Category Archives: Shooting Close to Home

Animals, Outdoors, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home

Hashknife Colt Sale, Horses

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Now for the reason everyone gathers here in the first place…the horses.

The Babbit’s are a big name in Flagstaff, AZ. They have been ranching here since the five original brothers came out from Ohio in the late 1880’s.

In the late 1940’s, Babbit Ranches began the Hashknife Horse breeding program, to breed quality working ranch quarter horses specifically to work and pen cattle.  The program was expanded to become a community event through their annual colt sale, in the early 1990’s.  The Babbitt Ranches cowboys guide foals and mares into a corral where an auction is held. But don’t worry, the babies don’t get picked up until the following spring.

Shooting these guys is a challenge. They get moved into a staging area before they are herded into the auction ring. Once they are in this pen then are agitated, nervous and constantly moving. Which is fun to shoot because you are constantly aiming your camera with your finger on the trigger looking for that detail, expression or pattern. Shoot in burst mode and be ready to delete a lot of missed shots when you get home and download.

This one was cute peeking over the bum of its mama.

The babies stayed close and spooked easily which made them exceptionally difficult to shoot.

The babies are tagged with numbers on their rear so that potential buyers can identify the horses they want to bid on.

It was cool to watch the cowboys separate the pairs (mamas and babies together) and shoe them into the auction ring.

Right? How cool is THAT pattern!

Horses hug…who knew?

In the auction ring waiting to be bid on. It is a super low key event, no fast talking auctioneers. It was fun to spend a morning around the culture of Cowboy as it is not a culture I live in.

The lesson here? One does not have to travel far to find new and different cultures from their own and embrace them for their uniqueness.

Happy Shooting!

Cultural, Family, Outdoors, People, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Hashknife Colt Sale, People

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Last year was my first time shooting the Babbitt Ranches Annual Hashknife Colt Sale in July. This year I decided to offer it up as a Photography Meetup through Arizona Highways PhotoScapes. To my surprise, it filled.

I wasn’t sure I’d shoot much this year as I thought I had pretty well covered it last year. Boy was I wrong.

There are pretty much two things to shoot at the colt sale…people and horses. This first installment focusses on people. In particular, the little humans trying to operate in a grown-up world.

 

This little one was all duded up in her fancy jeans and cowgirl shirt.

These two cuties are the children of a Babbitt Ranches cowboy.

Kids just don’t walk around puddles. Ever.

Here are a couple of my token adults. An old cowboy in a rustic landscape…on a cell phone.

And some guys here with their chuck wagon from the Pioneer Museum making cowboy coffee the old-fashioned way.

And then I fell in love. What you are about to witness is the kid that got my attention instantly. He was 18 months old and walking around holding his rope like he owned the place. Enjoy.

 

You’re welcome. 😉

He was ADORABLE! And THAT, my friends, is why you go to a place more than once to shoot it. A location is never the same year to year just as YOU are never the same.

Go to a familiar location with this year’s vision and shoot what you see. I bet it will be different than last year!

Happy Shooting!!

Adventure, Boating, Outdoors, Paddling, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Verde River, the Tuzigoot run

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I live in Flagstaff and just 45 minutes south is the beautiful Verde Valley. When things start cooling off in the Northland, or we just need a break from winter, we often times head south where the temps can be as much as 20 degrees warmer. We have literally snow shoed one day and kayaked the next in sandals and shorts.

The Verde River is one of only two Wild and Scenic rivers in Arizona. Signed in 1968, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act protects more than 200 rivers in 40 states and Puerto Rico. Wild and Scenic Rivers are designated into the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System to preserve their free-flowing condition and to protect and enhance their outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational, geologic, fish, wildlife, historic, cultural, and other similar values.

The Verde has great day-runs, with relatively short shuttles, that can easily be done in a day. It also does not require a permit. We have kayaked this river in every month sans the dead of summer when the flow is low due to irrigation use of nearby farms and properties.

Our favorite run, for a long time, had been the ten-mile “town stretch” from White Bridge to Beasley Flats. It’s about a four-hour float which makes it an all-day venture by the time you drive down, shuttle, make the run, shuttle back for vehicles then head home.

A couple of years ago we discovered a half-day run that is packed with interesting features. It can’t be more than a few miles and it’s all right around Tuzigoot National Monument. We call it the Tuzigoot Run.

All river trips require some sort of shuttle. Why? Because the river only goes one way and you have to get back to your vehicle. This shuttle is only about three miles so it can easily be done with a bicycle! Here’s how it goes:1. Drop the boats and Ellen (my wife and adventure partner) off at the put in. 2. Drive the car and bike to the take-out. 3. Ride the bike back to the put-in and lock it to a tree. Now we’re ready to float!

