home again

I feel like I have had several homes, but Colorado has always had a special place in my heart. We've been back several times over the years, but this time I noticed a gigantic difference. Many, many, many more people.

We took off to the hard to get to, high altitude mountains of the Continental Divide area past Tin Cup and Cumberland Pass to hike and camp. We are trying to work back up to summiting the peaks over 14,000 feet known as "fourteeners" and since we are older now, it's taking longer! We had to wear mosquito nets over our heads for the first time EVER!

I could not believe what else we ran into.... Hoards of ATVs.
I understand that it allows better access to those terrifying "roads" that can be difficult to maneuver and look like you will go careening off the edge at any moment, but I have to be honest and say that I was a little put off by the sheer numbers of them, the noise and the pollution. I also understand that it is fun family thing to do, but the experience is not the same for us hikers. When we are high up and challenging our muscles with every step and in complete awe of and respectful of God's work, to me, it's like being in church. We finally got to a point where the ATVs were not allowed. The Continental Divide Trail up at 12,000 plus feet. We stayed up there and hiked and savored until we were forced back down with threatening weather. But for a few hours, I felt......Ahhhhhh.....home again.

graphic design

I really love it when I can mix photography and graphic design. It's fun to do different projects that keep things interesting and help keep my skills going.

Balancing what the client wants and what you know is good can be a challenge.
For instance, one time I had a man who sold used cars, but he wanted a boat for his logo. What? It just so happened that he really loved boats. I had to talk him out of misrepresenting himself on that one!

Anyways, The O'Donnells in Nashville are back with a new album. This time they went back to their roots and went Gospel. "God Said Make Music" is the title and it comes right out of the bible: Psalm 98:4.

We went for an overall more traditional feeling with the design this time and less "hip" than the last one. We shot this cover across the road from their country home outside of Nashville at an old sawmill. It was perfect.
But even if you're not really into gospel that much, you will still like this cd. They are off-the-charts great musicians and what they have done with these songs really proves it. You can check out this father/son duo here. Not only are they big talents, but they are great people and really fun to work with!

Here is more of the album cover:

This and That

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend in our wonderful free country! We spent Independence Day hiking Independence Pass down the road from
Aspen. Hiking in the Rockies, swimming in rivers and shooting rodeo. I'm alive
again!!

Rodeo is in full swing here in Colorado. There are so many of them, I can't keep up. Last week was a small town called Meeker which is down the road from Rifle. I love these places, especially during the 4th of July, when the pride and patriotism is at its best! There was an accident on the main highway getting there and several contestants could not make the performance, but it was still a blast and these folks just rode their hearts out.

This weekend I'm off to higher altitude in Leadville. Let's hope the weather holds out.