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Craig Randall - Tennessee Photographer

@missingpillarcreative

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Digital/film photographer offering portraits, editorial, band, and artist photos. DM for inquiries.
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"Homecoming" This year was actually my first time ever going to a homecoming parade---not just as a photographer either. Let me tell you, I had been missing out! The music, the smiling faces, the pure energy and excitement from the students and the crowd, the laughter....it was all so much fun and made for great photos. These were shot, for the most part, on film. The more photos I take, the more in love with the look, feel, and sounds of film I become. There's a tactility to taking a photo, and I feel more of a connection to my camera and the photo this way. Digital is convenient, yeah, but the photos seem too easy to blast through which equates to less connection to the moment and the photo of it. It's the same reason people feel less of a connection with music or movies since streaming have come along, they cheapen the experience. It's taking me longer to post, but that's okay. I think the quality in my work is improving. Today is another fall festival and I will be shooting on new cameras with new lenses. I'm very excited to see what comes from my new adventure. I love you all. Stay blessed. - Craig ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII, Olympus Mju I, Sony A7RII with Pentax-M SMC 28mm f/2.8 ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Artifct Reala 400D, Kodak UltraMax 400 All film developed and scanned by the amazing folks at @artifctnash #streetphotography #shotonfilm #canon #kodak #fujifilm by @missingpillarcreative
Got a surprise tour of Mario Guitars ( @marioguitars )in Murfreesboro, Tennessee the other day. As someone who works primarily in a factory, this was similar, but different. They don't manufacture guitars, but rather create works of art. The process from sourcing the of the wood, to the custom paint colors (some of which took inspiration from old 1950s Cadillacs), to the final polishing and assembly is done with attention to detail and care and you can truly feel it in the air. There were cute shop dogs there offering assistance with every process making the whole place feel a little more like stepping into someone's home rather than a workplace. Kat and I were both greeted with smiles from the workers, and wagging tails and kisses from the puppies acting as company overseers/mascots/head of human relations. I am so grateful for the small adventures that seem to never end as a photographer, as well as the people we meet along the way. Thank you so much to Mario Guitars for sharing your dedication and love for the craft with us! ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Holga 400 All film developed and scanned by @artifctnash #canon #filmphotography #holga #streetphotography by @missingpillarcreative
@katschnapps killed it with her recent photoshoot. She put in the work, organizing everything from outfit, props, location, and finding the model. I just shot b-roll for this one. The photos were whimsical, dreamy, dark, and romantic, drawing inspiration from the tale of Ophelia in Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'. In the play, Ophelia drowns in a stream surrounded by flowers after the murder of her father by Prince Hamlet (sorry for the spoilers, fam) and the whole scene is romanticized despite being the tragic death of a character. Kat captured the beauty in the scene and reimagined the character's fate into something far less tragic and much more glamorous. @sophiaaagraceeee did an incredible job putting herself into the role and really bringing this character to life. It was really cool to see firsthand---an idea born in someone else's mind and brought to life before my eyes. Ethereal. If you'd like to see the photos that my amazing,lovely partner got on this shoot,go check out her page at @katschnapps ! ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Sony A7RII with Pentax-M 28mm f/2.8 #sonyalpha #pentax by @missingpillarcreative
"A Spot to Stop" A chair is just an abstract object---right? We think of chairs as just places to sit and rest. We don't think of them beyond that. But what about those that made them? The plant they came from and the hands that built it? What if chairs were actually a place where we can momentarily pause, slow down, and take in the world around us. What if they offered us an insight into the world that we moved through so fast that we don't even notice it. Chairs offer us more than rest, they give us a spot to stop. In that spot, a chance to take in the breeze, the birdsong, the people whose loves temporarily intersect with ours, the sounds of the world around you, the smell of fresh cut grass or rain... There are so many things a simple chair offers, you just have to change your mindset. Next time you see a chair while you're out, take some time to just sit without diving into your phone to pacify your attention, and take in the world existing around you. That chair you're sitting in offers you a lot more than just a rest for your feet. ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII, Sony A7RII with Samyang 50mm f/1.4 II, Olympus Mju I f/3.5 ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Cinestill 800T, Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400, Kentmere Pan 400 All film developed and scanned by the great folks at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
