Sneaky Peaky

For as long as I can remember, my mom has called me "dolli." I've been told the reason was because I resembled a doll as a baby, and on top of that, I was artistically inclined, and she loves Salvador Dali (he's pretty cool, look him up). When I started brainstorming a business name a few months ago, I tried about a bazillion variations of my name ... dianne bentz photography, dianne michelle photography, blah blah blah. Then ... DOLLI! Tada. Lightning bulb. Here is a sneak peak of what is to come:

Hood to Coast Relay 2009

Hood to Coast is an annual relay race that takes place at the end of August. It starts at Timberline, on the top of Mt. Hood, and finishes on the Oregon coast at Seaside. The race is 197 miles long, includes two vans of six runners, each of which runs three legs. The legs can vary from 4ish miles to a little under 8, but the average distance each runner completes is around 16 miles or so. Over the course, there is always someone from your team out running. This basically means that you don't sleep for 2 days. Sounds crazy, right? Crazy FUN! This was my second year participating, and I hope I get to run it every year from now until eternity! Now, for a few of my favorites from the weekend:

{as always, click on any image to make it bigger!}






Keep in tune for some exciting news to be gradually announced over the coming week!
~di

Mission: Accomplished.

I embarked on this year's Hood to Coast relay with one goal (other than finishing my legs of course):

One Camera.
One Roll of Film.
One Lens.
One Day.

Preview of the weekend's events:

Passion for Polaroids

Waaaaaay back in May, I came up with this inkling of an idea for a project: Polaroids! I love the look of Polaroid film, and it seemed like the perfect medium in which to photograph our summer back in Montana. Polaroid film is expensive and you only get 10 negatives per cartridge, making it a fun and challenging project for me due to the limited number of allowed images. Also, I was thinking it'd be fun to introduce a little more of myself onto the blog. Interesting, huh? Thing is, I didn't have a camera, they don't make them anymore AND they don't produce the film anymore. Le sigh.

Well, while packing up my life in Portland, I came across a little gem that had gone unused and underappreciated for too long: a Polaroid camera! My boyfriend apparently bought it at a college garage sale, and it had been sitting in our office (aka the place where Dianne's things go to die) for two years in a dark and dingy box. Alas, problem solved! All I had to do was order some film (thank you Amazon) and I was ready.

As said, Polaroid is no longer in production. It's days are numbered - numbered to the point that whoever has film out there and is selling it, that's it. When it's gone, it's gone. Fujifilm has come out with it's version of the Polaroid, but it's just not the same. Le Sigh. Yet another amazing film relic lost to the digital age. Grrr.

Here is the first half of our summer, a la Polaroid:

{as always, click on an image for a larger view}

Comparison ...

I'm glad that we look nothing alike in my family ...

Miss H:


Me, circa 1988:


I love this because both pictures are from the same place; the shot of Hannah was taken in my Grammie and Pop's yard a year or two before the property was sold, and that tire swing I'm so thoroughly enjoying was hanging from a big tree in the same yard. In fact, that building in the background of both pics is my Pop's shop! Aww. Circle of Life.

Loves,
Di

Going waaaay back ...

I have been distracted from packing by the plethora (and I mean PLETHORA) of photos I've taken over the years. After digging through my multiple tubs (yes, multiple and yes, tubs) of negatives, slides and prints, I'm going to gradually post the fun-ness this week. Here's the first, my adorable cousins, circa 2004:



I should find an old pic of me at age 4, and you can compare me and Miss H. :)

Cheers
-Di

Jewelry?

If sewing supplies and clothes aren't your style, perhaps some jewelry?

Moving Sale and Bored Blogging ...

That's right, step one of the "big change" (not that kind of change) is on it's way. Moving Sale at my house today and tomorrow!

Anyone need some clothes perhaps?


Or all the sewing/thread/zippers a crafty girl could want?


Okay, that is all for now. But while I'm sitting here, I'm loving Mika 78 today. Check her out.

Update ...

