Siouxland Scenics, Rural Cherokee County

There are times when talking with students about shooting photographs that I explain when I encounter a subject most times I know what the image will be in my mind, even if it is not perfect in the camera when I make the exposure. Some days one doesn’t have a long enough lens or the light is close but just not quite snappy enough. Some of these things one can fix when post-processing the image. The other day while driving around rural Cherokee County I came across some cattle in a field. I liked the light that I saw and the scene as well. Wishful thinking would have had more fall foliage in the background. But one doesn’t always get what one wants. And later as I was looking at the images on the computer I realized that I liked a couple different croppings. I tell students the only half the work is actually taking the photograph, while another half is doing the editing to select and share the image you want a viewer to see. And somedays, it is hard.

Jerry Mennenga

Sioux City, Iowa

Cattle graze in a field in rural Cherokee County, Iowa Nov. 1, 2016. (Photo by Jerry L Mennenga©)

Cattle graze in a field in rural Cherokee County, Iowa Nov. 1, 2016. (Photo by Jerry L Mennenga©)

Hungry bovine always looking for their next meal and some attention graze in a field in rural Cherokee County, Iowa Nov. 1, 2016. (Photo by Jerry L Mennenga©)

Western Iowa Border Agents

When I visited the Cherokee PRCA Rodeo the end of May this year, I saw some men dressed in cowboy gear, period clothing of the real Wild West, and not the movie glamorized version of it. Jon Simonsen explained to me he and some friends were participating in the town’s rodeo parade by re-creating a jail break during the parade. And they did. Jon and others are members of the Western Iowa Border Agents club and participate in what is called Western Action shoot outs. They are committed to historical authenticity for the period of 1865-1899 and periodically perform re-enactments and hold cowboy shoots where their fire live ammo at a range with a variety of safety procedures in place. But to participate, the members must dress the part, and the fire arms must be authentic or authentic replicas of period weapons.

Literature from the group states: “Our authenticity is what make us unique from other shooting organizations. Or, as we say, we’re ‘period-correct.’ Our dress, including everything from our hats down to our boots, is what you would find in the Old West during the post-Civil War era, from 1865-1899. That includes out guns too. You will find both smokeless and black powder shootists who are not so fast.” The group has a good time enjoying a sport together and leaving the stress of every day lives at the gate as they enter a different world. Photographs from the recent cowboy shoot for the Western Iowa Border Agents are here.

Jerry Mennenga

Sioux City, Iowa