Wasatch Back Relay

This year was my fourth Wasatch Back Relay and what a party it was. We had a few more setbacks than in previous years with some injured and sick runners but the other team members really stepped up and made the difference. Nice work Amie, Amy and Dani.

If you're a runner, and even if your not, you should really consider running one of these relay races. It's a blast. Here is a shot I got around half way up the old Snowbasin Road. There is also a multimedia slide show at DeseretNews.com -BN

Fathers Day Tribute?

This year on Father's Day, my dad was in England and I was in Boise. Thus, the reason for the late post, and it could be a long one so put on some comfy slippers and nestle yourself in...

When I was younger, like high school age, all the discount membership warehouses were just coming of age and my dad was on them like flies on bovine. This is him at Costco. His frequent trips to these places made sense since a small army of children lived at our house and those huge bottles of ketchup lasted longer than anything from Albertson's. Well, I would always give him serious grief when he would arrive back at the house with a trailer full of two-gallon-Ranch-dressing bottles, several 'thirty-six' packs of tooth brushes, an outhouse sized shrink-wrapped package of cereal and other various HUGE containers. In those moments, he would very wisely shrug it off and deflect the sarcasm I was pouring on every chance I got.

I know many of you have heard the phrase, "The older I get, the smarter my parents become." I am certain, in those moments when we were asked to unload 12 gallons of milk from the bus, he was thinking, "just you wait."

Now, as I look back on those days with a well-used Costco card in my wallet, the meaning of life at membership warehouses has become much clearer. And I want to thank my dad for seeing the bigger picture, (and I mean BIGGER) and not giving in to my relentless complaining to purchase less ketchup with more money. -BN

Jared's Return II

Here is a photo composite of the driveway the next morning. That holds three cars side by side which is why I had to use three images. -BN

Jared's Return

My brother Jared returned from a mission and as always happens at these kinds of events, my siblings use it as and excuse to shoot goofy photos. It's in their DNA. -BN

Lake Lowell 6/15

Here is a muddy Lake Lowell outside of Nampa, maybe IN Nampa. Like the Faux Cowboy Town, this lake is in the middle of a bunch of circle irrigation, wheel lines, siphon tubes on miles and miles of farms. It was great to run past this lake the day before and even nicer to watch the kids having fun. -BN

Faux Cowboy Town II - 6/14

This is one of the cousins who happened to be standing in good light. -BN

Faux Cowboy Town

While in Boise, we visited this fake cowboy town that this farmer had created in on his property somewhere north east of Nampa. It was pretty interesting and very unexpected. When we entered the property, it just looked like any old farm with a house, some barns, some circle irrigation machines and a few dogs. Then behind this guys house was several little buildings that looked like an old west town. Apparently, he did this to make money buy renting it out to family parties and stuff like that. My wife loved it and so did the kids. Not bad Idaho.

These kids couldn't get enough of the rope/tire swing.

Another Trip - 6/12

Some of you have expressed concern that I haven't been posting once a day for the last few weeks. Sorry about that. It's just that in the past few weeks, we have been away on vacation so it was tougher to make time and find a connection. The next few photos are from a family reunion trip to Boise. Enjoy.

This is from a festival where they had a bunch of VERY expensive rides and this fun house full of mirrors.

Take the Train 6/11

I am a huge advocate of public transportation and since the train started running from my hometown to work, I have tried taking full advantage of it. The DNews just did a story about how the park-n-ride in Layton is always crowded, even though it just opened. Good news for the Frontrunner. -BN

Bowling (June 10)

Took a couple monkeys to the bowling alley and the little guy (age 2) was a bit small. He had a nice time trying to jam the balls back into the hole that returns them to you. It never worked. -BN

SLC Downtown (June 9th)

I liked the repetition and the lines in this one. The guy on the right only stood there for a second or two. I have another photo in mind like this so we'll see if I can pull it off in the next few months. -BN

Pappa in Town

My wife's grandpa is in town for a family reunion and I have to say, this is one impressive 80 something-year-old. He maintains two homes, several vehicles, (like 7, with a few motorcycles mixed in) drives all over the country and goes dancing 'till all hours of the night, four nights a week! If I feel one tenth that healthy at 80 something, I'll be a happy man.

Stellar Photo Day (Saturday the 7th)

So you might not think this is that great but if you put yourself in my shoes, you would know why I posted this. I will let you choose between these three options:

One, I shared a pizza with co-workers and could only eat two of the four pieces I paid for. This one was taunting me.

Two, I thought this looked an awful lot like a clock, showing 1:00.

Three, I was kinda desperate.

Four, All of the above.

Bear Lake 3 (Friday)

Marshmallows were a big hit. I would say that about 2% of them were actually cooked properly and eaten.

Bear Lake 2 (Thursday 6/5)

I am really happy that my Ai Ai is so comfortable with the camera that even though this fisheye is a mere inches from his face, he doesn't even react.

