Category Archives: Micky

Kim, Kio, Macro, Micky, Still Life, Tamara, Vest

WPC – WEEK 293 – HANDS

April 26, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

There was a decent amount of submissions for HANDS. Including, what I believe to be the first ever submission by Amy Peterson. Very excited to have Amy as a future contributor and I expect big things from here in the future.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions:

Micky Augustin

Kio Dettman

Tamara Peterson

Amy Peterson

Kio Dettman

Christopher D. Bennett

Kim Barker

Mike Vest

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:

TRAVEL

TRAVEL! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

A TRAVEL image is pretty simple. It is merely a picture that involves TRAVEL. It could be the result of TRAVEL. You could TRAVEL somewhere and then take a picture of something. You could take a picture of things that are involved in TRAVEL. You could take a picture of things that are involved in preparing for TRAVEL. The possibilities are endless.

Think about the following quote while you are contemplating your TRAVEL image:

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.
-Marcel Proust

Meditate on this quote and I have no doubt your submission will help others see the world with new eyes.

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.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of TRAVEL in this place that only needs you to travel through cyberspace next Monday.

Andree, Angie, Basketball, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Dawn, Faust, Jesse, Joe Duff, Jorge, Kio, Lowell, Michelle, Micky, Pastor Sarah, Robert, Tim, Toby, WPC - Reminder

Roundball Oracles – Year 16

April 9, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

Congratulations to Micky on winning this years Roundball Oracles Basketball Pool.

His name has not been etched on the list of immortals:

PAST ROUNDBALL ORACLE CHAMPIONS

2021 – Micky Augustin
2020 – Tournament Cancelled
2019 – Becky Parmelee
2018 – Paul Golden
2017 – Paul Golden
2016 – Michelle Haupt
2015 – Derek Dohrman
2014 – Brandon Kahler
2013 – William McAlpine
2012 – Lowell Davis
2011 – Carrie Baier
2010 – Mark Wolfram
2009 – Mark Wolfram
2008 – Mark Wolfram
2007 – Tim Peterson
2006 – William McAlpine
2005 – William McAlpine

And congratulation, I guess, to Rachel for “winning” this year’s “The Sara” for last place:

Past “The Sara” Winners:

2021 – Rachel Gildersleeve
2020 – Tournament Cancelled
2019 – Russell Kennerly
2018 – Robert Henning
2017 – Shannon Bardole
2016 – Laura Priest
2015 – Derrick Gorshe
2014 – Sara Lockner

Both of your trophies have been ordered.

Here are the final standings:

ROUNDBALL ORACLES – YEAR 16

1. Michael Augustin – 275 points
2. Jorge Rios – 252 points
3. Jordan Toot – 240 points
4. Corey Faust – 233 points
5. Tim Peterson – 229 points
6. Mike G – 228 points
7. Dawn Krause – 216 points
8. Joey Randazzo – 210 points
9. Elizabeth Nordeen – 204 points
10. Kio Dettman – 203 points
11. Humble Narrator – 202 points
12. Angie DeWaard – 202 points
13. Brandon Kahler – 199 points
14. Bill Wentworth – 194 points
15. Toby Sebring – 191 points
16. Carla Stensland – 188 points
17. Andree Jauhari – 187 points
18. Lowell Davis – 184 points
19. Dylan Groves – 179 points
20. Jesse Howard – 177 points
21. Derek Dohrman – 174 points
22. Joseph Duff – 170 points
23. Robert Henning – 168 points
24. Jackson Faust – 167 points
25. Sarah Karber – 151 points
26. Michelle Haupt – 143 points
27. Rachel Gildersleeve – 142 points

Hopefully in 3 or 4 years Iowa State will be good enough to make the tournament again.

+++++++

This is your reminder that there are two themes to work on this week:

SLICE OF LIFE

It was apropos that the theme was LOVE the week that we had to say goodbye to Mom. I don’t know anybody that embodied the various definitions of LOVE than my Mom. It is strange that the very next theme is SLICE OF LIFE. SLICE OF LIFE is a theme that was designed to honor my Dad. For those of you that don’t know, my Dad passed away when I was 9 years old. His legacy is a large part of the reason as to why I got into photography. He had started a postcard company called Slice of Life.

