Queue 'Portfolio-Hand of Man'

Bridge the Mississippi project: Over the last four years I have been photographing bridges on the Mississippi River as a personal project. My all-season focus has been on architecture, landscape and humanity. In my research for the project, I have learned a great deal about the river’s history, how in the mid 19th century it posed the greatest challenge to westward expansion. With the technological advent of steel at the time, crossing the Father of Waters, whether by train, vehicle, horse and buggy or foot, became far more feasible.

In Spring 2020, LSU Press will publish a book Bridging the Mississippi: Spans across the Father of Waters showcasing photographs from the project. The Hilliard University Art Museum in Lafayette, LA will also mount a traveling exhibit from the work.

Rush hour traffic at dusk on the Crescent City Connection in New Orleans, LA

The expanded and updated Huey P. Long, completed in 2013, features lanes four times as wide.

Dawn slowly envelopes the Hale Boggs Bridge just west of New Orleans, LA.

Vehicles illuminate the fog as they cross on the Sunshine Bridge near Donaldsonville, LA

Two men bring in a thirty pound catfish beneath the Sunshine Bridge near Donaldsonville, LA.

Tyquencia Azard poses for a photo on the Baton Rouge Boardwalk along the Mississippi River.

John James Audubon Bridge, Saint Francisville, LA

Two spans cross the Mississippi River at Natchez, LA

An old Fireworks sign frames the Jesse Brenda Bridge in rural Arkansas.

Girders are all that remain of the vehicle passageways on the Harahan Bridge in Memphis, TN

The grace arches of the Hernando De Soto Bridge come into view at day's end.

At the point of convergence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, two bridges cross connecting Missouri, Illinois and Kentucky.

The Eads Bridge in St. Louis, MO is the oldest bridge currently on the Mississippi. Built in 1874, it was the first to use steel on a large scale. The new metal alloy made the bridge possible in face of the structural demands the Father of Waters presented.

A close up of the Eads Bridge's substructure gives an idea of the complexity needed to span the Mississippi River in St. Louis, MO.

Claude Clemmons steers his two boat and barge configuration under the Mac Arthur Bridge in St. Louis, MO.

The Champ Clark Bridge crosses the Mississippi at Louisiana, MO. The bridge has since been torn down. Another modern span has replaced it.

Cassidy Peterson cheers for the Quad Cities River Bandits after Wander Franco hits a three-run homer for the home team. The Bandits play in Modern Woodmen Baseball Park, which is located adjacent to the Centennial Bridge in Davenport, IA.

Two trucks cross the Mississippi River Bridge in Burlington, IA.

Bridge Inspectors test the piers for concrete cracks on the Mississippi River Bridge in Burlington, IA.

A crane lifts a arch beam from the barge deck to be placed on the new bridge in Savanna, IL

The old bridge crossing the Mississippi River at Savanna, IL awaits demolition.

Pieces of the old bridge fall into the Mississippi River during a synchronized demolition in Savanna, IL

The Blackhawk Bridge is a key focus of the north-east Iowa town's identity.

Rotating platform of the Canadian Pacific Rail Bridge’s swing span during a snow storm, La Crosse, WI.

The Stone Arch and St. Anthony Falls Bridges in Minneapolis, MN portray a dramatic contrast in architectural styles.

St. Anthony Falls I-35 Bridge substructure in Minneapolis, MN

Megan O’Rourke and her groom Eddie Jreideni pose under the Hennepin Bridge during a wedding photo session.

Fireworks display during the Aquatennial celebration, an annual event to honor the city’s relationship with water. The Stone Arch Bridge is in the foreground.

Visitors to the park make their way across the boulders marking the headwaters for the Mississippi River.