Fine Art Images from the American Southwest

Red-Tailed Hawk Nest Guarding

Osprey, Rio Costilla Park, NM

A Red-tailed Hawk guarding it’s nest gave us quite a display above and beyond. We wanted to get a few photographs of the hawk as it circled over us and for a few go rounds we made some images. It’s wonderful to watch and make images of these amazing aerial acrobats but stress affects us all, so we moved on. Thanks for looking. G

Red tailed Hawk

Little White House On The Plains

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Little White House in the San Luis Valley, Colorado. Could be the plains, looks like the plains but alas is in one of the most fertile valleys where potatoes are the mainstay crop. The San Luis Valley, Colorado.

What struck me the most about this scene was the walk way leading to the front door. One recurring observation I have, regarding a lot of the abandoned towns and buildings in this area, is how thriving things must have been in the day when folks occupied every last dwelling. And another thought … Approaching this home … I wondered who resided here and how many people had walked up this path to the front door, long before me, and were greeted openly by the occupants.

This day we were greeted by a family of ravens who inhabited an abandoned outbuilding nearby. The new guardians served up a bombardment of unwelcome squawks and  screeches, no doubt their way of letting us know visitors were not wanted. Things change. Thanks for looking. G

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Three New Haircuts, Flash Back, 1985

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Three new haircuts in Pasadena, California 1985. And a thought occurs to me.

I’m going through my archives and pulling images that I remember as turning points in my photography career. These three young boys were sitting on a bench outside a barbers shop on Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, California. As I passed them, they saw that I had cameras with me and asked, “Are you a photographer?” I answered “Yes” to which they responded “Can you take our picture?” Without hesitating I put the camera to my eye and the boy on the right positioned himself closer to the camera and I made the image. It was that synchronous. That’s it!

Having had their haircuts earlier, they were now waiting for their papa who was still in the barber’s chair. I’m sure they were being very patient, as kids sometimes are when parents are taking their time.

These three boys made it easier for me, from then on in my career, to approach people, and allow them to be who they are. In a way… photography can be a metaphor for allowing life to unfold exactly as it is meant to, without any control over the subject or outcome. Thanks for looking. G

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Laguna Pueblo New Mexico

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Flashback to 1986, Laguna Pueblo, the iconic view from Interstate 40, New Mexico. I’ve revisited Laguna Pueblo twice in the last two months. Each time reiterates the experience I had the first time I visited Laguna Pueblo in 1986. I was looking back in time, much like visitors had, over the centuries past. The view from the freeway is pretty much unchanged with the terraced housing and mission church of Saint Joseph dominated by Mount Taylor, a stratovolcano, named in 1849 after then president Zachary Taylor. In the village today, there is a “round-about”, sidewalks, some street lighting and a new administration building. The charm and friendly nature of the people I met there thirty years ago, was exemplified on these last few visits by the local priest sitting in a pew, with his bare feet resting on the earthen floor. He regaled us with many stories in the cool, slightly moist, air of the cavernous mission church. His voice rose softly, echoing around the interior, and off the walls of the building as if summoning up the ghosts from the past to bare witness to his tales. Thanks for looking. G

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Great Horned Owl Fledglings

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Great Horned Owl fledgelings. On a private photography workshop this weekend we spent two days photographing raptors in southern Colorado. We discovered these two exquisite Great Horned Owl fledgelings on the second day which for us topped the previous day with the hawks and eagle altercation. This scene seemed a fitting moment and conclusion to a wonderful trip, that re-enforces the great continuum and absolute balance of nature.

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Swainson’s Hawks And Golden Eagle

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Yesterday’s Hawks and Golden Eagle.  These two Swainson’s hawks were defending their nest from imminent danger from the Golden Eagle. The altercation didn’t last very long, it amounted to about a dozen frames on the camera, until they chased the eagle off.

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Below are two more images from this day in Colorado.

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swainsons_hawks_golden_eagle_4345-1-3663863And you are out of here!

Sandhill Crane Bosque Del Apache

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Sandhill Crane, Bosque del Apache (Woods of the Apache), Socorro, New Mexico. I was feeling nostalgic and talking to a friend and client about a potential trip to the “Bosque” this coming winter and decided to post a photo of a Sandhill Crane. Perhaps it will manifest into a few trips there to the Bosque del Apache this coming winter. Love the Sandhills. Click on the image to expand for effect. Thanks for looking. G

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