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Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Desert Photography

My husband and I took a trip to Sedona, Arizona a couple weeks ago. Except for the hiking required to get these beautiful shots, I was in heaven! This little valley surrounded by red mountains is one of the most beautiful places in the world. The last day we were there, we woke up to snow covered mountains and big snowflakes out our window.


This photo actually taken over looking Phoenix.












The following photo was created using HDR (High Dynamic Range), which is when you merge 2 or more exposures of the same picture to capture detail that your eye can see but the camera loses during exposure. This one was done with 3 different exposures.


This one also done with 3 exposures.



Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Day at the Grand Canyon


  

Our first day of the trip took us to Flagstaff, AZ for the night.  We got up early our first morning and drove out to the Grand Canyon.  It was a perfect day out there, cool but not cold and partly sunny. 















Monday, November 14, 2011

Sedona, Arizona

I'm not sure how to explain how much I love this place.  Did you ever have the feeling as you entered a place that you'd come home?  This was my third time here and anticipation filled every sense as we rounded the mountain into this beautiful valley.  This is what you see.





We spent four days hiking and exploring.  I was so exhausted by evening, I could hardly get through dinner.  It becomes almost obsessive, if I don't keep going, I might miss something!  So I pushed through and was rewarded with some of the most amazing scenery I've ever seen.


Morning light

Evening light of the same valley, different direction.

Standing on a bridge leading to a ranch off of Red Rock Loop, we found this beautiful display of fall color.  Notice the snow on the mountains.  We got two snowfalls, the second one producing snow in the Sedona Valley, which is a very rare occurence.






This is the result of our 45 minute hike pretty much straight up the side of Doe Mountain.  We did hairpin turns all the way up.  We had hoped for clearer skies, but got some incredible shots even with the clouds.







Later that day, we took a second hike out West Fork, which is about 6 miles round trip.  We crossed this creek at least ten times.  On the second crossing, I slipped and soaked my shoe through.  Thankfully, with all the walking, my foot did not get cold.

Well, this is a start...I'll post another set later.

 

The Gift

  Delivered this week, a gift I never expected arrived in the mail.  This story begins, it seems a lifetime ago, when I worked at Owens Comm...