Category Archives: Angie

Alexis, Amy, Andy, Angie, Bill, Black & White, Boone FUMC, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Faust, Funk, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Still Life, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 420 – BLACK AND WHITE

September 25, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

It is the last collection of submissions for the month of September, so it is a good time to revisit the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE FAQ. I’ve noticed an uptick in small-sized submissions lately. It wouldn’t hurt to review the resolution FAQ if you haven’t looked at it lately.

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 10 photographers that participate regularly that have won a photography award of some kind.

Is this a competition?
NO.

Is there a limit to the number of submissions I can have each week?

Yes. That limit is 3. If you send me more than 3, I will post the first 3 that you send. I’m not trying to harsh your photography buzz, but any more than that starts to overwhelm the other submissions and it takes me about 5 minutes to take a picture from my inbox to code it on the website. So I have to manage my workload. This limit is tentatively scheduled to go down to 2 at the beginning of 2024. Unless there is a sudden big falloff in participants.

If you are going to submit more than one picture, I strongly urge you to choose completely different subjects for each submission. If you are submitting multiple pictures of the same subject, make sure that each picture is saying something unique.

If participation rates climb, that limit of 3 is subject to lower.

Can I send you several pictures and have you pick the best one?

No! No! NO! If those words come out of your mouth or your keyboard, I consider that to be a non-submission.

Do you ever question whether somebody’s submission fits the theme?

Meh. Only if I think somebody is clearly confusing this week’s theme with last week or next week’s theme. Otherwise, if the submission makes sense in your head, that is good enough for me. However, I would urge you to not try to fit your favorite subject into the theme. This isn’t a challenge to share a picture every week of your kid or your business or your pet. It is a challenge to take pictures of different things every week. Which isn’t to say subjects can’t be repeated, but you shouldn’t become reliant on the same ones.

Why can’t I submit after 11 AM on Mondays if the post doesn’t publish until 12:01 PM?

I go to lunch at 11 AM. I leave my office. I’m not near a computer. At 11 AM I hit “Schedule” and then I go throw food down my throat. 167 hours is more than enough time to send a submission. Okay, 166 hours and 59 minutes. You got me.

Do I have to wait until Monday morning to submit?

Absolutely not! In fact I appreciate the submissions that make it to me by Sunday evening. Makes the job of putting this together on Monday morning much easier!

Are there resolution requirements for submissions?

I won’t turn down submissions that are too small. I will probably ask you for a picture of greater resolution if it is really small. The typical 4 x 6 image posted to my website has a resolution of 1280 pixels x 853 pixels. While a 400 x 300 image might look okay on your phone, it looks like trash on a computer monitor. I prefer images that are at least 1000 pixels at their widest point, but don’t ban smaller pictures at this point.

What format should my submission be?

.JPG but .PNG also works.

If I write a description of my image will you include that in your post?

No. Photography is art that should stand on its own. Only exception is the SLICE OF LIFE theme. But if you let me know where the picture was taken, I will include that.

When will you start accepting suggestions for next year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE themes?

I will take suggestions only and ONLY in the comments sections of the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE posts the last week of October and the 1st week of November.

+++++++

BLACK & WHITE! Everybody knows that it is my favorite theme, but did a bunch of people love it as much as I do to make it a popular theme? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, September 18, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
2-Amy Peterson – 1 week
3-Ernie Redd – 1 week
4-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 2 weeks
5-Susanna Funk – 3 weeks (2)
6-Scott Degeneffe – 4 weeks (2)
7-Sabas Hernandez – 5 weeks
8-Willy McAlpine – 5 weeks
9-Mary Green – 7 weeks (3)
10-Mike Vest – 11 weeks
11-Sheri Fakhouri – 14 weeks
12-Monica Jennings – 15 weeks
13-Logan Kahler – 15 weeks
14-Nathanial Brown – 16 weeks
15-Jesse Howard – 16 weeks
16-Tamara Peterson – 19 weeks
17-Alexis Stensland – 24 weeks (3)
18-Mindi Terrell – 31 weeks (3)
19-Brandon Kahler – 55 weeks
20-Linda Bennett – 60 weeks (3)
21-Sarah Toot – 61 weeks (2)
22-Angie DeWaard – 65 weeks
23-Dawn Krause – 69 weeks (2)
24-Kim Barker – 75 weeks (2)
25-Joe Duff – 76 weeks (3)
26-Teresa Kahler – 87 weeks (2)
27-Carla Stensland – 87 weeks (3)
28-Micky Augustin – 89 weeks
29-Andy Sharp – 90 weeks
30-Bill Wentworth – 91 weeks
31-Cathie Morton – 95 weeks
32-Elizabeth Nordeen – 96 weeks
33-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 98 weeks
34-Kio Dettman – 100 weeks (3)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Kio Dettman (Rural Ogden, Iowa) – 101 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 99 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Jack Trice Stadium – Ames, Iowa) – 97 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Jack Trice Stadium – Ames, Iowa)

Cathie Morton (Des Moines, Iowa) – 96 weeks

Cathie Morton (Ames, Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 92 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 91 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 90 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ogden, Iowa) – 88 weeks

Carla Stensland (Sioux City, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Boxholm, Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 88 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa State University – Ames, Iowa)

Joe Duff (Houston, Texas) – 77 weeks

Kim Barker (Ames, Iowa) – 76 weeks

Dawn Krause (Cannes, France) – 70 weeks

Dawn Krause (Rome, Italy)

Dawn Krause (Koper, Slovenia)

Angie DeWaard (Scottsdale, Arizona) – 66 weeks

Sarah Toot (Baltimore, Maryland) 62 weeks

Sarah Toot (Baltimore, Maryland)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 61 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 56 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 32 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 25 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 20 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Galesburg, Illinois) – 17 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Princeton, Illinois)

Jesse Howard (Grimes, Iowa) – 17 weeks

Logan Kahler (Near Luther, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Logan Kahler (High Trestle Trail Bridge – Boone County, Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Ogden, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Monica Jennings (Ogden, Iowa)

Sheri Fakhouri (Elite Eye Care – Ankeny, Iowa) – 15 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Elite Eye Care – Ankeny, Iowa)

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 12 weeks

Mary Green (Holt, Michigan) – 8 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Albuergue in Foncebadón – Spain) – 6 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Niagara Falls, New York) – 6 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Boone County, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Carroll, Iowa)

Susanna Funk (Dallas County, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Houston, Texas) – 3 weeks

Amy Peterson (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Amy Peterson (Iowa)

Corey Faust (Jack Trice Stadium – Ames, Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Johnston, Iowa) – 1 week

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

35 participants!! That is a great week! I know I’m prejudiced, but I think this is one of the best collection of submissions. Every week there are at least a couple of pictures where i think, “I wish I had taken that picture.” This week there were more than usual!

