Big Wood River Rainbow

The warm 50˚ weather is behind us--for now at least-- and we are in the more typical low 40's and blustery weather. It blew today and last night at lower elevations as hard as it has blown all year. Semi trucks were blown over on bridges near Twin Falls today...

Below is an image of a rainbow on the Big Wood River near Ketchum, Idaho.

Big Wood River Rainbow. March.

Big Wood River

It's Midge Madness on the Big Wood River, Idaho at the moment. While the water is a bit chalky in color from recent rain, it is improving in clarity daily and the dry fly fishing is very good. In lieu of fishing today I sat in a run with my camera and tried getting as close to rising fish as I could get without spooking them. Below are two of the images I took.

Feeding Rainbow. Big Wood River, Idaho. March.

A midging Rainbow sharks near the surface of the Big Wood River. March.

Big Lost River

While early to mid-March on the Lower Big Lost River can be quite cold with a wicked north wind, there are often bonus days and yesterday was one of those exquisite, warm and calm late winter days in Mackay. Incidentally, this is not one of those you-should-have-been-there-yesterday rants... The next 3 days are forecast to be in the 50's which is a recipe for a magical day. It's midge madness and with the slightest of cloud cover the baetis have been good to strong.

A young angler and a bent rod. Lower Big Lost River.

Low, clear water make the Lost River a de facto spring creek in the winter months. That also means strong midge and baetis during the heat of the day.

Window Light

Rain has melted away much of our snow below 6,000 feet and my yard shows it; rotting fall leaves and a brownness that lives under a snowpack for months reveals itself and once buried baseballs rest where they were frozen in time and a palpable earthy smell travels through cracks in the doors with a warmth greater than winter. Days are longer now and the hills near Hailey, Idaho are mottled white and brown, a snowshoe hare slowly morphing into the next season's coat.

Below are two images taken near a window in my house.

Yard & Reflection. Early Spring. Idaho.

Journal & Stool.

Edward Burtynsky Interview

Here's a link to a great interview with the photographer Edward Burtynsky: Interview

His photo book, Water, came out in November of 2013. Below are a few quotes from the interview that I found particularly eloquent:

"I’d say, actually, that I’ve been careful not to frame the work in an activist or political kind of way. That would be too restrictive in terms of how the work can be used in society and how it can be interpreted. I see the work as being a bit like a Rorschach test. If you see an oil field and you see industrial heroism, then perhaps you’re some kind of entrepreneur in the oil business and you’re thinking, “That’s great! That’s money being made there!” But, if you’re somebody from Greenpeace or whatever, you’re going to see it very differently. Humans can really reveal themselves through what they choose to see as the most important or meaningful detail in an image."

"There’s a certain point where you learn from your own editing. You just stop taking certain pictures because they never make it through. Your editing starts to inform your thinking, as far as where you want to go and what you want to look for when you’re making a photograph."

–Edward Burtynsky

To see a short slideshow of images in Water check out LensCulture's piece on Edward Burtynnsky HERE.

Cello Maker

I walked by this cello/violin shop on my last night in Rome a few months ago. Doors were locked. Nobody there. I took this image through the window and stood peering in for a few long moments. I left feeling as though I had just walked through a hard to find painter's studio or the perfectly messy poet's desk.

Inspiration 

Rome, Italy.

Heron & Fence

I just added Heron & Fence to the Fine Art Prints section of this site. It was taken a couple of weeks ago near the Silver Creek Preserve, Idaho.

Heron & Fence Heron & Fence Heron & Fence Heron & Fence Heron & Fence
Heron & Fence
from $80.00

Silver Creek Preserve. Idaho.

Persistence

A favorite photographer of mine, Keith Carter, has many quotes written on the walls of his darkroom and this particular quote stands out to me:

Press On

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

 

           --Calvin Coolidge

 

Freestyle Course. Roundhouse Slope. Sun Valley, Idaho.

Bud Purdy

Bud Purdy, a Picabo, Idaho legend celebrated his 96th birthday last night at the Picabo Angler. One of his goals is to be back in the cockpit and fly from Picabo to Carey, Idaho by May 1st.

Bud was 10 years old when he spent his first summer working on the K-K Ranch in Picabo. In 1883 the Picabo Livestock Company was established by 6 brothers from Nebraska, one of whom was Bud's grandfather. Later, in 1955, Bud purchased the Kilpatrick Company and the rest is history.

Bud Purdy. 96th birthday party. Picabo, Idaho. 2014.

Embracing The Flaws

A terrific photographer & photography teacher who I admire, Chris Orwig, discusses, "embracing the flaws." That concept was likely brought to the surface for him when he was talking with the musician Seal about photography. Seal mentioned to Chris that, "When I shoot digitally I look for the flaws and when I shoot film I embrace the flaws." While I do not shoot film at the moment, the idea of "embracing the flaws" has not left me. Perhaps it's those imperfections that can, in the long run, make an image resonate.

John Huber making a January cast. Silver Creek, Idaho.

A lens I frequently use for fly fishing photography--the Nikon ƒ2.8 14-24--is a flare machine. The two arcs on the left side of the above image appear in many images of mine when shooting into the sun with my 14-24 lens. Why not just embrace the marks the flare makes?