Therefore, a SLICE OF LIFE image is an image that looks at your local town and capture an image that could be used as a postcard. His postcards were black and white, if you want to go the extra mile.

The second theme to work on this week:

DRINKS

This theme isn’t very complicated. It is merely a picture of a DRINK or DRINK(S).

Happy photo harvesting!

Alexis, Andy, Bill, Cathie, Dad, Dawn, Elainie, Kim, Kio, Michelle, Micky, Mom, Sabas, Sara, Shannon, Slice of Life, Tamara, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 289 – LOVE

April 5, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett 1 Comment

For those of you that haven’t heard, my Mom passed away about 10 days ago. Because of that, I have not been in a state to reveal the submissions for LOVE on time or reveal the new theme for last week. Because of that, I don’t know how steady my posts are going to be in the next few weeks, but this site might just turn into a fan page for my Mom for a little while. However, I will do my best to get back on track with THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. Because of that, there will be two themes for this week to get back on track with the Photography 139 Calendar.

Sara’s submission was not exactly an intended submission, but its message was a perfect encapsulation of what I needed to see when it came through. Thank you Sara!

Here are the submissions for LOVE:

Kim Barker

Dawn Krause

Micky Augustin

Michelle Haupt

Andy Sharp

Steve White

Tamara Peterson

Shannon Bardole-Foley

Bill Wentworth

Cathie Raley

Kio Dettman

Sara Lockner

Christopher D. Bennett

Here is the first of two themes to work on this week:

SLICE OF LIFE

Therefore, a SLICE OF LIFE image is an image that looks at your local town and capture an image that could be used as a postcard. His postcards were black and white, if you want to go the extra mile.

The second theme to work on this week:

DRINKS

This theme isn’t very complicated. It is merely a picture of a DRINK or DRINK(S).

THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE RULES:

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

Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge due date.

I now allow people to text me their submissions. In the past, I had made exceptions for a couple people that aren’t real computer savvy, even though it was an inconvenience for me and required at least 3 extra steps for me. I am now lifting that embargo because I have a streamline way of uploading photos. I’m not giving out my phone number, but if you have it, you can text me.

It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

Good luck!

Andy, Becky, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kio, Logan, Michelle, Micky, Photoshop, Self-Portrait, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 286 – PLAY

March 8, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

75! 75 straight weeks of double digit submissions! That is 3/4 of the way to triple digits on the double digits! But it won’t be able to get to the triple-double. This week’s theme couldn’t be easier, but the week after that is the theme that killed the last double digit streak. (Insert dramatic music here.)

I just want to say that this might be one of the best collection of submissions to date!

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about the participation rates. You came to see the submissions:

Andy Sharp

Elizabeth Nordeen

Dawn Krause

Joe Duff

Kio Dettman

Becky Parmelee

Christopher D. Bennett

Micky Augustin

Jen Ensley-Gorshe

Logan Kahler

Carla Stensland

Cathie Raley

Michelle Haupt

Mike Vest

Carla Stensland

Jesse Howard

PICTURE IN PICTURE

PICTURE IN PICTURE! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

PICTURE IN PICTURE is a brand new theme in the 8+ year history of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. In fact, I’m not sure it existed until I invented it a couple months ago.

A PICTURE IN PICTURE image isn’t just an outdated feature on a television (maybe it still exists but I haven’t used it since 1983), but it is an existing picture(s) put in your PICTURE. There are several ways to do this. One is simply to photograph an photograph that is on your wall. Another way to do this is grab a box of old prints (for you young bucks, people used to get their pictures “developed” and printed on photo paper) and spread them across a table or floor and take a picture of it. You can organize them in a way that makes sense to you, or just spread them out and enjoy the chaos. Another way to do this would be to open up a folder of images on your computer and use the Snipping tool to create an image of digital thumbnails. I’m sure there is also a way to do this on a Mac, but it probably involves paying an extra $200 for less functionality and a cute little fruit logo. Hopefully, you will find away to take an old picture and find a new way of thinking about it.

