photography

Adventure In England: Part One

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This post is long, long overdue (as most of them have been, I suppose). But as the saying goes, "better late than never," so here we are!

This past July Scott and I went to England for roughly three weeks, with the bulk of our trip being spent in the Exeter area (with plenty of trips to the surrounding towns). We are lucky enough to have friends in Exeter who are extremely hospitable and allowed us to stay with them for most of our stay. Staying with friends not only made the trip more affordable but also provided us with some amazing views and experiences, as we were right in the heart of the city and got "tours" from the locals. The two photos below were taken our first night there, and needless to say it was an amazing introduction to Exeter.

Our second night in England was just as amazing, if not more so. After a home cooked meal, we drove to Topsham to get drinks at a pub called The Passage House Inn. Walking through the narrow streets was such a treat for me, and I quickly fell in love with the architecture of the area. The golden evening light certainly helped with the romantic feel of it all. We were treated to perfect weather that night, allowing us to sit outside and be treated to a fully spectacular sunset over the River Exe. 

Our first weekend in England was also all too perfect. On Saturday we went on a hike that was nothing short of stunning. We started on the coast in Wembury, continued through some rolling farms (all the while with views of Wembury Bay), crossed the River Yealm in a water taxi, and ended at The Ship Inn in Noss Mayo. The color of the water there was an unreal turquoise; it was absolutely unexpected for England. We ate a simple, fresh lunch outside at The Ship Inn while watching the tide come in. It was truly a magical day. 

Next up: Shockingly, part two of our England trip! Featuring the second part of our epic first weekend, though with drastically different scenery, and loads more as well. 

The Blackhills 100 Mile Race

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So much for posting in a more timely manner; this summer has most definitely kept me busy.

I've decided to break from the order that I typically post in (chronological), to share the most recent adventure that I had the opportunity to be a part of. And brace yourselves, because this will be a long one. It was an extremely memorable experience, and although I'm not entirely happy with most of the images that I took (a severe lack of sleep may have played a role), I am extremely proud to share them because of how much of an accomplishment it was for my brother (or anyone for that matter).  

A few weeks ago my brother, Kyle, ran in the Black Hills 100, which is a 100 mile trail race through the Black Hills. Although the Black Hills are at a lower elevation, the race actually has more elevation change than the 100 mile race in Leadville, Colorado. The race is an out and back course, starting in Sturgis, SD and ending there as well. They started off on a Friday morning, and ran through the day with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees for most of the day. I worked until noon in Denver that Friday, and then drove six hours to meet Kyle and the two other members of the crew at the halfway point in Silver City, SD. 

Kyle had planned on being at Silver City by 7:30 pm, but because of the heat he, along with the entire field of racers, was well behind that pace. I spent the time waiting chatting up the women working the aid station, and then the other crew members as they began to show up. Kyle ended up getting in around 11:30 pm, and my crew duties kicked in. I mainly got him any food he wanted (which was ramen, lots of ramen), filled his water, and made sure he was doing alright. His friend Will also met us at Silver City, and served as his pacer for the last 50 miles, which made a huge difference for Kyle. 

Unfortunately I forgot my speedlight, and so was stuck with using an extremely high ISO in the images below, but I had to get at least some images of him during the night.

After Silver City I drove to the Pilot Knob aid station, where I met Will's brother, Michael, who crewed with me for the rest of the race. While we sat and waited for Kyle to arrive, I set up my camera for a brief time lapse. I didn't put a soundtrack on it, and as I said, it is brief, but I think it still does a nice enough job of showing the feeling of the aid stations at night. 

There was one more aid station in the dark, and then we drove to the Dalton Lake Campground to wait once again as the sun started to rise. It was such a welcome site to see the sun coming up for us crew members, and I can only imagine how it must have felt for the runners. 

I had been awake since 5 am the morning before (totaling nearly 30 hours awake at this point), and although I felt pretty great through the night, I started to crash after the Dalton Lake aid station once the sun was up. I was in desperate need of some sleep, and after slinging up my hammock I managed to get a light nap in this amazing spot while we waited for Kyle. 

We next saw Kyle and Will at the Elk Creek aid station, which was at mile 83. Another runner came into the aid station with some wildflowers that he picked along the trail for his crew members, which I couldn't resist documenting. One of the things that I loved about this experience was getting to know the other crew members. For the most part we saw the same people at every single spot, and by the end of the race it felt like we had known each other a lot longer than 12 hours or so. 

