High Times

In early August of 2019, I was invited to witness and document the illicit harvest of cannabis somewhere in eastern Pennsylvania. I spent the better part of the day with The Welder who taught me the ins and outs of how he had been growing weed under the radar for years. The images above depict The Welder’s process of cutting, hoisting, harvesting, and separating the cannabis that he went on to both use himself and sell to his clients. These photographs were taken on a Mamiya c220 and a Canon AE-1.

A bag of loose marijuana leaves sits open on the Welder’s kitchen table after a harvest.

The Welder hoists up a sawed down cannabis plant during the harvesting process. He built this rig in the basement of his home using information he found online.

The Welder examines a white spot on one of his cannabis plants that turns out to be a parasitic infestation.

The Welder sits among his three remaining cannabis plants. He at one time had as many as 200, but had to downsize due to living situations.

An upside down marijuana plant ready for harvest hung above the Welder’s dining table.

The Welder begins trimming some of his plants above his dining room table.

The Welder holds up two mason jars of cannabis infused Everclear.

The Welder poses outside his home/base of operations with a sawed down cannabis plant.