Saturday, September 28, 2013

The Fair

Ok, so in retrospect I probably should have done this a little closer to the actual event, but if I accidentally forget what I won for some of the pictures and end up showing more first place ribbons than Tina, who's actually counting? (Besides Tina.) The Sheridan County Fair is held every year during the last weekend in July.

What is far more important to me than how placed is how much money I won. Hey, I'm just being honest here. Most years I break about even, and it's lovely to have a hobby that pays for itself.

What is second most important to me is how I came to have the photos in the first place. Some were snapped on impulse, and others, like the one below, came at a high cost to my tender flesh. All are a part of my life, and the experience has shaped me into who I am. Because of the fair, I actually get paid for this shaping experience - sounds like a win-win to me!

The first batch of images below were all entered in the enlargement category.

1. This alkali lake is just a mile or two north of our house, barely out of town. I expected to have to fight the mosquitoes, which are usually bad by the lakes. Instead, I was mightily beset by biting flies,each trying to get their pound of flesh in the first bite. For many, their first bite was also their last. I was rather thankful that no one went by, gawking as I tried to snap photos between convulsions. 1st Place



2. Technically not a sparrow, but looking very much like one, this little bird flew out of the nest before it was strong enough to fly back. Or anywhere else, for that matter. Devon held it for a moment for me before I hoisted him on my shoulders to put it back. You'll see its green-headed parent below. 1st Place



3. This boot picture was taken in honor of the young brother and sister who drowned together at nearby Medicine Lake. They both loved to wear cowboy boots on every possible occasion. Each time I see this picture, it reminds me to say a prayer for their grieving family. 2nd Place



4. This wild shot was of Clancy yawning while wearing the Cone of Shame due to an ear infection called Pillow Ear. He had to wear this for WEEKS, and was so thrilled when it finally came off that he could barely walk straight. 2nd Place


5. While at the farm, Damon and Devon both spent time in the pen with the bottle-fed calves. It was an entirely new experience to have their elbows, and any other bit of salty skin, slurped and slobbered on. 1st Place


6. This gorgeous flag is located at one of the ranger stations in Yellowstone National Park. Tiggy gets credit for finding the shot first, but since she accidentally mixed her entries up and couldn't enter her flag picture, I got to enter mine. 1st Place


7. This adorable little green-headed bird worked very hard to feed its babies, in a nest located just above the doorway of the farmhouse Mom, Dad, Tina, and assorted children occupied while in Wisconsin. 1st Place



8. As the only one with a tripod, I kinda have the time exposure slot all to myself. This sunset at the farm was made extra exciting by the field of fireflies in the foreground. Upon our return, I saw fireflies out here for the first time, along Tina's driveway. 2nd Place



9. Nearly all my fair pictures with a person involved contained Devon. Well, he moves really fast and is always in the middle of everything. Our spring trip to Makoshika State Park was no exception. 1st Place]



10. These lovely orchids belong to Eldine and Margie, our cousins who housed us in Wisconsin. 2nd Place



11. This was the moment before Damon and Devon almost blew away with this retired smokejumper, in West Yellowstone, MT. Thanks for Entering



12. These miniature snow drifts from last winter still give me a chill looking at them. It must have been about 20 below, not bad but a lot colder than it is now! 1st Place



13. Another wintertime photo, this portrait of Tiggy evokes shivers despite its warm tones. I adjusted the color myself so it wouldn't look so completely frigit. 2nd Place



14. Yo usaw this tractor from the rear at the beginning of the previous blog post, being driven by my cousin, Pat. When he was done, he conveniently parked it in front of a sunset. Thanks, Pat! 1st Place



15. Upon our arrival at the Wisconsin Dells, Tina was still trying to find a cooler place to park the dogs for our boat ride, since it was uncomfortably hot even in the shade. Just as she found one tiny little shady spot, we found out that if we rode the Duck Tours, we could actually bring them with us! The Duck Tours use some old amphibious vehicles recommissioned after WWII, and the dogs were just a tad bit nervous as our "cars" drove off the edge and into the water. 1st Place



16. This picture...about my favorite of anything I've ever taken...almost didn't happen. A certain husband, we'll call him "Mack" to avoid embarrassing him, hogged the window seat. I practically fell in his lap trying to lean through and capture this image at the right moment. It was close, but I made it! 1st Place and Special Award



17. While camping at West Yellowstone, we visited the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center. As I mentioned before, it's well worth the price of admission, especially since each ticket is good for two days. This incredible wolf posed for me in broad daylight, but a smidge of magic created the illusion of moonlight in the forest. 2nd Place


18. This photo gives no evidence of what happened just a split second later. By the time these two hit the ground, Devon had somehow managed to flip around and land on top of his opponent, neatly pinning him. 1st Place


The following photos were entered in the 4x6 category. Tina does not permit these ribbons to be counted with the others. But since the ribbons still came with cash prizes, I'm content to let the ribbon count fall where it may.

