spring show was a muddy mess which made for some exciting photos. You can see a slide show of photos by CLICKING HERE.













CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE RODEO PHOTOS. RODEO SLIDESHOW


more to come... dc

  

For six or seven weeks I've been the primary photographer on 'Club Seen' a section of The Times of Acadiana, a free entertainment magazine that is published by my paper. The Seen was created with the idea that after the first week or two readers would send in their own photos from Lafayette night life to be published each week. Thus far no one has sent in their party pics. So each week I set out in the dark to follow the music and nightlife.

If there is anyone in Lafayette who actually reads this blog feel free to suggest new places for me to visit or good shows coming up. You can send me an email at dcphoto@dennyculbert.com or dculbert@theadvertiser.com

Here are a few photos from the Enharmonic Souls and Matthew Funches show at Artmosphere on Friday night.



Matthew Funches band members.


Enharmonic Souls






More to come... dc

  

Saturday I had the umm peasure? of hearing the Lafayette School superintendent give the exact same speech at three high school graduations. Thankfully the students of Carencro, Comeaux, and Lafayette High Schools made the experience worth it by showing some emotion on the first day of the rest of their lives.


'Look Ma I made it!' Carencro High School



Victory!  Comeaux High School



The final act of entering the real world. Lafayette High School


More to come. DC

  

I visited Pastor Washington and the folks at his church in the Lower Ninth Ward on Sunday. The Easter service was the first on a major Christian holiday since Hurricane Katrina almost four years ago. The service was incredibly soulful and uplifting. After the service everyone walked out of the church to find two of the cars parked outside had been broken into. Despite the harsh reminder of how mean the world is outside of the church everyone kept the Easter spirit. The congregation was still able to smile and be thankful for the family they had all around them.

Even though the end was a bit depressing I was honored to be there to document the life of the church good and bad.

CLICK HERE to view a slide show of photos from the service.



Church is looking good with a new flower garden out front.


Pastor Washington, 81, listens as the choir sings on Easter morning at his church in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward.


Alberta Washington, the pastor's wife, holds her choir robe outside of the church after the service on Easter morning.


More to come... dc

  

While sifting through my images from the past year to put together a new portfolio and update my website, I came across these portraits from Babel Con. Babel Con is a comic book and sci-fi convention held every year in Baton Rouge.












More to come... DC

  

The week before Mardi Gras a group from my church back in Stow, Ohio and a couple of other churches in the area came to New Orleans. And unlike everyone else who was piling into the car at the same time to make the journey south it wasn't to watch parades, catch beads or to enjoy beverages in the streets. They came to work.

They were brought down after hearing about the Westside Mission Center a program run by a saint of a man named Brother Vance. Brother Vance built the center from the ground up after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans three and half years ago. Through the mission thousands have come to help rebuild. There is much more to the story than just this bit I've explained, so if you want to know more click HERE and you can download an article written by a past volunteer.

Brother Vance (center with red suspenders) talks to the volunteers as they circle up for the morning prayer.

Myself and Bettina Hansen were fortunate enough to be able to take a few days and go work in the Ninth Ward with the folks from Ohio. Bettina was was selected for The Advocate photo internship in October and moved to Baton Rouge just as I was leaving for Lafayette. Since then we've been sort of inseparable, but that's a whole other story. We had a great time working with the other volunteers and working together to document the two days in pictures.

You can see some of our work by CLICKING HERE.

Thank you to everyone from Stow, Mantua, and Hiram churches for making Bettina and I feel so welcome. It was a great experience working with you all and I hope everyone can make it back next year.

Vibrant neighborhoods were replaced by empty lots and storm damaged houses after Hurricane Katrina. Three and a half years later not much has changed. It's hard not to feel like a poverty tourist when photographing and exploring the the Lower Ninth but it's also important to keep reminding others and myself what happened to the people who lived there.



More to come... DC

  

Here are a few photos from last night's game where UL beat Florida International by nearly 20 points at the Cajundome in Lafayette. I tried to work on getting shots that were not my typical basketball shots.

                      









more to come... DC

  

Jon Solomon plays bass with other members of New Orleans based band Gravity A at Artmosphere in Lafayette.

A couple weeks back I covered a band called Gravity A for my paper's entertainment publication called the Times of Acadiana. The crowd got pretty into the music so it made for a fun shoot.



more to come... DC

  

Charlie Collins, 47, takes a drag of his cigarette as he waits with other homeless men and women for the doors of the The Well to open Tuesday evening on Olivier St. in Lafayette. The Outreach Center, normally only open for day use, was made available as a shelter from freezing temperatures overnight.



The Well is a part of The Acadiana Outreach Center in downtown Lafayette. The Well has traditionally been used as a day shelter for homeless men and women. They could come use showers and restroom facilities as well as get a meal but beyond that there was no more help. No direction just providing the most basic needs. In the Spring The Well will close for good and reopen as a center to help treat substance abuse and mental illness. To read the rest of the story click this link THE DAILY ADVERTISER

I was assigned to go to The Well on a night when they would open as an overnight shelter because of freezing temperatures.

Homeless men and women line-up outside of The Well Tuesday evening on Olivier St. in Lafayette.


Eddie Groom, 45, holds the tent where he normally sleeps as he stands in line with other homeless men and women to check in at The Well.


Homeless men and women claim their sleeping bags inside The Well in Lafayette. The Outreach Center, normally only open for day use, was made available as a shelter from freezing temperatures overnight.