To my friend Shawn

I'm a little late in posting this image. Shawn Gust had an exhibit in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho a few weeks ago, and I tried to get some images of people enjoying his art. This one struck me in particular.

Fortunate Sunrise

I was fortunate enough to get out to my jobsite before sunrise one morning. Even more fortunate to actually have my camera handy to take this shot.

Mr. Blotto: True Chicago Music

I have to send a shout-out to a band who, to me, are as much a part of the soul of Chicago as deep-dish pizza, center field ivy, or Mrs. O'Leary's cow. Mr. Blotto formed in the early 90's by a group of musicians that just wanted to jam together on off nights. Their sound is a combination of Southern Rock, Blues, and Jam Rock (think Allman Brothers meet Greatful Dead). It's difficult to choose a 'best' album from them because they are have a different feeling to them. Their most noted album is by far their 1996 release 'Bad Hair Day'. This album is a gem that contains their signature blues and southern rock (Dirty Woman Blues and Low Loretta), but they also throw you for a loop with a great gospel song 'Standing in the House', and even some Spanish 'La Dia De Pelo Malo'. But this album comes to life with 'Kiss me In the Morning' (my wedding song), 'Wishing You Well', and 'Any Kind of Lover'. I've owned this album for 10 years now, and I've had to purchase the CD twice because I've put so much wear on it (and I don't abuse my CDs)! But where this band really shines is live! Unfortunately, unless you live around the Chicago area, you don't have much of a chance to see them. They do tend to visit Denver about once a year (usually early December) for a two gig show. They do however release live albums often (usually annually) that are definitely worth checking out. Look for their 'Just Did It' series, which captures an entire show. Or they also release a 'Bootleg' series that is a 'best of' of individual songs performed throughout the year. Their HOMEPAGE contains updated news, concert schedules and a place where you can purchase all of their albums, t-shirts, and other Mr. Blotto gear. And they tend to update their MYSPACE page often with live cuts and videos from recent shows.

A chronology of my time on the ice

This series pretty much sums up the sport of Ice Fishing. When you lose your rod holder, it's time to go home.

Ice Fishing

I took some images today that made me happy! And I will share more before the weekend it through. I went ice fishing today for the first time in nearly 20 years (man, a statement like that makes a person feel old). And to be out on the ice felt so serene, so natural. I truly felt at home.

Music

Well, I was hoping to have some pictures to post this week, but I haven't been very happy with what I've been shooting. I'm working on some still life shots to frame for our game room, and they aren't quite working out. So I figured I'll finish the thought I got wrapped up with earlier this week.

Listening to Ladyhawk made me think of another Victoria, BC band that now calls Montreal home, Wolf Parade. Their 2005 album Apologies to the Queen Mary was produced by Modest Mouse front man Isaac Brock. And their sound is as creative and intense as one would imagine coming from an artist like Brock. The interesting thing about this band is their two front men. Lead singer (face of the band) and bassist Dan Boeckner lends his talents to easier-to-digest songs such as the gem 'Shine a Light' and 'Modern World'. He is definitely the 'energy' of the band. While my two favorite songs on this album, 'Ground for Divorce' and Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts' are led by back-up singer and keyboardist Spencer Krug.

Both men also have side projects. I've listened to Dan Boeckner's band Handsome Furs a few times, and my thought is take it or leave it. There is nothing too exciting going on there. Spencer Krug's side project Sunset Rubdown is an extension of the 'Indie' side of Wolf Parade. While creative and emotional, the sound seems to lack the soul that Boeckner brings to Wolf Parade's music. Please take a listen. I hope you enjoy Wolf Parade. And if you hear something in their side projects that I am missing, please inform me of that too. Enjoy!

More Music

As I finished my last post, I stumbled across a band I saw as an opening act for Tapes 'n Tapes last year in Seattle. The band is called Ladyhawk. They are a solid Rock band with a tight sound and great intensity. Songs to check out include 'The Dugout', 'My Old Jacknife', and 'War'.

Of couse, the sound of Ladyhawk also reminds me of another great 'lesser known' band.... You know what? I need to stop now, or I'll be at this all night. I can already see that I'll be visiting this thread often. Please check out the artists I've just mentioned, and check in soon for more.

Enjoy

New Thread: Lesser Known Musicians

Those who know me understand my great passion for music. It gets in my soul in a way nothing else does. So I'm going to dedicate some posts for up-and-coming, and lesser known musicians that excite me.
I've been fighting MySpace for years now. But I've recently discovered how great an outlet it is for discovering music. So the links I am including will more often than not reference the musicians' MySpace page.

The first artist I wish to introduce you to is Josh Ritter. I've been a fan of his music for about two years now. He is a local singer/songwriter from Moscow, Idaho. His lyrics are amazing. He can paint an image with his words as bright and vibrant as Paul Simon, and as abstract as Bob Dylan. Songs of note include 'To the Dogs or Whoever', 'Girl in the War', 'Thin Blue Flame', 'Good Man', 'Wings', and 'Kathleen'.

I hope to refine my methods within this thread soon. And I will definately be adding more threads to this topic. I hope you all enjoy.

Snow Day

Here are a couple of pictures from our Snow Day. Anyone who says "Dog's can't smile." has never seen a golden retriever play in the water (whether it be liquid or solid)!

The Hidden Wonders in Our Mistakes

Celeste and I took a walk to the park over the weekend to let our dogs run a little and test out the capabilities of our new G9 camera (see Snow Day). I stopped to take a few pictures of a tree that looked just stunning with the new snow. After about for or five shots, I noticed that the images were BLUE. The white balance was set to Tungsten. When I got home and looked at the image on my monitor, I was fascinated. I just cropped in on a few areas of the image, and this is what you see. No color corrections or other adjustments were made.

Cedar Trees

A slow day at work today alotted me the opportunity to leave early and go for a short hike. It also allowed me the chance to test out my new Canon G9 that Santa Claus delivered this year!

Day-Zee on the Couch

Our dogs are the subject of most of the photos that my wife and I take. We actually have an entire blog dedicated solely to them. I love this photo of my Golden Retriever 'Day-Zee'. I found her fast asleep one night on our couch, and I couldn't help myself. I held this shot 1/4" (I love my IS lens!) at f4 to focus solely on her face. I love the depth and texture of this shot.

Christmas in North Idaho

This is my inaugural blog post! We were greeted with a couple inches of snow one night before Christmas. The lighting outside was beautiful, and I wanted to see if I could capture some images. These are what I found. Aside from color corrections, no other edits were done.