My favorite part of Buggies & Blues this year actually took place south of town at the Mandan Airport, where a fly-in was held in the morning with perfect weather and a great selection of airborne participants. My little boys love airplanes, so it was a real treat for them to see so many up close.
One of the stars of the show was Duggy, also the winner of Brightest Participant in my book. One other important fact about Duggy is the fact that they can go inside and have a look around, a bonus for any little kid.
I often wonder why people schedule events like this on Sunday when they could enjoy better participation on Saturdays, when people aren't attending church in the morning. Be that as it may, we made an exception and showed up on our way to church. We just weren't able to spend as much time as we'd like, or buy breakfast there at the airport. My little guys sure looked sharp that morning!
The techie in me had to get a shot of all the bells & whistles, of course. It must be really interesting to taxi a big tail-dragger like this considering the obstructed view when the back wheel is on the ground!
One other star of the show was a Blackhawk helicopter from the National Guard unit across the river. I spent a little while inspecting it for camera attachment locations, since I was scheduled to do some video work from one of these about a week later (which, sadly, I was too busy to perform).
This sleek border patrol helicopter was pretty cool too, and my little guys really appreciated the opportunity to sit in it. I was kept quite busy making sure they didn't hit any buttons or switches. Even at my age those things look tempting, so imagine what it must be like for a 2 and 3 year old!
One nice thing about this event (which was not an air show, but a gathering of aircraft enthusiasts) was the ability to roam the tarmac and peruse the assortment of plains and helicopters which had assembled. From all the little private aircraft to a few experimental units, there was a lot of variety.
Turnout was great, with plenty of spectators taking in the display and having some breakfast in one of the hangars. Last year's weather didn't cooperate the way this year's did, and I don't think one could have asked for a better morning for an outdoor gathering. Even the wind was light, a plus for small aircraft such as the paraplane that was flying for a little while.
Mmmmmm...breakfast. If only it was Saturday, I could have stayed long enough to load up on some chow. Oh well...
This fly-in may not get as much publicity as the main Buggies & Blues event, but it's definitely worth catching. Remember that next year as these events approach. Hopefully 2011 brings good weather and participation again...maybe even on a Saturday so more people can enjoy it!
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( 3.6 / 59 )
This is the magnum opus that created such a buzz during this year's Capital A'fair: a 3D chalk drawing by Shawn McCann. His illusion took many hours of work and thankfully didn't encounter any rain this year!
The effect of this chalk-drawn illusion becomes far more dramatic when an element of realism is introduced. In this case, we're talking about the artist himself. Once we have a real person perched atop the faux protrusion of the drawing, the effect is complete.
Pretty cool, huh? This is the effect Shawn was shooting for. It looks really neat with the capitol in the shot for added perspective. Some days I'm really happy I have such a wide angle lens, and this is one of them.
As Shawn will point out, this is drawn to work from a very specific perspective. While this is a really neat angle to fit the capitol into the shot, it blows the illusion because of the way things are drawn.
Update: I took my boys to take part in the fun this afternoon (for about four minutes, given the blazing heat) and the chalk is weathering fast. In the afternoon the sun casts a shadow across this piece, so I stuck with a tight shot. Around noon would be better. You probably have another day or so to check it out, even less if the rumors of rain I hear are true!
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( 3.3 / 110 )
This weekend I was able to participate in the Bismarck-Mandan section of the third annual Worldwide PhotoWalk. I didn't get an official count, but there were close to thirty participants from as far away as Jamestown. It was a blast, and the Bismarck walk was coordinated by Brian Matthews of BisManPhoto.com. There were a lot of really amazing photos posted, far better than mine I think. But what the heck, here are my favorite photos so far:
This old log has some new beginnings contained therein. I was shooting handheld so I didn't get to stop my aperture down to get the depth of field that I wanted. I still like the way it turned out.
More new beginnings as this plant climbed up the rotting remains of an old stump, with the bud at the top catching a beam of sunlight from the early morning sun.
