POP!!

I had a lot of fun yesterday playing with my new HiViz sound trigger, making pictures of balloons popping. I have quite a few ideas for other high-speed photography projects. This is one of my favourite shots from the set - you can see more on my Flickr page.

Fun at the Farmers' Market

We (well, Prairieland Herbs) had our booth at the Des Moines Downtown Farmers' Market the last two weekends. It was really great to be back! Here are just a few pictures of some of the sights from last Saturday:

Maggie helps an early customer at our booth.

Some scented salts, soaps, sprays and silk scarves for sale at our stand on Saturday.

I thought this was nice, the shadow of the bottle-tops cast by the early morning sun.

Maggie enjoying a rare quiet moment.

A pretty flower stall.

Radishes, onions, and reddish onions - just a random shot of some of the wonderful produce at the market.

Say cheese!

Maggie was given this beauty as a birthday present. Handmade chevre cheese covered with edible flowers. It is made here in Iowa by Reichert's Dairy Air artisan creamery.

BBQ pizza!

It sounds weird, but it is just amazing!!! It's quick, easy and delicious. Maggie shares some of her secrets here.

Falling Down

I had been thinking of this shot for a while. Thanks to Beaker for the feather.

Still Life

I took this picture a couple of weeks ago, one of a whole series of shots in which I was experimenting with off-camera lighting. There's another version of this on my Flickr page, but I like this one better - I tidied it up a bit in Corel Paint Shop Pro. Still lifes are good for this type of excercise, they don't get fed up with your messing about with lights, and they hold the same pose throughout the sitting, AND you can make drinks with them afterwards!

VIP's! (Visiting Irish Parents)

It's been a while since I've posted here. My parents visited me from France - it was the first time I'd seen them in nearly three years! We had a wonderful time together, doing lots of touristy things.
Here we are at the Living History Farms in Des Moines: