2017 Summer Photojournalism

Fall is solidly here in Northern Utah. Take a look back at some of my favorite photos from this summer.

Ted Sumner gets off his bike after flagging down an ice-cream truck on the Bonneville Salt Flats during Speed Week on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017. Raul Ruiz lives in nearby Wendover and spends the week driving his ice cream truck around the spectator areas on the salt flats.
©Benjamin Zack, 2017

Zack Schuster kayaks through Ogden Canyon during the Ogden GNARrows Down River Race on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2017. Kayakers from around the region met for a day of racing on Class IV rapids near the mouth of the canyon.
©Benjamin Zack, 2017

Tyler Arnold, left, Jared Watson, center, and Cody Edwards search for boreal toads in the Monte Cristo Range on Thursday, July 12, 2017. Biologists from around the state are studying the rare high-elevation amphibians. Boreal toad populations have been shrinking around the West. The large toads are difficult to study, but Utah scientists are trying to get a better idea of how local populations are doing.
©Benjamin Zack, 2017

2017 Spring Photojournalism

I can't believe it is already July. Here are a few highlights from stories I've covered around Northern Utah for the last three months. Enjoy.

Hayden Call, 7, collects eggs while working alongside his siblings on their family farm in West Haven on Friday, April 21, 2017. Over the last decade, the Call family has moved from gardening as a hobby to running a small three acre farm behind their home outside of Ogden. This year will be their fourth year selling produce at the Ogden Farmers Market.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2017

Dylan Orchard is thrown from a bull during the Utah High School Rodeo Finals in Heber City on Thursday, June 1, 2017. Orchard competes for Weber County's  Spikers High School Rodeo Club. The annual finals rodeo features four days of riding before Saturday night's championship.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2017

The Union Pacific No. 844 steam engine passes through orchards Perry on Tuesday, April 25, 2017. The 73 year old engine was the last steam engine built for Union Pacific. The train returned to service in 2016 and now makes several short excursions per year.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2017

The start of 2017

I've had a full start to photographing 2017. Now that we've hit April, I pulled together a few highlights from the first quarter of the year. Enjoy.

Liz Goldberg climbs the frozen falls at the end of Waterfall Canyon on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017. Every winter, the frozen water draining out of Malan's Basin turns the canyon above Weber State University into a popular destination among ice climbers in Utah.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

Michael Lewis, right, and his brother, Yaya Lewis, climb around the playground at High Adventure Park in Ogden on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017. The weather was sunny and in the mid-60's on Tuesday, but snow and cold temperatures are predicted for later in the week.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

Firefighters respond to a home on the 2800 block of Monroe Blvd. that burst into flames after an explosion on Tuesday, March 7, 2017.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

A portrait of Jay, a Harris's hawk at the Ogden Nature Center. Like all birds at the nature center, Jay is unreleasable. He came to the center through a wildlife rehabilitation center after his wing tips were permanently damaged by frost bite.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

April Highlights

Here are some of the highlights of photos that I've shot over the last month for the Standard-Examiner. The month started with some aggressive finger-painting, but otherwise it looks like I had a very brown and grey month. There were a few colorful shots, but I guess those will wait for future posts.

Jack Rasmussen, the Dean of the College of Education at Weber State University takes a break after fingerprinting with students in the WSU Charter Academy on Monday, April 6, 2015.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

Zak Westerman falls to the ground after his group drew an "Indian attack" card during their fifth grade pioneer trek at Smoot Park in Centerville on Friday, April 24, 2015. During the journey, each "family" of students would run into different challenges including illness, broken supplies and getting lost. Westerman's group later decided that someone else in the family should be the one injured in the attack. They picked the smallest student who would be the easiest to carry as the journey went on.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

The Christensen family practices roping at their home in Plain City on Monday, April 6, 2015. Sydnee Christensen, 14, recently started Hope Counts, a non-profit that raises money for the families of rodeo riders who are covering injury expenses. In two years, the group has raised around $40,000.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner

March Highlights

Looks like I've only been loading landscape/cityscape photos on the blog for the last few weeks. To try and right that, here are some of my favorite photos shot over the last month at the Standard-Examiner.

Aylin Nelson, right, spray paints hand carved letters in the "paint booth" at north Layton High School while Jarred McLane stains a piece of wood during their new ninth grade Pinterest class on Wednesday, March 18, 2015. The new class, where students find woodworking projects and designs on Pinterest, was established last semester as a way to encourage more girls to get into manufacturing courses.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2015

Rebeckah Sharpe dunks herself under water during water polo practice in the newly renovated pool at Ogden High School on Wednesday, March 4, 2015. The pool reopened on Tuesday after a multi-year $4.9 million renovation.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2015

Firefighters battle the flames at the Ogden Cold Storage warehouse complex in West Ogden on Tuesday, March 10, 2015. Firefighters responded to a call at the abandoned warehouse at around 1:30AM and worked as the fire spread through a set of seven interconnected warehouses.
©Benjamin Zack/Standard-Examiner, 2015

Highlights From 2013

I made it through 2013 and thought I would share a few of the photo highlights from the last year. Many of these images are from my first year shooting for the Standard-Examiner in Northern Utah. Looking forward to what 2014 brings. Enjoy.

Big Brush Creek Cave
©Benjamin Zack

Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo wrapped up the final night at Pioneer Stadium on Wednesday, July, 24, 2013. (BENJAMIN ZACK/Standard-Examiner)

Elijah White-Scott waits as Kevin Styles combs out his hair before a haircut at Marshall White Community Center on Monday, August, 19, 2013. Styles, who is a barber at Envy Me Salon and Spa in Roy, was one of nine barbers from around the region giving free back-to-school haircuts.(BENJAMIN ZACK/Standard-Examiner)

I recently spent a week at the Missouri Photo Workshop creating videos about the photographers and editors from around the world who annually descend on one small Missouri town. Most of the videos from the week are now posted online. They range from short documentaries to conversations on the state of photojournalism to whatever strange things came up in the midst of a stressful, sleepless week.

Special thanks and credit goes to the other photographers on the multimedia team: Parker Miles Blohm, Tatiana Fernandez and Nick Michael.