This past May I had a wedding in South Dakota.  It’s been years since I had last been there…..in fact I not 100% sure I had ever been there.  I feel like I have been.  When I was 4ish, but my Mom says no.  Who’s to say whom is right.  Anyway…….

I got there 4 days early.  Flew into Sioux Falls on the eastern side of the state and drove all the way back across the state in my little p.o.s rental car.  Note to self-small cars with narrow wheel bases are not fun to drive in truck country-it will beat the crap out of you.  On the way to Rapid City I came upon 2 storm chasers-is that a good thing or a bad thing.  Yes there was lots of wind and excitement, but really when your out in the wide open prairie does it really matter? -there’s nothing to hold onto or hide under.   Well, that was quite the kick off.  Didn’t know what to expect.  Turns out not much but hot air moving really fast.  Spent the night not far from Mount Rushmore.  Ironically I really wasn’t interested in seeing Mt. Rushmore, but since I was there I felt obligated.  So I went.  AND really liked it.  Possible because I got there before 8am and before all the buses crammed full of tourist did, but what ever.

Then I hit Crazy Horse.  Nice but totally felt like a tourist trap.  Possible more so than Mt. Rushmore because it was a work-in-progress that they charged more for it.  But the extra $4 was well spent on the bus ride to the base.

A closer-up from the base of the Monument

Crazy Bull by Crazy Horse.  What are the odds.  Some yokel had a taxidermy-ed bull in the back of his pick up.

Then I went on a tour though Jewel Cave.  Those of you who know me know I’m a rock nerd.  I was in heaven.  So fascinating.  No-there were no bats.

classic tour shot just to show scale.

close up of some of the Calcium Carbonate that lined the walls.  Yup-this is what makes your soda’s fizz.

A piece of “Bacon”.  It’s a cave formation of mineral deposits that is 23 feet long and only 1/2 inch think.  Amazing.

Custer State Park is pretty amazing too.  Well that was before all the fires, but regardless it’s a lovely part of the country and it made my soul sing.  I mean really sing, it was my happy place.  That night I stayed in Wall.  Yes I’ve been to Wall Drug.

The whole reason I did all this is because I wanted to see the Bad Lands.  So bright and early the next morning I hit the road again.  With out a proper cup of coffee I might add.  Something that should never be repeated.  These are some of my favorites from that day.

South East side of the park.

prongers, prongers, and more prongers-they were everywhere.

Wild Turnkeys foraging in the grasses.

Well, hello there big fella.

Oh, look-he has a friend.

What you can’t see is me doing my very excited happy dance.  I mean, come on, how often does this happen to the average Joe.

Lonely and wet.  Poor guy.

On one had the rain totally sucked, but on the other hand there was only about 5 of us in the whole park.  It was awesome.

Loved it.  Farm Art at it’s best- I would so love to see this back home on our farm.

Classic mid west Americana.

Pickled Rhubarb

2 pounds of trimmed rhubarb cut in to 3″ lengths

2 cups of apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1 Tablespoon sea salt

1 teaspoon white peppercorns

1 cinnamon stick

1 whole dried pepper-of heat preference

4 each whole cloves

4 each whole allspice berries

Directions:

*Boil vinegar, sugar, salt and spices until sugar and salt dissolved completely (about 5 minutes after coming to a slow boil).

*Cut rhubarb into batons long enough to fill each jar (about 3 inches).

*Pack rhubarb into sterilized jars distributing the spices as evenly as possible.

*Pour pickling brine over fruit, screw on lids and allow to cool.  ( put them into boiling water to ensure proper sealing-well see how it turns out)

Jazz singer Sue Bell performs at the Tula’s.

Sue has a crazy amazing voice and gives a wonderful performance.  If you have the chance go see her!

Sometimes life really pisses me off.  Stage 4 pancreatic cancer is not fair.  This is the most gentle of men ever.  Dammit.

I first meet this family about 13 years ago when I was commissioned to shoot one of the kid’s wedding…in this very spot in fact.  Ever since then we have all been orbiting around each other.  I’ve seen the kids have kids, enjoyed them as neighbors and fellow Seattle Sounders fans.  My husband learned about it while walking our dog past Liane & John’s place.  This was the same day our dog was attacked-in fact minutes before.  When he get’s home he breaks the news too me.  At this point in the day I had spent half the day cleaning up the crap some a-holes had dumped in our alley, then our dog is attacked and then THIS.  I had an incredible amount of anger.  I’ve not experienced that since I was a teenager.  Back then I would have hoped on my horse and rode it out.  Didn’t really have that option now.  So I did the next best thing.  Hoped in the car, turned the music to butt rock-LOUD butt rock and drove really really fast.  That didn’t help.  So I tried the opposite.  I went to the Chinese Gardens at South Seattle Community College and tried to meditate.  That didn’t really help either.  So I just came home and stayed in a pisser of a mood.

It was a very bitter sweet shoot.  An honor, no doubt.  But dammit all to hell…………….