There was an aid station prior to Elk Creek that we didn't have access to, so the distance was about twice as long as when we normally saw the runners. This was the first aid station that Kyle started to show real signs of fatigue, and the first time I was even slightly concerned. His pacer was still full of energy however, and was excellent at keeping Kyle moving. 

The next aid station was the last before the finish, and like at Elk Creek, there was a station in between where we weren't able to see him. His wife and twin boys were at the last aid station as well, and as soon as Kyle saw them he visibly perked up. The boys saw him a ways off, and were so excited that they ran out to meet him!

We then drove to the finish in Sturgis and waited for Kyle and Will to arrive. My nephews were loving my camera while we waited; their new (at least new to me) thing to do is to make silly faces constantly while I take millions of pictures, and they loved getting to press the shutter as well. 

Kyle and Will came running in to the finish just before 3:00 pm on Saturday.  We found out later that he managed to finish in 28:48:33, and was 9th place overall! It was so exciting to see him finish the race, and to finish it running no less. 

Crewing for this race was one of the coolest experiences I have had. Seeing my brother accomplish something so major, and getting to help him through that process in even a small way was an incredibly impactful and unforgettable experience. 

And with that, I will finally wrap things up. Hopefully some of you stuck through it all. Thank you for taking the time to stop by, and don't forget to share via the links below!

Alpine Camping + Fishing (Part Two)

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Hello again! Time for part two of our camping trip to Guanella Pass last fall! I'm going to sum everything up and leave you with the images, so you can scroll without distractions. 

Our second day in the alpine was a nice, lazy day; we slept in (as much as you can while camping), made breakfast, and just enjoyed the beautiful day and campsite. The sun was was stunning, and everything was glowing that morning. Scott went back to fishing, and continued to catch little brook trout on the fly. A dragonfly even posed for pictures for quite a while, and I was able to inch closer and closer to get images of his amazing wings. It was quite the perfect morning. After a relaxing morning, we ran to town for lunch and supplies, and then came back to a partially rainy evening, which was spent boiling water for our hike the next day while enjoying a bonfire. Dinner was made while bundled up in our tent, which is one of my favorite things when camping in the cold. 

Next time: Images from our hike up Mt. Bierstadt, my second fourteener. Be sure to check back to see crazy sunrise light, amazing mountain views, and fluffy, white ptarmigans in winter mode. As always, thanks for stopping by! Feel free to share via the links below, and be sure to say hi! 

 

Alpine Camping + Fishing

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Last October, Scott and I packed up the car and headed up to one our favorite camping areas (Guanella Pass) for a weekend of mountain air and hiking. We set up camp quickly and he put together his fly rod as soon as we finished. Our camp was right next to a set of ponds, and since we could see the tiny fish jumping away as we set up, he was anxious to throw his line in the water. 

Scott managed to hook a little Brook Trout (what I'm guessing/have been told it is) within a few casts. He was extremely excited, dare I say giddy even, as it was the first fish he'd hooked on the fly in Colorado. He spent the rest of the evening fishing, pulling in quite a few of the tiny fish. As usual, I was content snapping away the entire time. 

When the sun went down, we bundled up in our tent (it was quite the cool night) and read for a bit, before going full mummy mode in the sleeping bags and going to bed. I was about to settle in myself on that night, but noticed how perfect the light from Scott's headlamp was lighting the scene, and had to get a few images before calling it a night. 

Next up: day two of this trip which involved more fishing, and more time in the tent. I promise, the images are more exciting than that sounds (or at least I think they are). As always, thanks for stopping by! Feel free to share via the links below, and say hello as well! 

Lime Creek Canyon (Part Two)

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Well, I fell behind again. But, in my defense, I was off on an "adult spring break" (i.e., a long weekend), and wanted to give myself a slight break from technology. I am back at it now though, and will be wrapping up the Lime Creek Canyon trip with this post (finally). I'm going to keep this one short and simple in terms of writing, and leave you with the images. Just one quick note before I dive in; there are some large panoramic images below, so I would highly recommend clicking on those (which opens them in a lightbox) in order to see all their glorious details as large as possible. I hope you enjoy!

Up next: More camping adventures, this time from Guanella Pass. Thanks for stopping by!

