Bloomington courthouse square
Morning light illuminates the old Monroe County Courthouse in downtown Bloomington just before 7 a.m. on Friday, June 9, 2017. (Eric Rudd and James Brosher/IU Communications)
Blog // Features
‘Obamacare’ protection of pre-existing conditions
Last month I spent some time one afternoon photographing Debbie and Phil Carter at their farm in rural Vigo County, Indiana not far from Terre Haute for The New York Times. The article told the story of some people who have benefited from the Affordable Care Act’s regulations in regards to pre-existing conditions. Thanks to health care changes made under the ACA – also known as “Obamacare” – Debbie received a liver transplant after being diagnosed with a bile duct disease. Because of rain, the Carters were working in their barn for most of the time I was with them. After I finished shooting, I chatted with them for close to an hour. I grew up in a rural farming community in Indiana, but I hadn’t photographed on a farm in several years. It was a nice change of pace to get out in the country away from Bloomington and Indianapolis for a shoot.
Stymied by a rainy day during planting season, Debbie Carter looks for a filter as her husband Phil, not pictured, performs maintenance on one of the couple’s farm tractors on Monday, May 1, 2017, in rural Vigo County, Ind. Debbie Carter received a liver transplant after being diagnosed with a bile duct disease thanks in part to changes made under the Affordable Care Act. “We would have lost the farm,” she said. (James Brosher for The New York Times)
Debbie and Phil Carter stand in a field of butterweed on Monday, May 1, 2017, on their farm in rural Vigo County, Ind. (James Brosher for The New York Times)
First snow of the season at Indiana University
The Swain Student Building stands over a snow-covered Indiana University Bloomington campus on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Indiana University Welcome Week
A student waves a Teter Quad flag during the Traditions and Spirit of IU on Friday, Aug. 19, 2016, at Memorial Stadium. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
A student wheels a load of belongings into Forest Quad during early move-in on Monday, Aug. 15, 2016. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Indiana University through a plastic lens
I recently dusted off my Holga and shot a few rolls of 120 for the first time in years. As much as I love Instagram, it was nice to shoot without the instant gratification. My goal is to shoot more with my Holga this summer to force myself to be less reliant on the screen on the back of my digital SLRs. I feel like I often get into a rut where I’m shooting, shooting, shooting and not really seeing or thinking. That’s the great thing about the Holga: it forces me back to basics.
(Click on a thumbnail below to view a larger image.)
Indiana University’s jukebox doctor
Back in December, I photographed Indiana University Professor David Bish servicing IU Bloomington’s last remaining jukebox for an Inside IU Bloomington feature story. The jukebox, a 1937 Rock-Ola, is loaded with 78-RPM vinyl records featuring Hoagy Carmichael compositions and sits in the room named after the famous composer in Memorial Hall. Dr. Bish collects and works on old jukeboxes. When he’s not servicing jukeboxes, he teaches and studies Geology and Mineralogy. He and a university colleague developed two instruments for NASA’s Curiosity Rover that landed on Mars in 2012.
Recent work for Indiana University
Evening light illuminates the Student Building tower as seen through the Sample Gates after a winter snowfall on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in the Old Crescent on the Indiana University Bloomington campus. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Members of the audience link arms to sing the Unity Anthem during the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Leadership Breakfast on Monday, Jan. 18, 2016, in the Indiana Memorial Union Alumni Hall. The breakfast celebrated the legacy of Dr. King on the 30th anniversary of The King Holiday. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Reception reflection
Members of the public make their way to a welcome reception before a panel discussion focusing on the proposed Iran nuclear deal on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015, inside the new School of Global and International Studies building. The panel was the first public event held inside the building. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Indiana University Welcome Week
Elisa Krebs, a First Year Experiences student staffer, shares a smile during Traditions and Spirit of IU on Friday, Aug. 21, 2015, at Memorial Stadium. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Jack Wolfe, a freshman from Minnesota, dances during the “Herman B House Party,” part of IU Bloomington’s Welcome Week programs, on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015, at the Herman B Wells Library. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Honey bees at Indiana University
Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity take photos for an IU Communications project looking at a group of Indiana University students, faculty and Bloomington community members who have dedicated themselves to fighting the ongoing demise of honey bees. To shoot this project, I had to get out of my comfort zone and confront a personal fear: I’m terrified of bees. This undoubtedly comes from being stung a few times as a small child. After a few shoots near hives, I tackled my fear and learned a lot about bees and the important work they do for nature in the process. For the past decade, “colony collapse disorder” has plagued bees and puzzled beekeepers who are unable to yet pinpoint a cause for this phenomenon of dying bee colonies. Here in Indiana last year, the total colony loss was 49 percent. For more on how the IU community is researching the plight of the honey bee, I recommend reading Keepers of the bees.
Ellie Symes, founder and president of the Beekeeping Club at IU, inspects a frame from one of the club’s honey bee hives on Wednesday, June 10, 2015, at the Hilltop Garden and Nature Center. (James Brosher/IU Communications)
Wyatt Wells, a senior studying Sport Marketing and Management, holds a frame from a Beekeeping Club at IU honey bee hive on Monday, July 6, 2015, at the Hilltop Garden and Nature Center. (James Brosher/IU Communications)