Let me just throw this out there… Photomosaic?!?!?

Think about the following quote by Ansel Adams when composing your image:

There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer.
-Ansel Adams

In this project, you are both the photographer and the viewer, even if you weren’t the photographer of the initial image. Meditate on that and I have no doubt you will create a great PICTURE IN PICTURE interpretation.

Then send me your submission(s) by 11 AM CST next Monday. 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.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of PICTURE IN PICTURE in this place that is little more than pictures in pictures in pictures next Monday.

Aaron, Carla, Dawn, Elizabeth, Funk, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kio, Macro, Michelle, Micky, Monica, Still Life, Tamara, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 285 – LINES

March 1, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

74 straight weeks of double digit submission and we did it before I even got out of bed on Monday morning! LINES seemed to be a popular theme! I mean, who doesn’t like LINES?

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions:

Micky Augustin

Aaron Barnett

Bill Wentworth

Joe Duff
“Lines in the ceiling, floor, and walls. Plus the lines for Covid vaccine. Got mom vaccinated; well organized and looking like they are starting to hit their stride. Lots vaccinated this weekend.”

Michelle Haupt

Shannon Bardole-Foley

Susanna Funk
“The Manitou Incline has 2,000 feet of stairs which are actually lines! And my hamstrings felt every one of them.”

Tamara Peterson

Christopher D. Bennett

Tamara Peterson

Kio Dettman

Dawn Krause

Elizabeth Nordeen

Jesse Howard

Monica Henning

Carla Stensland

PLAY

PLAY! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

A PLAY image is simply an image where the composition includes either something that is PLAYed or somebody PLAYing. There are all types of things that can be PLAYed. Games to musical instruments to sports to people.

Of course, PLAY has multiple meanings. A PLAY can be words on a piece of paper that tell a story or a PLAY can be acting out those words on a stage. It is more than just humans that PLAY. Animals also PLAY.

Think about the following old proverb when you are considering your PLAY interpretation:

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,
All play and no work makes Jack a mere toy.

Meditation on these words will no doubt lead to a fascinating PLAY image.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of PLAY in this place that is little more than a little PLAYed out next Monday.

Birthdays, Black & White, Cathie, Flat Earth Joe, History, Michelle, Micky, Photoshop, Postcard, Railroad, WPC - Reminder

Postcard Recreation Project – More Downtown Boone

February 26, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

I need to start today by wishing Micky a happy birthday. Happy birthday Micky!

Every once in awhile I will let people behind the curtain at Photography 139. Very few people and not very often. But Micky is the reason (more or less) for my using the term “harvest” so many times when referencing taking pictures.

You see, back in the day, the west bathrooms at the Computer Mine were loaded up with hunting magazines. Now Micky isn’t necessarily the person that brought them in and dumped them in the dumping station and while I’m definitely no hunter, when you are about your business, you read what is handy.

The writing in hunting magazines is amateurish at best. Plus they try to whitewash the fact that they are murderizing animals that never really did anything to them. So these articles about personal hunting experiences almost always include a sentence about how before or after the hunter murderized the animal they said a prayer thanking God for the opportunity to murderize the animal. But they never use the term murderize (and not because it is just a word I invented) or shoot or kill. They always whitewash it with the word harvest. Like they just picked an ear of corn or some tomatoes from their grandma’s garden.

I would frequently discuss these articles with Micky and I started to use the term “harvest” to mock hunting magazines. I’m not anti-hunting, it just isn’t for me. However, I am very strongly anti-bad writing.

All of that being said, Micky, I hope your birthday is amazing as you want it to be and you get to murderize all the animals you want. But only the ones that have it coming. Like the beavers that destroyed your dock*.