Alec + Emily {Engagement}

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This post (along with many others) is extremely overdue. As 2016 started (and quickly rolled on), I had set up some goals for myself; blogging on a regular basis was originally one of those goals. And yet, as January passed and February has been speeding by, I have been going back and forth on whether or not that is actually something that I should, and want to be doing. I have more or less had this particular post written for over a month at this point, but have been indecisive in terms of the wording and layout, and if keeping a blog is worthwhile for me right now. I've decided to attempt to plug away at posting on a regular basis (mostly since I have such a huge backlog of images I want to share right now), though I'll likely keep things extremely simple and stick to the images for the most part.

With all that said, to start things off I am going to share images from one of my favorite shoots of last year. Back in November, while home in Minnesota for Thanksgiving, I had the pleasure of being asked to photograph one of my longest and best friends, Alec, and his beautiful fiancé, Emily.

Alec and I have been friends since junior high, and we have been part of the same group of friends since that time.  It is a tight knit group of people, and I have often joked (with a strong hint of seriousness) that the approval of this group in regards to my significant others is just as important as that of my immediate family members. 

Although I don't know if Alec thinks the same thing, I can definitely say that we approve of Emily. Emily is a ball of joy, and you cannot help but smile when you are around her.  It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know her on the few occasions that I get home to Minnesota, and I am proud to now be able to consider her a friend.

Alec went above and beyond on the engagement ring, and worked with a local jewelry designer to design a ring just for Emily. The main stone is a sapphire, with a precious diamond on either side. It looked absolutely stunning with the hint of snow around, the golden evening light, and Emily's vibrant green jacket. 

We spent most of the engagement session walking down the Browns Creek Trail, in my hometown of Stillwater. The trail used to be railroad tracks, for a very slow dinner train that followed Browns Creek around the Stillwater area. When we were kids we used to roam around on the tracks, even though we weren't necessarily supposed to. I have lots of great memories from along this trail, so it was fun to shoot an engagement session in those locations.

We also ventured onto the golf course for some images at the end of the shoot, which was another important place for a lot of us Stillwater friends while growing up. In fact, the other friends whose engagement session I photographed had their wedding reception in the clubhouse of this golf course. 

We ended the evening (appropriately) at a coffee shop in downtown Stillwater. Emily wanted to incorporate some string lights into that portion of the shoot, and I'm so glad she suggested it. The ring just looks stunning with that warm, golden light on it!

Thank you to Emily and Alec for inviting me in on this portion of your adventure together! I am so excited for the two of you, and cannot wait to see how your lives grow together from here. 

And with that, here we go on this next blogging journey of mine. I would love to hear from anyone that decides to stop by, so leave a comment below! Have a wonderful weekend!

Flashback Friday: Walker Ranch - South Boulder Creek Fly Fishing

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Happy day after Thanksgiving everyone! I was able to spend yesterday with most of my family, enjoying some precious time with two of my nephews, and eating lots of food of course. I hope everyone had a day filled with loved ones and delicious food. 

It is time for another round of images that have been sitting on my hard drive for close to two months! I've been telling myself lately that because I am awful at posting here on a regular basis, it makes the posts more treasured and worth viewing. Hopefully there is at least some truth to that. 

Back at the end of August, Scott and I went fly fishing for the first time in Colorado. Scott of course did all the fishing, as I was perfectly content wandering around photographing the stunning setting. I actually had to admit to a new friend (who is an avid fly fisher, and I met at a fly tying event) that I have never fished on a fly rod before. I always get sidetracked and distracted by the opportunities to photograph, and haven't even taken the time to learn somehow. 

On this particular occasion, we ventured to Walker Ranch, to fish in the South Boulder Creek. Scott had read the fishing reports, and it looked extremely promising. I was excited, since we were going to a new location, and it ended up being amazingly beautiful.

Unfortunately the fishing report ended up being quite wrong for us that day. We didn't so much as see a single fish. Scott progressed downstream, hoping to get some bites, with no luck. I, of course, was still more than content, but he ended up fairly frustrated towards the end of the afternoon. 

Next up on the blog: images from my current favorite location in Colorado. Expect to see some mind blowing light, quirky portraits, and movie like landscapes. 

Mount Elbert

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Time to go back to my first weekend living in Colorado again! And to give you fair warning, there are images of an adorable, sleepy puppy towards the end of this post, so prepare yourselves. 

