Ricky Davis 1/2/26 Ricky Davis 1/2/26

Chattanooga Lookouts and At&T Field - Minor League Stadium on Film

Chattanooga Lookouts and AT&T Field - Kodak Tri X Film Photography by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography

I grew up in Chattanooga going to Lookouts games at Historic Engel Stadium but in 2000, the Lookouts moved to AT&T Field. I don’t have as many “nostalgic” moments at AT&T Field, simply because I wasn’t a kid anymore going to games with my dad. However I did get to take my kids to games at AT&T Field over the years. Next year, the Lookouts will be moving to a new field here in Chattanooga, so I decided to stop by and take some photos from outside AT&T Field to capture the stadium as it is today.

One of the cool experiences my kids got to have at AT&T Field was being honored on school night where lots of local schools had their kids in a parade before the game. One of my favorite experiences though was my youngest daughter and I were at an early special game on a Wednesday. I unfortunately was holding my camera taking photos of the game (photographer, go figure) when I foul ball was lined towards us. It was headed for my youngest daughter but I reached out to shield her with my left hand. Unfortunately it bounced off my hand (but luckily it didn’t hit my kiddo). Someone else grabbed the ball and she was pretty disappointed. An usher came up to her and gave her a ball which made her day. It’s moments like that that make memories, especially for kids. Baseball is one of those sports that just offer those one of a kind moments.

One of the special things about baseball is the history, and how new chapters continue to be added. The Lookouts have legends, and more are made as the years go by. Some of the Lookouts legends from my childhood may have never made it big in the majors, but they are still legends to me. One of my favorites was Scott Pose. Then you had Brian Koelling, Calvin (Pokey) Reese, and Steve Gibralter. Pokey had the longest major league career of those guys.

At AT&T field though, there have been three different Major League Teams the Lookouts have represented. The Dodgers, the Twins, and then back to the Reds. In my time at the AT&T Field, I’ve gotten to see Corey Seager, Byron Buxton, Jose Berrios, and others wear the Lookouts uniform. I haven’t gotten to see them but a couple of times since they went back to the Reds due to schedule, but the Reds prospects have been stacked.

So for several years after Covid, I just couldn’t seem to work time in to go see a game. It was strange going back and seeing how things have changed with the digital age. When I used to go, I always got my tickets at the ticket booth, but now so much has gone cashless and digital. It’s weird seeing our national past time grow and change with the times. It’s easy to look at the changes and wish for the past. But there’s still so much beauty in baseball.

There’s just something about the sound of bat hitting the ball just right. The dust from a catchers mitt after a fastball strikes out the other teams cleanup hitter. The air even smells different when it’s spring and baseball season is upon us again. I have a lot of great memories from AT&T Field, and I can’t wait to make some new ones at the new stadium. I’d love to hear some of your favorite memories from the park if you got to watch a game there.

Here’s a few more photos that I got to take that day. All were shot on Kodak Tri X Film.

Ricky Davis 12/28/25 Ricky Davis 12/28/25

Coca-Cola and Santa - Scenes from the south.

Coca-Cola Santa Claus Billboard in Chattanooga, TN. Kodak Tri X Film Photography. Photo by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography.

Growing up in the 80’s I have a long of memories connected to Coca-Cola and Santa. I recently watched a documentary about how Coca-Cola’s marketing actually helped change and shape our view of Santa over the years. It’s really fascinating.

This Christmas season, I saw these billboards pop up around Chattanooga, Tennessee and I wanted to take a photograph of it because it’s just so timeless. You just can’t beat a classic St. Nick.

So shout out and thank you to Coca-Cola for all the Christmas memories!

Ricky Davis 12/22/25 Ricky Davis 12/22/25

Hope is Coming…Scenes from the South

Hope is Coming - Religious Sign series - Scenes from the South - St Elmo, Chattanooga, Tennessee. Photo by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography. Kodak Tri X Film Photography

One of my absolute favorite series that I started working on this year has been my religious sign series. It’s something that I should have started years ago. Just the response I’ve received from it so far this year and the amount of amazing conversations that I’ve gotten to have with people about it, it’s been astonishing.

