Weighing In

With less than 10 minutes to spare anglers lined up to weigh in their catch at Derby Headquarters for the annual Great Meredith Rotary Ice Fishing Derby on Meredith Bay.

If their sizable weight passed muster they work their way through registration line

and get posted to the "wall".  Seven different species hold a spot for the top catches over the weekend event bringing spectators from all over the state to see who will take top honors.

For young Wyatt, his white perch caught in the wee hours Sunday morning held its ground throughout the day earning him top spot with a personal badge of honor along with some cash.  Thinking he'll be an ice fishing enthusiast for life!

The top seven finishers were tossed into a bucket with anticipation as three names were drawn for the big prizes of the weekend.

Josh was elated as his name was pulled for the top prize and received congratulations from his "fishing buddies" for that Rainbow Trout that netted him 15K.  Not a bad weekend of fishin'  

See you next year at the fishing hole.


enjoy,

k

See The World

enjoy,

k

Bounced Off Ideas

Set up a quick lighting scenario.  With my main lighting coming from behind.  Fill light was set up using a bounce card (large white mat board)  placed over my lens to bounce all that light back at me.   It certainly made for a soft wrapping light - but honestly I would never shoot this way as I would be placing a large blocking piece between me and my subject ~ not at all engaging with my subject.  It's bad enough that I feel my face is always behind the camera and lens when I'm making portraits.  But to have an additional blockage separating us just doesn't work for me as a photographer.

Good learning exercise ~ chalk it up to experience ~  placed in the "not one of the best ideas" pile!

enjoy,

k

Turning a Century

I was asked to photograph a milestone for Helen - her 100th birthday celebration.  It was kept a surprise and celebrated one day before her actual birthdate.

…. an afternoon of sharing laughs and wearing party hats!

Surrounded by family and friends.  It was an absolutely lovely and

…..feisty afternoon

Happy Birthday to you, Helen!


enjoy,

k

Sweet Taste of Spring

I love New Hampshire traditions ~ maple sugaring being one of them.  

The tapping of trees to extract their sap.  

Then boiling it down in large quantity to produce a sweet syrup.

It's a process of many steps and the final output is small in scale.  

But it is one of things in life that is worth every single drop.

  

A search around the yard to pick out the maple trees.

Once found, a small hole is drilled

…and a spigot hammered in.

This is a family effort with each member having fun through the process.

Within moments the sap begins to flow allowing Julia to catch a few drops before her dad places the bucket on the tree.

As I look around the yard I see gray appendages - but in my mind I'm tasting their sweetness.

Tree Tapping ~~ Lip Smacking  ~~  good old fashioned fun!

enjoy,

k

BOLDLY GO

One Word ~ BOLD

The first thing that came to my head was Superman and …..boldly go where no man….. blah blah blah.    Well, of course the next thing to pop into my head was the fact that those words were from Star Trek.  Didn't matter though because my mind was already set into motion on a Superman theme and I was standing firm.  So then I needed to figure out how and what I'm going to shoot for Superman.  I searched for phone booths online and low and behold I came up with a backdrop of a old style phone booth.  Once I had that I reached out to my friend Elaine and she was game to come over and have some fun.  Heck she didn't even ask what my "word" was ~ that's trust!

We went over the concept and she got into character and quite honestly nailed it!  It's a fun photo but more importantly it's just as much, if not more about the time we spend together and the conversations we share.   We support each other not only in good times but in times of distress when friends are exactly what you need.

So the backdrop didn't get taken down over the course of a week and I had a shoot cancellation…. just enough time to bring out my inner Clara Kent and have a go with the phone booth.

I'm finding it's a step by step process to build a lighting setup.  First light I set was to illuminate the phone booth.  Gridded beauty dish to cast just enough light onto the background highlighting the "changing room".

Second light was an ice light gelled blue set up directly behind "Clara" for a blue, nightly cast on the wall and giving separation from the dark alley.

Final light was a strip soft box with a grid to highlight Clara's quick exit from the alley ~  and lastly threw in the "street" lamp for fun.

Mission accomplished  ….time to head back to the newsroom!


enjoy,

k

When Life Plays A Good Song

…..Dance

enjoy,

k

Spot O' Tea

The Games People Play ~ Unique vocabulary in a friendly game of Curling "Bonspiel" over at the Gilford Ice Rink.

Curling stones "rocks" made from tea pots filled with cement "slide" down the "sheet"  ~  "Keen Ice"

Greeted by "sweepers" down in the "house" trying to pull the stones in or out of the "button"

Good ol' winter fun at the Rink!

enjoy,

k

RAIN ~ Shed A Little Light

An interesting race last evening to be sure.  The pouring rain caused delays and downtime.  I looked over to the empty chairs on the lift and I saw a photo.  I was patient and waited - hoping to see someone sitting in a chair.  No luck but I still made a photo that I liked.  It spoke the mood of the environment on this evening.  The mood of the racers and workers was a different story as it always is with this group.  Committed and dedicated - like a family.

