Category Archives: Pufferbilly Days

Truth Locks

I need to start by making a few photo contest announcements. First of all, the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon is the only photo contest I will be doing this year. Before the pandemic shut them down last year, I have been doing the Boone County Fair and the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. I am not doing either of those for good reasons.

I’m not doing the Boone County Fair because I am going to be one of the judges for the Boone County Fair. That takes me out of the running there. I also recently achieved a several year long goal of becoming the Chair of the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. Which also means I can’t enter that contest either.

However, I am very excited about taking over the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. It is too late in the game to make a few of the changes that I want to make and Pufferbilly Days is now only a month away, but I can still make a few of the changes.

Graphic design is not my forte, but I did slap together a flyer I hope to see on social media and hanging up around town in the next few days. Have a look:


Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest Flyer - 2021

The entry deadline is only 2 weeks from today, so if you are interested in entering, better get on the ball!

Also, I got the results back (partially) from the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon:


Iowa State Fair Photography Salon Results Card - 2021

I don’t know what picture or how many pictures (but I’ll assume it is one for now) were accepted, but I’ll let you know after the conclusion of the Iowa State Fair.

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Enough of that photo contest noise, here are some pictures I took around my yard:


Whispering Beauty - 2021

Truth Locks

Truth Locks

Truth Locks

Truth Locks

Truth Locks

Truth Locks

I’m hoping to rip out some of the bushes in my front yard out and replace one of them with a lilac bush. I do love lilacs so.

My (Sad) Photo Contest History – 2

When we left off, I had just won 1st Place in Black and White and 3rd Place in Color at the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest, but had been completely rejected by the Iowa State Fair for the 4th year in a row.

Whatever I was selling, the judges were not buying. I was despondent, but not discouraged because I knew I had entered some great photos, but they were not what the judges were looking for that year.

2011 comes around. I decided to retire from the Boone County Fair Photo Contest and to start a new way of picking pictures for the Pufferbilly Days. I also had what was probably the peak of my photo contest career at the Iowa State Fair. I got all 4 pictures exhibited. This is extremely hard to do. Thousands of people enter the contest every year. Only 5 of us got all 4 pictures exhibited. You can do the math. It is a big deal.

These are the pictures that were exhibited:


2011 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - I Recommend Pleasant

2011 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon
2nd Place Class 25

2011 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Must Be Truth

2011 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Drenched in Loneliness
Honorable Mention Class 13

For the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest it was the second year of letting other people select my entrants. Dawn, Derrick, Jen, Scott, Russell, and Rebecca chose my entries. Dawn’s choice got 2nd Place in Black and White:


2011 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Radiant Beams
2nd Place – Black and White

I was pretty excited for 2012. I thought I had cracked the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon Code, but there is no code. Some years the judge like you. Some years they don’t. In 2012, they like one of my pictures:


2012 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Truth Perception

That year, I decided to retire from the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest.

Then shortly after that, I decided to retire from Photo Contests altogether.

But in 2017, the itch came back. I decided to put on a Washington Wizards Jersey and come out of retirement. Hard. I decided to enter all 3 contests again. I got all Blue Ribbons at the Boone County Fair:


2017 Boone County Fair

2017 Boone County Fair

2017 Boone County Fair

2017 Boone County Fair

2017 Boone County Fair

I got one picture selected for display at the Iowa State Fair:


2017 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Little Apple

I had the following people select my entries for the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest: Jim Robbins (yeah that is a long story), Micky, Michelle, Amber, Laura, and Dawn. However, none of the pictures earned a ribbon.

In 2018, my Boone County Fair entries were determined by popular vote:


2018 Boone County Fair
Red

2018 Boone County Fair
Purple

2018 Boone County Fair
Blue

2018 Boone County Fair
Blue

2018 Boone County Fair
Blue

I had two pictures selected for display at the Iowa State Fair:


2018 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Peep

2018 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Christmas Eve Morn

My Pufferbilly Days entries were also selected by popular vote that year:


2018 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - INRI
1st Place Photoshop

2018 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Freedom Flight
1st Place Photojournalism

2018 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Abandoned (Mill Creek)
3rd Place Hidden Treasures of Boone County

2019 would also be a successful year. I moved to having individuals select my Boone County Fair entrants. Shannon, Michelle, and Logan selected my entries.


