Welcome to Manzanar

On our last day in Lone Pine, Lonnie and I spent a couple hours at Manzanar, the Japanese internment camp which is now a National Historic Site through the National Park Service. It was a sobering experience, but learning about this part of our history is important for all Americans.

Although the original buildings were torn down after the war, replicas have been rebuilt in the footprints of the originals, so one can get a sense of what this place was like during the war years.

 

 

Final Series

This is the week my photo series is due. I abandoned my alone-in-a-crowd beach series and opted for the very simple wabi sabi series. Each photo illustrates one (or more) aspect of wabi sabi. Such basic photos are not the norm in this very advanced group, so I hope I don’t get in trouble!

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Monolith

Last week I had an appointment in Flagstaff, so we decided to take the Oak Creek Canyon scenic route. Of course, we had to stop at the Bell Rock and the Courthouse parking areas to visit some of our favorite rock formations! It had been raining, so the red in the rocks was extra saturated. But, for some reason, I converted this image of the Courthouse to black and white, which I thought made a nice contrast with the clouds.

Glacial

One of the highlights of our trip to Alaska was seeing glaciers. Many glaciers. And a few up close!

This was our third visit to Portage Lake since the kids moved to Alaska- but the first time we have taken the boat ride across the lake to see the glacier! While Caitlin and Lonnie were buying tickets, the boys and I walked down to the water’s edge, and I was able to take this shot featuring one of the large chunks of ice floating in the lake.

Don’t Look Back

When we were walking along the beach at Laguna, we came upon what I think was an engagement shoot. The young woman remained on the beach as the photographer headed past our group for the next set up. I took the opportunity to take a few shots thinking I could use them for some sort of image. I ended up lengthening her dress and moving her arms (she was cold and had her arms loosely folded across her chest) to make a more pleasing image. I’m not sure what she was looking back at, but I am thinking this has potential as the cover of a romantic mystery! 😉

And speaking of romance . . .today is our 47th anniversary! Happy Anniversary to us!

Vintage Wigwam

Here’s another shot of the Wigwam Motel at night- this time with a black and white edit for a vintage look. It’s also missing the “car trails”- streaks from tail lights from passing cars- that were visible in yesterday’s image (and I kept in because I like them).

As you can probably tell, I found the Wigwam Motel totally captivating. I only wish that I had crossed the street and wandered around the grounds. It would probably not have been a good idea to do this at nighttime though. I think I need a return trip!