No new states added this week, but at this point that is to be expected. One new country though. Dawn submitted the first picture from Italy this calendar year!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arizona
+ France
+ Kansas
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Italy
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ New York
+ Slovenia
+ Spain
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Idaho
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Kentucky
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Carolina
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Vermont
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

37 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 70% of the way there!

he Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ Alto del Perdon – Spain
+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Ontario, Canada
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
+ Puenta de la Reina, Spain
+ St. John pied de port, France
+ Vienna, Austria
+ Munich, Germany
+ Rome, Italy
+ Cannes, France
+ Koper, Slovenia

The big milestone this week was Faust’s first ever submission!! I don’t know if it will lead to more submissions in the future, but I certainly hope it does.

On a personal note, watching the Iowa State-Ohio “football” game last week was an absolutely soul crushing experience. The only reason I didn’t give up on the season is because the Big 12 is hot garbage this year and I thought there was still the chance to win a few games.

Then this week… an entirely different football team showed up. I know part of that was that they were over the virus that plagued the team last week. However, you may have noticed that both Elizabeth and Faust were at the game (not together, they don’t know each other) for the first time this season. Suddenly Iowa State doesn’t suck. One of them is clearly good luck and they both better go to every game the rest of the season.

One thing I’ve learned in my long tenure as an Iowa State fan, I am not good luck. But I digress…

There weren’t any other big milestones reached this week. But we are closing in on some big ones next week. However, there was some heartache. Becky and Ernie could not build on their submissions from last week. Their streaks are over before they even began.

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:

ARCHITECTURE

ARCHITECTURE! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is an ARCHITECTURE image? It is an image where the focus is on buildings or structures. It is image of the interior or exterior of buildings, bridges, structures, or cityscapes.

While considering the building and/or structure you want to photograph, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will create a great image:

Buildings are deeply emotive structures which form our psyche.
-David Adjaye

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

The picture has to be taken between 12:01 PM today and 11 AM next Monday. This isn’t a curate your photos project. This is a get your butt off the couch (unless you are taking your picture from the couch) and take pictures challenge. There is a limit of 3 submissions per participant. To be considered the photographer, you have to be the one that takes the picture. Don’t be stealing the work of other artists. You can submit pictures for other photographers that took pictures with your camera or phone, but give credit where credit is due.

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of ARCHITECTURE in this place that is built on an Apache infrastructure I should next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Art, Becky, Bill, Black & White, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Ernie, Funk, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Road Trip, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Street Photography, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 418 – SKY

September 18, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

SKY! A great theme, but was it the limit for the amount of people that would participate this week? You will have to keep scrolling to find out:

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, September 4, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Suzie Brannen – 1 week
2-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 1 week
3-Susanna Funk – 2 weeks
4-Scott Degeneffe – 3 weeks
5-Sabas Hernandez – 4 weeks
6-Willy McAlpine – 4 weeks
7-Mary Green – 6 weeks (2)
8-Sara Lockner – 6 weeks
9-Mike Vest – 10 weeks
10-Sheri Fakhouri – 13 weeks
11-Monica Jennings – 14 weeks (2)
12-Logan Kahler – 14 weeks
13-Nathanial Brown – 15 weeks
14-Jesse Howard – 15 weeks
15-Tamara Peterson – 18 weeks
16-Alexis Stensland – 23 weeks
17-Mindi Terrell – 30 weeks (3)
18-Brandon Kahler – 54 weeks
19-Linda Bennett – 59 weeks
20-Sarah Toot – 60 weeks
21-Angie DeWaard – 64 weeks
22-Dawn Krause – 68 weeks
23-Kim Barker – 74 weeks
24-Joe Duff – 75 weeks
25-Teresa Kahler – 86 weeks (2)
26-Carla Stensland – 86 weeks
27-Micky Augustin – 88 weeks
28-Andy Sharp – 89 weeks
29-Bill Wentworth – 90 weeks
30-Cathie Morton – 94 weeks
31-Elizabeth Nordeen – 95 weeks
32-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 97 weeks (2)
33-Kio Dettman – 99 weeks (2)

Heading into this week, this is the current map of states where submissions have come from:

Getting pretty full!

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Joe Duff (Texas) – 76 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 91 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone County, Iowa) – 100 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone County, Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Boone County, Iowa) – 60 weeks

Linda Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Mary Green (Cleveland, Ohio) – 7 weeks

Mary Green (Cleveland, Ohio)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 19 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 24 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Vienna, Austria) – 69 weeks

Dawn Krause (Munich, Germany)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa)

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) 14 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Boone County, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Boone County, Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Oskaloosa, Iowa) – 15 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Johnston, Iowa) – 31 weeks

Mindi Terrell (West Des Moines, Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Johnston, Iowa)

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 96 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Nathanial Brown (Britt, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 89 weeks

Susanna Funk (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Susanna Funk (Iowa)

Ernie Redd (Kentucky) – 1 week

Kim Barker (Estes Park, Colorado) – 75 weeks

Kim Barker (Estes Park, Colorado)

Willy McAlpine (Sahagun, Spain) – 5 weeks

Amy Peterson (Washington D.C.) – 1 week

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 87 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Christopher D. Bennett (Spencer, Iowa)

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Logan Kahler (Stratford, Iowa) – 15 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 90 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 95 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 55 weeks

Carla Stensland (Lake Okoboji, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Carla Stensland (Clay County Fair – Spencer, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Arnold’s Park, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Des Moines, Iowa) – 98 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Sarah Toot (E. Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 61 weeks

Sarah Toot (E. Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania)

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 11 weeks

35 participants! That is a great week! Thanks to Ernie’s first ever submission, we get to add Kentucky to the submission map!!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Austria
+ Colorado
+ Germany
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ Ohio
+ Pennsylvania
+ Spain
+ Texas
+ Washington D.C.

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

37 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 70% of the way there!