2019 Boone County Fair
Purple

2019 Boone County Fair
Blue

2019 Boone County Fair
Red

2019 Boone County Fair
Blue

2019 Boone County Fair
Purple

I had one picture selected for exhibition at the Iowa State Fair and it earned a ribbon:


2019 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon Entry - Green Little Vaulter
Honorable Mention Class 18

My Pufferbilly Day entries were once again selected by popular vote:


2019 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Hocks
1st Place Nature

2019 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Drops
1st Place Photoshop

In 2020 the pandemic hit and all photo contests were cancelled. Which was sad and I think it was avoidable because in a digital age, I think they could have found a way. For example the Iowa State Fair still held its Fine Arts competition.

Which brings us to 2021. I’m currently working on my next embarrassing failure at the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon. However, I am not going to enter the Boone County Fair this year. There is a reason for this decision. A very good reason. However, I’m not going to share the reason until it becomes official or it falls through. Things seem to fall through quite often these days. No decision has been made on Pufferbilly Days yet, but Pufferbilly Days has been moved to early August this year. I’m not crazy about the decision, but I’ll give it a chance.

If you want to peruse all 153 Photo Contest entrants in this long weird journey, click on the link below:

Photo Contests

You can see them all from the out of focus to the award winners. The good, the bad, and the moldy jam equivalent.

My (Sad) Photo Contest History – 1

Recently I’ve been working on an organizational project as I prepare to get rid of a bunch of things in Boone’s annual Citywide Cleanup in a couple of weeks. Part of this has been organizing every (almost) picture that I have entered in a photo contest, both physically in a trunk and digitally in my website photo gallery.


Photo Contest Entries
150 or so Photo Entries

Almost every photo I’ve ever entered in in that trunk. Except for a few that I gave away. I thought I would share some of the highs and lows of my photo contest career. To start with, I have only entered 4 photo contests ever:

+ Iowa State Fair Photography Salon
+ Boone County Fair
+ Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest
+ Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest (this contest only existed one year – 2005)

I’ve entered 153 pictures in these 4 photo contests.

I’ve entered pictures of the following people in these photo contests:

+ Olivia
+ Jay
+ Willy
+ Humble Narrator
+ Derrick
+ Rebecca
+ Shannon
+ Alexis
+ Wedding Couple I don’t remember
+ Jill
+ Saydie
+ Kayelee
+ Jesse
+ Shorty
+ Mike Toot
+ Freedom Flight Participants

Plus I have entered pictures of both Karma and Naima.

My very first photo contest was the 2002 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon. It was before they had standardized that pictures had to be matted on 11×14 foamboard. It was long enough ago that one of the pictures I entered was printed from a slide. I entered it because it was somewhat of a legacy contest. My Dad won a category in 1984.

At the time I didn’t realize what a tough contest it was and how hard it was to get even a single picture in. It was dumb luck (which in many ways all photo contests are luck because who knows what the judge likes) that I got one picture accepted for exhibition:


2002 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Odanata the Snake Doctor
Odanata the Snake Doctor

In some ways, this is maybe the most important photo contest entry I ever made. It is possible that 2002 me would have been so distraught that I might not have even entered another photo contest, ever.

This is the picture I entered that was printed from a slide:


2002 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Quietus
Quietus

I still kinda dig this picture. My other 2 entries weren’t even really in focus.

