Colorado away!

Posted on 12 October, 2022 by Eric

Liftoff of a Colorado-themed hot air balloon at the closing session of the (rain plagued) 50th annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

We haven’t had a chance to attend the Fiesta for years, but this year’s event lined up perfectly with some family travel we had on the calendar. We showed up in town the Friday night at the end of the Fiesta, just in time for the Saturday morning and evening main events to be cancelled due to bad weather (an unusually wet October for New Mexico meant many events were cancelled through the week).

Luckily for spectators and the remaining balloonists, the weather improved overnight, so the Sunday morning mass ascension could still take place. A lot of pilots had given up before that point, so it was a relatively “thin” mass ascension, but we were all happy to see a respectable number of balloons airborne.

EXIF:
OM Digital OM-1, M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 II lens
34mm, f/13, 1/80 sec, ISO 200

Leaving Albuquerque

Posted on 11 March, 2014 by Eric

On a recent trip to Albuquerque to take care of some family business, I managed to get aboard a very well-timed flight home on a “puddle-jumper” turboprop aircraft.

As we headed north from the airport, the sun was just setting, so I got a nice mix of lighting colors. And, of course, flying in a small aircraft means everybody gets a window seat.

For locals and the curious, the Osuna interchange with I-25 is about at the image’s center (I-25 runs from the bottom right corner toward left center).

Dolls Theater

Posted on 3 May, 2013 by Eric

A little alcove off the “Big Room” at Carlsbad Caverns, the “Dolls Theater” does not lack in detail or depth. Â Should you visit, make sure to take a (small) tripod and cable release — this image was taken at f/18 with a 3.2 second exposure / ISO 400:

Sky lights

Posted on 23 April, 2013 by Eric

I’ll admit there’s nothing of great societal import in this shot — just a beautiful sunset, taken along I-25 in northern New Mexico.

I grew up not too far from where I took this shot — one thing I miss about New Mexico is the sunsets.

The King’s Palace

Posted on 3 April, 2013 by Eric

A good demonstration of the color of light, courtesy of Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico:

This is one of the “marquis” attractions at Carlsbad Caverns, but really doesn’t look this colorful in person (Journey to the Center of the Earth not withstanding). Â But it’s lit by spotlights of slightly different color temperature — so if you grab a picture on your visit, and attempt to pick some feature for your white balance, you’ll wind up with this slightly gaudy view in your photo.

Fajada Butte — captured!

Posted on 13 July, 2011 by Eric

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.

Gremlin or gargoyle?

Posted on 6 November, 2010 by Eric

Another Balloon Fiesta shot…

Sorry for the lull in posting — I’ve been fighting server issues on another blog I run and it’s been absorbing what little free time I’ve got. Things should be clearing up shortly.

Seen some hard times

Posted on 30 June, 2010 by Eric

We ran across this guy at Taos Pueblo in New Mexico — apparently nobody actually keeps dogs as family pets, so a half dozen or so dogs just wander around as strays / community pets. Judging by his left eye, this one got in a scuffle recently.