Oh my, I am excited to share these images! These two precious babes are my twin nieces. I was finally able to meet them for the first time when I was home in Minnesota a month ago, and my heart was filled to overflowing. We decided to do a quick photo session while I was there, and even though it was really simple and short, I am so glad we took the time.
portrait
Mills Lake Adventure
Yikes; it has been almost two months since my last post. I'd like to say that I waited to work on these so that when the early summer heat (I start to melt when it gets over 85 degrees) started to kick in I would have a way to daydream about cooler days. But in reality, my busy schedule and heavy editing load at work makes it difficult and not very appealing to edit at home. I have had a few little breaks however, and finally was able to edit some images from this past winter.
On an early morning in the middle of January, Scott and two of our friends, Katie and Ben, packed up our gear and headed to Rocky Mountain National Park for a day of ice climbing near Black Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. We planned to skin up (using skis with strips that attach to the bottom to allow you to ski uphill) to our climbing destination, spend the day climbing on the ice, and then ski back down to the car.
Unfortunately, the conditions that morning were not exactly ideal. The winds were blowing around 60 miles an hour, with temperatures well below zero and some light snow mixed in for good measure. We decided to head towards the climbs despite the weather, and set off skinning up the mountain. This was the first time I had skied in the back country, and only my third time skiing in the big mountains at all, which made the day even more interesting for me.
After a few hours of skinning we decided to stop and eat lunch in a somewhat sheltered spot in the forest. The sun managed to poke through slightly once or twice while there, and we got a tiny break from the wind as well. We boiled snow to make water for our instant noodles, stumbled around in the extremely deep snow, and just tried to keep warm as we made our lunch.
After refueling with some instant noodles and granola bars, we popped our skis back on and continued up. We encountered quite a few people coming down the mountain that looked haggard from the weather, and let us know that they wouldn't recommend going all the way to where we were hoping to. One man told us that he had been completely blown over by the wind on one of the lakes, so I was fairly intimidated at that point.
When we got higher up, and the trees started getting thinner, the wind became even stronger. The visibility was extremely low at times, and standing upright was difficult when the big wind gusts came through. We reached a point where it was particularly bad and all decided it would be best to bail and head back to the car.
After making the decision that we should head back, we opted to go down the main (and smoother) trail, instead of the "shortcut" that we had used on the way up. Before beginning our descent we had to stop and rip off the skins on our skis, and prepare our skis for the downhill portion of the trip. The wind was brutal at the spot we stopped at, with snow whipping our faces relentlessly. It was so windy that Scott had to stand and brace me as I clipped into my skis, since every time I tried to stand on one leg to do so I was getting blown over.
We did manage to get down safely, despite my poor skiing skills, and were very glad to get in the car with the heaters blasting. The guys had some nice ice formations on their beards, a testament to the frigid temperature.
Next time: More winter adventure photos (this time a successful ice climbing day). Be sure to check back soon (I promise my next post will not take 2 months to publish)!
Mount Bierstadt (Documentation Of A Hike)
The final day of our camping trip to Guanella Pass was spent hiking up Mount Bierstadt. It was my second fourteener in two months (which I thought could be the start of a trend, but unfortunately was not), and I was excited to check this peak off my list.
The day started off with an absolutely stunning sunrise, with colors and light that were unreal. We were still in the parking lot at that point, gearing up for the hike, so I grabbed some quick shots before we got started.
The hike itself was a lot different than the other few fourteeners I have hiked/attempted. It begins in an alpine marsh, with tangled willows all around. The light continued to be amazing as the sun rose higher, and the frost melting off the grass caught the light in the most perfect way.
We even walked through a small flock of ptarmagin, which I had never seen before. They were already in full winter mode, with their white coats and feathery legs. Their ability to blend into the alpine landscape is amazing, and they just stood and quietly watched us as we (well, mainly just me; Scott was doing fine) struggled on up.
We reached the summit under great conditions, albeit a little on the cold side. The clouds were amazing, and as is always the case on top of 14,000 foot peaks, the view was spectacular. Unfortunately I was feeling pretty rough at that point, and didn't quite appreciate everything as I wish I would have. In fact, because I was feeling so miserable, I only took a few photos while we were up there. We spent some time at the summit to enjoy the view, and then started the long hike down.
