2011 Leftovers

As a follow up to the previous post that featured a gallery of my favorite pix from 2011, here are a few "leftovers" that never made it on the blog, or maybe the paper or the gallery. However, I still like'em.

The most substantial work I did this year, I think, was a continuing series of portraiture, mostly for the weekly Q&A.
Chef Joe Day

Mayor Bob Andrew

Tiffany Turner

Cell phone pix became a little more ubiquitous for me, here's my favorite one of those.



-DKM

Best/faves of 2011, Southwest Washington state

I always feel a little weird saying that this is my "best" of one year or another, so lets just say these are a collection of images that I liked best or were most happy with over the last 12 months. Here's to 2011,

-DKM

Christmas kids, 2011, Long Beach, Wa.

Merry Christmas from our crazy kids (and us)

Whole lotta sports — Naselle, Wa., Warrenton and Astoria, Ore.

So, winter season sports started two weeks ago, and for one reason or another I just haven't gotten any pix up yet. Soooo, here's a bunch from the games I've gone to thus far.
The first two hoops games I shot this year — NHS-IHS boys and girls — I set up some remote lights, which I don't do too much of anymore. Didn't really love the results so went back to ambient. It's still a work in progress IMO.

-DKM

Brian Brush found guilty of Murder 1, Pacific County Courthouse, South Bend, Wa.

Today Brian Brush was found guilty of first degree murder with aggrivated circumstances in the public shooting of Lisa Bonney in Sept. 2009. I was in court the last two days of the trial and meant to post some stuff yesterday but got too busy. So here is a smattering from Monday and Tuesday.

Mr. Brush is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 12 of next year, nearly two and a half years after his crime.

-DKM

Duck hunting on the bay with the Wiegardt boys, Nahcotta, Wa.

I finally got to go out to watch Eric Wiegardt and his dad Dobby duck hunting on Willapa Bay. Tim wrote up a story a couple weeks ago, and the weather just would not cooperate for me to get out there until yesterday morning.

Dobby noted that the deer rack on his garage wall was captured by Ilwaco's first mayor, oh so many years ago.

Unfortunately, these were about as close as the ducks got to us all morning. The guys were also skunked when Tim went out with them. Guess the CO is bad luck for ducks!

Despite not getting a shot off I was totally pleased with how it went, and even got a slice of Mrs. Wiegardt's  marionberry pie afterward. Totally worth getting up at 6 am for!

-DKM

Brush murder trial finally begins, Pacific County Courthouse, South Bend, Wa.

The Brian Brush murder trial finally began today — more than two years after Lisa Bonney was gunned down in front several hundred people on the Bolstad beach approach.
The picture above is the first time I've seen Brush look somewhat normal since this whole thing started. All the previous times I've photographed him in court he was haggard looking, unshaven usually, and in a jail jumpsuit with shackles. Quite a bit different today as he was clean shaven, wearing casual clothes, and strolled around the front of the courtroom during breaks.

The prosecutions first witnesses were the three police officers first on the scene, and each were asked to demonstrate what they saw Brush allegedly do. The jury also saw two highly graphic crime scene images from the scene.

The new defense attorneys came off a little odd, giggling to each other back and forth throughout the hearing, including during testimony. The lead attorney had to be reprimanded by judge Sullivan during his opening statement — which meant the jury had to be cleared from the room — because he started talking about something that the judge had already ruled that he couldn't mention. As you can see below, directly afterward, he didn't seem to mind.

The trial is set to last for the better part of the next three weeks, and I will likely be in attendance at least once each week.
(FYI, in case it wasn't obvious enough, any opinions shared on this blog and mine, and mine alone and do not represent the newspaper or anyone else. This is simply a retelling of things as I saw them.)

-DKM

Windows, waves, hoops and chiefs - Long Beach, Seaview and Ilwaco, Wa.

SO, this is me catching up.
Back on Halloween I got this pic of these porthole pooches while trick or treating in Ilwaco. It's running this week coupled with the pic below, which is really way more Halloween-esque, though I just took it like a week ago. (Thanks to my man Stu for the assist on this one!)

The first real winter storms started hitting us this week and I did something I don't think I've ever done before — shoot the enormous waves crashing into the cliff face at Waikiki Beach in Ilwaco. They were HUGE

This past week was also the start of winter season sports practices. It felt really weird shooting a hoops practice on Friday instead of a football game. It threw off my whole week.

And finally, LB police chief Flint Wright was the Q&A this week, and this was the result of our two minute portrait session — I really like it.

Happy turkey day to all, and to all, a good gravy

-DKM

PS - I also finished up my new portfolio website, which has a link at the top of the blog (or HERE if you prefer). It has a variety of galleries in a variety of categories Take a look, lemme know what you think

NHS playoff loss, Naselle, Wa.

Well, I sure wasn't expecting to be posting these pix, especially so soon. The Comets, who went into the first round of the state playoffs last night undefeated and ranked second in the state. However, they draw the short straw and had to play a really, really good Adna team, and could just never get on track, losing a season-ending game 41-8. 

Yesterday was Veterans Day, and some valley vets served as color guard at the game, which was nice to see.

This was probably a bad sign — in more ways than one... The sign the cheerleaders made for the team to run thru after halftime ripped in two thanks to a gust of wind.

 So, another football season ends, far too soon for me. Guess it's time to head back inside for the next three months...
You can see some more pix from this game on the Friday Night Sights Blog HERE

-DKM