Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Magi?

May Wise Men bring you Holiday Blessings.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Las Cruces for the Holidays

I am now about 15 miles north of Las Cruces, and will be here for the holidays.  From my campsite, I can see the very remarkable, very jagged peaks that rise about 10 miles to the east of Las Cruces.  Friday evening, the sun lit them nicely for me.

Yesterday I took a long drive, dropping briefly into Texas, then up to Alamogordo for a late lunch.  I then went to White Sands, seeking some shots near to sunset.  I was disappointed because I could not find much to use the light that I had and capture the vast whiteness of the dunes.  I did have a nice blue sky at first, which I liked in contrast to my shots from a month ago.

I saw the sun lighting a clump of grass.  That light was closer to what I was hoping to find.

Moments later, the sun was setting.  The color was obscured by the dunes and far peaks, and was bland at first, a pastel yellow with some pink.  The sky was not yet rich, it became so later.  This is what I saw as I was leaving and had a better view to the west.  (OK, I admit it - I couldn't resist slipping in another sunset.)

Everyone that I saw during the early part of the sunset was looking to the west.  Me?  I was looking east at what the light was doing to the mountains near Alamogordo.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Play It Again, Sam

Another great sunset at Elephant Butte.  I was speaking with my brother and I mentioned that the sky was a dull grey-orange, except for one tiny cloud that was a fiery orange, too small for photographing.  Minutes later, clouds to the northeast lit up like they contained Thor's forge.

I grabbed my camera and went out, getting the above shot.  As I turned around, the sky to the south, then the southwest lit up.

I really love sunsets!

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Another Elephant Butte Sunset

Like snowflakes, no two sunsets are the same.  This one started with some interesting light on one of the far mountains.

It grew into some very nice colors which, unfortunately, were right over the campground, putting shelters and RV's in the foreground.

I cropped them out as much as I could, then it occurred to me - when faced with a detracting foreground, change it!
 Yeah - THAT works!