Coming to you from Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, it’s Fajada Butte:
Fajada Butte is the site of an ancient “Sun Dagger” solar clock that marks the occurrence of the solstices and equinoxes. It’s too delicate for visitors to see in person any more (it was damaged by tourism-induced erosion, and closed to the public in 1989), but still inspiring to look at from a distance.
I haven’t antiqued any photos for months (if not years), so while I was playing around with black and white conversions I thought I should indulge myself and give a shot from Uxmal the full aging treatment:
This is the House of Turtles, so named because of the little turtle figurines decorating the top of the walls.
Shot with a long lens from the Temple of the Cross, about 1/4 mile away:
You might think I framed this shot the way I did to heighten the contrast between the structure and its background — but actually, I was avoiding a line of tourists just off the bottom of the shot!
New Mexican Primrose (Oenothera speciosa ‘Siskiyou’) at the Yampa River Botanic Park; Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
So a few weeks back, when we went to the 10th annual Denver Dragon Boat festival, I made a point of lingering along the path the dragon would take during the opening festivities. Very colorful, not something you see every day — I thought it’d present some interesting photographic opportunities.
So after firing away, taking pictures of the dragon’s passage, I was more than a little surprised myself that I’d captured this shot. One of the dragon’s carriers definitely isn’t too enthused about the whole affair…
Seen on our recent Rocky Mtn. road trip:
Captured at the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center in Great Falls, Montana.
I spotted this little guy on a bush while we were out looking at plantations in the Virginia countryside.
Given that we were primarily looking at the architecture, I’m glad I accidentally spotted him…
Another flower shot from our stroll through Colonial Williamsburg:
So let’s say you take a trip to Hawaii and manage to hike out to where the lava meets the sea. Pretty spectacular, particularly at night:
But of course, you hiked there in the dark (likely) over near-black lava (certainly), and now you need to get back to your car, in the dark. Makes for a pretty tough scene unless you brought a flashlight. Luckily, though, most folks remember this little item of equipment (although you’d be surprised how many show up unprepared)
Once you’re back at the trailhead, you can take a long-exposure shot of the folks behind you on the trail:
If you’re having trouble visualizing what’s going on, here’s a VERY STRETCHED shorter exposure shot from the same spot:
Note that all the ground below the horizon is solidified lava flows, the sky is only visible here because I took this on a cloudy night. I’m still amazed at how much detail is visible in this frame…
Seen at the Hector Heritage Quay; Pictou, Nova Scotia, Canada:
I found these coils of old rope over in a corner of the Quay (essentially a small museum). A decorative touch, but likely also a good use for some rope that was nearing the end of its working life.