I was recently invited to join a local gallery here in Albuquerque, New Mexico. One of their members saw my winning photographs at this year’s State Fair and left a business card on the back of one of my prints. After interviewing with the members, I was invited to be a part of this exclusive gallery. I feel very honored to have been chosen to be a part of this small group of co-op artists.
The gallery is called Albuquerque Photographers Gallery and is located on the plaza of Historic Old Town. I love the fact that this gallery is comprised solely of fine art photography. The atmosphere is inviting and the work of the artists is outstanding.
My work will be on display and available for sale beginning October 3!
If you are ever in Old Town, be sure to visit this beautiful gallery! I hope to see you there some time!
Mariachi Band above Church Street Cafe in Old Town Albuquerque, NM
Yesterday I got up early so I could visit Capulin Spring in the Sandia Mountains. This is a great time to visit the spring because we get some fall migrating warblers. The most sought after warbler this time of year is the Townsend’s Warbler. We only get them here for a few weeks in September, then we have to wait another year to see them again.
So I had high hopes of seeing this warbler. I had my new camera after all! I was hoping to get a better photo of one than I have in the past.
When I first arrived there were the usual Dark-Eyed Juncos about. They are always here in great numbers. We get several variety of Juncos in New Mexico, but the most common is the “gray headed”.
Dark-Eyed Junco – Gray Headed
Then a group of Yellow-Rumped Warblers came in for a drink and a bath. We have these birds here year round. Now that it’s officially fall, their plumage is less vibrant than in the spring. But they are still a pretty warbler.
Yellow-Rumped Warbler
After sitting quietly for awhile I was rewarded with the Townsend’s Warbler. Two of them in fact! Beautiful! They were very cautious to come get a drink. As with all warblers, they were quick too! But I managed to get a few good pics. Here are a couple of my favorites.
Townsend’s Warbler
Townsend’s Warbler
Then a couple of fellow birders showed up – Sharon and Vicki. We had a great time birding together. With three pairs of eyes, we were able see more sightings. One of which was a new bird for me!
Sharon pointed out a soaring bird way up high overhead. I zoomed way in and was able to get one photo before it soared away. Not a great photo but I got it! A Northern Goshawk!
Northern Goshawk
For awhile we had been seeing Steller’s Jays. They were acting very shy. But once us girls started visiting, they seem to relax and start coming in. Funny! You’d think sitting still and quiet would make them more brave. Instead, they were happier when they were ignored. LOL!
Steller’s Jay
Steller’s Jay
There were several Ruby Crowned Kinglets about but they were quick! I got a lot of bad photos and one decent one.
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
Vicki pointed out a different Junco – a “pink sided”. A pretty little bird.
Dark-Eyed Junco – Pink Sided
Happily another warbler showed up for a drink and bath – an Orange-Crowned Warbler.
Orange-Crowned Warbler
A couple nuthatches showed up. I usually see more when I visit, but this day they were kinda scarce.
Red-Breasted Nuthatch
White-Breasted Nuthatch
Here are picks of the other more common visitors to the spring.
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Flicker
Mountain Chickadee
Lesser Goldfinch
Then to my great delight a Plumbeous Vireo showed up. He was very nervous and darted all about. Though not a great pic – it was the best of the bunch. Soon he will be leaving us for the winter.
Plumbeous Vireo
Just before I was leaving I saw a Green-Tailed Towhee – always a delight to see and hear.
I am so excited to tell you that I won some ribbons at the New Mexico State Fair this year. I submitted 3 photos to the photography contest (the max number you can enter). This year I decided to enter in the professional category. I figured I’ve been getting noticed in other ways that I might as well give it a shot.
To submit a photo in professional you have to frame and mat your work. I had planned on framing these photos for the office, so I thought I might as well go professional and frame them the way I like with matching mats and frames.
I won 2nd place in the Miscellaneous category with this photo titled “American Steel”.
I won 3rd place in the Urban category for this photo titled “Ranchos De Taos. Both were from my weekend trip to Taos this summer.
I submitted my pelican photo but it didn’t place. The Animal category is the largest and has stiff competition when people go on safaries and such.
