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Celebrating Independence Day in Small Town America

July 4, 2014 by info@3QuartersToday.com

Across the United States millions of Americans are celebrating Independence Day with parades, picnics, barbecues and fireworks. The town of Murdock Nebraska is no different. However, our story is a little unique because you see it is a village of under 400 people. The town is joined by Elmwood Nebraska just six miles south and we form the community of Elmwood-Murdock joined together by our schools and with a total population of around a thousand people.

The day starts off with a 5K Dillon Synovec Memorial Run at 7:30 am and then continues with a parade, lunch hosted by the Lions Club, pie at the church, firemans water fight, tractor pull, softball games, and fireworks at the end of the night.

Honor guard during the 4th of July Parade

However during the 4th of July parade and Independence Day parade we grow to probably close to a thousand people. That is no joke. Our parade is one of the best around and over an hour long. You can see the sidewalks packed with people and this goes on for an amazing three blocks of main street. Well actually people are also sitting in their yards on the parade route also, but the announcers stand is on Main St (3rd Ave).

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My friends always bring their donkeys and throw candy from the home made barrels on the side. Chris dresses up in his red and white “Husker” coveralls which double for the 4th of July.

Patriotic Spirit celebrating Independence Day

Game Day Red and White Adult Bib Overalls

There wouldn’t be a country Independence Day parade without some antique tractors decked out in 4th of July bunting, and this one is an oldie. I’ve never even heard of a Rumley tractor before, obviously this brand is no longer made and was built before inflatable tires.

The marching band from Elmwood-Murdock high school marches, and because it’s the 4th and not a competition they are allowed to wear shorts and an school T-shirt. My daughter played the drums in school and during her senior year she moved up to the quads which is a coveted position. She felt like a “beast” when she played the quads.

Bass drum and the quads marching during the parade — My daughter on quads marching during the parade

After the parade one of the local 4-H clubs gives out free watermelon. It’s a favorite with the crowds and a good appetizer to the lunch served after the parade put on by the Lions Club.

Can’t go wrong with watermelon on the 4th of July, it’s a holiday tradition.

Watermelon Napkins and Plates for Summer Decorating and Picnics

The day continues with a tractor pull and one of my favorite activities the Fireman’s water fight. The local volunteer fire departments from about 8-10 towns in the area compete for bragging rights (and I’m sure a few beers) in water fights. The object of the game is to push the 55 gal barrel down the wire using the force from the water hose. If it’s hot the spray from the fire hoses are a welcome relief to the hot sun. It’s so much fun watching the little kids play in the water. (My daughter is sitting with our dog Leah to the left of the picture)

Celebrating the 4th of July with Fireman water fights — Fire Department Water Fights

For most kids the favorite part of celebrating Independence Day is the fireworks. This year my husbands family took a cross country trip from New York to tour the Western United States. They stopped by our house and the teenagers were so excited to light fireworks. Fireworks aren’t legal for the “regular” person to light in Buffalo. There are kid safe fireworks that are legal in all 50 states and small kids really don’t know the difference.

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Celebrating Independence Day with Fireworks

However you celebrate Independence Day, have a safe one, hug your families, salute the flag and remember we are celebrating our freedom, the birth of our country and all that we hold dear and take for granted: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to bear arms, and freedom from tyranny. Our military fought for our freedom from the British in the 1700’s and continues to fight for those who suppress freedom around the world.

How Are You Celebrating Independence Day This Year?

Leave me a note below, I’d love to hear your traditions.

Am I a Professional Photographer?

June 24, 2014 by info@3QuartersToday.com

What Do I Need To Be a Professional Photographer?

I love photography and I always seem to have a camera with me. But what is a professional photographer and can I call myself a professional? The answer is no. Even though I did get paid for two photography jobs in last year I can’t call myself a professional. Why? Keep reading and I’ll explain.

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Three Things Needed to Become a Professional Photographer

How to transition from a hobbyist photographer to a professional takes guts. Which I don’t have. It also takes tenacity and time. So don’t quit your day job. There are a lot of myths about becoming a professional photographer and once your understand the reality of starting a full time photography business you might think twice.

BUT, if you are still reading here are my top three items you will need to start a photography business. Warning. Some of them are lumped together.

