There's Something About a Tent

As a kid, I remember walking into the circus. Before the show even started, that enormous tent transformed an empty field into The Greatest Show on Earth. It wasn't just a cover; it created an entirely different world.

As we got older, the tents got a little more sophisticated. Cirque du Soleil introduced us to beautifully engineered structures with climate control and an even greater sense of anticipation. But the feeling was the same. You stepped inside, and reality stayed outside.

Over the years, some of my favorite tents have been the ones built for weddings.

I still remember my cousin's backyard wedding in the 1980s. A huge tent was constructed in my aunt and uncle's yard, and while I don't remember every detail of the reception, I vividly remember my Uncle Joe walking around saying to everyone, "This thing cost me an arm and a leg... ten thousand dollars!"

At the time, that number seemed unimaginable.

Years later, as I became a wedding photographer, I often thought about Uncle Joe. If someone invests that much into creating a beautiful space that's only going to exist for one evening, it deserves to be remembered. That became part of how I approached photographing weddings.

One of my earliest lessons came while working for my mentor, Monte Zucker. After the reception had begun, he quietly carried his Hasselblad outside, set it on a tripod, and simply... waited. For nearly twenty minutes.

He was waiting for those perfect few minutes of dusk when the sky still held color and the lights inside the tent began to glow. When I later saw the developed negative, I understood. He hadn't just photographed a tent, he had captured the atmosphere, the anticipation, and all the work that went into creating that magical space.

A few years later, while working for Andy Marcus Studios in New York, I photographed a wedding at The Plaza Hotel. The ballroom had been transformed into an indoor tent, complete with grass covering the floor. As a 25-year-old photographer, I remember thinking this temporary masterpiece probably cost more than my childhood home. (Sorry, Uncle Joe... this one definitely topped your $10,000 tent.)

That experience reinforced something I've never forgotten: these incredible environments often take days to build, are enjoyed for only six or eight hours, and then disappear forever.

Unless someone takes the time to photograph them.

So, if you're planning a tent wedding, choose a photographer who is passionate about every part of your celebration, not just the people, but the details, the atmosphere, and yes... even the tent.

Because long after it's been taken down, your photographs will be the only place where that magical little world still exists.

Tent Weddings

Timeless Black and White Portraits.

I love it when Fisher's friends come to visit from the East Coast.

Fisher and Liam met online during COVID while gaming together at just 14 years old.

Fisher and Logan have been friends since they were little, but during COVID, Logan's family moved east.

Over the years, as they've both traveled to visit Fisher, Liam and Logan have become friends too. It's been fun watching those friendships grow.

These portraits of Liam and Logan, taken in our new studio, are some of my favorites. I love the depth of the lighting, the soft gray tones, the incredible sharpness of their eyes, and the powerful connection they make with the viewer.

Friends may come and go, but the effort it takes to stay connected across the country creates a bond that's hard to break.

If you ever have the chance to gather friends, family, teammates, or even neighbors for a portrait session together, do it. These photographs become priceless gifts that only grow more meaningful with time.

Blind Follower

A few years back this image was created by me when I saw algae taking over a local lake. It was during his first term and the whole expression “drain the swamp” was HUGE.

I assembled my vision of one of his followers sitting on a little gold couch, wearing a Vote for Rudy pin, red white and blue nails and matching jumper, eating the largest peach i’ve ever seen. Blind folded. Following their leader through every swampy lie.

Little did I know this image strengthened this month as the swamp literally is the reflecting pool.

60th Anniversary

Today I had to look through my archives of negatives from my Dad for a client’s book. What plopped out at me was a bag of negatives labeled Wedding Negatives 6-19-66. I had remembered that today was my parents’ anniversary, but forgot the exact year. It hit me that today is their 60th!

I held up the negatives one by one to identify them and immediately revved up my scanner to scan them. I kept the full frame, to showcase the 4x5 and 120 size and edging. ~ So amazing ~

Here’s one I’ve never seen before…I believe it is the most favorite image I’ve ever laid eyes on. Happy Anniversay Ma and Dad…I hope you’re celebrating, sitting by the Sands Motel pool in heaven, enjoying buds and some clams from Surf and Sand next door.

AliZine Volume 1 Issue 1 - Hot off the Press!

