Category Archives: Night

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WPC – WEEK 449 – TIME

April 22, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

For no real apparent reason, I thought I would start adding a little photography lesson into these things every month or so. And I mean a very little photography lesson.

This month’s lesson is going to be on bokeh.

What is bokeh?

Bokeh (the Japanese word for blur) is the blur produced in out-of-focus parts of an image, caused by circles of confusion. Bokeh has also been defined as “the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light”. Differences in lens aberrations and the shape of aperture blades and the amount of aperture blades cause very different bokeh effects. There are strong opinions on what is good bokeh and bad bokeh. My use of Lensbaby lenses is frequently because of they produce bokeh effects that I personally enjoy. A photography technique is to use a shallow focus technique to create images with prominent out-of-focus regions, accentuating their lens’s bokeh. It can add a sense of depth and dimensionality to an image and can make the subject stand out more effectively.

Bokeh is often most visible around small background highlights, such as specular reflections and light sources, which is why it is often associated with such areas. Bokeh is not limited to highlights; blur occurs in all regions of an image which are outside the depth of field.

How is bokeh pronounced? You will hear people pronounce it in all sorts of different ways. The proper way is like “bow” in a bow and arrow and then the “ke” sound in the word kettle. Although a majority of people may pronounce it like boh – kay.

I hope we all learned something today.

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TIME! A great theme! But did enough people make TIME in their schedule to submit a photo to make TIME a popular theme? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

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

1-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week (IA)
2-Suzie Brannen – 3 weeks (IA)
3-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 3 weeks (IA, CO, MO, TX, TN, VA, IL, FL)
4-Mary Green – 3 weeks (2) (MI, IA, IN)
5-Willy McAlpine – 4 weeks (IA)
6-Deanna McClain – 5 weeks (IA)
7-Johnathan Stensland – 5 weeks (IA)
8-Adam Gordon – 7 weeks (IA, MS, MO)
9-Becky Parmelee – 8 weeks (AR, IA, OK)
10-Sara Lockner – 13 weeks (IA)
11-Lowell Davis – 15 weeks (IA)
12-Michelle Haupt – 15 weeks (IA, MO, KS)
13-Alexis Stensland – 15 weeks (IA)
14-Brandon Kahler – 16 weeks (IA, MN)
15-Scott Degeneffe – 34 weeks (2) (IA, FL, UT, CO)
16-Mike Vest – 39 weeks (IA, MO)
17-Sheri Fakhouri – 44 weeks (2) (IA, NE)
18-Logan Kahler – 45 weeks (IA, MN)
19-Nathanial Brown – 46 weeks (IA, SD, GA, TN)
20-Jesse Howard – 46 weeks (IA, MO, NE, FL, ABW, CUW)
21-Tamara Peterson – 58 weeks (IA, MN)
22-Mindi Terrell – 61 weeks (IA)
23-Linda Bennett – 90 weeks (2) (KS)
24-Sarah Toot – 91 weeks (PA, NY, VT, NV)
25-Angie DeWaard – 95 weeks (IA)
26-Dawn Krause – 99 weeks (IA)
27-Kim Barker – 105 weeks (2) (IA, CO)
28-Joe Duff – 106 weeks (2) (TX)
29-Teresa Kahler – 117 weeks (IA, NE)
30-Carla Stensland – 117 weeks (2) (IA, MO)
31-Micky Augustin – 119 weeks (IA, IL)
32-Andy Sharp – 120 weeks (IA, NE, AR, MS, MO, TN, LA)
33-Bill Wentworth – 121 weeks (NE)
34-Cathie Morton – 124 weeks (IA, FL, BHS, MO)
35-Elizabeth Nordeen – 126 weeks (IA)
36-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 128 weeks (2) (IA, CA, NV)
37-Kio Dettman – 130 weeks (2) (IA)

Here is the list of rules for Year 11 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE:

1. The picture must 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 and take pictures challenge!
2. There is a limit of 2 submissions per person per theme. If you send me more than 2, I will use the first 2 that you submit.
3. Deadline to submit your submission is 11 AM (CENTRAL) next Monday.
4. To be considered the photographer of an image, you have to be the one that clicks the shutter. If you hand your camera over to somebody else to take a picture of you, you are NOT the photographer of that image.
5. No screen captures. This is a photography challenge. Not a “look at what I found on the internet” challenge.