"Photos I love for some reason." Not sure why I love these so much. Maybe it's the colors? Maybe it's the light? Maybe it's the composition? I'm not sure, but here are some random photos from my adventures with @katschnapps ... - Photos 1, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12 were shot on the Canon Canonet QL17 GIII on Cinestill 800T film - Photos 2, 3, 5, and 8 were shot on the Canon Canonet QL17 GIII on Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400 film - Photo 6 was shot on the Canon Sure Shot WP-1 on Fujifilm Color 400 film - Photo 7 was shot on the Canon Canonet QL17 GIII on Kodak Gold 200 film All film developed and scanned by my amazing film fam at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
"Creating Meaning" Not to share too much of my beliefs, but I went through a somewhat of a reckoning when I reevaluated my beliefs after leaving the Christian belief system. I dove deep into philosophy, buying the books, listening to the podcasts (like Philosophize This! @philosophizethispodcast ), and enveloping myself in all things philosophy. Learning about nihilism, made famous by German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, was pretty revolutionary and honestly took a long time to process. Nihilism basically states that there is no "grand meaning" to life. We aren't special, we aren't chosen, we aren't the smartest, and that we're essentially just another organism. That really threw my previously held beliefs into a headspin. If there's no meaning to life, then what's the point of living? Seemed pretty bleak. This honestly pissed me off a little until asking if a grand meaning was completely necessary to life and the things in it (ie. - relationships, hobbies, employment, etc.). I mean, do we need an excuse to exist? I saw myself as a cup slowly being emptied of all precious contents. From then on, what held meaning was what I chose. If you're having trouble following, think of it like this: You have paper, paint, and a brush in front of you. To some, these things may hold zero interest in you. You're simply not a painter, but may find joy in other things. To others, those things spark creativity and you can lose yourself in them for hours, creating something that has meaning to them. We create our own meaning despite knowing it ultimately means nothing in the grand scheme of the Universe. Life is meaningless, yes, but only if you allow it to be. If nothing has meaning and yet we're still here, autonomous and free, then everything can have meaning if we so choose. ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Sure Shot WP-1 ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Fujifilm Color 400 All film developed and scanned by my amazing film fam at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
"The Film Adventurer" It's a gloomy night. Thunder, lightning, winds, gnashing of teeth, despair. But behold, our hero arises! *Trumpets sound* and the veil is lifted! Our hero, the Film Adventurer, has finally arrived! With his trusty camera and adventurous spirit, he loads up his 35mm film and unloads with tremendous inaccuracy in an attempt to rid the world of the dark and bring forth an age of artistic beauty! Cranking each frame forward to fire the shutter with a hefty "SLAP!!!" from his Nikon FE or a feeble "click" from his Canonet, each shot brings the world further into his vision. No longer can the darkness obscure what he sees through the viewfinder. No more, I say, will the majesty of our world be shrouded in bigotry and bad composition! Every shot brings his vision closer, and with the help of his new films procured both online and at @artifctnash (you should check em out), he's able to bring his visions to life. The Flic Film Aurora brings out the blues and greens with tremendous vibrancy. The Ektacolor Pro 400 brings the contrast for insane amounts of mood! And the CineStill 800T grabs the highlights by the throat and chokes them until they're red as the adventurer's own head at Tomato Fest! It's not enough though as our hero needs back up! He reaches for his newest weapon, the Canon Sure Shot WP-1 (Not to be confused with A-1, which is the actual waterproof camera, but slightly more depressing with its grey accents ๐Ÿคข). No depressing scene is safe from his lens! Everything has become beautiful! Everything is becoming art by his hand! With a flash, he lights the darkness! With Flic Film Aurora he turns all black and grey to accurately rendered, vibrant colors! Life is beautiful once again thanks to our hero. Life has been restored to beauty and art thanks to his eye. Our hero, clumsy and broke from buying too much film he may be, has restored balance once again. ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII, Canon Sure Shot WP-1, and my dad's old Nikon FE with a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Cinestill 800T, Kodak Gold 200, and Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400 All film developed and scanned by my amazing film fam at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