As I was making this photograph it brought back a fear that I've had ever since I've been skiing (we're talking many decades here)  ~ the fear of falling out of the chair.

Now as I look at this photo I realize that it would be much worse if I didn't step up to get on.

enjoy,

k

Rigging To Sail

Received a phone call this morning from a friend   "...there's a bunch of ice boats launching from Ames Farm beach you interested in heading over?"

Donned my warm, winter gear and went off to see what was happening.

Ames Farm Inn in Gilford is a great summer vacation spot - keeping the traditional "olden days" feel with a cluster of cabins dotted along the waters' edge.  Not a place that is open for visitors throughout the winter months.

On this day a group of sailors from the New England Ice Yacht Association took up residence for a day of ice sailing.  With the wind relatively calm I found a laid back intention as the group rigged their sails.

Temperatures were tolerable and the warmth of the sun could be felt as adjustments and connections were made.

Sailboats stood at the ready for the breeze to build.

This gave me the opportunity to chat with these folks about their boats and gear.  Here Phil explains the apparatus around his neck.  A hand made ice pick device that would assist him in the event that the ice falls thin giving an extra grip to get him to dry ground.  He sits on the edge of the boat he built back in 2008 or so.

Jack hailing from Falmouth hoists his sail with the anticipation of an afternoon of friendly competition on the ice.  Too busy to travel during the summer months due to his work schedule at a marina on the Cape he enjoys these winter getaways to destinations unexplored.

So many generations of memories from this pavilion located at the center of Ames Farm Inn on Lake Winnipesaukee.  I've included it as an interesting foreground to look out to the folks enjoying her shores during our frozen months.

With a skip in his step this sailor heads out into the bay to catch some wind.

On this day the "wind factor" was fairly sparse.  But it didn't seem to deter the jubilance of this group.  It's just like sailing with no wind in the summer.  You've still had the opportunity to spend a beautiful day on the lake with good friends!

enjoy,

k

Sweet Heart

2 HEARTS

1 LOVE

BE

MINE

This brings Josh Grobin's song to mind

You Raise Me Up

SWEET!

k

Exhilaratingly Cold

Of course, this week I've been spending a whole lot of time doing outdoor shoots.  Temps hovering in the lower single digits again today with a stiff wind.  Still I wouldn't want to miss out on watching Tom during the Carnival Race at Dartmouth.

At 2:08:10……   lookin' good!

at 2:08:11…. on One Wild Ride!

Hung in there to keep on the course and finish.
Ski Racing at its best!

On these cold days I find myself trying to stay warm by giving myself challenges.  Keeps me on my toes ~ which helps them to stay a little bit warmer  ;)

My thought was to play with the chairlift in the background while racers made their way through the slalom course.  Like so many scenarios in life you're aware of the low probability for success from the get go.  But even still I felt it was worth a try and once committed I'm one to stay the course.  There were many obstacles   ~~ empty chairs   ~~ wrong place wrong time  ~~ disengagement   ~~ bad timing

I'm not one to give up ~ and that was true on this day and I managed to squeak a handful of decent images out of the fray…

...making the connection with all the players

By the time the girls were set to run the cold had started to take over my extremities.
So I went for straight on explosive expression.

 No fair weather folks here ~  way to hang tough!


enjoy,

k

I LOVE My Job!

Like so many people in the world I love my job.  Each and every time I head out with my camera I find a renewed excitement for what it is I do.  I make pictures - sounds like an easy job.  But along with making pictures comes a responsibility to produce your best work on every given day.  I'm not saying that I think my work is "the best work" out there.  But one thing I can definitely say is that I go about each day with a sound resolution to do the best I am able.  

This morning started with coverage of the NH Primary.  I visited three towns and photographed the voting process in our small part of New Hampshire.  Visited some old friends and talked with new acquaintances.  One of the things I love about Editorial work is getting out into our community.

Another important part of my business is portraiture.  Something I truly enjoy as I'm able to get a bit more creative in the process of making photographs - rather than the stricter guidelines of editorial work.

On this day I was photographing dear friends.  Deb and her niece Michelle.  All families have their struggles and I'm a believer that no family is immune to them.  It's how we handle those struggles that makes us not only who we are but how the world sees us.

I love the playfulness of this series of photos.  But more importantly I love the confidence and love that shines through on each frame.  This was one of those sessions that made me light up inside.  Struggles put aside, the music turned up and a little shimmy in our step!  Just a delightful afternoon…..

Love you ladies ~ you rock!

enjoy,

k