As mentioned in the last post, my best friend, Blair, and I spent the weekend camping in Twin Lakes, CO, with the goal of hiking Mount Elbert. Mount Elbert is the tallest peak in Colorado, standing at 14,439', so it was an exciting goal for my first weekend as a Colorado resident. We drove to the trailhead as the sun was just coming up that morning, and started hiking in the brisk morning air. 

It was a long, rather deceptive hike, with false summit after false summit (or so it felt). But, we kept hiking away, slowly but surely, taking in the incredible scenery and views as we went. 

The summit was absolutely stunning, and made the long hike up worth it. Unfortunately, we still had to get down (the worst part, in my opinion). Blair and I were both exhausted, partially from Stella's (the puppy) seemingly never ending energy. Yet, as we worked our way down, even she started to look completely worn out (somehow not until around tree line though). When we stopped to take breaks towards the end of the hike, Stella would promptly lay down and nearly fall asleep. 

We eventually made it all the way down, drove to a gas station for firewood and other provisions, and then made the short drive back to our campsite. The clouds and light over Twin Lakes on the way to our site were beyond spectacular. So, despite our complete exhaustion, we stopped so that I could grab a few images before heading back to collapse and eat dinner. 

The following morning we, unfortunately, had to pack up and head back to the real world. We enjoyed a somewhat lazy breakfast, packed stuff up, and drove out. The water on the lakes that morning was like glass, creating a perfect reflection of the surrounding area. I snagged a few shots out of the window as we drove past, sad to be leaving that amazing place so soon. 

Twin Lakes, Colorado

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My first weekend living in Colorado (two months ago at this point!) was lived to the absolute fullest, and in true Colorado style. My best friend's birthday fell right after that weekend, so we decided to go on a camping trip to celebrate her birthday, as well as the fact that we would be living in the same state for the first time in eight years.

We camped near Twin Lakes for two nights, and hiked Mt. Elbert, the tallest fourteener in Colorado, while we were there (images to come). We ended up having perfect weather for both days that we were out there, and somewhat spontaneously ended up on a beautiful hike the evening that we arrived. These images are from that hike, which followed along the edge of Twin Lakes. 

The hike took us to the historic Interlaken Hotel, a resort that was built in the late 1800s. It was a popular resort for many years, and was quite the luxurious get away at the time (featuring a six-sided privy with leather seats, and an orchestra performance once a week). The resort closed in the early 1900s, and when they built the dam on Twin Lakes in the 1970s, many of the buildings and artifacts were left behind, flooded by the new water level. However, some of the buildings were moved in order to preserve them, including the summer home of the owner of the resort, James Dexter (the first few images below).  

The Dexter House is open to the public, and we were able to walk through the beautiful building, all the way up to the glass enclosed cupola (which has 360 degree views of the lakes and mountains). You could easily tell it was once a rather lavish place. For example, Dexter imported eight different types of wood for the floor of his home (which you can see below), in order to make it look more Victorian. I can only imagine what this place would have been like in its prime, with an orchestra playing, a steamboat ferrying people to and from the resort, fine dining, and luxuriously furnished rooms. 

Sitting on the porch of the Dexter Home was a hiker who we ended up chatting with for a little while. It was the first time that I worked up the courage to photograph a stranger, and it was great to listen to his story as I snapped a few images (though unfortunately I failed to get his name). He had started hiking in Durango, Colorado, hiked over the Continental Divide, and was now resting for a little in Twin Lakes. So far he had hiked for four weeks, and was planning on going all the way to Denver. Depending on his exact route, that would be around 325 miles of hiking!

Next up, images from my first fourteener! Expect stunning mountain views, and more adorable pictures of the puppy. Thanks for stopping by!

Farm Light

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Yikes. Life has been a complete whirlwind lately, making it basically impossible to get things edited, let alone posted to this blog. In the past month I have made three separate trips to Denver, had my last day of work as a nanny, moved to Denver, started a new job, climbed a few times, camped in an epic location, and hiked the tallest mountain in Colorado. It's been madness I tell you. I am sort of starting to settle into something vaguely resembling a routine, which has given me a few minutes of down time and allowed me to spend some time editing and writing. That said, it's catch up time, folks. 

This first post will be short and sweet, with a focus on one of my obsessions: light and shadow. The images below were taken the night before Scott, his dad, and I drove out to Denver with the moving trailer. We stayed at Scott's parents' farm that night, and the light was mesmerizing. Dinner was ready, but I ran outside with my camera, snapping away furiously, hoping some would turn out. Luckily I was not disappointed. 

