I recently had the opportunity to travel to Argentina with the iconic fly fishing photographer, Val Atkinson. Val has paved the way for many photographers and I have a great deal of admiration and respect for him. He's also a genuine great guy who has both integrity and the ability to have fun.
Val Atkinson. Argentina 2017
Whataroa, New Zealand.
Lots of stories on this particular evening in a West Coast pub on the South Island. Each time he walked away from my table he'd go to another table and laughs would fill the room. He was drawn to the table I was at though and told stories until the two of us, after walking 18 miles on this day, hobled into our our room down the hall. The best part was the open window in my room looked out at an outside patio and this guy had a large group of people laughing until well past 2am...
Below is a portrait of Fall River Fly Fishing guide Steve Marugg. He's a sweet man with a kind heart. I met Steve at a dinner party a few nights ago near the Fall River. He has lived and guided in Argentina as well and we spoke our mutually poor Spanish at the dinner table, annoying undoubtedly, those who were within earshot.
Steve Marugg. Fall River Mills, California. 2016
Here are some images of a recent day cutting firewood north of Ketchum, Idaho. This was my oldest son Will's first time spending an entire day wood cutting.
Two Kids. Picabo, Idaho. These two kids were walking around Picabo Angler a few days ago. The boy, proudly hefted around a bag full of scraps for his chickens.
Two Kids. Picabo, Idaho.
Over the course of this summer and moving forward, a dirt road I frequently drive near Sun Valley, Trail Creek, is being paved. It's really quite a bummer for me for numerous reasons including it just doesn't seem to make sense to pave a road that gets as little use as this road gets in addition to the astronomical costs associated with paving and the potentially increased driving speeds--think open range livestock grazing--and the fact that it's just a special place that will likely see increased use due to the fact the road will no longer puncture tires at the same rate.
With all of that said, I have been stopped daily on my way to guiding the Lost River by a few flaggers working the road construction zone. A week or so ago, one of the flaggers, a woman with a "stop" and "slow" sign stopped me and as we talked mentioned she wanted to give me something. Keep in mind I had at this point been stopped by this woman many times prior and generally rolled down my window to talk with her. I wanted to ask her about her blow horn attached to the pole of her sign and why she calls her little car parked off to the side "The Chicken Chaser." What are her days like? I have been thinking of writing a short story in the perspective of a flagger and thought, why not try to talk with as many flaggers as possible? This particular one, Susie, always has a smile and is talkative and tough in her own ways. Think of standing with a stop/slow sign for up to 12 hours a day. Meditative? Sore legs and back? Rain and hail storms... Dust. Rude impatient drivers.
She walked over to "The Chicken Chaser" and opened the rear end and sorted through a cooler and walked over to me with a handful of canned goods. She handed through the window of my dirty suburban corn relish and sweet pickles and tomatoes with jalapenos all from her garden in Challis, Idaho. She mentioned she liked me due to the fact I talk with her and probably find a way to make her smile.
Her name is Susie and a few days later I was once again stopped by her and I asked if I could get a portrait or two of her.
Justin Jones, below, is the quintessential ranch hand: long 14 hour days, lots of coffee, a work ethic that does not exist much anymore, he can drive and fix just about any farm/ranch machinery and he's a genuine and great person. He works for the Purdy's in Picabo, Idaho.
Justin Jones. Picabo, Idaho.
I am in the process of revisiting images from a trip I took to Italy about 3 months ago. I took thousands of images and am finding that it's been helpful to have stepped away from them for however many months. I am noticing details now that I definitely overlooked when I first ran through the images... Venice in the winter really had dreamy light. The shot below was taken near our apartment in the evening and it's of my younger son Charlie. The image was taken using an aperture of ƒ1.2 for very shallow depth of field and no flash was used...
Charlie Price. Venice, Italy.
Camera: Nikon D3s
Lens: Nikon 50 ƒ1.2
"Can I take your portrait?" I asked Amy Lou a few mornings ago at her restaurant in Mackay, Amy Lou's.
"It won't be the first time," she responded with a bit of a smile. Amy Lou is sassy to say the least. But she really is a warm hearted person who both takes your order and cooks your breakfast. No need to order your eggs scrambled or sunny-side-up as you'll get your eggs exactly the way she cooks them.
Amy Lou. Mackay, Idaho.