+++++++

This collection of pictures from THE POSTCARD RECREATION PROJECT is another collection of postcards of downtown Boone intersections. I wish Boone still had that sign that hung over Story Street near 9th greeting people to Boone. I have wondered why they chose that location for it. I get that Story Street is the main street in Boone, but back in the day there would have been 2 depots that served railroad passengers. The Fort Dodge, Des Moines and Southern depot was a block north of the sign. The Chicago & Northwestern Depot was about a block to two blocks west. I guess they chose the location because it was about equidistant from both depots.

Here are the postcards. You can see the old sign in three of them:

Boone, IR – 787 Original

Boone, IR 787 – Redux

Story Street from 10th Street – North – Original

Story Street from 10th Street – North – Redux

Story Street Looking South – Original

Story Street Looking South – Redux

The Main (Story) Street – Original

The Main (Story) Street – Redux

The Story St. from 10th St. postcard put me on the right path for a future THE POSTCARD RECREATION PROJECT post. However, the next THE POSTCARD RECREATION PROJECT post will feature a church.

+++++++

This is your reminder that THIS WEEK’S THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE theme is LINES:

LINES

A LINES image is simply an image that heavily incorporates LINES into the composition of the image.LINES that appear in a photograph CAN BE framed and positioned by the photographer to draw the viewer’s eye towards a specific point of interest. LINES draw the viewer’s eye to a specific direction of an image.

You can use all sorts of lines in your composition. You can use horizontal LINES. You can use vertical LINES. You can use diagonal LINES. You can use converging LINES. There are just so many options!

Of course, the term LINES has more than one meaning.

Think about the following quote from Martin Luther while considering your LINES image:

God can draw a straight line with a crooked stick.

Meditate on these words and you will no doubt create a fascinating LINES image. No matter how crooked you think you are.

Happy photo murderizing… I mean happy photo harvesting!

*Truth is that I wish he would’ve live trapped the beavers and rehabilitated them.

Funk, Jen, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Logan, Micky, Monica, Shannon, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 283 – WIND

February 15, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett 24 Comments

Well, we did it! Andy said it couldn’t be done, but we hit double digits with WIND like it ain’t no thing, but a chicken wing on a string. A phrase, that while I enjoy typing, don’t understand in the slightest. 72 weeks in a row of double digit submissions!

An exciting development this week was that I received the first ever submission from Susanna Funk. For those of you that don’t know Susanna, she is one of the most badass people I know. In addition to be under the stress of being a health care professional in a state (Iowa) with a completely inept governor, she spends her spare time climbing mountains. Her WIND picture comes from Rocky Mountains National Park.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about submission rates to shove it in Andy’s face, you came to see the submissions:

Susanna Funk

Shannon Bardole-Foley

Tamara Peterson

Christopher D. Bennett

Kio Dettman

Joe Duff

Micky Augustin

Kim Barker

Jen Ensley-Gorshe

Logan Kahler

Monica Henning

SYMMETRY & PATTERNS

SYMMETRY & PATTERNS! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

I can’t help but think of Shannon when I think of the theme of SYMMETRY & PATTERNS. Back in the day, we would occasionally go to art shows and fairs together. It often ended up being a painful and frustrating experience because the art booths that she would like to stop and look at were the art that actually hurt my soul (at least a little bit) to look at. It was all symmetrical lines and shapes. I always thought, “if this is the kind of art she likes and she likes my photography, what does that say about my photography? Is it this awful and boring?”

On the other side of the coin, she also hated most of the art I liked. Considered it to be derivative of the illustrations one sees in children’s books. Whatever.

I’m not saying you should tap into your inner Shannon when making your SYMMETRY & PATTERNS picture, but it might not hurt. I’m not saying your picture should be boring and uninteresting. I borderline enjoy the theme reveal picture of the bathroom floor in front of my toilet*. I am saying that you should find a pattern and/or a subject that has symmetry. While this isn’t my favorite theme, I do look forward to seeing your interpretations. I bet Shannon will be counting down the days.

