Rembrandt Autumn

In most of the country it is autumn time.  A time when we feel alive and rejoice in the display of colors. What is it about fall and the colors that excite us so?  We feel this sense of excitement no matter our age or circumstances. This photo tries to capture that "feeling" of an autumn day in a surrealistic way. As if this is how we would dream about it.



At the Door

Who...?



Last Ride

They don't quite build 'em like they used to.......

Bell Rope

A frayed bell rope in a small Mexican church.  We don't know if it has been pulled recently or if just lies there neglected and forgotten.  We do know that it is waiting for someone to take it up, pull hard and let it sound out, calling to people who are in need of physical or spiritual comfort.  During our day we frequently have a "bell rope" waiting for us to step forward and pull it.  Why wait?



Blooming Cactus

A Prickly Pear Cactus display it bright yellow blossoms as it clings to an Arizona mountainside





Out of the Ashes

Each summer the western part of the United States lives under the threat of forest fire. Thousands of acres can be lost in a matter of days, property lost, lives threatened and sometimes lost.... But with all this destruction somehow hope seems to emerge. New life grows, homes are rebuilt - it slowly comes back. 

In all of this destruction, this once mighty charred tree trunk leaves us a gift - a sculpture as graceful and beautiful as any made by man's hand. A symbol that reminds us to look for the beauty in life.....



Glacier Lake

A beautiful lake formed by melting glaciers. Serene and powerful at the same time...

It once was written that if we gave a pencil and paper to anyone at random and asked them to draw their version of a perfect landscape - the majority would draw a lake surrounded by a forest and mountains.

Please Come on In

Hard to believe that you are viewing the actual entrance to a bed & breakfast in the little western town of Bluff, UT. It sits on a beautiful property complete with a swimming pool. It is a turn of the century structure that has been converted into a B&B. No we did not stay there.

Remember - Halloween is coming!



Coming Home

We all seem to have the desire to eventually return home, whether it is a actual place or a spiritual one. A place we can go to for rest, safety, and comfort.  A place where we are excepted and "belong".  This little birdhouse existing between the confusion around it, bathed in light, represents just such a place..... 



The Phoenix Rising

For me image making is about creating moods.... stirring emotions. Whether it evokes the same mood or emotion in the viewer as it did for me is really irrelevant.  Just so it moves you in some way.  When I was in the presence of this natural wonder my emotions were going wild!  That nature could have created this large natural stone gargoyle was almost outside my belief.  It stands about 25 feet tall on a plateau about a 60 mile drive down a dry creek bed. Here it stands, day after day. Who knows for how long or how much longer it will continue.



Rain over the Grand Canyon

A huge rain cloud dumps rain just over a specific area.



Nothing, Arizona

My profession takes me periodically to Las Vegas. I usually drive and on the route there is one stretch of 93 miles with only one little town/village of only 304 population. Other then that one little town there is only desert, mountains and cactus. No cross roads, gas stations, houses or people. Some time ago some brave soil decided to erect a new town - Nothing, AZ. As you can see it grew to a whopping population of 4! It clearly shows not only the population but also the highway number (93) and the mile marker. Over the years I would pass this place while it was still "alive". I never stopped to photograph it until recently when it was abandoned. Today even this trace has disappeared.....



The Guardian

High on the edge of a cliff stands this "guardian like rock structure. For several minutes each day the light is reflected off the foreground limestone creating this flaming monolith

The Cockscrew

Now what in the world is this...?  Over a great deal of time, water has worked it's way down through a sandstone cliff. As it continued it's journey downward it has sought the road of least resistance and in so doing created this sculptured wonder. Most of the day it is in darkness and reveals it's light show only when the sun is just right. I had camped there over night to make sure I could experience and capture the moment.



Z Rock

Wind and erosion combine to create this wonderal natural work of art



Corn Lilly

The abstract and lyrical quality of these plants create beautiful photographs with several different interpretations. They are common in the Northwest and Pacific Northwest, especially at moist higher elevations. Interestingly they created a disturbing trend in the 50's - large numbers of sheep were giving birth to one-eyed lambs. Scientists investigating the mystery eventually determined that mothers of these “Cyclops sheep” had grazed on a plant called the corn lily. They apparently contain a compound that blocks embryonic development.

Analogies anyone......



The Mighty Saguaro

The tall, columnar shape of the saguaro cactus is very familiar to those who live in and around Phoenix.  But very rarely will a saguaro will grow with a fan-shaped crest growth at the tip. These are called "crested" saguaros and they occur in only about 1 in 10,000 plants, and thus few folks have seen one in it's natural state.  Botanists have not yet fully explained why this mutation occurs; perhaps it is caused by frost damage, although many other explanations have been offered. Whatever the cause, I find the swirling shapes strangely beautiful. I first discovered this one when it only had a 6" bud being formed and over the last 14 - 15 years it has enlarged to it's current shape.  I'll keep watching...



In All it's Majesty

Mammoth Springs, Yellowstone NP.  Heat, water, limestone and a rock fracture system through which hot water can escape to the earth's surface creates these colorful patterns.  A thin layer of this hot water is constantly spilling out it's minerals as it flows over this cliff face.  Over time the colors and formation change, but still retain their wonder!

This is a link to past volcanism.



Mountainside

When standing in front of a beautiful scene it can be difficult to clearly determine "what is this a picture of".  In mountainside -  is it a photo of a mountain top, a vast expanse, clouds or a tree.  In many way it is all of them however there was most likely one element or "hook" that initially attracted you. Exploit that hook, build around it an an attempt to have your viewer come back the the very item you were attracted to in the first place.

When I first saw this view I was very attracted to the one healthy tree growing on a mountainside however the sky was clear and thus it all looked rather boring.  Coming back later the clouds were gathering and after waiting awhile this cloud formation complimented the tree and the scene. It now it had the drama I felt when I first discovered the tree.

We Now See Through A Glass Darkly

1 Corinthians 13:12



"End of the Road"



A desolate desert scene with miles of empty space...  Suddenly there is an old road that winds it's way to a now dead cottonwood tree. Why a road leading to the tree and then stopping?  How did this tree ever grow there in the first place and then why did it die...?  I find this scene to have a stark loneliness to it but yet a lovely haunting beauty. Your reaction may very well be far different from mine....

 Summer Sunset

July and August are the very hot days here in Arizona. We wait and hope for the Monsoon rains. This year there has been very little rain but there have been terrific sunsets. This was one formed as Jennifer and I walked around our little town lake. It was terrific while it lasted!