I recently participated in a guided workshop within and around Santa Fe, New Mexico, and as the state motto proclaims, it is the land of enchantment. This area offers unique architecture, colorful details and national monument parks providing a lot of exploration opportunities (and of course, never-ending photography). The image above is of the San Francisco de Asis church in Ranchos de Taos. Certainly in the style of Southwestern churches but with it’s own look and character.
The workshop was conducted by Jennifer King, an outstanding guide who put together a varied agenda of shooting locations that provided a broad spectrum of the southwest. I know she has a great schedule of workshops (domestic and international) planned for the coming year, if you have an interest in improving your photography, taking one of her workshops is an excellent step. Contact her at www.jenniferkingphoto.com Having a guide makes location finding SO much nicer!
The image below is within the Alcove House at Bandelier National Monument. The alcove sits 140 feet above the floor of Frijoles Canyon. The original inhabitants used finger and toe holds to reach their home. Today, the National Park Service has installed a series of ladders to access the alcove with it’s nicely preserved kiva.
Petroglyph National Monument is an outstanding place to hike and photograph the hundreds of petroglyphs found on the volcanic rocks scattered over this park. These images were carved into the stone between 400-700 years ago.
Another incredible hiking area is Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument featuring cone-shaped rock formations created by volcanic eruptions around 6-7 million years ago. They are fascinating shapes and excellent objects for photography or just observing as you hike from the floor of the canyon up to the top of the plateau.
