The Pinhole

Not long until NWA is completely underground

2009-04-13T09:34:00.000-07:00

Photo: Thomas Whisenand Photography

Took this photo over the weekend near MSP. The tail on the right is actually just landing while the one on the left is waiting for departure. NWA is now owned by Delta and it is only a matter of time until these read tails will be red, white, and blue.

Another day at the office

2009-04-10T08:36:00.000-07:00

Photo: Thomas Whisenand

Here is another photograph from a project that I am working on for Town Hall Brewery in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Brewmaster Mike Hoops has just finished mashing-in while brewing a Hefeweizen.

A beery good shoot

2009-03-25T17:57:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Thomas Whisenand Photography

I dumped a lot of good beer down the drain on Monday as I photographed a local brewery's line-up of beers for their advertising and website. Very challenging stuff, beverage photography. Too bad I started at 7:30 a.m., I might have been a little thirstier later in the day.

Lots of hoops

2009-03-21T17:41:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Pioneer Press

Caledonia High School celebrates their Class A semifinal victory as Jordan High School walks off the court dejected at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on Friday, March 20, 2009.

Living the High Life

2009-03-02T06:24:00.000-08:00

Photo by Thomas Whisenand

A not too untypical scene in Superior, Wisconsin, U.S.A.

Paradise

2009-02-04T07:10:00.000-08:00

Photo/Thomas Whisenand

Shot this while sitting on the beach in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico last week.

Sun near the border

2009-01-18T14:58:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand

An inversion. Foggy in the valley and clear on top of the mountain. Whitefish Mountain Resort, Whitefish, Montana.

Cocoa Coconut

2008-12-02T13:16:00.000-08:00

Photo/Thomas Whisenand

Cocoa Beach, Florida after a thunderstorm passed.

Beach of a time

2008-11-26T12:44:00.000-08:00

Photo: Thomas Whisenand

Just a snap shot from my Thanksgiving vacation in Florida.

Fashion and Old Fashioned

2008-11-21T16:00:00.000-08:00

First-off, I have been a slug of a person for the past year and not posting on this blog has been the least of my general laziness. Nonetheless here it is, maybe it is a new beginning.

ABOVE: New York fashion designer Richard Tyler at the unveiling of his latest line.. Delta Airlines Flight Attendant uniforms. Everybody has to pay the bills and the clothes looked pretty good to a simple guy like me.

PHOTOS: Thomas Whisenand/Pioneer Press

I spent the afternoon out at the home of UFC Heavy Weight Champion Brock Lesnar. Kelly Gustafson, at left in the above photo, shot a 27-point buck in southern Minnesota and named it after Lesnar. Her and her husband got invited out to Lesnar's place in the West metro for a meet and greet. Lesnar was a super stand-up guy. Low-key, down to earth, funny, and genuinely interested in the Gustafsons. The second photo is Lesnar's latest trophy sitting in his garage.

A good week

2007-08-30T11:57:00.000-07:00

THOMAS WHISENAND/Star Tribune

Here is a batch of photos from this week. The first two were taken in the Al Amal Muslim School in Fridley. It was a really fun place to shoot because the staff and students were all really friendly and welcoming.

The third photo is of Air Guitar champion Cami Phillippi showing off some of her moves in here Minneapolis garage.

We all scream

2007-08-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

THOMAS WHISENAND/Star Tribune

Here is a recent feature from the Cup and Cone ice cream stand in White Bear Lake.

Bridge down

2007-08-03T09:49:00.000-07:00

THOMAS WHISENAND/Star Tribune

I got back into my car at about 6:15 pm after shooting a portrait in Eden Prairie and turned on the radio to listen to the Twins pre-game. Instead I head the grim news of the bridge collapse and immediately set off for Minneapolis driving a bit faster than normal. When I finally arrived mush of the scene was being sealed off from the public and after jogging from place to place and working up a pretty good sweat I managed to make the photograph above. I was buried in the Star Tribune but according to a couple of my friends the photo made its' way onto the fronts of a number of daily newspapers.

Cow water

2007-07-28T09:56:00.000-07:00

THOMAS WHISENAND/Star Tribune

Its fair season in Minnesota and this young lady worked up a pretty good thirst from all of the excitement. I'm not sure if the water is potable or not.

