I was inspired by Wayne Stenehjem’s photo, similar to this, with the North Dakota flag unfurled in the middle of the heart displayed via the capitol tower’s windows. So I ventured out to do something similar with my own touch.
I got there, and the breeze immediately died. I hung around for quite a while, thinking that certainly the breeze had to come back. After all, don’t we live in “The Saudi Arabia of Wind?”
Well, sadly, it was not to be so. I finally gave up and came home, so I hopefully won’t be too much of a zombie at work Friday. We’ll see.
I’d seen this house from afar before, but hadn’t actually taken the opportunity to investigate. In fact, I’d forgotten about it. I hadn’t even marked a waypoint for it in my GPS, something I do for all kinds of prospective photo spots. Well, a little while ago I was nearby and caught a glimpse of it again. I had just enough time to fly over and check it out.
This looks like a grand old house, and it has a perfect place out on the prairie. It didn’t hurt that we had a fantastic sky that day.
Speaking of the sky: I must admit, one thing I love about photography this time of year (and I’ve written about this previously) is that the sky can be so dramatically different just by changing the angle a bit.
This trip served multiple purposes: for one, I hadn’t been out with my cameras in an awfully long time. I also needed to exercise my drone and its batteries. Lastly, I’d purchased a new (to me) truck and wanted to take it on a shakedown cruise. I’m happy to say that the trip was a total success by all measures.
I spotted this little building a long time ago while out on my dirt bike. I recently decided to check it out, and I’m glad I did. It was a perfect day for photography, and I had found a wonderful subject.
One trick about this time of year is the light: the sun is low in the sky, making the light quite directional. So it’s tough to get a decent shot of multiple angles. I managed to pull it off, plus bracketing exposures helps me overcome those harsh winter shadows.
One cool side effect of that is the variety of shots I can get from a single point in time and a slightly different perspective. The skies were definitely more dramatic in one direction than the others, and the shadows more of a nuisance on one side than the others. So I worked it the best I could, and I think the results are quite satisfactory.
I love this old barn. I haven’t visited it in a while, but I knew the day was going to be an excellent one for some photography. I’d just bought a new-to-me truck and wanted to give it a shakedown cruise with my oldest kiddo, so I figured I’d roam a specific area where I knew there were some photo targets I’d marked in my GPS but never visited.
I have been to this farm before…a few times, actually, but none of them recent. I’m glad I stopped by. Sometimes you get to a spot when conditions are just perfect, but some times you find the perfect subject in less-than-perfect conditions. I’d never had quite the combination of snow and sky that I’d wanted – that is, of course, until this day.
I know that huge old barn, relaxing on its haunches, tends to steal the show, but this structure out back was quite photogenic as well. And oh, those glorious skies.
I’m sure there are still some fantastic sunrises to capture as they splash this farm with those orange and red hues, so I’ll consider finding my way out there at different times of the day. With the time change coming up this weekend, it might get a little easier to roll out of bed and bolt westward on time!
I spotted this barn from afar and couldn’t help but take some time to fly out. But it took some patience…I had to wait for the rain to quit. Thankfully, it did…not nearly as soon as the radar predicted, but in time for me to get a few shots before dark.
What really caught my eye was the fact that it’s nearly all sticks at one point. It’s a skeleton which hopefully will stay standing for a while.
In fact, it’s the side view that caught my eye, even from far away. It isn’t every day that you find a barn that you can see through!
I had just a few minutes before it started to rain again, but thankfully I was able to utilize those minutes. Then it was time to dart home with a successful trip under my belt. Any photo trip I take which results in at least one photo I like is a success, and this was only one stop along the way which more than satisfied that requirement.
This little old church in Wilton is so photogenic, I simply can’t help but stop and take yet another photo of it whenever I’m in the neighborhood.
Apparently the three-barred Ukrainian cross is symbolic of an Orthodox or Catholic church. I’ve been told this one is/was Catholic. It’s definitely unique, even among Ukrainian churches from what I’ve read. It’s certainly eye-catching, especially on a day like this one!
I spotted this core along Highway 36 a while back. There were actually a couple of them, along with the tracks of the ice fishermen who made them. They looked pretty cool when backlit with the afternoon sun. This one was better than the other, so I decided to give it star treatment.
I was roaming around and spotted the remnants of this old car immersed in the snow. I got to tread through some pretty deep snow to get to it. The funny thing is, I think I saw the remnants of some windblown footprints on a path almost identical to mine!
When’s the last time you heard that euphemism? Thankfully, I haven’t heard it lately.
I was on my way to a certain photo destination when I came across this treasure. I had to stop and take a look, even though I was on a timetable, and it was time well spent.
I’d planned on some drone flight on this particular day, but it rained on me almost the entire time! I did catch a slight break, however, and during that time I captured some really cool shots. They weren’t the ones I intended; I discovered yet another hidden treasure that wasn’t part of my objective. I will share the results of that flight soon.
Well, it’s official: Video Action is closed after around 33 years. I’d been a customer for most of them. When it was announced in mid-November, I had a mixed reaction: part remorse that we’d be losing Video Action, and part surprise that they’ve been able to hang on as the last remaining video rental business in town.
This is where we’d come for all the new releases. In fact, even before many of them would hit the now-popular streaming services, you could find them on shelves ready to rent. Lately, though, I’d find myself stopping in for older movies that are otherwise hard to find.
Once the decision to shut ‘er down was official, things began to go on sale. I walked out with a large stack of some of my favorite movies going back to the 90s or earlier, thrilled to own some of them but sad that they mean the end of an era.
I remember the first day that movies went on sale: it was a Sunday, so I went after church. The place was packed. New releases sold quickly, but I was looking for older treasures.
Before long, the shelves began to empty. Prices dropped, and even more movies found new homes – permanent homes, this time – as December 31st approached. The building had been sold, and during one of my repeat December visits, someone bought the OPEN sign from the window.
I shot a few panoramas for old time’s sake, as I’m sad to see this local landmark go. I’m a big movie fan, but I have to admit that even I had begun visiting the store much less frequently. We view movies differently now, with streaming services and Redbox taking aim at the traditional video store. The fact that we still had Video Action up until 2020 is a noteworthy achievement.
I didn’t know the saddest part of the story until recently: Don Loeks, the owner who founded Video Action in Bismarck and Fargo, passed away recently. I remember wondering if I’d see him during the last month of the store’s operation, but then I heard the news of his passing and it made the closing even more of a sad occasion.
I’m thankful that we had Video Action for so long, thanks to Don’s passion for movies and games. It’s clear that this store was a labor of love for him, and his commitment to that brought a lot of joy to moviegoers in the Bismarck-Mandan area for over thirty years. He and Video Action will be missed.
