road_side, a photo from Colorado, West

Photographer's Note

Sometimes, over lunch time, I go to a CD store nearby where I work and I listen to some music as many others do, and I find it quite funny to watch the people and sometimes I read the CD cover trying to find out what the other person is listening to and I might try it out myself. Yesterday, some banker beside me was constantly searching his messages on his cell phone, maybe checking the stock market, and I was thinking about TE and what I could write about this photo that is actually my second post in this area.

I was talking about long driving and music, and it was Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter & James Cotton that made us rush through Colorado’s empty side roads. They broadcasted a whole concert with the three on some unknown radio station and when it started to fade away, we stopped and had a little picnic on the road side with the car doors wide open so we could still listen. There was almost no traffic, just every 10 minutes or so some sign of life, most of them Harley Davidson drivers giving a little fancy wave, and we waved back and felt pretty much understood. Yes, this is a free planet out here, and I could have stayed much much longer.

If you are interested in Colorado’s scenic byways, click here Scenic Byway No. 4

And just for fun, camping in Colorado, and how my open air kitchen looked like The Chef

horatiuTT, fulvio52, Buin, gunbud, jwmunro, Dyerco, IgorDeleze, philsim, lilimih33, singuanti, melmcree, scobert, avene has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

horatiuTT (4570) 2007-11-17 2:32

Hi Barbara,
Magnific perspective and colours,
fantastique sharpness and level of details.I like so
much the sky.Very high quality shot!
Well done!
Horatiu

brandstaetter (15915) 2007-11-17 3:27

Hallo Barbara,
ich liebe solche Strassen, dieses Jahr waren wir mit dem Motorrad in Spanien, das Bild erinnert mich an diese schönen 2000 km.
Ocker und Dunkelblau sind auch ein wirklich schöner Kontrast.
LG Christian

AROBN54 (11475) 2007-11-17 5:10

Hi, Barbara,
what a beautiful shot. Wonderful light and color and I like the different shadings in the rocks. I really like just that small bit of road you can see to give us an idea of the enormity of all that countryside. That sky is fabulous, too. Very nicely done!! Thanks and kind regards,
Shelly

fulvio52 (8314) 2007-11-17 5:58

Awesome POV, light and colors & excellent taste in music!
You'll never know what freedom is all about, until... you go West!
Great shot!
Have a wonderful weekend, I'll see you soon.
Ciao,
Fulvio.

cherryripe (21033) 2007-11-17 13:11

Hi Barbara
I get the feeling, seeing such photos, that we should one day make a trip to the US national parks as there seems to be spectacular scenery. However, as my daughter said 2 years ago, we're not going while GWB is president ;-) Hope this will still be around as I love the textures. That bit of road adds lots of depth and I like animated sky.
Regards
Nikki

Buin (42580) 2007-11-18 3:59

Hallo Barbara!
In Verbindung mit Deinem Kommentar eine wunderschöne Arbeit, aber auch das Foto alleine "steht seinen Mann"! Eine grandiose Landschaft - vor allem wenn man das "Sträßchen" in der Ferne sieht. I like this contribution! ;-)
Grüße aus dem feuchten und kalten Westfalen!
Frank

gunbud (34066) 2007-11-19 18:48

Hi Barbara,
Wonderful capture of this fantastic arid landscape with its magnificent red standstone cliffs that contrast beautifully with the green shrubs that stubbuornly cling to this porus rock. The deep blue sky makes the perfect backdrop for this lovely composition that is seen in very clear colors and excellent sharpness.
Regards, Tom

Nicou (188486) 2007-11-20 2:30

Hello,

mangique vue ce ce canyon, laa roche est très impressionnante, très bel effet grâce au magnigique cadrage, superbe.

Bravo et belle journée

Nicou

jwmunro (286) 2007-11-21 18:32

Hello Barbara -

Well you certainly have captured the essence of western Colorado. Wide open spaces, beautiful skies, gorgeous vistas, and not a lot of people. Excellent exposure, etc., etc., but I do like the inclusion of the highway, small though, as a leading line to view further into the image. Bravo, well done!

Thank you for sharing.

