Hollyhocks And Sinners. Don’t Shoot The Messenger. 07-26-2023.

Geraint July 26, 2023 25 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week some hollyhocks at the Saint Francis Church in Ranchos de Taos and a place where god has his eye on you, Farmington, NM.

The hollyhocks are standing tall at numerous locations around Taos. Though not as plentiful this year as in previous years, they remain the iconic summer flowers of Taos.

I shot the image below with a 3-megapixel Nikon 990 camera 20 years ago, in 2003, at the Taos Book Store on Kit Carson Road-a little trip down memory lane for me.

Hollyhock, Taos, NM — Hollyhock in Taos, NM.

The two icons that evoke the high desert southwest are the hollyhock with an adobe building. I made the image below of the Saint Francis Church Plaza with hollyhocks in 2011. Throw in some blue and you have this picture.

Hollyhocks, at the Saint Francis church, Ranchos de Taos, NM — Saint Francis Plaza, Ranchos de Taos, NM.

Let’s go to Farmington, NM, in complete contrast to the scenes above. I still aspire to editorial photography. I’m only the messenger so please don’t shoot me.

In the first image, Jesus, who looks a lot like a young Charles Bronson, is working hard for us!

Jesus sign in Farmington, NM — A sign in Farmington, NM.

There is farming in and around Farmington. There’s a lot more of the oil and gas industry there, employing many gentlemen, who God will want to meet after they die. To me, the message here is, live life, have fun, and party.

Farmington, New Mexico, Strip Joint — “Gentlemen’s” Club, Farmington, New Mexico.

Farmington, New Mexico, Gentleman's Club — “Gentleman’s Club” Farmington, NM.

I do like the light rays traversing the sky, highlighting the sign and the club.

As always, thanks for looking. See you next week. G

Reflections Revisited, Ranchos de Taos. 05-12-2023

Geraint July 11, 2023 20 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, New Mexico. This week I’m revisiting reflections at the Saint Francis adobe mission church in Ranchos de Taos. In 2005 and 2006, I began making images of the building and its architectural details in the parking lot rain puddles, and snow melt. Over the years, I’ve posted many such images. What surprised me the most was the time frame and dates when I began this project.

Below are some of my current favorites. Enjoy!

Saint Francis reflections, Ranchos de Taos, NM

Getting in close…

San Francisco de Asis Church reflections.

… and closer still.

Saint Francis Church reflecting in puddle with rocks — Church of Saint Francis reflecting in a puddle with rocks.

The puddle below is about 3-4 feet wide. I put the camera on the ground, and because the mud had settled, there was a perfect mirror image of the west side of the building.

West elevation Saint Francis, reflecting in a large snow melt puddle — West elevation Saint Francis, reflecting in a snow melt puddle.

Saint Francis, in snow melt puddle. — Saint Francis, in a snow melt puddle.

Saint Francis, reflections in rain puddle. — Saint Francis, reflections in a rain puddle.

Saint Francis, archway, summer reflections — Saint Francis, archway, summertime.

I used the image below in 2009 on a 5×7 postcard to promote my photo tour/workshops. The reflections made the image. I distributed it around town, and business took off.

Saint Francis, archway, night time — Saint Francis, and archway at twilight.

I shot this image in 1988 before I sold my 1958 VW Beetle. I wish I still owned it. It served as a prop in many of my images. The Beetle’s organic shape worked well with the organic shapes on this building.

Saint Francis, in a VW Beetle mirror. — Saint Francis, in my 1958 VW Beetle mirror.

There’s a window across the street that had a lace filagree curtain. One of my favorite shots.

Happenstance plays a big part in my photography. This Prius was ideally parked.

Saint Francis in the rear of an Toyota Prius — Saint Francis in the rear of a Toyota Prius.

Below is the same 3-4 feet puddle as above. I like to return to familiar locations frequently.

Saint Francis in a puddle in parking lot — Saint Francis in a parking lot puddle.

Lastly, not a reflection but many little lenses. What would you call it? I shot it in 2010 for inclusion in a juried exhibit on the Saint Francis Church, entitled “A Humble Masterpiece”. I printed the image in black and white.

Are you planning a summer, fall, or winter trip to New Mexico? Check out my tour/workshop page. I’ll introduce you to the Saint Francis Mission Church in Ranchos de Taos.

