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For our big 2017 trip, we settled on going to the National Parks of Utah and the surrounding area. We started our trip off atÂ
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park then headed to Zion National Park (our favorite of the trip), Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Arches National Park, took an unexpected trip to Mesa Verde National Park and the Four Corners, then headed to the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, Horseshoe Bend during the day and then again at night for some star pictures, and then finished off by seeing the Hoover Dam on our way back to the airport! It was a busy trip but we never felt rushed and everything just seemed to work out nicely for the most part.
^Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park
^Angel’s Landing @ Zion National Park
^The Subway @ Zion National Park
^Zion National Park
^Bryce Canyon National Park
^Capitol Reef National Park
^Ran into a cattle drive and some sheep along the road
^Canyonlands National Park
^Newspaper Rock
^Arches National Park
^Mesa Verde National Park
^Horseshoe Bend
^Wahweep/Lake Powell
^Grand Canyon National Park
All photos property of Strong Buzz Photos and are not to be used without permission and credit.
This past weekend was marked by the wedding of Greg (Ryan’s brother) and Kim! It was held outdoors on the family farm and the reception was held in one of the greenhouses. It was beautiful and understated and such a blast! I stopped taking pictures fairly early on into the reception but still managed to grab some fun shots. Enjoy!
Trap Pond State Park, Laurel, DE & Assateague Island, MD: 08.19-08.20.17
Ryan loves trees. So when I came across the northernmost natural stand of baldcypress trees while looking for a place for us to camp for the weekend, it was a no-brainer.Â
And with it being only 45 minutes away from Assateague Island, we also took the opportunity to drive down and snap some Milky Way shots while the moon phase was almost at a New Moon. Ryan had never seen the Milky Way with the naked eye until this trip so it was a pretty great trip for him! Plus, we hit one of our favorite breweries, Burley Oak, and brought the dogs along for the trip! The trees are truly amazing and pictures don’t do them justice. It was a short trip but we enjoyed ourselves even though we didn’t take as many pictures as I’d like but, eh, what are ya gonna do?
All photos property of Strong Buzz Photos and are not to be copied, reproduced, or used without prior proper permission/credit.
CONOR OBERST & HOP ALONG: WILKES-BARRE, PA: FM KIRBY CENTER FOR THE ARTS, 07.27.17: + : CAMDEN, NJ: XPONENTIAL MUSIC FESTIVAL, 07.28.2017Â -
To say that we are huge fans of Conor Oberst and all of his music endeavors would be quite the understatement. (I swear, Ryan finding out that I was a Bright Eyes fan is the major reason he ended up with me). So when the opportunity to see him comes up, we jump on the chance every time. Ryan made sure to make my birthday dreams come true this year back in May when he spent the extra money on pit seats for Conor at XPoNential Festival at BB&T Pavilion (I think he’s a keeper). And when I saw that Conor would be in Wilkes-Barre, PA, two and a half hours from us, the night before AND that we could get seats in the first three rows for only $30, how could I possibly pass on that opportunity?! (Spoiler alert: It was worth the drive-it’s always worth the drive).
First and foremost, we could not have gotten such nice pictures at Xponential Festival without the efforts of Steve, the tour manager for Hop Along, and I simply cannot be more grateful for his help! THANK YOU, STEVE!
Also, major update: We now have a photo editing program and the means to use it (yay!) so now we don't have to feel so uneasy about our raw, unedited pictures.Â
I am quite happy with how these pictures turned out and pretty proud of a few of them! The photo pass for the show was in my name so I ended up taking all of the pictures this day (which evens the playing field for Conor Oberst show photography opportunities between Ryan and I now ;) )Â
All photos are property of Strong Buzz Photos. Please do not share, distribute, use, copy, or reproduce without permission/credit. We are happy to sell you prints of a higher quality file-contact us at [email protected] for print inquiries.
Enjoy!
