Category Archives: Mary

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

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:

+ 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!

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!

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:

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

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 NEGATIVE in this place that started with a pile of negatives next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Birthdays, Boone County Fair, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dahlia, Dawn, Elizabeth, Evie, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Pufferbilly Days, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Still Life, Street Photography, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 410 – GUILTY PLEASURE

July 24, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Today is Dahlia’s birthday so I need to wish her a happy birthday. Happy birthday Dahlia!

Enjoy life without spreadsheets and emails and meetings and call centers and bills and jobs as long as you possibly can!

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This is your reminder that if you are interested in entering the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest, the deadline is Friday:

I’ve already heard from a few of you that you are entering and I am excited. Hopefully this is a popular year for the photo contest!

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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 7 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.

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.

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 largest 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.

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You are probably wondering if you are every going to get to see this week’s submissions. It is one of my GUILTY PLEASURE(s) to make you wait. But were there a ton of people that were willing to share the shame of their GUILTY PLEASURE with all of us? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, July 17, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
2-Scott Degeneffe – 2 weeks
3-Mary Green – 2 weeks (3)
4-Mike Vest – 2 weeks
5-Suzie Brannen – 3 weeks
6-Sabas Hernandez – 3 weeks
7-Sheri Fakhouri – 5 weeks
8-Monica Jennings – 6 weeks (2)
9-Logan Kahler – 6 weeks (2)
10-Nathanial Brown – 7 weeks
11-Jesse Howard – 7 weeks
12-Tamara Peterson – 10 weeks
13-Alexis Stensland – 15 weeks (3)
14-Mindi Terrell – 22 weeks (3)
15-Brandon Kahler – 47 weeks
16-Linda Bennett – 51 weeks
17-Sarah Toot – 52 weeks (2)
18-Angie DeWaard – 56 weeks
19-Dawn Krause – 60 weeks
20-Kim Barker – 66 weeks
21-Joe Duff – 67 weeks (2)
22-Teresa Kahler – 78 weeks (2)
23-Carla Stensland – 78 weeks (2)
24-Micky Augustin – 80 weeks
25-Andy Sharp – 81 weeks
26-Bill Wentworth – 82 weeks
27-Cathie Morton – 86 weeks
28-Elizabeth Nordeen – 87 weeks
29-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 89 weeks
30-Kio Dettman – 91 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:

WEEK 410 - GUILTY PLEASURE - MICKY AUGUSTIN

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 81 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Sommerset, Iowa) – 90 weeks

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone County Fair – Boone, Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 52 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Nathanial Brown (J.C. Newman Cigar Company – Tampa, Florida) – 8 weeks

Nathanial Brown (John’s Pass – Treasure Island – Florida)

Scott Degeneffe (Near Boone, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 92 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 57 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 68 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa)

Evie Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Mary Green (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Clive, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 7 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 48 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone County Fair – Boone, Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 79 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Infamous Ink – Boone, Iowa) – 61 weeks

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 1 week

Willy McAlpine (Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Cathie Morton (Road to Newton, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 88 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 11 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 82 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Ames, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 79 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 23 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Maryland) – 53 weeks

Sarah Toot (Maryland)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 83 weeks

35 participants!! WooHoo! Another great week! Nearly tying a record currently held by FLOWER. Lots of guilty people out there! Also exciting is that thanks to Sarah Toot’s travelling ways, we’ve added Maryland to the map!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Florida
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Maryland
+ Nebraska
+ 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 1 mile from my front door, so I continue not to contribute.

The big milestones this week were Evie had her first submission of the year! WooHoo! Linda joined the 1 Year Streak Club! WooHoo! Another exciting development was that there were no streaks broken this week. WooHoo!

LIQUID – SUGGESTED BY SARAH TOOT

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

But what exactly is a LIQUID image? Simply put it is an image where the subject or a major compositional element is a LIQUID. And there are so many LIQUID(s) out there. From water to Jones Soda to AE Chocolate Milk to Jagermeister to some kinds of soap to lotion. There are just so many possibilities!

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

Time is liquid. One moment is no more important than any other and all moments quickly run away.
-Kurt Vonnegut

I look forward to 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 GUILTY PLEASURE in this place that will hold only a little bit of judgment on your pleasures next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Birthdays, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Movies, Nathanial, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 409 – A SHAPE

July 17, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 1 Comment

Today is Alexis’ birthday… so happy birthday Alexis!

I hope you have an amazing birthday without too much paperwork, unless your really want to do that paperwork, then happy paperwork day!

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A SHAPE! What a great theme. But did it shape up to be a popular theme? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, July 10, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Scott Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Derrick Gorshe – 1 week
3-Mary Green – 1 week (2)
4-Mike Vest – 1 week
5-Suzie Brannen – 2 weeks
6-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
7-Sheri Fakhouri – 4 weeks
8-Becky Parmelee – 4 weeks
9-Monica Jennings – 5 weeks
10-Logan Kahler – 5 weeks
11-Nathanial Brown – 6 weeks
12-Jesse Howard – 6 weeks (3)
13-Tamara Peterson – 9 weeks
14-Alexis Stensland – 14 weeks (3)
15-Mindi Terrell – 21 weeks (2)
16-Brandon Kahler – 46 weeks
17-Linda Bennett – 50 weeks
18-Sarah Toot – 51 weeks (2)
19-Angie DeWaard – 55 weeks
20-Dawn Krause – 59 weeks
21-Kim Barker – 65 weeks
22-Joe Duff – 66 weeks (2)
23-Teresa Kahler – 77 weeks (2)
24-Carla Stensland – 77 weeks
25-Micky Augustin – 79 weeks
26-Andy Sharp – 80 weeks
27-Bill Wentworth – 81 weeks
28-Cathie Morton – 85 weeks
29-Elizabeth Nordeen – 86 weeks
30-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 88 weeks
31-Kio Dettman – 90 weeks

Heading into today’s submissions, here is the map of where THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE submissions have been taken:

