Summers and Bikes; Nothing better

For nearly as long as I can remember I have always enjoyed riding bikes but over these last two years that enjoyment has grown into a love.  This love has lead me to meet many new friends and have many great times.  I only wish that everyone could see the times that are had when riding with some good buddies just cruising around never knowing where or what may happen.  This is why Glenn and myself have been doing some filming with a very small video camera that I recently acquired.  By the end of summer we are hoping to have a film put together showing how great a summer on bikes in North Idaho really can be.  This here is just a teaser along with a photo that Glenn snapped of me a few days ago. Enjoy and be on the lookout for more to come.

Fix Wheel; Teaser from Nik Bjurstrom on Vimeo

This weekend was a long, tiring yet great weekend. Spent the whole time in St Maries with the family and friends just enjoying the amazing weather. 

I have a lot of new things going on with just graduating, working and getting things figured out for next year.  At this point I don't have a whole lot to say other than I am still here and will try to be posting more regularly now that I may have time to be shooting things I enjoy more.  So be on the lookout.

But while waiting enjoy this cute little ladies photo that I took while camping this weekend.  

Warm Weather

Its that time of year where people are finally starting to migrate back outside and enjoy this amazing area we live in.  The sun has come out from hiding the last few weeks and made friends with all of north Idaho once more. 

These days lead to more time outside with friends and family. Long summer or spring days of wasting time playing catch, frisbee, riding bikes, golfing, boating, being beach bums and of course a nice cold drink to go on top of every single one of those. Its for all these reasons and more that I love all this area has to offer.  I would not trade a summer here for anything, I only wish others could experience something as amazing as what we have here.

This is a just a golf photo that I thought would fit nicely with showing some nice weather and a good activity. (This is my photo by the way not one I found)

First shot at it...

I recently acquired a recorder to start trying to get some audio from events I shoot for the paper.  This is my first attempt at it so let me know your thoughts. I know the edit is rough but im working on getting better software with all the transitions and what not.  On another note this whole event did not last more than 30 minutes so its kinda a stretch but let me know.

This is a group of people from Kenya, the Maasai Tribe, they have been traveling around the area lately doing their dance and song performances.  Its an amazing group of very talented people and are extremely nice also. 

Let me know some thoughts.

New Bike

This weekend was my birthday and all i got to say is man we had to much fun.  I dont have a whole lot to say right now but here soon i will have some new and great topics to talk about but this one is just showing off my bike.  As my birthday gift to myself i built a new bike so here are a few photos.(some more epic photos to come soon also)

Long Time No Post

Its been to long since I have posted anything and I intend to change that.  I have a lot of things coming up to post so be on the lookout.

Recently I have been spending a lot of time with my niece Miley.  I have to say that spending time with her is probably the greatest thing I have done in a very long time. Just to watch her go from a new born first the first time I held her to her first smile to halloween photos and to where she is now is amazing. To be honest Im going to say that leaving her when I move away for school next year will be the worst part about moving. As corny as it sounds being a large part of her life and not just that uncle she barely knows is a big deal to me. My family is a large portion of my life and I intend to keep them close no matter where I end up in life.

Basically all I am saying is realize what is truly important in life and enjoy it while you can.  Its all wonderful and can be gone at any moment so take advantage. 

This is just a nice lil christmas photo of Miley. Everyone be jealous that I have the best niece ever and to top it all off I would also be bold enough to say my family is right up there also.

Another day gone great

This saturday was really fun up on the silver mtn. I went up to the college to shoot some photos for the paper of the special olympics but the whole morning they were going on was super foggy but later that day turned out super nice.  So when the sun came out we hit up our secret spot and snagged a few photos of the group.

This one is kenny.

New friend Jake who works for outdoor pursuits at the college(way rad guy)
This is my buddy John.

And I had to have my own photo of it also.

Went to a fun event last night for the newspaper it was a sex educator. How can that not be fun right? He was way funny and made it enjoyable for all. I cant post a main photo since idk what will run in the paper but i know this guy wont so here is my teaser photo ha.

Today the kindergardeners have been in school for 100 days so they had a surprise visit from Zero the hero aka Tim. He did some songs and counted with them then gave candy and left. He was a good sport since I didnt actually tell him what it all involed. Thanks again Tim. 

Another busy weekend in The Sentinel this weekend and as much work as it was I enjoy it nonetheless.  

The weekend was amazing on a sports level though. The mens basketball team was tied with our school rivals and there is only 1.5 seconds left. We have the ball on the opposing baseline but its passed in and a shot is thrown up from around the opponents 3-point arc. While the ball is in the air the buzzer sounds and the whole gym is silent then all that is heard is the swish of the net as he drained the shot to win the game. Needless to say the place blew up and was crazy. As a let down though i got slightly to caught up in the game and ended up not shooting any of the ending stuff really. Sad day I know but what can I say I am one of the students also and always want to see my team win. 

Here is one photo from the game. I have some action ones but I kind of like this one better. Always more games to get other shots so again no worries on my part.

Another fun thing to shoot was someone that Nils my instructor found. This librarian has an Obama cardboard cutout that has been riding shotgun with her since the inaguration parties. Nothing amazing but still interesting and different. 

It seems that at this point and time i have not been shooting very much and its bothering me quite a bit.  School recently started again so now its back to the daily grind which all in all i dont mind. Im hoping that this year continues to pass by quickly so that i can hopefully move on to some bigger and better things but only time will tell at this point.

Friday was the second stop of the BFC rail jam tour and it was no doubt a good time.  I am slowly learning to shoot with my second flash.  To this point its still more trial and error than anything but practice is helping.

This is Noel he is a rad dude. Super good guy plus a good loser when it comes to me owning him at MarioKart on the Nintendo 64.  He likes to think he can win but its all in his imagination so if you see him try not to totally burst his bubble.

The snow is taking over

So it has been a very long time since my last post which is fairly lame on my part but it happens. This month of December, Coeur d' Alene broke the record for most snow in a month tallying up to 85.2 inches. 

But with the snow we have also had some pretty good opportunities with some snowboarding even locally. This was my first time shooting anything like this at night so its not the greatest but any comments or ideas would be greatly accepted.

Chuck is a recent friend ive made this year and he is a pretty rad dude judging by the few times we have gotten to hangout. He has his own company which everyone should check out M.A.D.

Mike Miller is the guy in brown. I dont really know much about him other than he does some amazing film work and can shred a snowboard and skateboard.