"Time Flies on Countryside Drives" Man, oh, man, I love some countryside drives in the summer! The sunshine, wind blowing through the trees and over the fields. I love the hum of cicadas, crickets, and frogs, the colors of the wildflowers and watching the colors change from yellows, to purples, to whites, to oranges, and pinks. I love, most of all, driving with the windows down and feeling the wind in my face, music blasting, arm out the window, my hand surfing the breeze. I read a book on gratefulness, and a book of delights by the author, Ross Gay, that helped me appreciate the beauty in everyday things---the mundane. Most people don't see a stop sign or old rusty fence as beautiful, but I do. It brings me a lot of joy seeing the contrast of deep red against the backdrop of summer grass, or the blue that hides in the shadows, opposite of the golden yellow light that forced them into being. Countryside drives are the expressway to them all. They expose, plain as day, the beauty all around me and bathe me with endorphins as thick as the air. Pulling over for photos is like taking a cross-section of that experience. Slicing a sample of time for later study. It takes that otherwise fleeting moment that would disappear from view at 55 mph and allows you to wade into it and absorb all the fine details, forcing your brain to slow and take in the sights and sounds. It's beautiful, really. I hope you can enjoy this the same way I do. My goal is to help us all see the beauty surrounding you no matter where that may be. ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII, Canon Sure Shot WP-1 ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Flic Film Aurora 400, Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400 All film developed and scanned by my amazing film fam at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
"Been a minute, yeah?" It sure has! I'm not gone, I promise! Been shooting film like crazy and saving my digital shots for paid client work. Shooting on film has been a lot of fun. It forces my brain to slow down and focus on the shot instead of just blasting away, filling my SD card with multiple frames. It also creates more connection to the moment. Film, as most of us know, is expensive and you don't wanna go wasting shots unnecessarily. Slowing down, making the conscious decision whether you're taking the shot or not because of the cost helps create intentionality. Shooting with intention reinforces style and character. I'm slowly seeing more of my style come out with every shot and I hope you enjoy. Take care and we'll see each other again soon! ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Canon Canonet QL17 GIII ๐ŸŽž๏ธ Kodak Gold 200 All film developed and scanned by my amazing film fam at @artifctnash by @missingpillarcreative
Did a photoshoot with the lovely clothing designer @the_only_carrot_ this weekend. I couldn't be happier with the way these photos turned out, and @goinnoutttastyle absolutely brought the vibes. It was so much fun taking these and everyone was so genuine and kind and easy to work with! Thanks to the lovely @katschnapps for offering her support during this shoot! ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Sony A7RII with Pentax-M 28mm f/2.8 and Samyang 50mm f/1.4 II #modelphotography #sonyalpha #pentax #samyang #fashionstyle by @missingpillarcreative
"The Theory of Good Light/Bad Light" It's a known fact that light can make or break a good photo. Golden hour, blue hour, sunrise, sunset --- good light matters as much, if not more, than any lens, filter, film, or camera. But what about the midday light? What about the light every photographer tells you will ruin a photo? Can it not be beautiful in its own way? I say yes. One of my favorite times to shoot is from noon until about 4:30 in Tennessee. Nothing conveys the summer heat like the light at that time. The light gives high contrast shadows and the highlights create dreamiest halations with the use of a ProMist filter. I think the harshness of midday light is definitely not suitable for everything though. Photos of people are not always the most flattering as the shadows fall across the face in strange ways, so in this case I agree about the harsh midday light. The light also makes it a little difficult for a bald ass unc like me to get out and not turn "grilled cheese crispy" in the sun. I'm pretty sure I have permanent tan lines thanks to my Birkenstock Arizona sandals. Going out at these times is, in itself, Mother Nature's very own escape room where you find yourself running from the shade of one thing to another. Regardless, I love shooting at this time of day. Altogether, photography, and the beauty found therein, is up to the artist and will be seen or interpreted differently. In other words, whatever floats your boat. ... ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Sony A7RII with Pentax-M 28mm f/2.8 and Pentax-M SMC 50mm f/1.8 #streetphotography #sonyalpha #pentax by @missingpillarcreative
"Journey through Composition" I've been going through a bit of soul-searching in regards to photography lately. Things have felt somewhat stale and I become dissatisfied with the current state of things. My introspective series 'Tennessee Tender' taught me a lot about what I enjoy shooting (old rusted out cars, abandoned places, and people) but my composition felt lacking. Granted, I'm a new photographer and that just comes with experience, but I was dissatisfied nonetheless. On my photowalks with @katschnapps I've discovered new things to photograph and, therefore, new compositions that come along with them. Old buildings, people, light on city structures, passing cars, and historical business left abandoned all opened new ways of shooting that has reignited my creativity! I've once again fallen back in love with photography, finding fresh and exciting ways to push myself and further opening my awareness and expanding my creativity. Composition has been the secret sauce to this new dish and it's super tasty! ๐Ÿ“ Tennessee, USA, 2026 ๐Ÿ“ธ Sony A7RII with Pentax-M 28mm f/2.8, Pentax-M SMC 50mm f/1.8, and Samyang 50mm f/1.4 II #streetphotography #sonyalpha #pentax #samyang by @missingpillarcreative

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