As always, thanks for looking. Have a great week. G

Down, at the Saint Francis Church. Up, with Red-tailed Hawks

Geraint July 13, 2021 11 Comments

I was on a photo tour last week demonstrating with a photography client the benefits of looking down and how it can often pay off with a rewarding image. In this case, looking down in a puddle on the flagstones, we captured a really nice reflection of the iconic San Francisco de Asis Church in Ranchos de Taos. Of course, it helped that one of the parishioners was hosing down the walkway, and I’ve shot this type of scene, many times.

Yesterday, I went up north for a short drive scouting some locations for an upcoming workshop happening for the next three days. I drove on a back road I’m very familiar with and found a male and female Red-tailed Hawk with their juvenile fledgling. The male was off on a power line pole to the east, the female and the chick were on a pole further west with a half-eaten rabbit. In the second image, you can see the nictitating membrane in the eyes of the mama and the young one as they both blinked simultaneously. This membrane allows birds to blink and clean the eyeball while still being able to see what is afoot. Here is a link to the nictitating membrane or “third eyelid”.

Red-tailed hawks, San Luis Valley — Red-tailed hawks, adult and juvenile in the San Luis Valley, Colorado

As always, thank you for looking. G

Saint Francis Church, Saturn, Jupiter, Conjunction

Geraint December 21, 2020 10 Comments

Saint Francis Church, Ranchos de Taos, with Saturn, Jupiter, Conjunction. Jupiter, four moons, and Saturn, a composite image, one focused on the church belfries and the second focused on the planets. Zoom in to see the planets. I hope you got to see it out there. Thanks for looking. G

Saint Francis Church, Ranchos De Taos, NM

Geraint August 26, 2020 4 Comments

Saint Francis Church, Ranchos de Taos, NM. The San Francisco de Asis Church under a lavender, twilight sky. Soft shadows give this building a gentle look. From across the street you can also see one of the two belfry crosses. The two towers aren’t equal in height therefore only one cross is visible. Well they maybe equal, but the foundation slopes to the south making them uneven. Stay soft and gentle and be safe out there. Thanks for looking. G

Saint Francis Church, Ranchos De Taos

Geraint June 11, 2020 2 Comments

Saint Francis Church, Ranchos De Taos. Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting of this church and Ansel Adams photograph, along with many other pieces of art created, depicting this building, have made it one of the most famous adobe mission churches in New Mexico. I made this particular shot with three images stitched together. It came out rather interesting and somewhat distorted, accentuating the building’s organic material and shapes. I can’t recall how many images I’ve made of this building over the years. Here’s one of my favorites from the late 1980s. If you click on one of the tags below you will get to see many more. Thanks for looking. G

Saint Francis Church Plaza, Reflections

Geraint February 7, 2020 4 Comments

Saint Francis Church Plaza, reflections, Ranchos de Taos. The 50º F temps today melted a lot of snow. That’s great but now comes the mud and a lot of water which allows for fabulous reflections. I put the camera on the ground and made a three image panorama needed to capture the swimmingly wet parking lot. Thanks for looking. G

San Francisco De Asis, Church Flock, Ranchos De Taos

Geraint December 25, 2019 6 Comments

San Francisco de Asis, church flock, Ranchos de Taos. The morning flock gather on the parapet wall. Shortly, a neighbor will toss out bird seed and the pigeons come to church each day. Thanks for looking. G

Winter’s Past, Saint Francis Church, Ranchos De Taos

Geraint December 6, 2019 2 Comments

Winter’s past, Saint Francis Church, Ranchos De Taos, NM. Not the dead of winter but the beginning winter, the way it looks when the moods of autumn shift into winter and back again. The adobe monolith, on the south end of the Ranchos valley stands steadfast in all seasons. Thanks for looking. G

Weeping Adobe Wall, Ranchos De Taos

Geraint November 4, 2019 2 Comments

Weeping adobe wall, San Francisco de Asis church, Ranchos de Taos, NM. The walls were freshly mudded by parishioners in June. The rains came and nature took it’s course. Next year the work will begin again in the continuous cycle at this iconic building. Thanks for looking. G

Geraint Smith Photography

Tag: Saint Francis Church