Published :: Rick Bass for Smithsonian Magazine ::

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of shooting author Rick Bass for Smithsonian Magazine. It was late spring in Montana which means it's still a hell of a lot colder here than most other places in the country. Mr. Bass had written a piece on why he loves living in Missoula, Montana for the Smithsonian. I spent a couple of days in Missoula shooting places he particularly liked before our time together for portraits.

Bass is known for being an author particularly enamored with place. Originally from the South he has been out West for the majority of his career. His most recent book focuses on the controversial movement of oil from Canada into the U.S. on highways running through rural Idaho and Montana. He was a pleasure to talk to and we discovered he takes yoga classes at the same spot as my assistant. Always a good way to start off a session. Despite the freezing temps and gusty wind Mr. Bass was more than happy to spend some time with us on the banks of the Clark Fork River. The fish were just starting to rise as we left.

You can see more of the images from this shoot and read the accompanying story on the Smithsonian website here.

Echo Lake Cafe - Extra Serving

Earlier this week I posted about a shoot I did for Montana Magazine about Echo Lake Cafe. Echo Lake Cafe sources local organic food and is a favorite among locals. These were some outtakes that didn't get used. Makes me want a cup of coffee right now.

Shooting food is something I've been doing more of over the last couple years and I really enjoy it. Here's to hoping there's more shoots like this one in the future.

Casket Maker for Montana Magazine

Its been almost a year since I drove backwood, dirt roads to Willy von Bracht's studio outside of Kalispell, Montana. Such a nice guy and what he creates makes for interesting converstion for sure: caskets. Willy has been been handcrafting caskets since 1972 and he is happy to take your order if you're so inclined. He's committed to crafting caskets at affordable prices for folks. If you've been thru the funeral process before you know how expensive caskets can be -- and Willy wants to provide an option outside of that. He also makes caskets that can be stored in your home as a functional bookshelf until you need it. Not something I would have thought of -- but I must say that's pretty smart.

Montana Magazine has sent me on some memorable assignments and Willy definitely falls into that category. This article ran last year in the June/July issue of the magazine. I'm just now catching up with categorizing some of my clips so look for more updates throughout the month.

Echo Lake Cafe for Montana Magazine

It's been a little while since I update here. More because I've been working lots and having to sit on the shoots than anything else. I shot this feature on Echo Lake Cafe here in the Flathead Valley back in January and you can find it in the current issue of Montana Magazine. I love doing shoots like this and while only a couple of images were used for the article I took oh-so-many more. I'll post more of the outtakes later this week but for now I just wanted to get on the blog updating train.

Commercial Work :: Shawna Moore for Blick Art ::

It's always nice to see the final product come together after a shoot. I shot Shawna Moore in her studio earlier this year and this is the final ad that the work will be used for. Cool projects with people you enjoy working with really make all the difference and this one is a nice way to start the year off.

Published: 406 Woman

At the start of this year I was approached by 406 Woman to shoot a feature on Tate Pastor Interiors. Heidi and Monica were a treat to shoot and I'm glad they put up with me for an hour. You can see this shoot in the most current issue of the magazine which is on stands now. Thanks guys! And thanks 406 Woman for the fun assignment.

shawna moore :: in the studio

Encaustic artist Shawna Moore recently asked me to do some shots of her working in the studio. Shawna is always fun to work with and it was nice to hang in her studio and get some shots of her most recent work. She's opening a show at Gallery Mar in Park City soon -- if you are in the area you should check it out. And as always she has work at Jest Gallery here in Whitefish.





For me it is always a treat to shoot creative people. It's fun to see how someone else works and thinks about being creative. It's fun to see what it takes for them to create. It's the same and different for everyone.