Leaves and stones

We were in town today for a while, participating in an IRS audit which it turns out is a research project. Still stressful but Diana wowed them with her record keeping and detail!
We parked behind St. Mark's Cathedral and, while Diana was getting her alb Murphy and I wondered around a bit. Here's one of the brightly lit fall scenes that struck us!
Most people don't look at the back of the Cathedral but it has an elegance all its own.

Erda

We have interesting happenings around Erda, this small community. Neighbors ride their horses by and stop to talk, the (closed for the winter) outdoor theater creates signs that make us laugh, and the sunsets are constantly changing. It is good to be alive and in Erda.

Odds

I rented a new camera last weekend which worked out very well - excellent quality and easy to use. Here's a couple of shots from it - greater range of color and much crisper than my current camera.

Windy fall day

Preparing us for a fall storm (I guess) we have a strong and gusty south wind today - it's the kind that drives my sinus's nuts so I am not out a lot in it.  Murphy of course really doesn't care as he lays on the north side of the house out of the wind!
Out to the farmer's market this morning for the final day getting potatoes, tomatoes and sausage. Here's a couple of shots from along the way.

Stansbury Island in the background.

Fall beauty

Aided by the 105mm f/2.8 lens which is very sharp here's some smaller scenes of fall beauty that sometimes get passed by.

Desert Beauty

Looking back over a few trips and found these shots that remind me of how beautiful the desert is - taken at Simpson Springs on the Pony Express Trail.

Gopher!

Diana called to me to come quickly for a photo opportunity and here's what I found - a gopher moving dirt! Very quick and watchful during the process, I could only shoot through the window without scaring him away. The shots are a bit blurry but it looks like he carries the dirt in his mouth and then shoots it out explosively!

Smiley

Murphy has a dog friend that visits periodically from up the street somewhere. A rather disheveled golden retriever with a wicked smile - we first thought he was snarling at us but then found out it was his smile.  Very cute!

Miscellania

Testing out a new camera this afternoon with different lenses and took a few miscellaneous photos. First a demo of the power of plants - this mushroom pushed its way through several inches of compacted clay soil to reach the sun. Then the carriage ride came by and finally the sun bowed out with a small crescendo of color.

Wandering in the west desert

We took our friend Carey out on the Pony Express trail Monday for a bit of wandering in the desert experience. We had a late lunch at Simpson Springs and enjoyed a perfect day - warm, sunny with a bit of a breeze and waif-like clouds everywhere!
Here's a few initial shots:

Big sky

At Simpson Springs several of these butterflies came out to see me!

Light and dark and shapes - lovely.

Tumbleweed racing us down the road to Dugway!

Close Quarters

I've seen many articles recently on how to break through your creativity 'block' or similar titles aimed at photographers who seem not to know what to photograph next. I'm fortunate to not have had that problem (so far) as I sit on my front porch or walk up a sidewalk to a friends house - and there are so many things to photograph that I am often overwhelmed. But I keep on shooting.  We are surrounded by beauty every moment!
Today, for example, here are some shots from home and a walk in town..

Sunset

Beautiful sunsets in Utah can be a "dime a dozen" so to speak, but last night's was stunning and only lasted for a few minutes. So here it is so you can enjoy it also!

Around the house

A couple of photos from around the house - flowers in sun and footprints outlined in dust.

Friday

Diana and I have been very busy finishing planting - grasses, shrubs, etc. - and putting in drip.  Murphy has done very well as our supervisor - quite tolerant of occasional naps!
Here's a couple shots from earlier this week..

This red tail was wondering what I was going to do - and he was going to fly if I stopped.

Morning light over the Oquirrhs.

Sunset series

Watching a sunset progress (or any nature scene that is lit by the sun) remains fascinating to me despite so many views over the years. Colors change and clouds change and much of it is unpredictable.  Here's one evening this week to watch..

Moon

I did get up to see some of the eclipse the other night, but no photographs 'cause I was too tired! Plus I wasn't very excited about what I saw from a photography viewpoint. Very cool stuff from an experiential perspective.
Later - 6ish or so - there was some drama with the moon and the clouds so I took a few shots. Here's a couple that I liked.

Photojournalism!

Not really but as we passed a fire caused by a collision between two semi-trucks I captured a couple of photos. Exciting!!

Desert wandering

Murph and I spent some time walking the desert over the other side west of the Stansbury mountains. Horseshoe Springs was our initial destination but with a few vehicles there we decided to go farther along. There is a lot of water in that valley if you go west so that is what we did - a long walk but fun, Murph scared up a couple of 'jacks and chased one. Hawks were out but a little skittish and a very small snake showed itself - not sure if it was a rattler or not. A great day and a great way to spend time.

This was one of two young red-tailed hawks that were playing around the telephone pole. One flew away when I stopped but this one was very curious.

B&W of Murphy the rabbit chaser in the desert.

Water is available - just have to find it.

Long walk back to the truck!

Little snake - made no threats at all.

Sunrise over the valley, GSL and Ogden.

This is a Red-Tailed Hawk!