Sled Dog Days - Olney, Montana

I love shooting this event. It's so fun and everyone is so nice. And really - the dogs just love it which is so fun to see. This year the sun came out and it was absolutely beautiful. Here are a couple frames from over the weekend. You can also see some more images over on Lido's blog. Hope everyone out there is staying warm!

wintereverafter walk

Sometimes it's nice to just take a little break. A little walk. And look around.

It was a quiet Sunday and I took a break outside to just walk around and shoot for myself. It was a nice treat. I've been working on lots of the administrative (sometimes boring) side of photo stuff so it was nice to be outside. My brain needed a little break from bookkeeping, mailings, and filing receipts.

Now back to work.

good morning montana

After quite a crazy night last night, this is what Montana gave me this morning. Love it.

patience in snow

I had the chance to shoot some ice fishing last week and it was a nice treat. The kids were excited, the weather was not as cold as it had been, and I had fun watching the kids wait for a bite. The fishing was part of a birthday party for a little one turning two. Ice fishing is really a far cry from the roller skating parties I had as a kid but it was pretty cool. And now when these kids grow up they can say they have been ice fishing since they were 2.... no seriously.

little people, big adventure

While I am hearing about warm weather down South from friends and family, winter keeps on going here in Northwest Montana. I happened on the wind skiers today on the way home from Kalispell. While the temps have dropped here, the wind has picked up and these kids decided to make the best of it. By the time I had climbed up the hill where they were skiing they were already dots in the distance. Still, I thought it was a pretty sweet way to make the best of a sunny day. The two kids in the bottom image were heading back inside after ice fishing. After a brief warm up in February, it has been cold enough to head out onto the lakes here again and catch some fish. More photos from outdoor adventures to come in the next few days.

winter in montana :: or :: when will it end?

So this week there was a moment of sunshine. Just for a day. And then it was back to business as usual and winter weather. Even though this is my third winter in Montana I still miss the South like clockwork come March. I miss random 70 degree days where you can get away with flip flops and t-shirts. I miss not wearing snow boots till May. And most of all I miss sunshine. Montana winters last so much longer, and while they are beautiful, I really just love warm weather. But for now all I can do is try to enjoy how calm and pretty this winter is until eventually it melts away. So till then this photo is my wintery silver lining.

portrait of two llamas

On the way home from an assignment for Montana Magazine today I stopped for some quality lama time. These two really made me laugh with how serious they look. So I thought I'd share their serious stares here. Check out the blog in the upcoming weeks for some of the work I've been sitting on for a while. I've just been waiting till things get published to run them here.

love day 2009

So it's Valentines Day. For all you romantics out there here are some sweet pictures of some sweet couples. I'm not a huge Valentines Day girl but part of me can't help but be partial to a day devoted to love. What a nice break from winter, depressing news, and the like. So on that note I give you two happy couples who are lovely to be around. The first one is one Lido caught this past fall of our friends in Atlanta. The second one is from an engagement shoot I did at the end of last year.



If you are really feeling romantic you can check out more photos of happy couples at modwest photo. I'm really excited about this new opportunity to photograph couples, their weddings, and their families in a modern, romantic way. Enjoy!

adventure in trego, mt

just a normal day

On my way home I spotted a dog sled team offering day rides. I couldn't resist stopping for a photo. Then down the street I spotted some border patrol agents on horseback outside the hardware store. Turns out they were desensitizing their horses to the city and being downtown before this weekend's Whitefish Winter Carnival Parade. You know, just your normal downtown stuff.



The horses are freeze branded as a part of the BLM Wild Mustang Program. This more humane way of branding leaves a mark that identifies them as part of the BLM program and gives their age.The crew leaving downtown Whitefish.

MLK and Inaugural Words

MLK has always been a "day of service" when I was living in Atlanta. A day to get out, plant a tree, build a playground....you know...help the community. Since I am working today and there is no community service project to work on here I thought I'd check out the Ebenezer service for MLK in Atlanta.

If that makes you feel inspired then be sure to check out this new interactive graphic on the NYTimes site. It's all about the most used words by each president in their inaugural speeches. Pretty cool. Only makes me ask why aren't "awesome" and "tubular" on their more?

Happy MLK. And yay almost inauguration day and news media frenzy.

ski time

I spent more time on Big Mountain this weekend than ever before. Lido was covering a ski competition and I tagged along to take some fun photos for myself. I'm pretty pumped to go back and actually ski now. And I'm less terrified than before (which was a pretty significant amount of terror). So happy ski season to the skiers out there. It's a good year for snow in Montana.

2009: let it snow

I've only been back in Montana for a couple days. In the short time I've been home the snow has been falling non-stop. Today there is an "Emergency Only" travel warning out because the roads are so snowy. This is a far cry from the 75 degree temps I left behind in Atlanta. And it seems it is only the beginning: we are supposed to have another eight inches fall tonight here in Whitefish.

So as I work from home today editing photos and catching up on paperwork from being out of town I'm watching the snow fall out my window. It's pretty...but I hope it stops soon. Just so we don't have to shovel the sidewalk 3 times in one day.