Oprah's "O" ... John F Kennedy Jr's "George".....I wanted to publish a magazine, too. So. I. Did.

I created something physical, that does not disappear once you scroll through, something to set on your coffee table and collect. Introducing "AliZine"

(Seriously!)

The very first issue of AliZine is here....Inside, I’ve included pieces that truly matter to me:

• Exclusive interview with Aaron Sagers

• Never-before-seen prints from 1960s New England

• Personal behind-the-scenes moments from my creative life

• A special guest column from the band "No Current"

If you choose to support this project, it truly means the world. For this first week, the publisher is offering a 20% discount. This zine makes a cool gift for anyone who loves art or photography, and a beautiful start to a new collection of my work. It also makes a great stocking stuffer. Thank you for supporting small business, independent art, and this little dream of mine.

Get your copy here... (HOLIDAY2025 is 20/% off code through dec 11.)

https://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/3219351?__r=2077246

End of an era…bringing us back to our roots.

In 1944, today, my dad was born. 81 years ago. But, I only see him up to his 64th. Some days I wonder what an 81 year old dad would look like.

I actually reminisce of him most from the 1970’s… He was my Buddy Holly. Strawberry blonde hair, thick rimmed glasses, and the man I adored growing up. I recently found drawings of him that I made while I sat in his darkroom while he was printing and I was on light-switch duty. He was the best dad ever.

Today was a big day at our house…my sis and I cut down our beautiful maple in the yard. It’s about my age or a little older. It was dying and it was time to put it down.

It was sad to see it disappear through my Ring Camera as I watched from the West coast. It was the second tree to go… Last year its twin across the lawn also outgrew its stay after 50 some-odd years.

Before my mom passed, I did two amazing Chameleon Shoots. The further tree incorporated our great grandmother’s phone. The one we lost today incorporated my bare feet and about a zillion leaves.

I am so glad I captured these two trees in my art. I think of them as my tribute to the years they gave us as we grew up…including second and third base during 2017 baseball games between me, my son, and his incredibly awesome aunt.

Sometimes, taking the time to do a portrait is the best time spent. I will miss these two quiet forms of life that we took for granted for so many years, but they will always be remembered by my portraits and memories… Not only these two images below, but all of the ones taken with my dad and mom in the front yard with them. Happy bday and tree day, Daddio.

Client Post… thank you, Christine!

“In this ghostly season of change, I’m reminded how beautiful transformation can be.👻🥰

Grateful for moments like this in Virginia City — a place where history lingers in the streets and the light feels almost magical.

It’s been 12 years since Ali did a photo shoot with me, and she’s still capturing elements I don’t always see every day — the ones that make the ordinary feel extraordinary.

So thankful for her eye, her friendship, and the reminder that some connections — and some kinds of light — only get better with time. ❤️”

#GratefulHeart #GhostSeason #VirginiaCity #ChasingLight #ThankfulMoments #FriendshipThroughTheYears

Waitress on Channel 3

“Waitress on Channel 3” is a self-portrait born from memory and imagination. Posed like the classic diner waitress from American Graffiti, I stand in my father’s basement near the remnants of his darkroom, holding the little black-and-white TV he once kept there. My lower body fades into monochrome, echoing the era of grainy broadcasts and the way memory itself flickers between clarity and static. The patched wall behind me tells its own story of time, repair, and resilience, while the pose and vintage dress channel both personal history and pop culture iconography. It is a work about nostalgia, inheritance, and how the past transmits itself to us—sometimes in color, sometimes only in black and white.

Pages and Screens

A self-portrait exploring the weight of memory, connection, and the way eras collapse into one another. The phone book, the rotary dial, even the stump I sit upon—all remnants of what was once essential. Today, our gaze has shifted, but the posture remains the same.

This work is part nostalgia, part commentary—an invitation to consider what we carry forward, and what we leave behind.

#FineArtPhotography #ConceptualArt #SelfPortraiture #ArtForCollectors #FineArtForSale #ArtAdvisory #PhotoArtistry #FineArtPortrait #CollectibleArt #ModernNostalgia #SurrealPhotography #PhotographyCollectors #NewInCollection #ArtInvestment #AliCottonArt

Tethered Connections

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Tethered Connections

This self-portrait reflects the afternoons of my youth, when conversations were bound to a wall phone and every word carried the weight of distance, waiting, and time. For Gen X, connection wasn’t instant or mobile — it was tethered, deliberate, and often stolen in quiet hours after school. Today’s world may never know the intimacy of those cords, but for me, they remain a lifeline to memory, friendship, and the shape of growing up.