Flashback Friday: Summer Rain

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This summer has been a bit unusual in Manhattan, as we have had quite a bit of rain. This morning, in fact, I was woken up early by a little thunderstorm rolling through. Any time we get random thunderstorms and rain showers here, it reminds me of my time in Kentucky. It was a fairly regular occurrence to get afternoon thunderstorms during the summer there, and often it involved pouring rain while it was still sunny out. I absolutely loved it, and would generally run outside with my camera as soon as it started. I would have my camera in a rain sleeve to keep it dry, though I would end up completely drenched with a smile on my face. 

These images are from one such storm. I remember it absolutely down pouring, but soon after it started, the sun came out, making all of the puddles and raindrops richly golden. Even though these photographs are pretty simple, they represent a very positive time in my life and bring back lots of wonderful memories. To this day, I absolutely adore standing out in the pouring rain during summer storms (something that elicited confused looks and protests from Scott the first time I pulled him outside with me). 

Happy Friday, and have a wonderful weekend everyone! Don't forget to hit the "Subscribe" button on the left, and feel free to share, via the links below. 

Bug Swarms and Fly Casting

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I suppose this post could almost go under the Flashback Friday category, as these images are from back in April. They were nearly lost as well, though luckily I checked what was on the SD card before going forward and reformatting it.

Back towards the end of April, Scott and I were fishing on a fairly regular basis (as I'm sure you noticed if you have been following my blog). Since things had started to warm up, the bugs were starting to get bad around this time, and I had swarms of them around my head most of the evening. I can't recall if we caught anything that evening, though I do remember it being a beautiful night, despite the swarms of bugs. 

This past weekend I drove up to Minnesota to surprise my mom for her birthday (which is why there were no posts on Friday or Monday), which means that soon I will be sharing some images from that trip. Be sure to check back on Monday to see those!  I hope everyone's week is off to a great start!

Hidden Oasis

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This past semester some of my students introduced me to a park in Manhattan that I had never heard of. I first visited there early this spring, before any leaves were on the trees and the grass was still brown. For those who have been following my blog for a bit, you have seen some images from there before, as shared in my Fabric Landscape post. 

It is the most unique park I have ever been to; just a small, square plot of land tucked in between some farms and a creek, with trees planted in nearly perfect rows. You walk down a short, wooded trail past some pastures and fields to get to the little park, which is quite pretty on its own.

When you come to the end of the little trail, and the entrance to the park, the space opens up into a storybook like area. Early in the spring the brown grass had all been mowed so that you could easily walk down the rows, though this time it was densely overgrown and lushly green. There was such a perfect canopy of leaves that the light had a yellow-green glow to it and when the sun came through the clouds it filtered down through the leaves into a beautiful speckled pattern, like little spotlights all over.

On the road to and from the park, you pass over a perfect little creek. The first time I visited the area there wasn't any water running through it, but because of the large amount of rain we have had, it was a steady stream with beautifully clear water. I couldn't resist stopping on the way out to grab a few images, and I am tentatively planning some other shoots in these waters as well.

And with that, have a wonderful Wednesday! We have made it halfway through the week!

Kings and Queens and Dragons (oh my!)

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A few weeks ago I stocked up on paint, googly eyes, and gathered the toilet paper tubes I had been saving for a craft project with the kids I care for. I had planned to have them make monsters, but as usually happens, the kids all came up with their own unique ideas for what those tubes should be turned into. 

I didn't get any photographs of the kids making their creations (I was too busy gluing things and my hands were covered in paint most of the time), but afterwords we went outside to play and brought the characters with. 

Somehow, this little one ended up wearing the exact same shirt as the last time I brought my camera. I promise she does have other clothes (lots of them), and I don't only put this one shirt on her. 

And with that, here is to a happy Monday, and a smooth start to the week after a holiday weekend! 

Flashback Friday: Forward

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Welcome to the next installment of the Flashback Friday posts! This is a fairly long one, since there is some background information necessary, and lots of images to share. I considered only selecting a few images, but I think sharing nearly the entire series here is important. As mentioned yesterday, self-portraits have long been very significant to me. They have been important in terms of my photography, and have also been hugely valuable for personal reasons.