Autism

2007-06-29T10:54:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune

This is a photo of Jack Larson, 3. He was diagnosed with Autism at an early age. His mother recently lobbied the city of Andover, Minn., to erect signs in her neighborhood alerting drivers that an autistic child lived in the area. The city eventually agreed.

Section Champions

2007-06-06T14:53:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune

This is a photo from a baseball game earlier today. Sorry about the lack of posts over the past few weeks. I have been having problems with my server but now all of the problems have been resolved.

Rainy day golf.

2007-05-11T08:59:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune

Century Community College freshman Kelly Gordh [cq] is heading to Daytona Beach, Florida for the National Junior College Athletic Association National Women’s Golf Tournament this week.

Pole Vaulter's Eye View

2007-04-27T09:25:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune

No, I haven't grown ten feet. This photo was made by mounting my camera on the end of a pole vaulting pole which I then triggered with wireless remotes. It worked and I didn't drop the camera on anyone.

A Man of Music

2007-04-22T15:29:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune

Softball and Bears

2007-04-13T11:50:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune
This is Jennny Kaminski and she is a starting softball pitcher for Concordia University in St. Paul.

This is a black bear at a conservation and education center called the Wildlife Science Center in Forest Lake, Minn. I shot this photo for a story about black bear encounters in the north metro. The bears at the center were mostly former pets. Yes, pets.

A leap and a bound

2007-04-04T11:49:00.001-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune Hello. I am sorry that my postings have been a bit sporadic lately. You get a real job, the paychecks start rolling in, and soon after, laziness hits. What can I say? Its the truth. I took the above photo while photographing a story about a city's plans to start getting their drinking water from the mighty Mississippi River. Perhaps this photo is a stretch for the story, but the river is in the photo and the squirrel is only a few feet away from where the water is pumped into the treatment units. I have also posted the PDF of the front page from this issue so those of you who are unfamiliar with the paper I am working for can get a look. Click on the thumbnail below.

Speaking for the dead

2007-03-13T19:15:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenannd/Star Tribune

Anoka County Medical Examiner Janis Amatuzio performed an autopsy in the Mercy Hospital morgue in Coon Rapids last week. The county is building a new medical examiner headquarters featuring state-of-the-art equipment and much more space. It’s slated to open in late 2008.

Last week I was afforded an opportunity to be present during an autopsy and photograph the medical examiner doing her work. The Anoka County Medical Examiners Office is going to be expanding into a larger and more advanced facility in the future so I thought it was a good opportunity to go where very few people, that are at least breathing, are permitted to go. Their job as Dr. Amatuzio puts it is, "To speak for the dead".

Interference

2007-03-06T15:57:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune
Shot two high school hockey games in their entirty last Friday night. The old rule applies, if you stand around long enough something cool will happen and you wont be eating a donut.

Hoops

2007-03-06T15:55:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune
Here is a different look at a HS basketball practice.

Bring your ear plugs

2007-02-20T11:19:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune The above photos are from the Minnesota State High School Danceline Tournament at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. I have been working at the Star Tribune for about month now and despite having only posted to my blog twice things are going very well. I have been busy reestablishing my life in the Twin Cities and getting used to the idea of working all of the time with little vacation. My position here at the newspaper affords me a lot of freedom in what I photograph and how it is used in the paper. I will try to establish more of a routine of posting to this blog so stay tuned.

Its official, I have a job!

2007-01-25T16:58:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Star Tribune
Good news. I was recently hired at the Star Tribune to work as a photojournalist in their North Suburban bureau. This is great news considering that all of the other papers that have job openings are in towns that don't appear on most maps. More to come.

Arctic air

2006-12-08T13:55:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
Some people down here in Florida refer to the weather we are having right now as an Arctic blast... Its 55 degrees and sunny outside. Of course people like myself and the Canadian woman pictured above enjoy this type of weather. Also pictured above is glass artist Ulli Kampelmann.

Mr., and Mrs. Claus

2006-12-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
East Bay Nursing Center resident Marsha Greenland, 60, is overjoyed as she is greeted by Mrs. Santa Claus, Doris Dress, and her husband Santa Claus, Bernie Dress at the nursing center in Largo on Monday, December 4. The Dress' and other members of the St. Catherine's Outreach Group handed-out gifts to the residents of the nursing center in celebration of Christmas.