Then I didn’t enter another contest until the 2004 Boone County Fair, where this picture of Karma got a blue ribbon:


2004 Boone County Fair - Karma
Happy Karma

I did enter the Iowa State Fair, but didn’t get any pictures exhibited. But in the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest, I got two Honorable Mentions in the Black and White Division:


2004 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Light Train by J.C. Janson
Light Train by J.C. Janson

2004 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Shapes
Shapes

Then 2005 came and I “cleaned up” at the Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest:


2005 Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest - Earth's Laughter
Honorable Mention Color (This picture is now the favicon for this website)

2005 Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest - Giotto's Bull
3rd Place Black and White

2005 Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest - Chestnut Street
2nd Place Color

2005 Ogden Fun Days Photo Contest - Happy Karma
Best in Show and 1st Place Black and White

But my triumph was very short lived. Immediately afterwards, I had my biggest failures ever. I entered two pictures in the Boone County Fair Photography Contest and got no ribbons. This is hard to do. EVERYTHING at the Boone County Fair gets a ribbon. Well everything except me and a jar of moldy jam. My photography was the culinary equivalent of moldy jam.


2005 Boone County Fair Photography Contest - Black, White, and Marigold
The equivalent of moldy jam.

2005 Boone County Fair Photography Contest - Eye of the Beast
The equivalent of moldy jam.

I did rebound to get one picture in at the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon and that picture did get an Honorable Mention:


2005 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Colgate Smile
Honorable Mention

But that was bittersweet. It was my first ribbon at the Iowa State Fair, but it was a picture that I had already won a photo contest with, so that was the seeds of my rule of never entering a picture in more than one photo contest.

Also, this picture is still one of my all-time favorites and it has never gotten any love from a photo contest:


2005 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - My Giverny
My Giverny

I get why, but I don’t like it.

Then in 2006, I tried my luck at the Boone County Fair and this time, I got 2 Blue Ribbons, take that moldy jam!


2006 Boone County Fair - Internal Struggle
Blue Ribbon

2006 Boone County Fair - Scene from a Ditch
Blue Ribbon

I would also get 2 pictures exhibited at the Iowa State Fair:


2006 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Kentucky Appetizer
Kentucky Appetizer

2006 Iowa State Fair Photography Salon - Portrait of Self Portrait
Portrait of Self-Portrait

I would also have a good run at Pufferbilly Days:


2006 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Building 429
3rd Place Black and White

2006 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Grizzly McAlpine
1st Place Black and White

2006 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Outburst of the Soul
Honorable Mention Color

2007 wasn’t a great year for me and Photo Contests. I got shutout at the Iowa State Fair. I didn’t enter the Boone County Fair. I did enter Pufferbilly Days and believe a picture of a train wheel got a ribbon, but I’m struggling to find the documentation for that


2007 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Wheel

2008 also wasn’t a great year. I did get a couple blue ribbons at the Boone County Fair:


2008 Boone County Fair Photo Contest

2008 Boone County Fair Photo Contest

But once again I got shut out at the Iowa State Fair. But I did rebound to get a ribbon at Pufferbilly Days:


2008 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - The Last Refuge
3rd Place Black and White

2009 was also not a stellar year. I did get 2 ribbons at the Boone County Fair:


2009 Boone County Fair Photo Contest
Blue Ribbon

2009 Boone County Fair Photo Contest
Purple Ribbon

But got no other love at any other photo contest.

2010, I once again got two Blue Ribbons at the Boone County Fair:


2010 Boone County Fair -The Best Place to Seek God
Blue Ribbon

2010 Boone County Fair - The Girl in the Blue Skirt Alternate
Blue Ribbon

But once again, I was shut out at the Iowa State Fair. If you are counting, that is four straight years. The Iowa State Fair really hated me.

However, Pufferbilly Days started to show some love:


2010 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Open Mic Night
3rd Place Color

2010 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest - Black and White
1st Place Black and White

Then 2011 happened. But we’ll get into that story in the conclusion of My (Sad) Photo Contest History.

WPC – WEEK 250 – ABSTRACT

The Boone Chamber announced on Friday that they are cancelling Pufferbilly Days. I think it is the only responsible thing that they can do. I was worried that they would hold it, after the Boone County Fair decided to go on. Pufferbilly Days worried more than the Boone County Fair because way more people come to Pufferbilly Days and from way more places. Put in conjunction with IMCA Super Nationals, it was not going to be a good situation for the Coronavirus in Boone.