Map courtesy of visitedplaces.com

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 (Swaledale, Iowa) – 15 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Swaledale, Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 81 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Ames, Iowa) – 56 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 82 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 47 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 78 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ames, Iowa)

Cathie Morton (Des Moines, Iowa) – 86 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Boone County, Iowa) – 60 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Kamrar, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 67 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 91 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Iowa) – 51 weeks

Linda Bennett (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Mary Green (Salt Lake City, Utah) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Salt Lake City, Utah)

Micky Augustin (Near Colo, Iowa) – 80 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Urbandale, Iowa) – 22 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Urbandale, Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Des Moines, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Monica Jennings (Des Moines, Iowa)

Nathanial Brown (Tampa, Florida) – 7 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Indian Rocks, Florida)

Sabas Hernandez (Ottumwa, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Sarah Toot (New York City, New York) – 52 weeks

Sarah Toot (New York City, New York)

Scott Degeneffe (Near Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Indianola, Iowa) – 89 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Colfax, Iowa) – 78 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Stanhope, Iowa)

Willy McAlpine (Ames, Iowa) – 1 week

31 participants! That is a pretty great week! That is 8 of the last 9 weeks that we’ve had over 30 submissions! That is impressive and if we keep that up, I might lower the maximum submissions to 2. We will see if we can keep going at such a high rate of participation! WooHoo!

There were submissions from several places this week, but no place new.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Florida
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ New York
+ Texas
+ Utah

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ 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

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

If you are wondering, these are the missing states:

+ Alabama
+ Alaska
+ Connecticut
+ Delaware
+ Hawaii
+ Idaho
+ Indiana
+ Kentucky
+ Maine
+ Maryland
+ Massachusetts
+ Mississippi
+ New Hampshire
+ New Mexico
+ Rhode Island
+ South Carolina
+ 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
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

My submission was taken in my basement. I continue to not help grow the map. Maybe one of these days I’ll just get a wild hair and drive to New Mexico. Stranger things have happened.

There were plenty of big accomplishments this week! Tamara joined the Double Digit Streak Club! WooHoo! Sarah joined the 1 Year Streak Club! WooHoo! Carla and Teresa both joined the 18 Month Streak Club! Double WooHoo!

But it wasn’t all lengthy streaks. Derrick couldn’t build on his submission from last week and Becky’s 4 week streak came crashing to a halt.

GUILTY PLEASURE – THEME SUGGESTED BY SARAH TOOT

GUILTY PLEASURE! What a great theme for year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a GUILTY PLEASURE photo? It is simply a photo of something that you enjoy, but you know that it is bad. Either low in quality or bad for you. In the theme reveal image I am watching THE WRAITH. Which is one of the absolute worst movies ever made. Everything about the movie is inept from the acting to the directing to the storyline to the special effects and I love every second of it! Another example of a GUILTY PLEASURE of mine is Funyuns. I know they are terrible for me and leave me with absolutely dreadful breath, but I can still hammer down a bag of them like it is nobody’s business!

So think about what you love, but you know isn’t good or good for you. Could be a band or a show or a food or a person… You’ll figure it out. Maybe your GUILTY PLEASURE is Photography 139. I won’t hate. I’m kind of in the Dave Grohl mindset on GUILTY PLEASURE(s).

While thinking about that thing you love, but sometimes are a little embarrassed to tell other people about, meditate on the following quote:

Isn’t three quarters of life a guilty pleasure?
-Joan Collins

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!

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dawn, Derrick, Drone, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Night, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, State Fair, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 408 – TIME

July 10, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

Feels like a good time to announce that I did get a picture in the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon. I also got an Award of some kind:

I assume the Award isn’t as good as the award I got last year when I got 1st Place in the Iowa Places class. An award can range from an Honorable Mention to winning the whole darn shooting match.

I’ll be interested to see which picture got in. The only other person that has seen my entries said that 2 of them were so bad that not only should I be ashamed of entering them, I should be ashamed of even taking the pictures.

That might not be what they said, it is what I heard. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what matters?

So to say that I’m hoping one of those two unloved pictures made it, just so I can say “Ha!” wouldn’t be accurate. Cause that wouldn’t sound like me.

But in the end, I don’t know what picture got accepted. But I’ll share that after the Iowa State Fair is over. As is my way. Or you can go to the Iowa State Fair and find out for yourself.

But I’m not the only regular contributor to THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE to get pictures accepted to the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon. Angie, Logan, and Nathanial all also got pictures accepted. I believe all of them got multiple pictures accepted and I think there were multiple awards in their as well. So congratulations to them! WooHoo!

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TIME! A great theme. But did many people make TIME to take a TIME photo and submit it? You will have to keep scrolling to find out.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, July 3, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Suzie Brannen – 1 week (3)
2-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 1 week
3-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week
4-Sheri Fakhouri – 3 weeks (3)
5-Becky Parmelee – 3 weeks
6-Monica Jennings – 4 weeks
7-Logan Kahler – 4 weeks
8-Nathanial Brown – 5 weeks (3)
9-Jesse Howard – 5 weeks (2)
10-Tamara Peterson – 8 weeks
11-Alexis Baugher – 13 weeks (3)
12-Mindi Terrell – 20 weeks (3)
13-Brandon Kahler – 45 weeks
14-Linda Bennett – 49 weeks (2)
15-Sarah Toot – 50 weeks (3)
16-Angie DeWaard – 54 weeks
17-Dawn Krause – 58 weeks (2)
18-Kim Barker – 64 weeks
19-Joe Duff – 65 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 76 weeks (2)
21-Carla Stensland – 76 weeks
22-Micky Augustin – 78 weeks
23-Andy Sharp – 79 weeks (2)
24-Bill Wentworth – 80 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 84 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 85 weeks (2)
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 87 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 89 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:

Alexis Baugher (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (St. Petersburg, Florida) – 81 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ogden, Iowa) – 77 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 50 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Mary Green (Iowa) – 1 week

Mary Green (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 88 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 51 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 9 weeks

Micky Augustin (Wilton, Iowa) – 79 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Chicago, Illinois) – 1 week

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 77 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Boone, Iowa) – 59 weeks

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 65 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 86 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 66 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Angie DeWaard (Bridgewater, New Jersey) – 55 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 80 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 90 weeks

Logan Kahler (Council Bluffs, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 46 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 85 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Treasure Island – Florida) – 6 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 21 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa)

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 1 week

Derrick Gorshe (North Carolina)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Bella Vista, Arkansas) – 4 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Iowa)

32 participants! A pretty great week! Back over 30 participants. Where we belong! And thanks to Derrick’s trip to North Carolina, there is another state added to the map! WooHoo!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Florida
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ New Jersey
+ North Carolina
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

31 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 standing in my backyard. I continue to not help expand the map.