Wow

It’s been a while.  I almost forgot how to access my dashboard.  You know your a bad blogger when………

Anyhow, meet Kaija.  You’ve seen her before I just love working with her so here she is again.  Kaija needed some new head shots.  That’s it-just head shots.  It’s amazing just how far off course you can get when there are 2 creative people in the room.  Kaija is also my make up artist and she’s a dancer……yeah, she a hot tamale she is.

What’s this have to do with Photography?  Nothing.

It’s just that I very sensitive skin and this is one of the few detergents that work for me.  And it’s CHEAP!  And I like making stuff.

You will need:

4 cups of hot tap water

1 Fels Naptha Soap Bar, ~$3.99 a bar

1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda, ~$2.99 a box

1/2 cup Borax, ~$4.29 a box

Approximate cost to make 5 gallons of laundry soap $4, and 30 minutes of your life.  How hard is that folks.

I hate Walmart, but sadly that is the only storefront place I could find the Naptha bar and the washing soda.  Easy to find online but I’m big on buying local.  So save yourself some time and just go to Walmart already.

You will also need:

1 5 gallon bucket

1 4-6 quart stainless steel sauce pan

1 stainless steal mixing spoon

1 stainless steel cheese grater

I bought all these items at Goodwill.  When picking out plastics please keep in mind that plastic will absorb chemistry….so give some thought to what was in it before and think twice about using it again.  All of these items are dedicated to making lotions, soaps and detergents.  Never used again with food.  But that’s just me.

Start by grating the Fels Naptha Soap bar into the sauce pan.

Add water.  Stir over medium low heat until soap is melted and dissolved.

Then pour into the 5 gallon bucket.

Fill bucket 1/2 full of hot tap water.  Add 1 cup Arm & Hammer washing soda.

Stir

Add 1/cup of Borax.

Stir

Fill the bucket the rest of the way with hot tap water and let sit over night.

Now personally we like to just let it sit in the 5 gallon bucket and fill up a quart jar as needed (it’s easier to handle/pour into the machine).

Now my friend Pebbles who gave me this recipe likes to fill up old soap containers.  So figure out what works for you.

Either way, fill containers half full of soap (soap will be like a gel now) and half with water, shake each time before using.

Top load machines take 5/8 cup per load.  On our front loader we use 1/3 to 1/2 cup per load.

fyi-a 5 gallon bucket lasted my husband and I 9 months…..for $4.  It’s easy math folks.

It’s that time of year where everything is grey.  Grey light, grey plants, grey, grey, grey.  And it’s when I find myself doing the majority of my album design.  As I sit here working on Allie and Kyle’s album it keeps making me smile and it’s inspired me to revisit their great wedding. All the wonderful colors.  The sunshine.  The emotions of the day.  So just to recap-bring some color to your day and a smile to your face here they are again:

Allie and Kyle.  August 28th.  Twin Willow Gardens in Samammish Washington.

Classic!

One of the best things about my job is making friends for life.  It’s time for beer guys!

I’ve known Alexis, and have been photographing her, since she was about a freshman in high school.  After she graduated she moved on to college and I meet her folk while photographing a job for a magazine.  In college Alexis meet Dan.  And now I’m happy to say I’ve meet Dan too-at their wedding.

Alexis and Dan were married at a lovely ceremony held at her parents, most-excellent, place in Sammamish.  Now as far as ‘back yard weddings’ go this was pretty darn posh.  See for yourself.

Alexis’s parents manage a spa in The Woodmark Hotel called North West Face. So they had the all the treatments from the best of the best.  If only I wasn’t working…….

Lovely and useful.

Just a small family piece don’t ya know.

Everyone on the way to do photos in the late afternoon sun, well we found some shade, but you get the idea.

Bright direct sunshine can be a blessing or a curse OR an artistic add on.

Amazing details of the ceremony site.  Everything was so bright and fun.  I just loved the color pallet-yellow, magenta and cyan.  Must be from my days as a custom printer.

You know what I say-if your going to do bubbles, do them big.  Go for the big guns not those little sissy bottles that nobody can make work!

Moments before the ceremony folks took some calming breaths with the dogs and by watching videos on YouTube.

Just a quick peak’s ‘sall.

I’m telling ya-not a detail was missed or over looked at this wedding.  It was shear pleasure to photograph it.

If only I could remember his name.  He is their neighbor and he’s just starting his own catering company.  I eat a lot of event food and this was goooooood stuff.

Just an intimate little walk with the two of them in the early evening light.

Did I mention she got 2 wedding rings.  This set which the designed together and a family piece (not pictured) but amazing as well.

Yep that’s right-they had a bouncy castle at their wedding.  And it was fun!

Oh come on, how can you not just love a bride who can smoke a stogie.

If I had had the choice of my fathers vehicles to drive away in, it would have been between a full sized Ford F250 dullie and a John Deer tractor.  Nothing wrong with either of those, but it sure the heck ain’t no Ferri.