Slack Rodeo in Bridgeport, TX

My daughter Sarah and I got up @ 6:00 AM and headed to a Slack Rodeo in the small town of Bridgeport, TX on 5/8. I live in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex and drove about 40 miles to Bridgeport which is anything but urban: Pecan Groves, Oil Wells, Ranching. A Slack Rodeo is held when there a too many contestants for the number of slots available for evening rodeo. The top contenders based upon times will perform that evening. We watched some cowgirls compete in Barrel Racing event which is a timed event. The objective is to race around three barrels spaced 60 feet apart with out knocking them over with fastest time. This takes great horse riding skills and a well trained horse. Below are a couple images from that day

2010 Ft. Worth Stockshow

The Stockshow is back in Ft. Worth. This year I passed on the rodeo and went to a Ranch Barrel Racing competition. 57 runs in 60 minutes. A lot of quick action in a short period of time.

Check out some of my images: http://www.tomdoran.com/stockshow/index

I tried a new photo technique that I saw on photographer David H. Wells site in creating motion on images such as fast horse riding. His site, The Wells Point, is one the beat I have ever viewed for photographers. Check it out http://thewellspoint.com/

North Texas Fair & Rodeo

I attended this local small rodeo again this year. It is in an outdoor arena where I love to shoot. When trying to decide which performance to shoot I chose the Slack rodeo as it started at 6PM which would allow more time to shoot. I had seen the term “Slack” rodeo before and was never sure what it meant until now. It is when there are too many contestants and too few slots for the actual rodeo. The Slack rodeo is a way to determine who will proceed to the rodeo for timed events. An elimination round if you will.
Great lighting, cowboys/cowgirls, rodeo that evening.

Washington DC goes Country

During a recent trip to DC with my family we travelled to the Lincoln Memorial at dusk. We heard all this hooting and hollering and saw this guy on top of a truck. We find out later it was Brad Paisley shooting a music video.

Raptors in Allen, TX

I am not a bird photographer but had a great time today at an event in Allen, TX for the

Birds of Prey Photo Day sponsered by Blackland Prairie Raptor Center. Birds that were presented included: Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Eastern Screech Owl, Peregrine Falcon. The Raptor Center folks do great work and presented a wonderful program. I hope to photography birds at Bosque del Apache next winter. For some great images of the Bosque, check out my friend Randy's site @ http://www.photosbyrandyr.com/ and select Photographs, Events, Bosque del Apache 2007

Re-enactment of the Battle of San Jacinto

The Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day Harris County, Texas, (near 22 miles east of Houston) was the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution.
Santa Ana, the President of Mexico was captured and signed a treaty resulting in the creation of the Republic of Texas. Each year this battle is re-enacted by local history buffs. I traveled down for the event.. The weather looked good with a small chance of showers the night. The small chance of showers resulted in 4 inches of rain! Only a small skirmish took place due to the flooding. It was an enjoyable time creating images and exploring Texas History.

Does the Camera Matter?

The above shot was made with my Iphone as I was about to land in Albquerque, NM last fall. It provides amazing quaility for a 3 pixel camera though I do not anticipate selling my Nikon gear quite yet :)