Category: Journal

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 Music is a safe kind of high  -Jimi Hendrix

 It is my favorite assignment, photographing musicians while  in rehearsal or in a recording studios. It is the moment that the musicians delve deeply into the musical notes on a sheet of paper and give birth to a sound that becomes airborne with an arsenal of emotions. Like a still image, music can act as a synthetic acid which enhances flashbacks to a moment in time that has been joyful or painful and never forgotten. Music is the needle and thread that sews our humanity together and in spite of being in metal boxes on Golden State 5 you can witness the joy of Angelenos as they boogie, jive and groove to their own soundtrack, it is a collective consciousness of moving forward to the beat of their own music.

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Fellow Photographer Joe McNally said it best, “No matter how much crap you gotta plow through to stay alive as a photographer, no matter how many bad assignments, bad days, bad clients, snotty subjects, obnoxious handlers, wigged-out art directors, technical disasters, failures of the mind, body, and will, all the shouldas, couldas, and wouldas that befuddle our brains and creep into our dreams, always remember to make room to shoot what you love. It’s the only way to keep your heart beating as a photographer.” Amen to that Joe !  I have no plans to retire, we photographers, writers and documentary filmmakers don’t retire, we reedit. I don’t think about my own mortality, it will happen as sure as it will for all of us, but I can only hope that it will interrupt me while photographing life – at least I hope it does with camera in hand.

Rome, Itlay, Roman HolidayRome, Itlay, Never, Never LandRome, Itlay, Did you turn off the light when we left ?Rome, Itlay souvenirsRome, Itlay, Vatican On GuardRome, Itlay We are Against War and Tourist menuRome, Itlay, Coliseum_Rome, Itlay Trevi Fountain KissRome, Itlay Vatican ToeRome, Itlay Spanish StepsRome, Itlay Service with an attitudeRome, Itlay, VaticanRome, Itlay VespaRome, Itlay Taking a smoke break from beggingRome, Itlay MaryRome, Itlay Green UmbrellaRome, Itlay Street ArtRome, Itlay ArchitectureRome, Itlay Italian GestureRome, Itlay Begging for changeRome, Itlay Italian whistlerRome Itlay Nuns in rainRome, Itlay A Gaggle of PriestsRome Itlay Vatican ExitPompeii , Itlay Mt. VesuviusRome Itlay Rome's FinestNapoli, Itlay Out the WindowNapoli, Itlay YummmNapoli, Itlay Woman and her dogNapoli, Itlay What's that over there ?husbandNapoli, Itlay Street Art ModonnaNapoli, Itlay MaskNapoli, Itlay Margarita PizzaNapoli, Itlay Italian Family of fourNapoli, Itlay Street AngelNapoli, Itlay Compro OroNapoli, Itlay BicycleNapoli , Itlay CityScapte at nightNapoli , Itlay Chapel LightFlorence, Itlay, Street ArtistsIschia Island, Itlay _Florence, Itlay, EnvyRome, Itlay German Tourst at SunsetNapoli, Itlay Italian Wife Looking for her husbandFlorence, Itlay, Reading the old wayFlorence, Itlay, Reaching for the starsFlorence, Itlay, Sun shadeNapoli, Itlay Italian WatchdogFlorence, Itlay, NappingFlorence, Itlay, CompletoFlorence, Itlay, iPadNapoli, Itlay Out the WindowFlorence, Itlay Which key is it?Florence, Itlay, Love StreetFlorence, Itlay, David
Florence, Itlay Stinky shoesFlorence, Itlay, TextingFlorence, Itlay Light and marbelFlorence, Itlay Praying for a handout

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B&W WebLife in black and white, many people seem to live their lives as if this were a dress rehearsal. This is not a dress rehearsal. This is the real thing. The curtain is up and all the stops are out, you’re alive and the camera is rolling. Boarhills Church graveyard, near St Andrews, Scotland off the A917 road.

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 Dave-and-John-ScotlandMaybe, just maybe the deja vu that I experienced was stamped on my DNA from the lineage of my ancient past. In all my travels, I have never felt more at home then I did while in Scotland. The mystic heather-clad hills of green, the quality of air and light and the faces of Highlanders that looked all to familiar. Perhaps this lineage explains why I took up bagpipe lessons several years ago or when the song Amazing Grace is played on pipes my chest swells with emotions as I try to fight back the tears – which we men try so hard to hide.
On this trip, I learned that my family name (Banks) was first recorded in the 17th century on the Orkney Islands which lies off the northern tip of Scotland. It is where the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean meet and has the fearful reputation as a haven for witches and warlocks. Which may explain when I reached puberty I had a huge crush on Yvonne De Carlo as Lily in the TV show The Munster’s or  Carolyn Jones as Morticia in the Addams Family. Blonde witches just don’t do  it for me, so the attraction must be something in my recorded DNA.                                           Tuir 1
Witches WebFor a week, home was a 200-year-old Scottish Manor Tigh an Tuir in the village of Strathtay
which sits in the heart to Highland Perthshire. On the last evening of my stay in Scotland, I gave myself permission to wear the kilt now that I had Geno connection to Scotland. To the surprise of family and friends my new friend John and I made a grand entrance with a lone piper playing Scotland the Brave. In spite of feeling somewhat awkward in Dave's kneesa kilt bearing my knobby knees, our family and friends seem to enjoy the opportunity to see John and I in skirts. Now, traditionally the kilts is worn without undergarments since their use as part of Scottish military uniform, leading to the creation of such expressions as “going regimental” or “going commando.” During the First World War some Sergeant Majors reportedly had mirrors tied to the end of golf clubs to inspect up and under the kilt at parade inspection. So, a “True Scotsman” is a humorous term used in Scotland for a man wearing a kilt with out underwear but in my case on this very cool evening and with the possibility of serious shrinkage I worn my Calvin Klein. As for my friend John, John and Kyra #2 don’t ask, don’t tell, but I’m sure his wife Kyra will know what wee mysteries lies underneath John’s kilt. Till the morn, guild cheerio the now ! (Till we meet again , good bye!)