The big milestone this week was that it was Derrick’s first submission this calendar year! Hopefully it will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship between Derrick and THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE! He joins Jen and Layla as the members of the Gorshe family to contribute this year.

But it wasn’t all fun, games, and Gorshes this week. Jen couldn’t build on last week and her “streak” ended.

A SHAPE*

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

But what is a A SHAPE picture? Simply put, it a picture where A SHAPE plays a heavy part of the composition. It doesn’t matter what SHAPE. Pick your favorite. A circle. A triangle. A square. A rectangle. A pentagon. A rhombus. A dodecahedron. Doesn’t matter. As long as it is A SHAPE.

While considering a possible subject for your A SHAPE picture, meditate on the following quote I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating submission:

I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way – things I had no words for.
-Georgia O’Keeffe

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 A SHAPE in this place that holds some kind of shape next Monday.

*This image is not to imply that I condone the playing of golf. This picture was taken at a miniature golf course. The only acceptable form of golf.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Johnathan, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Nature, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 406 – ‘SCAPE

June 26, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

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?

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 5 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?

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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NOTE: WHILE NEXT MONDAY ISN’T A HOLIDAY IT IS THE DAY BEFORE A HOLIDAY, I MIGHT BE BUSY ON THAT DAY AND YOU MIGHT BE BUSY THAT DAY, SO MAKE PLANS FOR SUBMITTING ACCORDINGLY.

‘SCAPE! What a great theme! However did ‘SCAPE inspire a large group of people to get out there and take and submit and image? You will have to keep scrolling to find out.

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

1-Porter Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Sheri Fakhouri – 1 week (3)
3-Mary Green – 1 week (3)
4-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
5-Nader Parsaei – 1 week
6-Johnathan Stensland – 1 week
7-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
8-Elainie Hernandez – 2 weeks (3)
9-Monica Jennings – 2 weeks
10-Logan Kahler – 2 weeks (2)
11-Suzie Brannen – 3 weeks (3)
12-Nathanial Brown – 3 weeks (3)
13-Jesse Howard – 3 weeks
14-Sara Lockner – 5 weeks
15-Willy McAlpine – 4 weeks
16-Tamara Peterson – 6 weeks
17-Mike Vest – 8 weeks
18-Alexis Baugher – 11 week (3)
19-Mindi Terrell – 18 weeks (3)
20-Brandon Kahler – 43 weeks
21-Linda Bennett – 47 weeks (2)
22-Sarah Toot – 48 weeks
23-Angie DeWaard – 52 weeks
24-Dawn Krause – 56 weeks (3)
25-Kim Barker – 62 weeks (2)
26-Joe Duff – 63 weeks
27-Teresa Kahler – 74 weeks (3)
28-Carla Stensland – 74 weeks (3)
29-Micky Augustin – 76 weeks
30-Andy Sharp – 77 weeks
31-Bill Wentworth – 78 weeks
32-Cathie Morton – 82 weeks
33-Elizabeth Nordeen – 83 weeks
34-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 85 weeks
35-Kio Dettman – 87 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 (Don Williams Golf Course – Boone County, Iowa) – 88 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 86 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 84 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 83 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Chalco Park – Omaha, Nebraska) – 79 weeks

Andy Sharp (Gilbert, Iowa) – 78 weeks

Andy Sharp (Gilbert, Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 77 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Jordan, Iowa) – 75 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Jordan, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Rural Boone County, northwest of Ogden, Iowa) – 75 weeks

Carla Stensland (Antiques Iowa – Story City, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Ledges State Park – Madrid, Iowa)

Joe Duff (Pasadena, Texas) – 64 weeks

Joe Duff (Pasadena, Texas)

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 63 weeks

Dawn Krause (River Bottom Raceway – Carlisle, Iowa) – 57 weeks

Dawn Krause (River Bottom Raceway – Carlisle, Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Cold Links Golf Course – Ames, Iowa) – 53 weeks

Sarah Toot (New York City, New York) – 49 weeks

Sarah Toot (New York City, New York)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 48 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 44 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 19 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Alexis Baugher (Nevada, Iowa) – 12 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Swaledale, Iowa)

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 7 weeks

Sara Lockner (Des Moines, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Willy McAlpine (McHose Park – Boone, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Des Moines, Iowa)

Jesse Howard – (Gray’s Lake – Des Moines, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Jesse Howard (High Trestle Trail Bridge – Boone County, Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Huntington Beach, California) – 3 weeks

Logan Kahler (Lawson, Colorado)

Monica Jennings (Papajohn Sculpture Park – Des Moines, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Monica Jennings (Papajohn Sculpture Park – Des Moines, Iowa)

Johnathan Stensland (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Michigan) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Michigan)

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Between Cambridge and Nevada – Iowa) – 2 weeks

Amy Peterson (California) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Rural Boone County, Iowa) – 1 week

Christopher D. Bennett (High Trestle Trail Bridge – Boone County, Iowa)

33 participants! That is a great week. Only a slight downturn from FLOWER, which remains King of the World! At the very least, FLOWER isn’t the pay $250,000 dollars to get crushed in a submarine that is controlled by a PS2 knock off video game controller of themes. FLOWER is definitely Jack and Fabrizio at the front of the Titanic of themes. But ‘SCAPE is no pay $250,000 to go in a submarine made out of a substance that everybody told you was a bad idea and get crushed of themes. I’m not sure where to place ‘SCAPE. Maybe ‘SCAPE is the “So, you want to go to a real party?” of themes?

