water, comma, water everywhere, comma

At some point during my teenage years (far too long ago for me to recall a precise date), I was required to memorize a poem, with all the punctuation, for an English class assignment.  My choice was the Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.  Why?  That is still a mystery, but probably because the rhythm made sense and, most of all, it was easy to memorize.  Straight forward does just fine.  And I can tell you right now that there was no way I memorized it in its entirety!

The only reason I bring this up is my own (and many in the western United States) current obsession with water - truly, the lack thereof.  Except for the lucky ones (or the unlucky effected by mudslides) in Washington State, the drought continues on a huge scale, and relief has yet to come.  Comparing notes, it is making many yearn for water - still or flowing.  Here are some shots to quench our thirst for it.  The first is of Half Moon Tank, Cochise Stronghold, Dragoon Mountains, Arizona.

Here is the Rio Grande under the Gorge Bridge.  After looking at this image for some time, I discovered all sorts of stuff in the foreground on the left, including a road repair sign.  Oh, the stories this river could tell!

A reflection of the Grand Tetons in Jenny Lake.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image

Rio Grande abstractions

Fellow photographer Steve Immel and I spent a morning photographing in and around the Rio Grande Gorge this week.  The sky was a little murky, as if smoke had drifted into New Mexico from a wildfire somewhere.  Rather than attempt to tweak out good photographs under those conditions, we photographed the river itself.  And the good old Rio, although not full, has a lot of runoff in it, enough to make it very cantankerous and noisy.  It was, in a word, mesmerizing.  I could have stood photographing it in detail all day.  Here are some abstracts.  Clicking on each image makes it slightly larger and reveals more detail.

The thrashing and foaming of the water as it crashes into volcanic boulders is wondrous, and emphasizes the sheer power of water.  The pattern of bubbles on the center rock is like a delicate suit of armor, each bubble neatly linked to the next but ready to self-destruct at any moment.

When I look at this photograph, I can almost hear and smell El Rio Grande, New Mexico's life line.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image

The Gorge

Although it has neither been seen nor photographed by as many people or in as many ways as the Grand Canyon, the Rio Grande and its gorge is northern New Mexico's jewel.   The massive volcanic area through which the river carved and altered the landscape, some 242,5000 acres, was named a National Monument this March.  From south to north, there are multiple approaches and ways to view it.  Two overlooks along Highway 68 north from Espanola to Taos are stunning, but the second of these provides almost a roller coaster effect of rising and then sinking slightly, revealing the Gorge in a truly stunning way.  It literally takes your breath away, if just for a moment.

North of the Gorge Bridge, there are a number of overlooks and camp sites which offer totally different visions of the area.  

However you choose to view El Rio, I highly recommend this time of year.  It is a bit cooler, and the light is perfect for photographing the Gorge and the bridge as well.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image