Here is the press release:

After much consideration, deliberation, research and countless hours of working to find solutions that would provide a safe and fun environment for patrons that would attend the Pufferbilly Days™ festival, the Boone County Chamber of Commerce has decided to cancel the celebration for 2020. A number of factors played a part in arriving at this decision:

• Guidance from the Boone County Board of Health:

– Despite earlier projections in April and May of a lessening of COVID-19 cases to a level of nearly eliminating positive test outcomes by September, current case numbers have not declined to the levels previously expected and new projections show the potential for a reoccurrence by that time this year.

– With the Farm Progress Show and the IMCA Supernationals, two major events typically attended by visitors from outside Boone County and the state, and that immediately precede Pufferbilly Days™, the potential for a surge or hotspot of cases greatly increases and could substantially tax local healthcare resources beyond capacity.

• Currently two of Pufferbilly Days™ key festival buildings are in use by Boone County Public Health, providing drive-up COVID-19 testing, and we are committed to their continued use in this manner.

• Early indications show that it will be difficult to find enough volunteers to staff key locations for each of the planned Pufferbilly Days™ activities and across the festival grounds, making it difficult to operate events.

• Key event registrations are far behind normal numbers for this time of the year signaling the likelihood of considerable funding shortfalls and putting future festivals at risk.

In attempting to stay on course for the 2020 Pufferbilly Days™ festival it was our hope and intention to provide a “light at the end of the tunnel”, a degree of normalcy, and an opportunity for the citizens of Boone County to finally get out and enjoy what makes our area special. In arriving at this difficult decision today we believe that the challenge to provide a safe and fun environment is unattainable, financially unfeasible, and would leave our loyal festival-goers too vulnerable to the transmission of the coronavirus.

The Pufferbilly Days™ Steering Committee sincerely appreciates the many hours and dedication from it’s event chairs and other volunteers in preparing for the 2020 celebration and plans to be back strong in 2021

This means all 3 of the photo contests I enter every year have been cancelled. Oh well.

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I thought this would be the theme that killed the double digit streak, but by the skin of our teeth, we made it to 39 straight weeks of double digit submissions!

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


WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - MONICA HENNING
Monica Henning

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - ANDY SHARP
Andy Sharp

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - ELIZABETH NORDEEN
Elizabeth Nordeen

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - CARLA STENSLAND
Carla Stensland

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - TAMARA PETERSON
Tamara Peterson

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - SHANNON BARDOLE-FOLEY
Shannon Bardole-Foley

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - MICHELLE HAUPT
Michelle Haupt

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - MIKE VEST
Mike Vest

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT  - BECKY PARMELEE
Becky Parmelee

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT - JEN ENSLEY-GORSHE
Jen Ensley-Gorshe

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT - CARLA STENSLAND
Carla Stensland

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT - CARLA STENSLAND
Carla Stensland

WEEK 250 - ABSTRACT - JESSE HOWARD
Jesse Howard

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


WEEK 251 - BLACK AND WHITE
BLACK AND WHITE

BLACK AND WHITE!!! I think you know that this is by far my favorite theme! It is simple. Just take a BLACK AND WHITE image and submit it. Boom! End of story!

I look forward to seeing your submissions!

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HOUSEKEEPING


A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

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.

OR

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.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nobody showed class, taste, and sophistication this week by signing up for a Photography 139 email subscription. I’ll try and do better next week.

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

The 2019 Howards – Subset Dos

One of the products of all this home times is that I have started up on THE CANVAS WALL PROJECT again. What started as the accent wall in my living room and then turned into the Friend Wall and then became the 9 Emotions Project wall, was turned into the Canvas Wall about 2 years ago. The ultimate goal is to cover at least 95% of the wall with canvas photos.

I recently added 7 more canvases to the wall. These are all smaller canvases that are meant to fill around the doorway that leads to my hallway.

Here are the 7 canvases that have recently been added:


Canvas No. 46

Canvas No. 47

Canvas No. 48

Canvas No. 49

Canvas No. 50

Canvas No. 51

Canvas No. 52

The pictures that have been selected for THE CANVAS WALL PROJECT are meant to be a combination of every day life pictures and my more artistic pictures.

