Category Archives: Event

Event, Evie, Jen, Layla, Music, WPC - Reminder

Renaissance Faire – Misc

November 4, 2022 Christopher D. Bennett

Back in May I met up with Jen, Layla and the twins at the Renaissance Faire down in Des Moines to watch Evie do her Irish dance thing.

Here is a collection of pictures from just walking around the Faire:

There is one more collection of pictures from my day at the Renaissance Faire left to share.

+++++++

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

DECORATION

DECORATION! What a great theme for Year 9 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a DECORATION photo? A DECORATION image is simply a picture of a DECORATION or a picture where a DECORATION plays a heavy element in the composition.

Happy photo harvesting!

Art, Event, Evie, Jen, Layla, WPC - Reminder

Renaissance Faire – Knight Battle

October 28, 2022 Christopher D. Bennett 9 Comments

Way back in May I met up with Jen, Layla, and the twins at the Renaissance Faire down in Des Moines to watch Evie dance. I’ve already shared the pictures of Evie dancing, but I took plenty more pictures on that day.

This collection is of the knight battle we watched. It wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. I was expecting a sword duel that would put the sword fight between Inigo Montoya and the Dread Pirate Roberts to shame. This was mostly dudes in armor kind of grabbing each other and trying to throw the other to the ground.

While Inigo Montoya’s swordplay still stands as the greatest these eyes have ever seen, this battle was still fun to watch.

I’m not steeped in Renaissance Faire culture. I knew some people in college that were involved in the Society for Creative Anachronism, but I was too big of a jerk then to take anything they said seriously. Therefore, I didn’t learn much. But my understanding, is that one of the knights in the battle had to win so many fights to become fully knighted or something like that. I should have taken notes.

One thing I remember clearly is that it was incredibly hot that day, so wearing all that armor and fighting, must have been brutal. The guy trying to earn his title was wearing a helmet that didn’t have a way to access his face, so in between bouts they had to run a tube from a water bottle through the helmet to keep him hydrated.

I still have a couple more collections of pictures from the Renaissance Faire to share.

I wasn’t sure if I was a Renaissance Faire Person, but I had a great time. I hope Evie dances down there again next year and I get to go again.

+++++++

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

ART

ART! What a great theme for Year 9 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what is an ART image? It is simply a picture of something that is a piece of ART. I would urge you to not just take a standard straight on picture of a piece of ART. Try to see it from a different angle than it might be normally viewed. While your subject might be ART, your interpretation of your subject should be ARTistic. Now a truly arrogant photographer could just claim that every picture they take is ART.

Happy photo harvesting!

Animals, Event, Flowers, Kio, Pufferbilly Days, WPC - Reminder

Pufferbilly Days Dog Show

September 2, 2022 Christopher D. Bennett

Another Pufferbilly Days event that I photographed was the Pufferbilly Days Dog Show. Technically, it is a pet show, but the only pets that show up are dogs. I mean, it is pretty obvious why nobody enters a cat, but I would think that somebody would enter a guinea pig or a hamster or a rat or a snake or a bearded lizard or a tarantula or a tortoise or a turtle or a fish or something. Makes me want to go buy a tarantula just to enter it. But I can’t. I’m the events official photographer. It is the sacrifice that I make. Maybe next year somebody will enter a tarantula.

Here are some pictures from the Pufferbilly Days Dog Show:

I look forward to the 2023 Pufferbilly Days Pet Show. Hopefully there will be plenty of spiders and lizards!

There are still plenty more Pufferbilly Days event photos left to share.

+++++++

This is your reminder that this week’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE theme is COLORFUL.

COLORFUL

REMINDER IS LABOR DAY. WHILE SCHOOLS AND BANKS AND GOVERMENTS TAKE THE DAY OFF, THERE ARE NO DAYS OFF FOR PHOTOGRAPHY 139! I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M DOING ON THAT DAY, BUT IT IS POSSIBLE I WON’T BE IN A POSITION TO REMIND ANYBODY ABOUT SUBMITTING. PLAN YOUR SUBMISSION ACCORDINGLY AND DON’T LET YOUR STREAK GET SNAPPED CAUSE YOU ARE A BANKER OR GOVERNMENT WORKER THAT GETS THE DAY OFF AND YOU GOT LOST IN WATCHING NETFLIX OR TAKING YOUR BOAT TO THE LAKE OR WHATEVER NORMAL PEOPLE DO ON LABOR DAY. MOSTLY MOURN THE END OF SUMMER I BELIEVE.

COLORFUL! What a great theme for Year 9 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what is a COLORFUL image? If we break down the word COLORFUL it simply means something that is full of color. So any subject or scene where there is a lot of color is COLORFUL. Almost too easy! Many of the pictures taken for CIRCLE would also qualify for COLORFUL.

Of course, there is more than one definition of the term COLORFUL.

Happy photo harvesting!

Candid Portrait, Event, Formal Portrait, Music

2011-04-27

January 29, 2022 Christopher D. Bennett

The pictures in the folder 2011-04-27 are a collection of pictures that have mostly been forgotten by history. They’ve been mostly forgotten by me, but in actuality, they are not without significance. At least as they pertain to the history of Photography 139.

The pictures are from a Young Heroes event put on by the Story County Red Cross. Shannon got me the gig as the “event photographer”. Why this collection of pictures is historically significant is because this event was the impetus for starting the Photography 139 Store/Gallery. The event coordinator wanted a place where people could go buy event photos afterwards. So I had to get something like that going and created my SmugMug Gallery. Click on link below to be taken to that place:

Photography 139 Store/Gallery

That is why you can go there and get virtually and Photography 139 image as a print or a mug or a refrigerator magnet or as a luggage tag or a button or a ceramic tile or did I say print already?

