My Friend. And Muse.

March 9th, 2022. Approximately 7:30ish PM. That was the first evening I crossed the threshold into the home of this guy I knew absolutely nothing about except two things: 1. He was an amazing photographer. 2. He thought I was too. If you ask him how we met, his response would be, “I basically stalked her on Instagram.” That’s true. And I’m really glad he did.

Now I ain’t, and I mean AIN’T generally inclined to accept an invitation to go to the home of a strange man I know nothing about except what I see on his Instagram feed. For whatever reason I was intrigued. And so I went. Three months and six days later, neither of us could fathom not being in each other’s lives.

Mike Sweetman. “Sweet Pea” as I very affectionately call him. He is now one of my dearest friends, and also a creative inspiration. I could sit here for hours detailing our almost weekly visits, and the wonderful, poignant, heart-warming, emotionally painful moments we’ve shared. I have never met anyone so willing to be so honest and vulnerable with me in such a short period of time. Unafraid to bare their soul. To let tears fall. To trust me with life secrets that I will never tell anyone. Not only is it not my story to tell, he has bestowed a trust in me that I would never dream of betraying. We are Fight Club. Omerta. He is my motherfucker who got next!

I switch out the photograph on my homepage every few months. As many photographs that have been displayed there, I have only featured one person. My mom. No other person has ever graced my homepage. Until now.

On Monday, June 13th, during another wonderful evening of Chats With Mike Sweetman, something magical happened. The Photog Gods showed up, and afterward, when I looked at my camera display and saw what I’d captured… No words. NONE. Zilch.

Mike Sweetman began as my friend. He remains my friend. Somewhere during the course of our still new friendship, he has become my muse. I’m still learning and growing in my photography. But that night, the images of him I captured pushed me to a whole ‘nother level. I eagerly await discovering just how many more levels we get to. One thing I do know… It will be TOTAL FUCKERY!

LaTrenda