The current states missing are:

+ Alabama
+ Alaska
+ Connecticut
+ Delaware
+ Hawaii
+ Indiana
+ Maine
+ Massachusetts
+ Mississippi
+ New Mexico
+ Rhode Island
+ Virginia
+ West Virginia

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

I took my picture about 140 miles from my front door, but still in Iowa. I continue not to contribute.

The big… huge… gargantuan milestone reached this week is Kio is the first person to ever hit the Triple Digit Club! WooHoo!!

But it wasn’t all good news. Sara’s streak ends at 6 and Suzie couldn’t build her streak to 2.

BLACK & WHITE

BLACK & WHITE! If you know me at all, you know that this is my absolutely favorite theme!

What is a BLACK & WHTIE image? Bro! It is a BLACK & WHITE picture. Period. End of story.

But just a reminder. BLACK & WHITE photography is all about tones and textures. Remember that and you will do great.

While thinking on possible subjects for your BLACK & WHITE submission, meditate on the following quote and I no doubt you will take a great picture:

To see in color is a delight for the eye but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.
-Andri Cauldwell

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of BLACK & WHITE in this place that behind the scenes is all monochrome I should next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Animals, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Flowers, Funk, Holidays, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Still Life, Tamara, Teresa, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 416 – NATURE

September 4, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

To all of us who toil on the frontlines in the mines of America, I wish us a happy Labor Day!

If you don’t know why we celebrate Labor Day, it is a celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers.

What kind of social and economic achievements?

Well… the Computer Mine is not a union shop, but trust me, I’m very pro-union. While they aren’t without their problems and a history of corruption, if it weren’t for unions and labor activists, we wouldn’t have the following:

1. Weekends
2. Paid vacation
3. FMLA
4. Paid sick leave
5. Child labor laws (while we have them)
6. Social Security
7. Minimum wage (even though it is too low)
8. 8 hour work day
9. Overtime pay
10. OSHA
11. Health care (even though tying health care to employment is a profoundly awful idea, but better than what we had before)
12. Collective bargaining (in some states)
13. Breaks (including bathroom and lunch)
14. Wrongful termination laws
15. Age discrimination laws
16. Raises
17. Sexual harassment laws
18. American Disabilities Act
19. Holiday pay (enjoying that right now)
20. Military leave
21. Equal Pay Act (1963 & 2011)
22. Civil rights
23. Workers compensation
24. Unemployment insurance
25. Whistleblower protection
26. The right to strike

While this list is hardly comprehensive, it is just many of the things I’m thankful for on this Labor Day.

+++++++

NATURE! A great theme, but was it people’s nature to get out in the world and take a picture of it? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, August 28, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Suzie Brannen – 1 week
2-Scott Degeneffe – 1 week
3-Evie Gorshe – 1 week
4-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
5-Willy McAlpine – 2 weeks
6-Becky Parmelee – 2 weeks (3)
7-Mary Green – 4 weeks
8-Sara Lockner – 4 weeks
9-Mike Vest – 8 weeks
10-Sheri Fakhouri – 11 weeks
11-Monica Jennings – 12 weeks
12-Logan Kahler – 12 weeks (2)
13-Nathanial Brown – 13 weeks
14-Jesse Howard – 13 weeks
15-Tamara Peterson – 16 weeks
16-Alexis Stensland – 21 weeks (3)
17-Mindi Terrell – 28 weeks (3)
18-Brandon Kahler – 52 weeks
19-Linda Bennett – 57 weeks
20-Sarah Toot – 57 weeks
21-Angie DeWaard – 62 weeks
22-Dawn Krause – 66 weeks (2)
23-Kim Barker – 72 weeks
24-Joe Duff – 73 weeks (2)
25-Teresa Kahler – 84 weeks (2)
26-Carla Stensland – 84 weeks (2)
27-Micky Augustin – 86 weeks
28-Andy Sharp – 87 weeks
29-Bill Wentworth – 88 weeks
30-Cathie Morton – 92 weeks
31-Elizabeth Nordeen – 93 weeks
32-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 95 weeks
33-Kio Dettman – 97 weeks (3)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Lori Backous (Boone County, Iowa) – 1 week

Lori Backous (Boone County, Iowa)

Susanna Funk (Colorado) – 1 week

Amy Peterson (Idaho Falls, Idaho) – 1 week

Amy Peterson (Yellowstone National Park – Wyoming)

Scott Degeneffe (Ledges State Park – Boone County, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Cleveland, Ohio) – 3 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Puenta de la Reina, Spain) – 3 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Puenta de la Reina, Spain)

Willy McAlpine (St. John pied de port, France)

Sara Lockner (Johnston, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Mary Green (Manchester, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Mary Green (Manchester, Iowa)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 9 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 12 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Ogden, Iowa) – 13 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 13 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Dayton, Iowa) – 14 weeks

Jesse Howard (Grand Junction, Iowa) – 14 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 17 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 22 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Ames, Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 29 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Albert Lea, Minnesota) – 53 weeks

Linda Bennett (Sparks, Kansas) – 58 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 59 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 63 weeks

Dawn Krause (Dayton, Iowa) – 67 weeks

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 73 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 74 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Ames, Iowa) – 85 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 85 weeks

Carla Stensland (Deal’s Orchards – Jefferson, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (West Lake Okoboji – Arnold’s Park, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Wyoming) – 87 weeks

Andy Sharp (Storm Lake, Iowa) – 88 weeks

Andy Sharp (Near Perry, Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 89 weeks

Cathie Morton (Water Works Park – Des Moines, Iowa) – 93 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 94 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Pakwash Lake – between Ear Falls and Red Lake, Ontario, Canada) – 96 weeks

Kio Dettman (Moingona, Iowa) – 98 weeks

Kio Dettman (Moingona, Iowa)

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa) – 520 weeks

34 participants! That is a pretty great week! Especially for a holiday weekend! There were submissions from all over the place this week.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Colorado
+ France
+ Kansas
+ Idaho
+ Iowa
+ Minnesota
+ Nebraska
+ Ohio
+ Ontario, Canada
+ Pennsylvania
+ Spain
+ Texas
+ Wyoming

Thanks to Amy’s trip, Idaho has been added to this year’s map!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Idaho
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Carolina
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Vermont
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

36 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 70% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Ontario, Canada
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
+ Puenta de la Reina, Spain
+ St. John pied de port, France

I took my picture about 3 miles from my front door, so I continue not to contribute.

