Wind Farmer

A North Iowa farmer stands with two of his valuable crops, the wind and corn. Iowa ranks third in the country for wind power generation and first in the nation for corn and ethanol production. Call it green, renewable or food, but either way farmers are stewards of the land that continue to protect our environment.

Crop Duster

John Newton, a pilot for Air Advantage in Mt. Pleasant, stands in front of his Ag-Cat airplane at the Ottumwa, IA airport. Newton was flying his 450 hp plane close to the ground while delivering his payload of grass seed and wildflower seed along the ditches of a four-lane highway.

Bacardi Heaven

Raymond the bartender at the Bacardi Rum Factory in San Juan Puerto Rico stands at the bar with the tools of his trade. Raymond did an excellent job of telling a group of tourist exactly how to make the best-mixed drinks with Bacardi products.

Welcome to the 1800's

Jim Boeke the proprieter of River Junction Trade Company pauses for a portrait. Boeke has owned River Junction Trade Company since 1973. The company makes authentic reproductions of mid-1800's clothing. His clothing has been used for a long list of movies including: 3:10 to Yuma, Deadwood and Open Range.

Tattoo You

Bradie O'Neal contemplates the new addition to her tattoo that stretches across her back and down her arm as Craig "Knappy" Fogle co-owner of Mid Air Ink and Tattoo in Des Moines, IA focuses on his work.

Leap of faith

Maggie and Kevin Steinkamp leap from bales of harvested corn husks at their farm near Wall Lake, Iowa.

Wonder Woman

As seen on the streets of New York City.

Peyton

A girl holds an apple during a photo shoot at a local orchard.

California Cowboy

Rodeo Cowboy

Fuzzy

Fuzzy is a custom pin stripe painter during the Sturgis rally.

Pie Lady

The Pie Lady takes a break from baking long enough to show off her holiday selections of pies and other baked goods. Tis the season to get your fresh baked pies!

Milo

Portrait of a farmer near Milo, IA that works with cattle at his country farm from sun up to sun down and can't imagine a better life.

Atkinson

A farmer watches the action at a local hay sale in Northeast Iowa.

Optimo Hatworks

A worker poses by a hat he was working on in the Optimo Custom Hatworks shop located in Bisbee, AZ. Grant Sergott and other workers at Optimo Custom Hatworks use fine hand-woven straws from Ecuador to make custom hand formed and finished hats. They use beaver, cashmere, hare and rabbit to make felt hats that can cost as much as $2500.

One Light

Caitlyn, a model, poses for photographers during the One Light photography seminar in Arizona.

Livestock Farmer

Joe Burgermeier stands on a hilltop over looking his pasture ground with his herd of cattle in Iowa.

Dan & Jesse

Dan Backer (deceased) stops for a quick portrait with his dog Jesse after a therapy session at Child Serve in Johnston, IA. Backer trained Jesse to be a therapy dog through Delta Society an organization that specializes in the human animal health connection. Backer started with Delta Society after his wife died. Dan and Jesse help people that are dealing with mental and physical disabilities.

Hamburger Inn

Pamela Miranda, a waitress at French's Hamburger Inn a 1930's roadside restraunt in Bloomfield, IA stops for a quick portrait. Every year for the restraunts anniversary in December the owners sell nickle hamburgers on tea rolls. Miranda has worked at the restraunt for six months.

Master Boiler

Jim Ludeking, a master boiler operator at Sugar Bush Maple Syrup farm, stands by the evaporator that turns maple sap into syrup through a process that removes impurities. Ludeking has been running the boiler for 20 years near Castilla in Northeast Iowa.

Marilyn Adams

Marilyn Adams, the founder of Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, holds a model showing how quickly children can become trapped in flowing grain. Adam's safety efforts landed her the title of "America's Greatest Hometown Hero" from Volvo. Adams lost her son years ago in a grain bin accident on their family farm in rural Iowa.

Mump

Scott Mumper stands in his tattoo studio called the Asylum in Ames, IA Thursday May 8. Mump had just finished an arm tattoo when I asked him for a quick portrait.