When thinking about creating your SYMMETRY & PATTERNS image, think on the following quote from noted Japanese author Junichiro Tanizaki:

Find beauty not only in the thing itself but in the pattern of the shadows, the light and dark which that thing provides.

Meditate on these words and you will no doubt, make a completely almost interesting SYMMETRY & PATTERNS image.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of SYMMETRY & PATTERNS in this place that admittedly has some symmetry and patterns of its own next Monday.

*Admit it. You are impressed with how clean it is.

Becky, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Kim, Kio, Micky, Tamara, Teresa, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 282 – USE OF SPACE

February 8, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

I have to confess, I had my doubts about USE OF SPACE. It is a little more technical theme and the technical themes scare many people away. But we did it! 71 weeks in a row of double digits!

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions:

Carla Stensland

Christopher D. Bennett

Carla Stensland

Tamara Peterson

Becky Parmelee

Teresa Kahler

Kim Barker

Micky Augustin

Dawn Krause

Kio Dettman

Cathie Raley

WIND

WIND! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

WIND was a theme that was suggested by Andy. He practically dared me to use it as a theme because he said it would break the double digit streak. Well, challenge accepted!

But what is a WIND picture? You can’t see the WIND after all. While WIND might be invisible, you can see the effects of WIND on many, many things. In the photo reveal/example image, it is WIND that is blowing snow across the road. Tamara’s submission for USE OF SPACE could just as easily be WIND submission. At least here in central Iowa, WIND will be a major factor in our lives this week. WIND chill temperatures could get lower than -30. Andy says we can’t do double digit submissions for WIND. I say that it is almost too easy!

But while thinking of how you are going to compose your wind image, think on the song (one of my favorite songs of all-time) lyrics to this song by Yusuf Islam:

I listen to the wind, to the wind of my soul
Where I’ll end up, well, I think only God really knows
I’ve sat upon the setting sun
But never, never, never, never
I never wanted water once
No never, never, never
I listen to my words but they fall far below
I let my music take me where my heart wants to go
I swam upon the Devil’s lake
But never, never, never, never
I’ll never make the same mistake
No, never, never, never

Meditate on those words while you make your WIND interpretation.

Then send me you submission(s) by 11 AM CST next Monday. Remember, while I might consider you FAMILY, 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.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of WIND in this place that can be windy when its CDO gets talking next Monday.

Andy, Becky, Carla, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jesse, Kim, Kio, Michelle, Micky, Monica, Shannon, Tamara, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 281 – BLACK

February 1, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

BLACK! Another theme. Another Monday. Another week of double digit submissions! 70 weeks in a row to be exact! WooHoo!

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions!

Jesse Howard

Kim Barker

Jesse Howard

Kio Dettman

Carla Stensland

Kio Dettman

Michelle Haupt

Kio Dettman

Shannon Bardole-Foley

Tamara Peterson

Christopher D. Bennett

Andy Sharp

Dawn Krause

Elizabeth Nordeen

Becky Parmelee

Monica Henning

Micky Augustin

USE OF SPACE

USE OF SPACE! Another great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

USE OF SPACE is an important theme historically for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. It was the very first theme ever for THE WEEKY PHOTO CHALLLENGE. All the way back when Vest and I invented THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE in the build area of the Computer Mine. Back then it was called THE RANDOM WEEKLY PHOTO EXPERIMENT and the theme was determined each week by a program that Vest wrote. Back then we both received submissions and he also published submissions on his website.
Much has changed back then, and not just the name. While that little bit of history is fascinating, it doesn’t answer the question, what is a USE OF SPACE picture?

It is possibly a confusing theme on the surface, but couldn’t be simpler in reality. All you have to understand is that in an image, there are two types of “space”. Positive space and negative space.

Positive space is the area in the photo that attracts the viewer’s eye. It’s the main subject that commands attention in the composition.

Negative space is the space in the composition that is typically the background. It usually doesn’t attract very much attention. It is used to define or contour the positive space.