The put-in is a crazy calm section of river that allows you to paddle up and down the waterway just to warm up and check out the local bird, insect and flower situation.

I keep my camera in a 50 mm ammo can between my legs in my kayak. It’s easy to access the camera and put it away quickly when things get splashy.

One must obey the traffic signs for a safe trip. Wait until you see the dam, it will make you question the safety of this section for sure.

We have to park and carry the boats overland into a large pond, then paddle across the pond and get out again to drop the boats down a boat chute. No, really, a boat slide. I’d never seen anything like it.

This is particularly true in the heat of summer I imagine. That metal could be pretty hot on your behonker.

We thought the boats would slide quickly. They don’t. It helps to have bow and stern lines to assist in their journey down the slide.

Sitting in the boats and sliding down is tempting, I’m not gonna lie, but we obeyed the rules. Safety first!

Yup, there it is. How’s THAT for a leaky dam? Apparently it’s been like this since the ’70’s. We spent the rest of the trip going though “What If” scenarios.

It’s a really calm section of the Verde and makes for a lovely afternoon of being on the water. You don’t want to paddle unless you HAVE to or the trip would be over even quicker.

There are a couple of swifter sections so one can’t fall asleep!

A few folks are lucky enough to call this area home. I always have to wonder if they play banjos…

The river is very narrow here.

The take-out is just past this bridge to the left. The car is parked here so we can de-rig, load the boats and drive back to the put-in to get the bike. A nice way to end the afternoon could be to grab a late lunch or early dinner in Cottonwood so bring clothes to change into!

The fact that we drove our Prius shows how well maintained the dirt roads are. If you plan on doing much kayaking or canoeing remember to bring an ammo can. They are easier to get into and much cheaper than a Pelican Case. Mine is lined with a foam, backpacking, sleeping pad so the cameras have some cushion.

I hope you enjoyed your trip down the Verde!

Happy shooting!!

Cultural, Historic Buildings, Outdoors, People, Photography, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Tuzigoot National Monument

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The Verde Valley just south of Flagstaff is one of our favorite places to warm up in the winter and stretch out summer as the days cool up north. It also boasts a little know national monument.

Tuzigoot National Monument preserves a 2- to 3-story pueblo ruin on the summit of a limestone and sandstone ridge just east of Clarkdale, Arizona, 120 feet above the Verde River floodplain. The Tuzigoot Site is an elongated complex of stone masonry rooms that were built along the spine of a natural outcrop in the Verde Valley.

It’s a tricky place to shoot. It doesn’t have the grand landscapes of the Wupatki ruins to the north. Shooting on a day with dramatic skies helps. You are able to get to the top which helps in the “vary your angle” department.

This is a portion of the visitors center which is also beautiful with all the stonework. 

The good news about it being little known is that the times I have been there it hasn’t taken long to wait until there are no people in the frame.

Here’s what I’ve decided is the difference between a landscape photographer and a travel photographer. The landscapers would plan out their shoot and come during a full moon or late in the day for nice lighting and shadows. As a travel photographer I am where I am right now. I need to be able to shoot right now. So here it is, mid day shots that capture the monument nicely.

This is the full view of the visitor’s center. The Verde River runs behind it along that red wall.

Here is a more late in the day shot. I was up here for a night workshop one time with Arizona Highways Photos Workshops.

So, don’t be intimidated by landscapers with all the fancy equipment. I travel light. Most if my images are hand held and considered grab shots. I have been known to use a tripod but very rarely when traveling.

Happy Shooting!

 

Celebrations, Cultural, Fall, People, Photography, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Dia de los Muertos, Tlaquepaque style

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I love Dia de los Muertos. I think celebrating and remembering those who have gone before us in a light hearted whimsical way is fantastic. If you are interested in this latin American tradition you’ll want to put on your calendar for next October to check in with Tlaquepaque, the Spanish village of shops and restaurants in Sedona, to bring your camera andjoin them in their very festive and colorful celebration. It only happens for one afternoon so don’t miss it. Admission is free and the shooting opportunities are endless!!

They bring in high quality face painters…FREE!  These artists don’t mess around. This is a booth worth returning to time and again throughout the afternoon to photograph the amazing art laid out on people’s faces.

Graffiti walls are constructed to encourage visitors to write messages to those who have passed on.

The entertainment was great! There were traditional dancers, musicians, street performers (stilts, jugglers, hula-hoop and silk artists).

 

Beautiful, colorful decorations could be found all over grounds of Tlaquepaque. Every nook and cranny was SOMETHING to look at. This skull was just sitting in a bush.

I found these three characters sitting on a wall fountain.

All of the free standing fountains were immaculately decorated with flowers and skulls.

I found these skulls in the vendor section.  There were all kinds of whimsical skeletons, skulls and trinkets available at these stalls.