There were submissions taken from a wide variety of places this week, which is cool. But no new states, which is to be expected. Cause we are definitely in a place where it is harder to knock off new states. Mostly down to New England and the Southeast. With a couple western states like Idaho and New Mexico hanging out there. Waiting to be plucked.

I know. I know. There aren’t a ton of reasons to go to Idaho (although I believe they have the best Mormons*) or New Mexico (they murdered Billy the Kid), but maybe somebody will happen across those states at some point.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ California
+ Colorado
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Michigan
+ Nebraska
+ New York
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

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

29 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway 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

Last week was the first time ever all 5 of my biological nieces and nephews participated in the same week. They weren’t able to back it up a second week as Elainie’s 2 week streak came to end.

Brandon and Elainie weren’t the only peeps to have streaks that Rose wouldn’t move over slightly for them to get up and out of the cold waters of the Atlantic for. Also freezing to death were the streaks of Porter (1) and Nader (1) and Sabas (2) and Suzie (2).

But it wasn’t all doom and gloom and mankind’s arrogance being squished by Nature. Amy had her first submission of the year! That is exciting! WooHoo! Also, Andy reached the Year and Half Streak Club! WooHoo!

RETAIL

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

An astute observer that has a physical Photography 139 Calendar may notice that this week says MUSIC and not RETAIL. That was a typo that wasn’t caught by my proofreader. Mostly because I didn’t have my proofreader look over the calendar. So don’t take a music picture, unless it is at a music store. This theme was suggested by Elizabeth.

All that is nice, but what is a RETAIL image? Let’s start by defining RETAIL:

the sale of goods to the public in relatively small quantities for use or consumption rather than for resale.

A RETAIL image is simply an image that involves the sale of goods to the public. A picture of a store or inside a store or at a market or things that are used purchase things. Simple enough.

While considering possible RETAIL subjects for your submission, meditate on the following quote:

Too many people spend money they haven’t earned to buy things they don’t want to impress people they don’t like.
-Will Rogers

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 ‘SCAPE in this place that hopefully has a least put a little dent in the landscape of photography next Monday.

* Trust me, this is a joke that only one person will get, which is how I like my jokes. Very inside.

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

WPC – WEEK 405 – FLOWER

June 19, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 6 Comments

Here is another reminder that we are a little more than a month away from the deadline for the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. Flyers should start showing up around town this week. I hope at least a few of you enter. Or you get your kids to enter or your grandkids to enter. You don’t have be from Boone or Boone County to enter. You merely have to enjoy photography. Monica made a wonderful flyer this year:

Thanks Monica!

She had a lot of fun with this year’s Pufferbilly Days theme, which is the ’90s. I’ll probably need more volunteers than normal this year, so if that is something that might interest you. Let me know. Many hands make light work. And there might be a meal or two in it for you.

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NOTE: ALMOST EVERYBODY HAD THEIR SUBMISSIONS IN THIS WEEK BY SUNDAY NIGHT. WHILE THAT ISN’T THE DEADLINE, I CERTAINLY APPRECIATE IT. MAKES MY JOB MUCH EASIER! THANKS!

FLOWER! What a great theme! A person would have to have no joy in their heart to not find joy in a beautiful FLOWER. In fact, I’ve even heard some suggest that next year all 52 weeks should be flower themes. One week ROSE. The next week DAISY. The next week SUNFLOWER. I mean that is just crazy talk though. So crazy it just might work. But was this year’s lone FLOWER theme enough to make a bunch of people crazy enough to submit? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out.

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

1-Elainie Hernandez – 1 week
2-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week
3-Monica Jennings – 1 week (3)
4-Logan Kahler – 1 week
5-Suzie Brannen – 2 weeks (3)
6-Nathanial Brown – 2 weeks
7-Jesse Howard – 2 weeks
8-Willy McAlpine – 3 weeks
9-Sara Lockner – 4 weeks (2)
10-Tamara Peterson – 5 weeks
11-Mike Vest – 7 weeks
12-Alexis Baugher – 10 week (2)
13-Mindi Terrell – 17 weeks (3)
14-Brandon Kahler – 42 weeks
15-Linda Bennett – 46 weeks (2)
16-Sarah Toot – 47 weeks (2)
17-Angie DeWaard – 51 weeks
18-Dawn Krause – 55 weeks (2)
19-Kim Barker – 61 weeks
20-Joe Duff – 62 weeks (2)
21-Teresa Kahler – 73 weeks (3)
22-Carla Stensland – 73 weeks (3)
23-Micky Augustin – 75 weeks
24-Andy Sharp – 76 weeks
25-Bill Wentworth – 77 weeks
26-Cathie Morton – 81 weeks (2)
27-Elizabeth Nordeen – 82 weeks (2)
28-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 84 weeks
29-Kio Dettman – 86 weeks

Entering today, this is the map of states where people have submitted pictures from:

Map made at visitedplaces.com

Only 1 new state added since last time I shared the 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:

Willy McAlpine (30 Miles East of Ashland, Montana) – 1 week

Kim Barker (New Orleans, Louisiana) – 62 weeks

Kim Barker (New Orleans, Louisiana)

Sabas Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 77 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

Sheri Fakhouri (Boone, Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Rural Story County, Iowa) – 76 weeks

Johnathan Stensland (Iowa) – 1 week

Carla Stensland (Ogden, Iowa) – 74 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ogden, Iowa)

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 87 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 47 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Rural Warren County, Iowa) – 85 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 6 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Boone, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Rural Boone County, Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Ames, Iowa) – 52 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 78 weeks

Nader Parsaei (State Center, Iowa) – 1 week

Nathanial Brown (Mexico) – 3 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Mexico)

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 83 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 18 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Mary Green (Iowa) – 1 week

Mary Green (Iowa)

Porter Degeneffe (Rural Boone County, Iowa) – 1 week

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 74 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (South Dakota) – 56 weeks

Dawn Krause (South Dakota)

Elainie Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Elainie Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa)

Sara Lockner (Johnston, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 63 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 48 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Ames, Iowa) – 43 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 82 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Bella Vista, Arkansas) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Noel, Missouri) – 8 weeks

36 participants this week! This is a new record for participation! Making FLOWER the most popular theme in the storied history of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. Maybe the idea of 52 themes of FLOWER isn’t crazy after all. Marigolds one week. Pansies the next. Oooh… a week of begonias would be lovely!

36 participants breaks the previous record of 34 held by HAPPY that was set just 4 weeks ago.

36 participants is so many that it is more lines than I have in my Ledger book where I record such things for posterity. Have a look:

I’m not sure how I will record this week, but it is a great problem to have!

Also, if we continue on this trajectory (5 straight weeks of 30+ participants) I might be lowering the cap for submissions from 3 to 2. Just fair warning. Like I say in the FAQ, it isn’t about harshing anybody’s creativity buzz, but about managing workload. Hopefully, we get there!

Thanks to Willy attending a Tuesday Wedding in Montana (all weddings should be on Tuesday or Thursdays) and Kim’s work trip to Louisiana, we added two more states to the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE SUBMISSION MAP!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Nebraska
+ Mexico
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

29 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway there!

You might be wondering what states are currently missing. I got you:

+ Alabama
+ Alaska
+ Connecticut
+ Delaware
+ Hawaii
+ Idaho
+ Indiana
+ Kentucky
+ Maryland
+ Massachusetts
+ Mississippi
+ New Hampshire
+ New Mexico
+ North Carolina
+ Rhode Island
+ South Carolina
+ Tennessee
+ Vermont
+ Virginia
+ West Virginia

The Outside of the United States map is currently (I could put more info for Mexico, but nobody told me where they went in Mexico):

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I travelled about 15 steps from front door to take my submission I continue not to contribute to expanding the map.

The big accomplishment this week was Angie reaching the 52 Week Club! That is a fully year of submitting without missing a week. A big time accomplishment! WooHoo!

Bill also joined the Year and a Half Club. He isn’t the first person to join the club, but he is the first person that I have noted to have made the club. Cathie made it 4 weeks ago. Elizabeth made it 5 weeks ago. Shannon 7 weeks ago. Kio 12 weeks ago. Monster achievements for all of them!

Another sweet deal was that there wasn’t a single streak snapped this week.

‘SCAPE

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

But what is a ‘SCAPE picture? The “‘” in the theme name allows you to substitute in a few words. Your submission could be a LANDSCAPE or a WATERSCAPE or a CITYSCAPE.

Well for one thing, it is a great theme for me to remind you that you can include the town your picture was taken in or the county and I will include that with your submission.

Did you know that the first photograph ever taken was of a landscape?

“View from the Window at Le Gras” was captured by Nicéphore Niépce, in 1827. It features a very abstract view from Niépce’s window.

It would be another 12 years before somebody would think to take a “photograph” of a stupid human. I assume the 2nd picture ever taken was of a dog.

With this theme, you are literally touching the absolute deepest root of photography. Wow! That is powerful to think about. But maybe you are still confused about what LANDSCAPE photography is. Here is a definition from the Wiki:

Landscape photography commonly involves daylight photography of natural features of land, sky and waters, at a distance—though some landscapes may involve subjects in a scenic setting nearby, even close-up, and sometimes at night.

Photography of artificial scenery, such as farm fields, orchards, gardens and architecture, may be considered “landscape” photography as well. Even the presence of man-made structures (buildings, roads and bridges, etc.) or art (such as sculpture) may be considered “landscape” if presented in artistic settings or appearing (or photographed) in artistic style.

Further, landscape photography is typically of relatively stationary subjects—arguably a form of “still life.” This tends to simplify the task, as opposed to photography of kinetic or live subjects. However, landscape photography often overlaps the activity of wildlife photography and the two terms are used somewhat interchangeably; both wildlife and landscapes may be elements of the same picture or body of work.

While thinking about a possible subject for your ‘SCAPE theme, meditate on the following quote:

This is the gift of the landscape photograph, that the heart finds a place to stand.
-Emmet Gowin (American Photographer)

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!

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dawn, Elizabeth, Flowers, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nader, Naima, Nathanial, Pufferbilly Days, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Steph, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 401 – HAPPY

May 22, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

I mailed out a postcard to the entrants of last years Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest last week. I hear they still haven’t arrived in people’s mailboxes. Thought I would share the postcard here, since many of you entered last year or have kids or grandkids that entered. Or hopefully many of you are thinking of entering this year for the first time. Monica designed the postcard. Have a look:

There are 6 Photo Classes this year:
+ Animals
+ Black & White
+ People
+ Places
+ Plants
+ Trains, Planes, & Automobiles

There are 3 Age Divisions:
+ Youth (7-12)
+ Teen (13-17)
+ Adult (18+)

Hopefully many of you enter again and many more of you are inspired to enter this year. Or inspired to have your kids or grandkids enter.