My 100th blog post

2006-11-30T08:25:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
Hello friends. This is my 100th blog post since I established this site when I was traveling abroad in 2005. So have a look through the archives and please keep visiting.

Melissa Rosselli, 19, of Oldsmar carefully picks up a stack of shoes that she had grabbed off the shelves at the Rack Room in Coutryside Mall during an 86-second shopping spree on Thursday, November 30. Rosselli won the shopping spree in an annual random drawing that the store held to celebrate its 86th anniversary. Rosselli, who wears a size nine, was able to gather roughly $276.00 worth of shoes.

Up-hill both ways

2006-11-29T07:10:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
These are a couple out-takes from an assignment this morning. The school district is eliminating school bus service for a neighborhood that is comprised mostly of hispanic families. When the bus service stops the elementary schoolers will face about a two-mile walk to school along a busy road that runs through one of Clearwater's roughest areas. Many of the families don't have drivers licenses or cars because of their illegal status in the country so driving the kids to school is not an option.

Still skating despite blindness and old age.

2006-11-21T12:14:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
These are photos of Hugh Pope, 88, at an ice rink in Clearwater, Fla. Pope was a professional figure skater in the '30s and '40s as well as a professional tennis player. Today he has retired in St. Petersburg, Fla., where he still skates despite being legally blind.

Dear Minnesota, it is still green down here.

2006-11-16T10:20:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
This is a photo from a story about a nice little park in a town called Dunedin. It is a palm leaf. This is the most exciting post commentary ever isn't it?

Ironman World Championship

2006-11-13T07:42:00.000-08:00

Rudy Garcia-Tolson paused at waters-edge for the National Anthem before the start of the 2006 Ironman World Championship 70.3 in Clearwater on Saturday, November 11. Garcia-Tolson lost both of his legs in childhood as a result of multiple congenital birth defects.

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
Spent my Saturday on the back of a BMW motorcycle zooming around Pinellas County photographing the Ironman World Championship triathlon. Here are a few photos from the day.

Retired to the Putting Green

2006-11-10T10:45:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
You know you are a photojournalist in Florida when your first assignment of the day is to photograph the opening of a new putting green at a retirement community.

Joy ride

2006-11-09T11:51:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand | St. Petersburg Times
Kristine Hoffmann, 17, of Dunedin, held on tightly to Curtis Seitzer, 18, of Crystal Beach as they began their decent down the Pinellas Trail over-pass north of Curlew Road in Palm Harbor on Thursday, November 9. Seitzer said that since he recently crashed his car he has been picking up Hoffmann on his bike when they want to go somewhere.

1906 AD: Thelma Jenkins Mangus College born and Cornflakes invented.

2006-11-06T11:14:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
I photographed the birthday party for Thelma Jenkins Mangus College born today, November 6, in the year of 1906. In that year the dow closed above 100 for the first time, England ruled 1/5 of the world, the San Francisco earthquake killed nearly 4,000 and destroyed 75% of the city, and of course Cornflakes were invented by William Kellogg.

In the line of fire

2006-11-03T11:57:00.000-08:00

Fire fighters remove a man that was injured in a crash with a police crusier.
A police officer takes cover behind MY CAR!
Police officers prepare to raid the house.
The feature I shot before all of the chaos.
Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
I had an action packed day. After shooting a quick feature at a Masonic Lodge yard sale I went back to the office where I was distracted by a lot of clatter on the police scanner. Sirens, roaring car engines, and frantic voices gave me more than a hint that something significant was going on. It was a high-speed chase that resulted in a police cruiser smashing into an elderly man's car and the suspects getting away. Later when I was back at the office and getting ready to get some lunch there was more clatter on the scanner. They were getting ready to search a residence for the suspects so I hopped in my Jeep and cruised over to the neighborhood to have a look. I parked on what appeared to be a quiet street and while I was getting my a 400mm lens out of the trunk I noticed about five police officers armed with M-16's standing across the street one making it obvious with his hand that I needed to get the hell out of Dodge. So I scurried across another street and took cover behind a large concrete mailbox and watched the situation unfold. One officer decided that my Jeep would make for good cover while the others moved in on the house. After pounding on the door a man emerged and he looked really scared. The police briefly questioned him and let him go. Quite a day.

