115

We go down to “the valley” fairly often. When we moved here, I was puzzled by people referring to “the valley” until I finally asked- it means the Phoenix area. The elevation there is about 1000 feet, compared to Prescott, which is a mile high. We get snow- Phoenix does not. Phoenix has saguaro cacti and paloverde trees; we do not. Summer temperatures in Phoenix are often well over 110 degrees. That doesn’t happen up here in the high country.

A month ago when we drove to the airport for our flight to Alaska, it was 115 degrees in Phoenix. Today’s abstract is a tribute to the blistering heat of the valley.

Turnagain Again and Again

We return to the same spots along the Seward Highway every year- mostly for me to take photos of the Turnagain Arm. I’m fascinated by the mountains and glaciers- and am always looking for beluga whales at Beluga Point (no, not yet…). The last couple years I’ve spent time taking ICM images- each one turning out different from the others.

Lakeside

Ahhh the lazy days of summer, just hanging out by a lake- in this case, at our daughter’s cabin at Crooked Lake in Alaska. The sunlight shimmering on the water behind the fireweed caught my eye, and I tried to capture the dreamy feeling using multiple exposures and a slow shutter.

In the Forest

We’ve just returned from a visit with our daughter’s family in Alaska. My camera got a workout taking dozens of senior photos of our oldest grandson, and lots of ICM photos of places we’ve visited many times, trying to capture them in a different way. The photos here taken on a short hike to a spot we had never visited before- Barbara Falls in Eagle River. I took the photo above as we walked along and the more traditional photo below of the falls themselves. Quite a contrast to Arizona!

Checking the Boxes

I won’t say where this is, because someone lives here. But… I will say that this old house checks a lot of my photography boxes: it’s old, it has seen better days, it has peeling paint, it’s surrounded by trees, and there’s a bicycle parked outside. My husband spotted it and drove me there- how could I resist?

Downtown Squares

A couple months ago I went on a photo walk with 3 other members of my Monday photo group. We walked around Cortez Street and the alleyway taking photos of whatever caught our fancy. I remembered what fun it was the other day and created a little grid of some of the details.