Kara and Jen, Trash the Dress

"Trash the Dress" is a fun way to make use of that wedding dress, though you need not trash it.  Kara, our friend Jen, and myself all went to Texas recently and I asked her to drag along her wedding dress, and Jen brought hers just for the heck of it.  We had a lot of fun out behind the barns on some old Chevrolet farm trucks.   Here are a few of the best ones:

This is one of my favorites of all time, it is now my wallpaper!

Now, a serious one:

David Tougaw's Senior Pictures

What a good idea!  Take pictures out in Ponca!  Any excuse I can get to go to Ponca.  I have known David and his family a long time, which made the pictures that much more fun.  So, here are a few of my favorite pictures of a very photogenic young man:


Here is David just checking out a leaf...

The off camera flash makes him really stand out.

Senior Bling Bling.

What a handsome young man!

And just for fun!

And, for those interested, here is the behind the senes, that is, yet again, Kara holding the reflector!  Thanks Sweetheart!

Greers Ferry Lake, Sugar Loaf Mountain

We took off for a weekend of camping, taking pictures, and general being together.  By we I mean Kara, Orli, and myself. Greers Ferry was created, like most lakes around here, by damming a river.   In the middle of the lake is Sugar Loaf Mountain, accessible only by boat, (or in our case Kayak).  Perfect place to take sunset pictures.

The next morning I woke up and took sunrise pictures from our campsite:








Here are a few more from that shoot, just for fun!

Kara was having a blast-

October 12, 2009 - Emerald Dahozy - Behind the Picture

I decided to give you a peek into the creation of the pictures of Emmy from my October 10th post.  Notice the off camera flash that my wife is holding, that is what makes the picture so balanced.  Hope you enjoy!

October 10, 2009 - Emerald Dahozy

This young lady is competing in the Miss Indian World competition and asked me to take her entry picture.  How fun is that?  She is a friend of mine and a real firecracker.  To get this photo we hiked to the top of a local rock formation.  She was about 10 ft. away and my wife* was lighting her with an off camera flash.  Emmy was a real trooper, hiking and climbing in her traditional regalia!

Here is one more, it really shows her personality!

*And a special thanks to my wife who, time and time again, show me so much love and support!  You are amazing!

September 16, 2009 - The Balloon Festival

Strangely enough, our little town here in Arkansas has a balloon festival where people come from all over with their huge hot air balloons.  A lot of fun for a photographer!

September 11, 2009 - Peru!

I had the experience of a lifetime in the most beautiful place on earth!  Absolutely wonderful place, great food, but best of all, the people!  I had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time with the locals, and that changed my life more than anything!  So, here are a few pictures of this experience.



The Ashaninka's are a jungle tribe whose main income is coffee.  My kind of people!  So warm, so hospitable.  But then again, it's Peru!  Who isn't??



You might want to click on this one and enlarge it for the full scale of the picture.  This is a suburb of Lima known as Chosica. I took this from the roof of my friend Miguel's house.  These are just the foothills of the mountains.  Before it was all said and done I would be hanging out at 15,000 feet.




These are two Ahaninka boys that are about to participate in a dance.  Actually, I danced with them too.  They didn't know the "running man", but they caught on to the "sprinkler"!




Upon arriving in the city of Ayacucho, high in the mountains, we were greeted by this traditional brass band.  I am glad that the story doesn't end there, because we celebrated the dedication of one of their churches by marching in a parade around the city!  What a fun adventure!  I have way more to show you, and if I can get around to it, I plan on posting more in the coming days!

6-03-09 - Perdido Key

This picture was taken while camping on Perdido Key off the coast of Florida.  It was so much fun!

5-14-09 -Taylor's Window

This is my friends son.  This little guy waits at the window everyday for his daddy to come home.  I was so excited to test my new FL50 Remote flash.  Pictures look so much better with dramatic lighting.  

When you have a model with the right stuff and good lighting, viola!  Sure, one side of his face is dark, but until I but a second flash unit (or took the time to set up my reflector), I will be creating dramatic art pieces.