I’m getting pretty close to the bottom of the wall now. The next collection of pictured added to the wall are definitely obstructed, but that is okay. It matter less that they can be seen, and more that they are there.

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Time to reveal a second collection pictures from the 2019 Howard Family Photo Shoot:


Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Howards - 2019

Still plenty more Howards to go!

Pufferbilly Days – 2019

I didn’t take a ton of pictures at Pufferbilly Days last year. Probably because there wasn’t a petting zoo. Probably because I didn’t really make more than an appearance at the parade. Probably because there really wasn’t much left by the time Sunday came around.

I did spend 3 days at Pufferbilly Days. Friday night with Willy at FNSC. Saturday I walked around with Suzie and her friend Michelle. On Sunday I went up and took pictures of my Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest entries, and Logan’s.

Here are a few pictures from Pufferbilly Days:


Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

Pufferbilly Days - 2019

I think I will appreciate Pufferbilly Days a little more this year than in past years.

I Don’t Know Why You’re Mean to Me

I took Thursday and Friday off this week to watch basketball. Obviously there is no basketball right now. There is no basketball for at least a month and there is no NCAA Tournament this year at all. I wasn’t sure if I was going to still take these two days off. I waffled for a few days and then I ultimately decided that I needed a few days off.

I understand that can sound tone deaf. To need a few days off, when there are many people that aren’t able to work right now. People who suddenly are finding themselves unemployed. I am blessed that for at least now, the Computer Mine is still open for business. I am also blessed that starting a couple days ago, the Computer Mine opened up the option to work from home for some employees. They started by opening it up to workers that are in high risk groups and workers that are around people that are in high risk groups. I fit into that second category.

I wasn’t sure I was going to work from home or continue to work from the office, but after listening to a few co-workers regurgitated Fox propaganda talking points, I knew that I no longer trusted my co-workers to make smart decisions for their health, for the health of the people the come into contact with, and the health of the people that they come into contact with.

Starting on Monday, I’m going to start working from home. Because of this, I spent Thursday building a computer to use as my work from home computer from some computer parts I have laying around. I didn’t want to complicate my main home computer. So that is what passes for ENTERTAINMENT for me yesterday.

I also added a web camera to my work-from-home-computer so I could have video calls with my co-workers:



It isn’t the best web camera in the world. In fact, it is the web camera I bought a few years back so I could set up a modest photo booth at my birthday party:


2016 Birthday Party Photo Booth

But it will get the job done as far as video chatting goes. Because the one thing that I’m definitely going to miss as I work from home for at least a couple of weeks is some of my fellow miners. Most of them have opted to work from home, but I think Joe, Micky, Elizabeth, and Ron and a few others still seem to be committed to showing up to the mine. I’m going to miss you guys

Working from home does mean that I’ll have more time on my hands. I won’t have the 20 minute or so one way commute every day. My one hour lunch break will also be spent at home. Plus with not going pretty much anywhere at night, I will definitely have added time to work on my photography backlog. You guys might have to endure some days of TWO “An Artist’s Notebook” entries! Oh the humanity!

Hopefully the webcam will help with the social isolation. Hopefully my dog adjusts to having me around all the time!

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Since I mentioned birthday parties, I might as well mention that while I have been planning to have a birthday party this year, it is definitely off. Which is sad because Scottie D. and I had a tremendous menu planned. Baby Got Rack was going to cater the heck out of that party! You’ll just have to imagine what it would have been like.

What you don’t have to imagine what it is like, was what the invitations were going to look like. My nephew Logan took some of the photos that were going to be used for the invitations, that were going to look like they came from a political candidate. Here are a couple of the pictures that won’t get used:


2020 Birthday Party Invites

2020 Birthday Party Invites

2020 Birthday Party Invites

2020 Birthday Party Invites

2020 Birthday Party Invites

2020 Birthday Party Invites

That last picture wasn’t getting used for sure, I just like it. Maybe 2021 will be a better year to bring the party back!