Bed of flames

2006-11-02T15:36:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
Esco, 88, left, and Marna Sampson, 86, look out of their seventh floor apartment in the Prospect Towers retirement complex at the swarm of fire trucks, rescue vehicles, and police cars that converged on the seventeen-floor high rise in response to a mattress fire on the twelfth floor of the building in Clearwater on Thursday, November 2. Marna Sampson said that they had never seen anything like this in their 66 years of marriage and that she thought it was pretty scary that there was a fire in the building. Building maintenance supervisor Roberto Duglas said that there had never been a fire in the the building's 36 year history until today and that he estimates the damage to be between 10 and 15 thousand dollars. According to Duglas the 69 year-old male occupant of the twelfth floor apartment had fallen asleep in bed with a lit cigarette which ignited the bed. According to Duglas the man continued to sleep in the bed, despite the flames, until a fire-sprinkler above the bed was activated by the heat of the fire.

PGA 2

2006-10-30T06:32:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
Just finished shooting four days of a PGA tournament. Here is the winner, K.J. Choi.

PGA

2006-10-27T13:05:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
This is from the PGA Chrysler Championship. Its a Fox Squirrel and Vijay Singh.

Miami 2

2006-10-23T07:56:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
Sorry about the lack of posts lately. I have been working on a lang-term photo story about a hip-hop group that is trying to make it in the big time. They found an entrepreneur that owns a telemarketing business of all things to fund them and try to open some doors. Last week I spent about a week in South Beach, Miami while they recorded a few songs at South Beat Records. More to come.

Miami

2006-10-20T16:21:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand-St. Petersburg Times

Only in Florida

2006-10-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
I took this photo today but the Minnesota Twins lost. What a bummer.
CAPTION: A unidentified motorcyclist takes a look at a coffin as he rides past Anclote Metal Recycling in Tarpon Springs on Tuesday, October 3. The coffin was dropped off at the business to be recycled but according to owner Annie Hambsch [cq] they couldn't bring themselves to scrap the odd item so they set it outside to turn some heads. Before long it turned the head of an organizer for the annual Bailey's Bluff Haunted House in Tarpon Springs and will now be a part of the haunted house which is open from Friday, October 27 through Tuesday, October 31.

Its Friday but this bird ordered the snake

2006-09-29T14:15:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
Above, what I think is a Laughing Gull grabs what I think is a snake, or eel, or maybe a Gar fish from Tampa Bay. The protestors are screaming about some company that wants to build a crematory 500 feet from their homes.

Its hard to be a crab

2006-09-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
A crab and some fish.

Collision Center

2006-09-26T16:52:00.001-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
CAPTION: A vehicle came to rest upside down near the intersection of US-19 and Republic Drive in Clearwater after it's driver ran a red-light and collided with two cars on Tuesday, September 26. The driver of the upside-down vehicle was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries while the other drivers were checked out at the scene. Accident victim Tim Williams, not pictured, was crossing US-19 on Republic Drive on his way to the bank when a vehicle driving south on US-19 ran through the red light and struck his vehicle, "Before I crossed I looked both ways and didn't see anything, next thing I knew I felt a jolt and then I saw a car flying through the air."

Reunited

2006-09-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
This is a photo of a mother being reunited with her son after he went missing on Clearwater Beach today. Seemed as though he had wandered down the beach without his mother knowing. The police and fire departments were there along with the Coast Guard searching the beach and the water.

Spin cycle

2006-09-21T14:08:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
This guy was doing his laundry and reading a book. I took a picture of him and now he will be in the newspaper.

A bird and a pond.

2006-09-20T11:08:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
These are photos from a story about a storm water holding pond that the city is turning into a nice park. The guys in the water are planting aquatic plants that will help filter out the water before it flows into the Gulf of Mexico.

A tasty assignment

2006-09-19T16:29:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
These photos are from the 2006 Taste of Clearwater in Clearwater, FL. There was lots of good food. I ate some.

Crash and Splash

2006-09-18T12:58:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
A guy drove his car into a pond in Oldsmar, Florida, was rescued by passer-bys, and lived. Why he lost control is still under investigation. Perhaps the empty buds had something to do with it.

Human hurdle

2006-09-15T18:49:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
Today was the end of my third week down here in the Tampa area. I have a very serious farmers tan.