There were no major milestones this week. Unfortunately 3 steaks did bite the dust. Suzie and Evie couldn’t build on last week’s submission. Becky’s streak ended at 2.

SHOES – SUGGESTED BY SARAH TOOT

SHOES! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a SHOES photo? Simply put, it is an image where SHOES are the subject OR play a major compositional element.

While thinking about the SHOES to photograph for this week’s theme, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a great image!

Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world.
-Marilyn Monroe

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of SHOES in this place that is mostly written in my bare feet next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Black & White, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Evie, Formal Portrait, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Nature, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 415 – SHADOW

August 28, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

It is the last collection of submissions of the month, so it is a good time revisit the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE FAQ:

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE

What skill level photographer can participate?

THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE is open to photographers of all skill levels. From award winning photographers to professionals to the highly ranked amateurs to those that are just beginning to those who don’t even know how to focus a camera. All skill levels are encouraged and welcome. You can’t be too bad and you can’t be too good! Everyone has room to learn and be challenged!

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 10 photographers that participate regularly that have won a photography award of some kind.

Is this a competition?
NO.

Is there a limit to the number of submissions I can have each week?

If participation rates climb, that limit of 3 is subject to lower.

Can I send you several pictures and have you pick the best one?

No! No! NO! If those words come out of your mouth or your keyboard, I consider that to be a non-submission.

Do you ever question whether somebody’s submission fits the theme?

Why can’t I submit after 11 AM on Mondays if the post doesn’t publish until 12:01 PM?

Do I have to wait until Monday morning to submit?

Absolutely not! In fact I appreciate the submissions that make it to me by Sunday evening. Makes the job of putting this together on Monday morning much easier!

Are there resolution requirements for submissions?

What format should my submission be?

.JPG but .PNG also works.

If I write a description of my image will you include that in your post?

No. Photography is art that should stand on its own. Only exception is the SLICE OF LIFE theme. But if you let me know where the picture was taken, I will include that.

When will you start accepting suggestions for next year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE themes?

I will take suggestions only and ONLY in the comments sections of the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE posts the last week of October and the 1st week of November.

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SHADOW! A great theme, but did inspire people to lurk in the dark or come out into the light of participation? You’ll have to keep streaming to find out!

I do want to say that hope at least somebody appreciates my submission this week. I was pretty close to kicked out of a museum for taking it.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, August 21, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week
2-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
3-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
4-Nader Parsaei – 1 week
5-Mary Green – 3 weeks (2)
6-Sara Lockner – 3 weeks (3
7-Mike Vest – 7 weeks
8-Sheri Fakhouri – 10 weeks
9-Monica Jennings – 11 weeks
10-Logan Kahler – 11 weeks (2)
11-Nathanial Brown – 12 weeks
12-Jesse Howard – 12 weeks
13-Tamara Peterson – 15 weeks
14-Alexis Stensland – 20 weeks
15-Mindi Terrell – 27 weeks (3)
16-Brandon Kahler – 51 weeks
17-Linda Bennett – 56 weeks (2)
18-Sarah Toot – 57 weeks (2)
19-Angie DeWaard – 61 weeks
20-Dawn Krause – 65 weeks (2)
21-Kim Barker – 71 weeks
22-Joe Duff – 72 weeks (2)
23-Teresa Kahler – 83 weeks (3)
24-Carla Stensland – 83 weeks (3)
25-Micky Augustin – 85 weeks
26-Andy Sharp – 86 weeks
27-Bill Wentworth – 87 weeks
28-Cathie Morton – 91 weeks
29-Elizabeth Nordeen – 92 weeks
30-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 94 weeks
31-Kio Dettman – 96 weeks (2)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 97 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 95 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 93 weeks

Cathie Morton (Water Works Park – Des Moines, Iowa) – 92 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 88 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 86 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 84 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 84 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Dallas, Texas) – 73 weeks

Joe Duff (Dallas, Texas)

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 72 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 62 weeks

Sarah Toot (East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 58 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 57 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 28 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 21 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 16 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 13 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Logan Kahler (Guthrie Center, Iowa)

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Sara Lockner (Johnston, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Mary Green (Camp Wyoming – Wyoming, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Becky Parmelee (King Author Flour & Bakery – Norwich, Vermont) – 2 weeks

Becky Parmelee (West Lebanon, New Hampshire)

Becky Parmelee (Atlanta, Georgia)

Sabas Hernandez (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – Cleveland, Ohio) – 2 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Evie Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Dickcissel Park – Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 1 week

Christopher D. Bennett (Union Station – Omaha, Nebraska)

34 participants! That is a pretty great week! And pictures were taken from all over the country this week!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:
+ Georgia
+ Kansas
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ Ohio
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Vermont

Thanks to Becky’s recent travels, 2 more states have been filled in on the map. New Hampshire and Vermont. WooHoo!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Carolina
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Vermont
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

35 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 70% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture 156 miles from my front door. In a state where a regular contributor resides. I continue not to contribute.

The big milestone this week is Brandon joining THE YEAR LONG STREAK CLUB! WooHoo! Congratulations Brandon!

But it wasn’t all good news! Nader could not build on their submissions last week and their streaks are over before the began.

NATURE

NATURE! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a NATURE photo? “Nature photography is a wide range of photography taken outdoors and devoted to displaying natural elements such as landscapes, wildlife, plants, and close-ups of natural scenes and textures.”

That encompasses a lot of the world. So what isn’t NATURE? Humans and anything created by humans. Although those elements can be included in a NATURE photo. But they aren’t the main subject matter.

While thinking about possible subjects for your NATURE photo meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating image:

Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
-Khalil Gibran

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of NATURE in this place that shows mine next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Art, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elainie, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nader, Nathanial, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Shannon, Sheri, State Fair, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 414 – ART

August 21, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

I’m leaving for Omaha later than I anticipated, so I did have time to get this post out on time.