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Last week I took more than one picture for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, so here is a good chance to share the once that didn’t have what it takes to make the big show on Monday:


I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

I Don't Know Why You're Mean to Me

The pictures of Naima were taken with a new Lensbaby lens I bought for my new camera. I will probably going into some boring detail about it at some point in the future.

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This is your reminder that this week’s WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE theme is ENTERTAINMENT:


WEEK 236 - ENTERTAINMENT
ENTERTAINMENT

I have no clue what participation will look like this week. However, I can assure you that even if you are taking social distancing to self-quarantine, this theme and every theme in the WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE is a theme that can be accomplished within the confines of your house or your yard.

Happy photo harvesting!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everybody! Today is the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus!


Christmas - 2019

I believe that is important on this day to remember who Jesus was and who Jesus wasn’t as the Christian church wrestles for its soul. I recently saw a quote that breaks down who Jesus was and who Jesus wasn’t, very succinctly.

“Jesus WAS a radical nonviolent revolutionary who hung around with lepers, hookers, and crooks; WAS NOT American and never spoke English; was anti-wealth, anti-death penalty, anti-public prayer; BUT was never anti-gay, never mentioned abortion or birth control. Never called the poor lazy, never justified torture, never fought for tax cuts for the wealthiest Nazarenes. Never asked a leper for a co-pay.; and was a long-haired brown-skinned homeless community organizing anti-slut shaming middle eastern Jew.”
-John Fugelsang

Another John Fugelsang quote I love is this:

“I’ve come to view Jesus much the way I view Elvis. I love the guy but the fan clubs really freak me out.”

Some of them freak me out to man and I go to church at least twice a week.

On this, the day that we celebrate the arrival of the Messiah, let us remember who Jesus was and celebrate him.

Christ is Born!

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At this point, I’ve hopefully distributed almost all of my Photography 139 calendars. I feel it is probably safe to start revealing what pictures I choose to include during a frantic Black Friday design session.

This is the front cover:


2020 Calendar - Cover
Front Cover

The front cover image is a picture of water drops on a mirror. The image was converted to black and white and then processed in Photoshop through a technique I like to think that I invented, so I will make a name for it and call it Double Inverse Solarization. This picture was selected by popular vote to be entered in the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest in the Photoshop category. It won that category.

More picture reveals in the following days!

Selfie Project – September

Seems like as good of a time as any to check in with the Selfie Project. My September was incredibly busy. I had several photo shoots, youth group was back in session, Pufferbilly Days, Iowa State football season is ramping up, and Elainie was back in town.

But I confess that my selfies might not reflect that, it feels like.

Here are my favorite September Selfies:


September 2, 2019
September 2

September 3, 2019
September 3

September 4, 2019
September 4

September 6, 2019
September 6

September 7, 2019
September 7

September 8, 2019
September 8

September 9, 2019
September 9

September 13, 2019
September 13

September 14, 2019
September 14

September 17, 2019
September 17

September 19, 2019
September 19

September 20, 2019
September 20

September 21, 2019
September 21

September 22, 2019
September 22

September 24, 2019
September 24

September 25, 2019
September 25

September 27, 2019
September 27

September 29, 2019
September 29

3 months to go in the Selfie Project. I’m slated to actually leave the state in October. So that is something at least.

Pufferbilly Westminster

On the Sunday of Pufferbilly Days I was once again tapped to do photography for the Pufferbilly Days Pet Show by Kio.

There was a lot of Bennett to the Pet Show as Logan and Mom were both judges. Teresa also showed Mocha. I’d like to say that the show was a smashing success, but as the 11 AM start time approached, there was only one entry, a cat.

Fortunately, a couple were walking a couple dogs past the Pet Show and I was able to wrangle them into entering the Pet Show. I mean, I couldn’t have a cat win Best Overall. Not that I hate cats. A completely false reputation.

I also was able to talk Teresa into entering and I almost got Carla to enter, but she couldn’t get Chloe there in time.

Here are some pictures from the event:


Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

Pufferbilly Days Pet Show - 2019

So next year, YOU should bring your pet down to the pet show. A good chance that afterwards, you will be able to claim that your dog is award winning!