Large Scale Service

I had the wonderful opportunity to photograph for Circle K International’s Large Scale Service Project this past week in Denver. A collegiate service leadership organization, Circle K International volunteered with the Salvation Army, both at their main warehouse as well as several of their thrift stores. They also helped the Denver Rescue Mission stuff back to school backpacks for kids, build a carnival, and build a sand box big enough to fit a boat in. Well, maybe a small boat, but it was pretty awesome. The biggest challenge was not in the shooting, as since I’ve been involved with this organization for quite some time, but in the editing. There were so many great pictures, so many great moments, that it was incredibly difficult to whittle it down to the very best. I think I’ve done it here, but check out my website just in case.

Kiwanis One Day

As a part of Kiwanis One Day, an annual event in which all branches of the Kiwanis Organization gather together to do a project in the community, I attended the Golden Kiwanis Easter Egg Hunt. (As a side note, by "hunt" I mean all the eggs are layed out in plain site so children can find them.) The weather proved to be the challenge as freezing temperatures and a healthy amount of snow kept everyone shivering. Of course, the event was well attended, which is not surprising when you realize that someone is giving out free candy. In terms of photographing the event, I had the same type of challenges that I had at the Circle K International District Convention; how do you get distinctive pictures at what can easily be a "grit and grin" type of event. I think I got a good start, but definitely still need some practice. The only other thing was that I was trying for some very good images that would translate beautifully into black and white prints, but as one would image, the focus of the images certainly became the color, especially with the weather.

One more thing to note: with my commitment to service leadership and community service, this will hopefully be the start of a new project I am tenetavily titling "Seasons of Service." This project will take a look at the different types community service that occurs during different parts of the year. Let's hope that there are some very distinctive service opportunities that are held specifically with the change of the seasons.

Circle K International District Convention

This past weekend I attended the Rocky Mountain District Convention for Circle K International. For those of you unfamiliar with Circle K, it is a collegiate community service organization. The convention itself is a mix of leadership development opportunities, community service and fellowship. In addition, a music CD that students from all over the district contributed to went on sale to benefit the Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute at the Children's Hosptital of Denver, which I did the jacket photography and design.

Event photography at DCON was challenging because not only was there numerous forms of mixed lighting, but as a participant, many of my pictures are taken from restricted angles. Still, we are all problem solvers and it was a great opportunity to enhance those skills and shoot creatively while capturing the feeling the event. Oh yeah, as for the prairie dog in the top hat, that is the district mascot. Everyone loves him.