ART! A great theme! But did it make a large number of people feel ARTistic enough to submit? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, August 14, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Mary Green – 2 weeks
2-Sara Lockner – 2 weeks
3-Mike Vest – 6 weeks
4-Suzie Brannen – 7 weeks
5-Sheri Fakhouri – 9 weeks (2)
6-Monica Jennings – 10 weeks
7-Logan Kahler – 10 weeks
8-Nathanial Brown – 11 weeks
9-Jesse Howard – 11 weeks
10-Tamara Peterson – 14 weeks
11-Alexis Stensland – 19 weeks
12-Mindi Terrell – 26 weeks (3)
13-Brandon Kahler – 50 weeks
14-Linda Bennett – 55 weeks (2)
15-Sarah Toot – 56 weeks
16-Angie DeWaard – 60 weeks
17-Dawn Krause – 64 weeks
18-Kim Barker – 70 weeks
19-Joe Duff – 71 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 82 weeks (3)
21-Carla Stensland – 82 weeks
22-Micky Augustin – 84 weeks
23-Andy Sharp – 85 weeks
24-Bill Wentworth – 86 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 90 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 91 weeks (2)
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 93 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 95 weeks (2)

Here is a look at the updated THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE SUBMISSION MAP:

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 20 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 86 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 61 weeks

Becky Parmelee (?????) – 1 week

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 87 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 51 weeks

Carla Stensland (Spirit Lake, Iowa) – 83 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 91 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Des Moines, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 92 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 12 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 72 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Kim Barker (Ames, Iowa) – 71 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 96 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Ann Arbor, Michigan) – 56 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Logan Kahler (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Mary Green (Elkader, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Mary Green (Elkader, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 85 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 27 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa)

Nader Parsaei (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 1 week

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Sara Lockner (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 57 weeks

Sarah Toot (Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 94 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 10 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 15 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 83 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Des Moines, Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa State University – Ames, Iowa)

Willy McAlpine (McHose Park – Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

32 participants this week! That is a great week!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Michigan
+ Nebraska
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Carolina
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

33 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 60% of the way there!

This is the list of current missing states:
+ Alabama
+ Alaska
+ Connecticut
+ Delaware
+ Hawaii
+ Idaho
+ Indiana
+ Kentucky
+ Maine
+ Massachussetts
+ Mississippi
+ New Hampshire
+ New Mexico
+ Rhode Island
+ Vermont
+ Virginia
+ West Virginia

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

The big accomplish week this week was Sheri joining the Double Digits Streak Club! WooHoo!

But it wasn’t all good news. Suzie’s 7 week streak came crashing to a halt. The humanity!

SHADOW

SHADOW! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a SHADOW photo? Simply put it is a picture where a SHADOW plays a major compositional element.

While considering a possible subject for your SHADOW picture meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating interpretation.

To light a candle is to cast a shadow.
-Ursula K. Le Guin

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of SHADOW in this place that is a candle in my life next Monday.

Angie, Contests, Drone, Elainie, Evie, Flowers, Formal Portrait, Jesse, Logan, Nathanial, Sabas, State Fair, Willy

Iowa State Fair Power Rankings

August 20, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 4 Comments

When this publishes I will be in possession of my Iowa State Fair Photo Contest entries. So at this time, I can lift the blackout on what pictures I entered and what picture was accepted for display. I assume that everybody honored my social media blackout of my picture. And I thank you for that.

Here are the pictures I submitted. The one that got some love and the ones that were told “Get out of here kid! You have no future!”.

2023 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon -

Not Selected for Display

Honorable Mention – Color People

Not Selected for Display

I wasn’t the only person in this little circle of trust that had pictures displayed at the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon. Logan had two pictures displayed and one of his pictures got a little love on the Iowa State Fair Show on IPTV. Nathanial and Angie both got 3 pictures in and got Honorable Mentions in the Sports class.

I hope more people I know enter again next year. Layla expressed interest in entering. I hope Vest gets back in the game too. I also wonder if Carla won’t consider entering. She is going to enter the Clay County Fair Photo Contest this year.

As for me, I probably start getting organized for next year’s contest. Start a folder of possible entries right now. Maybe I could even break a long standing tradition and have people help pick my submissions. I did give some feedback to Angie, Logan, and Nathanial on their possible entries. Maybe I could do the same. Stranger things have happened.

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On Tuesday as we were leaving the Iowa State Fair after the barbecue contest, Scottie D. asked me why I loved the Iowa State Fair. So I thought I would give a list of things I love about the Iowa State Fair:

#10. Food

I’m sure most people would rank food higher on their list. I do love the food at the Iowa State Fair, but it isn’t actually one of the main attractions for me. I used to have a go-to where I would always get a grinder from Jennie’s Grinder, but Jennie passed away several years ago and I have never found a replacement. There is a “grinder” place near where Jennie’s used to be that sells “Gizmos”. But they aren’t anywhere near the same. Starting with the fact that they don’t use sausage, they use beef. Blah! There is a different grinder place at the State Fair, but I will get into that at a later date.

I also used to get a turkey leg from the Iowa Turkey Federation, but I’ve fallen out of love with the turkey leg. It is just not that much food for the price and it is just too darn messy. But it is very photogenic. Hard to beat a picture with a giant turkey leg.

#9 – People Watching

It is hard to beat the Iowa State Fair for people watching. It truly is a crossroads of all of humanity. You can just post up on a bench anywhere and for hours fascinating things and people walking by.

#8 – Shows

I love the fact that there is so much free entertainment everywhere in the Fair. From concerts on the free stages to chainsaw sculpture artists to the bands playing in Pioneer Hall to the entertainers that are roaming the fairgrounds. There are hypnotists to musicians to jugglers to things that kind of defy description.

#7 – Animals

From the lunkers in the DNR Building to the Biggest Bull to the Biggest Boar to the Avenue of the Breeds I love checking out the animals. And such a wide variety. From turtles to ducks to rabbits to cows to sheep to pigs to chickens to ostriches to elk to horses there is an incredible variety to check out.

#6 – Art

There so much amazing art to check out at the Fair. From sweet murals to sculptures to interactive art displays to sand sculptures to hay sculptures to butter sculptures to so much more.

#5 – Flowers

It is well documented that the Discovery Garden is one of my favorite places at the Iowa State Fair. However, it isn’t the only place to check-out flowers and do some flowertography at the fair. There are 27 flowerbeds and 13,000 flowers. Roses, vinca, zinnias, marigolds… oh my!

#4 – Contests

Obviously I’m partial to the Photography Salon, but there is literally a contest for everybody at the Iowa State Fair. From the barbecue contest to the Ugly Cake Contest to the Big Pumpkin Contest to pie eating to husband calling to the chicken calling to the cow chip throwing to rubber chicken throwing to outhouse racing to horseshoes to crocheting to the 4-H to FFA to the Bill Reilly Talent Show! There are 178 canning categories to enter alone!

#3 – Photo Opportunities

I love street photography! Any place where there is great people watching, art, flowers, animals, and food… to name just a few… you know there is going to be photo opportunities every where you look!

#2 – Tradition

I love the tradition of the State Fair. I have many personal traditions I have every year at the Fair. Some are to remind me of others (such as the Scottish Highland at the Avenue of the Breeds) and some are relatively new (such as going to watch Evie and Layla dance). I have a list of things that I have to do every year. And those are my traditions.

#1 – Family

Going to the State Fair is something that reminds me of family. Both biological and the family I don’t share DNA with. This year I saw Logan and Amanda there. Elainie and Sabas. At one time I was going to go with Teresa and/or Carla before plans fell through. Logan entered the Photo Contest this year. Which is a family tradition. My Dad used to enter the photo contest. Winning the Slide Category one year. My parents both used to volunteer in Pioneer Hall and had a booth there as well.

This year I also met up with the extended family of the Gorshes and the Degeneffes and the Jennings. Nader and Jesse as well. Well maybe, Nader. It is supposed to be in the ballpark of triple digits today, so as of the writing of this entry it is unclear if he ended up punking out.

I might make these power rankings a new Iowa State Fair tradition! Until next year’s Fair!

Andy, Angie, Boone FUMC, Carla, Contests, Dawn, Jason, Jesse, Logan, Michelle, Nathanial, Pufferbilly Days, Teresa

Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest Recap

August 18, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

I know I might have written that I was finally going to start sharing pictures from the Color the Wind Festival today, but instead I’m going to do a recap of the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest before it gets too long in the tooth.

First, I should announce to those of you that voted in the People’s Choice Award what photo took home the prize:

Road Trip by Savannah Martin

Road Trip received 50 votes. The next highest vote total received was 21 votes.

If you are interested in seeing this year’s photo books, click on the links below:

Readable Photo Book

Printable Photo Book

There is a lot of people I need to thank for making this years Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest a success.

The Judges:
+ Andie DeWaard
+ Janae Erickson
+ Lisa Person

The Administrative Staff:
+ Teresa Kahler
+ Carla Stensland

The Pegboard Builders:
+ Andy Sharp
+ Jason Stensland

The Graphic Designer:
+ Monica Jennings

The Photo Display Team:
+ Dawn Krause
+ Jesse Howard
+ Monica Jennings
+ Graham Jennings

The Book Designer:
+ Michelle Haupt

The Best of Show & People’s Choice Award Creator:
+ Anonymous

The Merchants that hosted the photo entries:
+ Boone Theater (Teen and Adult Places)
+ Ema’s Elegance (Adult Animals)
+ The Houndstooth Haberdashery (Adult Trains, Planes, & Automobiles)
+ Infamous Ink (Adult Black & White)
+ The Lavender Basket (Adult Plants)
+ Paradox (Youth)
+ Studio 721 (Adult People)

I didn’t take as many pictures as I have in the past of the machinations of the Photo Contest but I did take a few.

Here are some from the Judging:

Judging went very smooth. There was some good and spirited debate from the judges and for the first time ever, had to engage in some tie-breakers. Including a tie-breaker for Best in Show.

I already have 2 of the judges picked out for next year. Still thinking on that third judge, for now. But I have a pretty good idea. Or at least a couple of candidates in mind.

Monica and I set up the photo displays on Thursday. Paradox and Studio 721 set up the displays themselves, which was a big help. Monica really put the displays together and I did the grunt work.

Here are some pictures of the displays:

On Saturday Jesse and I tore down all the displays. On Sunday we transported them out to McHose Park. Graham and Monica met us out there and setup the tents and the display. Jesse and I sat out there in the pouring rain all day trying to keep the pictures dry.

Here are some pictures from Art in the Park:

Watching over the photo display at Art in the Park was a pretty cool experience, even if the conditions weren’t ideal. I got to meet and speak with a few of the photographers that I hadn’t met before. And I met one person that is interested in entering next year and another that is an artist that urged their friend to enter this year. I enjoyed all of those interactions.

After Art in the Park concluded Dawn and Nathanial helped tear down the display and the tents. Logan returned all the pictures that weren’t picked up at Art in the Park for me.

All things considered, it was a successful year. I’m not sure what changes I will make for next year, but I know I will need to add some new faces to the list of volunteers. That volunteer might be you!

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Art, Bill, Birthdays, Black & White, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Funk, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Photoshop, Pufferbilly Days, Russ, Sara, Shannon, Sheri, Street Photography, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 413 – NEGATIVE

August 14, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

WARNING! NEXT MONDAY I WILL BE ON THE ROAD, SO NEXT WEEK’S POST WILL PUBLISH LATE AND THERE MIGHT NOT BE ANY REMINDERS. PLAN ACCORDINGLY!

I need to start this post by wishing Russ a happy birthday. Happy birthday Russ!

I hope you have lots of visitors today!

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I did have a late submission for SELF-PORTRAIT that I do need to share. A couple actually:

Susanna Funk (Vallunareju Norte – Peru)

You might be asking yourself why Funk gets special privileges and can blow past the deadline and nobody else can? Because she is climbing a mountain in Peru! If you go climb a mountain in Peru, I will also let you miss the deadline. Maybe.

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NEGATIVE! An abstract and maybe demanding theme. But were there many people that could find some NEGATIVE in their life to make NEGATIVE into a positive theme? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, August 7, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Mary Green – 1 week
2-Sara Lockner – 1 week (3)
3-Becky Parmelee – 3 weeks
4-Willy McAlpine – 4 weeks
5-Mike Vest – 5 weeks
6-Suzie Brannen – 6 weeks
7-Sabas Hernandez – 6 weeks
8-Sheri Fakhouri – 8 weeks
9-Monica Jennings – 9 weeks
10-Logan Kahler – 9 weeks
11-Nathanial Brown – 10 weeks
12-Jesse Howard – 10 weeks (2)
13-Tamara Peterson – 13 weeks
14-Alexis Stensland – 18 weeks
15-Mindi Terrell – 25 weeks (3)
16-Brandon Kahler – 49 weeks
17-Linda Bennett – 54 weeks
18-Sarah Toot – 55 weeks (3)
19-Angie DeWaard – 59 weeks
20-Dawn Krause – 63 weeks (2)
21-Kim Barker – 69 weeks
22-Joe Duff – 70 weeks
23-Teresa Kahler – 81 weeks (3)
24-Carla Stensland – 81 weeks
25-Micky Augustin – 83 weeks
26-Andy Sharp – 84 weeks
27-Bill Wentworth – 85 weeks
28-Cathie Morton – 89 weeks
29-Elizabeth Nordeen – 90 weeks
30-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 92 weeks
31-Kio Dettman – 94 weeks
* Susanna Funk – 1 week

