Views from Around the World
Some pictures I've taken that resonate
I’ve never been much of a photographer. For most of my adult life, the only time I took a lot of pictures was to capture something the kids were doing. Then, when social media came along, my food and I even had a selfie phase. But those were snapshots, not “art” that was more than capturing a moment.
Then, the cameras on phones got really good, and I had a high-quality photographic device right there in my hand all the time. So, when I travel, I take some real pictures that I have printed and put on the wall. I thought it might be interesting to make this week’s thoughts and observations about my thoughts and observations about these pictures.
Here they are in sort of the order I took them in. I’ll share a bit about the picture and then a thought or observation or two about the place, the trip, or the image itself.
South Rim of the Grand Canyon (Northern Arizona)
If you take a hike along the south rim westward from all the lodges, you go from amazing view to amazing view. This particular dead tree just struck me as a contrast with the canyon and the river below. What grabbed me is the organic shape of the tree, shaped over maybe a few years, sitting and watching the organic shapes of the canyon, shaped over millions of years. The Grand Canyon impacts everyone differently. For me, the first impact is the beauty. Every few steps, the view changes, and it’s even more attractive than the last. But also, its awesomeness and age overwhelm me and help me gain perspective on the blip that is my life. I try to visit every other year or so.
Glass Blower’s Workbench (Jerome, Arizona)
Like most artsy tourist towns, Jerome has a glassblower. His workshop is set up on a flat bit on a very steep hill, below a bunch of shops. Although he gives tours constantly, it is a bit of a mess, and I worry that a strong wind would knock it all down. What strikes me about this image is the contrast of the three bright colors with all the brown and gray. Everything except the newly created blue glass vase is worn and weathered through use, in the service of making beautiful things.
Lake Wenatchee State Park (Cascades Mountain Range, Washington)
On a trip to Seattle, I took a drive into the mountains to see the tourist town of Leavenworth. Along the way, I saw a sign for Lake Wenatchee State Park and, on a whim, veered off the highway and made my way to the beach. I found this old driftwood log pointing towards an island and the mountain behind. This image screams “journey” to me. The log points the way. And when I look at it for a while, I feel like the destination is actually over the mountain.
Green Monestary Door Above The Chuch of the Holy Sepulchre (Jerusalem, Israel)
If you wind your way down a few alleys and up a few stairs, you can walk around on the roof of the holiest place in all of Christianity, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This is such an amazing place for so many reasons. Again, for me, it was the colors. The bright green, white crosses, and brown wood are surrounded by the muted colors of the stone that make up the church this monastery clings to. The chair reminds me of religious devotion because a monk usually sits there reading scriptures right above the places where the most important part of that text took place. And also, it is a reminder of the division and strife that religion can bring because they are on the roof after being banned from inside the church itself. This is my favorite image in the collection, and maybe some day I’ll do a full thoughts and observations on just this picture. The history of the monestary, Deir es Sultan, is fascinating.
Gladys’ Bar (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands)
When I go on the Star Trek Cruise (which I talked about in an earlier UWTO), it’s all about Star Trek. But we do sometimes get off the boat and go exploring. This is an alley on St. Thomas outside a bar and restaurant with amazing island food. This used to be warehouses back in the pirate days, so I like to look at it and imagine the stream of fascinating people walking, sleeping, fighting, and probably fooling around along this narrow street back in those days.
Wooden Bridge On the Edge of a Meadow (Big Meadow Reservoir, Colorado)
This hike, while visiting Pagosa Springs, turned into so many great images. But this one was my favorite. No deep thoughts. I just like the trees on the edge of the meadow and the shadows on the bridge.
