Tire Swing Through a Holga

Whenever I visit a new place, I always like to find at least one local thrift store. I love thrift stores in general and I often buy things used (especially my clothes). An added benefit to seeking out thrift stores in new places is that it takes me to parts of the city I probably never would have seen otherwise. In this case, I stepped out of the car and saw this lovely tire swing hanging right next to the road in the residential neighborhood where I found a thrift store. I immediately thought the scene was perfect for my Holga.

Kayaker at House Rock on the Gallatin River

One of my favorite things to do on sunny afternoons when I just want to chill in the sun is to hang out at House Rock and watch the kayakers. Today I saw both kayaks and rafts. This first guy got turned around while coming around the rock but he let out a big "whoo hoo!"...I guess because he didn't flip over. I would be pretty happy about that also!

Opening Day of the World Cup - Portraits of Soccer Fans by Ian van Coller

I wanted to share with you the work that my former MSU professor, Ian van Coller, is currently doing in his home country of South Africa at the World Cup. Take a moment to look at some of his first images of soccer fans and how they express themselves through their clothing and other regalia. Check out his photographs here: http://ianvancoller.blogspot.com/.

More Holga Fun - Playing in the Fountain

Here's another Holga image from my recent travels. It was so fun to just sit and watch these carefree kids running in and out of the fountains that randomly squirted from the ground. This little girl looked so hesitant as she stepped up to the edge of the fountain area while clutching her little skirt...but I knew she secretly wanted to get drenched!

I don't remember encountering this sort of fountain when I was a kid but my summers were certainly filled with the local pool and a backyard slip-and-slide! What's your favorite summertime memory spent in the water?

Ferris Wheel from a Holga

I've recently pulled out my Holga again to take along on our road trips. It's so fun to imagine what this dreamy, toy-like plastic camera will produce when I click the shutter. There's no pressure with this camera - just click the non-negotiable shutter and be done with it. The softness, vignetting, and potential for light leaks just add to the appeal of this no-frills semi-light tight piece of plastic. These things, and the fact that it is a medium format camera, are what I love about the Holga! This first image from my recent travels, a Ferris wheel sitting below a sky that's torn between the sun and approaching storm clouds, is one of my favorite. What do you think of the dreamy nature of Holga images? Take it or leave it?

Bannack State Park - Bannack, MT

Eddie & I visited Bannack State Park for the first time this past weekend. Bannack, once a thriving gold mining town, is one of the best preserved ghost towns. The town was acquired by the state in the 50s I believe but it still had year-round residents until 1975 with summer residents until 1983. This is probably one of the reasons why it is so well preserved. You can walk through most of the buildings and one of the park rangers even let us into one of the locked buildings. The ranger also mentioned that it's very dry in that particular area with very little snow which probably also helps the condition of the buildings. Thousands once lived in Bannack, each hoping to strike it rich with the nearly pure gold found in the Grasshopper River behind the town. While most gold ranks at 80-90% pure, some of the gold found in Bannack rated at 99.5% pure - as pure as refined gold.This is a pic of the valley, taken near the town cemetery which is on a hill that overlooks the town: