Gillette, WY
We woke up this AM in Powell and discussed our options with regard to the shoot last night. Ira feels he needs more contrast in the hills - the rain and the lack of moonlight detracted slightly from his vision. So he’ll probably head back in Friday when the moon is fuller and try it again.
We had breakfast at the same cafe we at at last night. The funny thing is, every time we walk in the entire place seems to stop and stare at us as we progress to a table. I mean, three guys with big cameras and smiles shouldn’t be that off-putting, but we sure feel like aliens from space. We need to get some sleeveless T-shirts, Wranglers and Bass Pro Shop ball caps and we’d fit right in. I kid, I kid.
After breakfast (good!) we dropped off my car at Tom’s (the Jeep fella) and headed over the Powder River Pass to Gillette to photograph another piece of the story. Enroute, we stopped at an airplane museum (closed, sadly) but we snuck onto the adjacent airfield and took some pictures of four aging aircraft - including two Royal Canadian Air Force cargo planes.
We also stopped outside
of Emblem, WY because the sign on entering was this:
Finally, after checking
into the hotel and doing some research on our
intended target, we dropped Ira off to do some
guerrilla scouting/shooting. Here he is as he exits
the vehicle - the
exit-from-the-moving-vehicle-commando-style exit I
suggested wasn’t taken as seriously...
Tomorrow we head back
over to the archelolgical dig for some pictures of
the kids/professors working out there. I’m pretty
excited as it sounds like quite an interesting site.
Cheers!
PS. Why is it that cheap hotels in the middle of
nowhere can have better wireless internet access than
the big hotels I stay at (and pay $10-20 a day) in
the big cities? Wireless in nowhere Wyoming is
awesome.
Powell
Ira, Alex (a photographer
friend of Ira’s based in Phoenix) and I headed out
for a conceptual shoot last evening in some hoodoos
near the town. It was quite an elaborate setup, with
a Jeep and an ATV taking us into the location and a
couple of local guides. Here Tom, one of the two,
pointing out our destination.
A rain storm had blown in
just before we were to leave, and there was some
concern that the rain/wind would hamper our plans,
but after a few minutes of concern, it blew past and
we decided to head in.
We were headed for an old
Native American camp site - there were several tipi
circles close by - and while we worked, the two
guides headed off to look for arrow heads.
We got back fairly late
and after doing the card download/evaluate-the-shoot
dance, we went to bed.
Big Skies!
Yesterday I landed in Billings, MT, picked up my ridiculously yellow rental car and headed out for some shooting before meeting up with Ira in Wyoming.
I remember going thru Billings when I was a kid - probably on our way down to Colorado for a family reunion in Estes Park, CO. Salient on that trip was my kid sister getting all excited and yelling “Hooray! Buffalo Billings” as we arrived. And its stuck with me. Whenever someone says “Billings” I hear “Buffalo Billings.”
I headed out of town east, with no particular plan except to visit the Little Big Horn Battlefield - I have a few specific memories of visiting there on that previous trip.
Since my last visit,
they’ve built a whole new memorial (and one much more
fitting) of the battle for the First People’s side.
It was quite striking, well-designed and told the
warrior’s story beautifully. Much nicer than the
aging cemetery plot for the invaders and their
mecurial, sociopathic leader.
As luck would have it, I
have a book on Custer and the Little Big Horn on my
iPod, so I played that the entire day to get the
backstory.
The battlefield itself
was gorgeous - rolling green hills, swaying grasses
and flowers and get this - Agave plants - somethign I
never expected in Montana. Overwhelming all was the
intoxicating sent of the prarie - I can see why
someone would fight for this little corner of land.
I visited both monuments,
did the ravine hike (I was the only one on the trail
- its a very challenging 1 mile walk on a graded
path) and then drove down to the second battle site 5
miles away.
I also stopped in Hardin,
MT. They had a little country museum that I just dig
on visiting - you know, old buildings with nice
installations of what it was like in the early
1900’s. Lovely stuff.
Happy Fourth!
The Canadian in me celebrated the 1st of July and now the American in me gets to celebrate the 4th. While I have serious problems with how this country is governed and even more with its hegemonistic, bellic foreign policy, I really am happy and blessed to live in the great state of Washington.
I love this country for is true assets - the deserts, the mountains and wild places and even a few of its villages. Furthermore, I love the real American people - those happy people who recognize their blessings, are always ready to lend a helping hand and try to approach things with love and humility.
Sometimes it is easy to point out the big men who take advantage or the greedy who look to exploit for their own personal gain, and while they seem to run things, the real people outnumber the parasites. And thank goodness for that.