Framing the framer

2006-09-14T13:06:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
CAPTION: Phoebe Chidester, of Clearwater, uses a piece of matte board with a hole cut in it to frame a scene as she paints during a Plein Air Painting class conducted by artist Robin Popp, not pictured, at Heritage Village in Largo Thursday, September 14. Chidester said that she has been painting for 30 years.
This is a photo from an outdoor painting class that I photographed today.

My new friend

2006-09-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times CAPTION: A Gopher Tortoise crosses a road in the 380 acre Mobbly Bayou Preserve in Oldsmar on Wednesday, September 13. According to www.tortoise.org Gopher Tortoises can live more that 40 years. I found this guy on the side of the road snacking on grass while I was out cruising for features today. They are protected in Florida and are rare. They have a similar life span as humans and reach sexual maturity in about the same time as us as well.

Growing new Marines

2006-09-13T07:46:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times This is an outtake from a ceremony to commemorate the attacks on 9-11. They are Junior Marines.

9-11

2006-09-11T16:09:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times
I was a freshman in college on September 11, 2001. I had never had a photo published and I had no idea what I was going to do when I grew up. The photos from that day inspired me to become a photojournalist.

Friday night bad light

2006-09-08T19:55:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times Shooting HS football can be a lot of fun if you can get over shooting by the equivalent of candle light.

Dance, Dance, Dance!

2006-09-07T14:04:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St. Petersburg Times Charlotte Michaels of Clearwater dances with her husband Morris, of 58 years, during the "End of Summer Afternoon Tea Dance" at the Largo Community Center on Thursday, September 7. The community center hosts the Afternoon Tea Dances on Thursdays once a month.

Palm Trees are still a novelty to me.

2006-09-06T07:53:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/St.Petersburg Times After three days of driving, three bags of sun flower seeds, and about three gallons of black French Press coffee I made it to Tampa Bay, Florida and started my internship at the St. Petersburg Times. My first impressions are that this is probably a place where people were not meant to live. There are large reptiles on the sides of the roads, an abundance of sharks in the ocean, and enormous dinosaur looking birds hiding in the bushes. Besides the dangerous wildlife there is a constant fear of hurricanes, serial killers, and democrats. Despite all of this, I kind of like it here.

Snooze

2006-08-04T12:35:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Pioneer Press Gopher football media day. Go Gophers.

Yes, I am still alive.

2006-07-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

I have been really busy and I have not made time to post the photos I have been making. Lets make up for lost time. Here are some photos that I have made at the Pioneer Press over the past few days.

Sorry. Been busy.

2006-06-09T07:47:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Pioneer Press Hello. I have been really busy since I returned from my internship in New Hampshire. As a result I neglected this blog. The man pictured above is Dick Reissner of Hastings. Dick has been a butcher all his life and nearly died a few weeks ago after suffering a heart problem. The truth is that he did die but the doctors brought him back after a number of seconds. He is back at work making swedish sausage and grinding beef.

t- 1 week.

2006-05-07T17:47:00.000-07:00

Larry Elliott of Belmont fly-fishes for trout on the Soucook River in Loudon Sunday afternoon. Elliott was fishing with a friend and said that they had not had any luck despite fishing at multiple locations that day. Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor There is one week left of my internship at the Concord Monitor in NH. So just when I am fluent in the pronunciation of town names like Contoocook, Salisbury, and Henniker it is time to go. I am returning to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul for the summer where I will work part-time at the Pioneer Press before I begin an internship at the St. Petersburg Times in Florida in September.

Fung Wah Bus

2006-04-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I went to New York City for 24-hours last week to do a travel photo-essay on visiting the Big Apple on the cheap.

Last few days

2006-04-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunrise Service. Second Start School for high school drop-outs. Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Here are a couple of photos from the last few days. Thats all that I am going to say because I need to go to shoot an assignment.

Room in the pews

2006-04-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

Finished up a big project this week and will see it published tomorrow (Sunday) on a big color spread in the paper. Working on the story was a lot of fun and I think it will look really good in print. Enjoy.

A turkey of a commute

2006-03-28T08:55:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I was on my way to an early morning assignment near Mt. Sunapee in New Hampshire this morning when a passing car flashed their headlights at me. I figured the person was tipping me off to a speed trap ahead or perhaps some sort of danger over the hill. It turned out to be a single file line of about 15 wild turkeys crossing the road.

