sunrise | kritterspix

Alamo Lake

Posted on March 6, 2022 by kritterspaw

It was my first time at Alamo Lake. I wasn’t sure what to expect. There isn’t much there but a campground and a lake. We brought the boat and figured we’d get some fish and some photographs.

While we didn’t get any fish, we got more than we bargained for when we saw a number of interesting, and unexpected wildlife.

We saw wild burro’s, very likely decedents of the Spaniards in the 1600’s or AZ miners, wandering the hills and coming down for water.

We saw grebes and blue heron…

.. and were surprised to find white, and brown, pelican.

As it turns out we got more than we expected, and were delightfully surprised.

Mogollon Sunrise

Posted on June 18, 2021 by kritterspaw

Mogolllon Rim is littered with amazing views. One can pull over just about anywhere and be awestruck by the spectacular scenery.

It’s a special place for us, and we enjoy sharing it with friends.

Sunset / Sunrise are often difficult, as the Rim has a southern exposure. Unless one gets a spectacular sunset or sunrise that wraps around the sky, the color is either to the West or East. If you’re lucky, the clouds are with you, and great views follow.

Reflections of Blue Ridge Reservoir

Posted on August 20, 2019August 20, 2019 by kritterspaw

There is something magical about sunrises and sunsets, and when combined with the soothing comfort of water – it makes for stunning scenery.

It was a full moon the other day, so we decided to get some pix of Blue Ridge Reservoir at night… and in the morning. The light cast by the full moon lit up the daisies growing through the patchwork rock that lines the ridges above the lake.

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The forest and it’s trees come right down to the waters edge at Blue Ridge.

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A brisk calm morning greeted us with gorgeous clouds and fantastic reflections in her still waters. It doesn’t get any more relaxing than waking up to gorgeous scenery and the serenity of a calm sea and her comforting embrace of the beauty that surrounds her.

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Grand Canyon North Rim, Bright Angel Point

Posted on October 5, 2018 by kritterspaw

Speaking of Grand Canyon North Rim… the most popular, and accessible trail is just outside of the Grand Canyon Lodge: Bright Angel Point.

The trail is paved and an easy walk to the point at the end, overlooking the vastness that is the Grand Canyon. It’s hard not to be awestruck by it’s majestic depth and beauty.

One takes pause to take it all in.

I loved the craggy trees along the trail that grew out of moldy rocks filled with character. These trees have grown and leaned in the wind and heard tales of generations who have walked past.

Peggy’s Cove

Posted on June 25, 2016 by kritterspaw

Anyone that knows us, knows that we love the water. We always find the water where ever we go (that and food markets, but I digress). Peggy’s Cove is a popular photography place with it’s iconic lighthouse and multitude of photographs littering the internet. So we figured it was our turn to experience it for ourselves.

We planned a trip to Nova Scotia that included both Cape Breton Island, Peggy’s Cove, and Lunenburg. Check out more here.

We found Peggy’s Cove to be fantastically picturesque. It was stunning to take in… almost like props were set there for photography. The iconic lobster traps, the colorful lobster boats, and rustic docks overlooking the bay. Wow!

The weather cleared for us for 2 full days when we were in Peggy’s Cove and Lunenburg… then the fog rolled back in. It gave us just long enough to get some great sunset shots in this magical place.

I found the bay to be so much more picturesque than the lighthouse. But thankfully I was the only one who thought so, as I had the bay to myself while hoards of tourists climbed all over the lighthouse.

Milk Ranch Road

Posted on June 10, 2016June 10, 2016 by kritterspaw

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Last I blogged, I spoke about the Mogollon Rim and it’s many faces. We continue to explore it’s personalities and strive to find new places to capture it’s essence. This week’s trip took us to Milk Ranch Rd, which is kinda on-the-rim-off-the-rim. You still get those great views, but not the great winds (if you’ve been to Mogollon Rim you know what I mean, it’s always windy).

We found a great spot and stayed overnight to get sunset and sunrise shots. The sun casts shadows across the canyons creating dark lines, making it ever challenging to capture. But I’m up for the continued challenge.

