Helena, Montana - Mary Cornelius

But first... a few words about Helena Montana and surrounding area. Helena is so much more than I had expected for a "western town". It built up during the silver and gold rush and was home to more millionaires than any other city in the world. This is reflected in the beautiful big churches, wonderful old city center buildings and the mansion district up on the hill. For an architecture nut, I was in heaven. The Great Northern Carousel in Helena features all kinds of animals that one would find in Montana. I had a blast photographing the swirling buffalo,wild cat, antelope, horses, frog, indian pony, bear, otter (you could ride on his belly)mountain goat,trout, my favorite, a sort of mermaid horse and many more. All in beautiful condition.



We headed out for a drive around the area and ended up in Elkhorn, a "ghost town" up in the mountains from the silver and gold rush days. It was built around a big silver mine and thrived for years. The old buildings are still there and are mostly privately owned. Just 2 buildings are public and available for tourists to view. There is new construction in the town and people are once again making their homes there. Click to continue reading.

Horse Show Food, France vs. U.S - Terri Miller

I consider myself something of an expert on horse show food. After all, I’ve been sampling it for the better part of 30 years. But at no time do I see the contrasts more clearly than when I dash directly from a show in France to a show in the US.

Now, there are some things about life in France that can confuse me. Like the plumbing thing. If you’re going to outfit a hotel bathtub with a shower wand, why not take the last step and install a wall bracket so the bather can actually enjoy the benefit of showering, instead of juggling the wand and trying to keep the thing from pointing out past the half-shower-door with one hand while lathering up with the other? And perhaps provide a towel which is slightly larger than the standard wash cloth? Oh, and about that wash cloth: are they not used in French hotels? Read more here.

Terri Miller Photography and Painting

Life Swirls... - Mary Cornelius

This time of year time just goes too fast. As a photographer I must make hay while the sun shines. Photographing dressage shows, sport horse events, breed inspections and showcases and farm calls. All of that running around time, gathering images is doubly matched at the computer downloading, backing up, editing, processing, uploading, delivering etc etc etc. Its a busy time and I guess I wouldn't have it any other way.




So far for the month of August, I have played host to photographer friend Amy Riley from Massachusetts. She flew in and helped me photograph the Arabians in Motion Sport Horse Classic and AHA Region 4 Sport Horse Championships. After the show, off we went up the Columbia River Gorge to visit June Boardman and her wonderful White Horse Vale, home of one of the largest Lipizzan breeding operations in the country. Continue reading...

Mary Cornelius
Oregon

The Great Sand Dunes - Amy E. Riley

High Prairie CCI** is now under our belt. We survived some hot weather as well as a hefty thunder, lightning and hail storm that put off an entire cross country division until day three. We has a few minutes of panic wondering how we were going to cover two stadium courses and be back out on the cross country course at the same time. Fortunately the event organizers also had similar conflicts and they arranged start times accordingly. We were able to finish up on cross country and scramble back to the stadium rings with enough time to grab a bite to eat. We were "card dumping fools" that night back in the hotel. We had to make sure that all files from all three cameras were correctly transferred from memory cards to hard drives and then to another backup hard drive. A lot of work went into shooting the images and it would be a shame to loose any of them. This even includes carrying the hard drives in and out of restaurants, and another place we may stop as not to let them out of our site. Cristy will be responsible for processing and uploading the entire show once she gets back home. We said good bye to Lynne at DIA (Denver International Airport) after driving through some more rain and passing by the freaky bronc sculpture on the road to the main terminal. Click here to continue and see more images.

My Big Wide World - Cristy Cumberworth

When taking photos of horses, one of the huge rules of thumb is to use a zoom lens. 100mm or more was a guideline I was once given and the longer the better. Wider angles distort the horse, often horribly. Huge noses and tiny legs... You see them everywhere in family pet snapshots and once you learn to see it, you find it often crops up in many artist's paintings and drawings because they were working from a photograph shot with a less than ideal zoom. I have dutifully stuck to this rule for ages with the exception of taking pictures in small spaces, such as the vet clinic exam and surgery rooms for documentary work.

In my quest to give the horse event competitor the best and most unique shots of their horses, I constantly experiment with angles, shutter speed, depth of field, light and now lenses. Click Here to read the rest and see more images.