!!!!COMICON 2006!!!

2006-03-27T14:28:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I shot this yesterday at the 2006 Granite State Comicon Convention. Spring is in the air and the end of my internship at the Concord Monitor is in sight (May 15).

Her Audrey Hefburn outfit

2006-03-22T08:18:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor New Hampshire state representative Susan Emerson expresses her surprise that one of her fellow representatives had won $9,000 dollars in Las Vegas over the weekend in the hallway outside of the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon. Also pictured is representative Peter Goyette, Jr. I spent all day at the New Hampshire State House yesterday covering a busy legislative day in the House of Representatives. It is a fun place to shoot thanks to the nice light and fairly friendly legislators. While New Hampshire is the fifth smallest states in the Union it boasts one of the largest House of Representatives with 400 members.

All in a day's work

2006-03-20T16:04:00.000-08:00

3:22 p.m. 4:18 p.m. 5:17 p.m. Photos by Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I had an action-packed afternoon. Set off on a short feature hunt before shooting the first day of high school lacrosse practice and then I had to run off to a head-on crash on the interstate.

A rescue that looked like a movie set

2006-03-13T18:08:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Around 6pm today there was a report over the scanner that someone had gone through the ice at a local pond. I jumped in my car and zoomed over there, parked, and moved swiftly onto the scene. It was a five-alarm call and rescuers were already in the water when I arrived. It was dusk and there was thick fog. Mixed with the large flood lights that the fire dept. set up it looked more like a Hollywood movie set than a local park. It turned out that the kid that reportedly fell in made it out before rescuers arrived and went home. Of course the authorities didn't find that out until they had searched the frigid waters for about an hour.

For them, its more than a shelter

2006-03-12T12:22:00.000-08:00

Click "captions" to see more info about each picture. I just completed and saw published a project that I have been working on about a local homeless shelter. I spent about 10 evenings there over the past 2.5 weeks and to say the least, it was a memorable experience. Open from November into March the shelter houses approximately 25 people per night from all walks of life. I hope to add some audio to the above slideshow in the future but for the time being it is silent. I will also put the full story written by staff reporter Sarah Liebowitz online soon as well. Click here to see the print edition -- It may take a moment to load --

Tough loss

2006-03-11T15:45:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Bow's Aaron Phinney, foreground, sits dejected along with the rest of the Bow bench after their loss to Pelham in the Class I State Championship game at the University of New Hampshire in Durham yesterday afternoon.

2006-03-08T14:34:00.000-08:00

Chris Cote, 15, moved from Manchester to Boscawen a year and a half ago with his family in search of a new lifestyle. Not long after moving into their new home on ten acres of land Chris bought two ducks at a local farming store and with the help of his father built a chicken coop. Since then his flock has grown to include 13 chickens. His home along Route 4 is marked by a plywood sign that reads “Fresh eggs, $1.50 a dozen”. I was driving down a rural road near Concord, NH the other day on a desperate feature hunt when I saw a plywood sign that advertised fresh eggs for sale. I pulled over expecting to find some old man wither overalls and a mesh-backed hat when I meet Chris Cote the fifteen-year-old chicken farmer. It was too good for a measly feature so I decided to do one of our "Teen Life" columns on him.

2006-03-07T21:23:00.000-08:00

My posts have lagged significantly as of late and it is because I have been working a lot. I wont go into details but I have been working on two different picture stories and having a blast.

The Apple is the state fruit of Vermont

2006-02-16T13:06:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Kimball Elementary School teachers Eileen Gfroerer, center, and Stephanie LaRochelle, left, demonstrate outside of the National Education Association in Concord, NH yesterday afternoon. I shot HS ski racing this morning for the 4th day in a row and I have no complaints. After the giant slalom was finished I took a small sabbatical from work and enjoyed one run down the mountain myself. Temperatures climbed into the 50's today so I left my gloves, hat, and jacket in the car. It was sweet. Later I shot these teachers demonstrating over their contracts.

Tough times in Salisbury

2006-02-15T20:16:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I am currently working in a photo story about a Congregational Church in Salisbury, NH that is struggling to get by. The above photos were taken before and during a mass last week. I will be spending a lot of time there over the next month as the church searches for a new reverend and tries to continue its role as a part of the small community. Besides working on the church story I have been shooting my daily assignments and trying to catch the Olympics on TV when I can.