The best I’ve ever did before in the state fair was an honorable mention so I’m very happy with my wins this year. 😃
This past weekend I attended an annual photo shoot presented by Hawks Aloft – a local bird of prey rescue group. I was excited to attend and see these beautiful birds up close and personal. They had brought 11 birds for us to photograph – several of which I had never seen before except in books. So I was thrilled I was able to get a nice view of these magnificent birds.
They did a wonderful job setting up natural perches for the birds. We met up in an open area at Academy School. This gave us a nice background for our photos. I took a lot of pics and had a great time. Here are some of my favorites of each bird.
The first bird I photographed was a Flammulated Owl. To be honest I’ve never heard of this owl before even though they spend their summers right here in New Mexico. This owl is very tiny (6-7 inches in length) and was so adorable.
Flammulated Owl – Red Phase
Then I got to see a Mexican Spotted Owl. There have been visitors in New Mexico from time to time – though I’ve missed seeing them every time. Beautiful bird! Sadly this bird is in the “near threatened” category due to loss of habitat.
Mexican Spotted Owl
Then I got to see a Prairie Falcon close up. Lovely markings on this bird. I’ve seen them a few times in the wild but was never able to get a very good photo. Not so this day!
Prairie Falcon
Prairie Falcon
Another owl was brought out – a Barn Owl. I have seen this bird many times in the wild and have always admired its beautiful plumage.
Barn Owl
Barn Owl – I love the coloration of the feathers on their wings
Next came the Merlins. They had one in the Prairie coloration and another in the Black. Both beautiful but that black morph was just stunning!
Merlin – Prairie Morph
Merlin – Black Morph
Merlin – black morph
A gorgeous rufous morph of a Red-Tailed Hawk was presented. Beautiful! This bird has been a rescue for a long time. He was very relaxed during the entire event and stayed out the longest of all the birds. He seemed to enjoy the attention. He even spread out his wings several times after getting a long mist bath.
Red-Tailed Hawk – rufous morph
So majestic!
My most favorite photo of the day
Here you can see that gorgeous red tail
A dark morph Swainson’s Hawk was next. I see these birds in great numbers not far from my house. Even so, seeing one up close was wonderful.
Swainson’s Hawk – dark morph
Swainson’s Hawk
A Long-Eared Owl was brought out. I’ve only seen this bird once in the wild. It was sitting on a nest deep in the shade of a large tree. So needless to say, I didn’t get a great look at it. Such a beautiful owl to see in the sunlight. Gorgeous coloring. It’s very similar to a Great Horned Owl.
Long-Eared Owl
Long-Eared Owl
Then to my surprise and delight, they brought out a Harlan’s Hawk. I have heard of this hawk but have never seen one in person. They are a much more rare sub-species of the Red-Tailed Hawk.
Harlan’s Hawk – you can see some red in the tail
Harlan’s Hawk – such a beautiful coloration
A Great Horned Owl was next, but he was a newer rescue and wasn’t very comfortable in front of us. He didn’t stay out long, but I managed to get a nice photo before he was taken back to his crate to relax.
Great Horned Owl
Lastly was a Northern Saw-Whet Owl. I was so excited to hear they had one for us to see. This year was the first time I’d ever seen one ever and it was visiting my chicken coop for the mice. I tried in vain several times to get a photo, but that owl was too clever and always knew when I was coming. So to finally get a picture of one was so wonderful. I love how it has a giant head with big yellow eyes and a little body. This is another tiny owl (7-8.5 inches in length).
Northern Saw-Whet Owl – another favorite photo of the day
I love the big yellow eyes
I took a few shots of the staff working with the birds. Everyone was so nice and did a wonderful job handling these birds. They were very attentive and made sure the birds were never stressed. Several of the birds, like the Red-Tailed Hawk, were used to people admiring them. But a few were very new to the experience. But all the birds did great and the utmost care was taken to keep them comfortable. It was a very hot afternoon and the birds were heating up. So the staff misted them often to cool them down. You could tell by their behavior they enjoyed it a lot!
So adorable – you can really see how little this guy is with the handler’s hand in the photo. She was trying to get him to look toward us but he was very concerned about the other large birds nearby.
Letting the Red-Tailed Hawk spread his wings
Enjoying a cooling mist bath given by “Uncle Larry”
You can see the care love she has for this Merlin. How wonderful for her that she gets to spend time with these amazing animals.