John

pboehringer (770) 2007-11-22 14:30

Hello Chef,
lunch seems to be set and I like specially the big balsamico bottle on the the table ;-)
The main image has the typical colors of the Colorado Plateu and I love the detail of that road coming down. Having in mind the good kitchen along you tour I would have insisted in waiting there at this POV until getting a red Ferrari coming down that road to give the right catch of colors on the road ...
Gruss, Peter

Silvio1953 (191261) 2007-11-24 9:59

Hi Barbara, splendid landscape with wonderful light and colors, very well done, ciao Silvio

leo61 (0) 2007-11-25 0:04

Hallo Barbara!
Schönes Bild dieser vo Erosion geformten Landschaft.Mit dem kleinen Stück Strasse im Hintergrund hat das Bild eine gute Tiefe und der Kontrast mit dem Himmel ist toll.
Gruß,Leo

Dyerco (10185) 2007-11-25 9:10

I can feel the quiet out here in the desert. I like the diagonal line between the red/brown and the blue.
Well done Barbara.
Phil

IgorDeleze (585) 2007-11-25 10:54

Hello,
Another great explosion. The layer landscape give us very nice graphics.
Greetings.
Igor

danyy (0) 2007-11-25 14:51

Bonjour Barbara,
on rêve toujours quand on voit des photos de l'autre bout du monde.
J'avais reconnu de suite les USA, un vrai nid de paysages à couper le souffle, surtout l'Ouest.
Belles couleurs qui s'étalent en strates horizontales sous un superbe ciel.
J'aime ce bout de route qui a l'air de vouloir se cacher.
Best regards.
daniel.

philsim (1914) 2007-11-26 11:07

Hello Barbara
This is amazing scenery. I am expecting roadrunner to come hurtling down the road. The cotton wool clouds against the blue skyare also perfect
Regards from Greece
Phil

clnaef (6289) 2007-11-26 22:55

Bonjour,
Impressionnante vue de cette falaise mise en évidence par les nuages.
Bonne journée.
clnaef

lilimih33 (9918) 2007-11-27 10:39

Hello Barbara!
Lovely colours and great light in your picture!
Wonderful place and very nice perspective!
Excellent done!
Best regards!
Lili

brevbrev14 (140) 2007-11-28 10:03

another beautiful picture and fantastic nature!
i like a lot the sharpness and the fantastic colours!
bravo!
ciao!
Valeria

singuanti (15250) 2007-11-29 19:35

Hi Barbara. You know a few years ago I wasn't too far away from this place as I did see Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction. Colorado is such a funny state to drive across because it changes so much as shown here. I like the effect you got with the polarizer. Beautiful shot Barbara!

melmcree (18) 2007-12-13 13:35

Hello Barbara,

I was drawn to this photo because i could immediately recognize it was from The West. I wouldn't have thought it was from Colorado but more from Arizona but nonetheless it is beautiful. The light brings out the color tones so well in the eroded rock formations. I assume you used a polarizer? The sky is so blue and contrasts with the earth tones well. Although my favorite thing about this photo is of your mention of Muddy Waters! Long Live the Blues!!!

You got your mojo working?

Mel

scobert (5355) 2007-12-19 14:12

Hello Barbara,
This familiar scenery reminds me of when I lived in Grand Junction as a kid. My parents used to take us on drives up to the Colorado National Monument and other areas like this one and I was, and still am, in awe of the scenery. Too many tourists drive right by Grand Junction when they are in a hurry to visit Arches, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef National Parks in Utah. Grand junction has spectacular desert scenery as well as gorgeous mountain scenery in the nearby Grand Mesa area. You did a fine job here and thanks for sharing this excellent image and reminding tourists to visit this underrated area.
Stan

GUYOFF (901) 2007-12-22 9:29

Hi

i just love this pic with this blue...

Thanks

avene (12675) 2008-06-30 13:13

hi Barbara,
while you are still sorting the photos from this year, I'm browsing your shots from last year, and this is the one I keep coming back to. fantastic colours, and I like a lot the strong diagonal composition with the tiny looking road winding throught the scene. I can easily imagine turning the audio to max for some good old rock :) love the note, your style all over :)

regards,
Kristine

Waylim (25436) 2008-07-01 13:02

Barbara,
This scene reminded me of the time I travelled through the desert in Utah, Arizona, part of colorado, I felt like I can sit in the car and just keep driving, it didn't really matter where the destination, with the Eagle songs playing in the background. It was so pretty all the way and you can only stop so many time to look at it. the good thing there is really no body else out there for a long time maybe one or two car pass you by. I just love it out there. Amazing land we have here. Unfortunately most American have never really been outside of the city. This is a good one, but I'm waiting impatiently for your new post.
Way

Angshu (56760) 2008-07-13 21:18

Hello Barbara
The massive outcrop, the strata so clearly visible, all against the deep polarised sky makes this wonderful. Even the thin slice of road on the left is excellent & gives a scale of the landscape. And the clouds..they're something special too in their shape & form. A fine picture Barbara & as always your well written note.
Best Regards
Angshu