Another of the many statues which adorn the stretch from Sertoma Park to Pioneer Park (and a few points between). I like the range of colors in this one. It was in the shadow of the trees so I had to crank my fill flash and get creative in how I bounced it to eliminate those pesky shadows.
This cranky Sandhill Crane was soon mollified after I let him peck my monopod a few times and began talking to him. As a bird lover I have a way with 'em, and soon he was fluffing up his feathers and even showing off his wing for me!
I'm old enough to remember the actual Clyde. This statue in his honor towers over the inside of one of the Zoo's buildings (I think it's called the Discovery Center). I extended my monopod as far as I could, propped it on my shoulder to get it up to the level of the statue, and used my remote to trigger the shot. Note that he must have a wicked migraine, as the wood has developed a big crack in it.
We had two hours to walk and started outside the Dakota Zoo entrance an hour before it opened, so naturally most of us ended up at the big cat exhibits for our last few minutes! I chose to lay on my back with my widest (10mm) lens and point straight upward at this cat. Then one of the girls on the walk poked her head in to get some shots of her own, and she was just the ingredient my composition was missing.
As I said, I think the other participants blew my shots away. You can venture over to BisManPhoto.com to check them out. Sign up for an account and wait a little while until you're approved. New members are screened manually to avoid spammers. Once you're on, you can participate. Hopefully you'll be intrigued enough to join us on future photo walks!
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( 4.1 / 62 )
I haven't seen a crowd like this at the capitol Independence Day celebration in recent memory! It was a very uplifting sight. Just about everybody rose and stood at attention for the Battle Hymn of the Republic. The performance of this grand hymn was the most amazing one I've ever heard, with all the verses about Christ intact, and it was a breathtaking experience. The fact that thousands of my fellow North Dakotans stood to take it in as well made it even more special.
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( 3.1 / 101 )So how do those letters and numbers appear in the capitol windows every July 4th, Christmas, and New Year's Day?
Tonight some of these windows will be lit up with "4TH" as part of the Independence Day celebration on the front steps of the capitol. Every year the celebration features the music of the Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra and finishes with a dramatic fireworks finale. Have you ever found yourself wondering how those numbers or colored Christmas tree shapes appear in the capitol building's windows every July and December?
That's where Bill comes in. He works for the Facility Management Division up at the state capitol, and it's Bill and his crew who oversee the window shade pulling (and opening) to make sure it's done right.
While Bill can pretty much do this by habit now, he does have an interesting aid: a diagram of the capitol with the relevant squares (the ones to be lit) highlighted. Facility Management and Bill were kind enough to let me tag along for this year's window shade operation.
Bill has his custodial crew of around thirty people close all the shades on the front of the capitol as well as the east and west sides. The idea is to have the sides completely blacked out for the celebration, with the "4TH" visible only on the front. Once the crew closed all the shades on those three sides, Bill and I roamed the necessary floors and pulled open the shades forming the text.
Some windows are in spacious offices, and some are in pretty tight spots such as narrow supply rooms. Some are in such tough spots that I got to lend my lanky arms to Bill's aid in order to snag & pull the cord. Because of that, I can lay claim to part of the 4 and (I think) the H!
The whole process took about a half hour, and I don't think I held up Bill at all. This was an easy one; the letters were small and compact, and only one side is lit. During Christmas there is the complication of colored shades and two sides to do. For New Year's there are four sides of the building to do. Also, for displays that are left up for more than one night, it's important to stay on top of things to make sure the right shades are up and down and lights left on.
I arranged this visit with Bill not only for this blog, but also for an article I'm writing for a future issue of the Dakota Beacon magazine. I'll let you all know when that issue becomes available. I do have an article of a different sort appearing in the upcoming issue, which just went to the printer on Saturday. Bill had some interesting things to say, and I hope to revisit them in the full article as well as an updated post right here on the ol' Blog!
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( 3.4 / 116 )
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