Iowa Holgas

A few weeks ago I went to Des Moines for some friend-visiting, shotgun-shooting, t-shirt-buying, farmers-market-burrito-eating, good times. On my way there I drove through a really bad thunderstorm with a lot of hail. I had to pull over along I-90 due to the hail and lack of vision. The good thing was that when it was over, there were some pretty clouds.

Wind turbines along I-35

Erin watching her dad and boyfriend shoot clay pigeons before the Adel Sweet Corn Festival. 

Hopps!

Some flowers for you...

Photos of end of summer flowers that I saw on my morning run. No, I don't run with my camera, but I drove somewhere to run and had my camera in my trunk. Normally I don't have enough time to take photos after running, but it was Sunday and my only plans were laying out at the lake, which was accomplished!

I have developed a strong interest in taking photos of flowers from below. I like the way the sun shines through the petals and illuminates tiny details that from the top I would never notice.

And some summer grass!

CMN Balloon Rally

Last weekend I photographed the Children's Miracle Network Balloon Rally in Wisconsin Rapids. I went there three different times to take photos. There were a couple early mornings, which I am not used to, but oh well! Here is the gallery at the Wisconsin Rapids Tribune.

I also took my Holga, so here a few digital pics and a few analog pics from the event.

This was Sunday morning, it was sunny the balloons were able to actually fly across the field.

Same photo situation, except with my Holga.

Eeep! Don't blow away! Friday night was pretty windy. After this they took the balloons down.

 Moving the balloon via feet across the field. I got to go up with this group from Farmers Insurance, so it was pretty neat. We didn't fly though, we just went up on a tether.

This was my favorite balloon. I liked this photo because the balloon was just in the middle of a field and I liked the truck parked next to it.

Mosinee Volleyball Poster :: Central Wisconsin Sport Photography

Last week I was asked to photograph the sports poster for the Mosinee Volleyball team. This is different than the team photo, which is usually done by studios of the team in their uniforms. The posters are more fun and usually given out at games to promote the team, as well something to collect. I think I still have my sports posters from high school swim team....

The team chose, "Sorry, Cinderella, you ain't getting this ball!" as their theme. After going through a lot of options, we settled on taking the photo in the high school auditorium. They had props and a background from a play that worked perfect - the play was Cinderella! The best part of the location was that I could use the stage lights and not set up my own lighting. That saved me a major hassle, I was keeping myself up at night thinking of how to evenly light twelve girls. There was also a moon that we could light up too! I shot the images in RAW, which I have never done before. I think I will use RAW for wedding portraits, it is just an overall larger file with higher quality.  It was a pretty fun shoot and I am pleased with the results.

I still have a bit to tweak on the photo and am not sure if this will be the final, final version, but I like the way it is turning out! I don't claim to be a designer, but I enjoy learning new skills and searching for free fonts! It is kind of mind-boggling how many fonts there are. It is pretty pink, so I might play around a bit more with the text colors.  My friend and sister who are both graphic designers helped me a bit with suggestions.

Water Lily

A few Holga photos from the lake.

We went canoeing and kayaking at Rock Dam Lake in Clark County.

I like water lilies.... a lot. It is hard to get photos of them, especially with a Holga since the closer you get the fuzzier it gets.

Did anyone read the books in the Chronicles of Narnia series? The third one, the last one that I read, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, they sail across the ocean to the end of the earth and there are all these underwater towns and stuff. That is how I remember it anyway. After I read the book in maybe fourth grade, I found a new love of paddling. I loved going through the lakes in Minnesota where you could see the grass and the little trails that animals and fish made through the reeds and the weeds. It reminded me of the book and I would make up all these elaborate stories in my head of what was going on down there. Perhaps there were little people riding little fish. Who knows? That is probably a long explanation of why I still love water lilies and secret lake corners.

On a side note:

A card of mine was featured on the blog Refining the Moment. She has a cute collection of different cards from Etsy, check it out!

Website Updates

The summer is winding down, but my schedule sure isn't! I have been busy, busy, busy doing photo edits, website updates, Etsy projects, and photo archiving. I love taking photos and if I could just take the photos and then they would magically appear where I want them perfectly toned and cropped, I would be happy. But, as it is, there is a lot of behind the scenes/computer screen work to be done.

I have been working on some website updates and adding Holga photos to my Scrapbook area. I don't think a website designer is in my future.... but it is good to know how to update!

I also added some new wedding photos to my website. I am still playing with the updates and trying out different orders and photos, so stay tuned!

Gallery Show

Yesterday I dropped off a few photos for the Ex Voto Art and Design Gallery in Medford. They had a call for artists for their Summer Open Theme Art Show, which opens August 22. Since I was on a mission to get some work in galleries, I entered and have four pieces in the show. Their gallery has lots of corners and different art work and you could poke around there for awhile, tons of interesting painting, prints and, well, art! I am excited to see what they will have in the show,  it will be neat to see what other artists in central Wisconsin are producing.

Here are two of the four photos "Holgascapes" of mine that will be displayed.

Field

Taken with a Holga on the way back from Wisconsin Rapids

Birch Trees

Taken with a Holga near Withee

I found a link to some really amazing photos the other day, "Captured: America in Color from 1939 - 1943" on the Denver Post photo blog. They are really images, I think they look like movie stills. I have never seen color images from then and they are so simple and beautiful. The images themselves are slices of life, but the color adds a vibrancy to that time that I have never seen before.

Flying to Iowa

I haven't posted in a bit because I have been busy toning and editing wedding, family and engagement pics, as well as working. Last week I flew to Iowa for RAGBRAI (Registers Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) to meet up with some friends. I blogged about it for work HERE.

It was cool to be able to fly over my hometown and fly over Iowa. I love the perfect grid of all the highways and fields. Every road (in most cases) is a mile apart. It is so organized!  Normally it takes four hours to drive, but this was a short one hour and fifteen minute flight courtesy of Dan. 

We had to leave early early in the morning though so we could both get back to work. It was a fun trip and worth every hour that I didn't sleep!

Katie and Matt :: Central Wisconsin Engagement Photographer

Last week I photographed Katie and Matt's engagement photos, which was really fun! We took photos on Matt's family's farm in rural Stratford. There were tons of fun elements to take photos with; a bridge, table, swing, field.... so we had a good time taking a bunch of different shots. I am excited to take their wedding photos next spring. If taking their engagement photos is any indication, I think their wedding will be a blast!

For more wedding and engagement photos, check out my website: http://lauraschmittphoto.photoshelter.com/