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2013 Year In Review: Polirazzi "Where Hollywood meets Washington."

Author Stephen Ross in his book Hollywood: Left and Right. "The true question is, do these celebvocates have the ability to in-act more change then the politicians that we voted to office?" For the last four years I have been covering the celebrity political scene here in Washington DC. Polirazzi is a project that I started about three years ago to show the connection that Hollywood has with Washington DC and the advocacy work that many celebrities are doing to change the world around us. Below are a few images from 2013 that will be considered for the final edit of the Polirazzi project.  

Freida Pinto speaks during the Girl Rising: A Rally for Girls and Women screening at The World Bank on April 18, 2013 in Washington, DC. Pinto collaborated with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and World Bank President Jim Yong Kim for the Call to Action – Girl Rising campaign. The documentary film Girl Rising made by Academy Award nominee Richard E. Robbins, showcases the power of education in transforming girls' lives around the globe.

Actor Wilmer Valderrama speaks during the I'm Ready for Immigration Reform campaign press conference at the House Triangle on April 15, 2013 in Washington, DC.

Members of the press wait to interview actor Kevin Spacey during the Netflix's 'House Of Cards' Washington DC Screening at Newseum on January 29, 2013 in Washington, DC.

Actor Sean Penn testifies during the Advocating for American Jacob Ostreicher's Freedom after Two Years in Bolivian Detention hearing at the Rayburn House Office Building on May 20, 2013 in Washington, DC.

Congressman Xavier Becerra(D-CA) and Wilmer Valderrama walk to the I'm Ready for Immigration Reform campaign press conference at the House Triangle on April 15, 2013 in Washington, DC. 

Singer Ne-Yo visits and speaks to students who are in foster care about his experiences with being in a foster care system at Duke Ellington School of the Arts on December 12, 2013 in Washington, DC.

A women takes a cellphone photo as actor Bradley Cooper speaks during the 'Silver Lining Playbook' mental health progress press conference at Center For American Progress on February 1, 2013 in Washington, DC. 

2013 Year in Review: Celebrity Portraits

 This past year I have had the opportunity to meet and photograph some of the most talented actors and musicians of our generation. With their schedules packed, I usually only have a few seconds and if I am lucky a few minutes to get my shot. Here are a few of my favorite celebrity portraits from this past year. 

Actress Nicole Ari Parker

Actor Chadwick Boseman

Rapper Ne-Yo

Singer Estelle

Actor John Corbett

Actor Wilmer Valderrama

Actress Daisy Fuentes

Cover shoot for Latino Leaders Magazine

This was the second time I shot for Latino Leaders Magazine and was honored to be asked to shoot their September cover. Its their Annual Board Edition where they bring in different leaders from the latino community for a panel discussion. The panelists were Luis Aguilar, Commissioner of U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Nina Vaca Director of Comerica and Director of Kohl's, Reatha Clark King Chairman of NACD/Former Board Member of ExxonMobil, and Peter Gleason Managing Director and CFO of NACD(L-R on the below cover).

Below is the cover, two tear sheets and few portraits that I shot of each of the panelists. 

Korean War Army Rangers for NBC News

Back in July, I drove to Harrisburg, PA to photograph for NBC News a group of Army veterans who served together during the Korean War as part of the 8th Ranger Company. The men were coming together to share laughs and tears in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Korean Armistice. I had an amazing time photographing and hanging out with these heros while they told their story. 

Here is a link to the story: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/26/19701979-60-years-after-armistice-one-harrowing-mission-still-binds-several-korean-veterans?lite

Dr. H in Haiti(*Warning this post contains graphic images)

 I have known Dr. John Herzenberg since I was ten years old, he performed my limb lengthening operations when I was a child. This past March I had the amazing opportunity to embed with Herzenberg and his team from Operation Rainbow as they went to Carrefour, Haiti to do a mission trip at the Haiti Adventist Hospital. They spent seven days using the same procedures that gave me my height to fix club feet, bowed legs and injuries from the 2010 earthquake on over a 100 Haitians.

In Profile: Eva Longoria "Democratic Powerhouse"

 Just standing at 5’2 feet tall, Eva Longoria is not tall by any standard. But when she enters a room...her presence and confidence is that of a giant. She is strong willed and passionate about her causes. I have documented her on almost every one of her dozen trips that she has made to the Nation’s Capital over the last four years speaking about fundraising for the National Museum of the American Latino Commission, raising awareness about child-labor abuses in agriculture, the death of Small Business Administration programs for Latino entrepreneurs, and, of course, immigration reform. Richard S. Dunham of the San Francisco Gate called her a "Democratic Powerhouse.”