Just so everyone is aware, there are some BIG things in the works! I won't share quite yet what they are, but I will let y'all know that my blog will be moving in the near future!

On that note, enjoy ...


Cheers and Happy Sunshine to all of you!
~Di

4.1.09 Viva la Mexico!

Sorry for being MIA!

Two weeks ago, I went to Mexico with a "small" group of 17 ... ahhh sunshine. I can see why longtime residents of Oregon ALWAYS plan a winter trip to a sunny destination. There was some much-needed vitamin D involved ...

Gluten-free Gourmet

For those of you are not aware - and why would you be, really? - for health reasons, I try my best to follow a wheat-free, soy-free, dairy-free, sugar-free diet (among a few other other things). Whew! That's a mouthful. The reason I say "try" is because when you're attempting to avoid so many things that are prevalent in day-to-day foods (there is sugar in everything), one of the aforementioned offending ingredients inevitably slips in. Thank goodness this happens in small amounts!

Now why would I tell you this on my photography blog, you ask? For two reasons:

1. I'm trying to blog more often.
2. I found an absolutely AMAZING website and had to share!

Elana's Pantry is possibly the best thing that's happened to me since sliced bread (preferably of the brown rice based variety). Not only does she have some delicious recipes that have been ravely reviewed all across the internet, she has decent pictures to back up what she's whipping together.

Can I get a "Hallelujah?!"

Okay, I am off to go rejoice in a delightful Dianne-friendly dinner cooked by my amazing, thoughtful boyfriend. I leave you with a picture as food for thought. *Ahem* Pun intended.

Cheers!


*The photo above is neither sugar-free, wheat-free OR dairy-free. I attached it because a post without a photo on a photography blog seems rather silly, don't you think? Besides, it's the only photo of food that I have taken in the last three years!

1.17.09 New York, New York

My first trip to NYC.

12.25.08 Just for laughs

1.10.09 Hunter & Ginger's Wedding

Two weeks ago, Mike and I flew back to Montana to attend the wedding of our friends Hunter and Ginger. When they got engaged six months ago, they immediately decided to have the wedding in January in order to take advantage of the best cross-country skiing possibilities. Why? Because that's how they fell in love - night cross country skiing.

They ended up choosing the Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, Montana. Essex is a town (if you can call it that) across from the East entrance to Glacier Park in NW Montana. It literally consists of the Inn, cross-country ski trails and a train stop. That's it. So, as attendees, we were imagining the worst ... a wedding? In Montana? In January? In GLACIER? Long story short, the weather was beyond perfect, everyone was able to get to middle-of-nowhere Montana, and what ensued was a true, Montana wedding - complete with hippie dancing, bongos and a red wedding dress. I will never forget it.

I did not take my camera out on our night skiing endeavor due to my extreme inexperience (both legs strapped to separate waxed apparati are not my forte - I stick to one big board usually), but I did get a few in the dark, basement bar as well as during the ceremony. These pictures are not my best, in a technical sense, but I love them all the same. So here is my "artsy" take on our friends' very unique winter wedding.

Portland Snowpacolypse 2008

For those of you who don't know, Portland sometimes gets dusting of snow each year. Sometimes. Maybe. Once in a great while. Not. Very. Often ...

Well this past week it snowed! I mean really, really snowed. You Montanans can truly understand how much it made my day! Not only did it remind me of home at a time when I grow more and more homesick, but it also reminded me of growing up in Seattle. In the Northwest, an inch of snow shuts down the city and the world just seems to stop in awe of this fluffy white stuff. So in celebration of my childhood, I embraced the Northwest's inability to navigate wintry conditions and have enjoyed playing outside with my dogs, then coming inside to a delicious hot cup of cocoa and a big, comfy blanket.

Three cheers for snow days and Merry Christmas to all!





Just for fun ... snow nose!

Thanksgiving in Montana

For the few that read this, I apologize for my prolonged absence. I'm snowed in today (yay!), so I'm playing blogger catch-up. Here are a few from our trip to Montana over Thanksgiving.