These ladies, about 18 inches high, were strategically placed around several of the fountains throughout Tlaquepaque. They were fantastic. I could have spent the day just shooting them and their details

      

Visitors were encouraged to dress up and many completed their costume with the provided face painters.

This couple brought their own masks.

One of the highlights and certainly a foundation of the celebration of Dia de los Muertos are the altars. They are created by families and have many aspects to them. There may be photos of the deceased, food and drink they enjoyed to welcome them back; sugar skulls, water, salt, bread, a comb and candles among other items. Each item has a significant reason for being there. It is said the scent of flowers, Marigolds in particular, help guide the spirit home.

The yellow cross on the ground is made of rose pedals.

And then night came. This was my first time at this event and sadly, I didn’t have my tripod so many the nighttime images are less than sharp but I included them here to share how dramatic and beautiful things turned with candle light.

So, mark your calendars for the end of September to check the Tlaquepaque website and see when their Day of the Dead celebration is scheduled for in 2018. It’s usually the end of October or early November. It’s worth your time.

Happy Shooting!

 

Adventure, Family, Outdoors, People, Photography, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Grand Falls, Navajo Nation

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Here’s a great place to go shooting for spectacular scenery. Google  images of Grand Falls and you will be impressed. It is a set of waterfalls on the Little Colorado River just outside of Leupp, Arizona on the Navajo Indian Reservation. Also called Chocolate Falls, they run basically twice a year; spring run-off and summer monsoons.

We went on President’s Day last February and found some pretty good water. During peak run-off the water flows all the way across the canyon.

There is a trail that takes you to the bottom of the falls but beware of your camera gear. There is significant spray that comes off the falls and it is full of brown dirt. It also gets quite slippery and muddy to walk very close to the falls itself so I tend to stay downstream a bit.

This image shows a big black volcanic rock in the foreground. Also be ware of these rocks as they are quite sharp!

I, however, love photographing people, even when the scenery is amazing. If you take kids here keep a close eye on them lest they fall in and be swept away.  There is plenty of mud to play in and spread around as my granddaughter is showing. 

 

This composition presented itself as I realized the possibility of silhouette shooting. The falls were in full sun but our side of the canyon was full shade…perfect. I had Akacia climb the rock and strike a pose. I had my other favorite model, my wife, do the same with her beautiful yoga poses. 

This is what happens when Dad is in charge. This man had about five kids with him with no mom in sight. The little girl on the left, BAREFOOT! was crying her eyes out. The little guy on the left had fallen a few times in the mud. They were working their way toward the trail to head out.

This is a clear view of the Little Colorado River Gorge heading west. This water will eventually go under ground and emerge again a teal blue color at the confluence with the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. It’s crazy to think this is the same water…

Grab your camera, go on a small adventure and don’t forget to look around, past the scenery, for the human stories in the area. How we interact with nature is always fascinating.

Happy Shooting!

Architecture, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Travel, Urbanscape

Jerome, AZ

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Jerome, Arizona…one time mining boom town turned ghost town turned artists community, is by FAR one of my favorite places in the great state of Arizona to shoot. It has character, old buildings and great designs. Here is but a sampling of what you’ll find.

This is a section of a structure at the mining park at the entrance to the Jerome State Park in the hills above Cottonwood, AZ. I like how it turned out as a black and white and how the wood beams radiate out from the main beam at the center.

This wall was nicely lit at the state park. Brick adds such character.

Rusted old signs always intrigue me. I try to imagine what purpose they had for the people they were build for and how they fit into their lives.

The Hotel Connor, home to the Spirit Room,  is a local bar that hosts live music and is a popular motorcycle destination.

This Mexican food restaurant was closed but I loved the chair backs. I shot this image through the front window.

The winding roads and switchbacks that make up the streets of Jerome have a lot of signs to help with the flow of traffic. You can get from Cottonwood to Prescott via this great little artisan community.

Speaking of artists, this is the front door of Katie Lee, a long time environmentalist and champion of Glenn Canyon that was swallowed up by Lake Powell when the Glenn Canyon Dam was build in the 1960’s. She passed away in November at the ripe old age of 98. Rest in peace Katie.

This red rocker is on the porch of the Surgeon’s House which was built for the local doctor once upon a time. It has since been turned into a bed and breakfast.

Jerome is nestled on a hillside and stairs are everywhere. Some are more interesting than others. I love how the bottom step on this one appears uneven. Chances are it’s the sidewalk that is tilted, not the stairs.

 

I poked my head into this Catholic church that I ran across. It was an interesting building because, from the outside, you could see that it had been added to at least seven times.  There were that many different materials used on the outside as well as different levels on the slanted street. It was pretty interesting.

Grab you camera, go to Jerome and have fun. Another great location to shoot is the Gold King Mine. But that will be another blog post.