And, last but not least, a photo of me and Scott at the summit! I don't usually post these types of photos here, but I figure getting to the summit of fourteener number two warrants sharing a photograph of us at the top. Mount Bierstadt was a struggle for me, but this guy is so incredibly encouraging and patient, and stuck with me through the end. I am so glad I pushed through it and made it to the top, and cannot wait to check some more off the list this spring/summer!
Next up: something completely different. Last October I traveled to a town on the border of Kansas and Colorado to join a friend in exploring her family's old, and now abandoned, home. We were attacked by birds (sort of), witnessed lots of dead critters, and also documented a really unique and beautiful place. Be sure to check back to see what I'm talking about!
And, don't forget, feel free to share via the links below, and leave a comment to say hello! Thanks everyone!
Hiking Longs Peak
Hello again, everyone! I'm still completely buried under photographs, but slowly and surely I am getting through them, and will hopefully be caught up some day soon.
Not long before I moved out to Denver myself (well over a month ago at this point), I came out for an interview, as well as to visit Scott. That weekend, we spontaneously decided to drive to Rocky Mountain National Park in order to hike up part of Longs Peak. We had no intention of getting to the summit that day, as we had a pretty lazy and slow start to the day, and instead just wanted to get up to see The Diamond.
It ended up being a perfect day for a hike; just warm enough, light winds, and without the typical afternoon storm. It was cloudy when we first started our hike, but when we were within view of The Diamond the clouds broke, creating some incredible light for us.
Next up: a break from images of mountains, with a flashback to my time as a nanny. Expect lots more mountain posts after that, though!
Have a happy Monday!
Guanella Pass
I have been living the Colorado life to the fullest so far (climbing every weekend, hiking. including hiking the tallest fourteener in Colorado, a camping trip, and lots of great beer and food) which has kept me quite busy and kept me away from my computer for the most part. This Sunday we finally had a somewhat lazy, plan-free day, which gave me a chance to get a new post up here.
These images are from over a month ago, when Scott's Dad and I helped to move Scott out to Denver. It was a short trip, but we wanted to get at least a brief taste of the mountains while we were there. We ended up driving up to Guanella Pass, which always provides stunning views. The wildflowers were blooming all over as well, which made it extra pretty.
Next up (which I still have to edit), are images from a hike up part of Longs Peak. So check back soon for lots more alpine views!
Flashback Friday: Smoke Screens
This week's Flashback Friday is once again focused on self-portraits. As I hinted at in last week's post, I used to photograph self-portraits on a very regular basis. Self-portraits were hugely important even after finishing the 52 week project and outside of the Forward series. So, that said, I have loads of them that either haven't been shared at all before, or at least have not be shared here. I'll be sure to not just post self-portraits in these Flashback Friday posts from now on, but I do want to share these two images, titled Smoke Screens, as they are relevant to my life currently (and will probably remain so).
I would love to be able to shoot a similar concept at some point, though finding an empty, light filled room, where I can light smoke bombs, is rather tricky. If anyone happens to have such a space and would let me use it, that would be wonderful. :)
And on that note, happy Friday everyone! Have a safe, and festive Fourth of July!
Untitled (Self-Portrait)
in Portraits
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.
Dreary Fishing
*I have been a bit MIA here the past week or so. Last week I celebrated my birthday, the commencement ceremony for my MFA, and left for a trip to Denver; all within three days! Between finishing up things for the semester, preparing for my parents' visit for graduation, and packing for my trip, blogging and editing photographs took a back seat. I'm still out in Denver, but had some downtime this afternoon and thought I would start to get caught up, at least slightly. Hopefully things will get back to normal next week!
A few weeks ago (I guess it's been nearly a month at this point), Scott and I celebrated two years together! We had decided to go fishing and have a picnic, but unfortunately the weather wasn't exactly ideal. It was a chilly, windy, and drizzly day. The picnic ended up taking place in Scott's car, while we shivered from being out in the wind, and we didn't get so much as a bite while fishing. A less than ideal afternoon, but I love spending time with this man no matter what it involves.