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REMINDER THAT NEXT MONDAY IS MEMORIAL DAY. WHILE YOUR BANK AND THE GOVERNMENT AND A BUNCH OF OTHER BUSINESSES TAKE THE DAY OFF, THERE IS NO REST FOR PHOTOGRAPHY 139. RISE AND GRIND EVERY SINGLE DAY. I DON’T KNOW WHAT MY PLANS ARE FOR MEMORIAL DAY (OTHER THAN MAYBE SLEEPING LATE AFTER WHAT I HOPE IS AN EPIC MOVIE NIGHT ON SUNDAY) BUT IT MIGHT INCLUDE A ROAD TRIP OR A BARBECUE OR A FEW OTHER OPTIONS THAT MIGHT KEEP ME BUSY. LIKEWISE YOU MIGHT BE ENGAGED IN A SIMILAR ACTIVITY ON MONDAY MORNING. YOU MIGHT NOT GET A REMINDER AND YOU MIGHT NOT BE IN A POSITION TO SUBMIT. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

HAPPY! Many people claim to like to be HAPPY, but did many people actually get a picture of somebody that is HAPPY or of something that makes them HAPPY? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, May 15, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Nathanial Brown – 1 week
2-Tamara Peterson – 1 week
3-Sabas Hernandez – 3 weeks
4-Mike Vest – 3 weeks
5-Alexis Baugher – 6 weeks (3)
6-Jesse Howard – 6 weeks
7-Mindi Terrell – 13 weeks (2)
8-Monica Jennings – 18 weeks (2)
9-Brandon Kahler – 38 weeks (2)
10-Linda Bennett – 42 weeks
11-Sarah Toot – 43 weeks
12-Angie DeWaard – 47 weeks
13-Dawn Krause – 51 weeks (2)
14-Kim Barker – 57 weeks
15-Joe Duff – 58 weeks
16-Logan Kahler – 60 weeks
17-Teresa Kahler – 69 weeks (2)
18-Carla Stensland – 69 weeks (2)
19-Micky Augustin – 71 weeks
20-Andy Sharp – 72 weeks (3)
21-Bill Wentworth – 73 weeks
22-Cathie Morton – 77 weeks
23-Elizabeth Nordeen – 78 weeks
24-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 80 weeks
25-Kio Dettman – 82 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:

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 58 weeks

Nader Parasei (Orange City, Iowa) – 1 week

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 72 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 79 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Scott Degeneffe (Rural Boone County, Iowa) – 1 week

Melissa Degeneffe (Ankeny, Iowa) – 1 week

Melissa Degeneffe (Erb Pond – Boone County, Iowa)

Alexis Baugher (Iowa) – 7 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 74 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 83 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 43 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa) – 1 week

Mary Green (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 44 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Living History Farms – Urbandale, Iowa) – 48 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Orange City, Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 59 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 81 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa)

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Ottumwa, Iowa) – 1 week

Suzie Brannen (Ottumwa, Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 61 weeks

Jesse Howard (West Bend, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 39 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 78 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Monica Jennings (Roland, Iowa) – 19 weeks

Stephanie Kim (Brooklyn, New York) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 4 weeks

34 participants! That is an amazing week! I know for sure it is the high for this calendar year and it might be the highest of all-time. I’ll have to check my records and get back to you.

Particularly exciting was first ever submissions from Nader and Melissa. I don’t expect Nader to be a regular contributor, but you never know. But with Melissa, there is some hope!

Also, Stephanie had her first submission this year. I don’t know if this will lead to regular or even irregular submissions or not. We will just wait and see.

There were no new states added to the map this week and at this point, I’m betting new states added will be an increasingly rare thing. Time will tell.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New York
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

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

25 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 175 miles from my front door, so I continue to not contribute.

There was one major milestone this week! Dawn joined the 52 Week Club! One straight year of weekly submissions. Congratulations Dawn!

There were no streaks snapped!

PARK

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

But what in the John Culbertson is a PARK image? Simply put, it is a picture taken in a PARK. And there are all sorts of PARKs. There are city, state, national, baseball, softball, playgrounds, nature preserves, urban, pocket, sculpture gardens, cultural… just to name a few. Of course, there is more than one definition of PARK.

While considering a possible subject for your PARK submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with an inspiring image.

The fundamental idea behind the parks is native. It is, in brief, that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us. The parks stand as the outward symbol of the great human principle.
Franklin D. Roosevelt

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 PARK in this place that I believe brings a bit of respite for some next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Derrick, Elizabeth, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Naima, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 396 – SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH

April 17, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH. Possibly the easiest theme ever. But did it get the creative juices flowing for many people? You will have to keep scrolling too find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 10, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Scott Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Susanna Funk – 1 week
3-Mary Green – 1 week
4-Jesse Howard – 1 week
5-Alexis Stensland – 1 week
6-Sabas Hernandez – 3 weeks
7-Willy McAlpine – 3 weeks
8-Mindi Terrell – 7 weeks (2)
9-Suzie Brannen – 12 weeks (3)
10-Monica Jennings – 12 weeks (3)
11-Nathanial Brown – 13 weeks (3)
12-Mike Vest – 13 weeks
13-Tamara Peterson – 23 weeks
14-Brandon Kahler – 33 weeks
15-Linda Bennett – 37 weeks (2)
16-Sarah Toot – 38 weeks (2)
17-Angie DeWaard – 42 weeks
18-Dawn Krause – 46 weeks (2)
19-Kim Barker – 51 weeks
20-Joe Duff – 53 weeks
21-Logan Kahler – 53 weeks
22-Teresa Kahler – 64 weeks
23-Carla Stensland – 64 weeks
24-Micky Augustin – 65 weeks (2)
25-Andy Sharp – 67 week
26-Bill Wentworth – 68 weeks
27-Cathie Morton – 72 weeks
28-Elizabeth Nordeen – 73 weeks
29-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 74 weeks
30-Kio Dettman – 77 weeks (2)

I finally broke down and made a map of states where people have submitted pictures from:

You might notice that Michigan is filled in, even though as of last week we had no submissions from Michigan. That isn’t actually the case. After last Monday’s post published, Mary contacted me and let me know that her pictures were taken in Michigan! WooHoo! Another state. So don’t forget to let me know if you took your picture in a different state than the one you live in. Or if you want, you can always let me know where you took your picture at.