Gear, Nature, Outdoors, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home, Winter

Arizona Snowbowl

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Hard to believe but ski/snowboard season is just around the corner. If this is your thing and you like to photograph I have a  little something for you to do on those long rides up the chair lift. Take your camera! I shot the following with my trusty Canon S120 point and shoot. You could just as easily do it with a phone. But here’s the trick…don’t drop the camera!! It’s easy to do as you’re fiddling with ski poles, gloves, pocket zippers and handling a camera with cold hands. Just be very mindful.

These images were taken the morning after Northern Arizona had a storm. The trees were encased in snow and ice. It was beautiful. I took these heading up chair two at Arizona Snow Bowl.

That blue sky is for real. I did nothing in post processing to make it that blue. Wow, right? And look at those trees! A pocket camera is perfect for this. These two were not taken from the chairlift but from the ski runs. My poor friend had to keep stopping so I could shoot.

I was digging the shadows on the snow as well.

This is a chairlift shot of the San Francisco Peaks in all of their frozen glory.

These two were also taken from the chair. They are essentially the same shot but the bottom one had a skier inter the frame with a red jacket! What LUCK!

One of the fortunes of living in Flagstaff is having access to this kind of beauty immediately following a snowstorm.

The ice tipped trees didn’t seem real.

Today’s lesson? Keep your camera with you always and…dress warm!!

Happy Shooting!!

Nature, Outdoors, Places to Shoot, Shooting Close to Home

Desert Botanical Gardens, Phoenix

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Here’s a great place to shoot! Go to your local botanical gardens or arboretum, ESPECIALLY if they have a guest artist displaying their talents among the flora.

In May of 2014 we bought tickets to the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix to see an exhibition by the famous glass artist Dale Chihuly. It was amazing to walk among the cactus and imagine how he must have made his creations. It was also  quite tricky to photograph. Between the amount of people, the lighting and trying to capture the relationship between the art and the plants I had but a couple of hours to figure it out.

The art pieces were such a tangled “mess” of glass that it was often difficult for me to figure out what, exactly, I was going to focus on. Here the moon helped out and below, the bird gave me focus.

Here are two beautiful pieces that you could get lost in . Following each piece of glass to see where it ends up and then your eye catches another one and off you go. Imagine glass blowing all of this…wow.

I like the contrast of this one against the beautiful blue sky. And here it is from a different angle, next to it’s Saguaro Cactus partner.

This is my favorite piece and I wish I had more time to shoot it. I love boats and water so this one really spoke to me. I tried several angles and several locations to get different view points. Not sure I’m thrilled with what I got but the moral of the story is: bring you camera to the exhibitions.

As the sun went down the lights came up. This is one of my favorites with the darkening sky and shadows. It reminds me of Medusa and her head of snakes.

This one turned out a weird color of yellow that I wasn’t happy with so I made it black and white. I like it much better now.

 

Keep an eye on happenings in your part of the world and be sure to take your camera as you go out exploring large art exhibits. It is fun and challenging.

Happy shooting!!

 

Cultural, People, Photography, Shooting Close to Home, Travel

Navajo Festival

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This summer brought the 68th Annual Navajo Festival to The Museum of Northern Arizona. This post, however, is a combination of images form both this year and last year. I like shooting the Dine’ Festival better than the Zuni Festival for the sole reason of lighting. For the Navajo Festival the dances are outside under a tent as opposed to indoors with poor lighting.  Under the tent isn’t the greatest lighting either but I focus more on the dancers preparing for their time in the limelight under the light of the sun.

Here is an example of Jones Benally, an 80+ year old hoop dancer, under the light of the tent. It works fine but includes a busy background of patrons.

I turned my attention to just outside of the tent and captured these moccasins standing on rocks. I made it into a sepia tone and love how it turned out.

Here’s another image from outside the tent. I love capturing the details of the dancers’ regalia. It is so beautifully detailed.

I love shooting color and patterns. In their dress, adornments and baskets I just couldn’t get enough.

Here’s another detailed close-up of a singer/drummer as he waited his turn to take the stage.

Here are two examples of two beautiful head dresses over the past two years.

Jewelry details are also fun to capture.

I love silhouettes. I caught this gentleman also shooting the dancers under the tent and was able to expose it to the background which blacked him out.

Here’s just a very simple image of a drum and colorful cords against a dark background.

Another wonderful thing that happens at this festival is the creation of an art piece that has been created by 10-20 different artists. It gets auctioned off at the end of the fair. Shooting details of the art work was quite fun to play with.

I had even more shots of details of the artisans, portraits of people and artists but at the risk of making this being too long of a post I didn’t include them.

Cultural festivals are a fantastic place to shoot. Check your calendar and grab your family or photo geek friend and head out this weekend to a local festival!