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Micky Augustin (Hickory Grove Park – Story County, Iowa) – 84 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (High Trestle Trail – Boone County, Iowa) – 93 weeks

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 70 weeks

Linda Bennett (Ann Arbor, Michigan) – 55 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 7 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 95 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 60 weeks

Joe Duff (Dallas, Texas) – 71 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa)

Mary Green (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa)

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 11 weeks

Monica Jennings (Des Moines, Iowa) – 10 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 50 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 82 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 90 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 91 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 85 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 19 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 82 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 26 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 56 weeks

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 6 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 86 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Orpheum Theater – Minneapolis, Minnesota)

29 participants! Subtracting last week’s 33 participants, creates a negative 4. But 29 is still pretty good considering it is somewhat of an abstract theme.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Nebraska
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

33 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 60% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture 226 miles from my front door. But in a state that has already been marked. I continue to not contribute.

The big milestones this week were Monica and Logan reaching The Double Digit Streak Club. WooHoo! Mindi reached The Half Year Streak Club! WooHoo!

But it wasn’t all good news. Becky’s 3 week streak ended. Willy’s 4 week streak is gone. Sabas’ 6 week streak is no more.

ART

ART! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is an ART photo? Simply put, it is a picture of an existing piece of ART. You could simply find a piece of ART and stand back and take a picture of it. But I would urge you to take an ARTistic look at a piece of an ART. Take a picture of it from a different angle. Take a picture of only part of the picture. Take a picture of it in its environment. Other possibilities are to take pictures of an ARTist making a piece of ART or tools made in the creation of ART. There are just so many possibilities.

While considering possible subject for your submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt your ART submission will be a new piece of ART all its own:

Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one.
-Stella Adler

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of NEGATIVE in this place that started with a pile of negatives next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Automobiles, Becky, Bill, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Flowers, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Photoshop, Pufferbilly Days, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Shannon, Sheri, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 412 – SELF-PORTRAIT

August 7, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

SELF-PORTRAIT! Maybe not the most artistic theme, but on the other hand, it is a chance for some of you to introduce yourself to the rest of you. But did a bunch of people do that? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, July 31, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Becky Parmelee – 2 weeks
2-Willy McAlpine – 3 weeks
3-Scott Degeneffe – 4 weeks
4-Mike Vest – 4 weeks
5-Suzie Brannen – 5 weeks
6-Sabas Hernandez – 5 weeks
7-Sheri Fakhouri – 7 weeks (2)
8-Monica Jennings – 8 weeks
9-Logan Kahler – 8 weeks
10-Nathanial Brown – 9 weeks
11-Jesse Howard – 9 weeks
12-Tamara Peterson – 12 weeks
13-Alexis Stensland – 17 weeks (3)
14-Mindi Terrell – 24 weeks (3)
15-Brandon Kahler – 49 weeks
16-Linda Bennett – 53 weeks
17-Sarah Toot – 54 weeks (2)
18-Angie DeWaard – 58 weeks
19-Dawn Krause – 62 weeks
20-Kim Barker – 68 weeks
21-Joe Duff – 69 weeks
22-Teresa Kahler – 80 weeks (2)
23-Carla Stensland – 80 weeks
24-Micky Augustin – 82 weeks
25-Andy Sharp – 83 weeks
26-Bill Wentworth – 84 weeks
27-Cathie Morton – 88 weeks
28-Elizabeth Nordeen – 89 weeks
29-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 91 weeks
30-Kio Dettman – 93 weeks (3)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Mary Green (Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Washington D.C.) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Altoona, Iowa)

Sara Lockner (Washington D.C.) – 1 week

Becky Parmelee (Bella Vista, Arkansas) – 3 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Boone, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (The Outlets at Orange – Orange County, California) – 6 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 6 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 9 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa)- 10 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa) – 10 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 18 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 25 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 50 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 54 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (Sedgefield Country Club – Greensboro, South Carolina) – 55 weeks

Sarah Toot (Sedgefield Country Club – Greensboro, South Carolina)

Angie DeWaard (Nebraska – probably) – 59 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 63 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Fort Madison, Iowa) – 69 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 70 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Gretna, Nebraska) – 81 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Gretna, Nebraska)

Carla Stensland (Don Williams Lake – Ogden, Iowa) – 81 weeks

Carla Stensland (Room M4470B, Converse, 4th Floor, Friley Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, IA)

Micky Augustin (Undisclosed Location – Iowa) – 83 weeks

Andy Sharp (Las Vegas, Nevada) – 84 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 85 weeks

Cathie Morton (Iowa) – 89 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 90 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Lake Okoboji United Methodist Camp – Spirit Lake, Iowa) – 92 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 94 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa) – 516 weeks

32 submissions this week! That is a pretty great week! Plus, thanks to Sarah Toot, we’ve now added South Carolina to the map! WooHoo!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Kansas
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ Nevada
+ South Carolina
+ Texas
+ Washington D.C.

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

33 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 60% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 1 mile from my front door, so I continue not to contribute.

Both Nathanial and Jesse joined the Double Digit Streak Club. WooHoo! But it wasn’t all good news. Scottie D.’s streak came crashing to a halt at 4 weeks. The humanity!

NEGATIVE – SUGGESTED BY ANGIE DEWAARD

NEGATIVE! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a NEGATIVE photo? NEGATIVE might be an abstract theme that might be hard to wrap your mind around at first. But there are multiple types of NEGATIVE. There are simply bad things or things you don’t like. In the theme reveal picture there are dead sunflowers, which is a NEGATIVE. Plus, I inverted the colors so it looks like an old school NEGATIVE. You know a film NEGATIVE. So you could just edit a photo so that colors are inverse. That would be a NEGATIVE. So it could be something that is a NEGATIVE in your life. Like bad weather or work. Or it can simply mean rejecting something. A disagreement. Or in science (and electricity) there is also NEGATIVE. I think once you put your mind to it, you will come up with something that is NEGATIVE. Maybe some of you still have physical film NEGATIVE(s).