I'm going to be on a several day road trip next week in Wyoming and I'll see many of these everyday Americans. I'll even bring a few cameras and document this all-american of journeys.
So Happy Fourth! Raise your drink of choice and celebrate the good in this country. Huzzah!
Here are a few images snapped over the past few days.
The Snoqualmie Valley
Its lovely and pastoral - honestly I find it hard to believe it is just outside a sprawling city and its bloated suburbs. Perfect. I always think of Thomas Hardy or George Eliot as I pedal like a madman.
Today, I took my camera and documented some of the sights I've been visualizing for several years. I'm very pleased with how these turned out.
Have a great day.
EBT 2007-2008 Yearbook
"Available in hard or softcover, with 275 photographs from the past year, this yearbook will become a prized memento of your dancer's hard work, determination and beauty."
If you're the frugal
sort, use coupon "flickr10" to save 10%
The book is the culmination of a years worth of work
with EBT. It contains, as mentioned above,
approximately 275 images taken in weekly classes,
rehearsals, performances, and many EBT functions. I'm
really happy with how it turned out - its a beautiful
book with most of my favorite images. You can
purchase it directly from Blurb and there is a
preview of the first 15 pages available for your
perusal.
All purchases will go directly to support EBT's
programs and classes. Consider ordering a book or two
and supporting these wonderful dancers in their quest
to make the world a bit more beautiful.
Update: for all my blog readers, if
you buy a book, I'm offering a 20% coupon for any
print of a photo therein. Just buy the book and email
me with your print selection and I'll handle the
rest.
Happy Canada Day!
Bonne Fete Du Canada!
Batman
Goodbye June-uary and hello July (well almost). Summer bring soccer tournaments, long days, long bike rides and festivals. My youngest got to go to Strawberry Days in Bellevue this weekend and the highlight was either the cotton candy or the face paint. The former didn't last very long, but the face paint persists.
I'm going to Wyoming this
weekend to meet up with a Ira Block, a good friend of
mine who shoots for the National Geographic. Ira
is, to put it short, da man. I'm looking forward
to some shooting, continued warm weather and some
road tripping.
BTW, is the road trip facing extinction with gas
prices as they are? I sure wish we had a national
rail infrastructure that could support frequent,
comfortable, convenient travel like the Europeans.
With a bike and the train, I'd be a happy man.
Tools, PT II
This week I've continued in that vein this week with several more. Can you identify the second item?
This is turning into a longer term project - I've decided I'm going to be heading down to my grandma's place in Idaho to spend an visit shooting that vast garage full of treasures.
Back Home
Spent a bit of time in the mornings just wandering about in my "man I really need some exercise" mindset - this always happens when I'm away from my bikes - the true machines of my workout bliss.
Here are a few images of the the now slightly dingy suburban landscape that was writ decades ago upon what was once orchards. Can you guess the place?
We have a soccer
tournament this weekend, which will put us out and
about much of the time. Its nice to be home.
Cheers!
Vacations R' Us
Which, of course, means lots of fun and the requisite sand in the hotel/rental van/washing machine/pores. We've gone to the beach, visited with friends, seen movies and just goofed around. My family just happens to really kick it old school.
Here are a few images...
Penguins and Pirates
Ballet Photography
I've always been drawn to documentary photography,
and while I've expanded my repertoire substantially
over the past year to include studio work,
portraiture and the like, it remains a big part of
how I see and feel my world.
The backstory..
We promised our daughter she could begin dancing at 4
years of age - and on her birthday my wife quickly
found this quirky little studio (Ballet Bellevue) nearby that
had the right focus on performances and had a
great artistic director with a wonderful pedigree. We really wanted to avoid
the cheerleader-esque "dance competition" studios
and we were quickly at home in the melee of real
dance. She blossomed and grew there and we were
happy.
In late 2006 my wife prodded me to do some work for
them. I proposed a project that would document life
at the studio over the year and it was quickly
accepted. It became and exciting and challenging
project - learning to shoot fast moving dancers in
less than stellar lighting conditions.
When Ballet Bellevue had a falling out with Viktoria,
their artistic director, we decided to follow her to
a new studio she opened nearby - Emerald Ballet Theatre. I
continued to shoot for Ballet Bellevue through the
rest of the 2007 season, but I felt more welcome
at EBT and Viktoria really understood what
photography can bring to the equation. She is very
open to using photography showcasing her fledgling
business and I've done all their advertising and
promotional work over the past year. We also
helped put the studio together with several
friends - the focus was to be a beautiful,
organized studio with a simple, beautiful
atmosphere. To augment this, I began hanging
regular groupings of work and I do sittings with
individual dancers periodically.
Today...