Recently here in Chattanooga, there has been these “Jesus is Coming- Repent” signs popping up everywhere, and I mean everywhere. Many places I’ve seen 2 or 3 of them on the same poles. When I’ve seen them, I’d been out shopping with family or on the go and didn’t have my film camera at the ready. So this past Sunday I had a photoshoot that morning and I planned to go hunting some of these signs down afterwards.

Needless to say I was driving to my shoot and lo and behold I came across this beauty. I made a U-Turn and stopped my car in a driveway so I could hop out and take this photo. What I love about it is it could be taken a couple of ways. You could say “Obama is coming. Repent” as if saying that with the idea that Trump may try to run for a third term, Obama could be cleared to run for a third term. The other way, and the way I like to read this is “Hope is Coming-Repent.”

What is hope? It’s different for different people. For a lot of people in these uncertain times, hope is all we have. I just wanted to share this find with you guys. I hope you guys find it as thought provoking as I do.

Ricky

Ricky Davis 8/28/25 Ricky Davis 8/28/25

Kodak Tri X Test Roll Results... Still Life Work at the Studio

Send in the Clowns…. Kodak Tri X Film - Still Life Studio Photography by TRD Photography

During my last film session at my studio I had a little bit of a lighting issue. So today I wanted to do a test shoot to see if my suspicion of the issue was right. To test the roll, I decided to setup several different still life scenes. My brain gets pretty random when I do still life photography. So I put on Sierra Ferrell on my iphone (I just discovered her music and am loving it.) and then started going through some of my props putting some scenes together. The lighting turned out better than I expected.

I shot a roll of Kodak Tri X 120 film on my Mamiya 645 camera for this. On that roll you can expect to get somewhere between 13-15 shots per roll. When I do still life sets I generally take 1-3 shots per setup from varying angles/lighting movements. Out of 14 shots that came out, 12 of them were good solid usable shots. These were just my favorites of the setups. I’d love to hear what you guys think of these.

Baseball Still Life Photography - Kodak Tri X Film - TRD Photography

Da’ Bears - Football Still Life Photography - Kodak Tri X Film - TRD Photography

Dark Academia Skull Still Life Photography - Kodak Tri X Film - TRD Photography

Eat My Heart Out - Dark Art Still Life Photography - Kodak Tri X Film - TRD Photography

Ricky Davis 8/26/25 Ricky Davis 8/26/25

Old Car City USA Photographed on Film

Old Car City USA - Kodak Tri X Film - TRD Photography of Chattanooga, TN

Picture a place where you pull up to what appears to be a forgotten apocalyptic hellscape of vehicles left behind from a civilization that just vanished. After you go through the entry building and pay your $30 fee to explore and take photographs, you emerge into a land of rusted old cars and trucks. Everywhere you turn there are more cars and trucks, and then signs spreading “wisdom”. You start walking into the woods, and you find row after row after row of more antique cars and trucks, not to mention hidden surprises along the way like abandoned tricycles, old coca-cola coolers, gas pumps, etc. It’s a paradise for people that love history, love old cars, love nostalgia, or love to take unique photos.

I have visited Old Car City USA somewhere around four to five times now. It’s located down in White, GA, which is right around an hour south of Chattanooga and an hourish north of Atlanta. It’s the oldest junkyard in America and has over seven miles of trails for you to explore. To be completely honest it is very easy to get overwhelmed. On this trip I went specifically wanting to shoot film. I shot around six rolls of Kodak Tri X 120 film and these shots are just the beginning of what I captured on this trip.

Myself, I’m not really a huge car guy. I love the aesthetic of old cars and trucks, but I’ve never been one to know it’s this year or what motor it is. My mind just never really worked that way growing up. My dad was a huge car guy and loved going to the rod runs and seeing old card. I had tried talking him into going with me to Old Car City many times before he passed in 2020. I never could quite talk him into it. Each time since then that I’ve gone, it’s been a little heavy, but a little therapeutic as well. Walking through silent woods surrounded by these machines that my dad loved. It’s been something that has helped me to heal a little bit and come more to terms with things I think.