5-8-09 - Virginia Beach

The water was cold!  So, I stuck to taking pictures.  This is the pier at Virginia Beach, it is a panorama of about 4 pictures.

But this one is my favorite!  Mainly because it is probably one of the only pictures that I have taken where I didn't see a need to do ANY Photoshop work! So here it is completely unadulterated!  This panorama consists of about 15 pictures put together.

5-1-09 - The Pier

At the beautiful Sky Top Resort in the Pokono Mts. of Pennsylvania. There were little piers like this spaced around a gorgeous lake.  Notice the Silky water.  I achieved this by inversing a highpass filter with the blending mode set to overlay.  Usually used to smooth skin, I used it to "silkify" the water!

4-19-09 - Longhorn Bull

Taken at beautiful Garrett Creek Ranch.  My sweet wife said, "He would make a beautiful rug!"  I think I like him as living powerful beast!  Our guide took us right up to this guy in a golf cart.  I laid down on the grass to get this shot.

4-18-09 - Bike Trail

No, this is not heaven it's Texas.  But I felt so fortunate to be here.  I actually followed a dog that lives at Garrett Creek Ranch into the back country on a bike.

I spent a good amount of time out here with "Ranger", my doggie guide.  One of the perks of the ranch are the bikes provided for the guests use.

2-23-09 - Compton Cabin

The beautifully rugged area known as the  Ozarks provides many great photo opportunities.  This area in particular is special to me because I grew up hiking in the Compton Arkansas area, where this cabin is located.  Who knows how long it will be around.

Ice Tree Bird 1/28/09

We just had a major ice storm which is for the most part bad news.  On the bright side, it is a photography cornucopia.  The birds were very willing subjects, most had ice on their wings, so they let me creep up and take pictures.

From the Roof 1/19/09

The sky was on fire last night, so I grabbed my camera and a ladder and hopped on the roof.  Pretty cool effect.  I exposed for the sky then used curves to bring the houses back.

My Beauty 11/7/09

I just ordered my lighting and muslin kit for home and had the opportunity to start out with the most beautiful model, my wife. She was so good to let me take up the living room for a few days, taking pictures of whoever happened to pass in front of the muslin.  

Dreamy Park 1/3/09

This park is in the small town of Wilmar, Minnesota.  I got up really early to get some pictures, but i was not finding anything really compelling.  Then on the way out I saw these trees lined up nicely with great morning light.

Resting Place 1/2/09

Halfway up Skyline Mountain on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, there is this otherworldly collection of twisty trees and ferns.  Almost a Tolkien setting. This is where we rested before trying to make the summit.

Cross in the Cemetery 1/1/09

I thought I would start out the new year right with a picture I took in New York.  This is actually a statue of a cross with a little girl hanging on to it.  To me it was a very moving picture of what it takes to actually live for Christ.

*Note: It was pointed out to me that I probably should have said the little girl is hugging the cross.  Hanging on the cross means something entirely different, something that would not make for a good statue.

Lonely Shack 12/31/08

My father-in-law actually stopped the big ol' truck so I could take this.  Pretty supportive move.

The Lizard and the Comanche 12/30/08

Here is another shot of the Green Lizard, this time with his partner, the old Jeep Comanche.  It was in the shadow of these two warriors that I actually asked my father in law if I could marry his daughter.

The Green Lizard 12/29/08

This old truck, called "The Green Lizard" has been in service for many decades on my father in-laws farm.  It is parked in the animal pen behind the barn.  My father in-law swears it'll run, but I haven't yet seen it in action.

Road Home 12/28/08

Kara was so good to let me get stop and take pictures in the middle of nowhere.  We sacrificed good time for good pictures.  I really like the color of the wheat fields with the bright blue sky combined with an endless road.

7-9-09 - A Day in Eureka

I took these pictures last weekend in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  Rather than landscapes, I focused on people because, in my opinion, that is the most colorful detail in Eureka!

And the grand finale...