-Kate
^ Conor Oberst & Frances Quinlan of Hop Along, 7.27.17, Wilkes Barre, PA
Assateague Island has continuously proven to be one of the most breathtaking experiences. Â I grew up in the Adirondack Mountain region and when we plan a trip somewhere, I usually like to make sure that there's hiking nearby and if possible, I prefer mountain hiking with a view (I know, I'm spoiled).Â
 Assateague Island has a few short "hiking" trails, one through an area of sand dunes and a couple of others, including one along a cleared, wooded path leading to a wooden footpath to an overlook of the bay.  So when it comes to hiking, I always feel that a trip there will still leave me with the itch to get out on a mountain. While it doesn't make me desire a mountain hike any less, the awe inspiring views of wild horses on the island always leave me feeling thankful and lucky.  We have been fortunate enough to have had campsites on the oceanside  on the island each time that we've been there.  On this particular trip, our campsite happened to be the area that the horses use as a path to get from the bay side of the island to the ocean side of the island so we had a constant stream of wild horses walking through our campsite, stopping to eat grass, and curiously checking out our dogs (don't worry, we kept a close eye on them and prevented them from getting too close). The herd that passed through multiple times was a particularly aggressive herd (one was trying to eat the dog food out of our car while we were packing up the tent) and we fell asleep and woke up to the sound of horses fighting and running around.  This herd had a ranger following them around with a squirt gun to deter them from breaking into campers' tents and belongings for food and there were a few horses with injuries within the group as well.
We also began taking a few night sky pictures during our night there, and we did get a couple, but the humidity mixed with the cool air from the ocean and the hot air on the beach caused a dense, steamy, fog so we ultimately just ended up going back to the tent and listening to the horses run and fight while we fell asleep.
I woke up before the sun had even begun to rise and was startled by the sound of a large group of horses, in a full gallop, running through our campsite to get to the beach. Â I quickly shot up from our sleeping pad to get a view out the tent window (and to make sure we weren't going to be trampled). Â What I saw and experienced that morning, I will never be able to forget or to describe with any justification of the beauty. Â
Pictures and descriptions could never quite capture this experience. Â It is such a unique place and we will continue to return here in hopes of capturing the spirit of the wild horses in a way that will truly speak to how amazing they are and to hopefully one day be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the otters that call this area home.
-Kate
**We still don’t have an editing program and I’m definitely going to want to clean these pictures up once we do.
* All images are property of StrongBuzz Photos and are not to be reproduced, copied, or used without proper permission and credit. *
Guys, I turned 30 a couple of weeks ago.  And I don’t mean for the tone of that to be depressed and exasperated-I’m really excited to not be in my twenties anymore! Â
I’m not sure why it’s so exciting for me since it’s just a number, but not being categorized as a “20-something” anymore is a great feeling!  I usually don’t do anything for my birthday but this year, since it’s supposed to be a “milestone year,” I decided that we should use it as an excuse to take a trip.  We had to look at how much time off we could each take at this time of year, figure in cost vs. time spent there, and also figure in the average weather at this time of year.  There were a few places that I had in mind but Asheville, NC won based on the considered factors.  We invited some friends along and met them down there a few days in.
The trip started off a little bumpy when we were about six hours into the drive, at 11:30pm, and realized that my suitcase had not made it into the car with us.  One late night trip to Wal-Mart for some essentials and one terrible night of sleeping in the parking lot later, and we were smooth sailing from there on out (Ryan is a champ in these situations-he’s calm and comforting when I’m tired and upset.  He’s the best travel companion!).  Along the way to Asheville, we made some stops in Virginia and experienced some pretty neat things.  Ryan got to do some rock climbing in an outdoor setting for the first time, even if all we did was boulder a little, we saw wild ponies and horses, hit some National Forests, and took in some amazing views in the Appalachians.  When we hit Asheville via the Blue Ridge Parkway, we met up with a couple of friends and brewery hopped for a couple of days.  I think we started my 30th year off perfectly!
*Pictures are all raw, unedited files. Â Both Ryan and I strongly feel that we should edit these first but need to come up with a solution to our computer woes first.*
**All images are the property of StrongBuzz Photos and are not to be copied, reproduced, or used without proper permission and credit.
More Catch Up - Night Windows: SXSW Tour: March 2016
Ryan plays BassVI in a band called Night Windows (check them out-their music is SO GOOD! I promise, you won’t be sorry! ).  In March of last year, all three guys and their girlfriends/wife piled into a van and made our way down to Austin for an unofficial SXSW event. Â
We stopped at Nashville, then swung by Denton, TX, went to the Austin area for two days, headed to New Orleans for less than a day, then went to Asheville, NC, and finally to Richmond, VA before going back to south Jersey to recharge for a day before finishing the tour up in New York City opening for T.W. Walsh. It was exhausting and amazing.  We took some pictures along the way (no where near as many as I wish I’d taken).  Some are pictures of the band, some are pictures of the girls, some are just silly.  We all enjoy them more than anyone else ever could.  They were taken by both Ryan and myself along the way. (*Disclaimer that I should have made on previous “catch-up” posts: the task of organizing and converting all these files was so daunting that I decided to share the original, unedited images. Some need some TLC.  Also, we haven’t committed to a photo editing program until we get a new laptop to put it on.)
