An open letter

To my fellow veterans,

My name is Erik Meyer and I’m a photographer based out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. More importantly, I am a Veteran. The purpose of this message is to introduce you to and invite you to participate in an important project of mine which I hope will ring true in your heart and mind.

I have undertaken a photography project to capture the spirit of the American Veteran. I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I recently realized that the memories of the men and women I served with and the sacrifices each of us made have begun to slip my mind. Even my brothers and sisters in arms who made the ultimate sacrifice have slipped away to the recesses of my memory. I assume that if this has happened for me, a Veteran of war, then the general public must have a greater challenge in recognizing the true dedication and sacrifice that all Veterans have made.

With these realizations in mind, I undertook this endeavor with the main goal of creating a showcase of what the American Veteran brings to this world each day. Some of us are students, factory workers, businessmen, fathers, mothers and leaders. We are the people standing next to you in line at the grocery store and sometimes, we are the people on the overpass asking for your spare change.

I am asking for two hours of your time to take your portrait in an environment that you feel best describes who you are. The pictures will be gathered into a comprehensive gallery displayed on the 10th anniversary of the Iraq war. For your time, you will be a provided a print of the portrait in the size of your choosing, and with a bit of luck and community support, a bound book of all the portraits included in the show.

If you would like to see a sample of my work, please visit my website at www.erikwmeyer.com. At the site you can see the type of portraiture that is my specialty. The image above is a portrait of a fellow veteran, Austin Stukins, whose image was displayed in the Lyecum Gallery in San Diego, CA for the Art of Photography show.

If you are interested, please feel free to contact me using the contact page link. I hope to hear from you. I also request your help to pass this message along to our fellow brothers and sisters in arms so they, too, may become a part of this history. And of course, your comments and encouragement are always welcome.
Thank you for your time and interest.

Sincerely,

Erik W. Meyer