“Mountains and Cascade” — A stream cascades down from a mountain valley in far northern Scotland.
Most of our May visit to Scotland consisted of a big loop from Inverness out to the Isle of Skye, north (often on the NC500 route), eastward along the North Sea coast, and then down the eastern coast to return to Inverness. This took us through lots of highlands country, but on this day, as we drove across the north towards John O’Groats, the mountains were receding more and more into the distance. Driving east and looking south (the North Sea was to our left) we saw this spectacular ridge.
“Travessa de Sâo Miguel” — Narrow streets and tall buildings in Lisbon’s Alfama district.
This is another photograph from the Alfama district of Lisbon. The neighborhood is the original center of historic Lisbon, though it later became home to lower income people. It escaped the destruction from the 18th-century earthquake that leveled large portions of the city, so it retains the narrow lanes, steep hills, and older buildings of an earlier era.
“Autumn Aspen Trees, Utah” — Dense forest of tall aspen trees with autumn foliage, Dixie National Forest.
This seems like a somewhat unusual aspen photograph for me. One difference is the color palette — in addition to the usual yellows and reds, there is a lot of green from the small conifers growing beneath the aspen canopy. Another difference is that I photographed during the main part of the day, rather than in the soft light of early morning or evening.
Over the course of several visits to Utah I gradually learned that the best sights are not restricted to the famous national parks. There is a lot to see and photograph in those places, but state parks, national monuments, and national forests also present loads of opportunities. This photograph was made in the vast and diverse Dixie National Forest.
“Trees and Sandstone Cliffs” — Trees near the base of sandstone cliffs, Zion Canyon.
There is a lot going on here related to textures and colors. Color first: the cliff and tree colors are almost complementary. The green trees at the base of the cliff are in full shade. The further cliff face is getting both direct and reflected light. The cliffs seem massive and solid, but the surfaces are surprisingly varied. We see lighter and redder sections contrasting with almost-blue darker areas.
I was a little surprised to see trees growing so close to the base of he cliff. Often these areas are littered with accumulated rockfall debris, but here the trees don’t show any signs of that. It isn’t easy to tell from the photograph, but some of the trees are actually growing from cracks in the rock wall.
