Week 4: An Emotional Rollercoaster

Creativity is evading me this week, as it has most of my life, unfortunately.  This week has been rough.  I find myself comparing myself to others and feeling like my photography has not evolved since I've been here.  There has been a truck load of information dumped on us this past month and sorting out all the pieces and finding a way to put them together to shape my photography goals/style is overwhelming.  I'm really looking forward to this break.  I need it!

Panning Practice

Life In the Fast Lane

Visual Studies Assignment III

Depict A Memory or Metaphor

She only smokes when she drinks...

Bump in the Night

Afraid of the dark?

There’s a peculiar feeling I have walking through the streets of 

Missoula at night, it’s an unsetting eeriness that is not instinctive to 

Missoula, but rather to the night itself. What happens when you let

your overactive imagination run away with itself?  Do you wonder what

may be lurking in the shadows?  Or perhaps you've felt a cold chill 

wash over you and the hair on the back of your neck is standing up?  Do 

you wonder what is right in front of you that cannot be seen with the 

eye but undoubtedly felt in the pit of your stomach...?

Ghosting

 

Shadows

Visual Studies Assignment II

Framing vs. Negative Space 

I used this gate to frame the sky and mountains.  At first glance 

I was immediately drawn to the diagonal lines. Later though, the sky, grass, 

and yellow flowers really made this image work for me.

This self-portrait was intended as just that,  a self portrait, 

but I was pleasantly surprised when it fit nicely with this

negative space assignment.

Visual Studies Assignment I

Depict a Sense Other Than Sight

A shower, make-up mirror, glass of water, a model (yourself works), imagination

 and a camera =  all the makings of a good photograph.  Imagination being the key!

Traveling Souls

Road Trip

Up and out with the rising sun.  

Early Saturday morning Justin, Jill, Erica, and myself loaded 

up in Justin's truck and made the 3 hour trip to Bannack Ghost town. 

Pit Stop

We took our time and made sure to stop and shoot whenever we found cool things along the way!

Erica's Signature Shooting Style

You will never see Erica laying down shooting without her legs crossed at the ankles!

Along Our Journey

Travel down the road to wisdom.

Bannack Ghost Town

A History Lesson:

Bannack was founded in 1862 when John White discovered gold on Grasshopper Creek. As news of the gold strike spread many prospectors and businessmen rushed to Bannack hoping to strike it rich. In 1864, Bannack was named as the first Territorial Capital of Montana.  From the late 1860's to the 1930's, Bannack continued as a mining town with a fluctuating population. By the 1950's gold workings had dwindled and most folks had moved on. At that point the State of Montana declared Bannack a State Park. Today, over sixty structures remain standing, most of which can be explored. 

Haunted Hotel Meade

Cold spots, the apparition of a teen-age girl, and sounds of crying children are often reported by those who visit this old building. The first sighting of the young girl was well over a hundred years ago. The teen is said to be that of a girl named Dorothy Dunn who drowned in a dredge pond along the creek long ago. Shortly after her death, she made her first appearance to her best friend, who was with her at the time of her death.  

We had no such encounters!

Inside Hotel Meade

Erica, engrossed in her work.

Vintage Shoot

Jill and Erica outside Hotel Meade.

Self Portraits

Moons Over Missoula

June 14, 2011

On June 14, 2011 the day before the full moon Erica, Michelle, Kinsey and I hiked up the trail head at the end of Orange Street to watch the magic happen.  If you've never watched the moon rise I highly recommend it.  It is truly amazing how fast it comes up.

 If you’re going to go skywatching, that the best time to see the night sky is when you have a new moon. When there’s a full moon, the dimmer skies are washed out. 

Unicorns, Leprechauns, and Fields full of 4 Leaf Clovers

On Saturday June 11 after a 3am wake-up call and an hour trek out to Lee Metcaf  

(which only produced a failed attempt to capture sunrise) my traveling companions and I decided to shoot something else. [Hence, the train series below.]  We got so caught up in shooting that we didn't realize class time was approaching quickly.  We packed up and 

knew we couldn't stop to shoot anything else along the way, no matter how bad we wanted to!  What a shame!   We would have loved to photograph the unicorn next to the leprechaun standing in the middle of the field filled with four-leaf clovers, but we refrained.  

Making it to class on time was clearly the priority.

Distant Train

Landscape...not my forte

Thanks to Erica, Kari, and Kathy for getting up so early and still being in such good moods!  Can't wait to shoot again soon!