Ballhead

2006-01-30T18:30:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor I have been shooting a ton of high school hoops out here in New Hampshire, commonly referred to as "The Shire" or "Nampshire", none of which I am especially fond of. Anyway, all is well.

Chillin in a dogloo

2006-01-26T19:47:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Hillsboro-Deering senior Corey Cawthron, 18, crawls out of a "Dogloo" that he and other students were using to decorate a hallway for the schools winter carnival Thursday, January 26, 2006. Each of the four grades at the high school were responsible for decorating an area of the school to a specific theme in competition with each other to which grade did the best job. I shot this picture before a girls High School basketball game.

nordic apple orchard

2006-01-25T18:38:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor This is a photograph from a high school XC ski meet in Concord today. It was in an apple orchard, one of many in New England.

High fashion

2006-01-18T15:34:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand/Concord Monitor Hello friends. I have been lagging in my posting because I have just been really busy taking pictures. Just today I started work at 7:30 a.m. and now its already 6:30 p.m. This is a photo from a high school charity fashion show the other day. Enjoy, I am going home to eat diner, drink a beer, and go to bed.

skiing new hampshire style

2006-01-09T18:38:00.000-08:00

Gunstock Mountain in Gilford, NH. This is a concept for a photo that will certainly be revisited on another day.

The pumpkin is a fruit

2006-01-06T16:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday a group of fourth graders visited the New Hampshire state capitol and lobbied to designate the Pumpkin as the state fruit of New Hampshire. Their bill, sponsored by rep. Allen (D), might actually pass.

Hot like fire

2006-01-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

I got into work this morning and sat down to do some work on the computer and sip my coffee. Before long I was out the door on my way to a two-alarm fire in Franklin, NH. It wasn't really a big deal besides the water damage inside of the building. What struck me as amazing was that the firefighters invited us into the building to take a look at the damage. Inside the room where the fire started "...Hot Like Fire..." was spray-painted on the wall. I guess you could say that I thought that was a bit ironic.

geee Sven, thats a nice walleye.

2006-01-02T06:40:00.000-08:00

So before I made the drive out to New Hampshire I was able to get up to Williston, North Dakota to do some ice fishing with my cousin. Lake Sacajawea treated us well over about 36 hours of fishing. My cousin Marcus landed a HUGE 11-pound Walleye at about 1 am on our last night out on the ice. Besides the monster we landed a few around five pounds and then a handful of good eaters. Yesterday I was out shooting pictures of people ice fishing here in New Hampshire and when one guy found out I was from Minnesota he just went off that I was from the Zion of the sport. He started to quote a bunch of articles about how it is part of life where I am from and how all of the teenagers go ice fishing after school. I was like, dude I'm from the suburbs...

Concord, New Hampshire

2005-12-29T17:31:00.000-08:00

Thomas Whisenand - Concord Monitor I arrived in Concord, New Hampshire yesterday to start work at the Concord Monitor newspaper. It took me two days to make the drive on which I got to see Gary, Indiana, Notre Dame University, Niagara Falls, and lots of State Police in New York. Wasting no time I got right to work today shooting this picture at a Dance Dance Revolution tournament being held at the Concord Boys and Girls club and then later shooting some high school basketball.

his head is in the air

2005-12-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture from the MSP airport the other day when I was waiting to catch a flight out to New Hampshire. The plane, bound for Hawaii, is being de-iced.

Fast Eddie isn't slowing down

2005-11-29T14:47:00.000-08:00

“Fast Eddie” (Eddie LaPlante) has been repairing shoes since 1940 when he was sixteen years old. Now 84, Eddie works one half day a week at his former shoe repair shop "Fast Eddie's" in Minneapolis. With no plans to stop working any time soon LaPlante said that, “...if I just all of a sudden quit [working] and sat down, I’d be dead.”

Gwen Stefani

2005-11-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture for the Pioneer Press that I shot at the Gwen Stefani/Black Eyed Peas show at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., tonight.

Williston, North Dakota

2005-11-12T15:02:00.000-08:00

Well... I am in Williston, North Dakota today, the birthplace of my parents and home of most of my extended family including two of my grandparents. I came up here with my parents and younger brother to be with my grandfather in his final days. All is well for the most part but it has been a hard couple of days. It has been good to connect with family that I do not see very often and have a Bud Light or two in my grandfathers' honor (it is his drink of choice). To top everything off this weekend I had a front row passenger seat in a car crash late last night that left me with seven stitches in the back of my head. Arghh.

