A Few Photos

It's been a while, but my super-models are always willing to work for treats!

Drama-doodle.

I have seen the light!

I just couldn't help it - this photo really demanded this quote!

The Trip to the Magic Cheeseburger Window

It's been a very long time since Fi has had a trip to the Magic Cheeseburger Window, but with her birthday, and Abby having done well after her first chemo treatment, we definitely thought a trip to the Magic Cheeseburger Window was in order. 

Fi clearly had a great time taking in all the smells!

*sniff*sniff*sniff*

Hey, Mom.  I smell cheeseburgers out there! I think I would like one, please!

Ahhh!  I love the smell of cheeseburgers in the afternoon!  It smells like victory cheeseburgers!

Hey, Mom.  I'm not so much into sticking my head out the window, but I'd still like some of what's in that bag you've got!

Just ask Fi, it's a wonderful life!

In Which the Girls are Not Impressed with My Recent Purchase

Yesterday was one of my two afternoons a month at the animal shelter, and while I was there, I noticed that the shelter dogs were having a good time frolicking in the really nifty doggie pools the shelter has in their dog runs.  It has been crazy hot here for quite a while (for those of you who have been watching the Weather Channel with rapt attention - yes, Mom, I'm looking at you! - you'll know it has been in the 80s - low 90s in Park City - which is crazy hot for us), and the girls have been wilting a bit.  So, I thought the girls would enjoy their own pool for some frolicking or soaking. Because the nifty pools the shelter has are a bit out of my budget, I thought I'd try something a little more in my price range - a $5.15 kiddie wading pool.

Let's just say that so far the girls have not been super impressed with the wading pool.

"Hey, Fi.  Why is there a ball in this tub of water?"  "I dunno, Abs.  Mom gets these crazy ideas some times."  "Yuh.  Mom is a bit of a wacko.  So, do you think she'll get this ball out of the water for us?"

I wonder why Mom thinks we would be remotely interested in bobbing for tennis balls....

Lookit me, Mom!  I've got one whole leggie in this tub of water!  Woohoo!

I'm not stepping in this water.  I've seen Jaws, I've watched Shark Week, and I watch the news. It is definitely not safe to go back in the water!  I'm just going to stretch out and make my neck really long!

"Hey Abs!  I've figured it out!  This is a ginormous water bowl with tennis ball garnishes!"

Yeah, so the kiddie wading isn't a hit so far.  I think the big hurdle - literally and figuratively - is physically stepping in and out of the pool.  So, I'm going take most (or all) of the water out of the pool and see if I can encourage the girls to just get in and out of the pool, and then when they are good with that, start adding some water.  It would be nice to get Abby to figure out that she can cool off by getting in the pool.  I have to admit, after we hit tennis balls this afternoon and I took the girls outside for their own tennis ball time, I stepped into the pool, and the cool water felt very good on the feet - I guess I need to frolic around in the pool a little bit and show Abby what she's missing!  *grin*


BTW, for reference, here is one of the super nifty pools they have at the shelter (I'm not sure Fi and Abby would have been any more interested in this pool than in the little wading pool I got them).

Needless to say, I will continue to document the progress (or lackthereof) with the wading pool!
In the meantime, we'll be the ones bobbing for tennis balls!

I *think* I have the new computer calibrated

Color calibration is a key part of producing high quality photos, and my laptop has the state of the art graphics card and monitor to ensure I can do the best calibration I can (laptops are notoriously bad at calibrating, but with the graphics card and monitor, I have a set-up that can rival a good desktop/monitor setup).   After much tweaking I think I finally have the laptop properly calibrated.  I've ordered prints of the below photos to see if I have everything set up properly.  If the photos come back not looking like what I see on the monitor, I'll go back to tweaking the calibration....

And if the calibration is a bit off, well, you all now know what you're getting for Christmas this year!  *grin*

Frisbee Action

I think the title says it all.

Pounce!

 

Fi, the Gumby Dog

Walk like an Egyptian... (that will only make sense if you listened to 80s pop music...)

I am always at a loss for words with these photos.

Zoom-zoom!

A miss, but points for style.

Preparing for the Rapture!

Memorial Day

We took a break from the flying frisbees and whatnot to remember those who "gave all" in service of our country.

Never a Dull Moment

One of the really cool things about volunteering for the Salt Lake County animal shelter is that parts of Salt Lake County are still zoned for agriculture, and I was told when I went through my volunteer training that it was not unusual to get animals that could only live in agriculturally zoned areas. "Cool," I thought, when I looked at the animal pens on my tour.  But I didn't give much thought to it.

Until today, when the volunteer coordinator asked me if I would be willing to photograph a goat.  I know there are photographers who have sub-specialized into only photographing dogs, or reptiles, or whatever.  Me?  If it's got four legs (or slithers; I haven't photographed any snakes yet, but there's a first time for everything...), I'm game.  So when she asked me about the goat, my thought was, "Hell yeah!"  C'mon.  How cool could it be to have a goat in your portfolio?  Okay, maybe it's just me.  But I thought it sounded pretty cool.

Before I could get to the goat, however, I was told that the staff had something I had to see.  Heheh.   Of course my curiosity was piqued.

A young pot-bellied pig (apparently she's about 4 months old), all ready to go on a walk!  I'm really glad I got the chance to meet her.

Before I could get to the goat, there were 12 cats and 5 dogs to photograph.  Needless to say, I haven't made it through all the photos yet, but here is a "token" cat - this guy didn't take a bad picture - very handsome and wouldn't stop looking at the camera!

After the cats, there were several dogs.  My first dog was an Alaskan Klee; I had never heard of this breed before (which means I need to spend more time watching the Westminster Dog Show), but she really looks like a mix between a Husky and a coyote.  She was young and bouncy, and absolutely gorgeous.

Snacks?  Do you have snacks?

Lemme show you my Husky-like smile!

Then there was this girl, a young, very sweet black Labragal (that would be a female Labrador Retriever for those of you who aren't fluent in dog slang).

She's going to get adopted really quickly - she's got the perfect lab personality; goofy but sweet and smart and just loving life.

After the dogs, it was time for the goat.  Needless to say, I didn't actually join him in his pen (I'm not sure my camera - or health - insurance coverage includes breakage due to goat interference).  I don't know if the white and red rope around his neck has biblical implications, or if it was just handy.
Regardless, I found the goat experience great fun.

Seriously.  How many pet photographers have a goat in their portfolios?

Yep, volunteering for a county organization seriously rocks, and today was SO MUCH FUN!  Pigs, goats, dogs, cats - just a normal passenger manifest for Olympic Airways, right, Dad?  All that was missing was the chickens in a basket!

It was a great day!

The White Barn

If you live around Park City, have ever visited Park City, or even Googled tourist attractions online, you probably know about 'the white barn' at 'the farm'.    If you want to know about the history of McPolin farm, feel free to check out this link.   Since it is such a landmark in the area, I wanted to get some pictures of the girls at the farm, and today Gary volunteered to help wrangle Doodles, so off we went.

This is a just a rough edit of some of the pictures I got today; I'd like to get a big canvas of one of them - I just haven't decided what image yet (I have to look at all of them more closely).

A good time was had by all!