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Church and Field WebBreaking away from the Edinburgh International Book Festival I hitched a ride with newly made friends, John and Kyra. We drove north from Edinburgh through the countryside on narrow lanes near St. Andrews, Scotland. We took in the sights, talked of life, family and photography when Kyra pointed out a solitary stone church sitting on a hill. It was at that very moment that the dark clouds started to spit rain, but not to be deterred from a photographic moment we pulled over and ran from the car to the middle the field and began shooting the stone house of God. Not one word was exchanged as each of us were lost in our own thoughts to capture a moment in time. It’s interesting what goes on in my mind when presented with an opportunity to seize the moment as pressure builds from mother nature who is ready to unleash her blessing of baptism on the earth.The consequences of not getting the “money shot” has always

Solitary Church Webweighed heavily on me. I frantically ran looking for the point of view that would satisfy my hunger as I scan the field trying not to fall. I stopped, pointed, framed and hit the shutter release not knowing what the settings were on my camera then ran again across the golden field firing more shots. As droplets of water became larger and heavier I ran back to the car in the parking lot snapping two more frames before getting inside. It was not until last night in the comfort of sitting next to the warmth of a fireplace that I was finally able to view my efforts and the possibility that I just might be lucky to have captured the elusive money shot.

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A Graphic Novel

So, I’m gong to write a graphic novel, I’ve never written one before but the idea has been brewing in the back of my mind for years. I own several graphic novel’s, Sin City by Frank Miller, Cairo by G. Willow Wilson and illustrated by M.K. Perker and DMZ written and artwork by Brain Wood and Riccardo Burchielli. Being aSin_City_Hard_Goodbye child of the 60’s I collected comics books as most kids did and we would barter and trade the comics like baseball cards. At that time comic books weren’t without their critics, conservative and religious parents called them “the ten-cent plague”, it was so bad that some of my friends would leave their comics at my house in a separate box with their name written in crayon. My collection ranged from Amazing Adventures, SilverSurfer and even amazing_adventures_2_post_cards-r5c5b358ac51b45618e4fe7c9b4cf9ed8_vgbaq_8byvr_324Uncle Scrooge. The artwork of these comics kept me in engaged as I dealt with the reading disability of dyslexia and attention deficit disorder (ADD). While thumbing through colored pages of eye candy, my ADD would settle and eventually I would scan the panels of narration and the dialogue balloons of the characters and read. In many ways the comics became my visual aid to keep me reading – even if they  weren’t the leather-bound classics, I was reading. AA1_Workout

In 1966 the social fabric of American culture changed with civil rights, anti-war demonstrations and the Beatles. I left my beloved comics in a cardboard box on the floor of my closet as I grew into adolescents and started watching TV. My attention and imagination was capture by an NBC television show called Star Trek. In an interview with Gene Roddenberry, Gene_roddenberry_1976the creator of Star Trek, he is quoted as saying, “I have no belief that STAR TREK depicts the actual future, it depicts us, now, things we need to understand about that”. Real issues of Racism, Sexism, Militarism and Peace were disguised in his science fiction teleplay and broadcasted to the American public – which I can only now appreciate Gene’s boldness and forward thinking. As my hair grew to shoulder length wearing puka beards and flashing the peace sign from my Volkswagen bus, I joined the counter-culture and gave financial support in buying R Crumb’s comics at the local head-shop. My favorites are Zap Comix’s, Keep on Trucking’ imagesand Mr. Natural. Crumb’s comics were filled with wonderful countercultural values of gratuitous sex, drugs, and violence.

So, as I start this project I bring with me a more mature attitude, experiences and a growing sense of awareness of how our world is changing. As Gene would say and I’m paraphrasing here,  “not to depicting the actual future, but depicts us now and things we need to understand”.

Beirut L.A. Journal Entry, July 14, 2025,

 After 17 years in the Middle East covering the war in Israel and North Africa, I have come home to an America that I know longer recognize. Ever since the Citizens United ruling by the Supreme Court back in 2010, a shadow government by Multi-National Corporations now controls America and all media outlets. The First Amendment no longer protects journalists and I can be arrested for having a camera in public – all as a result of the Patriot Act. The take over was insidious as the public was distracted with non-news, pop culture and celebrity gossip. There are riots, refugees, vigilantes, a serious water shortages, genetic food that is making people sick and private armies protecting pockets of wealthy communities from the rest of society — none of which is being reported. I have come home to Beirut L. A.    – Vito De La Luca

vito-email_1The Lazarus Report is Vito’s public moniker and news service. Much like a graffiti artist, Vito uses any means to get his reporting out to the public. Needless to say, Vito’s life depends on his anonymity. As a result of leaking real news to the public by bloggers, journalists and photojournalists, Corporate America a.k.a. SG (Shadow Government) is out to censure Vito and others like him permanently. Empowered by the Patriot Act and the Clear and Present Danger doctrine, SG’s private security detail is the US Enforcement Bureau, a.k.a.  Black Fly. The street name comes from the use of drones, quadcopters, stealth helicopters and close circuit camera. Beyond Black Fly perks and pay rate, handsome bonuses are given to those who find dissidents and eliminate them and the truth.

Beirut L.A. Trailer  

 Beirut L.A coming in 2015. Stay Tune !