Variety. My job as a photojournalist in a single word. I recently photographed Keahi Hooe, above, of Easy Choppers & Tattoos for a piece on alternative arts for our monthly magazine, The Scene. More images after the jump…

Keahi Hooe definitely enjoyed being a character in front of the camera, so we worked with it for nice results. Above, are the two final options for our cover image — I pushed for black and white to distill the image to its graphic form, but color won out with the powers that be when it came time for the press run.

Tattoo artist Sage at his work station at Easy Choppers & Tattoos in Bellevue.

Sometimes on assignment you just get lucky. Above, Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry sits for tattoo artist Kevin at Easy Choppers & Tattoos. I had no idea Curry was going to be in getting fresh ink that day, but as I said, sometimes you’re just lucky. Of course, I asked him for -and received- permission to photograph during his session. I personally liken it to being at your doctor’s office with an expectation of privacy, so permission was a must. I thank Aaron for allowing me to make a couple images…

A tight shot of Kevin working on Aaron Curry’s right arm. Definitely did not want to bump Kevin’s hand and make the needle wander while he worked, because we’re talking an NFL linebacker vs. photographer will not end up pretty.