Recent Executive Portraits | Arkansas Portrait Photographer

This is a very sad photo to see.

In September, I photographed Pine Bluff Mayor Debe Hollingsworth for Arkansas Business in front a pile of rubble. Literally, it's a pile of rubble. Today it still stands. And it will likely be there for months to come.

According to the article, "The city of Pine Bluff debated for months about what to do with the rubble from the privately owned buildings that collapsed in downtown earlier this year. Pine Bluff Mayor Debe Hollingsworth said the owners of the buildings were willing to walk away from the properties instead of paying to remove the debris that had spilled into the street."

So the debris sits. And sits. And it's a very sad sight.

When I first moved to Arkansas in 1996, I moved to Pine Bluff. The daily newspaper, the Pine Bluff Commercial, was my first full-time photography job out of college. When it came to the ins and outs of the daily grind of a newspaper, I learned more in three months on the job than three years in college photojournalism. And I don't regret one single bit of it. I met many wonderful people, friends and reporters in that time. Many of which I still see and work with today.

But in the nearly 20 years that has passed since I first drove into Pine Bluff, things have changed. And not for the better. Over the years, Pine Bluff has seen a slow and steady decline in population and signs of urban decay is more common.

And it's very sad to see. Because when you look closely, you can see signs of the beauty in the architecture of what once was.

Recent Executive Portraits | Gretchen Hall | Arkansas Portrait Photographer

I recently photographed Gretchen Hall, the president and CEO of the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau for a story on the upcoming demolition and replacement of the Broadway Street Bridge.

Kent Walker Artisan Cheese | Little Rock Arkansas Commercial Photographer

My latest photo shoot with Arkansas Business was very cheesy.

Literally.

I met up with and photographed Kent Walker owner and lead cheesemaker Kent Walker Artisan Cheese. I honestly didn't know that cheesemaker was an actual title but it does exist.

Walker launched a campaign in February on Kickstarter, one of the best-known crowdfunding sites, to raise $10,000 to remodel the tasting room at his location at 323 S. Cross St. in downtown Little Rock (the old Diamond Bear Beer spot) Walker makes cheese at the facility, sells his products there and holds wine and cheese tastings. You can even take a tour and see how everything is made.

You may have noticed the word "Artisan" is tossed around way too liberally in the food world. Restaurants and food manufacturers ranging from you corner fast food joint to big box brands at your local grocery store now carries something that is artisan.

The word artisan is a cross between "artist" and "craftsman" and simply means a person or company that makes a high-quality or distinctive products in small quantities, usually by hand or using traditional methods. In the time I spent at Kent Walker Artisan Cheese, EVERYTHING is made by hand. You can sit in their tasting room and watch them for yourself. You can even see Kent in the cheese cave flipping rounds of chesse, one at a time and by hand.

You can also buy his cheeses at many local spots including: Terry's Finer Foods, Hillcrest Farmers Market, The Savory Pantry and Ozark Natural Foods.

During the photo shoot, I sampled (and savored) several of his cheeses including the Garlic Montasio and Habanero Cheddar. If you're a connoisseur of fine cheeses, I highly recommend a visit.