Bear Lake 1 (Wednesday 6/4)

We enjoyed a much needed vacation, thanks to some great friends Dipo and Upton. They have a few shares at a sweet cabin on the shores of Bear Lake, within walking distance of LeBeau's. It's great, although since spring hasn't quite let go of winter yet, it was a bit chilly at night. The next few posts are from this trip. -BN

Goode Ski Lake (Tuesday June 3)

There was a ribbon cutting today and if you know anything about ribbon cuttings, they can be quite boring, non-photographic events. Not so with this one, which I was actually looking forward to attending. This one marks the beginning of the beginning of what will eventually be a very cool water-ski lake within the Ogden City limits. Nice. -BN

Mr. Soccer (Monday)

I had the pleasure of going back to my high school Alma Mater today to shoot some photos of the first ever, Mr. Soccer, Colton Cook. Viewmont did well this year in soccer and Cook deserved this award. There is also a Audio Slide Show at DeseretNews.com Check it out when you have a minute. -BN

SLC Amateur

Here is your winner of the Salt Lake City Amateur golf championship.-BN

Shark Attack Triathlon (Saturday)

I covered the Shark Attack Triathlon at Crystal Springs and it seemed much more laid back than the other triathlons I have covered. I think I would attribute that to it's location in Honeyville, a quite farm town in northern Utah. It was one of the sports reporters first triathlon and he used it as a means of losing 50 pounds in the last year. Nice work Jody. -BN

Jo Packham - Friday's post

Here is Jo Packham of Ogden, a popular face on 25th Street. -BN

B-17 Flying Fortress - Take Two

While I was waiting for the second flight in this B-17 Flying Fortress, I watched as they started the engines for the first flight. As you might imagine, seeing this cloud of smoke as they started the engines made me a bit nervous, you know, as to the operating condition of the aircraft. I mean, if I owned a car that blew this smoke when it started, (and I HAVE) I would most likely sell it off quick. (Which I DID, for $300) I consoled myself by saying, "That's probably what they ALWAYS do when you start them." I'm sure emission standards weren't what they are today back in 1935. -BN

P.S. I know this is TWO photos of the day but in looking back through May, I missed a day in there somewhere.

B-17 Flying Fortress

I was asked to go cover the arrival of a WWII era B-17 Flying Fortress bomber. They were making a few flights and I was excited to find out that I would be on one of them. I used to be sort of a WWII history junkie, mostly the Pacific Theater with Pearl Harbor and the Battle at Midway. This plane was mostly used in Germany and some in Italy. Out of the 12,731 planes manufactured, there are maybe 16 still around and only 6 still flying. Here is a view of Ogden from the front gun turret. -BN

Demolition

Across the street from the DNews, there has been months and months of entertainment as the old ZCMI Mall has been torn down. I have seen some huge walls and columns fall which shakes our building. Once a crane operator dropped a huge part of the building on the crane he was driving. Scary. This is a photo I have been looking at for a few months now and decided to shoot it today. Who knows how long these colors will last. -BN

Ben Smith of Ben Lomond

This is the principal of Ben Lomond High, Ben Smith. He is beloved by his students and seemed to have a really good rapport with the teachers. I needed his help on a project I was working on and he was a huge benefit. Thanks principal Smith. -BN

Memorial Day

Memorial Day. I guess this one is very self explanatory. I used to use this day to reflect on the lives of those who have gone before. Today was different. I took a flag to my grandpa's grave, (he was a veteran) and took some photos of the nieces and nephews throwing those helicopter tree seed things in the air. I liked this photo better than those. -BN

Look Ma, No Training Wheels (Sunday)

As you can see from this photo, my daughter is hopping a bump in the cement while riding her scooter. That's pretty darned amazing. The amazing thing to me about this photo is not the peak action, but a subtle, missing element I didn't have to remove in Photoshop. Instead of keeping you in suspense, its the LACK of training wheels on the bike in the background. All afternoon Saturday, I ran around chasing a very cautious rookie cyclist. I am so proud that she was finally able put away the bicycle crutches. And I kept my integrity by removing that distracting element with a crescent wrench rather than Photoshop. -BN

The Pizzaria (Saturday)

One of our favorite places to eat cheap pizza is not from one of those national "five buck pizza" places, it's this locally owned place with a huge fish tank in the middle. Sometimes it's more work getting the kids to stop watching the saltwater wonders than dragging them to the dentist. Here is a photo of another kid with a similar problem. -BN

Dave Brown (Friday)

Not being from Ogden, I didn't know Dave Brown as a teacher but I haven't heard anything but great things from folks who have. Well, Friday was the last day of his 37 years and in his recollection, the worse day of all of them. I am glad I had the opportunity to get this shot on his last day. -BN

Ballet West Academy (Thursday)

One of my favorite things to shoot during the spring time is the Ballet West Academy's year end performances. These are kids ranging in age from maybe 5 to 18. Not being a huge follower of ballet, it seems these kids do just as well as the professionals. It's amazing. -BN

Toothless in Ogden

It's that time again when one of my kids starts loosing teeth. Which of course means that we, as parents, need to remember to "call" the tooth fairy to make sure there is some cold hard cash waiting under the pillow. I remember once with our first child, we forgot to "call" the tooth fairy (who apparently posesses enough magic to slip some bread under the pillow, but doesn't always know WHEN to come) and you can imagine how that went down. In a moment of panic and tears, we searched and searched until we realized (wink, wink) that the tooth fairy had actually put the prize under the wrong pillow. Whew! My wife's fast thinking helped avoid years of disappointment and expensive therapy. Well don't worry, today we remembered and the fairy is on the way. -BN