There are still 2 ways to submit:
1. Email your submission to bennett@photography139.com.
2. Text your submission to my Google Pixel 8 Pro.

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

Becky Parmelee (McGarrah Farms – Pea Ridge, Arkansas) – 9 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 45 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Ankeny, Iowa) – 35 weeks

Michelle Haupt (Ankeny, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Kim Barker (Ames, Iowa) – 106 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Ames, Iowa) – 96 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Ames, Iowa) 127 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Goodwill Store – Ames, Iowa) – 118 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Ames, Iowa) – 17 weeks

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 47 weeks

Adam Gordon (Ames, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 131 weeks

Johnathan Stensland (Boone, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Lowell Davis (Boone, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Lowell Davis (Boone, Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 46 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Boone, Iowa) – 100 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 121 weeks

Monica Jennings (Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

Willy McAlpine (Ledges State Park – Boone County, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Clive, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Sara Lockner (The skies over Des Moines, Iowa) – 14 weeks

Carla Stensland (Palisades Dows Observatory – Ely, Iowa) – 118 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Johnston, Iowa) – 62 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Johnston, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Jasper County, Iowa) – 120 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 40 weeks

Carla Stensland (Palisades-Kepler State Park – Overlook Trail – Cedar River Dam – Mount Vernon, Iowa)

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 125 weeks

Dawn Krause (Ogden, Iowa)

Sabas Hernandez (Pella, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Perry, Iowa) – 59 weeks

Deanna McClain (Perry, Iowa) – 6 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Perry, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Nathanial Brown (State Center, Iowa) – 47 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Summerset, Iowa) – 129 weeks

Linda Bennett (Easton, Kansas) – 91 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 122 weeks

Sarah Toot (E. Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 92 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 107 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas)

37 participants! That is a drop-off from the previous week! Is this the beginning of the end for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE?

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas (1)
+ Iowa (37)
+ Kansas (1)
+ Nebraska (1)
+ Pennsylvania (1)
+ Texas (2)

Here is the Year 11 list of places where submissions have been taken (submissions taken in each places):

+ Arkansas (9.5)
+ Aruba (1)
+ Bahamas (1)
+ California (3)
+ Curacao (1)
+ Colorado (5)
+ Florida (85)
+ Georgia (1)
+ Hawaii (2)
+ Illinois (3)
+ Indiana (3)
+ Iowa (587)
+ Kansas (24)
+ Louisiana (2)
+ Michigan (5)
+ Minnesota (6)
+ Mississippi (1.5)
+ Missouri (10.5)
+ Nebraska (25)
+ Nevada (2)
+ New York (11)
+ Oklahoma (1)
+ Pennsylvania (13)
+ South Dakota (3)
+ Tennessee (2.5)
+ Texas (26)
+ Utah (1)
+ Vermont (1)
+ Virginia (1)

26 states so far! 3 foreign countries! Not bad! So far, the following people have submitted from multiple places:

+ Jen Ensley-Gorshe (IA, CO, MO, TX, TN, VA, IL, FL) – 8
+ Andy Sharp (IA, NE, MO, AR, TN, MS, LA) – 7
+ Jesse Howard (IA, MO, NE, FL, ABW, CUW) – 6
+ Christopher D. Bennett (IA, MO, NE, IL, IN) – 5
+ Scott Degeneffe (IA, FL, UT, CO) – 4
+ Nathanial Brown (IA, SD, TN, GA) – 4
+ Sarah Toot (PA, NY, VT, NV) – 4
+ Cathie Morton (IA, FL, BHS, MO) – 4
+ Shannon Bardole-Foley (IA, CA, NV) – 3
+ Adam Gordon (IA, MS, MO) – 3
+ Mary Green (MI, IA, IN) – 3
+ Michelle Haupt (IA, MO, KS) – 3
+ Becky Parmelee (AR, IA, OK) – 3
+ Micky Augustin (IA, IL) – 2
+ Susanna Funk (IA, CO) – 2
+ Brandon Kahler (IA, MN) – 2
+ Logan Kahler (IA, MN) – 2
+ Sara Lockner (IA, MN) – 2
+ Tamara Peterson (IA, MN) – 2
+ Carla Stensland (IA, MO) -2
+ Mike Vest (IA, MO) – 2
+ Teresa Kahler (IA, NE) – 2
+ Sheri Fakhouri (IA, NE) – 2

Jen is now in the lead to be crowned “The Most Travelled THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE Photographer!” Jesse and Andy are in striking distance though!