Here are some images from that folder:

By adding these pictures to the Photography 139 Gallery, I was able to restore the following historic “An Artist’s Notebook” entry to its original glory:

Young Heroes

Next Saturday’s walk down memory lane will involve a turkey hunt.

Billy, Candid Portrait, Dory, Event, J.T., Laura, Nate, WPC - Reminder

Natuation

December 17, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

Last Saturday I went down to Manhattan, Kansas to watch Nate graduate from Kansas State University with a degree in Food Science. He will be finding another job soon and hopefully moving closer.

Here are some pictures from the party:

I transported the cake from Boone. Don’t worry, I didn’t make it. Dutch Oven did. It will be fascinating to see where life takes Nate, Laura, and the kids next!

+++++++

This is your reminder that this week’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE theme is CANDID PORTRAIT:

CANDID PORTRAIT

CANDID PORTRAIT! What a great theme for Year 9 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what is a CANDID PORTRAIT image? A CANDID PORTRAIT image is simply an image where the person that is the subject of the photo isn’t posing for the picture. It doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t know their picture is getting taken, but they definitely aren’t posing for the picture. They are just being themselves. Which is why I prefer CANDID PORTRAITS a gazillion to one over formal portraits. But that is just me.

Happy photo harvesting!

Boone FUMC, Candid Portrait, Event, Holidays

Boone FUMC Community Thanksgiving – 2021

November 28, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

Once again, this year my church hosted a free Thanksgiving meal for the community. Once again, due to the pandemic it was carryout only. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day:

You can look at all the images by clicking on the link below. They haven’t been edited or curated:

Boone FUMC Thanksgiving – 2021

Hopefully next year we will be able to have people dine-in for Thanksgiving again.

Becca, Bethany, Billy, Candid Portrait, Colleen, Dory, Event, J.T., Jonah, Laura, Nate, Nora, Still Life, Tim

Triplet + Jonah Birthday Party

November 14, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

A few weeks back the Triplets and Jonah had a birthday party at the KOA near Adel. I wasn’t able to make the party because it was schedule for the same time as the Iowa State-Oklahoma State football game that I was scheduled to attend. But I did have time to drive down to Adel and hang out for about 90 minutes before I had to head to Ames to witness Iowa State beat a top ten Cowboy team.

Here are some pictures from my hang time:

The Triplets and Jonah Birthday Party - 2021

Having everybody meet up in kind of a central location and spend the weekend was a pretty cool idea I thought. I hope it happens again on a weekend where Iowa State doesn’t have a home game, so I can be around more than 90 minutes. It was also really cold that weekend. I mean not really cold, but it was definitely colder than you would want.

Derrick told me that KOA campsites suck and hate children, but that wasn’t my experience, in the 90 minutes I was there. I would consider staying there on a trip sometime. I didn’t know they rented cabins and tents.

It was the first time I’d seen many of these people since before the pandemic. I hope it doesn’t take so long to see them again. Although I pretty sure I’m going down to Manhattan for Nate’s graduation in about a month.

Black & White, Event, Formal Portrait, Jill, Music, Photoshop

2010-11-15 & 2010-11-18

August 28, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

There was really only one picture in the folder 2010-11-15, so I decided to include 2010-11-18 in this post. The picture in the folder 2010-11-15 is a picture of Jill holding her flute that I took for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, back then known as the RANDOM WEEKLY PHOTO EXPERIMENT. The pictures in the folder 2010-11-18 are from the 2010 Philanthropy Day.

WEEK 45 - DIAGONAL RULE - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT

By adding these pictures to the Photography 139 Gallery, I was able to restore the following historic “An Artist’s Notebook” entries to their original glory:

Philanthropy Day

RWPE #45 – DIAGONAL RULE

Next Saturday’s walk down memory lane will involve the Baiers.

Art, Candid Portrait, Event, Jen, Layla, Sara, Shawn Lockner, WPC - Reminder

Ain’t No Party Like A Carousel Party!

July 16, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

I was recently invited to Maven’s Birthday Party. It took place at a carousel! Yeah, all other parties are now ruined for me. You are going to have to step it up if you want this guy to make an appearance. Not entirely true. I will show up to any particular place where I could potentially get free food.

Here are some pictures from the festivities:

There was some talk of touring area carousels, but I think that has fizzled out now that Tenderloin Trail 2.0 seems to be on the horizon.

+++++++

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

MUSIC

MUSIC! What a great theme for Year 8 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what is a MUSIC photo? A MUSIC photo is any picture that’s composition includes anything related to MUSIC. A person playing MUSIC. Sheet MUSIC. A MUSICal instrument. Anything involved in the creation of MUSIC.

While thinking on your MUSIC photo, consider this quote:

Music is the only language in which you cannot say a mean or sarcastic thing.
-John Erskine

Happy photo harvesting!

Boone FUMC, Event, Tamara

2010-09-20

June 19, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett

The pictures in the folder 2010-09-20 are from a block party at the Boone First United Methodist Church. It was supposed to be a mostly outside event, but bad weather forced it to be inside. It is weird looking at these pictures now, because these little kids are now in college and many of the older people have moved to a different town and don’t go to our church any longer. Unfortunately, many of them have also passed on.

It appears that this is the first time that I ever shared these pictures on this website.

Next Saturday’s walk down memory lane and will involve Iowa State football.