This morning I had to get up and head out extremely early. More classes down in Phoenix. And in the future….a flight for a week of training elsewhere…..in the cards apparently. Wow, I used to fly constantly back in the “cell phone” daze…..

So, do you really want to hear about today’s class, the long ride to Phoenix, the extreme heat down there, etc, etc? Nah. You probably don’t.

Oh, and it was hot down there. Good grief…we headed to lunch and walked to the lunch spot. So hot….boiling inside quickly! Lunch was a salad, as nothing at the restaurant fit within my needs. Not a bad salad though….and it was hot……oh, I wasn’t supposed to talk about this…..

How about the latest HDR photos? Ah yes, that’s much more fun!

Sunday night I shot several series to create the two photos in today’s post. The first one is my favorite of the two, but it still needs some work. Due to a lens flare there’s a spot I’m unhappy with. But I’ll correct it.

The second shot was taken right before the sun went down. There was a lot of pink and yellow going on, and the overall lighting really impacted the look of the Granite Dells.

Of course each of these photos is really a compilation of 3 exposures of each scene. They’re pretty neat, but nowhere near finished. Just the beginning of my HDR trek with each photo.

If dinner gets finished quickly I’ll head up into the rocks and try a few more exposures tonight. See, there’s some funky cloud cover again today, and I’m betting it would lend to interesting HDRs.

Oh, and the second shot has a similar version posted a few days ago. Similar, but not the same. Did a little additional tweaking on it. Still, I like the first shot better……

This afternoon I find myself hiding out in the Airstream. Across town there’s a burn going on, and it’s drifted all the way over to the Granite Dells. Hepa filtration on high, windows closed, but not in time to prevent an extreme headache. Whoops, should have been watching the skies.

Since I’m hiding out inside I decided to write a post on where I’ve been for more than 6 months. Arizona. And my favorite part of Arizona, Prescott.

Being from the East coast, and spending the bulk of my life in New England, I never once imagined that I would find so much to like about a “desert” state, yet here I am, and I’m enjoying it.

The first taste of Arizona came when I arrived in Tucson. That’s where Rich & Eleanor were staying, and I decided to take a look around the area. Honestly I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of that area. The summers go well beyond HOT. But the winters are pleasant, and the scenery is amazing.

What first struck me about Arizona and still does to this day has to be how far you can see. Montana is supposed to be “Big Sky Country”, but I think Arizona deserves the name as well. You can see forever here. In New England you can’t see around the next bend, let alone for miles and miles in every direction. And I’ve found there’s something really appealing about seeing for miles.

After leaving Tucson and spending some time in Borrego Springs California I returned to Arizona. Only passing through at first. But then Prescott roped me in. While still “desert” in some ways, the northern part of Arizona has it’s own feel. It reminds me of places like the Grayson Highlands of Virginia, and of the White Mountains in New Hampshire. It must be all the granite!

There’s truly something appealing about this region. So much to do outdoors, so many stunning views, even on the edge of a bustling town. I think most folks venturing out from New England would find I’m right, and they’d find something “homey” about the area.

From the Red Rocks of Sedona, the Granite Dells, and the Grand Canyon, northern Arizona is extremely diverse in what it offers naturally. I think it’s an outdoor minded person’s paradise. Like I said, I never would have known without accidentally stopping here for a while. Glad to say I did.

Sorry to say today I have no new stunning shots to offer. There’s a layer of smoke over the town. The burns are necessary, and it’s easy enough for me to escape them.

Since I have no new photos I thought I’d offer up a gallery of shots from the past 6 months. I do hope you enjoy them, even if you’ve seen a few before. Click on any photo and you can scroll through larger sized versions at you leisure. Enjoy!

[Show as slideshow]

[Show as slideshow]