Trying Something New

So, I'm still playing around with the website stuff and while I'm not ditching the current site, I am trying out other things. One of those things is a Wordpress-based site. Check it out and let me know what you think. Which do you like better? Suggestions for either?

Slowly but surely

The new website is coming along. I've been re-working the look and layout of the site as well as playing around with some logo ideas. It's hard to be original without being distracting when it comes to log design so expect to see quite a few drafts. I'm also still getting the hang of web design, especially CSS so you'll likely still see some layout changes but overall I'm pretty happy with the new look.

Please let me know what you think and feel free to offer suggestions for improvement.

I only have three albums posted right now but you can expect to see the rest fill up soon.

Colin has a real website

So, after discussing with my girlfriend, I decided to make my own website to showcase my photography and, hopefully, eventually sell some stuff. I did a little research and discovered that I could purchase a domain name and host for about 60 bucks for the whole year which is pretty damn good. So I did it.

Please keep in mind that it is in the very very rough draft stage right now and I have very little content on the site. I'm also not quite sure how I feel about the overall look and layout but I just wanted to get something up there so I did it quick and dirty. Expect many changes.

Let me know what you think: Colin Reusch Photography.

The Prettiest Girl I Know

This is my new favorite. I took it at the butterfly show a couple of months ago, one of the first chances I had to try out my new camera, and I wasn't satisfied with it until I made it black and white, at which point the true beauty of her eye really showed itself.

Horses without names

Here are some recent shots of horses I took with my 50D. Unfortunately, these are not horses that I named. Enjoy.

Leon, "The Jesus Guy"

Leon has been standing at a major intersection in Richmond for months now, holding a sign warning of the second coming of Christ. He stands there all day with his sign secured firmly in a flag holder, working the traffic lights in hopes of saving some helpless souls.

At first I simply scoffed at him, labeling him crazy zealot but after seeing him day after day I began to admire his dedication. I also decided that he would make a great subject for some candid portraits so I set off yesterday evening to see if he would let me photograph him.

I bought him a Gatorade, thinking that he had to be hot and tired from standing in the summer heat all day long. At first he tried to pay me for the drink, telling me that he does not preach for money, food, or drink but I insisted that it was simply a gift from me to him and he agreed to fill his water bottle with it.

I asked him if I could photograph him and told him that my photos would likely be posted on the internet but assured him that I would not use them in a demeaning way and he kindly agreed to let me photograph him at work, telling me that God had given him a message earlier in the week that he needed to use the internet to get his word out.

What I find most intriguing about Leon is that he believes that every action he takes is God's will and claims that he does nothing without first being told by God to do it, including taking a break to go eat at Lee's Famous Recipe down the road. He talked with me for quite some time about his background. He grew up in Lebanon, KY and then moved to Liberty, KY and has preached across the country. At one point he even had a van plastered with signs about Jesus and the Apocalypse that he drove around which he showed me a picture of. He described the persecution he has undergone throughout his journey to preach what he believes is the word of God and I even witnessed some of it first hand when people drove by, yelling obscenities. At one point someone threw garbage at both of us.

Last year, Leon could be seen warning that the end of the world would come before the end of 2008 but on December 31, he claims that he received a message from God, telling him that He had delayed His plans and that the second coming would occur sometime during 2009. So Leon altered his sign and set out to spread the word.

I certainly don't agree with most of the things Leon said but he seems to have a good heart and means no harm to anyone. I don't share his beliefs but I am grateful that he let me photograph him and am thankful for the experience. At one point, I even got to hold the sign while he filled up his water bottle.

Raging Torrent

As per my friend Kristen's Request, I am posting some shots taken with my new Canon 50D. I took these a few weeks ago when I was driving around before a big storm. I saw this waterfall which is usually pretty tame but had swollen considerably due to heavy rains. The water was roaring and it looked like chocolate milk so I spent about a half an hour photographing it. Enjoy.

Big South Fork is BIG

This past weekend, my girlfriend and I did a little backpacking in Big South Fork, a huge recreational area straddling Kentucky and Tennessee, maintained by the National Park Service. This place is wild and beautiful. If you've never been, I highly suggest taking a trip there. We got to see some wild parts of the Cumberland River, huge cliffs, beautiful waterfalls, a giant dragonfly, and we were treated to wild blueberries all along the trail.

Here are a few photos from our trip. Again, I was afraid to bring my new camera with me so I took along my trusty point and shoot but got some good shots nonetheless.

Photos from the Gorge - Summer 2009

Well, it's been forever since I've posted anything but I think it's time to get back into the swing of displaying some photos. I recently received a Canon 50D as a graduation present so I'll be posting some shots I've taken with that.

These photos are from a recent camping trip to the Red River Gorge. I took them with my little point and shoot camera though because I was too nervous to bring along my new toy.

The first three photos are long exposures taken up on Half Moon Rock at night not too long after the sun went down. I like them because the long exposure made the moon look like the sun. The next few are of Creation Falls near Rock Bridge where we went swimming. I didn't have a tripod so we placed a flat rock on a fallen tree over the water (that made me nervous) which is why they aren't exactly straight. Enjoy.

Skipping large rocks

Lindsey and I took a trip up to the family farm where I spent a ridiculous amount of time skipping rocks in the stream. I was very pleased with my ability to skip rocks that seem "unskippable" so I had Lindsey take some video of my abilities. Unfortunately, I didn't do as well on camera as I had been doing beforehand but you should get the idea.

Apple Picking

Lindsey and I took a trip to Boyd's Orchard in Versailles, KY on Saturday for some good ole' fashion apple picking and cider drinking. We were surprised and elated to find that there was also a petting zoo with goats, pigs, horses, sheep, and turkeys. On our way out, I stopped to photograph a thoroughbred who decided to urinate for my picture which we both found hilarious.

New River Gorge

I went whitewater rafting on the Upper Gauley this past weekend and though I didn't take any photos while rafting, we did visit the overlook at the New River Gorge visitor center where you get a pretty spectacular view of both the river and the bridge which just happens to be the world's longest spanning steel arch bridge. Anyway, I took a couple of shots from the overlook so here they are.

More Adventure Race Photos

Random Photos

I haven't posted anything for a while so here are just a few random photos I've taken over the years.

Cumberland Gap

Last week, my girlfriend and I did a little bit of backpacking and camping in the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park on the border between Kentucky and Virginia. The weather was perfect, the park was beautiful, and the trails were straight up. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

As you can see, the crickets were huge, the deer were friendly, and the skinks were docile.

I lose.

When I told my mom about my encounter with the praying mantis and the photo I had posted on my blog, she responded by saying it couldn't be cooler than her praying mantis photo. She was correct.

More wedding photos

I'm pretty sure that's an alien

I found this baby praying mantis in my house and I just had to take some photos of him. I couldn't believe how calm he was just sitting on my hand and at times I could swear he was looking me right in the eyes.

Canon EOS 40D / f5.6 / 1/160

Colin does a wedding

This is a shot from my first wedding which was this past weekend.

Canon EOS 40D / f5.6 / 1/80

Emotions, Lindsey and Colin style

My girlfriend and I, who just so happen to be awesome at making faces, decided to make our own version of those emotion-of-the-day refrigerator magnets. This is the result of our hard work.

If you are interested in having a magnet of your own, please contact me and we can discuss a price. The dimensions of the magnets are 8.25" x 10.75" and include a magnetic "selector" for designating the emotion of the day.