The big, huge milestone this week was Dawn joining the TRIPLE DIGIT STREAK CLUB!! WOOHOO!!! But it wasn’t all unicorns and rainbows. Mary’s streak is no more at 3 weeks. Alexis’ streak is gone after 15 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:

EMOTION – Suggested by Sarah Toot AND Andy Sharp

EMOTION! What a great theme for Year 11 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will see your idea of EMOTION in this place that gets me in the feels next Monday.

Elainie, Night, Sabas, State Fair, Street Photography

Iowa State Fair – Day 3 – Zeta

April 12, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

So this is the final collection of images from my third trip to the Iowa State Fair. This might be my favorite collection as while I love taking pictures at any part of the Iowa State Fair, taking pictures at night is maybe my favorite. Although taking pictures before dawn is also pretty great. Even though I went to the Iowa State Fair 4 times last year, this was the only time I was there after the sun went down. That seems like an oversight I should remedy this year. Maybe I’ll take in a concert at the State Fair this year. I do have my eye on one anyways.

I want one of these shirts really bad.

Sabas even asked if he could buy one, but that is strictly against company policy. Boo!!

And you know I only boo for important things! Like turning the lights on.

Never been a fan of poutine.

Although this is the end of the images from my third trip to the Fair, next Friday will begin the collection of images from my final trip to the Fair. Although that collection will be smaller. It was the final day of the Fair and the temperature was close to 100. It wasn’t pleasant, to say the least.

Art, Basketball, Iowa State, Jesse, Night, Road Trip, Self-Portrait, Street Photography

Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship

April 9, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

The Saturday after the Iowa State Women played for the Big 12 Championship, the Men did the same thing. The played the #1 team in the country, the Houston Cougars. The two teams had split the regular season games. Each team winning on their home floor. Both schools went undefeated at home this year. The only two schools to do that. I was expecting a very tight and hotly contested game, but the rubber match ended up being not much of a game. Iowa State blasted the #1 team in the country by 28 points. The first victory for Iowa State since all the way back in 2022. It was one of the largest margins of victory over the #1 team in history.

It was a completely unexpected result. A conference championship was a little unexpected for the Cyclones at the beginning of the season. They didn’t get a single vote in the AP Preseason Poll. However, they were expected to be at least decent. That lost some pieces from last year’s NCAA Tournament team, but they brought back almost all the key pieces. Plus they brought in some scoring punch for the backcourt in the transfer portal ad they brought in 2 freshman that are expected to play in the NBA. But, Iowa State ended up being much better than expected, thanks mostly to the vast improvement of Tamin Lipsey from his freshman year to his sophomore year.

Here are some pictures from the trip I made to the game with Jesse:

Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament Road Trip

Missouri Rest Area

Garth Brooks played the Boone County Fair, we didn’t hang a banner for it.

Pretty much every Houston fan at the game in one picture.

The best point guard in the country, hope he is healthy next year.

This guy made his hat.

MVP!

Best coach in Iowa State history?

BRE!

This picture was for a project I’ve already decided to abandon.

Charlie Hustle had a pop up store. All the clothing in there was super cool!

It was a great day! But it wasn’t the last road trip I took to watch Iowa State play in the postseason!

Night, Scottie D., State Fair, Street Photography

Iowa State Fair – Day 2 – Alpha

February 16, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

I told you I would give you the info on as many local area fish fries as I could, on this the opening day of Catholic Fish Fry season. Here is the list I have compiled:

St. Malachy, Madrid
Feb. 16 & 23 & March 8 & 22
4:30-7
Prices Unknown

Sacred Heart, Boone
Feb. 16 & March 1 & 15
5-7
Prices: Unknown

Saint Cecilia, Ames
Feb 23 & March 1 & 8
5-7 PM
ADULT: $12
CHILD: $5

Saint Thomas Aquinas, Ames
Feb. 16 & March 22
5-7
Adult $10
4-12: $5
Group of 4: $35

Assumption, Granger
Feb. 16 & 23 & March 1,8, 15, 22
5:30-7
Prices: Unknown

Sts. John and Paul Catholic Church, Altoona
Every Friday
4:30-7
Adults $14
Children 6-12 $6
5 and younger – FREE
1401 First Ave. S., Altoona

Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart Catholic Church, Ankeny
Feb. 23, March 8, and March 22
5-7
Free Will Offering
510 E. First St., Ankeny;

St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church, Ankeny
Feb. 16, March 1, and March 15
4:30-7
Free Will Donation
1102 NW Weigel Drive, Ankeny

All Saints Catholic Church, Des Moines
Every Friday except Good Friday
5-7
Adults: $11
Children 5-12 $8
Under 5: FREE
650 NE 52nd Ave., Des Moines

Basilica of St. John, Des Moines
Feb. 16 & 23; March 1, 18, 15, & 22
4:45-6:30
Adults: $12
Children 4-10: $5
3 and Under: FREE
Max of $50 for families
1915 University Ave., Des Moines

Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Des Moines
Feb. 16 March 1 & 22
5:30-7
Adults: $12
Kids 5-11: $6
2926 Beaver Ave., Des Moines

St. Ambrose Cathedral, Des Moines
Feb. 16 & 23 & March 1, 8, 15, & 22
11:30-1
Flat $8
607 High St., Des Moines

St. Joseph Catholic Church, Des Moines
Feb. 16 – March 22
4:30-7
Adult: $13
Kids: $5
Under 6: FREE
Family Max: $40
3300 Easton Blvd., Des Moines

St. Mary of Nazareth Catholic Church, Des Moines
Feb. 16 & 23 – March 1, 8, & 22
5-6:30
Adult: $13
Couple: $25
5-12 $7
Under 5: FREE
4600 Meredith Drive, Des Moines

St. Theresa Catholic Church, Des Moines
Feb 16 – March 22
5:30 – 7 PM
Free Will Offering
1230 Merle Hay Road, Des Moines

St. John the Apostle Catholic Church, Norwalk
Every Friday during Lent
5:30-7
Adult: $12
5-12: $10
720 Orchard Hills Drive, Norwalk

St. Boniface Catholic Church, Waukee
Every Friday during Lent
5-7
Adult: $12
5-7: $7
4 and under: FREE
1200 S. Warrior Lane, Waukee

Sacred Heart Catholic Church, West Des Moines
Every Friday during Lent
5:30-7
Adult: $14
4-10: $7
Under 4: FREE
Family Max: $45
1627 Grand Ave., West Des Moines

St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, West Des Moines
Every Friday During Lent
5:30-7
Adults: $15
6-11: $5
Under 6: FREE
7075 Ashworth Road, West Des Moines

I think I’m going to hit up the fish fry in Boone tonight. FNSC is going high end the following Friday, but then I might be back on the Fish Fry Circuit the following Friday. I definitely want to hit the fry in Granger at some point. Maybe one in Ames. Maybe one down in Des Moines. What can I say? I like fish and some of the ones in the Des Moines area are very intriguing. Some have fish tacos. Who has 2 thumbs and loves fish tacos? You can’t tell but right now I’m pointing back at me with both my thumbs. Take my word for it.

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It feels like a good time to release some of the pictures I took on my trip to the State Fair with the Degeneffes. I went down there with them to help and document Austin competing in the State Fair barbecue contest. We got to the fairgrounds like 4:30 AM. Which seems early, but is a great time to roam the fairgrounds in the dark with virtually nobody there. It is actually kind of amazing, actually.

Here are some pictures:

I hope somebody I know makes it to the State Fair barbecue contest again next year, so I can wander around the fairgrounds mostly alone again.

Still plenty more pictures to share from this trip to the fair to share!

Animals, Art, Baseball/Softball, Black & White, Calendar, Christianity, Drone, Flowers, Iowa State, Macro, Nature, Night, Slice of Life, Street Photography

2024 Photography 139 Calendar Rejects: The Ending

January 9, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett

Time to share the rest of the images that were rejected for the 2024 Photography 139 Calendar. Some of these are similar to ones included in the calendar. They come from a wide range of projects. From auxiliary images from THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT to alternates for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE to some just good old flowertography

There is still one more post about the 2024 calendar left. Then we can put it to bed or up on some walls.

Animals, Art, Black & White, Calendar, Christianity, Flowers, Kim, Lensbaby, Macro, Nature, Night, Ruins, Street Photography, Travel

2024 Photography 139 Calendar Rejects: The Beginning

January 7, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett

Time to share the final image for the 2024 Photography 139 Calendar. The December image. It is an image of an abandoned (methinks) church I found in northeast Iowa on a THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT road trip:

DECEMBER

I chose this image for December because I usually like to either use a cold picture or some religious imagery for the December image. This picture might not scream “Christ is born!” but it is of a church. Not a lines are straight.

TECHNICAL DETAILS
CAMERA: Sony ILCE-7M4
DATE: August 20, 2022 – 12:34 PM
LENS: 28-75 f/2.8
FOCAL LENGTH: 28mm
EXPOSURE TIME: 1/5000
ISO: 100

It was converted to black & white in Photoshop.

That is it, that is the final image for the 2024 Photography 139 Calendar. But while those 13 images were selected for the calendar, they weren’t the only ones considered. Not by a long shot. There were 73 other images considered and not included. But I would like to give them some love.

Here is the first collection of reject images:

There still another 36 images that didn’t make the cut. That doesn’t mean that won’t make the cut next year. The cover image for the 2024 Calendar was rejected for the 2023 calendar. Share the rest on Tuesday. Maybe Wednesday.

Amy, Andy, Angie, Basketball, Bill, Brandon, Calendar, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Drone, Elizabeth, Iowa State, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Nathanial, Night, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Street Photography, Tamara, Teresa, Travel, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 433 – HUMANS

January 1, 2024 Christopher D. Bennett

It is time to share the July image from the 2024 Photography 139 Calendar image. It is a picture taken with Rodan139 of somebody setting off fireworks on the 4th of July in my neighborhood.

JULY

I chose this image since I felt the fireworks represented the 4th of July well.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

CAMERA: Hasselblad L1D020c
DATE: July 24, 2023 – 1010 PM
LENS: 28mm f/2.8
FOCAL LENGTH: 28mm
APERTURE: f/5.6
EXPOSURE: 3 seconds
ISO: 400

Tomorrow I will share the August image!

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HUMANS! They are all over the place! But are there enough of them kicking around to make HUMANS a popular theme? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, December 25, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Evie Gorshe – 1 week
2-Mary Green – 1 week
3-Elainie Hernandez – 1 week
4-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
5-Alexis Stensland – 1 week
6-Scott Degeneffe – 18 weeks
7-Sabas Hernandez – 19 weeks
8-Mike Vest – 24 weeks
9-Sheri Fakhouri – 28 weeks (3)
10-Logan Kahler – 29 weeks (3)
11-Nathanial Brown – 30 weeks (2)
12-Jesse Howard – 30 weeks
13-Tamara Peterson – 33 weeks (2)
14-Mindi Terrell – 45 weeks (3)
15-Linda Bennett – 74 weeks (2)
16-Sarah Toot – 75 weeks (2)
17-Angie DeWaard – 79 weeks
18-Dawn Krause – 83 weeks
19-Kim Barker – 89 weeks
20-Joe Duff – 90 weeks (2)
21-Teresa Kahler – 101 weeks (3)
22-Carla Stensland – 101 weeks (2)
23-Micky Augustin – 103 weeks
24-Andy Sharp – 104 weeks
25-Bill Wentworth – 105 weeks (3)
26-Cathie Morton – 109 weeks
27-Elizabeth Nordeen – 110 weeks
28-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 112 weeks
29-Kio Dettman – 114 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:

Brandon Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 1 week

Carrie Moellers (Mambai, India) – 1 week

Amy Peterson (Jewell, Iowa) – 1 week

Amy Peterson (Ames, Iowa)

Mary Green (Michigan) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Michigan)

Scott Degeneffe (Goldie’s – Prairie City, Iowa) – 19 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 20 weeks

Mike Vest (Noel, Missouri) – 25 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Iowa) – 29 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 30 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 31 weeks

Jesse Howard (Sun Records – Memphis, Tennessee) – 31 weeks

Jesse Howard (Big River Crossing – Memphis, Tennessee)

Tamara Peterson (Swede Valley Church – Rural Boone County) – 34 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 46 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 75 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (Kansas City, Missouri) – 76 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 80 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 84 weeks

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 90 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 91 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 102 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Hilton Coliseum – Ames, Iowa) – 102 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ogden, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Story County, Iowa) – 104 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 105 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Saint Louis, Missouri) – 106 weeks