In closing, if you ever get the chance to go check it out, I highly recommend it, even if it’s just to go out and try to take it all in. Depending on the time of year, take plenty of water as well as bug spray. There were quite a few mosquitoes out this time, which I’ve never dealt with before. The owners had cans of bug spray you could use, but just plan ahead with that in mind. I did not and my legs are covered in mosquito bites. Ha!

Until next time…enjoy the rest of these photos.

Ricky

Ricky Davis 6/11/25 Ricky Davis 6/11/25

School, Portland, and Beyond....

Mural in Portland, Oregon - 2015 - TRD Photography - Shot on Kodak Tri X film

So it’s been way too damn long since I’ve blogged. I went back to school in 2023 and I graduated in May. It was a long two years but it was nice to prove to myself I could stick to it. But now I can get back to focusing on my photography work a lot more.

I am writing this from a motel room in Portland, OR. I haven’t gotten to visit this amazing city since 2018, and in 2018 I really just briefly got to pass through it. Not really getting out and shooting. So every day this week I’ve been getting out and shooting and exploring and it’s been absolutely amazing! I cannot wait to be able to share some of the photos that I’ve taken out here this time.

One of the reason’s I’m not sharing any yet in this post is because I’ve been shooting probably 90% of it on film. If you’ve followed my work in the past, I started learning to shoot with film back in 2015 and I fell super in love with it! I just absolutely love the depth and the feel that you get with film that you just don’t really get in digital work.

However in 2022, when I started shooting full-time again, I decided to focus on digital work. A lot more of my paid work came from my digital style over my film photography. Switching back and forth between the two styles can be quite exhausting because I approach both styles with a different approach.

Going forward though I’ve decided to really work on focusing more on my film photography. It’s what I’m really passionate about, along with my dark art and travel work. I keep coming to the conclusion that I’m not really interested in becoming a “big” photographer, or any of that kind of stuff. I want to put out work that means something to me and makes people feel something. That’s what I care about, even if it doesn’t make as much money or whatever. I want to put something out there that maybe people will look back on and think, wow, that’s got some feeling to it.

So anyway, I’m going to be working on making some changes on the website, and on my socials. I’m gonna try to be way more active. I am still going to shoot digital stuff, but mostly when I do it’ll be mixed in with my dark art and travel work. However I AM still willing to do digital shoots for those that request it. I just generally will not be posting those on my site or socials because I’m going to be promoting the work that I am wanting to build an audience for.

That’s a little bit about what I’ve been up to recently, where I’m at now, and kinda what I want to do in the future. Until next time….

Ricky

Ricky Davis 10/5/17 Ricky Davis 10/5/17

Native American Portrait Series - Michael Brenton Morrison - TRD Photography

Native American Portrait Series - Michael Brenton Morrison

Recently I had the honor of getting to go up to the Mt. Juliet Pow Wow, thanks to Cindy Yahola and Holly Johnson. We were able to setup a booth to do portraits of some of the dancers for the Native American Portrait Series that I've been working on. The series is based off breaking down some of the stereotypes and misconceptions about what a lot of people think of Native Americans in our society today. At my studio shoots for this series, I take photos of people in both their regalia and their everyday clothes. Many of this country's First Nations people walk around everyday and you might not even know. At the Pow Wow, it was said that it's like walking in two worlds for Indigenous People today. One world is our culture and tradition, and the second is modern society. It's learning to walk in both with balance that is key.

One of the dancers that I got to photograph and talk with is Michael Brenton Morrison. I first heard of Michael from my buddy, Wes Collins. Wes had many praises about Michael both as a Traditional Men's Dancer, but also in the respect and honor he has seen from him towards Cherokee culture.

Ricky - What nation do you belong?

Michael - My family belongs to the Eastern Band Cherokee nation

Ricky - Does your dancing hold personal meaning for you? Does it hold personal significance to you in dancing traditional?

Michael - Dancing to me means that I can get out there and dance for those who danced before me, those who cannot dance, and of course those who give me the right to dance. But most importantly I dance for the creator and that he may always blesses me with the strength of a warrior to carry on thousands of years of tradition.