BBQ at the Lake

My wife noticed a huge plume of smoke rising above O-Town today and I decided to chase it down. It was a controlled burn near the lake and it took forever to get there. When I arrived, there were a ton of cars and people lined up to see what it was all about. I don't have any idea who put this sign up but I thought it was hilarious. -BN

Wedding Shots - Take 2

Here is a photo of Erin and Quinn at the State Capitol. They chose the capitol because they are both going into law and he will be interning here soon. I loved this photo which shows a natural moment between them. -BN

Budding Gymnast, Budding Photojournalist

There is this gym in Ogden offering some great classes at great prices, and the kids love coming to learn. This was the end of season "meet." And of course, there are as many cameras as there are children. I was very proud as each kid had a chance to showcase their talents and received their medal. Nice work. -BN

Beating the Heat

I shot this while at Liberty Park in Salt Lake City. Some of the water attractions weren't open but the kids were drawn to this fountain to cool off from the higher than normal temps. -BN

Iwasaki

I was waiting to shoot a formal portrait of Scott and I couldn't help but notice that he has Ozzy Osborn and Bashful on his cubicle. Scott covers the music scene for the DNews and at any given moment, you can find tons of obscure titles lying around on his desk. Don't let the rock and roll persona fool you, he's one of the nicest guys you will meet. -BN

Wedding Shots - Take 1.

My brother is getting married and this is one of the shots of him and his fiancé during the engagement session. I don't know if they will use this shot or not but I really liked it for a colorful blog addition. -BN

Monticello

As you may know, a list of all these 'photo a day' installments are listed on my web page in the "Editorial" section. As I was looking through the photos for May, I noticed that I had missed a day somehow. This photo is to get me back on track.

As I was driving through Southeast Utah last week, I made a quick detour to check out the Monticello Temple. Right when I got there, the clouds opened up a bit and this was the result. -BN

I Love Cement Work

My kids always talk about opposite day, which must be today. Opposite day gives you the chance to say something like, "I love cement work," and really sound positive and optimistic about it. My true feelings about cement work are these, "I love my wife and she needed a new fence in a couple places in our yard to keep the monkeys from wandering off so I happily did some cement work for her." -BN

Side note: I found it amazing that the kids LOVED helping me build what will, no doubt, feel like a cage to them in the coming months, at least to the little one.

Mom

Every month, my family gets together to celebrate all the birthday's that happen in that month, regardless of whether the birthday falls before or after the family party. I have 8 siblings, over half of which all have children of their own, making this the best plan, hands down. This year it fell on Mother's Day.

My mom is one of the kindest, non-confrontational and patient people you will ever meet. One of the greatest lessons she tried to instill in us growing up is to be kind to each other, a difficult task with a family as large as ours. Being a parent has helped me understand what an amazing mother she was to us. Thanks mom. -BN

Last Minute

Not only did I take this photo at the last minute of the day on Saturday, it is also a last minute shopper checking out some flowers on Mother's Day eve. I was doing the same thing but in my case, I set aside a few minutes on my calendar to pick up flowers. So technically it wasn't last minute since I planned it. -BN

Funeral

I attended a funeral in Boise today and it was a typical one, except at the grave site service, they released these white doves into the air. I would have chosen different text and music to introduce the doves but when they were released, it was a big hit with the family and friends. -BN

Caution-Girls Night Out

I saw these women discussing what to do in downtown Salt Lake Thursday night. -BN

San Juan

I took a tour of the San Juan River today and shot this boat under a rock. I loved the color and the lines. This tour was hosted by Wild River Expeditions in Bluff, Utah. This part of the state is amazing. I highly recommend it. Don't come in the summertime. -BN

Cloud 10

As I was driving around in the middle of no where today, I came across this cloud. No rain came from it but I couldn't pass up taking it's portrait. -BN

Senior Photo

Here is Layne. His mom thinks he is kind of shy so I thought I would post this photo from his graduation portrait shoot. -BN

Lloyd and Harry?

No, this isn't Lloyd and Harry on their way to Aspen. It's Sam and Berk, two guys who should be classified Smart and Smarter. (an engineer and talented chef) The scooter is an Italian '65 Lambretta Li 125. Very Retro. -BN

Capitol Drive-by Shooting, May 3rd

As I was driving by the Utah State Capitol tonight, I thought I would try and shoot some interesting effects with the trees whizzing by. After nearly causing a head on collision while shooting out my window, I got this shot. -BN

Law Enforcement Torch Run (May 2nd)

Friday was the annual Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics and this is the photo that ran in the paper. However, the audio slide show can be found at DeseretNews.com.

Dino Runner (May 1st Post)

I saw this guy out running at midnight past a running dinosaur. I think I may have freaked him out a little taking photos that late but I also thought it was odd to be running that late, on Highway 89. -BN