Sunset in a Flagstaff Alley (Flagstaff, Arizona)
I was on a business trip to Flagstaff in the summer and was wandering around the small downtown area after dinner. While walking back to my Airbnb, I saw the sunset reflected in the puddle from an earlier rainstorm. Two things hit me about this picture every time I really look at it. The girl on her phone is just living her life, and like most of us, oblivious to the strange beauty that can happen in this type of urban landscape where nature is also right there. But she is smiling, and that is OK. The second part are all the wires that are also reflected in the puddle. It’s cliche, but yup, it makes me really think about connections.
Horseshoe Dam (Horshoe Lake, Arizona)
Every once in a while, and more infrequently these days, it really rains in Arizona. After our most recent wet year, we took a drive up to see the wildflowers, and on the way back, stopped by Horseshoe Dam. The lake was so full that they were releasing a massive amount of water. For me, this picture is about the power of nature and man’s attempt to control it. It is also about the difficult relationship Arizona has with water. It was so inspiring that I wrote an article in the Phoenix Business Journal about it. This is also a special image for me because it made it into the Journal - my first published photograph.
Red 2CV (Willemstad, Curaçao)
Another island stop on a Star Trek Cruise. Willemstad was so cool because of the Caribbean and Dutch mix. While out wondering around I came acorss this classic french car parked in front of a wonderfully painted house. This image, for me, is all about color, but also how time can stand still, locked in place by isolation and tourism, on these islands. And I love 2CV’s.
Wooden Door, Stucko Wall (Santa Fe, New Mexico)
Santa Fe has lots of photogenic locations. But on this particular day, this door stood out because of the colors and the textures. I feel like something amazing and grand should be behind this door, maybe a portal to another, alternative universe?
The Very Large Array (Magdalena, New Mexico)
I love big science, so when I decided to drive to New Mexico for a conference, I opted to take the back roads, including a stop at the Very Large Array (VLA) - a collection of twenty-seven radio telescopes that work together and pierce the ancient history of the universe. When I look at it, I think about everything from the big bank to how the US used to do great things, and how now we struggle to do anything but fight about projects and reject science.
Wooden Corral (Sangre de Cristo Mountains, New Mexico)
On that same trip to New Mexico, I drove north to Denver. Along the way, just north of Taos, I saw this corral and pulled over to take some pictures. It has become my strongest reminder of the Old West when there were more cows than people in the Southwestern US.
Blanket Hills (Book Cliffs, Utah)
On my way back on the same road trip, I pulled off the road just after entering Utah to take a picture of this mountain range. I’m a huge fan of Ed Mell’s paintings, and this picture is about as close as I’ve ever come to capturing what he painted. Worn away by rain and wind, these hills look like someone dropped gray blankets over the usual sharp and red cliffs and buttes in this part of the country.
Mayan Stairs to the Heavens (Chacchoben Mayan Pyramids, Costa Maya, Mexico)
On another Star Trek Cruise, we went to Belize and Mexico. I’ve always wanted to go to a Mayan or Aztec pyramid, so I got on the tourist bus and drove from the port to this wonderful park. This image speaks to me about the culture that was wiped out by the European conquest of the Americas. It also reminds me of the green door on the church roof in Jerusalem. So many humans are always trying to connect with heaven, up to and including human sacrifice.
Four Layer Cake of Wood, Trees, Red Rocks, and Sky (Lee’s Ferry, Arizona)
This is one of the many red cliffs around Lee’s Ferry in northern Arizona. This spot, where the desert comes down to the level of the Colorado River, just before it cuts into the Grand Canyon, is one of my favorite out-of-the-way spots in Arizona. I had so many thoughts about this location that I wrote a post on Stubstack about it. And yes, you can find even more pictures there.
Thank You for Sitting Through My Slideshow
Those of you who are around my age may remember the ritual where dads would invite friends and family over and project images from photographic slides on a screen in their living room. They would advance the projector, then talk for what seemed like hours about each image. I feel like I just did that.
I’ve really enjoyed this because I got to think about each trip that each image came from, and also how the picture makes me feel. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning. Maybe it will inspire some of you to go through some of your favorite pictures of places you’ve been.