Painting for the Cure - Terri Miller

I spent two full days painting on location at Dressage at Devonwood. The weather couldn’t have been better, although maybe it was a little too warm on Friday – so unusual for Portland, Oregon! The days are long and the light luscious this time of year. The grounds of the Devonwood Equestrian Center are a delight for riding, spectating… and as it turns out, plein air painting!

The last time I’d been to Devonwood was 10 years ago, at the very first incarnation of the show. The place was barely finished then, but it had the makings of a very special showgrounds, so it was a treat to return and see the landscaping all grown in, the indoor arena and barn complete, and the scenery just as stunning.

The view from Devonwood is all about the trees. Big, tall, straight-standing pines, the kind we don’t have in San Diego. They smell good. They house red-tail hawks. They cast lots of welcome shade, which cooled things down even when the temperature soared into the mid 90’s like it did on Friday.

Each of the competition arenas at Devonwood has its own flavor. the Sand Arena is where the big classes go on, and it’s in an amphitheater flanked by a VIP tent and a grassy hillside where spectators lounge. The Terrace Arena is just above it and just just below the Vendor Village, which was home to about two dozen shops for the weekend. At the top of the hill is the aptly names Sylvan arena, which surrounded by pines on three sides, and has a view of Mt Hood. The fourth arena is the Indoor. Now, this is not your basic-box indoor area: this is an airy, skylighted cathedral of dressage, graced on one end by a stunningly beautiful mural by artist Joanne Mehl.

Read More Here on Terri's Blog.

Terri Miller Photos & Paintings

Blog Scenes - Susan Sexton

A recent trip to Cave Creek, AZ, from Ignacio, CO, provided endless
possibilities for unique images.



I'm never sure which phrase I prefer. I'm very accustomed to "taking"
pictures, but what we're actually doing when "taking" a picture is "making" a picture. Where did the word "take" originate in this concept? The word "making" has always felt a bit contrived. "Capturing" sounds like it's against the will, although I'm not quite sure whose will that would be. So, I'm still fumbling for a word I like. Maybe "getting" a picture is the best way to go.

I love shooting from the car, and the way the day worked out, opportunities presented themselves all the way home. Shooting from the car also offers that one-of-a-kind filter, the windshield. Not only is there smeary crap all over it, raindrops make interesting effects.



The clouds shaped themselves into ever-morphing creatures born of cloud imagination.



The camera is sitting on the seat beside me while I drive. It's wearing the short lens, 16-whatever zoom. I don't remember, but it's nice and short, and is easy to use. At 75 mph, I can pick it up and shoot at random out the window (or through the windshield). This is bizarre, taking pictures without looking thfough the camera; just pointing it and firing. I have had enough experience so that I can make good educated guesses, but even then, getting a good picture is a miracle.



When I hold the camera up to look through the viewfinder, the tiny view of the road is distressing, and I suddenly can't drive. If I simply brace the camera on the steering wheel with the lens hood pressed against the windshield, I might or might not get something useful. Which is always the case in photography, anyway.

Rte 160 runs almost straight east/west for several hundred miles across AZ and NM. It is only two lanes wide, one running each direction, but it gets you to your destination. There is reconstruction on the road all summer long, stalling the traffic, as only one lane is open at a time. This time, a dust storm has been gusting about in tornadic circles on the flat desert floor, or blowing huge amounts of sand straight across it. It makes for interesting viewing and pictures as we sit in traffic, waiting our turn to proceed.



Rain was threatening off to the south, soaking in dark bruised clouds, while behind me, the sky was blue with light, white puffy clouds. A big yellow truck was back there, too.



At one point, I was racing along at my favorite speed (75mph), and I saw the utility towers up ahead. I grabbed the camera and fired off one shot as I sped under them. It was one of those where I can't look in the viewfinder. I just have to hope that something will come of the exposure. I had to pan, too. If I were looking at these pictures and reading someone's blog about getting a picture that way, I'd never believe the speed or that the panning was doable. Impossible, I'd say, so if you don't believe that it really did happen this way, I understand.



After the excitement of high winds, blowing sand and heavy rains, the sunset was sublime. Reflecting in the raindrops on the windshield was pretty, and a very long shutter speed left the trails of colored lights, but no trucks. I was parked alongside the road, and my headlights on the grasses worked for the picture, too.



Gotta try everything; you just never know what'll work and what won't. I always have to prove it to myself. ;o)

SusanThePhotographer
Carefree, Arizona