You will need a professional camera. Seriously! A Canon Rebel T6 is a good beginner camera for the serious photography hobbyist, in fact it’s a great camera. But to get the sharpness and clarity like you see in magazines, a full frame camera is needed. Second, education, read, read, read and read some more. Watch videos, take classes.

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What is a Professional Photographer?

So what is a professional photographer? In my opinion it is someone who earns their sole income by selling their photography services and prints. They pay taxes, they have insurance, and they rely on photography for their income. Just like any business there are marketing costs for advertising, business cards, and insurance.

There are fewer and fewer true professional photographers in the industry anymore. With the advent of easily accessible digital DSLR Cameras the profession has changed. I’m not here to discuss or debate whether this competition and change is a good or bad thing, just that it has happened.

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Many professional photographers have gone to school to learn composition, lighting techniques and studio photography. Many cut their teeth during era of film.

Even during the age of film photography, photographs were edited in the dark room with burning and dodging techniques. Post production work and photo editing is now is done in Lightroom and Photoshop. Photo editing is essential achieve the look and feel the photographer felt when viewing the scene in real life.

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This photo below was taken over looking Chicago and Lake Michigan at midnight. I didn’t have a tripod with me and set the camera on a park bench for a long exposure shot. The result was crooked and due to the cold I didn’t have time to get the proper white balance in camera. In Lightroom I was able to straighten the horizon and adjust the lighting to what my eye remembered.

True photographers plan their shots, they don’t just happen.

This was a case of “knowing” and planning my edit ahead of time. My goal was a 2:1 panoramic print, so I shot wide to allow myself editing space. I took only two shots like this that night.

Digital darkrooms in the way of photo editing programs have become very available for anyone and software such as Photoshop and Lightroom are tools. When used the right way they enhance photos and the viewer doesn’t even know a photo has been “shopped”.

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However like all tools many people use them incorrectly and then photography becomes more digital art. That is fine, if the final work is presented in that fashion. The photo above of the Chicago skyline is a good example of photo enhancement done correctly.

Then Who is a Photographer?

Planning and execution is the difference between someone who is a photographer and a person who just takes pictures.

A photographer is anyone who takes their photography seriously and is always looking at ways to increase their camera skills and techniques. They read books, they read blogs, watch YouTube videos on post production in Lightroom and Photoshop to learn how to get the most out of their camera and their photographs.

If you are like me it’s hard to drive down the road without seeing a photographic opportunity. You’re spouse might just be tired of you saying “Stop, go back, I have to get a photo of that barn” (fence, sunset, cloud, cow, lamp post, etc…you get the picture)

A photographer thinks about their shot “before” they take it, taking into consideration composition, lighting, and cropping aspect ratio. A serious photographer takes their camera off Auto and learns to shoot in Aperture Priority or Manual.

If your goal is to improve your photography, if you find yourself reading every photographic technique article that comes across your Facebook news feed, and if you purposely seek out photographic opportunities to share them with a wide audience then you might be able to call yourself a photographer. It may be a just a serious hobby. But you are a budding photographer.

I Am a Semi-Pro Photographer

That would be where I fit in. I am a serious photographer who has a “normal” nine-to-five job and occasionally gets paid for photographic endeavors? Very occasionally. I don’t advertise, but I post my best photos on several sites and on Facebook. I also sell my photographs on FineArt America and recently on InstaProofs.

Me, I’m a a hobbyist photographer.

But, since many people see that I can take decent landscape photos they also assume I can also take portraits. I can’t, or let’s put it this way, I’m uncomfortable photographing people.

Yet in one month I finally said yes to two people who asked me to photograph events. I photographed my first graduation and my first wedding. So now I can officially call myself a semi-pro. Will I give up my day job? No. But I will shoot graduation again, maybe not another wedding, it took the Mother of the Bride two weeks to convince me to do this one.

More about my first job as a wedding photographer later, overall I enjoyed it. They were a fun couple who could NOT of taken a bad picture if they tried, and the camera loved them. I received many compliments and the images turned out better than I expected.

Do You Take Pictures or are You a Photographer?

Ask yourself these questions.

Do you love taking pictures of things that are dear to your heart and sharing snapshots of time?
Are you always creating images of friends and family during events and gatherings?
Is your phone filled with more selfies and Instagram photos than your DSLR?
Has your camera never left auto mode, or do you know how to shoot in manual?

