I was very moved, flattered and ecstatic the other day when my friend Kelly, from La Crosse Photography gave me a shout and asked me to join her on a very special and important photo shoot. Saturday was her photo shoot for the Stellar TNT MONSTER TRUCK CALENDAR! All the proceeds go to the Breast Cancer Society - so it was something especially near and dear to me and meant the world to me to be able to be a part of, because my mother is an 8 yr THRIVER of stage 4 breast cancer herself. So even still a few days after, I am still misty eyed over things. Plus as an added bonus, I got to spend the day with two of my favorite BFFs - Miss Kathy & Miss Kelly on some of the most breathtaking scenery (aka Kathys Home), enjoy great company & food and hang out with some super fantastic Fur-Babies! It also meant the world to me that Kelly trusted me to work hard & take the shots needed while she was busy concentrating on other tasks at hand. Kelly is a truly amazing friend and on top of the usual really great gal pal things she does daily, she also encourages & teaches me as I walk my journey as a photographer. If I have any question no matter how insanely silly or repeated, she patiently walks me through the steps time and time again. It takes a stellar friend & amazing photographer to do that. Miss Kathy is a truly inspiring person and I adore getting to spend time hanging out with her. She inspires all of us that our dreams can all come true and we can do anything with a little skill and hard work! Even become the only female monster truck driver in Canada, a sport dominated by men. She fights for those with breast cancer which is also inspiring. She could paint her truck a number of colors and not even worry about doing it for a great cause, but she does paint it pink camo and inspires those fighting cancer, that they too can CRUSH it, because she is inspired by all the thrivers & fighters out there and their families. It always amazes me when people tell Kathy how much she inspires them. She just shakes her head and has no idea why she does or could, because what inspires her is all the people coming up to her that are thrivers & fighters telling her their stories. It takes an amazing woman to do all that!
We arrived just after 1pm and it was hot but not too hot and had a nice breeze and it was just one of those incredibly perfect summer prairie days! Kathy looked fantabulous (as usual) and we had our pre battle meeting and then got unpacked in what we called "the media only area". It was nice and cool, which was great because not only would we need cooling down through the day, but so would our equipment! We unloaded quickly and got the chance to meet all of the wonderful people there for the shoot who all greeted us warmly!
This is me meeting Mister Shooter the horse, whom I'd be shooting alot of through the day. He was very sad I had no carrots & wouldn't let him eat the camera ha ha but he was very patient with the camera and let me play, pet and photograph him throughout the day. Shooter has a sense of humor and is a little stud muffin. Thank you so much Kelly for this amazing photo!
Kelly having a snuggle moment with the other fantastic horse I got to shoot, Mr Beau. Such a little doll he is! Sweet & Gentle is Mr Beau.
After some fun getting to know everyone, we started to get to work as Ged pulled the trucks out into the field to set up for the first round of photos!
Ged driving TNT into position for photos. He propped up Sheer Insanity on TNTs tires, and it was incredible!
We did the first round of photos, Kellys job was focusing on the shots that would be used in the calendar itself. As second shooter, my job was to collect shots of the Furbabies, as well as Outtakes/Making of the Shots photos & of course Candids of the BBQ going on thru the afternoon. Of course I also took the opportunity to shoot the stellar scenery every chance I got as well. It was hot and we were all sticky in no time flat so we all ended up taking some time to cool down & have some fun while the temps started to ease up a bit and Ged rearranged the trucks for another round. We got to eat some STELLAR food and enjoy some great tunes & company and were all feeling more recharged and ready to rock after supper ended!
Kelly with her new bff who followed her around like glue lol She took her over to visit with Beau who really wanted to play with the Camera.
Ive never photographed little ones this age before and this sweetie was a treat! She was a ham and followed us everywhere we went lol
Mister Cody the master of the stick! He was taking a stick fetching break underneath Sheer Insanity with Mister Shadow.
Even the pups needed a break to beat the heat. Here is Mister Shadow hiding under Sheer Insanity for his break from taking photos.
When we got down to work for the second set we hit with cameras blazing! Its not often that the trucks are all ready & tired up except for a show - so this was a real treat and we all took the opportunity to get as many shots as possible in while we could! Kathy was such a great sport we had her very twisted and contorted and cussing us something fierce, but the photos we got were simply priceless! There was a lot of laughter while we worked poor Kathy into odd angles & perched her on top of tires in high heels and Kelly perched on the ladder.
Pull back shot of Kelly & Kathy working on some shots for the Calendar. Kelly is the one up high on that ladder and Kathy is the one hiding behind TNTs driver side window.
I love this shot of miss Kathy - I was taking out takes so was at a different angle than Kelly, who was standing to my left for the shot. But I love the pride, joy & strength on Kathys face as she sits on TNT - right above the phrase that brings tears to my eyes each time I see it. "Together We can CRUSH Breast Cancer"
My funniest and one of my most favorite shots of the night! Kelly was to my left trying to get a specific shot for the calendar. Now keep in mind that cab does NOT have very much room inside it and let me tell you how either of us could keep the cameras steady enough to shoot I do not know because it was a hilarious moment that kept us all in fits of laughter the rest of the evening! Thank you miss Kathy for being such a great sport!
Eventually we ended up finishing a long 10 hr day of photos with a breathtaking sunset, a blood red moon & a thunderstorm on the horizon that we got to watch as we slowly packed up our gear to head home again. We got to sit down again before heading home and enjoy some fun & laughter and cool down again and just relax (without our gear lol) We made it without any bee stings (which Kelly is deadly allergic to), snake bites (they live in the coulees lol) I did trip over the pelican case which was neon yellow at one point but thankfully the point of the case is that you can drive a tank over it and the gear stays safe, but it did create alot of laughter.
The sun starting to set in Kathys yard - miles of prairie grasses & coulees in the middle of no where!
Kelly and I hoped and prayed for a killer sunset and were not disappointed!
The end of a very long day - TNT & Sheer Insanity sit in the dusk waiting for the next show to begin again.
A very special and heartfelt thank you to everyone who was there that were so patient with us while we did our shoot & welcomed us with open arms; to Kelly for inviting me along & trusting in me to take the shots she needed while she focused on other items; and to Kathy & Ged for opening up their home & arms to us! I had an amazingly beautiful, fun & amazing day! And it truly is one Ill not forget!
Please be sure to check out Kellys Blog Post about our shoot HERE, her photos taken for the shoot on her website HERE and be sure to check out her fan page & contact her for information HERE if you are interested in pre-ordering a calendar!
Also please be sure to check out Kathys website HERE - she does have a page for you to share your story if you are a family member of or are a breast cancer survivor or in memory of one lost - they are what keeps miss Kathy inspired - so be sure to share them with her! You can also check out whats going on and where Sheer Insanity & TNT will be going to next on their fan page HERE!
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