Hulba.

Two Sundays ago we had a 'hulba' or engagement party in our kitchen. The girls spent at least [months] preparing and imagining decoration ideas for that one night. And I have to give them credit...they really did a good job. Past decorations have often looked a tad cheezy, this time they upped the class factor. I liked it. The sunday of the hulba we, the boys and girls collected tables from the kitchen basement and school to make room for all the people that would come and celebrate. Sing, and eat. We set up tables, and arranged all the neccessary cutlary and decorations on the tables. and that was it. The women took care of the food.

If you feel like reading a more in-depth article on hutterite marriges head on over to hutterites.org

I'm sorry if you were expecting photos of the actual celebration. I don't have any. Cameras are not allowed at the event.

I found where unicorns live!

I found a service that notifies me if there is rain to be falling the next short while. Most of the time I ignore the messages, but this time I took a vehicle and drove the "Cliff". I had once witnessed a Thunderstorm up there and seeing sheets of rain fall while standing on a cliff...well there's just nothing like it. But this time it didn't rain buckets, it was more of a sprinkle. It rained for several minutes and then the sun poked though. Leaving me with double rainbows, dramatic skies, and just some of the coolest nature photos I have gotten in a long time. All of these photos were taken in a 20 foot radius and within a ten minute time-span.

Translating Light

"You don't take a photograph, you make it."

                                                                                                                                                                       Ansel Adams

“There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept.” 

Kerri

Shot this photo a week ago, Kerri is the newest addition to the colony.

With my Friends at the old country church

I was at Oakbluff colony the past weekend, visiting my aunt for the first time since she married last summer. I had the greatest of times. Ok I admit that I'm a geek and fit in real well. I also got to exercise my photographic tendencies. My friends took me to a Catholic church a short distance from the colony and we had a little photowalk. It wasn't one of those large, overly ornate churches by the catholic standards, but more of a subdued Prarie church. They showed me all of the nooks and crannies in it while a friend and I were shooting photos. After we had seen all there was to see at this church we took off back to the colony where we circled their large underwater gravel pit. It was late so the sun was casting beautiful reflections on the lake. I enjoyed having a really wide angle lens, a sigma 12-24mm that I had borrowed for the day. It gave the landscape a whole new look in the photos. That dramatic look. We were having a rather tender piece of meat when we were asked if we wanted a plane ride. Having never had one before, there was nothing that would make me say no to that offer. So I accepted and shortly thereafter I was sky high. Shooting photos out the window while being administered heart stopping zero gravity drops by the Pilot. I quite liked them especially after I realized that I didn't need to be afraid. I want more! These are some of the photos I shot during the ride.