One of the things I've learned is that I increasingly
look forward to the big productions - when dancers
are in costume and are working hard at their
variations on stage. EBT really focuses on
performances as a learning experience - and Chloe has
really grown because of this. As a new studio, we are
still a bit conservative on the number of
productions, but our repertoire will expand as we
grow.
We recently finished up our first year and the
end-of-year performance. I am very pleased with some
of the images I've captured from this past season and
am in the process of putting together a book almost
300 pictures from EBT's first year.
Look for it here soon.
I'm off in a few hours to ride my road bike up a
volcano...
Da Pimped Van & Some Bubbles
I currently roll (at least with the family) in a 2003 VW Euro Camper Van, but sadly its pimped for storing kids and their crap rather than photo stuff. Someday, when the kids are gone, I'll be doing something very similar.
I got out for a 40 mile bike ride this AM before coming home to clean up my cluttered office. I hate working in a cluttered office.
I'm riding a road race this weekend - I'll ride from Toutle, WA up the Spirit Lake Memorial Highway to the Johnson Ridge Observatory and back, for a total of 135 KM and just over 6000 vertical feet of climbing. Its going to be a blast, and its called the Tour de Blast for obvious reasons. The family is coming along and we'll camp nearby Friday night.
Marshmallow time!
Its my kids last day of school. They are excited to be out for the summer - and I'm just hoping we'll have one. My morning rides are still in tights and jacket for @#$@#$ sake.
Here is an diptych from yesterday of my daughter playing around with bubbles - she's such a lovable goofball.
Emerald Ballet Theatre Galleries Online
I'm quite happy with this
series, and they are available now for purchase
directly from the web galleries.
Cheers!
Square Kids, Square Kids, Square Kids
As Holden's classmates would scream: Digression!
I shot a series of square portraits for my sister today. I'm happy with all but one of them, and I might have to shoot a few more shots to get what I want. These are all in the vein of some portraits I did a month or two back - a style that I really enjoy and a format that I highly appreciate for portraiture. My sis was pretty happy with them, as am I.
After that, we headed
into Salt Lake to attend a SLC Bees baseball game.
To be honest, I'm not a fan of baseball.
Its a bit slow, slightly boring and just can't
complete with the beautiful game for sheer
athleticism, excitement and, ahem, beauty. That said,
its a mildly interesting past-time, with some quirky
side-shows, so when my younger sis handed me free
front row seats I couldn't refuse. We took the
parents-in-law and made an evening of it.
My son got one of those big foam #1 hands (a first
for our family) and then found a baseball - he was
buzzing with excitement. His grandpa is a big fan, so
the two of them talked about all the ins/outs and
made it all worth it.
Funny, they were playing the Tacoma Rainiers. I
suppose they are our hometown team...uh, go team!
The Sis Factor
I grabbed her kids last night and ran over to a local park for a few pictures...
Thanks Sis!
Soccer Academy
We drove down to drop my oldest son off at a BYU soccer academy for the week. He gets to stay in the dorms with a roommate and its quite exciting for him. Having older kids is proving to be as cool as when they were little - we have developed a great relationship built on trust and mutual respect. He's aces in my book.
Go Aidan.
Here are a few images from today...
I'll be here all week. I
brought my middle son as well, and we're going to do
some fun things together - including hitting an
amusement park and some other fun stuff. He's equally
excited.
I'm still working thru images from last week's
EBT performance Tales
from the Mediterranean and hope to be
done soon. I'm really happy with the images thus
far, so expect a few new galleries soon on the EBT
website.
Have a great Monday.
Tools
My grandpa was a rancher, farmer and nuclear plant worker, the latter sadly required by the economics of farming/ranching a small plot of land in the arid western part of the United States. He put in long hard days at "the site" (Westinghouse's nuclear training facilities) and then came home to work his little ranch until the sun went down. Life wasn't easy, as my mother can attest, but by the time I was old enough to spend the summers with them near Mackay, Idaho, progress had been made and times were easier. I helped changed pipe, cared for the cows and my cousin and I ran around on an old Trail 90 motorcycle looking for fun. I loved hanging out in the various out-buildings of his ramshackle world and these tools were a huge part of our lives - we built, made or fixed most things ourselves. The depression had made him thrifty, clever and resourceful.
Here is a picture I have of him holding me as a toddler. I'm pretty cute - much cuter than my sisters/brothers were, if memory serves...
He passed away, not unsurprisingly, due to
complications with cancer and I still miss him and
those days intensely.
These tools are some of what remains of him and those
long-ago days in the summer sun.
Well, I'm off to shoot
the final dress rehearsal for EBT, so have a great
weekend. I'm traveling next week, but should be
online and active.
Cheers!
Brasil vs. Mexico
Here he is blowing the ubiquitous stadium horn...
Here are a few shots of the game/crowd I shot for
Photoshelter.
On Sunday we visited my nephew at Children's Hospital
- he is looking a bit gaunt, is a bit weak and is
feeling the effects of his treatment. He took us on a
quick tour (with his little monitor - we dubbed it
his personal robot C3-P-on-U) of his room and the
playroom they have for kids. He is working on
learning to swallow pills and hopefully will head
home in a few days for continued treatment.
Go Hans!
Thats what I'm talkin' bout
Baaam, I finally saw
myself in the ticker.
I do manage to get quite a few percentage of Editor's
choices when I submit, so I know they are there. And
I'll admit to having spent a few random seconds here
and there clicking thru to see if my work would show
up before coming to my senses and doing something
useful...
Well boy howdy! It just did it again as I write this.
Sweet. Sorry for the horn tooting...
Lovely.
I'm in the process of uploading 40 new images as we
speak as well.
This weekend I'm off with the boy scouts for a bike
trip, then a kick-a-thon for my boy's soccer team
before heading to Seattle to watch the Brasil
national soccer team play Canada's national soccer
team. Which to cheer for? Actually kinda hard for
this ex-pat Canadian who lived in Brasil for a few
years. And yes, that is with an "s" and not a "z"...
Hey, it did it again. Sheesh! This one is my most
popular image on Photoshelter Collection.
I'm on a roll! So with
that, have a great weekend.
P.S. I reported that my nephew was just diagnosed
with Lukemia and I'm happy to report that he's doing
well and has a great prognosis. Huzzah!
P.S.S (camera phone) pictures from my road biking
summit yesterday...
Link-O-Rama
1. The Inside Lightroom blog has a great tip for how to speed up your editing process in Lightroom - and this is one that I inadvertently discovered recently - and now use all the time.
2. Strobist has a set of DVDs now
available - everyone is talking about this. Great
idea. $140 isn't a bad price for what you get.
3. Zack Arias (a blog I've been
pretty into lately) also has a lighting DVD for
sale. Looks good as well - not priced yet though.
4. Scott Kelby has an interesting
proposal for Lightroom and Photoshop development.
And now for something
complete different...
1. DIYBike. I'm building one.
Yeah, with all my spare time. Ugh.
2. Weezer has a new single from an upcoming album.
Its been on a "one song" rotation all afternoon.
Pork and Beans. Sweet. Man, I
love Weezer. Geek Rock, uh, Rocks.
3. I'm getting old. I missed an internet thing. I
finally learned what a Rickroll is - someone inserts
this into an email link or
other public event. Funny! Love the dancing in the
prision-chique denim Rick. I wonder if he knows
about this phenomenon. Yes, I just Rick Rolled
you, but in a very obvious and non-threatening
way. Baaaaam!
As an aside, its been an interesting week. I've
gotten the flu and wasted a whole sunny Memorial Day,
my 8 year old nephew was diagnosed
with Leukemia and I finally managed to get out on
the road bike for a 63 mile jaunt up to Snoqualmie Pass and
back in less than 4 hours. It was cooooooold up
there in the fog and it took awhile to get feeling
back in my toes. And I flat with less than 5
minutes to home. Ugh.
I'll leave you with a picture...
Cheers!
Memorial Day
For our team, the tournament was a tough slog. We were in the top division, up against all A teams - including the state champions. We did manage to one win and two were fairly well contested, but it is obvious that this season is early in its making.
I shot a bunch of pictures of the game and posted them on my Smugmug account for the parents. What I actually enjoy more than that is the out-takes from the sidelines.
Here are a few from the weekend...
I'm going to be starting
up a new project soon, so stay tuned.
In the LIghtroom world, fellow Adobeite Rick Miller
is doing an online seminar for Lightroom 2.0 this
Friday.
More info here...
Cheers.
Cornell Capa - RIP
He covered presidential bids (Kennedy, Stevenson), Israel's 6-day war, the Peron regime in Argentina, and many other important events in world history.
If you are not familiar with his work, the NY Times has a great slideshow online (which includes one still from his ballet work).
A famous quote that resonates:
"‘There are two things I wanted to do. I wanted to show the things that needed to be corrected. And I wanted to show the things that needed to be appreciated.’ ”
On a related front, I referenced the World Press Photo awards yesterday, but you really should listen to Platon's story of his winning portrait of Putin.
Finally, a picture of my son, asleep after a hard morning of playing...
I'm off to a Soccer
tournament this weekend - its going to be a rough go
as we're up against the state champions for our first
game.
Cheers!
Ballet Shoot
Here are a few images from that shoot...