Hands in.

2005-11-09T21:28:00.000-08:00

Here is an image from a University of Minnesota woman's basketball exhibition game I shot tonight (Nov. 9, 2005) for the Pioneer Press. Its getting cold up here in the northland.

sports, spoRTS, spORTS, sPORTS, SPORTS

2005-11-09T15:16:00.000-08:00

Minnesota Wild vs. Phoenix Coyotes

Northwest Airlines mechanics on strike. Lately my life as a photographer has seemed to revolve around sports with the odd news assignment thrown in. I have been really busy with school trying to graduate and get on with my life so at the end of the day I have had little energy left to post my recent work at the Pioneer Press. So here are a couple of pictures from the last few days.

pig skin

2005-10-29T20:24:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from another night shooting high school football for the Pioneer Press. While not the most glamorous work it is an opportunity to make nice pictures and get paid for doing it.

Three assignments and 80 more miles on my car.

2005-10-23T18:52:00.000-07:00

Bloomington, Minn. -- Sam Goody Patrons listen to music on a new kiosk where customers can burn their own mix cds at the Mall of America Friday afternoon. Bloomington, Minn. -- Sam Goody sales associate Leon Mason passes through the new Graze department of the record store Friday afternoon at the Mall of America. Minneapolis -- Mike Endrizzi, left, Joesph Walch, and Ernestine Plank take a compass bearing while participating in a orienteering race at Wirth Park in Minneapolis Friday night. 35 participants raced through the woods checking in at designated points in the woods using a map, compass, and their instincts for guidance. Here are some photos from two of my three assignments at the Pioneer Press on Friday. Some good news came in the form of a telephone call while I was editing through these photos in the Pioneer Press newsroom Friday evening. I was offered a six-month internship at The Concord Monitor newspaper in Concord, New Hampshire. Its a small town newspaper that is renown for its use of photography and boasts a really talented newsroom. I start in the end of December.

New York City!

2005-10-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

I was in New York City this weekend attending the VII Photo Agency seminar at the Parsons New School of Design. In total I was in the city for about 36 hours only about 5 of which were spent sleeping. Sadly only minutes of the remaining 31 were spent shooting pictures. Of course the seminar was moving, inspirational, and fun but I was bummed that I couldn’t ramble around the city with my cameras. Above is one of the only photos I shot over the weekend. I ran into Dwayne Praytor, pictured above, outside of a fancy organic grocery store. Dwayne likes hobby farming on his ranch in Lindale, Texas. Tonight, I am in a hotel at the Detroit Airport. Stranded. Don't ask how I ended up here.

Drinky-drink

2005-10-14T21:33:00.000-07:00

John Trpkosh, 20, mounts his bike after have a friend buy him a 24-pack of beer at Zipp's Liquor Store in Minneapolis Friday afternoon. Trpkosh is a junior honor student at the University of Minnesota majoring in history and said in regards to binge drinking that, "that's what college is all about; pushing yourself." This photo is from an assignment I shot for the Pioneer Press about underage binge drinking.

Religons find common ground

2005-10-03T18:28:00.000-07:00

CAPTION: Mashal Saif, co-chair of the Muslim Student Association, and Gretchen Solomon, co-chair of the Macalester Jewish Organization, embrace at the begining of a walk to celebrate the start of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana, and the Muslim holiday of Ramadan which both begin within one day of each other this year. The rare proximity of the start dates for each holiday occur every 33 years. Saif and Solomon have been friends since their freshman year at Macalester College and played a major role in organizing the event.

Another night shooting HS FB

2005-10-01T18:33:00.000-07:00

Had another good night shooting high school football. I love shooting high school sports. The atmosphere is always interesting and the players, fans, and marching band always manage to do something out of the ordinary.

High School FB

2005-09-23T18:47:00.000-07:00

For the sake of posting here is a photo from a high school football game I shot tonight. Nothing much to say about that except it is getting dark early now-a-days.

Troop return out take.

2005-09-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

Here is another photo from the welcome home ceremony for the troops returning from Iraq.