[Pictures feature Night Windows: Ben Hughes (lead vocals/guitar), Ryan Buzby (Bass VI), & Tad Lecuyer (drums); also with Jessica Hughes, Karen Chiappisi, and myself, Kate Armstrong]
Hutto + Austin, TX>
New Orleans, LA>
(ankles x sockwest)
The Odditorium: Asheville, NC>
Richmond, VA>
Cake Shop: New York, NY>
*All photos are raw and unedited in this post.
**Photos may only be used with permission and if proper credit given when using**
PLAYING CATCH UP – CONOR OBERST & KACEY MUSGRAVES: BROOKLYN: NORTHSIDE FESTIVAL, MCCARREN PARK: 6.11.16
June 11, 2016 was the experience of a lifetime for me. Â Conor Oberst and Kacey Musgraves are my two favorite artists and the stars all came together and put them on the same stage on this day. Â
I can’t even imagine the stupid smile that was on my face throughout the entire concert but I’m sure that it was ridiculous judging by the way Ryan was looking at me and laughing when they each came out during the other’s respective sets and played songs together. I was too excited to focus on anything except watching their performances and singing along excitedly.  For that reason (and because I’m so short) Ryan took all the pictures this day.Â
(All photos are in raw, unedited form)
**All photos are property of StrongBuz Photos and may not be copied, reproduced, or used in any form without proper permission and credit.
LET’S PLAY CATCH UP – NIGHT WINDOWS: CONVERSE RUBBER TRACKS, BROOKLYN: 5.9.16
There’s a lot of ground to cover in order to archive all the photos that I’d like to have organized here and I’ve been procrastinating getting this all done.  Uploading the large files from each camera card and then opening each file individually and converting files at the speed of a turtle trying to walk through tar seemed like a daunting task. But we went on a trip this weekend with some spectacular views and I promised myself that I’d post the old stuff before I could move on!  So… here goes nothing…
Let’s make the first post some old pictures of the band Ryan plays in, Night Windows.  So, disclaimer: I had no idea how to work this camera or what I was doing.  I just happened to get some okay shots in there by chance that I felt pretty good about. Â
But this was before I really understood what an aperture does, how Iso settings work, or how to adjust for lighting when I speed up my shutter. Â So the result is these few pictures that I took while the guys were in Brooklyn recording some tracks at Converse Rubber Tracks a little over a year ago.
(All photos in raw, unedited form)
-Kate
**All photos are property of StrongBuz Photos and may not be copied, reproduced, or used in any form without permission and credit.
Ryan and I love taking pictures.  Ryan’s love of sunsets and sunrises over Mannington Meadows drew him in to the world of photography while my love for photography started back in middle school.Â
 I remember turning in my project about future career goals to my Home Economics teacher in 7th grade and feeling passionate, though entirely naive, about my choice.  I had decided, and was so sure, that I wanted to make a living as a photographer.  I had carefully researched different kinds of photographers, how much they make, and what their day-to-day lives were like.  I had no real concept of money and didn’t understand that the salary of your average photographer at the time, about $15-24,000, was not much to live on.  As I entered high school and had a stronger grip on the realities of life in the real world, I quickly moved on from this dream.  I carried my cheap Kodak 35mm camera with me almost everywhere, though, and was determined to capture the happiest, best candids of my friends.  I would save a little money, bring my film canisters to the Ritz Camera store at the mall, and anxiously wait for my film to be ready for pick up.  Though the thrill of waiting for my film to develop in order to see my photos has long passed with the invention of digital cameras, the thrill of coming home after shooting and looking through the pictures on the DSLR to see what shots I captured is certainly still there.
Ryan was gifted a Nikon D3300 shortly after we began dating and he taught me how to use it (he’s much better than me, in my opinion).  We hope to get another Nikon so that we can both shoot simultaneously in the future and still share lenses.  We are still actively learning about photography, camera settings, and composition when we have spare time and welcome any tips and suggestions you may have!
-Kate
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