From around the Globe

Here are two pictures that caught my eye today from the Associated Press wire: Above, a woman drinks water after a morning prayer on election day in Harare. Zimbabwe is holding a run off election in which Morgan Tsvangirai, the main opposition leader in the country has pulled out citing violence and intimidation.(AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)


Participants in the second International "Marathong" of Vevey run on the dock of the lake of Geneva in Vevey, Switzerland on Saturday. About 200 people in thongs (flip-flops) participated in this 1.55-mile-long run.(AP Photo/Keystone, Dominic Favre)

Fountain Valley Nature Center

Sorry for the lack of new postings on our website. I've been out of town for the last two weeks. While I was gone Gazette photographer Bryan Oller produced an audio/slideshow from the Fountain Valley Nature Center. Pictured above is a male red-winged blackbird. If you missed it, check out the audio/slideshow at http://www.gazette.com/interactives/naturecenter.

A fish story

This photo from the Associated Press wire just cracked me up:
David Shepard removes a stuffed king salmon from his flooded home on Sunday, June 8, 2008, in Edinburgh, Ind. As much as 11 inches of rain swamped the state Saturday, flooding homes, threatening dams and closing several roads and highways. Weekend storms pounded the U.S. from the Midwest to the East Coast, forcing hundreds of people to flee flooded communities, spawning tornadoes that tore up houses and killing at least five people. (AP Photo/The Indianapolis Star, Matt Kryger)

Mountain bike races return to Colorado Springs

After a six-year absence the Sand Creek Mountain Bike series returned to Colorado Springs Wednesday. The series continues for the next two Wednesdays, June 11 and 18. To see the story or the video of the first race visit http://www.gazette.com. The event is held at Bear Creek Park off 21st street and is a fun event to shoot. The course intersects itself allowing photographers and spectators great access.

Peak Performances: The album covers

I had the opportunity to shoot this Spring's special section Peak Performances, which is a tribute to the Colorado Springs area's best prep athletes. I created the theme of Album covers and let the athletes pick their favorite artists. Some of the covers were recreated by duplicating the lighting and scene and a couple were finished off in Photoshop. I really had fun working with the athletes. It was much harder than I thought it would be to make them as close to the original as I could. Here are three of the covers. Can you figure out what the original covers were? Look at Friday's Gazette to see all the covers and their originals.