Cathie Morton (Waukee, Iowa) – 110 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 111 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Tursi’s Latin King – Des Moines, Iowa) – 113 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 115 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Beale Street – Memphis, Tennessee) – 537 weeks

30 participants! That is a pretty great week, considering the holiday! Thanks to Cathie’s sister we end the year with a new country. India! I believe that to be the first submission from Asia ever for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Kansas
+ India
+ Iowa
+ Missouri
+ Tennessee
+ Texas

Here is the final calendar year list for states:

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

41 states and 1 district and 1 territory! That is pretty impressive! Over 80% of the way there!

The state nobody submitted from are:
+ Alabama
+ Alaska
+ Connecticut
+ Delaware
+ Maine
+ Massachusetts
+ Rhode Island
+ Virginia
+ West Virginia

Here is the final map for 2023:

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ Spain
+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Canada
+ Peru
+ France
+ Austria
+ Germany
+ Italy
+ India
+ Slovenia
+ Belize

The big milestone this week was Micky joining the 2 Year Streak Club! WooHoo!

But not everybody rang in the new year with their streak intact. Evie’s couldn’t build on last week’s submission. Either could Elainie. Or Willy. Or Alexis.

SUNDAY MORNING – SUGGESTED BY SARAH TOOT

SUNDAY MORNING! What a great first theme for Year 11 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

This year I’m not going to give a description of the theme. I’m going to trust you can figure it out on your own and through the theme reveal image. However, if you do have a question, don’t be afraid to ask.

Here is an updated list of the rules for Year 11:

1. The picture must 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 and take pictures challenge!
2. There is a limit of 2 submissions per person per theme.
3. Deadline to submit your submission is 11 AM next Monday.
4. To be considered the photographer of an image, you have to be the one clicks the shutter. If you hand your camera over to somebody else to take a picture of you, you are NOT the photographer of that image.
5. No screen captures.

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 SUNDAY MORNING in this place that likes to have plenty of submissions by Sunday morning next Monday.

Animals, Black & White, Calendar, Football, History, Iowa State, Jesse, Music, Night, Ruins, Street Photography, Travel

Liberty Bowl Trip Cell Phone Pictures

December 30, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Time to share the May image for the 2024 Photography 139 Calendar. It is a picture taken off of I-80 near the exit that takes you to the Amana Colonies:

MAY

I chose this picture for May because I usually put a picture in May that is a picture that I love that I think most people won’t. Frequently that is an image of ruins. Which of course I love. Particularly black and white picture of ruins.

TECHNICAL DETAIL

CAMERA: Sony ILCE-7M4
DATE: August 8, 2022 – 9:06 AM
LENS: E 28-75MM f/2.8
FOCAL LENTH: 75mm
EXPOSURE: 1/1000
ISO: 100

Tomorrow I will share the June image!

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While the football game didn’t go the way I had hoped. It was a full on embarrassment, but that is how the cookie crumbles. It still was an incredible trip. Thought I would go ahead and share some cruddy cell phone pictures from the trip to start:

I’ll get into details about the trip at a later date.

Art, Candid Portrait, Cathie, Elizabeth, Iowa State, Jorge, Logan, Michelle, Micky, Night, Street Photography, Town Sign Project

A Long Day…

December 13, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 1 Comment

Back on May 6 I had a pretty long day. I spent the morning into the early afternoon doing photography for Sleeping Angels. Logan assisted me on this project. After we photographed the Sleeping Angels Fun Run crossing the Mile Long Bridge, we headed down to Grimes and had lunch.

After taking Logan home I watched the Kentucky Derby. Then I headed to Marshalltown to have supper at Zeno’s with Jorge, Randi, and their brood, Clevenger, Hope, Cathie, Micky, Robyn, Katelyn, Aubrey, Michelle, Craig, Elizabeth, Alexander, and Nicholas.

The dinner is the annual end of the Witch Hunt. This year’s Witch Hunt went to Cathie. At the end of the dinner she was presented with The Broom. The travelling trophy for the Witch Hunt.

There was an incident that happened after dinner and while there is photographic evidence of what transpired, I’m apparently not allowed to share them…

After leaving Marshalltown I stopped at Iowa State to do a little night photography, before retiring to my house for some much needed rest.