In the example, my hand is the positive space. The brick wall is the negative space. In a USE OF SPACE (or negative space) photo, the photographer uses the space that is usually not the primary focus and uses it to fill in most of the composition. The negative space commands more attention than the positive space and creates a unique perspective. It also adds definition and can create strong emotions.

The challenge of this week is to make an image that is mostly negative space.

It is a counterintuitive way to compose an image. The natural instinct is to fill most of the frame with positive space. But you can really ratchet up the emotional impact by putting more negative space in an image than you normally would.

Of course, there are other ways to define USE OF SPACE. You can meditate on this quote by Bob Dylan, while you think about how to compose your USE OF SPACE picture:

Gates appeal to me because of the negative space they allow. They can be closed but at the same time they allow the seasons and breezes to enter and flow. They can shut you out or shut you in. And in some ways there is no difference.

Meditate on these words while you thinking about how you are going to create your USE OF SPACE photo.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of USE OF SPACE in this place that is tries to make wise USE OF SPACE next Monday.

Andy, Becky, Bill, Black & White, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kio, Linda, Michelle, Micky, Monica, Self-Portrait, Shannon, Teresa, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 280 – HOBBIES

January 25, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

HOBBIES! People seem to love them and it is no surprise that HOBBIES was the 69th theme in a row to crack double digit submissions! It did it easy as well. In fact, this might be the record for most submissions ever in one week. The problem is, I don’t know what the record is. I’ll have to do some research and get back to you, but if this isn’t the record, it has to be pretty close!

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions!

Andy Sharp

Dawn Krause

Linda Bennett

Tamara Peterson

Michelle Haupt

Cathie Raley

Joe Duff

Kio Dettman

Christopher D. Bennett

Kio Dettman

Teresa Kahler

Micky Augustin

Becky Parmelee

Bill Wentworth

Shannon Bardole-Foley

Jen Ensley-Gorshe

Monica Henning

Carla Stensland

Jesse Howard

BLACK

BLACK! Another great them for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

What defines a BLACK photo? Well, to be honest, the reason I selected BLACK as one of the themes this year is because I did not allow myself to use any of the Hall of Fame themes for Year 8. That meant no BLACK AND WHITE theme. So I split them up and this year there is a BLACK theme and a WHITE theme. That doesn’t mean that your submission has to be BLACK AND WHITE. I’m just taking you behind the curtain of my thought process.

While all that is very interesting to me and I’ll guess three other people, it doesn’t answer the question, what defines a BLACK photo? BLACK is the very darkest color. It is the absence of light. However, BLACK has many other definitions.

I don’t have a movie quote for you to meditate on this week, instead I have song lyrics from Johnny Cash:

Well, you wonder why I always dress in black
Why you never see bright colors on my back
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone
Well, there’s a reason for the things that I have on

I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down
Living in the hopeless, hungry side of town
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime
But is there because he’s a victim of the time

I wear the black for those who’ve never read
Or listened to the words that Jesus said
About the road to happiness through love and charity
Why, you’d think He’s talking straight to you and me

Well, we’re doing mighty fine, I do suppose
In our streak of lightning cars and fancy clothes
But just so we’re reminded of the ones who are held back
Up front there ought to be a man in black

I wear it for the sick and lonely old
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold
I wear the black in mourning for the lives that could have been
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men

And I wear it for the thousands who have died
Believing that the Lord was on their side
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died
Believing that we all were on their side

Well, there’s things that never will be right I know
And things need changing everywhere you go
But ’til we start to make a move to make a few things right
You’ll never see me wear a suit of white

Ah, I’d love to wear a rainbow every day
And tell the world that everything’s okay
But I’ll try to carry off a little darkness on my back
‘Til things are brighter, I’m the Man In Black

Meditate on the words of the greatest country singer, while thinking about how to create your BLACK image.

Then send me you submission(s) by 11 AM next Monday. Remember, while I might consider you FAMILY, 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.

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

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing our idea of BLACK in this place that is more purple than BLACK next Monday.