What a wonderful afternoon photographing beautiful birds of prey! It doesn’t get much better than that for weekend fun!
Our last day in Estes Park. I really didn’t want to leave. There was so much to explore!
Dia said she wanted to sleep in. So Scarlett and I headed out very early to go birding in Moraine Park where I had seen so many birds before. It was a gorgeous morning. And when I arrived at the trail head, there was birdsong everywhere. Yay!
The trail I chose crossed a creek flowing through the meadow and headed for a rock outcropping with large pines and oaks. I figured this would give me a bigger variety of species to look for with the range of habitat available.
My first bird sighting was a Lincoln’s Sparrow. I could hear him singing among some dead trees along the creek. But it took me forever to spot him. He was very camouflaged among the dead branches.
Lincoln’s Sparrow
Up ahead on the little bridge crossing the creek I saw several American Crows enjoying the morning sun.
Soon I was at the treeline edge. Lots of birds here. There were many House Wrens busy flitting here and there so it was a challenge to get a decent pic.
House Wren
While photographing the wrens, a pair of juvenile Williamson’s Sapsuckers came over to check me out.
Juvenile Williamson’s Sapsucker
A White-Breasted Nuthatch was busy feeding above me.
White-Breasted Nuthatch
I saw several Northern Flickers. For the most part they stayed a ways away. I did manage to get a decent pic of one before it saw me and took off.
Northern Flicker
Then I saw a quick peek of yellow. At first I thought it might be a warbler, but when I finally got a good look at it, I realized it was a young male Western Tanager. Always a pleasure to see!
Western Tanager
A cute little bunny was feeding next to the trail. I always think they are so adorable.
All of a sudden Scarlett let out a low growl. I saw where she was looking and realized there was a coyote in the meadow. It decided it didn’t want anything to do with Scarlett, so it quickly headed off deeper into the meadow. He was between me and the morning sun, so I didn’t get a great pic. But I always love seeing coyotes. For some reason, Scarlett always growls when she sees one. That’s a good thing I guess!
Coyote
There were several hummingbirds about. I believe they were all Broad-Tailed Hummingbirds. In that same area where we saw the coyote, there was a patch of Bee Balm. I love these flowers. Such unusual blooms and hummingbirds love them. I managed to catch one feeding but that low morning sun didn’t make for very good photos. Sigh….
Broad-Tailed Hummingbird
Broad-Tailed Hummingbird feeding on Bee Balm flowers
Further up the trail I saw a LBB (little brown bird). That’s usually how I end up identifying sparrows when you can’t get a good enough look at them. This one caught my attention because it had two wing feathers sticking out funny. 🙂
I believe this is a Brewer’s Sparrow
I only got one butterfly photo the whole trip. There were wildflowers everywhere but very few butterflies.
Small Wood Nymph
There were squirrels everywhere. This park has a healthy population of a large variety of squirrels and chipmunks. I almost didn’t see this chipmunk as it blended very well with the rock it was sitting on.
To my delight a Steller’s Jay landed nearby and the sun was behind me! 🙂 This one looks to be a young one starting to get more adult plumage.
Steller’s Jay
Out in the meadow I saw a flock of Red-Winged and Brewer’s Blackbirds feeding on the grass seeds.
Brewer’s Blackbird
Red-Winged Blackbird – female
I saw many American Robins while in the park, but I only managed to get one good photo of one.
American Robin
As I was getting into my car to leave, I got one last photo of a Black-Billed Magpie. I love these birds. I’m so glad I was able to see so many of them and get some nice photos.
Black-Billed Magpie
I was sad to leave the park. I am definitely coming back again in the future!
Mule Deer
Dia called me as I was heading back to town. I asked her where she was. Where else?!? Starbucks! So I met her there and we enjoyed sitting by the river that runs through Estes Park. Such a beautiful town.
Dia at her happy place!
Before I end this trip, I thought I would share some of the fun and silly photos we took over the weekend. 🙂
I made Scarlett get in the water. She was not happy with me. I think the loud waterfall nearby was scaring her.
Scarlett didn’t know what to think of all the raging rivers and waterfalls. Even though she loves water, this kind of water was scary!
These marmots knew how to beg for treats
This is definitely NOT my husband’s Jeep LOL!
