Archive

This is part one of a two-part Balloonumentary. The first installment shows, in rapid motion, the creation of three alligators to be photographed in the Everglades. Stay tuned for part 3 to arrive in the near future!

One of the most natural sculptures I photographed for the book was the woodcutter.  Only God knows whether he happens to look like anyone in Noah’s family, but I like to think of him as Japheth.  Balloons work well for making a ripped balloon person, and I had spent enough time making large balloon people […]

Did you know a volcano can be invisible from 18.6 miles away?  The haze at that distance can make it disappear.  Even worse, the atmosphere around an active volcano can make it awfully popular with the clouds.  That is to say, I was excited about photographing balloon monkeys in Ecuador, but by the third day […]

Balloons are a really cool way to connect with people.  That’s one of the big reasons I’ve held on to the hobby for so long.  It feels awesome to help a child with wounded pride smile again or cheer up someone’s day with a touch of inflated randomness.  When it comes to truly making a […]

It was July 19, 2008.  Tomorrow we would leave for camp, but today was set aside for final preparations.  I was crossing every “t, dotting every “i,” and finishing all of those simple, final details that come up before a trip when the phone rang… less than 24 hours before a group of senior high […]

The seeds of The Inflated Story of Noah began germinating in my mind around 2002, but the first on-location, large-scale, balloon sculpture didn’t happen until the middle of 2007.  I hadn’t traveled extensively in the intervening years, and my ideas were still taking root.  In 2007, I traveled to Alaska with my parents.  I was […]

The Dragster lasts 20 seconds and travels at 120 MPH. When I made a balloon dog on it in 2007, it was the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world. I inflated the balloon while we shot straight up, tied it while we turned the corner, and made the dog while we hurled toward […]

I haven’t made theme parks an intentional staple in youth ministry, but they seem to roll around every year or so.  After a while, just riding the roller coasters began to feel a bit mundane, so I started making balloon animals while riding.  I’ve made balloon animals on everything from the Georgia Cyclone (Six Flags Over […]

When sharing with a crowd, I love to put myself in a giant balloon!  It’s fun and adds even more “wow” factor to the show.  This video is from the Truett Theological Seminary variety show and was taken the first time I publicly climbed inside a balloon.

After Years of Fun Inflation Tricks, it only seemed right to make a balloon while skydiving.  I only got as far as the dog’s front feet before the chute opened, but considering the air in the balloon kept compacting while I was inflating, I was pretty pleased. This video was made the day before my […]