PHOTOS & WORDS | TRACE TAYLOR @TRACETAYLOR8
INTRO | JONATHAN LABEZ @JMLABEZ
It’s been a while since our last ‘A Frame At A Time‘ feature. A majority of the pandemic and accompanying uncertainties made assigning skaters tricky. With people stuck at home, no one wanted to photograph their living rooms for 27 exposures. That put a crimp in getting a purview of someone’s life now shrunk dramatically. As places have opened up and people more willing to be around others, now seemed like a good time to resurrect it.
The premise is simple: Give a skater a disposable camera and have them shoot answers to questions over the course of a month. There’s no editing the perfect photo for the gram. All you can do is point, shoot, and move on. That lack of control offers candor in exchange. We get insight into what they cherish and what guides their eyes, who they surround themself with and what means the world to them. For 1 roll of film, we get to put ourselves in their boots for a mile.
Trace Taylor was a natural fit with his from the hip, life caught in the moment film vibe. I’ll let his photos and words do the talking. — Jonathan Labez, Photo Editor
Trace Taylor here. Human, location scout and hopefully a friend or soon to be. I was honored and pumped when Jonathan approached me about this A Frame At A Time project for Be-Mag. My work already sort of exists in this natural sense of environmental (street photography), so I felt like this was going to be something fun to work on. It was and this is how my experience went. Thanks again Jonathan and hope you all enjoy this tiny snapshot of my life.
A shop you go into regularly
THEM shop in Santa Ana. Love their shop and I’m working on making it down more frequently. So fun to go see Jon, Reyna, Greg or Parker. Buy some gear, chat, grab coffee and hit that fun little bowl that has magic powers. Again, gotta make this more routine!
First place you cruised to today?
Chevy Chase park – This is a fun park to hit a quick morning session with friends. Even if it is slippery! That’s my friend Josh [Mills] btw. He makes amazing music and is a wizard on the blades.
Where did you end your day?
At home in WeHo. I’ve been scouting for an amazing project, but the days have been long. This has been my frequent POV before clocking out.
Photograph a friends you’re with today
Mike McMullen and Jon Julio. Legends, friends and true savants of their craft.
A view of the city
Los Angeles. So weird this is where I live now, but oh well.
Something you cherish
Joelle. My wife and my life. My hero, my best friend and the one that keeps me moving forward. Everything is for her.
What made you happy today?
This dog. I like to take photographs from my truck because weird things happen when you’re covering more ground, moving at faster speeds. For a split second, this dog gave me this biggest smile. I just busted out laughing and then shot too late! Missed the photo, caught the moment. That’s how it goes sometimes.
Something you can’t leave the house without
Pecans. Not a lot of people know I grew up picking pecans on a farm in southern Alabama. My dad started us early. From ages 6 to 18 we worked. Hard work. I’m so grateful for everything he taught me out there. These pecan (which are of the Stuart variety) were produced last season on our farm. This is a special place for me and I love going home to visit when I can. Real power is in the orchard.
What makes you laugh?
Michael Decker’s tiny coin purse. That’s the cutest shit ever.
What do you do to unwind?
A hot shower.
Something you support
THEM. Enough said.
Show us something you came across.
A weird garden hose. These are the things/objects that constantly inspire me and keep my head on a swivel in this world.
What’s something others rarely see?
Leg damage from skating. I have to limit rocking shorts sometimes. Don’t worry, ’cause I now have shin guards (shout out to Chris Rossi!)
A view from the ground up
Vine covered NP sign. This stuff is my jam.
FOLLOW TAYLOR ON INSTAGRAM @TRACETAYLOR8
