A new month...

October's come to southcentral Montana...early mornings are crisp and cool, the days are sunny and warm. I'm still getting used to the fact that it doesn't rain here -- at least not much. The green valley and abundunt crops all owe their existance to plentiful irrigation. We shared our little part of heaven with a herd of black angus cattle for a few weeks, but they've been returned to their owner's pasture now and the air is quiet again.

I've been trying to sneak in a few more day trips to Yellowstone before the pass is snow covered and closed. While there are several ways to get there, my favorite remains the Beartooth Highway. If you haven't had the pleasure to travel to the top of a mountain range and drive along in the 10,000 feet plus altitude, you really must do it. You'll be treated to the kind of scenery that you can only imagine in your dreams and, except for mid-summer, you'll share the road with very few tourists. I should warn you though, there are some hairpin turns and steep drop-offs that may be a little hard on the faint-of-heart.

Be sure to stop at the rest stop...and take along a few nibbles of soda crackers or the like...the cute and friendly little chipmunks will take bits of food right out of your hand...but it's smarter to just lay them on the sidewalk and watch the little guys run out and get them, rather than taking a chance on being bitten. They are extemely photogenic, so be sure to get out your camera as well.

This is a shot from a trip we took last week to Mammoth (on the north side of Yellowstone) in search of the illusive rutting elk. It has been too hot for the rut to begin...so our efforts were only meagerly rewarded. We saw 4 bulls - this is the biggest one - and about 12 cows and calves in Mammoth, but no other elk on our trip. Buffalo have descended into the Lamar Valley and are everywhere is large herds. We were lucky enough to see 2 wolves near Slough Creek. It was magical to see them, but unfortunately they were too far away for my camera lens to capture.

A new month and a new state

Where has the summer gone? It's Friday, August 13th, a cloudy, rainy, cool day in Southwestern Montana. Just moved here a few weeks ago. Still living among boxes and looking for missing belongings. Trying to get my life back into some kind of order. Trying to find a few minutes every day to shoot. Needing to design new business cards and start networking in my new community to drum up some business.

I love Montana and all the newness it brings to my way of seeing the world around me. The wheat harvest is in full swing here which also brings bailing hay and straw. Though I've seen this happen from a distance most of my life, today I had the chance to see part of the process very up close when I walked over to a neighbor's field. Here's are a couple of today's photos.

I'm baaack!

Though I'm in the process of moving across the country, I thought I'd share a recent photo from a wedding I shot. A very important wedding. My niece married the love of her life. And it was not only beautiful, but fun. The groom used a radio controlled helicopter to get the wedding rings from the back of the church to the Pastor!

Here's a peak and Jamie and Jon's day.

Fort Scott, Kansas

These are from a pre- Civil War era military post in Southeastern Kansas. The top photo is of a house in the city of Fort Scott. It's one of two homes called Twin Mansions; they are used as Bed & Breakfasts today. The next photo is a barracks room - yes, the soldiers slept 2 men to each bed, meaning 2 on the top bunk, and 2 on the bottom bunk. The third photo is the Supply office. The bottom photo is he outside of one of the post buildings. They all are of a similar design.

I love historic old places - old military posts, ghost towns, small cities that have preserved their original buildings and charms. I could spend weeks in this little town with my camera!

Stormy Friday

Woke up to thunderstorms this morning. Heavy rain and lightning, but thankfully no hail.

It's late afternoon now and the sun's trying to peak out. Wishing for a nice weekend. Off

to catch up with a photographer friend and do some shooting, sightseeing and catching up.

Clouds...

I love clouds. I could lie on the ground and watch them float by for hours.

It's been 2 weeks...

It's been 2 weeks since I gave up my paycheck job. Miss the people.

I should have all kinds of time to shoot photos, but I fill my days up with administrivia.

I need to change that. I'm a photographer. I need to do photography work. I need to market myself to whomever will listen. This is not easy. But I didn't expect it to be. I did think that it would be easier to get a few clients right away. It hasn't been. Hmmmm....

This is a railroad car that was parked on a siding. Love the artwork. Talent wasted on a rail car that someone will sandblast and repaint eventually. Wonder how many people will see this artwork as the car travels across the country? Wonder who the artist was... where they live...

Where's the time gone???

It's been nearly a month with no word from me. I promise to do better.

My attention is turned to photography these days. No outside job to distract me. The flowers are blooming at the Arboretum, the days are warm and wonderful and charming little towns on the Kansas prairie are beckoning me to come out and shoot there.

For those close by, I heartily recommend a little Central Kansas town named Wamego.

Two wineries, old time architecture, friendly town-folk, good places to eat and no one breathing

down your neck to "move along" when you want to take a few photos.

Went up to Leavenworth, Kansas the other day and made a wonderful discovery. A chapel

built in 1893 that is still is use. It's styled after a Gothic cathedral in Great Britain according to literature on the place. It's a real gem complete with original stained glass windows. I recommend it to anyone just passing through. The Chapel of the Veterans is on the VA Medical Center grounds and is open daily. Here's a sample photo.

St. Patricks Day was quite a delight this year. No, I didn't go to the famous Kansas City St. Paddy's day parade or spend the evening swilling beer. I did throw one heck of a party...

actually it was my dear old Dad's 80th birthday. Invited a passle of his friends to his house, put together some refreshments and had a grand old time for about 2 1/2 hours. He deserves

it. Think he's a bit depressed about turning the big 8-0, but he's in pretty good shape for his age. His friends enjoyed seeing him and I think he enjoyed the party too... Here's a photo of

the birthday boy. He was a good sport about wearin' the silly green hat.

It's been too long since I stopped by my blog. Have been trying to organize my files and get ready for several local shows. Currently, my photos are in a local coffee shop. Two upcoming

art shows have presented themselves, 1 in June and 1 in July, so I'll have to get cracking on

printing and framing some photos.

Here's an old photo, but one I still love. I followed a bluegrass band around all summer in Missoula. One of their guitar players had a stroke last fall - I don't even know if they're still together or not. This is Jessie Brown's fiddle resting while they took a break.

Wow! Time is slipping away from me and the winter weather is really challenging my creativity. I'm trying to get some photos framed and ready for a month-long display at a local coffee house. The Visual Artists group I belong to will have paintings, photographs and mixed media art on display in Homer's Coffee Shop in downtown Overland Park, Kansas in March. If you're in the neighborhood, stop by and take a look.

Blessed with a chilly but sunny day here in the Midwest...the calm before the next snowstorm.

Got out with the hubby and camera today. Here's a couple of shots from our afternoon out.

Hallelujah! The weather's slightly warmer and we can get back outside some without looking like a Stay-Puff marshmallow man in our coats... This is a new technique I'm trying on some portraits I've recently done...I really like the look.

It's been way too long since I posted a message. So sorry.

Have been nearly snowed in here in the mid-west and we're enjoying our 2nd full week of near zero temperatures and wind chills near -20. There's just something wrong when Missoula, Montana is warmer than Kansas City! Nearly 20 inches of snow on the ground isn't helping.

The fascination of a proverbial winter wonderland and the anticipation of playing outside in it is wearing a little thin.

City services only plowed our subdivision a couple of times but it still requires my 4-wheel drive to maneuver to the main road. But, I whine too much...in no time it will be August and

over 100 degrees. Then I'll be wishing it were cool again.

This is a photo I took on Christmas Eve of frost on a very cold glass window.