Traci & Jeff's Wedding ~ August 6th, 2011

Yesterday I had the privilege of shooting a wedding for a couple who was not only photogenic, but had an amazing sense of humor. Here are just a few of my favorites so far.

Loved the rustic-chic venue, The Barn at Finley Point.

One of the sweetest 'First Look' moments I've had the privilege of witnessing.

Like I said, very photogenic.

Taylor, the flower girl, was adorable.

Lots of laughs and tender moments throughout the ceremony.

They hid their first kiss from the audience. How cute is that?!

Little bit of a cake battle (Traci won).

Traci got a bit of a booty dance from Jeff before the garter toss.

This was probably the funniest moment - Jeff went reaching for the garter and through some slight of hand, produced a pair of granny panties. Hilarious!

Traci's reaction to the granny panties bit. Don't worry folks, she's laughing.

Despite a nice breeze, the day was quite warm. The bride in front of the fan gave me an idea....

Love it!

Thank you, Traci & Jeff, for keeping me laughing throughout the day. Congrats and best of luck to you!

Maleea & Jason - The Couch on a Hill

While driving to Saddle Back road a while back, I noticed this couch placed perfectly a top a hill facing the sunset. I decided then and there I needed to do a photo shoot on this couch before leaving Hawaii. Luckily my sister Maleea and her boyfriend Jason were willing to be my models.

Here are a few of my favorites so far:

Giant Omission

In my rush to get that thank you post up yesterday, I forgot to thank one of the most important people: Shane McMillan. Shane was the very first person in the JSchool to believe in me when he took a chance and hired a second semester freshman to the photography staff of the Kaimin. His help and instruction throughout my Jschool years, including as my photo editor for Native News, make thanks to him long overdue. So thanks, Shane. Couldn't have done it without you. 

Hearst Piece

Last night I found out from my Prof. Keith Graham that I won 5th place in the multimedia competition of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program. Here is the link to the multimedia I produced about lung cancer on Rocky Boy's Reservation.

http://nativenews.jour.umt.edu/index_rocky.html

I feel like I need to thank all the people who helped me along the way. Thanks to Erin Cole, my tireless reporter who was with me every step; to my husband Patrick for watching the piece over and over and OVER to help me get it right; to Prof. Jeremy Lurgio and Prof. Keith Graham for their guidance, understanding and believing in me. Without them, I would not be the visual journalist I am today; and, of course, to all the people on/around Rocky Boy's Reservation for allowing me to stick a camera in their face and ask some tough questions. Thank you!

Wedding at the Davenport Hotel

Shot a 40s glamor-themed wedding last weekend in Spokane with Brandy Kiger. The beautiful couple, spectacular venue, and sunny day really helped make these photos a piece of (wedding) cake. I'll put them all up on my wedding photography website (www.alisiaduganz.com) when I am done editing, but for now here are a few favs.

MSU BBall and why I feel like a traitor

I was assigned an MSU basketball game yesterday. I'm so used to rooting against these guys that I thought it might be weird to shoot, but what I discovered is it doesn't matter much who you root for when you're a photographer. As long as they give you some good shots, they're your team. I've gotten a lot of praise for this shot (mostly because it fit perfectly with the lead of the story) and it was picked up by the AP.

The Chronicle is an amazing paper for  a photographer. Every Sunday, they devote the full backpage of the paper to photos. There are no guidelines, no rules; just whatever the photographer feels like shooting. To make it even sweeter, they also let the shooter design the page themselves. Total creative control! Here are some of my favorites from my viewfinder shoot - old, run-down barns at twilight/night. At the end of the post is the final product that will be in the paper on Sunday. 

Bozeman's Old Navy is going out of business!!

Apparently they told their employees at the first of the year that they had one month left of employment. One employee told us that she just came back from maternity leave to find out she wouldn't have a job much longer. Super lame. On the plus side - massive sales!

Wrestling Tourney

Shot my first wrestling tournament today. It's kind of a tough sport to shoot, especially if one has a "butt rule" like I do (no butt shall be dominate in a photo, see example below) but interesting none the less. 

BAD

BETTER

Wild Art

The Chronicle calls their feature/stand-alone photos "Wild Art." This is very appropriate because the majority of them do involve nature/wildlife. Here's one I shot yesterday while driving Springhill Road.

Semitrailer Fire

Plumes of smoke billowed from this semitrailer Tuesday afternoon near Dead Man's Gulch. Someone had been welding inside the trailer, accidentally igniting a spark which set the whole thing ablaze. 

New Year's Eve with the Montana Highway Patrol

Trooper Patrick McLaughlin provides backup during a DUI stop.

Trooper McLaughlin types up a faulty equipment ticket.

In the well-below freezing weather, Trooper McLaughlin stops to check on a stranded motorist.

A DUI stop on New Year's Eve.

After a man was arrested for driving under the influence, the troopers move the violator's car off the road.

So I spent NYE doing a ride along with Trooper Pat McLaughlin of the Montana Highway Patrol. Overall, it was a quiet night - only one DUI, which we were backup on, and four broken headlights. But the 4.5 hours we spent with him were still very interesting. The scariest point of the night? When Trooper McLaughlin declared that the reporter and I were his backup if "stuff should go bad." He even showed us how to unlock the guns (a shotgun and an M4) in his car (a secret I'm not allowed to reveal). "They're hot, so you just have to pump a round into the chamber," he said. Ya.....okaaay.

So even though I was prepared for the worst, it turned out to be a tame, yet entertaining evening.