I was up before dawn waiting for the waning moon to rise over the Sangre de Cristo (Rocky) Mountains east of our house. I spotted the two little stars first. If you expand the image you’ll see them. I’m sorry I didn’t look up their names. You’ll also see the “earthshine” on the moon.
Two days later the waxing moon was setting over the plateau to the west of us accompanied by the crescent Venus. Venus is at its brightest right now. Soon she will set in the glare of the sun. Not to worry, she’ll be back in the eastern sky and will be joined by the moon before dawn. If you expand the image you’ll see that Venus is also in the crescent phase.
A couple of days ago I had a little time to pass waiting for an appointment so I made a quick circle around the San Francisco de Asis Church in Ranchos de Taos. I spotted the shadow of the bell and made this image.
I also caught this little scene from the west as the sunset warmed up the adobe and lit up the tower cross.
I’ve made a similar photo of this scene before. It was almost a year ago. In this version I like the three simple arch shapes tying it together. Here are the other images from last January.
The weather here has been quite warm over the last couple of months and these buds on the aspen tree were tempted to bust out. They’re changing their mind this week as temperatures are destined to drop into the minus digits.
I ran up to the hardware store in Questa this evening. It took me a little longer than planned, but I did take my camera and couldn’t resist pulling over to make an image of the light on the cottonwoods before the storm. The forecast is for snow in the next couple of days. I will wait and see!
One oldie but goodie from 2008. I came across this image last week going through my files looking for images of Taos Mountain. I thought it worth sharing again. Prints are available.
As always, have a great week, and thanks for looking. G
12 thoughts on “Morning Moon, Evening Moon with Venus, Saint Francis Church, Shapes and Shadows, Aspen Buds, Taos Mountain.”
I really miss stick season. The trees have disrobed and reveal themselves and the land beneath.
All of these are really fine images. I am glad you pulled the last one out of the files. It deserves to be seen again!
Cheers, mate!
Gary
Thank you, Gary. It’s a favorite season of mine. I hope we meet soon in your neck of the woods or mine. Thank you again for your beautiful calendar. G
A blogger said: “When you can hang your powder horn on the moon, do just that.” So says the weather wisdom compiled by Eric Sloane in Folklore of American Weather (1963). This one is attributed to “famous Indians” who apparently hunted when the ground was wet from recent rains. They saw this Moon as a dipper, that could either hold or release water. I would guess that powder-horn-packing Indians are a fairly modern development, or perhaps this is an updated version of an ancient saying once applied to quivers or bows.
I appreciate the words of wisdom and insight. Thank you, Larry. I’ll be calling you soon. G
Love the church in B/W or color. My favorite spot when we toured. But I must say the mountain and tree shots are spectacular. As always, thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much, Bob. I relly appreciate your comments and compliments. G
Once again – very wonderful photos. Thanks
As always, thank you so much, Ron. G
Great shots as ever Thankyou. Always love the shots of that church and I have still got the tea shirt. Love Alison.
You must send me a picture of that tee shirt. I’m not familiar. Thank you, Alison. I appreciate your comments and compliments. G
Great images, Geraint!! Thanks for sharing! Have a wonderful holiday season…hope to see you in Taos next summer.
I’ll be here, Peter and I look forward to seeing you again next summer. G