Junking Our Couch


Once a kingdom of cushions,

a keeper of naps,

you held every secret,

every joke, every collapse.


Children bounced kingdoms

into your springs,

lovers sank quiet

into your seams.


Now you sit exiled,

your glory threadbare,

watching the woods breathe

their green, heavy air.


Soon the junkyard will claim you,

with rust and with stacks,

yet you’ll rattle with laughter

on the flatbed’s cracked tracks.


Because memory lingers

where fabric has torn—

a couch never dies,

it just gets reborn.


Northeast Airlines Crash on Moose Mountain - Photos from my archives

When I was a teen, I must have asked my dad what one of his worst times at the police department was. He told me that he had to spend the night by himself up on the side of Moose Mountain. He guarded the wreckage of an airplane overnight until crews could come at sunrise.

He said something that still haunts me. He told me that there were bodies up there, and at one point, in the cold and dark, they moved. It was rigor mortis setting in. He specifically said that one deceased person sat up. I am not a forensic pathologist…so I do not know if his mind exaggerated, under the circumstance, as he was in his early 20s, new on the force, and alone on a mountain in the dark after a horrific event.

My dad was also a photographer. He had his medium format camera on him. I never thought I would see the negatives he took…but guess what I found today….

These negatives have been in a box I shipped back from NH after his death. I finally went through this box, and saw an envelope in his handwriting that said NE Air Crash. I immediately pulled out my scanner and scanned them. (beats doing my quarterly sales tax I was supposed to be working on today.)

No dead bodies, but it was emotional looking at the wreckage. Here are three poignant images… wow. Since Dad died many years ago, I cannot ask him more about this tragedy. I wondered how I could investigate the details of these photos. Believe it or not, this is what I found on chat GTP. Check it out below. I love going through my dad and grandfathers historic images. This set of negatives brings me chills as I time travel 57 years ago to this tragic event.

My dad was not mentioned in any of the coverage, but when I read “Darkness delayed rescue efforts significantly”…I know it was my dad who stayed with the plane until recovery could resume at daylight.  

If you are reading this and you have interest in sharing info or retrieving prints from me…please message me here. I guess I missed the 50th anniversary of this sad event a few years ago to share these images. But, here are some details that I found…

Northeast Airlines Flight 946, which crashed into Moose Mountain—a small, wooded mountain just northeast of Hanover, NH—on October 25, 1968    .

 Crash Details

Northeast Airlines Flight 946

• Date: October 25, 1968, around 6:17 p.m. EDT   

• Aircraft: Fairchild‑Hiller FH‑227C (tail number N380NE)   

• Route: Boston → Lebanon, NH (stopover) → Montpelier, VT

• Location: South Peak of Moose Mountain, Etna, Town of Hanover, Grafton County, NH, about 3.8 NM northeast of the Lebanon VOR at ~2,237 ft MSL—approximately 60 ft below the summit (~2,290 ft)   

Cause & Conditions

• The aircraft was descending too early during an instrument approach in dense fog and low clouds.

• Faulty VOR beacon signals and confusing instrument readings led to the crew starting descent prematurely.

• It resulted in the plane striking the treeline mid‑flight, shearing off the tail and rear fuselage. The remainder of the aircraft broke apart and ignited amid rocks and trees   .

🧑‍✈️ Casualties and Survivors

• Total aboard: 42 (39 passengers, 3 crew)

• Fatalities: 32

• Survivors: 10 (primarily seated in the rear of the aircraft)   

🏞️ Crash Site & Remains

• Located along a steep, wooded ridge roughly 45 minutes’ hike from the nearest road. Wreckage like twisted aluminum and aircraft parts remain visible near the summit of Moose Mountain’s South Peak   .

⚖️ Significance

• This remains the deadliest commercial aircraft accident in New Hampshire history   .

• The crash led to investigations and safety recommendations regarding VOR navigation systems and non‑standard instrument approaches in mountainous terrain   .

Here’s a more detailed look at the experiences of survivors and others affected by Northeast Airlines Flight 946, which crashed on Moose Mountain near Hanover, NH on October 25, 1968.

