Part of last week was spent shooting outdoor portraits in the Oregon high desert, about two and a half hours west of Portland. The shoots there were not easy. The hot, arid conditions were tough on the models. But we couldn't have had more pleasant and gracious hosts in the owners of the Hangbelly Ranch. The day that followed this one, we were shooting in and around the Deschutes River amidst slippery rocks, bugs, burrs (which I'm still extracting from my clothes a week later) and poison oak. It was an exhausting experience, though one with a richness of experience in itself.