NOWA Conference: Photo Shoot Out: Day 2

With the snow finally ended, at least temporarily, the day dawned sunny and bright, near perfect photo light actually. But with nothing to show for Day 1, Gale, my model, still very much under the weather and only a few hours to go I was as they say up agin it.

Over night I had however at least come up with sort of a game plan whether or not I could pull it off remained to be seen. First on my agenda was to shoot some touristy stuff in town; just how I would fit those shots into one the categories...who knows?  While I was shooting the C of C historic barn, Tim Christie stopped and said to get out to Seeley Lake the scenic shot of the lake with the sunrise, snow and mountains was about as good as it gets. Adding "if you win remember I get half."  So I did and of course got there just in time to see the color disappear. Not good (for my prospects) since Keith was just folding up his tripod and wearing that patented grin which we've all come to recognize all too well...if you get my drift.

Really scratching now I shot the scene anyway and it didn't turn out too bad but without the color I knew would not cut it in the final judging...oh well. 

Heading south to Harper's Lake with time now fast running out I pulled on waders and rigged a fly rod, set the camera on the tripod, tripped the self-timer and starting firing away. The best of that hurried effort (above) looked pretty good to me but alas failed to trip the judges' triggers...

Racing back to Broken Arrow to edit what few shots I had wouldn't you know it the computer declared the CD disk corrupted. As I fumbled and fumed Gale despite feeling really bad went off to find someone to beg/borrow another. Sue and Eric Hansen came to the rescue. Eric even insisted on lending a hand with his help I got it done just in the nick of time. 

We spent the afternoon attending various seminars. While the photo shoot out is fun and potentially lucrative (winning shots in each category pay $100 and the best of show pays $300) still the seminars are what lured us here in the first beginning. I'm always in awe how much some of our members "know" and more than a bit mortified how little I've absorbed having done this now for more years than I care to admit...What can I say? Stay tuned...  

Snowshoe Hares' in Transition Despite the Winter-Like Conditons

Photoperiod determines when the snowshoe hare transitions from all white winter coat to brown summer dress. The change occurs seasonally and on time regardless of temperature extremes or whether winter comes early or spring springs late...as is the case this spring. Here it is May and a major snowstorm is just passed and temperatures are expected to plummet in the state's coldest spots to low to mid teens or perhaps even lower. In other words don't be surprised to see a brown rabbit trying desperately to remain incognito during a spring blizzard or a white rabbit dashing boldly across a brown fall landscape.

Forest-dwellers, snowshoes prefer thick brushy undergrowth, such as found in swamps and thickets in northern boreal forests. Snowshoes range all across the northern U.S., as far north as the Arctic Ocean and in the mountains as far south as Virginia (the Appalachians) and New Mexico (the Rockies).

Fitted with large, furry feet perfect for navigating the deepest winter snow snowshoes forage widely utilizing an ever increasing trail system as winter deepens. 

In some areas of the country, New England for example, hunting snowshoes ranks right up there with ice fishing in popularity. Serious hunters employ long-legged hounds to ferret out and give chase, while the hunters spread out hoping to ambush the fleeing hares who generally run a big circle to eventually return to the starting point...or very near. In what many would label truly a mispent youth, a buddy and me made the arduous, sometimes hazardous, drive each winter from our homes Pennsylvania to Vermont to particpate with old friends in "The Great Annual Hare Roundup." Trust me nothing but laughs and a great time had by all...Hounds seemed to especially enjoy gleaning the leftovers of the requisite feast following the hunt almost as much as the hunt itself...Imagine!  

Admittedly the above shot failed to please the judges (see yesterday's post) but it sort of pleases me...After all, given the funk I found myself in that first day, eating skunk was indeed a distinct possibility. Stay tuned... 

  

Snow: The Surest Sign of Spring--Montana Style That Is

Snow, at times serious snow greeted us last Wednesday as we drove the 200 miles or so from our home in Dillon to Seeley Lake, MT to attend the Northwest Outdoor Writers Association (NOWA) annual three-day conference. Not at all surprising to us but something of a surprise for the writers and photographers who live on the west coast where snow is mostly a winter phenom, or as one put it, "Where I come from we have SPRING RAINS...SNOW? NEVER!!!

Anyway it snowed all day Wednesday (the day prior to the start of conference) and all night and in the morning the scene--as you can see from the shot above--was way more winter like than perhaps even some less hardened Montana pilgrims might have expected. Coming from the high elevation southwest corner of the state, however, we've come to expect spring snow days but nonetheless disappointed since it was sure to put a crimp on some of the planned outdoor activities which make the conferences so enjoyable. 

Over the next several days I plan to post more on just what our group and conference is all about. But first let me tell you about one of my favorite activities. It's called the Photo Shoot-Out. Starting at 8 Thurday morning and running until about noon Friday participating photographers (any member can) try their best to fulfill a variety of "assignments." This year there were three "catagories" Lifestyle, Recreation and Scenic. Individuals could shoot any number of shots but only 10 could be entered for final judging. Of the 10 shots you could mix and match any way; in other words all 10 could be Scenics or you could enter several in one category, the rest in another category and so forth. Judging was blind, in other words the judges only saw the photo and not the name of the photographer. Criteria judged were Theme, Composition, Technical (exposure, focus, etc.). 

While the above photo was one of many shot during the Shoot Out it did not make the final cut for obvious reasons. One it's not much more than a revealing snap shot certainly not one I would deem worthy of competing against, for example, my Livingston MT pal Keith Szafranski whose scenics rival and often exceed the best artwork and two...well since "one" kills it why go there. So I spent the first day rambling around the area apparently in something of a brain dead state as nothing seemed to click. I did manage a nice shot of a snowshoe rabbit in transition but since wildlife wasn't a category...what to do with it who knows?

Day 2 dawned somewhat nicer, a little morning sun and much better light. I had planned to pose Gale in a variety of shots but alas she'd come down with a nasty cold and didn't feel up to the task. So setting the camera on a tripod and using the self-timer I posed myself fishing and after took a couple shots of flies...really stretching it I know but...To make a long mostly sorry story short...The shot below did somehow manage to garner second spot (Recreation). My take is the judges just felt bad for the ol' boy....Oh well. Stay tuned...