Homestead #53 San Luis Valley

Geraint December 23, 2018 No Comments

Homestead #53 San Luis Valley, southern Colorado. Over the last few weeks we’ve spent many days in the San Luis Valley. I hope you will indulge me my fascination with the landscape, history and architecture of the valley. The area is sparsely populated with many abandoned homesteads. We don’t often meet people out there. Those who do take the time to stop and say hello, asking “is everything ok?’ are more likely a asking a question wrapped in guarded curiosity. Always, everyone we pass driving along, give us a friendly wave, a nod of the head and sometimes a smile. We are welcome for sure, but in return we are gentle with the china and wipe our feet before entering the proverbial home. Thanks for looking. G

Moody Mesa Homestead, Carson, NM

Geraint August 11, 2018 No Comments

Moody mesa homestead, Carson, New Mexico. Before the storm. Rural abandonment and decay, across the highway from the old school house/community center on the road to Ojo Caliente. I wonder if the power is still metered to the property. Thanks for looking. G

Cornfield, Sunflowers, Taos Mountain

Geraint August 7, 2018 2 Comments

Cornfield, and sunflowers, on the flanks of Taos Mountain. I’ve seen many small fields of corn around the county and I’m impressed by the growth of the plants despite the dry start to summer. My neighbor has a fabulous garden this year. I’m grateful for his generous donations to our pot and to the organic produce section at out local grocery store. Thanks for looking. G

Vallecito Peak Snow Or Hail?

Geraint July 29, 2018 2 Comments

Vallecito Peak snow or hail? July 27, 2018 too soon for snow? Then it must be hail, although in the past there has been snow in early August. Well it was gone by morning, but the best part, it was some much needed moisture. Thanks for looking. G

Fire In The Sky San Cristobal, NM

Geraint June 29, 2018 4 Comments

Fire in the sky over the San Cristobal Valley, NM. Below is a piece by Willa Sibert Cather, from “Death Comes for the Archbishop”, shared by a friend on my Facebook page who was inspired by this photograph. Thanks for looking. G

“The sky was as full of motion and change as the desert beneath it was monotonous and still, — and there was so much sky, more than at sea, more than anywhere else in the world. The plain was there, under one’s feet, but what one saw when one looked about was that brilliant blue world of stinging air and moving cloud. Even the mountains were mere ant-hills under it. Elsewhere the sky is the roof of the world; but here the earth was the floor of the sky. The landscape one longed for when one was away, the thing all about one, the world one actually lived in, was the sky, the sky!”

—Willa Sibert Cather, Death Comes for the Archbishop

Church In Vallecito, New Mexico

Geraint June 1, 2018 No Comments

Church in Vallecito, New Mexico. La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores. A beautiful day for a drive with good friend and photographer Mark Collins, to Vallecito, Petaca, La Madera, Cañon Plaza, and Abiquiu. This view was through the one broken window in the gates to the church yard. Thanks for looking. G

Rural Dreamcatcher, Northern New Mexico

Geraint February 7, 2018 2 Comments

Rural dreamcatcher on a farm fence in the mountains of northern New Mexico. Well at least it reminded me of a dreamcatcher. Someone’s whim, to bundle baling twine, knot them on a fence post, encircle it with a wire hoop, leave for some to stumble across and wonder! Thanks for looking. G

Red Barns Southern Colorado

Geraint October 15, 2017 No Comments

Red Barns, Colorado. I like the juxtaposition of the roof lines and the negative space separating the buildings along with the expansive sky above. Here’s a winter image of these same barns in February 2013. Thanks for looking. G

The Red Barn Revisited

Geraint July 18, 2017 2 Comments

The red barn revisited. This lovely barn, ensconced at the edge of a very large circular crop of potatoes, in the farming region of the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado, is a scene characteristic of countless rural areas across the globe.

As cultures, we share so many similarities. And as cultures we have so many differences that can separate us.

Yesterday three people from different walks of life met up to spend a day in the field photographing. Throughout the day, we reveled in the surrounding beauty of the landscapes, skies and architecture. Expressed multiple, diverse viewpoints, shared ideas, and created a variety of images based on personal views and experiences cultivated in life. Whether standing side by side, or exploring individual interpretations of a scene, we were constantly amazed at how much the solitary experience was enhanced by the collective view. That said, no two images created were alike. At the end of the day we parted ways richer for the camaraderie we shared in and through photography. Thanks for looking. G

Cherubs, Ojo Caliente

Geraint June 22, 2017 3 Comments

Cherubs, Ojo Caliente, and a recliner, and on the stoop was a six pack of empty bottles. I was surprised to see things a little changed when I visited on this particular occasion. Changed? Yes! It was exactly what I would expect to find in rural New Mexico, indoor, outdoor furnishings. When I’ve visited this location on previous trips it always seemed so unimportant … a building with a mural next to a gas station. However, on this day, a certain charm had come over the place. It had been customized from the owners personal vision. While this may not fly in some more ‘sterile’ neighborhoods, with strict zoning codes, it is perfectly acceptable in this neighborhood, or so it seems. I want to call this image “waiting for god.” Thanks for looking. G

Geraint Smith Photography

Tag: Rural