I began taking self-portraits in November, 2009 as part of a personal 52 week project. Every week of the year (or that was the goal at least) I photographed a new self-portrait. It was intended to challenge me creatively, but was also used as an outlet for what was going on in my life and in my head. My tendency is generally to keep everything bottled up and held in, and so those self-portraits (as well as current ones) were a way for me to get some of those emotions and thoughts out, in a mostly subtle way. It was a strange thing for me to start taking pictures of myself, as before that I hated being in front of the camera. But as the weeks went on, it felt more and more natural, and self-portraits started to become more significant and impactful on my life. 

During that 52 week project I essentially fell in love with self-portraits. I have to admit that I feel a bit vain saying that, though the reason I fell in love with them wasn't because I loved seeing myself in photographs. In fact, I always feel quite vulnerable when posting self-portraits, something I don't particularly enjoy. However, self-portraits became nearly essential to my sanity and emotional stability at various points in my life. When I was struggling with something, my instinct was to plan and shoot a self-portrait, and generally speaking it would feel like a small weight was lifted off my shoulders. Seeing a visual for those things I was working through, even if it didn't come across in the photographs to other people, helped me process them and start to make sense of it. 

One summer during undergrad I opted to take an independent study with a favorite photography professor of mine. For that class I decided that I wanted to create a series that was much more personal than anything I had done before, and in order to do so I felt it necessary to create a series of self-portraits. That project is perhaps one of the most significant series, at least for personal reasons, that I have completed. The process of working through and developing the concept alone was a process of great self-discovery. When I started the project, visually I knew what I had in mind, and I had a rough idea for the concept behind the series. And yet, as I took the early photographs in the series I began to realize some fears and worries I hadn't even fully admitted to myself yet. 

At the end of that summer I ended up with a series of photographs that were compiled into a book. Titled Forward, the series depicts the process of growing up, transitions, and gaining independence. This series seems especially relevant to me now as well, as I try to figure out my next steps after finishing graduate school. 

Below you will find a selection of images from the book. Not all images in the book are contained here (there has to be some element of surprise if you order the book!), though these are the main images.

It has been interesting re-evaluating this series lately. With the current state of flux that I am dealing with after graduating I don't feel as though I have yet reached the point of that last image, despite making this series years ago. In fact, it feels like a long ways down the road (no pun intended). Viewing these images again also gives me ideas to continue, or perhaps revise, the series. I am at a very different point in life as when these were shot, and though much of the original ideas hold true today, my growth and experiences have given me a new perspective on what this journey is (and yet there is still much to figure out). 

The book will soon be available for purchase, in various forms, here on my website. If you have any interest in the mean time, just let me know! 

Happy Friday, and have a great weekend!

Untitled (Self-Portrait)

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Oops! I'm a day late on this one. My focus was on many other things the past few days. 

Self-portraits have been very significant to me since my undergraduate years. I will be going into more detail about that in Friday's (tomorrow!) post however, so I will be keeping this short. I worked on writing something up for a while, changing it many times, but in the end have decided to leave it simple. These images are in a way just for me, serving as a reminder of a particular place and time. 

It had been a long time since I last took a self-portrait, and it felt good to get back in front of the camera, even only for a few frames before the battery died. Also, you may recognize the location from my last blog post. 

As mentioned above, this week's Flashback Friday will go into detail about the importance of self-portraits to my photography as well as my personal life, and I will be showing one series in particular that has been significant. So, be sure to check back tomorrow! Don't forget to hit the "Subscribe" button to the left to be notified of any new posts and stay up to date on what is happening. 

Ferguson Farm

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Last weekend Scott and I went to visit his parents on their farm. We were only there for one night, though we were treated to some amazing clouds and light that evening. Walking around the farm to photograph on evenings like this is absolutely soothing; it calms me and rejuvenates me. The quiet and solitude of the area are often times just what I need.

I also took some self-portraits on the same evening, which I will be sharing on Wednesday. Be sure to hit the "Subscribe" link on the left to keep up to date, and feel free to share this post via the link below!

Have a wonderful Monday!

Flashback Friday: Red River Gorge (Part 2)

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The longing for a visit to the Red River Gorge continues. In fact, re-editing these photos has made we want to go back that much more. These images were from a separate hike from the last post, which ended up being kind of a unique hike with very diverse landscape types. There had been a fire on the ridge at the start of the hike, so the landscape there was a bit harsh and desolate. The branches were twisted, and almost grotesque looking at times. 