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Unfortunately, on this particularly trip I forgot my tripod. Pretty humorous that was an issue for me, as I have never been a tripod shooter. It always seemed such a pain. Now that I have embraced it, I can’t live without it. I can set up the tripod and take those low light photographs (sunrise, sunset, stars) while maximizing my aperture to let lots of light in but still keeping my ISO low to avoid noise. Star photos were a bit dicey though taken on a sweatshirt. The glow of our fire cast a orange hue on the pine trees above.

The Pano

Posted on April 14, 2016 by kritterspaw

I often take Panorama’s, but seldom actually stitch them together.

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So let me step back a minute. Panorama’s are a wide span photo, either vertical or horizontal. These days you can do them with your camera or point & shoot, where in some ways they are easier. Just press the button to go… and again to stop. Wa-la.

To do them with DSLR is a little more complicated. In Photoshop, you do a Photomerge, which is hidden under the obscure tree File – Automate – Photomerge. Select the photos you want to merge and it will whir and wiz until it comes up with a compilation of your photos stitched together. You’ll have to do some cropping or Content Aware patching to fill in any holes… but wa-la… the Pano.

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A good tip when you do the Pano in camera is to stick up one finger to designate that you are beginning a pano… then take your series, trying to remain level to the horizon and constant focus & exposure as you sweep your photos across, then stick up 2 fingers to designate that you are done.

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This way when you are going through you digital negatives you know you have done a pano and can stitch it together using Photomerge in Photoshop.

Admittedly, I will take them, but rarely get around to or bother to stitch them together. Maybe it’s because they just don’t inspire me as great photos, they are difficult to print, and hard to email. Some subject matters do lend themselves to the pano format however. So don’t necessarily blow them off. Give them a try to enhance the story telling of your trip.

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Lake Powell – Alstrom Point

Posted on April 4, 2016 by kritterspaw

Have you been to… or heard of Alstrom Point? It’s on the back side of Lake Powell, north of Page. We have seen photos of this amazing place and wanted to check it out for ourselves. If you go to Page, continue west to Big Water. Stop at Big Water Visitor Center for a fascinating education in this dinosaur rich area, with over 4000 dinosaur’s being discovered just in the last 10 years, many newly discovered species. They’ll give you a detailed map on how to get to Alstrom Point. But essentially it’s behind Big Water along a long 2 hour dirt road.

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The overlook was nothing short of stunning.

We camped out so we could get sunset, sunrise, and star photos. We enjoyed it so much, we stayed 2 nights. It was one of those magical moments that you remember for a life time. Watching the full moon rise over the lake was fantastic. This orange ball rose just behind Gunsight Butte, lighting up the sky like it burst into flames.

Because we were there 2 nights we got to do sunrise and sunset, as well as night stars.

Pictures don’t do it justice. It was a fabulous couple days.

Bosque del Apache

Posted on December 19, 2015December 19, 2015 by kritterspaw

Sometime when we are young we learn that birds fly south for the winter. So I’ve known that somewhere deep in the recesses of my mind, but haven’t really contemplated it or given it much thought.

Yet when we went to Bosque del Apache outside of Socorro, New Mexico that very principle is live and in your face. Thousands of sandhill cranes, white geese, canadian geese, and other waterfowl fly from Alaska – south, to Bosque del Apache wildlife refuge.

Even though it was a ‘light’ year for the birds flocking to Bosque, it was still a sight to see, watching these numerous birds of all different kinds spiraling into the ‘crane pools’.

We watched them early morning (6 am sunrise) and evening (5pm sunset) as they would ‘lift off’ and go to safe ground in the ‘crane pools’. During the day they would flock to the farm fields and feed off the grass. It was definitely good cheap entertainment.

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Mogollon Rim Sunrise

Posted on December 3, 2014December 6, 2014 by kritterspaw

We did an outing to Mogollon Rim for sunrise yesterday. The sunrise is around 6:30am, so we made our way to the rim hoping for some good cloud cover. I love the layers of color and depth the Rim offer. I found sunrise difficult though, as it was too dark… then too light. Next time I need to scope out a specific area and go back knowing already what I want to shoot… then just wait for the perfect light. And bring my tripod!

Overlooking East Clear Creek