Andrew Niesen

"The only real independent and genuine gentlemen in the world go quietly up and down the Mississippi River, asking no homage of anyone, seeking no popularity, no notoriety, and not caring a damn whether school keeps or not."
— Mark Twain, 1856.

Before Mark and I went into business together with our spouses, Erin and Rachel, we were both photographers at The Commercial Appeal, the daily newspaper in Memphis, Tenn.

When we were working there in 1999, Alan Spearman and Lance Murphey, also photographers at the Commercial Appeal, were just starting to work on a film about a man who lived navigating the waters of the Mississippi River in an inflatable raft.

After and unbelievable number of hours shooting, editing, re-editing and polishing, the film is complete. "Nobody," is a touching true story about the unique people we often overlook in our busy lives. It's a true work of craftmanship, and it's amazing that this is their first film.

You can support these independent filmmakers by purchasing the DVD. A portion of each purchase will be donated to the First Presbyterian Chruch (Memphis) soup kitchen.

We're proud of you, Lance and Alan! Congratulations on nearing the end of the journey.

Why does Coke sell more than Pepsi?

Because brand loyalty overrides reality.

Knowing what brand you are buying influences your preferences by commandeering brain circuits involved with memory, decision making and self-image.

Scientists used brain scanning to prove that brand love is just as important as actual taste. When researchers monitored brain scans of people who were given a blind taste test of Coca-Cola and Pepsi, each soft drink lit up the brain's reward system, and the participants were evenly split as to which drink they preferred.

But when the same people were told what they were drinking, activity in a different area of the brain linked to brand loyalty overrode their original preferences! Three out of four said that they preferred Coke.

What pushes your buy button?

To read more, CLICK HERE

Check out the Flash Flavor website, which was created by our good friend, Matt Adcock. Andrew just contributed an article about how he made the above signature LaCour image.

*Click Here to read the article!

There's nothing like rolling into town for an impromptu birthday bash! This week, we stopped in Delaware on our way up to Philly and NYC. We spent the evening with friends, including the beautiful and talented Laura Novak and her fiance, John. Laura is a savvy entrepreneur who owns and operates a thriving storefront studio in the heart of Wilmington. She is teaching a seminar at this year's DWF Convention, so be sure to check it out! Laura is one of the most creative marketing minds in the photography community.

LiveBooks has just launched a new website for the Richard Avedon Foundation, which features, of course, the amazing work of Richard Avedon. For anyone who is not familiar with this legendary photographer and his powerful photographs, go look now! And for those of you who are familiar with his work, go spend an hour being inspired all over again.

*Click Here to view the site.