Salt of the Mountains

An Appalachian Documentary Archive

A visceral exploration of life, grit, and quiet endurance in the Appalachian mountains of Western North Carolina. Moving from the shared energy of community rodeos and old-time music festivals to the intimate corners of historic homesteads, these photographs trace the deep-seated spirit of a place and its people. Captured with both immediate documentary intimacy and the slow, deliberate texture of 8x10 large format paper negatives, the series stands as an honest, unvarnished testament to the modern faces and timeless traditions of the mountains.

A dramatic black and white landscape photograph of a prominent Shining Rock framed by silhouetted trees in Western North Carolina, with a single bird flying in the cloudy sky above the Appalachian valley.
Black and white documentary portrait of an elderly Appalachian woman sitting at a table, holding a ceramic mug and looking out a window, with a rustic wooden hutch filled with books and dishes in the background of her Western North Carolina home.
Black and white documentary portrait of an elderly man sitting with a wa
Black and white documentary photograph of a rustic kitchen counter in a Western North Carolina home, featuring an old portable radio, kitchen sink, open shelving with plates and mugs, and a small decorative mirror.
A close-up black and white documentary photograph of an old man's hands playing a worn banjo while sitting outdoors on a wooden bench, capturing the traditional music culture of the Western North Carolina mountains.
A wide black and white documentary photograph of a large two-story rustic log cabin with a central stone chimney, featuring an elderly couple standing together under the front porch awning in a wooded Western North Carolina setting.
Black and white documentary photograph of multiple bundles of harvested garlic bulbs hanging up to dry from wooden rafters above an old wooden kitchen chair inside a barn in Western North Carolina.
A dramatic black and white studio portrait of a man wearing a cowboy hat and a draped scarf, looking off-camera against a softly focused American flag background, capturing a face of the Appalachian community in Western North Carolina.
Black and white documentary portrait of an elderly man in a plaid shirt standing with both hands raised, eyes closed, against a large American flag background in Western North Carolina.
A powerful black and white portrait of a man wearing a cowboy hat and leather vest, holding a shotgun across his chest against an American flag backdrop, capturing a face of the mountain community in Appalachia.
High-contrast black and white documentary photograph of a glass door with a hanging "Closed Please Call Again" sign, next to a wall sign reading "Guns Are Welcome On Premises" inside a Western North Carolina building.
A striking black and white large-format studio portrait of a heavily tattooed mother standing with her two young daughters against a plain backdrop, capturing a modern generation of the mountain community in Western North Carolina.
A powerful black and white studio portrait of a bearded man wearing a cowboy hat, western striped shirt, and a large belt buckle, standing with fists clenched against a plain backdrop in Western North Carolina.
A striking black and white studio portrait of a woman wearing an oversized plaid shirt, with a young child's hand reaching up into the frame to touch her hand, set against a soft sky backdrop in Appalachia.
A high-angle, black and white landscape photograph of a narrow, winding dirt road carving through rolling, terraced hillsides and dormant orchard trees in Western North Carolina.
Black and white documentary landscape showing a wire fence with wooden posts in the foreground, looking up at sweeping, deeply terraced farm hillsides under a cloudy sky in a snowy Appalachia.
A full-length black and white portrait of an elderly man with a shovel and a woman in overalls standing outside a rustic glass greenhouse surrounded by lush foliage in Appalachia. Large format photography
Black and white documentary photograph of a woman playing the fiddle and a man playing an acoustic instrument while sitting together on a rustic log cabin porch in Western North Carolina.
Black and white documentary portrait of a mountain family—a mother and father holding a baby, with three older children perched above them on massive, exposed tree roots in a Western North Carolina forest.
A quiet, moody black and white photograph of a lone tire swing hanging from a large, bare tree branch on a foggy morning in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
A high-contrast 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of an elderly Appalachian woman with styled white hair, wearing a leather jacket and pearl necklace, smiling against an American flag background at the old Marshall Depot.
A black and white portrait capturing a group of old-time musicians inside the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina; featuring a man in a cowboy hat in the foreground and a woman playing the cello in the background.
A dramatic black and white documentary photograph showing dense, towering walls of invasive kudzu vines completely engulfing trees alongside a quiet mountain road in Western North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a young couple smiling and embracing tightly against a plain studio backdrop at the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph of a person standing next to a white dog on a grassy bank, looking out over the quiet waters of Lake Hiwassee near Murphy, North Carolina under a dramatic cloudy sky.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph showing the back of a person walking into a building doorway under a hand-painted sign that reads "POULTRY SHOW" with drawings of roosters in Western North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of an older Appalachian musician with long white hair, holding an electric bass guitar against a plain studio backdrop at the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a boy in a denim jacket holding a younger child upside down, who is wearing a "BOY" t-shirt and smiling, captured at the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina.
A moody, high-contrast black and white documentary photograph of a pile of old plastic milk jugs cast in shadow under a single small window with wire mesh inside a dark Appalachian barn or shed.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a smiling elderly Appalachian woman wearing a light-colored hat and a lace-accented white dress, photographed at the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of an older man with swept-back white hair wearing dark aviator sunglasses and a button-down shirt with a necklace, captured at the old Depot in Marshall, North Carolina.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph looking down at weathered animal jawbones, teeth, and small fragments scattered across dark soil in Western North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a young mountain mother standing with her two young children—holding a toddler in her arms while her young son stands in front wearing a black graphic t-shirt
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a bearded man wearing a cowboy hat, leather vest, and chaps, standing against a light backdrop while holding a coiled lasso rope at the Marshall rodeo in Western North Carolina.
A beautiful black and white documentary photograph of a horse standing in winter weather, its thick coat and back heavily dusted with frost and fresh snow against a soft, wooded mountain background in Appalachia.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph looking down a set of railroad tracks curving toward an industrial facility with a large smokestack releasing a plume of smoke against an overcast sky in Canton, North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a man in a plaid shirt holding an acoustic guitar, captured at the Bluff Mountain Music Festival in Hot Springs, North Carolina.
An 8x10 large format black and white paper negative portrait of a smiling, bearded man with glasses wearing overalls and a white shirt, holding an acoustic guitar at the Bluff Mountain Music Festival in Hot Springs, North Carolina.
A high-angle black and white documentary photograph showing intricate, overlapping circular tire burnout marks layered across the asphalt of a quiet, curving mountain road in Western North Carolina.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph of luthier Harry Norris in his workshop, surrounded by stringed instruments hanging on the wall, as he carefully tunes one of his handmade guitars with Assabet strings.
A crisp, detailed digital black and white portrait of a man with a long goatee beard and freckles, wearing a backward baseball cap and a "Kendall" t-shirt, captured at the Madison County rodeo in North Carolina.
A black and white portrait of a smiling young man with hands on his hips, wearing a wide-brimmed cowboy hat, a striped western button-down shirt, and a cross necklace at the Madison County rodeo.
A high-contrast black and white documentary photograph of a weathered, homemade wooden basketball hoop with a "POSTED NO HUNTING" sign nailed to the post, standing at the edge of a gravel road leading into the wooded hills of Appalachia.
A Panoramic black and white documentary photograph showing the abandoned Marshall Country Club in Madison County, North Carolina, featuring an old tennis court completely overtaken and carpeted by a thick layer of invasive kudzu vines.
A quiet and poetic black and white documentary photograph showing three empty, mismatched chairs lined up in deep snow, looking out toward a historic brick school building and mist-covered winter mountains in Madison County, North Carolina.

FEATURED DOCUMENTARY SERIES

The Last Days of Standing Rock

One Way Out, Lord