Category Archives: Photography

Ridin’ the Rails with Shorty Backlog – Vol. 3

This concludes the photos of the few hours I spent with Shorty on the Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad back in July.


Riding the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

Ridin' the Rails with Shorty

I have many influences on my photography. It ranges from other artists to movies to television shows to friends to family. However, one of the most obscure influences on my photography is a book I was given as a child called simply TRAINS. I still have that book. It is a little worse for the wear and Karma chewed up the binding 15 years ago or so. I still crack it out and look through it now and again.

That is a little peek into my methodology.

Early Morning, April Four

Today is kind of a weird day. It is both the anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. It is also Equal Pay Day.

I don’t have a recent picture that really encompasses the importance of MLK. However, I do have a picture that can “celebrate” Equal Pay Day.


Women Matter

For those that don’t know, Equal Pay Day symbolizes how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year.

PARTICULARS

CAMERA: SONY SLT-A65V
ISO: 500
FOCAL LENGTH: 300mm
APERTURE: f/5.6
EXPOSURE: 1/500
DATE: 01-21-2017 – 12:07
LATITUDE: 41.59081°
LONGITUDE: -93.60524°
PHOTO ASSISTANTS: Gretchen, Layla, Evie, Shawn, Sara, and Jen
PHOTO EDITING SOUNDTRACK: “Money” by Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings from I LEARNED THE HARD WAY

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 81 – FACELESS PORTRAIT

FACELESS PORTRAIT is challenging, but still, a handful of hearty photographers gave it a whirl. But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about heart. You came to see the submissions:


WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - MIKE VEST
Mike Vest

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - SUZANNE BRANNEN
Suzanne Brannen

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - MICHELLE HAUPT
Michelle Haupt

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - STEPHANIE KIM
Stephanie Kim

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - KIM BARKER
Kim Barker

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

WEEK 81 - FACELESS PORTRAIT - ANGIE DEWAARD
Angie DeWaard

But enough dwelling on the past. Time to look to the future. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future! This week’s theme:


WEEK 82 - ANGRY
ANGRY!

ANGRY seems like a pretty straight forward easy theme. It should be easy to find somebody you know that is ANGRY. Or something that makes you ANGRY.

Personally, I’m somebody that people rarely see ANGRY, but I’m told I have a “look” when I’m ANGRY. I assume that this look is what I captured in the reveal photo above.

So get out there and get in touch with your inner Hulk. Incredible, or otherwise.

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nothing new to report. I’ll try to do better next week.

Want your own Photography 139 email subscription? Call, email, or text me and I’ll get you the hook up.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 GALLERY DIVISION

Sometimes people send me descriptions of their photos. I’ve never done anything with that information in the past. However, if you send me a description in the future, I will add it to your image in the Weekly Photo Challenge Gallery that houses all the submissions.

MESSAGE FROM THE ROUNDBALL ORACLES DIVISION

Tonight is the national title game and there are two people still alive in the pursuit to have their name put on the List of Immortals, next to other basketball greats like Running Wolf and that missionary guy from Taiwan.

Here is what you need to know to base your rooting interests tonight:

IF North Carolina (a fine academic institution COUGH! COUGH!) wins, Paul Golden is this year’s Roundball Oracles Champ!
IF Gonzaga (a school that nearly closed in the 90s) wins, Andree Jauhari is this year’s Roundball Oracles Champ!

I know who I’m rooting to win. (Hint: It involves which one it will cost me the least amount of money to ship the trophy to…)

Good luck gentlemen!

On the other side of the coin. Congratulations (I think) go out to Shannon Bardole (for the moment) for winning this year’s The Sara! The trophy awarded to last place adult that tried really, really hard. She edged out Jill Gorshe, Corey Faust (all that hockey must be going to his brain), and Laura Miller. Laura was close to clinching a repeat. However, South Carolina’s Final Four run gave her just enough points to best Shannon, Jill, and Faust in the final standings. Well played Laura!

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That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very angry Monday!

Desdamonad

Around Christmas I had the pleasure of doing some commercial photography for Jessica. Here is a photo from one of my favorite of her pieces:




Jessica has lots of great products. You can buy some here:



DesdamonaDoolittle


Many more photos from this photo shoot are in the chute as well!

PARTICULARS

CAMERA: Sony SLT-A65V
ISO: 1600
FOCAL LENGTH: 60mm
APERTURE: f/13
EXPOSURE: 1/5
DATE: 12-26-2016 – 12:05
NO GPS DATA RECORDED
PHOTO ASSISTANT: Jessica

One Burning Desire

Way back in September, Boone burned down a house. Here is one of my favorite pictures from that day:


Practice

Many more of these other pictures to come.

PARTICULARS

CAMERA: SONY SLT-A65V
ISO: 250
FOCAL LENGTH: 135mm
APERTURE: f/5.6
EXPOSURE: 1/250
DATE: 09-25-2017 – 14:46
LATITUDE: 42.05975°
LONGITUDE: -93.87573°
PHOTO ASSISTANT: Mom & Teresa
PHOTO EDITING SOUNDTRACK: Sports talk radio.