Tyler Salvage and Charlie

Tyler and his chocolate lab Charlie take a break after some warm up laps in the dock dog competition in Vail, Colorado.

Deanna Reger

Deanna Reger, owner of Three Sisters Pies displays several of her handmade fine edibles at the Millersvile Farmers Market.

Bar U Ranch

Mathilda Rochette at the Bar U Ranch in Alberta, Canada. Rochette with little prior experience in roping had the art almost perfected by the end of the day.

Bar U Cowboy

Kim Anton pauses for a portrait at the Bar U Ranch in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains near Calgary in Alberta, Canada.

Peggy Sue's

Michael Jackley stands at the door of Peggy Sue's cafe in Mt. Ayr, Iowa recently. Jackley was sweeping the floor while getting ready to close up for the night. The cafe specializes in shakes and burgers with a bee bop twist of course.

Best Tenderloin!

Ben Halperin, co-owner of the Augusta Restaurant in Oxford, IA, holds the breaded pork tenderloin that was named the Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin in Iowa for 2009.

Julie

Julie enjoys a smoke on the sidewalk next to her shop in Old San Juan Puerto Rico on a beautiful January day. Local merchants were preparing their stores for a cruise ship that was arriving later that day bringing tourists ready to buy souvenirs.

Mallorca

Juan, a waiter at Mallorca in San Juan, Puerto Rico, presents a cup of coffee last week at the cafe on San Fransico Street. Thousands of people enjoy what has been called the best coffee in Puerto Rico in this small cafe that has been open for 65 years.

Alnaldo

Alnaldo, a waiter at Toro Salao a restaurant in Old San Juan, waits in the doorway after they finished their lunch crowd.

Ice cream man

Mariano Aponte stands by his faithful ford truck recently while working his Piragua route in the countryside of southern Puerto Rico. Peragua is ice shavings scrapped from a solid block of ice and then placed in a funnel and then doused with flavored syrup.

Sheep Shearer

Ian pauses for a moment between his duties as a sheep shearer at a farm near Grundy Center, IA. Ian, a full-time Sheep Shearer, is booked daily to shear sheep across the state. In a week Bennett will shear about 800 sheep. Shearing is a very physically demanding job that takes strength and endurance. Part of his work ritual is to do a series of stretching exercises before he starts to help his body cope with the hard work. Bennett loves the work and said he meets a lot of great people from across the Midwest.

Soda Fountain

Erika holds a cherry float behind the counter of Penn Drug in Sidney, IA. Penn drug is a family owned drug store that has been open since 1863. Today the store offers great ice cream treats from a 1950's era soda fountain in a building with a great story.

Farmer

David Van Rheenen of Pleasantville, IA stands in a field near his home. Farmers have been dealing with wet conditions this spring while trying to get their corn and soybean crops planted.

Wild Wild West

Jim Boeke the proprieter of River Junction Trade Company pauses for a portrait. Boeke has owned River Junction Trade Company since 1973. The company makes authentic reproductions of mid-1800's clothing. His clothing has been used for a long list of movies including: 3:10 to Yuma, Deadwood and Open Range.

Gunfighter

Kevin Johnson of Mason City levels his pistols and prepares to unleash certain fury. Johnson is a member of the Cedar Valley Regulators, a cowboy action shooting group of Old West reenactors in eastern Iowa. "Everybody wants to be a cowboy," Johnson said. "It's just about the simple life of the old days." The group takes part in shooting events using authentic or replica firearms from the 1800's. Some of the members of the club have weapon collections valued at $50,000. They are judged on their precision and quickness against a wide range of targets.

Awesome Mike Dawson

Mike Dawson a professional kayaker from New Zealand pauses for a portrait after winning the Steep Creek competition at the Teva Mountain Games in Vail, CO. You can find out more about Mike here: http://mikekayak.blogspot.com/

Yoga Slackers

Sam Salwei the founding member of Yogaslackers pauses for a portrait on a slackline at the Teva Mountain Games in Vail, Co. Salwei is one of five members of a group that provides many different types of yoga instruction along with climbing expeditions and adventure racing. You can find out more about him and his company at www.yogaslackers.com