Brian H. Powell Photography

Jun 15

Denver

This past weekend, I was in Denver visiting friends and attending a couple of parties.

On Friday, I went to Roxborough State Park, southwest of Denver.

Roxborough is a pretty park, with some nice red rocks. I’d been to Roxborough a few years ago, spending a few hours with John Fielder, a well-known Colorado photographer. At the suggestion of the park ranger at the front gate, I hiked the South Rim trail, which I had not hiked before. This was an excellent choice, with good views of the rock formations in the middle of the park.

Click to Enlarge

I was also in town to attend the opening reception for a show entitled “Sense of Place | Landscape Photography”, at the FLASH Gallery in Lakewood, Colorado. One of my Bosque del Apache photographs is in the show, which runs June 11 through August 1, 2010.

I was honored that about twenty of my friends from the Denver area made it to the opening reception. Thanks to all of you who made it out on a rainy night. Here I am at the gallery with one of my best friends, Nancy.

I enjoyed the whole weekend, including the cool weather, and hope I’m back soon.

Jun 12

Exhibit of Landscape Photography in Colorado

Ongoing exhibit: Sense of Place | Landscape Photography, at the FLASH Gallery in Lakewood, Colorado. One of my Bosque del Apache photographs is in the show, which runs June 11 through August 1, 2010.

I had about twenty friends from the Denver area who made it to the opening reception. Thanks to all of you who made it out on a rainy night. Here I am at the gallery with one of my best friends, Nancy.

Apr 11

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Bluebonnets

Thanks to a wet winter, we’ve had a really good spring for wildflowers in central Texas. There are millions of bluebonnets and other wildflowers along the major highways in Austin. (Thanks, Lady Bird.)

Sometimes, I think I take the wildflowers for granted. Growing up in Texas, I’ve seen and photographed a lot of bluebonnets. So rather than go out and photograph them, I’ve just been enjoying the wildflowers as I’ve been driving around town.

Do I really need another bluebonnet portrait? Can I find a new, interesting wildflower composition I haven’t seen before? Still, the flowers are so good this year, maybe it’s worth at least a little effort.

Click to enlarge

So this past weekend, one of my best friends and I decided to try to find a good spot for wildflower photography.

But first, we had lunch. And then we went shopping for a hat for her. Next, we drove down some country roads, but didn’t find any wildflower patches that inspired us. Then we gave up the wildflower search to visit a neighborhood garden tour, and to spend some time with a couple of friends who live there.

Near the end of the day, we still hadn’t taken a photo of wildflowers. As we left our friends, we drove by a neighborhood park flooded with the distinctive, blue, state flower of Texas. We got out our gear and walked around. I took several dozen photos, but we were tired, and I don’t think either of us felt particularly inspired.

Back home at the end of the day, I went through my images, and selected a few worth keeping. And when I saw the image below, I was reminded that it’s not about the photography, and it’s not about the flowers. It’s about being inspired by the people who touch us. It’s about friends who make us laugh. It’s about sharing life. Thanks, Nicole, for being part of it.

Mar 17

Zilker Kite Festival

There’s a whole lot going on in Austin, Texas, this week. The biggest event is, of course, South by Southwest (SxSW). This last weekend was also the Zilker Kite Festival.

Inspired by my friend Carol Watson, who showed me some of her early infrared work at the kite festival, I took my infrared Nikon D200 (converted by LifePixel).

There were thousands of people, and hundreds of kites in the air at any one time. (Not to mention the dozens of kites stuck in trees.)

Click on any of these images to enlarge.

A squid…

Tinkerbell…

A gecko…

Mar 16

A Weekend in Denver

After leaving New Mexico, I went up to Colorado and enjoyed catching up with several friends. My first night, I captured this great sunset with the Denver skyline from my hotel room balcony.

My friend Micaela took me snowshoeing for the first time. We went up to Bear Lake, in Rocky Mountain National Park, and we had a wonderful time with a couple of feet of fresh powder in some places.

Despite her best efforts with snowballs, she did not cause me to trip over my own snowshoes and fall down.

Mar 15

Lent in Santa Fe

Santa Fe, New Mexico, is one of my favorite cities. Great for photography, great for shopping, great for opera, great for relaxing.

After visiting Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument, I drove up to Santa Fe for an afternoon. It was the Christian season of Lent, and the St. Francis Cathedral had a figure of Christ on the cross in purple fabric. In the foreground is a statue by Estella Loretto.

Mar 14

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Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument

I recently enjoyed a great visit to Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument. It’s between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. This monument is famous for its rock formations, but I didn’t really know what to expect.

From the moment I drove up to the gate, I felt welcomed. “Thanks for coming here!”, said the ranger—I think because he was proud of this place.

I visited the day after a snowstorm came through. Perhaps because I grew up reading Arizona Highways, I think that snow in the desert is a beautiful thing.

Here are a couple of self-portraits, giving you an idea of the scale of the rock formations.

I’ll be back, I’m sure.

Dec 25

Christmas at El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park

Merry Christmas to all of you.

Here’s another HDR image, of the Christmas tree in the lobby of the grand hotel El Tovar, on the south rim of the Grand Canyon. (Click the image to enlarge.)

Dec 24

Christmas at San Xavier del Bac

While in Tucson last week, I visited Mission San Xavier del Bac, south of the city. The beautiful church was decorated for Christmas.

This was another challenging exposure, so I took three different exposures and combined them into a single high dynamic range (HDR) photograph. (Click to enlarge.)

Dec 23

Devil’s Bridge, Sedona

While traveling last week, I consulted Volume 2 (Arizona) of Laurent Martrès’ book series, Photographing the Southwest.

As their name implies, the books describe a variety of locations for photography in the southwest, including directions and good times of day to photograph. I’ve learned of places I probably never would have found on my own.

One place recommended by the book was Devil’s Bridge, a stone arch in the Coconino National Forest, near Sedona. I drove a mile and a half down a rough 4WD road, and then hiked about one mile to get to the arch. (I wasn’t going to let my injured leg dissuade me.)

When I arrived at the arch, it was still in morning shadow, but the rest of the valley was in full sun. There was too much contrast to render the scene with a single image in my camera. So, I tried my hand at some high-dynamic range (HDR) photography. I’ve tried HDR in the past, without much success. But I recently met Trey Ratcliff, an HDR expert and author of the blog http://www.stuckincustoms.com/. I decided to try again.

So here’s a merged set of three different exposures of Devil’s Bridge. (Click the image to enlarge.)

I plan to post a couple more HDR photos in the next few days.

Brian H. Powell Photography

Conservation Photography and Other Photo Adventures