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:

WEEK 396 - SCENE FROM YOUR COUCH - KIO DETTMAN

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 78 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 54 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 24 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 74 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 68 weeks

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 43 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 39 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Wyoming) – 75 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Nevada)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 69 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 38 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa)

Porter Degeneffe (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 47 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 34 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 8 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 54 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Cathie Morton (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 13 weeks

29 participants! That is a pretty great week!

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Nevada
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Wyoming

Thanks to Shannon’s annual bee road trip, Wyoming has been added to the map!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Oklahoma
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

22 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 3 miles from my house. I continue not to contribute.

Speaking of people who do contribute in a big way. Congratulations to Kim! She joins the super exclusive 1 Year Club! WooHoo!

But it wasn’t all good news. Funk couldn’t build on her submission last week. Willy’s 3 week streak is history. Most tragically, Nathanial’s 13 week streak is just a distant memory. Very sad!

FRIENDS

NOTE: I WILL BE IN CHICAGO NEXT MONDAY FOR WORK. WHILE I MIGHT BE SURROUNDED BY COMPUTERS THAT DAY, I WILL NOT BE IN ANY KIND OF POSITION TO POST THE ENTRIES FOR FRIENDS UNTIL I RETURN. THAT WILL EITHER BE LATE TUESDAY NIGHT OR AT SOME POINT ON WEDNESDAY. ALSO, DON’T COUNT ON GETTING ANY REMINDERS. IT MIGHT HAPPEN, BUT I DOUBT IT. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

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

But what exactly is a FRIENDS image? Simply put it is an image that captures a FRIENDS(hip). That can be through a picture of FRIENDS or a picture of an item that represents a FRIENDS(hip).

But what is are FRIENDS? ChatGPT defines FRIENDS like his:

“Friends are individuals who share a mutual bond of trust, affection, and support with each other. They are people with whom we have a close and positive relationship, and with whom we share common interests, values, and experiences. Friends can provide emotional support, companionship, and a sense of belonging. They can also offer advice, feedback, and constructive criticism, and can help us grow and develop as individuals. Friendship is an important aspect of human social interaction, and having strong friendships can have a positive impact on our physical and mental well-being.”

In case you didn’t know what FRIENDS are.

Now a reminder, I’m leaving for Chicago in a couple of days, so if you were hoping to include me in your FRIENDS picture, you either need to act quickly OR come to Illinois.

But if you can’t use me while considering possible subjects for your FRIENDS image, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will make a great submission:

“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.”
— Walter Winchell

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 FRIENDS in this place that was designed for friendship next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dawn, Drone, Elizabeth, Funk, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Naima, Nathanial, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Suzie, Tamara, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 395 – ODD CAMERA ANGLE

April 10, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 5 Comments

Before we get into the submissions for this week’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE I want to say that I’m starting to work on the 2023 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. There are a couple of changes from last year in the photo classes. I split NATURE into ANIMALS and PLANTS. The majority of images submitted last year were for the NATURE class. This way these are split into two categories. I also eliminated the class HIDDEN TREASURES OF BOONE COUNTY and replaced it with PLACES. The amount of classes went up from 5 to 6.

There are still 3 Age Divisions. Youth (7-12), Teen(13-17), and Adult (18+).

Another change is that the photos are not going to be displayed at KWBG this year. The Pufferbilly Days Committee is pushing to have all the activities centered around Story Street on Friday and Saturday. Details are still be worked out, but the current plan is to display the photo amongst various downtown retailers and then Sunday at Art in the Park at McHose Park.

Here is a look at this year’s entry form:

More information will be released as it becomes available. This is just the beginning of the journey. Also thanks to Michelle for updating the entry form!

+++++++

ODD CAMERA ANGLE! A great theme! But were there a ton of oddballs out there to give this theme a spin? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 3, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Porter Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
3-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 2 weeks
4-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
5-Willy McAlpine – 2 weeks
6-Mindi Terrell – 7 weeks (3)
7-Suzie Brannen – 11 weeks
8-Monica Jennings – 11 weeks
9-Nathanial Brown – 12 weeks
10-Mike Vest – 12 weeks
11-Tamara Peterson – 22 weeks
12-Brandon Kahler – 32 weeks
13-Linda Bennett – 36 weeks
14-Sarah Toot – 37 weeks (3)
15-Angie DeWaard – 41 weeks
16-Dawn Krause – 45 weeks (2)
17-Kim Barker – 50 weeks
18-Joe Duff – 52 weeks
19-Logan Kahler – 53 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 63 weeks (3)
21-Carla Stensland – 63 weeks
22-Micky Augustin – 64 weeks (2)
23-Andy Sharp – 66 weeks
24-Bill Wentworth – 67 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 71 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 72 weeks (2)
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 73 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 76 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:

WEEK 395 - ODD CAMERA ANGLE - SUZIE BRANNEN

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 8 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 51 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 42 weeks

Susanna Funk (Colorado) – 1 week

Cathie Morton (Missouri) – 72 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 37 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Mary Green (Michigan) – 1 week

Mary Green (Michigan)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 74 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 23 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 33 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 68 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 53 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 46 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 77 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 38 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) – 13 weeks

Nathanial Brown (North Dakota)

Nathanial Brown (South Dakota)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 54 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa)

31 participants! That is the most this year for sure and possibly the most ever. Maybe tied for the most ever. I would have to check the books and I don’t have last year’s Ledger in front of me right now. We will just go with tied for most ever participants for now.

First ever submissions from Funk and Alexis. I don’t expect Funk to keep contributing, but I knew she was in Colorado doing her mountain climbing thing again, so I hit her up for a submission. But maybe she will find it addictive. One never knows about such things. I do expect big things from Alexis though. She has that good Bennett photography blood flowing through those veins. After all, there are consistently 7 regular participants with that good Bennett photography blood flowing through their veins. Your humble narrator, Linda Bennett, Teresa Kahler, Carla Stensland, Sarah Toot, Brandon Kahler and Logan Kahler. Alexis would be the 8th.