While considering possible subjects for your NEGATIVE picture meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with an interesting picture:

It’s as if my life were magically run by two electric currents: joyous positive and despairing negative – whichever is running at the moment dominates my life, floods it.
-Sylvia Plath

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of NEGATIVE in this place that started with a pile of negatives next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Naima, Nathanial, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Street Photography, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 411 – LIQUID

July 31, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

LIQUID. You are mostly LIQUID. I’m mostly LIQUID. But did LIQUID get the creative juices of a bunch of people flowing this week? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, July 24, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 1 week
2-Evie Gorshe – 1 week
3-Sara Lockner- 1 week
4-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
5-Willy McAlpine – 2 weeks
6-Scott Degeneffe – 3 weeks
7-Mike Vest – 3 weeks
8-Mary Green – 3 weeks
9-Suzie Brannen – 4 weeks
10-Sabas Hernandez – 4 weeks
11-Sheri Fakhouri – 6 weeks (3)
12-Monica Jennings – 7 weeks
13-Logan Kahler – 7 weeks (2)
14-Nathanial Brown – 8 weeks (2)
15-Jesse Howard – 8 weeks
16-Tamara Peterson – 11 weeks
17-Alexis Stensland – 16 weeks (2)
18-Mindi Terrell – 23 weeks (2)
19-Brandon Kahler – 48 weeks
20-Linda Bennett – 52 weeks
21-Sarah Toot – 53 weeks (3)
22-Angie DeWaard – 57 weeks
23-Dawn Krause – 61 weeks
24-Kim Barker – 67 weeks
25-Joe Duff – 68 weeks
26-Teresa Kahler – 79 weeks (2)
27-Carla Stensland – 79 weeks
28-Micky Augustin – 81 weeks
29-Andy Sharp – 82 weeks
30-Bill Wentworth – 83 weeks
31-Cathie Morton – 87 weeks
32-Elizabeth Nordeen – 88 weeks
33-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 90 weeks
34-Kio Dettman – 92 weeks (2)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 93 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Des Moines, Iowa) – 91 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 89 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 88 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 84 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 83 weeks

Micky Augustin (Moscow, Iowa) – 82 weeks

Carla Stensland (Eureka Springs, Arkansas) – 80 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 80 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 69 weeks

Kim Barker (Dallas Center, Iowa) – 68 weeks

Dawn Krause (Boone, Iowa) – 62 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Between Cambridge and Huxley, Iowa) – 58 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 53 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (Sedgefield Country Club Golf Course – Greensboro, North Carolina) – 54 weeks

Sarah Toot (Sedgefield Country Club Golf Course – Greensboro, North Carolina)

Brandon Kahler (Story City, Iowa) – 49 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Urbandale, Iowa) – 24 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Urbandale, Iowa)

Alexis Stensland (Ogden, Iowa) – 17 weeks

Alexis Stensland (east Des Moines, Iowa)

Alexis Stensland (Swaledale, Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Guthrie Center, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Monica Jennings (Des Moines, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa)

Sabas Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Near Boone, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Ledges State Park – Iowa) – 3 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 2 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Madrid, Iowa)

31 participants! That is a pretty significant dip from recent weeks and the 35 of last week, but still a pretty great week of participation! Getting near that 30 participant average!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Kansas
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ North Carolina
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

32 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 60% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 15 miles from my front door. I continue not to help expand the map.

There were no huge milestones reached this week. But on the other hand there were a ton of streaks snapped. Oh, that is a bad thing. Jen, Evie, and Sara all turned out to be one and done. Mary had 3 week steak go belly up. Oh, the humanity!

SELF-PORTRAIT

SELF-PORTRAIT! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

I know what a few of you are thinking. You hate SELF-PORTRAITS or the cellular phone derivative the selfie. This is either because you don’t know you are a total smoke show and don’t like having your picture taken or you know that you are a total smoke show and don’t like sharing your smoke-showness with the rest of the world. Keep that smoke-showitude to yourself. Or you are in the witness relocation program and are worried that if your smoke-showness gets out in the world the mafia hitmen or whomever will come and extinguish your smoke show forever.

These are the only 3 possible reasons. However, if you are one of these people, I have good news for you! A SELF-PORTAIT doesn’t just have to be the standard selfie, where you are standing next to your friend, dog, or significant other. Where you hold your phone out in front of you and take a snap. That certainly works and I wouldn’t poo poo that one bit.

However, a SELF-PORTRAIT might not include your face at all. It might be a picture of your hands or your ear or whatever body part. It might not even include you at all. You could take a picture of another person taking a SELF-PORTRAIT. Just please don’t take a picture of you in your bathroom mirror with your dirty toilet in the background. Or do, I won’t judge. I might mail you some toilet cleaner, but I won’t judge.

You’ll figure it out.

While considering possible ways to do your SELF-PORTRAIT, meditate on this following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with an interesting image:

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD

It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don’t think you’re good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we’re always doing it wrong.

You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can’t ask for money because that’s crass. You have to be a boss, but you can’t be mean. You have to lead, but you can’t squash other people’s ideas. You’re supposed to love being a mother, but don’t talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men’s bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you’re accused of complaining. You’re supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you’re supposed to be a part of the sisterhood.

But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line.

It’s too hard! It’s too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault.

I’m just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us.

Now I know that sorta singles women out, but I think parts of it Ken speak a bit to men who sometimes wonder if they are Kenough. I’m here to tell you brother, you are Kenough.

And for the record, if there are any women out there that have seen the BARBIE movie and need some of the intricacies of it (like the 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY parody opening) mansplained to you, I’ve got your back. I’ve been told I’m pretty good at mansplaining. I think that was a compliment. Don’t tell me if it is not.

Sorry, were you talking? I was just thinking about Matchbox 20 and how they are my jam.

And I’m a little bit angry, well. This ain’t over, no, not here. Not while I still need you around. You don’t owe me, we might change, yeah. Yeah, we just might feel good I wanna push you around. Well, I will, well, I will. I wanna push you down. Well, I will, well, I will. I wanna take you for granted.

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

RULES

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of SELF-PORTAIT in this place that is a millions of lines of code to make one giant selfie next Monday.