10/15/22

 I have not been on an actual vacation in a while where I just got away and saw something new.  This is from a visit to the Grand Canyon a few years back.  The day was actually fairly hazy but with new knowledge in how to process images I was able to get rid of a lot of that and bring out more detail.  The Grand Canyon is such an amazing place to visit and see for yourself.  Pictures don't really do it justice.

6/20/21

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  It's also Father's Day so hope all the father's out there have a great day.  Today's image is another archive shot and a rare monochrome one from me.  I think it works really well for steam train images, it gives them a more vintage look.  This is the steam train at the Grand Canyon that I was able to ride a few years ago.

6/6/21

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog and a double digit day.  😀  I have a new photo program that I have been teaching myself to use and I taught myself how to do the Pencil technique I have used in Photoshop before.  This is another dip into the archives with an image from the Grand Canyon Railway using the Pencil Look technique.

5/30/21

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Dipping back in the archives today to my first trip to the Grand Canyon several years ago.  Trains work well as Black & White images I think and I like to get back to my roots in photography now and then so here you go.  An image of the steam locomotive that pulled our train out to the Canyon and back to Williams Arizona.

6/13/18

This is another of the Condor photos I was able to get in the Grand Canyon last year.  Not the best image I have ever taken but I was excited to get it.  Also to have it be clear.  😅  You have to look though, it blends in really well.

6/2/18

I captured this image on my first trip to the Grand Canyon and never shared it for some reason.  I saw this plant in bloom while I was there last year but this was a particularly good example.  This is a Century Plant which lives for about 100 years and then shoots up this spectacular huge bloom and then dies.  It's beautiful while blooming. 

1/27/18

Another warm day today.  Spring flowers are beginning to emerge which is probably not a great thing.  This is another image from this past summer at the Grand canyon.  A view showing the Colorado river winding it's way through.  The red rock formation in the right hand corner is called The Alligator.

1/22/18

This is an image I took in the Grand Canyon that shows off the rock layers and buttes rather well I thought.  You can see the Colorado River in the left hand corner which formed this canyon many years ago and is still changing it a bit today.  I also was photobombed by a Raven.  You can see it at about the center of the image.

12/12/17

Today's image goes back to the Grand Canyon in July.  This tree standing overlooking the Grand Canyon is a Utah Juniper, I had originally thought it was a close relative, a Cedar.  I love the character of their twisting trunks.  These trees can be quite old and this one due to it's size is likely over 100 years old.

12/2/17

I was looking through images of the Grand Canyon and decided to share this one.  I took this shot while hiking a bit of the Bright Angel Trail back in July on a nice hot day.  It's true about drier air not feeling so hot as humid air.  

11/25/17

Today's image is another view of the sunset at the Grand Canyon this past July.  The original image because of shooting at the sun made the canyon rather dark.  I used a new HDR software to bring out the canyon more and I really like what it did with it.

11/4/17

Hope you are having a great start to your 49 hour weekend here in the US or a great day everywhere else.  This is another view from the not as heavily visited North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  It's kind of amazing that it takes about 5 hours to drive to yet you can see details of the other side while on each.  Too bad you have to go so far around.  😊 Anyway, this is a 3 shot panoramic image that I took just west of the lodge on the North Rim side.  Best viewed large by clicking on it.

10/26/17

Our last day of warmer weather for a while.  I got out a bit to enjoy it yesterday.  My image today was taken while hiking at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon on the North Kaibab Trail.  I originally called this bird in another post a Scrub Jay but it is actually a Steller's Jay.  I need to repair the other.  They are closely related to the Blue Jay but are the only crested Jay found west of the Rocky Mountains.  I was fortunate to see and capture, I had only seen them in photos before.

10/14/17

I woke up to some much needed rain again.  Nice.  Today's image goes back to my trip to the Grand Canyon in July.  While I was there on the third day I was hiking for a bit on the Bright Angel Trail.  This image was taken from the trail and you can see more of it in the bottom center.  I definitely did not go that far!  😅  This is a 2 shot panorama looking towards the North Rim of the canyon.

10/10/17

Wow, a real autumn day today and then back to summer again.  We even have to worry about frost.  This was taken on a totally different day when it was quite warm out.  This tree stands on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  It's an old twisty Cedar tree and I love these trees.  They seem to have so much character in their twisty shapes.

9/19/17

When I went to the Grand Canyon I really wanted to see and capture a Condor image.  I had seen one on my first trip there and was hoping to repeat that.  I was beginning to become disappointed that I would not see one when on the last day I got lucky thanks to the hubster.  We were at the overlook by the El Tovar Hotel and he could see something big flying below that looked different but couldn't tell what it was for sure.  I saw it as well and was able to capture it and it was not until I zoomed in on the photo and saw it's distinctive head that I knew then that I had finally captured a Condor.  It's not the best image and you have to look for it but it was in focus and it made me happy.  I actually captured a few different ones swooping around below me that day.

9/12/17

This is another view of the Grand Canyon.  I took this image partly because of the very determined trees that are growing on a bluff. It always amazes me how resilient trees can be in where they try to grow.  It looks like there is nothing there to give them any nutrients to grow yet there they are.  

9/9/17

My trip to the Grand Canyon this year was quite fun.  It has such amazing views and photos can't capture it completely.  I did several panoramic shots that do a better job of capturing the vastness of the area.  This one is a 4 shot stitched image that I took from the South Rim while hiking it on the last day there.  Of course it is best viewed large by clicking on it.

8/29/17

I took this shot while hiking on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  I love the old Cedars and Pines on the area and I thought this one with it's twisty shape was very interesting.  The format turned out square for it because this is a 2 shot tall panorama.  I had a zoom lens on at the time while walking and I was too lazy to change it so just shot it that way.  I thought it worked well for the subject anyway.  😂

8/26/17

I took this image the evening of the 4th of July while waiting for the sun to set on the Grand Canyon.  This is a 2 shot panoramic image and I loved how the light brought out the colors in the rocks.  The canyon is mostly known for the red rocks but there are some other colors and types mixed in.  They have made a presentation along the trail of the South Rim that tells you the type of rock, mostly limestones and granites which was quite interesting.  Had samples of the rock and then pointed out where to see it.