Month: November 2023

Cuervo, New Mexico, March 2023, Part 1

Cuervo, New Mexico is a small community along interstate I-40 in New Mexico.  It is mostly a ghost town, having been established as a railroad stop in 1901, then drying up when the railroad chose another stop in Tucumcari, NM.

I’ve driven this stretch of I-40 past Cuervo numerous times, first making a mental note of this place, when I spotted an old, picturesque church as I drove by at 75mph, thinking that someday I might want to stop in to photograph that old church.

I had spent the night near Gallup, NM, waking up to a snow covered vehicle and campground with temperature in the low 20s.  I drove through intermittent snow and rain that heavily overcast morning.  I figured the overcast sky would create the perfect environment for photographing in Cuervo, so I determined to take time to stop here today.  Atlas, as I drove along not paying attention to where I was, I drove past the only east bound exit for Cuervo.  I had to drive 7 or 8 miles to the next exit, make a U-turn and backtrack to Cuervo.  By the time I got back to Cuervo, most of the overcast had cleared and it was mostly bright and sunny.  But I was here and decided to walk around the small town, photographing the abandoned homes, anyway.

Cuervo Ghost Town 1
Cuervo Ghost Town 2
Cuervo Ghost Town 3
Cuervo Ghost Town 4
Cuervo Ghost Town 5
Cuervo Ghost Town 6 – Cali-Rose
Cuervo Ghost Town 7
Cuervo Ghost Town 8 – The Church

The old church is still somewhat maintained, at least.  The roof appears to be relatively new.

To be continued,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 27 – Final Sunset Shoot (Continued)

This is the final post for my March 2023 visit to Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.

Desert Gold
The Midas Effect

Sunset light turns these desert rock features into gold.

Gold Veins
Transformation 11
Fringe Light
Fringe Light 2

Sunset light fades away on the peaks.  I’m so grateful for the natural lines and textures in the amazing geology and natural sculpture here, without which the photographs would not be nearly so interesting.

Peak Gold 2

With a cache of fallen rocks in the eroded portion below the peak.

Getting the Shot

I could have yelled at this photographer for intruding into my composition, but I think he adds to the theme of photographing the geology here, as well as giving a human scale for reference.

Regular followers of this blog might recall that in an earlier post about this final sunset shoot I made a statement about thinking that there must be a better composition in the area where I made an early shot before sunset.  Well, there was. I came back to that area, as the sun was very low in the sky, where I shot some of the images above.  As I moved around the area, I found rocks that made very interesting foreground  objects.  These last three images are my best (I think) images from that location.

The Cast 1

The rocks of Valley of Fire are the stars of this series, so it seem appropriate to name these last photos for those rocks.

The Cast 2
The Cast – Final Bow

Thanks for following this long series of blogs with photos from Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Until the next journey,

Ken

 

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 27 – Final Sunset Shoot (Continued)

Transformation 4

The natural features in the foreground rocks made great leading lines into the desert background for this image and the muted color of the rocks in the shadows contrasted with the sunset light enhanced color of the background rocks.

Crease Life

I know, this is not a wonderful photo, but as I sat in the shadows on the rock ledge on this image’s right side, I noted (again) how desert life tends to accumulate in the creases between rock units. And the ledge, which is not as wide as it looks near the camera lens, seems to be disappearing into the distance.

Transformation 5

I kept with the “Transformation” theme for a number of photos, shooting from the shadows into the sunset light on the background.  In this one, I liked the fracture leading upward toward the cylindrical rock feature, then the rock/skyline edge merging with the shadow line leading down into the sunlit valley.

Transformation 8

For Transformation 8, I was inspired by the foreground rock layer that appears to be flowing downhill.

Complex

The title “Complex” is in honor of the complexity of the geology and rock details throughout this image.

Open Heart

My first inclination was to title this image “Let Sleeping Rocks Lie”, as I think the rock with the sunset light on it looks much like a resting puppy and that rock opening behind the head looks like a floppy ear.  Then I noted that that opening was heart shaped.  This detail might be more clear, if viewed on a large screen.  Clicking on the image will take one to my Flickr page with this image.

Peak Gold

The rocks here have some incredible detail and textures that can best be seen on a large screen, too.

To be continued,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 27 – Final Sunset Shoot (continued)

This is a continuation of my last sunset shoot in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada in March 2023.

For continuity, I’m including an image from the previous post.

Transformation

As the golden sunset hour advanced, I made a number of images from a location with sufficient elevation that allowed an expansive view across the desert and the extensive rock formations.  Shooting from the shadow of a massive rock outcrop behind me, I used the natural lines and layers in the foreground rock as leading lines and to contrast the change in the rock color from shadow into the brightly lit rocks of the setting sun.

Transformation 2
Transformation 3

Maybe my choice of title for the image above is not a good one.  Perhaps, it should be “Snapping Turtle”.  I’m one of those people that seems to be prone to pareidolia.  That is I see life forms in some shapes.  In the image above I see the head of a snapping turtle in the rock at upper center.  I suppose it could be imagined as something else, maybe a birds beak?

I worked my way around this area capturing many images, most of which will not be posted.  Somewhere I read an article that described my actions like those of a photographer “dancing around a teacup”, shooting a teacup from all directions, looking for that one magic or unique view.  I have to admit that I’m often guilty of this.

Sun Basking

More pareidolia, I’m seeing the face of some sort of animal creature in the rightmost portion of this rock, enjoying the last sun rays of the day.

Desert Spotlights

In the mostly shadowy area in which I was standing, looking out across the vast desert, I noted one small area being highlighted, as if in a spotlight of the late day light.

Spindly 1

I knew when I saw the skeleton of a small desert tree that I wanted to somehow include it in one or more images.  Its location made compositions including it difficult.  It was highlighted by the late day sun, when I first spotted it, but the sun was rapidly sinking and the little tree rapidly going into shadow.  By the time I determined the best way to compose around the tree and got a couple of fairly decent shots, the tree was mostly in shadow.

Spindly 2

Anyway, I think the tree provides a subtle foreground object for these two images.

To be continued,

Ken