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ Colorado
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Michigan
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas

Four more states have been filled in on the map this week, thanks to Nathanial’s long road trip we get to fill in North Dakota and South Dakota. Thanks to Funk’s mountain climbing exploits, we also get to fill in Colorado. Also, Mary took her submissions in Michigan. WooHoo!
Here is the current calendar year list for states:

21 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

Thanks to Nathanial’s super long road trip, we also got another submission from outside of the United States. Canada is on the big board now!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 3 miles from my front door. So I continue to contribute nothing. There were no major milestones this week. But Kim is closing in on joining the 1 Year Club.

While there was, maybe, record participation this week, it wasn’t all great news. Porter and Becky couldn’t extend last week’s submissions into a 2 week streak. Maybe the pressure of being the youngest contributor this year got to him. Maybe when school’s out, I’ll start hitting up Evie and Layla for submissions. They need to start getting their entries for the Story County Fair (I honestly don’t know if they still do 4-H) and the Pufferbilly Photo Contest taken sometime soon. Jen’s 2 week streak is also history. She ghosted me after I sent her a picture of a matchstick sculpture of the set of BACK TO THE FUTURE. I might have accidentally blown her mind.

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH?!? That seems like an odd theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

This theme was suggested by Angie. It was meant to be subversive. If you have read the rules for (and there aren’t many rules, but they do grow a little by little) THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, you may remember the this line:

“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.”

Here is your chance to not get your butt off the couch. You can literally sit on your couch. Take a picture of whatever you see from your couch and submit it to me. Now, you don’t have to take the picture from your couch. You can pile a bunch of your favorite people on your couch and take a picture of them. You can take your picture from behind the couch. It actually doesn’t even have to be your couch. You can find somebody else’s couch you like better and take your picture from there. It could be a couch in a store or a hotel or a bar. Doesn’t matter. It just has to be a SCENE FROM A COUCH.

There are two things I love about this theme. First, it means that there is somebody that actually reads the rules. Second, this picture can be the easiest one you take for this year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE or you really take your creative juices for a walk to figure out how make this picture, let us say different. To really stretch the boundaries of the theme.

All sorts of stuff happens on a couch. I can’t wait to see what happens on some of yours.

While considering possible subjects for your SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating submission:

I stick to simple themes. Love. Hate. No nuances, I stay away from psychoanalyst’s couch scenes. Couches are good for one thing.
-John Wayne

John Wayne might have been a racist, draft dodging prick*, but the guy knew couches.

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 SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH in this place that was probably dreamed up on a couch next Monday.

* I still love quite a few John Wayne movies. I can separate art from artist. Also I don’t blame him for draft-dodging. I blame him for acting like he didn’t hide behind his marriage to dodge the draft in WWII so he could cheat on his wife with Marlene Dietrich, probably on a couch.

Andy, Angie, Baseball/Softball, Bill, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Iowa State, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Shannon, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 393 – COMPETITION

March 27, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

EDITOR’S NOTE: MY WORK SCHEDULE HAS TEMPORARILY CHANGED DUE TO EXTREME SHORT STAFFING AT THE COMPUTER MINE. BECAUSE OF THIS, THE PUBLISHING OF THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE POST MIGHT GET MOVED BACK AT LEAST 30 MINUTES UNTIL THE STAFFING SHORTAGE HAS PASSED. WE WILL SEE WHAT HAPPENS.

It is the last Monday 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?

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 5 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 start 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.

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 to 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?

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.

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

Suggestions are closed for next year’s list. It will be a minute before they open up for Year 11 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

+++++++

COMPETITION! A great theme! But did it fire up the competitive juices of a ton of people? You will have to keep scrolling to find out.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, March 20, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Scott Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Mary Green – 1 week (3)
3-Sara Lockner – 1 week
4-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
5-Mindi Terrell – 5 weeks (2)
6-Suzie Brannen – 9 weeks
7-Jesse Howard – 9 weeks
8-Monica Jennings – 9 weeks
9-Nathanial Brown – 10 weeks (3)
10-Mike Vest – 10 weeks
11-Tamara Peterson – 20 weeks
12-Brandon Kahler – 30 weeks
13-Linda Bennett – 34 weeks (2)
14-Sarah Toot – 35 weeks (3)
15-Angie DeWaard – 39 weeks
16-Dawn Krause – 43 weeks (2)
17-Kim Barker – 48 weeks
18-Joe Duff – 50 weeks
19-Logan Kahler – 51 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 61 weeks (2)
21-Carla Stensland – 61 weeks (2)
22-Micky Augustin – 63 weeks (2)
23-Andy Sharp – 64 weeks (2)
24-Bill Wentworth – 65 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 69 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 70 weeks
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 71 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 74 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:

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 40 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 66 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 62 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 51 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 75 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 35 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 72 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 21 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 6 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Willy McAlpine (Iowa) – 1 week

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa)

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 71 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Mary Green (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 44 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 1 week

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 62 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 49 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 11 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 31 weeks

Cathie Morton (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 36 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 11 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 52 weeks

29 participants! That is a great week.

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

There were no new states added to the map.

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Minnesota
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ Missouri
+ Oklahoma
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Wisconsin

17 states! That is pretty impressive!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas

I took my picture about 15 miles from my front door. So I didn’t add to the map, yet again.

There were a couple of big milestones this week! Suzie, Monica, and Jesse both reached double digit streaks. Logan reached the One Year Club!

But it wasn’t all sunshine and happiness! Scott, Sara, and Becky couldn’t build on their submissions last week to get to two week streaks!

BLUE

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

But what is a BLUE image? It is simply an image where the subject or a major compositional element of the image is the color BLUE. That is it! Almost too simple!

While thinking about a possible subject for your submission, meditate on the following quite and I have no doubt that you will come up with a great image:

She had blue skin, And so did he. He kept it hid; And so did she. They searched for blue; Their whole life through, Then passed right by – And never knew.
–Shel Silverstein

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 BLUE in this place that hopefully never gives you the blues next Monday.