A friend in town had her parent’s Pug puppy (Lulu) in town and asked me to take some photos. She was quite energetic and made the process difficult, but I came away with wonderful photos.

My friend Leah, from San Jose, CA, was in the area and we took the opportunity to head out to Riverside Park in LaCrosse, WI as well as a few other close destinations. There were no preconceived ideas. We just drove and stopped at what looked interesting. It was great to be out shooting again, and this time with someone.

A friend recently purchased some tube extensions and we decided a trip to a local junkyard would offer a variety of great images. Top left is an image of a hood ornament on an old service truck (f/5 for 1/1600 at ISO 400). Top right drew me in because of the relaxed nature of the colors (f/3.2 for 1/4000 at ISO 400). The bottom was 3 traffic lights in a row (f/3.5 for 1/2000 at ISO 400).

My friend Mike coache’s wrestling at a nearby high school and told me they were having a meet soon. Seeing as I haven’t had the chance to shoot wrestling often I thought it a good opportunity to practice. It’s amazing how much energy is put into a match. This kid is ranked 5th in the state and can close a match with a pin easily (f/2.8 for 1/320 at ISO 1600).

Mike and I ventured to Rochester to replace his broken phone and ran across this small park on our way back on highway 14. The park was minimal, and neither of us had great winter apparel on, so it was a rather short shoot, but it still offered great photographs. The left photograph was just a practice of depth-of-field, but turned out decent (f/3.2 for 1/8000 at ISO 400). The bird was pure luck and quickly flew off after just a few frames, but the texture of the tree gives it more depth than an out of focus sky (f/3.5 for 1/5000 at ISO 400).

Rory, Mike and I decided to take a hike up the bluffs in Trempealeau. It was beautiful out and the snow peaked bluffs were amazing, but I found more fascinating photographs in my companions than the scenery. The left picture was shot at f/2.8 for 1/250 at ISO 640. The right f/5 for 1/160 at ISO 1250.

I was on my way to a friends house to spend an afternoon catching up and relaxing. I was on a back road in Wisconsin when I realized the clouds offered a perfect pattern to compliment a picture. I remembered what I read in a book recently about f/8 through f/11 being the sharpest of apertures because they utilize the center of the lens. Shot at f/11 for 1/800 at ISO 100.

Shooting events is pleasure when there are no time constraints. Photography should never be rushed, like any art. The lighting conditions were not superb in the back of McGown, but were good on the floor routines and uneven bars.