I realized while we were out there that I hadn't created an in-camera multiple exposures since shooting for my thesis work back in January, and so I decided to try one just for fun. It ended up turning out better than expected, and I kind of adore this image now.
Happy Wednesday everyone!
Flashback Friday: Windy Pasture
Welcome to the third installment of my Flashback Friday series! Today's post comes from September of last year. Scott and I went to his parents' farm to do some dove hunting on the first weekend of the season. It ended up being an absurdly (though typical for Kansas) windy evening, with the grass of the pasture whipping around us. There weren't many dove near us, so I ended up photographing more than looking for birds.
This week essentially marks the end of the semester for me, which is also the end of my graduate school career, and my time in school as a student in general. It is hard to process that this fall won't involve me getting ready for classes, for the first time in 23 years essentially. It does mean that I may have slightly more time for photographs (hopefully), so I can finally get to some projects and images that I haven't had time to get to yet.
Also, I will be cutting the prices of prints this weekend, so if you are interested in purchasing any, this weekend would be a great time to do so! All money from prints currently goes to help fund my trip the the United Kingdom this summer; any and all help I receive would be greatly appreciated. You can also donate and receive a 4x6" print via the link below.
Happy weekend to you all!
learning to fly fish.
in Portraits
Scott has been teaching himself how to fly fish lately. Basically any free time that he has, when the weather is decent, is spent at some body of water trying to improve his cast, and catch fish of course. I usually tag along as an excuse to be outside and spend time with him.
This particular night we were a bit limited on time, so we went to a park in Manhattan that has a little fishing pond. The light that evening was beautiful, so I sat down next to Scott as he re-tied a fly onto his line, and photographed the lovely golden light illuminating him.
Watching a fly cast is really a beautiful thing. It is very rhythmic, and sort of mesmerizing as the line whips back and forth. Fly fishing is also a really aesthetic type of fishing in my opinion, and lately I have pretty much stopped fishing when I join him, and instead follow him around taking pictures.
As mentioned above, we have been fishing a lot lately. So, expect to see many, many more images from our fishing adventures soon!
Also, don't forget, prints are now for sale! All money from prints will currently go to helping pay for a short trip to the United Kingdom this summer. You can also donate (and receive a small print) by clicking the link below. Thank you for the support everyone!
Farm Life
in Travel
A few weekends ago Scott and I went to visit his parents on their farm in central Kansas. Their farm has become a bit of a muse of mine, and I posted lots of images from our many stays there on my old blog before I switched over (some of which you can see in various galleries here). Between the chickens, horses, barn cats, beautiful house, large pasture, and vast wheat fields, it is sort of a photographic heaven. They tend to get rather wonderful evening light there as well, though this time the sun ducked into the clouds almost as soon as I got outside to take photographs.
One of my favorite photographic subjects (as you've probably noticed if you have flipped through my portraits gallery), though perhaps a bit cheesy, is my man, Scott. It is partly because he's around me more than anyone else; partly because he puts up with me constantly taking pictures of him; and partly because, well, look at him.
I am also pretty obsessed with wheat fields, and this time of year they are an absurdly bright shade of green. It makes the landscape become like something from a dream, and I can never resist snapping away on my phone as we drive to his parents' house. Luckily his dad grows wheat as well, so right before we had to head back to Manhattan I ran out and grabbed a few images, despite the light being a bit lackluster.
I have plans for a new series of posts starting on Friday (to go beyond my current Monday and Wednesday schedule, in case you haven't caught on to that). So check back on Friday for something different!
Daffodils + Light
Just a simple and quick post today. I know I just recently posted photographs of flowers and light, but I have some more to share. When the light is this good, and I have daffodils on hand, how do you expect me to resist?
And finally, a single portrait from the evening as well; because my man is handsome and again the light was too perfect to resist. He was working on his fly fishing setup while I was running around chasing the light, and right when I thought I was done I turned around to notice the near perfect spotlight on his hat and face.
There will likely be more flowers in the coming posts, so hopefully you all don't get sick of them. I've also been trying to decide on some themes to my posts for certain days, so if anyone has any suggestions or requests for particular content types please leave a comment below to let me know!