Here are some pictures of the day.

It was a pretty great day! Although any day that involves photography AND Zeno’s pizza is a great day!

Andy, Angie, Bill, Birthdays, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elainie, Elizabeth, Funk, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Nathanial, Night, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Street Photography, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 429 – HOMETOWN

December 4, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Today is Brandon’s birthday, so I need to wish him a happy birthday!

Tenderloining - Claxon's Smokehouse & Grill

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRANDON!

I hope you birthday is as great a GODZILLA MINUS ONE!

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HOMETOWN! Everybody comes from one or consider where they currently live to be one! But did enough people get a picture that represent their HOMETOWN to make it a popular theme? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, November 27, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Sara Lockner – 1 week
2-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
3-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 2 weeks
4-Mary Green – 2 weeks (2)
5-Amy Peterson – 2 weeks
6-Susanna Funk – 3 weeks
7-Elainie Hernandez – 4 weeks
8-Alexis Stensland – 7 weeks
9-Scott Degeneffe – 14 weeks (2)
10-Sabas Hernandez – 15 weeks
11-Mike Vest – 21 weeks
12-Sheri Fakhouri – 24 weeks (2)
13-Logan Kahler – 25 weeks (2)
14-Nathanial Brown – 26 weeks
15-Jesse Howard – 26 weeks
16-Tamara Peterson – 29 weeks
17-Mindi Terrell – 41 weeks (3)
18-Brandon Kahler – 64 weeks
19-Linda Bennett – 70 weeks (2)
20-Sarah Toot – 71 weeks
21-Angie DeWaard – 75 weeks
22-Dawn Krause – 79 weeks (2)
23-Kim Barker – 85 weeks
24-Joe Duff – 86 weeks
25-Teresa Kahler – 97 weeks (2)
26-Carla Stensland – 97 weeks
27-Micky Augustin – 99 weeks
28-Andy Sharp – 100 weeks (3)
29-Bill Wentworth – 101 weeks
30-Cathie Morton – 105 weeks
31-Elizabeth Nordeen – 106 weeks (2)
32-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 108 weeks
33-Kio Dettman – 110 weeks

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:

Sara Lockner (Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Michigan) – 3 weeks

Mary Green (Michigan)

Susanna Funk (Dallas Center, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Elainie Hernandez (Boone, Iowa) – 5 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Boone County, Iowa) – 15 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Boone County, Iowa)

Sabas Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa) – 16 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 22 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa – Represents Boone, Iowa) – 25 weeks

Logan Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 26 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Boone, Iowa) – 27 weeks

Jesse Howard (Boone, Iowa) – 27 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Boone, Iowa) – 30 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa – Represents Ogden, Iowa) – 42 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa – Represents Ogden, Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 65 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 71 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 72 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 76 weeks

Dawn Krause (Boone, Iowa) – 80 weeks

Kim Barker (Cozumel, Mexico) – 86 weeks

Kim Barker (Belize City, Belize)

Joe Duff (Texas – Representing Curlew, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas – Representing Boone, Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 98 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Boone, Iowa) – 98 weeks

Carla Stensland (Boone, Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Colo, Iowa) – 100 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 101 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 102 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 106 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa – Representing Bettendorf, Iowa) – 107 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa – Representing Ogden, Iowa) – 109 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 111 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Boone, Iowa) – 533 weeks

30 participants! That is a fairly down week by current standards. I guess fewer people love the town they are in or the town that they came from than I would have suspected. That is okay. Hopefully we will rebound this week.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Belize
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Mexico
+ Nebraska
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

41 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 80% of the way there! Every continental state west of the Mississippi is now accounted for.

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ Spain
+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Canada
+ Peru
+ France
+ Austria
+ Germany
+ Italy
+ Slovenia
+ Belize

The big milestone this week was Micky joining the Triple Digits Club! WooHoo! Also Jesse joined the Half Year Club!!

But it wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns. Jen and Amy’s 2 week streaks came to an end. Alexis’ streak ends at 7.

LINES

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

But what is a LINES picture? Simply a picture where a major compositional element or the subject matter of the pictures includes LINES. And of course, there are all sorts of LINES.

While considering possible subjects for your theme, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a great submission:

There’s a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.
-Steven Wright

I look forward to 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 LINES in this place that is nothing more than millions, maybe billions of lines of code next Monday.