🧑‍✈️ Survivors’ Experiences

“A Gentle Impact”

Survivors seated near the rear described the impact as surprisingly smooth:

“The initial impact … felt gentle and seemed no more severe than a normal touchdown … not a crash but more of a settling,” said one unnamed passenger   .

Others echoed this description, calling it “not a crash, but more of a settling” or “a rough landing”   .

Calvin Osha’s Story

Calvin Osha, a Texas-based insurance executive aged 41 at the time, survived largely by sitting in the rear of the aircraft. The front section exploded in flames, while the tail remained somewhat intact:

“I retrieved my glasses, and then noticed a piece of fabric burning near my feet. … The front end was destroyed—but the rear remained more or less intact.”

Osha witnessed mud inside the cabin, parts of the plane scraping, and then the fire ahead of him  .

Ten survivors escaped—nine passengers and stewardess Betty Frail—all seated in the rear. They exited through the rear service door or openings in the broken fuselage. Tragically, while 17 initially escaped the fire, seven later succumbed to their injuries before rescue could arrive   .

🚑 Rescue & Conditions

• Terrain & weather: The crash site sat about )57 feet below the summit of Moose Mountain (~2,237 ft MSL), in dense fog, rain, freezing temperatures, and rugged terrain. Darkness delayed rescue efforts significantly   .

• Rescue efforts: Some survivors managed to walk down the mountain to get help. Others were evacuated by helicopter, with airlifting beginning at Dartmouth College Green and transport to Mary Hitchcock Hospital in Hanover    .

🧠 Family Reflections & Legacy

Jeff Rapsis — Pilot’s Son

Jeff Rapsis, the son of Captain John A. “Jack” Rapsis (the pilot who perished in the crash), became a journalist and later the inaugural director of the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire. He often revisited the crash site to honor the event and advocate for aviation safety   .

In October 2018, Jeff and his brothers hiked to the crash site and led a commemoration. He described a distinct ledge of red‑tinted, heat‑charred rock near the summit as “ground zero” for the impact zone. Many trees and debris from the disaster were gone, though discoloration in the bedrock remained visible to hikers   .

Commemorations

On the 50th anniversary, dozens joined Jeff and others—including survivors and rescue personnel—to mark the site. Local fire department members recounted creating a makeshift landing pad on Dartmouth Green and coping with physically exhausting terrain in freezing, rainy conditions.

We Didn't Start the Fire

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Burn It Down: A Reflection on Change, Rage, and a Hundred-Year-Old House

How often do you get to witness a century-old house on your childhood street go up in flames—intentionally set ablaze by a local church group, no less? The house was sacrificed, they said, to make way for a mega-church that few on the block actually want. The irony of that moment wasn’t lost on me. It felt like a scene out of a surreal, slow-burning film. Allegedly unwelcome, unquestionably real.

It was a cold winter day. I stood and watched, fascinated and furious. What I saw wasn’t just a house burning—it was a symbol of the time we’re living in. A time of erasure, of loud ambition that drowns out quiet history. Of power cloaked in righteousness.

This fire became fuel for something inside me. I began creating images that embodied the Angry Woman—a spirit channeling the grief, the rage, and maybe even a touch of Carrie White energy from Carrie. I paired them with Billy Joel's haunting song that echoed everything I was feeling in that chapter of my life. My own personal reckoning, captured through the lens.

Because this moment wasn’t born today. What we’re experiencing now—this unraveling, this blind momentum—started decades ago. We’re just seeing the flames reach the edges now.

And maybe that’s why a meme I saw recently hit so hard: God peering down from the clouds, the caption reading simply, “Next time, no humans.”

Some days, it’s hard not to understand that sentiment

11 years happens like THAT (Picture me snapping my fingers)....

Fisher and Logan became friends in 2014, and I loved taking them to adventures like the Long Beach Grand Prix, Zombie Fest, and our annual Santa visits. Logan moved away in 2020 but recently came back to visit, and it was an honor to capture a quick session with them. These two have grown into incredible young men—it feels like just yesterday I was introducing them to Dr. Demento and taking them to the OC Fair. Time flies… photography is the closest thing we have to time travel. 📸✨ #ProudMoments #TimeFlies #PhotographyMagic

Headshot fun!