Ricky - That is a beautiful answer. I've heard different answers but I've heard some older dancers really talk highly of your dancing and doing it for good reasons.

Michael - Really now? That's enlightening. I try to dance the old way and not let the modern contemporary ways get to me.

Ricky - Yes sir. It shows man! What has life been like growing up Native in this culture in America.

Michael - To be honest, growing up Native in this American culture hasn't been easy at times, especially due to racial bigotry and stereotypical questions. At times people would ask me do I live in a tipi or do I get free things from the government. My answer is always No.

Then there's always the "you aren't native. You're just a 6 foot Mexican." Which cracks me up

Ricky - How have you handled being faced with some of the racial issues you've had, especially with being younger and how would you try to explain to people who may be reading this that think race isn't an issue anymore?

Michael - I listen to the stories that my mother and father told me from when they were younger and the stories they tell me is truly saddening because when they were growing up it was a bad thing to be native. Now in my generation everybody wants to be native. The issues I've dealt with are nowhere near as bad as my parents.

Ricky - Very true. The stories from even the last 30 to 40 years ago are horrible. It blows my mind how humans can treat other humans in such ways. I had thought things had improved greatly until some of things that happened last year at Standing Rock. What were your views about what happened there?

Michael - Hmm that's an odd situation there to be honest. Some of the family was up there and it was blown put of proportion. That land was theirs that was part of the agreement yet lies and deceit over rules again. However, with that being said. I feel that media made it worse. I blew into something that should not have happened.

Ricky - In which way do you think that it got overblown? From the things that were happening to people or about the things the dam was saying the water protectors were doing or all of it?

Michael - Well people fall for greed and become a lover of things as in the Choctaw language a "Nanihullo" And when that happens life become in danger sometimes even destroyed. For what though? When we cross over we cannot carry those things. That is what i mean when i say things become overblown too fast.

Ricky - Awesome, I just wanted to make sure it was clear. You serve in our military correct? What branch of service?

Michael - US Army

Ricky - Thank you for your service man! There is a long relationship with Native men serving in the armed forces. What led you to enlist?

Michael - Well for starters from the time i was 6 years old I wanted in the United States Military. I knew that I was warrior, and that I wanted to earn the right to be called one. I have a long history of family being in the Military.

Ricky - What are your feelings with the protests during the Anthem?

Michael - Man, men and women have fought and died for our rights, man will say oh that's our 1st amendment but I don't care. Show respect for those who died for their right to be an idiot. It truly annoys me. People do it because they think its cool. Its not cool at all.

Ricky - I can definitely respect that man. What are some things you wish people knew about being Native. You mentioned that you get asked stereotypical questions a lot. What are some things you'd like folks to know about Natives in our culture today.

Michael - Haha. I'd tell people that we don't live in tipis, we don't scalp people. I'm not an alcoholic, I don't even drink at all. We also don't worship a buffalo either.

Ricky - It's crazy, so many just assume each tribe basically lived the same ways. If someone is wanting to legitimately learn more about Native culture, what ways would you suggest they learn? How can they be respectful and not come across how so many do?

Michael - Instead of assuming answers, just ask questions and we will answer them. Of course be respectful but also don't be afraid to ask.

Ricky - Very cool man. I want to thank you so much for taking the time to be a part of this project again. I appreciate it!

Michael - You're welcome!

A little note on the photos - The B&W work that I'm doing on this series is done with Kodak Tri X film. My goal was to do the series completely in film only, but at Mt Juliet I also did a number of digital shots as well, and I really want to add a little of that color in as well.

Chattanooga Lookouts and At&T Field - Minor League Stadium on Film

Coca-Cola and Santa - Scenes from the south.

Hope is Coming…Scenes from the South

Kodak Tri X Test Roll Results... Still Life Work at the Studio

Old Car City USA Photographed on Film

School, Portland, and Beyond....

Native American Portrait Series - Michael Brenton Morrison - TRD Photography

Native American Portrait Series - Michael Brenton Morrison

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