If so you love to take pictures, and that’s okay. A picture is a snapshot in time that preserves a memory. We should all take pictures, it preserves our history and memories.

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But becoming a professional photographer is so much more!

A professional photographer never stops learning about exposure, composition, and photography techniques. A professional photographer spends just as much time marketing, editing

Next Step in Becoming a Professional Photographer

Find a mentor, a physical person to shadow and photograph together. Work, plan, learn, and plan some more, create a business plan. Learn not only about the craft of photography, but the business side. Don’t undervalue your work. Don’t give your work, or skill away, or sell it for peanuts. Attend seminars, watch YouTube videos, and read books. Yes, books, the hard copy paper object with sheets of paper in between. Take notes in the margins, use it a business guideline.

Many of the books below are written or recommended by top professional photographers such as Ken Rockwell and leading photography websites such as Digital Photography School.

Digital Photography Boot Camp: A Step-By-Step Guide for Professional Wedding and Portrait Photographers The Photographer’s MBA: Everything You Need to Know for Your Photography Business Adobe Premiere Pro CC Classroom in a Book (2015 release)

So Where Do you Fit?

Where do you and your camera fit? I’d like to hear your input on the topic and if your goal is to become a professional photographer, a semi-pro, or if you just want to enjoy the hobby for your own benefit. Leave a comment below.

Face to Face with a Charolais Bull

June 24, 2014 by info@3QuartersToday.com

You don’t see Charolais cattle very often, but when you do, they are impressive. Most beef breeds are crossed with Angus for that desirable black color.

On my recent trip to Western Nebraska a Charolais bull got into my father in laws pasture with some other cows. He obviously thought me and my camera were worth checking out.

Don’t worry, I stayed in my car and it was with the help of my 70-200mm Tamron lens that I was able to get an up close and personal portrait of this great animal. Isn’t he magnificent?

I’ve often told people I don’t take pictures of people or animals. Landscapes are more my style. But once in a while , find a subject who is patient and this bovine posed quite nicely in the evening golden hour sun.

Charolais are a popular breed in Colorado due to their strong legs on open range and the mountains. We saw several cross breeds on our Colorado trip a few years ago and quite a few Charolais bulls out in the pastures.

Facts about Charolais Cattle (source Oklahoma State Breeds website)

Originated in southern France and legend has it white cattle were noticed in the region as early as 878 AD
Were used for milk, meat and draft animals.
Know for large bone and power with a superior mothering and milking ability.
Introduced into the United States after the First World War by Jean Pugibet.
First bulls imported through Mexico to the King Ranch. Their names were Neptune and Ortolan.
Influenced the American cattle industry by introducing size and a larger frame than the typical British breeds of the time (Herefords)
Charolais are white or creamy white in color and bulls weigh from 2,000 lbs to over 2,500 lbs with cows weighing between 1,200-2,000 lbs.

Information about Breeds of Cattle

A Field Guide to Cows: How to Identify and Appreciate America’s 52 Cattle: A Handbook to the Breeds of the World Raising Beef Cattle For Dummies Know Your Cows The Backyard Homestead Guide to Raising Farm Animals: Choose the Best Breeds Small Cattle for Small Farms (Landlinks Press)

Western Nebraska Sky Country

June 22, 2014 by info@3QuartersToday.com

Who needs mountains and oceans when the skies of Western Nebraska can give you all the scenery and glorious vistas you could want. So many people drive down I-80 through Iowa and Nebraska and say they don’t see anything except cornfields and flat land. I say slow down, take a detour on a country road where and actually look at the world around you. The open skies of the Midwest give a 360 panorama of blue sky combined with the action of the clouds.

This is the view from the back of my in-laws farm house outside of Palisade Nebraska. Every night the pheasants fly overhead and you can hear the male roosters crowing in the CRP grass surrounding the house.

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In June the wheat fields of Nebraska start to ripen and turn green. Rain is critical at this point, it helps fill out the berries and increases the yields. The farmers in Nebraska have been luckier in 2014 than the wheat farmers of Texas and Oklahoma. It seems the drought has broken. Southwestern Nebraska had 3 inches of rain one day, it was the most rain they have received at one time in over five years. To say my father in law was happy and smiling was an understatement.