 1. Another fun moment at the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center - one of the few places you can get close-ups of grizzly nose hairs in complete and total safety. 1st Place



2. During camp meeting, some of the little girls discovered this colorful swallowtail outside our building. It must have just emerged recently, since it didn't fly away when they held their hands out to be walked on. Everyone who wanted to took their turn gently holding it, before putting it on this bush to finish hardening its wings and preparing to fly. 1st Place



3. Firework time exposures - my favorite part of the 4th of July, except for the veggie burgers. 1st Place



4. From the raptor section of the Grizzly and Wolf DC, comes this cute Great Horned Owl pedestrian. Found near a highway, having blown out of his nest during a storm, he imprinted on humans and has a few odd quirks to him. Thanks for Entering



5. These pink bits of wonderness grew in the flowerbed next to Eldine and Margie's house in Wisconsin. 1st Place



6. By now, you'll probably be surprised to hear that these wolves also come from the G&W DC in West Yellowstone. We were just about to leave, in the late afternoon, when a fender-bender just down the street brought a fleet of vehicles with sirens. Immediately, every wolf in the place began to howl, and I left the grizzly pen at a run. This particular photo was taken through a chain link fence, but one advantage of a zoom lens is the narrow depth of field. Translation: the fence was so out-of-focus it didn't even show. 1st Place



7. Without the trip to Wisconsin and the G&W DC I wouldn't have had much of a showing.This wasn't the only bald eagle image I captured, but the fair only has so many animal categories. 1st Place


There was one more piece of artwork, which I don't have a photo of. It was a mixed media art piece, taken originally as a photo of a hummingbird in Eldine and Margie's flowering plant. The hummingbird turned out blurry, along with some of the important leaves and flowers, so I printed up the photo and oil painted over any parts that needed it. I was less than thrilled with the results, but decided to enter it anyway, since even if it only got a 3rd place there would still be a small sum of money involved. If you haven't already picked up on this, I'm not exactly one of those art purists who believe that art should only be for the sake of art, with no considerations of filthy lucre. Though filthy lucre shouldn't be the center of our lives, or the recipient of our love, or even our main priority, without it there would be no important things like CAT FOOD AND TOILET PAPER, okay???

The big problem was that when I went to pick up the photo/painting on my way to the fairgrounds to turn it in, the paint still wasn't dry. Oh well, I had some wood sealer spray handy, and sealer is sealer, right? It didn't say NOT FOR USE ON PHOTOGRAPHS, so I dashed outside and sprayed away. And stared in horror, mouth agape, as the picture began to melt. 

Oh good, at least it was a quick-dry sealer, so the melting stopped fairly quickly. The peppery result somewhat resembled the salt technique used in watercolors. I convinced myself that it might even look better now than it had before. Surely my little mishap hadn't completely X'd me out of any chance of a 3rd place...

I was happy enough with the results of my photos that I almost didn't care how the poor, abused hummingbird had wound up...until I found out that it had not only place 1st, but won a Special Award besides!!! And if I haven't mentioned it before, Special Awards = Cash. THANK YOU LOCAL BUSINESSES!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tina was pretty happy with her Special Award, and gloating in a most unbecoming manner, up until she found out that Tiggy and I each had two, and Mom had THREE for her sewing projects. The only person who tied with Tina for Special Awards was Devon, who also had one. Suddenly, she no longer felt quite as Special. Or as Awarded.

So she consoled herself with the most number of 1st place ribbons. And I consoled myself with the most prize money. And we were both very happy!

We were already planning next year's entries before this year's had grown cold. She has some amazing portraits and landscapes already, and I have a stunning Least Weasel closeup. Cue the dueling banjos, boys, and get ready for Fair 2014, coming soon to a sibling rivalry near you!

3 comments:

  1. So...when are you and Tina going to collaborate on a coffee table art book? Both of y'all take some awesome photos!

    ReplyDelete