After hiking for a bit, the view really opened up, and things became green once again. The photo below isn't the highest in quality (these were taken back when I had a lower quality camera, unfortunately), though it does a nice job of showcasing the green landscape, and the vastness of the forest in the area.

The image below was a favorite spot of mine, and was one I photographed more than once. In fact, one of my favorite images from my undergraduate film photography classes was of these trees. I ended up making a large print in the darkroom, and one now hangs on the wall in my parents' home. Unfortunately I don't have quality documentation of it (scan or photograph), so this digital file will have to do for sharing.

After walking along the top of the ridge for a while, the trail heads down and follows the bottom of the gorge, providing a dramatic change in scenery. Trees towered over me; the leaves so thick that sunlight barely filtered down. The air was much cooler and more damp, and a creek flowed along much of the trail if I remember correctly. It was difficult to photograph without a tripod since there was so little sunlight there in fact.

This will likely be it for the Red River Gorge posts, at least for the time being. I hope to be back there for a brief trip this fall, so maybe new photographs will surface then. Be sure to click on the "Subscribe" link on the left to keep in touch, and feel free to share!

In the mean time, happy Friday! Happy Father's Day in advanced to all you dads out there, and have an excellent weekend!

Little Ones (Nanny Life)

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The first summer of my graduate school career I nannied full-time for a precious little family in Manhattan. I came to absolutely adore the kiddos (it didn't take long), so I was extremely excited when they asked me to spend the summer with them again!

They added one more little one to the bunch since the last time I was with them (the one below), and she has quickly stolen a piece of my heart as well. 

I'm always trying to think up new things to do that will keep them all occupied, and also burn off some of their energy for their mom and dad. This particular day we used up every last bit of the chalk to draw a massive road all over the driveway. We brought out cars (and a random Barbie), and had a blast "driving" around. 

When I first got my camera out they just wanted to pose for me, but after a bit they went back to playing, forgetting about me and my camera for the most part. I love sitting back and watching what their vivid imaginations come up with while they play. They are so creative, and the scenarios they come up with range from hysterical to super sweet, and everything in between.

It was a bit hot, and very humid that afternoon, so even though they weren't running around a ton, everyone was sweaty, dirty, and even a little tired. :)

I will likely be sharing lots more images of these guys throughout the summer, so be sure to check back in the coming weeks to see what we have been up to. In the mean time, have a great Wednesday! And, don't forget to check back on Friday for the Flashback Friday post (hint: more images of the beautiful Red Rive Gorge will be up)!

Estes Park (Mountain Views)

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Time for the second installment of our latest Colorado trip!

Normally our trips to Colorado revolve around the mountains and adventure. This time, however, we were in Denver for the entire week, and only saw the mountains from a distance a few times (they were covered in clouds nearly the entire time as well). That Friday, the day before we had to head back to Kansas, Scott was finally done with all of his obligations (and relieved after having a successful interview), and we had no plans until that evening. Since we hadn't really seen the mountains yet, we spontaneously decided to at least drive to Estes Park to get some mountain air for one afternoon.

It had been rainy all week, and was forecasted to be cloudy and rainy on that day as well. The mountains on the drive to Estes were so incredibly green and magical with the clouds low and dense, swirling around with the breeze; it was like a dream. Despite the incredible beauty with the rain and fog, we were pretty excited when the clouds broke to show off some of the mountains surrounding Estes after we arrived. The sun warmed things up pleasantly as well, making for a perfect afternoon. 

We grabbed lunch at one of our favorite Estes spots, and then wandered around some of the shops, trying to decide what to do with the rest of our day. Scott has a minor obsession with Longs Peak, so we decided to drive up to a lookout area to check it out before heading to Boulder for dinner. 

Unfortunately there was a patch of clouds that was hovering around the peak, never breaking up enough to allow us to catch a glimpse. We stood and watched for a while as they moved past, but the clouds were dense over the mountain and the Diamond and summit area never were visible. I took a few pictures, but then mostly photographed Scott as he looked on. (I think he looks like he belongs in a Barbour add in these images.) 

We then headed back to Boulder, via a bit of a random, backroads way. It brought us down some narrow, windy roads past some tiny little towns, all through dense fog and rain. It was beautiful and dreamy, though admittedly I wasn't the one driving, which was probably fairly stressful. 

This fall I will be moving to the Denver area, and am so very excited to be only a short drive from sites like these. Now to find a job and place to live (does anyone out there need a photographer or live-in nanny??).

Happy Monday all!