October 2016

WPC: Transmogrify

On the big island in Hawaii, volcanic eruptions have changed the look of the land, but there is one spot that was changed in a unique fashion. In 1790, lava flows swept through this area near Pahoa. Unlike slow flows that burn everything in site, this flow was swift, and wrapped the trees without destroying them instantly. The trees eventually did die, leaving these lava forms (and many others) standing instead.

From Lava Tree State Monument, Hawaii for this week’s Daily Post Challenge of Transmogrify.

October 28, 2016 4

Monochrome Madness: MM3-28

A couple days ago, I was visiting my mom, and couldn’t help notice she had a couple cacti in bloom in her yard. Seemed out of place for late October, but it has been warm, and I’m sure she waters them from time to time. One flower was within reach and photogenic, but I wanted a different approach. There was no way for me to get behind this one, so I shot it like a selfie. In a couple frames it was a selfie. I was composing by just looking at the shadow of the flower across the lens, then realized I had to duck while maintaining the composition. I suppose I could have set up a wireless card and a tablet, but that seemed like too much effort. I got this shot without having to delete a bunch.

This is the photo that Leanne Cole has placed on this week’s Monochrome Madness. You can check out her website to see other’s contributions and instructions to join in.

October 26, 2016 14

It was really one of those days when you don’t want to be outside – a late spring day on the Colorado Plateau. With a cold front sliding by to the north, winds were a constant 45mph and gusting in the 60s. Yet, the sun was still out. Every loose particle of dust from Barstow to Albuquerque was on the move. I was driving near Page, Arizona so I thought the shelter of Antelope Canyon would be a good place to hide out for a while.

There had been a tour group going through, so another photographer and I just stayed back a ways. The sun only has a few minutes each day to pinpoint its way through the narrow opening of the canyon. As it did on this particular day, the wind gusts were picking up nearby sand and depositing it in the canyon. In the three exposures I took, I can see the movement of the shaft of light. I also had to blow sand off my lens between exposures. Mostly, we were thankful the tour group did not return at this moment.

I was using a large format film camera, with slow film, and the aperture stopped down for depth of field. Even though this is the brightest light I have ever seen in Antelope Canyon, that all translates to long exposure. Similar to long exposures of moving water, it took several seconds for the swirling dust to fill the shaft of light. Had today’s digital cameras been around back then, I could have taken this with a higher ISO and lower f-stop and perhaps captured this as Peter Lik did in his “Phantom”. Some of you may recognize this location from “Phantom” – a work that Peter Lik supposedly sold for $6.5 million.

This has been my second best selling print, but if someone wants it in a wall sized b&w, I would close the edition and let it go for a mere million.

For this week’s Daily Post Challenge of Shine

WPC: Local

There’s nothing I’d want to take a picture of in my neighborhood, but I can see this mountain clearly from my windows. For this week’s Daily Post Challenge of Local, I present to you a place I know by heart.

I was out here last week on a trail I have taken several times before. Back to the bristlecone pines, the ancient forest. As another dry year passes, and more people venture into the area, I am thankful there have been no major fires here. It seems there are no “helpful” fires any more – the kind that sustain a forest – just large devastating ones. In a normal winter, there will be snow lingering on this trail into May. I am hoping for a normal or above normal winter, but that doesn’t seem very likely….again. In the meantime, I try to get out to my local hangouts whenever I can.

October 14, 2016 19

WPC: H2O

Canyon hikes are some of the best adventures in the desert southwest. Some of these have year round water, and in those cases, no trail. Much of the time will be spent hiking in the water, which is quite refreshing on hot days. I always felt safe in the water with my guard down, and looked more alertly for the dangers along the rocky canyon bottoms. That all changed at the moment of this photograph.

I was standing in the waters of the San Francisco River in eastern Arizona. I had my large camera on a tripod in a spot about a foot deep in the river. I was talking with my hiking partner when we both heard the disruption in the water behind me as though a fish had jumped up. We both stood in disbelief as this rattlesnake slowly raised itself up on the ledge on the opposing bank. We were on the shallow side of the river, but the snake had come out of a pool that was at least three feet deep. We watched our steps everywhere after that!

The San Francisco River from a safer distance:

October 8, 2016 10

WPC: Nostalgia

The Elks Theater in Prescott, Arizona is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These photos were taken at the end of 2005, after work was done to replace the aging ropes of the stage sets. At the time, there were very few theaters still using this type of hoisting system, as most have moved to an electronic control panel, or at least a stage-level operating area with stacks of counterweights.

The theater has undergone renovations in the last few years, but I imagine the stage has remained intact. It is one of the elements that makes the place unique and historic. From what I’ve read, all the restoration has been going into the seating area, lobby, and exterior.

In the Elks Theater, the person operating the curtains and other stage sets has to climb this ladder to get to the operating platform. The door (plywood panel) is normally locked against this ladder to prevent unauthorized access.

Once on the elevated platform, all the ropes are tied off here. The sandbags are the counterweight for the appropriate curtains or sets.

Once on the platform, there is another ladder going up to the pulley system, where the ropes extend out across the stage and drop to the points where the pipes are tied off.