Another Photomerge @ Picketwire

The O'Rourke Ranch Adobe @ Picketwire Canyon.

Fun with Photomerge @ Picketwire Arch

It's been a while since we've played with Photomerge.  B&W composed to two images:

Sometime you have to get close to cut out the bystanders n the way.  But then you capture on a part of the image you want.  So Photomerge to the Rescue!


Color composed of three images:

That unfortunate featureless blue Colorado sky is the only real problem; most strongly affects the B&W image.

Little School House on the Prairie

Limon 1-Room School House, Vintage ~1900

Limon Grain Elevator

Perhaps better know as the home of a State Prison (If you are a fan of MSNBC Lockup), and the place where I-70 is often closed in the winter due to bad weather, Limon also has some interesting Rail Road history, and ofcourse this striking Grain Elevator

The Lights are on in La Junta

Starting with some B&W

I did get some of my B&W developed.  But not the most interesting ones.  I had taken those with my 35mm camera, and just finished the role this week.  So we'll have to wait a bit longer for those.

But what I do have are some striking Buildings taken with the Mamiya 7.  So we'll start there:

Bent County Courthouse, Las Animas

(If it looks a bit fuzzy, I think I degraded the image too much.  But alas, people do steal a lot of photography from the web)

Picketwire Protection of Dinosaur Tracks

So You can see from yesterday's posting, why Picketwire Canyon restricts access to Guided Tours or very ambitious hikers.

It would be a terrible loss if these Dinosaur Tracks went the way of Race Track Playa.........

Yes we did pose these guys, but under strict Park Ranger Supervision:

And, alas the Best Tracks were just out of reached (in the rocks on the distant shore), blocked by the flooding Purgatory River:

Saturdays Online: Destruction of a Natural Wonder

Too bad so many irresponsible people own 4X4 vehicles.  Because it has led to the Destruction of a Natural Wonder,  The Race Track Playa at Death Valley.  Now it probably isn't worth it to go there.  So I'm glad I got to se it before the ugliness occurred.  What right do any of us have to destroy something that has been there for thousands of years?

These Photos were from 2005, when it was undamaged.  We
walked lightly, looked, and DID NOT TOUCH!

Click here for B&W Images from Death Valley.

Scenes like this will never been SEEN again!

Flowers of Picketwire Canyon #5

For more flowers visit Longs Peak Journal.  We end the week with my best shot, a pair of Native Sunflowers.

Flowers of Picketwire Canyon #4

The Ubiquitous and almost indestructible Prickly Pear Cactus.

Flowers of Picketwire Canyon #3

The Barrel Cactus were also blooming.

Flowers of Picketwire Canyon #2

Our Club had arranged a Guided Auto Tour into Picketwire Canyon.  Otherwise its about a 14 mile round trip hike to "see the sights".

The Best Evening Primrose happened to be along the side of the road where we parked.

Flowers of Picketwire Canyon #1

"Picketwire" being a corruption of the Original Name for the Purgatoire River (Now Purgatory River).  This was the main destination of our latest outing with the Urban Wildlife Photo Club.

Still waiting on my film from Ilford Labs, so We'll move on to more color, this time with the proper exposure.  Wildflowers of Picketwire Canyon.

Starting with some Wild Oregano

Saturdays Online: Something Better than a Selfie Stick

Camera Phone Selfie's are all too common now days.  When we used take self portraits with a real camera, it required some thought and planning.  Ok we occasionally used the long arms approach.  But a self-Portrait (as we used to call them) can be a quality portrait, rather than just an exercise in narcissism:

Or something whimsical and Fun:

Or better yet, Take the advice offered HERE.

Amache: A National Historic Site

We'll leave Amache as we wait for the B&W images to be processed. Also check out our other Blog, Longs Peak Journal, to see some Views of Picketwire Canyon......

By the Way, do any of you know who Amache was?

Amache Towers

Many foundations remain.  But in an attempt to obliterate the memory of Internment Camps, it was bulldozed ASAP afterthe last inhabitant departed.  The only parts reconstructed so far is the Water Tower, and an example of the Guard Towers.

It's important to note that the preservation and restoration movement began with a combination of Survivors returning to the site in remembrance, and Granada, Colorado,  High School Students who along with their History teacher have worked to recover this part of history.  Read more about the Amache Project here.

On the Positive Side, the Governor of Colorado, Ralph Carr, refused to allow Colorado Citizens to be sent to Internment Camps, although he could not prevent on being built here.  He lost the next election, but the New Colorado State Supreme Court Building has been named for him.  And no Japanese Americans in Colorado were ever sent to camps.  And amazingly, we met one of Governor Carr's descendants on our journey though the Prairies of SE Colorado.  More on that later.......

If the images look a bit odd, my exposure setting was on manual and I didn't notice it until the next day.  Still not very familiar with the Nikon.  But I was able to make some of the images presentable through a bit of Photoshop.  I'll have some B&W images to share soon.

Amache: Honor Roll

Amache: Never Again!

This week we will visit "Amache", and remember that Never Again should the United States send its citizens to internment camps!

Saturdays Online: The Fungus Among Us

My Best Fungus, from Monterey, California.

Click here for some extraordinary Fungi Photos by Steve Axford