Dia photo bombing me
Dia enjoying all her pleasures
Kelly and her precious Scarlett
What I do to get that “perfect” photo LOL!
I just couldn’t get my new tube scarf thing to work 😐
On Day 3 Dia and I were up early again – ready to hit the trails for more beautiful sights. This time Dia got a GIANT coffee from Starbucks so it would last her all morning long. 🙂
On our drive back from hiking to Emerald Lake the day before, we saw a beautiful waterfall in the distance. I told Dia I wanted to hike to that waterfall. So here we were heading to Alberta Falls.
The trail head is in the same area as Bear Lake. So before heading to the falls, we took some very early morning shots at the lake. Such a tranquil morning. There was no breeze so the water was like a mirror.
The trail was in deep shade so early in the morning. It was a challenge to get a photo of us together (lots of work editing those shadows).
Dia and Kelly at Bear Lake
As we walked around the lake, the view started to open up and the shadowy areas began to lighten.
Bear Lake
We came to one area that had giant boulders near the lake. Dia climbed out on one to get a beautiful view. A wonderful place for her to enjoy that coffee.
I climbed an even higher rock and got a very wide angle view. Gorgeous!
Perfect reflection.
Soon we were on the trail to the falls. The trail started off beautifully walking through an Aspen grove.
Soon the trail started climbing and we could hear rushing water in the distance. I couldn’t wait to see this waterfall. I had seen photos online and knew it was going to be beautiful. We came to Glacier Creek below the falls. So much water! Not sure why it’s called a creek when it’s a raging river!
Glacier Creek
After a little while of hiking, we could hear the falls in the distance. The views were opening up and giving us more light on the trail. Then finally we made it to the falls. Stunning! The roar of the water was almost deafening. A wondrous sound to my ears.
Stunning waterfall. I love how the sun’s rays were illuminated by the mist from the falls.
We stayed here awhile and took some photos of each other and enjoyed watching the waterfall.
Doesn’t Dia look so adorable here 🙂 You can see why I love my friend. She makes me smile all day long.
Hmmmm….I see rabbit ears! LOL!
Scarlett wanted her picture taken at the falls too! 😉
My beautiful Scarlett enjoying the hike.
Then we decided to walk along the river above the falls instead of staying on the trail. For some reason the trail leaves the water and we weren’t ready to do that. I’m so glad we decided to walk upriver because the scenery was so beautiful.
Glacier Creek
We spent quite a bit of time in one area. The sound of rushing water and the privacy of the trees and being off trail. It was so peaceful and relaxing. We were truly enjoying God’s creations.
The water was moving so fast!
I tried to capture the feel of the water’s power.
A raging river.
We were still feeling good so decided to continue up the trail and see if we could make it to Mill Lake. We climbed higher and higher and the views opened way up. Then we came to a bend in the trail and started walking into another canyon. The views were so expansive. Such a wonderful hike.
I love this picture Dia took of me and Scarlett hiking. 🙂
We came to a sign that said Mill Lake was 1.5 miles ahead. By this time we had hiked 6 miles. We were debating on if we thought we would make it to the lake and still have enough energy to get all the way back to the car. We were somewhat undecided for a while. Then Dia said “Let’s go! We can do it! And someone said there’s a baby elk to see!”. Hmmmmmm…… I was just about to agree when a big BOOM! sounded and I looked up to see this giant thundercloud above us. WOW!
Giant thunderhead. Beautiful but scary when you’re out hiking.
That did it! I did not want to be caught at 12,000 feet in a lightening storm. No way! So we turned around and headed back to the car.
On one hand I’m sorry we didn’t go to the lake. It never did rain. I’m sure the views were fabulous. But on the other hand, I know if we had gone we would have been so sore and tired by the time we got off the trail. That would have extended our hike another 3 miles. As it was, we ended up hiking another 10 miles this day. We did 30 miles in 3 days!
I treated Dia to a wonderful dinner with wine for her birthday. We even had enough energy left to do a little shopping in Estes Park. It was a great way to end the day.
When we got back to our hotel, we had one more treat for the day. A mother Mallard was trying to take her babies to the little pond at our hotel. When they saw me and Scarlett not too far away, they flattened themselves trying to hide from us.
Mallards
We all stayed still and soon the mother felt it was safe enough to go to the pond. 🙂