Many people think of Nebraska as fly over country, a place not worth stopping as there is nothing to see. That couldn’t be further from the truth. What makes an ocean awe inspiring? The waves and the sky. Nebraska has waves of wheat and corn and a sky with personality and magnificent clouds. There is plenty to do and see in Nebraska if you just look: Omaha Zoo, Holy Family Shrine, rodeos, country fairs, football games, apple jack festival, and plenty more.

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You can even see road tracks in the dirt road. I’ve been visiting my in laws for many years during the summer and have never gotten mud on the car. We drove around through the canyons and it was very apparent the wildlife enjoyed the moisture as well. We spotted over 30 deer, a coyote, turkeys, and TWO jack rabbits. My husbands hasn’t seen jack rabbits out there in many years. Here is just one of the mule deer we saw that night. Notice the deer path on the ridge. This is a sight you never see driving 75 mph down the interstate. So next time you take a cross country trip. Take the road less traveled, slow down and enjoy the sights. The countryside has a lot to offer if you just want to look. Bring your camera, don’t be shy. Most people in the area are proud to show off their lovely state and are friendly as can be, as long as you smile and say “I didn’t realize Nebraska was so beautiful!”

Fun Things to Do in Nebraska

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CHADRON, Nebraska — LaRissa McKean walked into the competition circle in a pink dress, open-toed platform shoes, a Miss Northwest Nebraska sash and a generous portion of bison excrement in her hand. Earlier in the year, McKean, of Omaha, had won …

Fair keeps focus on all Nebraska has to offer – The Grand Island Independent …

UNL Extension staff members and volunteers have been transforming the outside of the Nebraska Building into a visual representation of the various crops, plants and trees the state has to offer. Inside an outline of Nebraska, all the state’s major …

State Games: Speer family continues tradition with Nebraska stop – Lincoln …

Shannon Evans and her daughter, Ava Haimes, and son, Dylan Evans, carry on a family tradition by participating in the State Games of America, this year with Shannon as a coach, Ava competing in gymnastics and Dylan in skateboarding.

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Nebraska fun. Posted on May 29, 2015. My daughter lives in Minnesota. I always vow to stop at points of interest when traveling to see her. After receiving my passport I made up an agenda. Before leaving I visited the local attractions, Sew …

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Nebraska Fun Facts. Nebraska was once called “The Great American Desert”. In 1927, Edwin E. Perkins of Hastings invented the powered soft drink Kool-Aid. J. Sterling Morton founded Arbor Day in Nebraska City in 1872.

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It is the largest amusement park in Nebraska, and the site of the only roller coaster in Nebraska. Fun-Plex is established in 1987. Rides at Fun-Plex include a slick track, bumper boats, and go-gator kiddie coaster. There is a …

Deployed Dad Writes his Daughter a Song

June 20, 2014 by info@3QuartersToday.com

This deployed dad1 knows how hard being away from is on his family, especially his little girl, and he wanted to make her feel better. Most military children understand that Mommy or Daddy is doing a very important job for the country and the other parent takes on not only the double task of parenting but also comforting, reassuring and keeping the connection strong. But it doesn’t make it any less painful or lonely.

Today is Friday and many people use this day to remind others that our military is still deployed overseas in countries far away from their family.

In this day of technology, cell phones, iPads, internet, Facebook overseas communication is much easier and faster than years ago when you waited for a letter in the mail or the rare phone call. Facetime, Snapchat, and Skype are sometimes nightly rituals with servicemen and women to stay in contact with their families. They might use it to help their children with homework, watch a birthday party, or even the birth of a new baby.

He is currently a Fort Drum soldier on deployment in Afghanistan and enlisted the help of his fellow soldiers to sing a song to his daughter who is missing him back in Watertown, NY. Sgt. First Class Jamie McIntyre is on his fifth deployment to Afghanistan and says his 5-year-old daughter Jessie, was missing her dad and having a tough time dealing with him being away from home.

To cheer her up, McIntyre asked some fellow soldiers to help him write and sing a song to Jessie using Facetime. In the video, McIntyre – who is of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team with the 10th Mountain Division – is the soldier positioned third from the left.

Thank you to all the deployed Dads and Moms and everyone in the military who serve our great country. You sacrifice your lives, and have found ways to endure, carry on and keep the bonds strong at home.