It was really cool to photograph Tim Weisberg, last month, who is a radio host from Massachusetts. He had one of the first paranormal podcasts I listened to when podcasts started appearing on iphones around 2006.

Living in California, but growing up in New Hampshire, it was really cool to listen to a New Englander on his “Spooky SouthCoast” show. Here is one of the final images from our session last month.

“These are amazing! You make me look waaaay better than I really do haha. I'll be back for more”. - Tim Weisberg

Thank you, for hiring me to update your branding!

Art Attack Halloween Sessions are in full Swing!

I have truly been having a great time with my newest sessions. They can be called a “Pop Up” Session or a “Mini Session”…I call them my “Art Attack Sessions”. I coined this phrase after I had an anxiety attack one weekend due to me stressing about life and work and money, and forgetting about using my heart in a better way than worry and stress.

So, this month my Halloween Art Attack Sessions are seriously the BEST investment and the pricing will be a cup of tea for you! Call me, tell me your costume, and I will plan with you the perfect way to transform yourself into a piece of art.

The final product can be as simple as a web file, or as cool as a 15x30 LONG THIN Wrapped canvas print. We also can create a mock up Record Album for you to proudly display on an easel in the corner of your favorite room of your home.

When it comes to using YOU as part of an art piece, you will realize how unique you are. It will help you think out of the box, and you will use this method in your work, your family life, and even as a method to pull you out of anxiety or depression.

Contact me for pricing and plans, starting at $195. It can be you alone, with a significant other, or with your best friends. Let’s open your mind and make art happen. And if you do know know what to wear, we can design ideas together. You may want to base it upon one piece of clothing, or a certain location. You may want to add a wig or a prop…the ideas are endless.

The above image truly is one of my recent favorite ones. I met these besties and we did a shoot. I brought along a very cool wispy piece of fabric and the entire time we were giggling and laughing at the energy it took to wrap all three friends together. Finally I had to literally tie them together with a knot in front. They reminded me of the sisters in Hocus Pocus, and that underlying force was how we designed this awesome image. Oh…and did I tell you that they are are team of paranormal investigators…wow! https://www.instagram.com/soulsisterssupernatural

Contact me at alison@bleucotton.com for your So Cal shoot. I also travel the globe for sessions and work at paranormal conventions for coverages including these sessions. If you plan to vacation here in So Cal, I offer Art Attack Camps which include a 2 day experience which will BLOW YOUR MIND! Reach out today! Thanks! ali

Photography at Virginia City, NV with Soul Circle Paranormal

I really do not understand why I am obsessing about my upcoming event in Virginia City, NV…

Actually, I do.

It is because this event is really an amazing weekend happening this November. I photographed it a year ago, and am going to photograph it again in less than two months. I cannot wait! Tara, Ryan and Shane are the ultimate hosts, and they have some incredible speakers, and lots of haunted locations to explore. It is an intimate event…and TOTALLY for those who want to experience an adventure!!

Last year, the group of attendees were people who you would become friends with and connect for the rest of your life. I really hope you will join me on this incredible journey of the PARANORMAL!

I photographed amazing portrait sessions, covered the event, and created event yearbooks. This year I will add on a cool way to receive your photos on a private site during the week! I cannot wait!

If you ARE going, let me know and we can book you a special Capturing Souls shoot. Bring a costume for even more fun!!!

https://soulcircleparanormal.com/ is the link for the event. You do not want to miss Aaron Sagers, Heather Taddy, Charlie Kryszewski, Janice Oberding, Michelle LeBaron, and Shane Pittman. Also, the antique stores in VC are amazing. The dress I wore in the first image was from Janice Oberding’s booth, which I bought right before my shoot called “There are Ghosts”.

Here are three Chameleon shoots I did during this event…wow…every one has an incredible backstory!!! I was blessed to have planned some shoots for my own portfolio…Ya know, smuggling my wigs in!… and the craziest thing about one of them as it was later described in a session, that I was transcribing some gal named Beatrice, with curly dark hair and white gown. Check out this image!

I also love Roxanne… this hat I wore had sooooooo much history…the mothball smell and the feel was insane! Here they are below. Enjoy, and join me in November!!!

There are Ghosts

Beatrice

Roxanne - Virginia City NV