Monthly Archives: November 2008
Black Friday
Canon 40D * EF-50mm f/1.8 * ISO 100 * 1/100 second * f/1.8
This is dedicated to all of you who get up early to shop for the “good deals” and fight the crowds. For me I will be putting up my Christmas lights and enjoying the day at home. 
My Dad
I’ve been focusing on scanning slides lately from a box I’ve had in my closet. As I started to look at the slides I noticed that there were quite a few of my dad when he was young. This particular photo was taken in 1961 when my dad was twenty. I don’t know the location yet but I”m sure there is a good story to be told, the road doesn’t look like one that would have a gas station near by.
I’m in the process of putting a photo book together for him for Christmas. I’m pretty sure he hasn’t looked at these slides for many years so I’m hoping it will bring back some good memories and hopefully give me an opportunity to document more about his youth (and find out more about this hat)
The Game
I’m not a big football fan but tomorrow is the game of the year around here, BYU vs Utah. On my way to work this morning I noticed that people were displaying flags and stickers on their cars of the team who they think will win. When I parked my car I saw these plates and couldn’t resist taking a photo.
Canon 40D * EF-24-105mm f/4.0L * ISO 400 * 1/400 second * f/4
I also couldn’t resist taking the photo of the UTES helmet. A co-worker has it displaying on his desk. To even things out I would have included any BYU memorabilia but I couldn’t find any around my office. I planning on watching the game but don’t really have a strong opinion who to root for.
Canon 40D * EF-24-105mm f/4.0L * ISO 400 * 1/5000 second * f/4
A Little Compliment Goes a Long Way
My wife and I started a ritual with our kids to help motivate them to keep a clean room. When they make an effort to make their beds and have a clean room we put this dog and the ribbon that says “Clean Room Award” on their beds. It’s amazing to me how well this works and motivates them to keep a clean room.
At my last job, a project I was on had a large team of twenty five. In our weekly status meeting a member of the group that was awarded this dog and a jar of candy would pick one person in the group that had a positive influence on them during that week. They would then recognize a team member and pass the gift to them the following week. The goal was to make sure everyone in the room would have the opportunity to get recognized for something they did to improve the project or to make a difference. It always made me feel good when I received the award and that someone was thankful for something I had done.
What’s my point for today’s post, if you like a photographers work give them a compliment. A sincere compliment, not something like “nice shot”. 
Motivation
I received news today from my work that I was the winner in three out of five categories in our yearly photo contest. We were only allowed to enter in three categories, I had a hard time narrowing it down to just three photos so I had my wife make the final decision for me.
The timing for the news couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ve been in a rut lately and haven’t felt that my work is inspiring. Getting word that people like your work is a great motivator, it has taught me a valuable lesson today. For quite a while now I have been a “casual observer” of other photographers work. By casual observer I mean quickly looking through their work and moving on to the next post in my RSS reader. Well, I’m going to be changing a few things. My goal it to let others know when their work is inspiring to me and hopefully it will keep them motivated to spread the word to others and hopefully eventually back to me.
A buddy of mine Rich Legg posted on his blog last week an article called “Blogging Motivation“. He discusses receiving emails from his readers and how it motivates him to continue sharing his passion for photography.
If you have a passion for photography please let others know if their work is inspiring to you.
The Forgotten
Canon 40D * EF-70-200mm f/4.0L * ISO 400 * 1/250 second * f/7.1
No Trespassing
Canon 40D * EF-24-105mm f/4.0L * ISO 400 * 1/1000 second * f/4
NewWest.net Featured Image Nov 4
One of my images is being featured on the front page of the New West Network online magazine. Thanks NewWest.net!
The image used: In the Eyes
Visit their Flickr group at www.flickr.com/groups/newwest/
Antelope Island Bison Roundup: Recap
Saturday’s Photowalking Utah event was great. It was held at Antelope Island in Syracuse Utah. We had about 35+ photogs attend.
The rangers were giving the 700+ bison their health checks. They would use old Ford Bronco’s to round them up into pens in small groups. The rangers would then feed the bison down a long corridor and eventually to the pen where veterinarians and volunteers were there to assist tagging, drawing blood and reading a micro chip in their neck.
The bison were held in place with a nose ring so they wouldn’t move around in the pen and hurt themselves. When the rangers would released the gate the bison would rear up and come running out of the shoot.
The event reminded me of my youth when we would give our cows their health checks, cut off their horns and brand them. These guys were a bit more sophisticated but the smell of the dirt and working with animals is what brought back some fun memories.
One of the things I really like about the Photowalking Utah events is meeting new people and talking about photography. I’m always amazed what a camera will do to spark up a conversation with a total stranger.
Check my flickr set here, be sure to go to the Photowalking Utah site for the next event which will be announced soon.
