While inspecting our garden for changes that might have occurred during the two weeks I was gone, I heard some definite buzzing as I neared the agapanthus. I got as close as I dared with my macro lens to get this image.
f/7.1, 1/400, ISO 200, 85mm
Day 179- Sunny California- NOT
We’re home!
Left: entering California (still sunny)
Right: back in the Bay Area (pouring rain)
Day 178- On the road again- sort of . . .
We left our little family at Yellowstone and started our journey through Idaho, heading to Elko, Nevada, where we would stop for the night.
Can you figure out what is shown in this photo?
If you said a view of our car from inside the cab of a tow truck, you are RIGHT!
When we were at Yellowstone, our car wouldn’t start one day (and wouldn’t hold a charge after being jumped)- and it ended up needing a new alternator. We took it to a local shop, they ordered the part, and all was well.
Until we ALMOST got to Twin Falls, Idaho.
All of a sudden, there was a clunk- and, one by one, the cruise control, the speedometer, the gears, and EVERYTHING ELSE stopped. My husband coasted onto the shoulder of the busy highway, where we watched the big rigs whiz by as we searched for the Triple A emergency number and phone number of a Subaru dealership. An extremely nice police officer (state trooper?) came by and checked on us- and, an hour later, the tow truck showed up and towed us to the Twin Falls Subaru dealership..
The problem was- the alternator. It may or may not have been defective and may or may not have been installed incorrectly. Subaru quickly installed a new one (we thought we would be here for DAYS)- and we are good to go! Our trip will be a little longer tomorrow then we thought, but things could be worse- and we were impressed with the friendly, helpful service at the Subaru dealership.
Day 177- Last Hike
It’s our last day at Yellowstone- tomorrow we start the long drive home. Papa has become Miles’s hands-down favorite person, so here is a photo, taken during a short hike we took to Wraith Falls, that commemorates their special times together.
f/9, 1/500, ISO 640, 105mm
Day 176- Barn Stalking
Barns!
I have been looking for barns to photograph, and today it was barns galore! Caitlin and I had to leave Chico Hot Springs earlier than expected, because we had to take Henry to the doctor (he’s fine). We drove the East River Road through the Paradise Valley on our way to Bozeman- one of the most scenic routes you could ever find. She promised me that we would stop and take photos on the way back. It looks so idyllic- I had to remind myself how windy, icy, and snowy it is most of the year. Alas, not a retirement spot for the likes of us!
Here’s one of the many rural scenes I experienced today.
f/10, 1/200, ISO 400, 50mm
Day 175- Chico!
No, I’m not back in my hometown- we are at Chico Hot Springs, a wonderful resort in the Paradise Valley of Montana, only about 45 minutes from Yellowstone. We had an afternoon of fun in the pools, a gourmet dinner in the dining room, and an evening spent babysitting the grandbabies while their parents enjoy the warm pools and poolside bar.
Photo collage: Miles, post-swimming, examining a gorgeous moth that Justin found, a small segment of the amazing panoramic view from our cottage, and some of the beautiful lupin in the fields outside.
Day 174- Let me out!
It’s Henry waking up from his nap!
f/2.2, 1/40, ISO 4000 (!), 35mm
It was very low light- I kept increasing the ISO until I got a decent exposure. It wasn’t until I uploaded the photos to my computer that I noticed that the ISO was 4000! I think my D7000 is performing amazingly well at this high an ISO- there is some noise, but nothing that really distracts from the photo at this size. I love my camera (and my grandbaby!)!
Day 173- Bubbles
We are having the complete experience of what it’s like to live in a national park during tourist season. At lunchtime, the house was surrounded on two sides by elk and tourists snapping photos, so we found a little patch of grass on the side where Miles could play with bubbles. The baby elk was nowhere to be seen- until Miles and Papa went to the playground later and found him stashed under the slide.
I wasn’t too happy with my photos- and am blaming it on the midday sun. However, I remembered this week’s Texture Tuesday challenge was to use texture on a photo with people. I converted the photo to a sepia toned image and then added Kim’s bent edges texture. I also painted in some of the blown-out areas on a duplicate background layer.
And I like the vintage look of the texturized photo better than my original.
Day 172- View from the Porch
My daughter and family live at Mammoth in Yellowstone National Park, and elk are almost daily visitors to the grass at the front of their home. Here is a photo of a baby elk that I took from their front porch.
f/7.1, 1/1000, ISO 1250, 300mm
Day 171- Funky Crayons
We bought Miles some crayons that fit inside each other to make a crayon stack, so they are the subject of this week’s Macro Monday.
f/4, 1/50, ISO 1250, 85mm
Day 170- Yellowstone Baby
And just to prove we are now in Yellowstone- here’s a bison!
Day 169- Adventures in Babysitting!
Our daughter’s family arrived here today, and we are babysitting our grandsons while the parents attend a wedding. So- no time for blogging- it looks like it is diaper changing time again any minute. . .
Here are Papa and Miles sharing a laugh over Tom Cat on my iPhone!
Day 168- Jenny Lake
So many photographs- how to choose just one?
When you are in one of the most beautiful spots in the world, it is hard to select just one photo. Today we drove from our rented condo near Teton Village into Grand National Park up to Jackson Lake and back. These are all places we have visited more than once, but each time the beauty of the mountains overwhelms me. I chose another mountain photo for today- this one at Jenny Lake.
f/18, 1/50, ISO 200, 18mm (handheld)
Today I did use my tripod for most landscape shots, but not this one, alas. I also learned why my tripod head kept loosening, thanks to a very helpful Australian man, who was expertly setting up his own shots and who lives in San Francisco and BTW is a friend of Peter Gabriel!
The only disappointment of the day was no wildlife (except for a pelican).
Now time to start thinking about going out to dinner!
Day 167- Bucket List
The drive from Idaho across the Tetons into Jackson Hole is one to add to your bucket list. Having our daughter’s family living in Wyoming has provided us with some of the most spectacular scenery EVER! Here is a shot taken near Swan Valley, Idaho (outside Idaho Falls)- a gorgeous spot. I will be taking quite a few mountain photos in the next couple weeks, because we will be in the Tetons and then Yellowstone!
f/22, 1/80, ISO 400, 22mm (handheld, should have used tripod. . .)
Day 166- On the road again. . .
We are driving to Wyoming to visit the grandbabies! We got all the way to Twin Falls, ID today- and are slightly pooped. We took a slight detour off Interstate 80, so that I could take my photo of the day. Here’s a scene of unexpectedly photoworthy mountains near Starr Valley on the way to Wells, Nevada. The black streak is a train going by.
melinda anderson photography 