Picture of the Day

Laughing Nez Perce Family                                                                                                  ©Marilyn Angel Wynn

As a photographer, there are thousands of pictures that I'm thrilled to have documented. One of my all time favorites was taken during a trip to the Nez Perce tribe up in Northern Idaho. Each May, Chief Looking Glasses band of Nez Perce honor their youth. A 2-day ceremony, give-away and feast are held to show respect for the young teens who have picked their first berries and roots or have hunted down their first deer or elk. For these young teens it is quite an honor to carry on ancestral tradition. During the event, I was asked by the ceremonial leader to take a picture of his family outside of the plateau style longhouse. The men wrapped colorful Pendleton blankets around their cores just as Indian braves have done for hundreds of years. Like so many other tribes, there's always time for a joke or a funny story. While snapping group portrait shots there was a quick instant where everyone began to roar with laughter. That's when I took the opportunity to shoot several frames. This gem photograph of the Slickpoo family was my favorite shot taken that day at the First Rights ceremony. It shows the real sense of humor that tribal members share among each other.