UC Cooperative Extension, Placer County, CA: Blossom Hill farms

The next place I'd like to share from my agricultural assignment in Placer County, California is Blossom Hill Farms in Auburn. When I arrived one of the original owners, Claudia Smith, had just harvested a variety of pumpkins. It was fall and their decorative winter squash was high in demand. Claudia is getting ready to retire and will be leasing her land to Allison Deyo and her husband for the foreseeable future. Allison was eager to show me around and talked a lot about her plans for the various sections of land. We spent time in the greenhouse and in the garden. I was happy that we got to get some poultry images as well.  I felt a true love and passion exude from both women when they talked about the land and what they are able to reap from it. It was obvious that Allison may have a hand in things even after retirement! As ever, I cherished each moment on this lovely farm. Here are some of my favorite images!

UC Cooperative Extension, Placer County, CA: UEKI GARDENS

 Last fall I was I was lucky enough to be asked to take images of farmers and ranchers in northern California's Placer County. The client was University Cooperative Extension of UC  one of the country's leading  agricultural programs.
 I had done work for a sister organization, Placer Grown, several years before photographing fruits, vegetable, animals, and landscapes. This time they wanted to focus more on the people who actually do the work. What is great about the program they are endorsing is that they are trying to promote the idea of eating locally grown products. There are several farmers markets throughout the year that make obtaining the local fare easy and enjoyable.
 I have to say that this has been one of my favorite assignments. I absolutely love just being out on the farms and ranches, smelling the soils, produce, and yes even the animals. There is something old world and wholesome about being around the origins of what fills our cupboards and tables every day. The people who run the farms and ranches couldn't have been more wonderful which makes the experience even richer.
 Over the next week I'll post some of my favorite images from the various locations. I'm grateful to Cindy Fake for the assignment and to all the owners that graciously put up with my calls and my cameras! A special thanks as well to Joanne Neft who got me involved in the first place!
 This first post focuses on Terri Ueki and her husband Bob Roan. (Ueki Garden Flowers ). They are well known for their wide variety of stunning flowers but they also grow a variety of fruits and vegetable. They were my first stop on this whirlwind four day tour. I had actually photographed just flowers on their property in the past so it was a reunion of sorts. It was a pleasure to see Terri and Bob again. The overcast weather was a plus as it helped me avoid a lot of contrast. Terri and bob were so kind in letting me hover around with my cameras and occasionally direct them to a better location.

 To top it off they invited me in to their home for some coffee, conversation, and home baked treats. I'm continually blessed by the gifts this profession has to offer. Meeting wonderful people passionate about their work will always make my work worth while. This assignment couldn't have gotten off to a better start!

Recent Tear Sheets

Anchorage Convention and Visitor's Bureau

Accent Alaska Stock Photo Agency (Top Image)

Alaska Magazine/ February edition.

Journeys International Photo Safaris by Wayde Carroll

 It's always fun to see how images end up being used. Here are some recent tear sheets featuring my images!

South Fork, Yuba River

 I had some work in San Francisco last week so I extended my trip a few days and spent some time in Grass valley, CA. I used to live there and it is still one of my favorite places to spend time. My favorite feature of the area is the Yuba river. There are three forks and hundreds of amazing locations for photography.
 Ed Rotberg and Kial James and I hooked up one morning to hike around and take some photos. I had bought the Canon 7D a month before and still hadn't used it. I wanted to use it for the first time making some images that were meaningful to me. When I bought it I was in the middle of a lot of corporate work, which I appreciate, but it wasn't the type of work that excites me. Well I finally got my opportunity!
 This is the first image taken with the new camera, literally image #0001. I shot it in color and then made a black and white version. I then layered the two together in Photoshop CS5,with the BW image on top. I created a layer mask and brushed in some of the color layer beneath. I liked all three versions a lot- color, BW, and a combination of both- but this version strikes me the most. Not a bad trial run! BTW this blows up amazingly well. I haven't given the 7D a full blown test yet but so far it's lovely! What's better than hiking in a place you love with good friends and taking some nice photos? Not a whole lot...

Celtic Festival III of III: Miscellaneous Images

Wrapping up the KVMR Celtic Festival images. As you can see there is just a plethora of interesting photographic subjects to completely fill up two full days of shooting. I'm always trying to focus on images that KVMR can use to illustrate the wide variety of events and emotions present during the festival. Here is a random selection of images I liked that didn't fit into the last two postings.