FERRIDAY &8212; As Rhett Powell sets up the space for his photography display of the last 30 years in Ferriday; he recalls all of the events he covered, scenes he shot and changes that took place in the Miss-Lou while he was a photojournalist.

From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, Powell&8217;s photos will be on display at the Delta Music Museum as the kickoff for Ferriday&8217;s Centennial Celebration.

Powell, 58, a Ferriday native, has worked as a photojournalist on both sides of the Mississippi River since 1974.

&8220;Photography is all about being at the right place at the right time,&8221; Powell said. &8220;And that&8217;s where I was.&8221;

When Powell first came back to the Miss-Lou from the Art Institute in Atlanta, he took a job with The Natchez Democrat.

&8220;My first assignment was to shoot some kids from Trinity going on a field trip or something,&8221; Powell said. &8220;The kids were waiting to get on the bus so I lined them up in a row, what photographers call an &8216;execution at dawn&8217; shot. Not a favorite shot among editors.&8221;

The editor of The Democrat at that time was Al Benn, Powell said.

&8220;Al was not happy with the photo so that was the last &8216;execution at dawn&8217; shot I did,&8221; Powell said.

A sports nut, Powell said his favorite assignments while working in Natchez were going to ball games to take pictures.

&8220;There were times I would walk out of the dark room after developing photos from a game and think, &8216;my God, they&8217;re actually paying me to do this,&8217;&8221; Powell said.

After leaving The Democrat in 1977, Powell started his own studio in Ferriday called Creative Photography by Rhett Powell.

&8220;The business went well but my biggest client was the Concordia Sentinel,&8221; Powell said.

In 1978 Powell said he spent his time between shooting wedding portraits for customers at his studio and freelancing for The Sentinel shooting whatever former editor Sam Hanna wanted.

&8220;I shot over 1,000 weddings in my studio,&8221; Powell said. &8220;And I shot everything from ballgames and ceremonies to sheriff and governor&8217;s races, for The Sentinel,&8221; Powell said.

Powell said his only regret during his career at The Sentinel was not taking enough pictures.

&8220;I think we all take for granted the things that are going to change,&8221; Powell said. &8220;If I had known things were going to change in downtown Ferriday, I would have taken more pictures.&8221;

Ferriday&8217;s Arcade Theatre is an example of what has changed, Powell said.

&8220;I always thought the theatre would be here and now that it&8217;s not, that hurts,&8221; Powell said.

Powell said his plan now is to move to Natchez and start a photo gallery.

&8220;I started my career in Natchez and now I feel like I&8217;m ending my career in Natchez,&8221; Powell said. &8220;But I never would have had the chance to see Ferriday change and be there to take the photos if it weren&8217;t for The Sentinel.&8221;