Apple Picking at Door Creek Orchard

After moving back to Madison in 2010, we spent a few years exploring different apple orchards before landing on a place we loved last year: Door Creek Orchard. I think this orchard is pretty popular, but we go during the week around 4:30 and it's pretty quiet. Tom, one of the owners, is always really sweet with the boys, telling us about his unique Black Welsh Mountain sheep, letting Basti ride his tractor, and even providing dinner recommendations. And the setting here is pretty idyllic, with a gorgeous farmhouse and barn overlooking the expansive wetlands below.

If all these things vanished, however, I would still come here for the fantastic apples alone. Door Creek grows an Empire apple that is currently my very favorite eating apple. We bought $35 worth, thinking they would last us into December, but they are already almost gone. A testament to their flavor, or our gluttony... you decide.

Sisters!

These three girls are absolute sweethearts. And God bless their mother for getting them all rested up before the shoot, so they were ready to run like crazy until I could corner in some way or another. She was worried about the girls being difficult, but they were so perfect: full of life and emotion and expressing so much independence and love for the world. Can't beat it. Yes, I ran myself ragged... and yes, the mosquitoes were ridiculous... but adversity and adventure is a great recipe for awesome images.

As always, it's a wonderful honor to capture a fleeting moment in one family's evolution. Everything passes so quickly. I'm excited to look at these images with these girls in twenty years and see what memories they evoke. I don't think they will remember the shoot, but perhaps what is was like to be that age, what sisterhood was like then, how their experience of their mother has changed over years. Fun to think about.

Forte Research Systems Business Conference at Monona Terrace, Madison WI

Forte Research Systems asked me to photograph their Fall Clinical Research Operations Forum at Monona Terrace earlier this month. While a conference for computer software developers and users may sound pretty dry, the meeting was actually a lot of FUN and a chance for cancer research software users throughout the country to come together to discuss common problems, solutions, goals, new ideas, etc. Forte has had trouble capturing that excitement and spirit visually, so that was my assignment. This bi-annual conference has been running for a number of years now and many of the attendee know each other, so there is lots of conversation, laughter and interaction... all I had to do is catch the moments. The folks at Forte are fantastic and gracious hosts, super personable and engaging... I could not ask for better information or logistical help. I felt lucky to connect with these folks for their Madison business conference.

As part of the gig, I had the opportunity to photograph and listen to Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer (2011, general non-fiction) and an incredibly articulate and engaging speaker. My time in science education has inured a deep respect for the rare scientist who can translate research into a digestible, interesting story for the general public, and Dr. Mukherjee does it REALLY well. A perfect fit for the crowd of cancer researchers in attendance.

Summer Evening Family Portraits at B.B. Clark Beach

Our friends came up from Oconomowoc on a Sunday evening, and since Maya was still elbows-deep in dinner preparations, we made a quick escape to the other side of the neighborhood for a shoot. I hadn't photographed these girls for a couple years, and I missed their charms. 

B.B. Clarke Beach is a favorite summer hangout for our family. I think it's probably my favorite beach in Madison, mostly because the beautiful shaded hillside gracing the shoreline creates some elevation and perspective in a town and landscape that can be short on both. It's a little swimming auditorium where folks can go to watch a show of splashing revelers, diving board performers, and sleeping sunbathers. A neighborhood treasure.

When you work with a people who love each other like crazy - whether it's a family, co-workers, a group of friends, whatever - it's pretty easy to capture with a camera. I feel so lucky to know people like these.

Summertime at Olin-Turville Park

At the cusp of adding another member to the family, the Horibes met up with me at Olin-Turville Park on Lake Monona for a photo romp. We shared a great picnic, ran around, swatted bugs, found a frog, waded in the water. It was good fun. And I was reminded how fun it is to hang out with kids when my own aren't around.

We are so fortunate to have hundred-year-old city parks to enjoy in Madison. The big, fat oaks at OTP are so damn gorgeous. They are the definition of picnic trees. Olin-Turville is such a great resource... if the lake were not between it and downtown, it would get tons of foot traffic. It would be like Central Park. But for some reason, the spit of John Nolan Drive is enough to keep most folks away, and the paths through the forest and fields of Turville Point are some of the most peaceful in the city. Thanks to the folks with the foresight to create places like this for us. 

Kate & Tyler - A Wedding in Westby, Wisconsin

Maya took me on a birthday adventure to southwestern Wisconsin a few years ago, where we biked miles of rural roads chasing Amish buggies, woke up in foggy hollows, and found an novel mix of progressive politics and Norwegian heritage in the small towns we dropped into. I hadn't returned to Westby, WI since then, but Kate & Tyler brought me back with a down-home wedding at their family farm. When I arrived, the pig was on the spit, the groom was sweating out last-minute details, and there was a fine air of tranquility and excitement about the place. I don't shoot wedding often, but this one made me wonder, "Why is that?" Because this one was a lot of fun and I'm so gl

The newlyweds are traipsing around Europe currently, and I can't say I'm not envious. Here's a peek for them and you of what went down last Saturday. Please do enjoy.

Environmental Artist Portraits with Briony Morrow-Cribbs

I first noticed Briony's work at last fall's semi-annual Gallery Night, a MMoCa-sponsored event where many Madison artists and galleries open their doors extra-late and host special shows to stoke the city's art scene. A print of hers, Buzz #5, was included in a faculty show at the Humanities building, and stood out from the other talent there. Maybe a month later, I noticed more work in the Artisan Gallery, my favorite Madison-area destination for an art fix... and then I saw her stuff at the Overture Center... and then at the new Madison Central Library. Who was this great new local talent? It seemed she had suddenly been discovered and exhibit venues were snapping up the opportunity to feature her.

I sent Briony an email to compliment her work, and we ended up discussing websites. Soon we started a new project to update her online presence, which wasn't wasn't reflecting the quality of her work the way it should. As part of the website development process, we did a studio shoot  to capture some of the gestalt of her working environment and process. The above images are a few of my favorites.

If you like etching, or printmaking in general, check out Briony's portfolio; it's a treasure trove of nature-inspired pieces, rendered in a great old-school style. The watercolor she applies to the prints reminds me a lot of hand-tinted photographs, but somehow the effect comes off way better here. It's worth pointing out that the online-images don't hold a candle to the real thing; just like photographic prints, seeing them in-person makes a world of difference.

Morrow-Cribbs soon leaves for Vermont, but if you act fast you can still catch her show at the Central Library. Or check out her website for future shows/events.

Student Headshots on Campus at UW-Madison

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Kasia is a Fulbright scholar doing post-doc work at the UW in both the Education and Business schools, specializing in setting up international study abroad programs across the globe. Since it was Spring Break week and campus was empty, we met at the Education school and took advantage of its big, bright windows and interesting architectural nooks and crannies to do a natural light shoot. Being next door to Science Hall was too much to resist, so we hopped over there for a while too. Love shooting in the rich, interesting character the classic campus buildings bring, even if that doesn't show up in the shots.

Spring Scootin'

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When it's finally warm enough to go outside and scoot with abandon... that's joy. Nice to feel spring approaching, slow but steady.

Interiors, John Muir Home, Martinez, CA

John Muir grew up in Wisconsin and studied at UW-Madison, just like me. But then he went on to change the world, which I haven't quite figured out yet. While he was helping America develop its environmental ethic, writing inspiring accounts of his wilderness adventures, and pushing for stewardship amongst state and national governments, he lived here, on a ranch in Martinez, California. The house is now the John Muir National Historic Site, open to the public for a glimpse of the sacred space Muir maintained for himself and his family. Wonderful for the Muir family and the National Parks Service to maintain the home as a public treasure.