BlogBloghttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2012-02-07T06:29:22ZSquarespacePunxsutawney Phil said 6 more weeks of winter?http://www.nine22.com/blog/2012/2/5/punxsutawney-phil-said-6-more-weeks-of-winter.htmlMichael Conkey2012-02-06T04:02:36Z2012-02-06T04:02:36ZIt sure doesn't seem like it! Alex had her cousins, Jack and Isaac over to play yesterday. The weather was amazing. It was not raining nor too cold. Which is rare this time of year, especially for February. So what do kids do when its nice out? THEY GO RIDE BIKES!

]]>Carol Conkey – Scrapbooker – Amity, Oregonhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2012/1/21/carol-conkey-scrapbooker-amity-oregon.htmlMichael Conkey2012-01-21T21:57:06Z2012-01-21T21:57:06Z 

My mother loves taking photos and growing up its hard to remember her without her SLR. Something else I remember is that she was always doing some sort of arts and crafts, whether it was making 3D paper turkeys for Thanksgiving or volunteering her time at the local middle school making paper books with the students. As time went on and I moved away from home she really got into scrapbooking.


When I say really got into it, she REALLY got into it. She had her husband make a place for her to scrap as well as room that she could invite a couple other people to scrap at. She calls it “The scrap shack”. I caught her setting up some pages from her granddaughter’s birthday to be put in her scrapbook album.


Carol is a Creative Memories Consultant and has many items in stock. She has some discontinued paper and products at discounted prices, paper punches to use and to buy. Are you in the Amity area and want to scrap? Here is a link to her Creative Memories website.



 

 

 

]]>Smith Fine Art's Photographer - Nathan Smithhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2012/1/16/smith-fine-arts-photographer-nathan-smith.htmlMichael Conkey2012-01-16T20:13:07Z2012-01-16T20:13:07ZNathan Smith is a local photographer here in Salem, Oregon. He is another photographer that I have a group project to get on the other side of the camera. This time it was Nathans turn. He often shoots traditional-ish portraits and weddings but his real passion is that of a more artistic side. He spends hours in photoshop on images to get them just right. He also enjoys architecture and one of his favorite buildings in town is the City Hall. It has a very industrial feeling to it with huge cement pillars and walkways. With that being said we put Nathan in his "element" and took some photos of him. 

 

 

 

Check out Nathan's Wesbite Here.

]]>2011http://www.nine22.com/blog/2012/1/6/2011.htmlMichael Conkey2012-01-07T05:50:27Z2012-01-07T05:50:27ZWhat a year! I just wanted to make a quick post about the last year. I am pretty happy at what I've accomplished in 2011. I stepped up as treasurer for Salem Photo and expanded the Social Media of the group, Participated in two events giving back to the community with Family Photos Day with Kevin Kubota, and a Help Portrait event here in Salem. I also go some great shots, here are some of my favorites over the year.

Portraits -

Sports - 

 

]]>Done Before the Ball Droppedhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2012/1/5/done-before-the-ball-dropped.htmlMichael Conkey2012-01-06T02:32:55Z2012-01-06T02:32:55ZI watched many photographers in the last couple weeks write a blog post about their year in review. I always found this strange as it seems like they were throwing in the towel before the year was over.  With that in mind, I set out to find the opportunity to do another photo shoot before 2012. I ended up shooting something that I thought could fit my portfolio and I like to think I succeeded.

When talking with a group of photographers that I often work with for 2nd shooting or for being voice activated light stands and vice versa. We decided it was Steve’s turn to get on the other side of the lens. That day occurred on the last day of the year December 31st. Steve is the man behind Creative Monkey Studios. His art and passion is very dark and sort of scary and I set out to capture that in photos of him. We headed out to the local graffiti wall in Salem to serve as the background.

Even with all the scary and darkness to Steve he is a really nice guy and is a very calm and level headed. He is a great asset the local community. He takes photos for the Humane Society and has really kept Salem Photo, the local photography group, up and running. 


]]>Mountain Bikinghttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2011/12/27/mountain-biking.htmlMichael Conkey2011-12-28T01:08:07Z2011-12-28T01:08:07ZMy brother invited me out to take some photos of him and his buddy as long as I worked on the trail too. We drove to the top of the trails and loaded up my old bike with photo gear and we were off. I took the "easy" trail while they raced ahead to a meeting point. After the meeting point it was a short ride to our first set up. After a few pictures I knew today was going to be a good day. The "portrait" shots are actually my lighting test that turned out pretty cool! To see the rest of the set click here

]]>11-05-11 Run Wild Adventures Half Marathon @ Silver Falls State Parkhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2011/11/12/11-05-11-run-wild-adventures-half-marathon-silver-falls-stat.htmlMichael Conkey2011-11-12T21:29:26Z2011-11-12T21:29:26ZThis year marks my third year taking photos for Run Wild Adventures running events. The season starts off with the biggest race of the year, Silverfalls State Park Half Marathon.  Next year there will an option to do a FULL Marathon! This year I've stepped things up and added mulitple lights to get a cool side lighted effect. Interested in running? Check out Run Wild Adventures and sign up today, running events often sell out months in advance! To see more more photos and to purchase go to the Gallery

]]>09-13-11 Alex's First Day of Schoolhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2011/9/15/09-13-11-alexs-first-day-of-school.htmlMichael Conkey2011-09-15T18:56:10Z2011-09-15T18:56:10ZThe first day of school is such an amazing day; I remember mine very clearly over 20 years ago. I tagged along for Alex’s first day in order to document this special occasion. Alex’s mother, Irma, told me that she bet Alex felt like a movie star, having her own paparazzi since I was constantly clicking away on their journey to school. I was impressed how brave she was; she didn’t cry and seemed to not even care that she was going to be left there with essentially a bunch of strangers. 

]]>Cindy and Tonyhttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2011/8/30/cindy-and-tony-1.htmlMichael Conkey2011-08-31T04:16:08Z2011-08-31T04:16:08ZWedding season is in full swing here in Oregon and I recently had the opportunity to take photos for Cindy and Tony's special day. Not many people are aware, but the state fairgrounds have a wonderful garden and facility for such occasion. The venue provided shade for most of the audience on the hot day, which was great, however the Bride and Groom had the big spot light in the sky shining on them. Besides the nice shade guest were also entertained by some traditional Filipino dances and encouraged to test their skills. Overall the ceremony was simple, but enjoyable with just the right amount of formality and lightheartedness all wrapped together.

]]>HDR Logginghttp://www.nine22.com/blog/2011/7/17/hdr-logging.htmlMichael Conkey2011-07-18T04:53:19Z2011-07-18T04:53:19ZWhile camping in eastern Oregon (see previous post) tehre was some logging tractors up there being used to thin out the forest. The area has been ravaged by wild fires recently and this thinning is designed to help prevent them from occuring.
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