“Window Frame” photo by Rudy Lopez

Looking through a window onto the porch of an abandoned house in eastern Colorado. This location was littered with old appliances and every other manner of large, rusty debris.

nov14, originally uploaded by RudyLopez.



“Holding Pattern” Photo by Rudy Lopez

Planes trace graceful arcs against a star field north of DIA as they wait to land.

Holding PatternNikon D300, 12mm, 493 seconds at f4.5


Denver glows from 40 miles away.

Free limited edition wallpaper.  Only 50 will be released.

This shot was taken just north of Byers, Colorado.  The lights of Denver glow on the horizon.


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Glow from Denver.  Click the thumbnail, then right click the image to save.




Travel Log: Revisiting favorite scenes, Nov14th

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It was especially nice to hit the road after a intensive week of daddy duty.  There were several locations that I wanted to visit during a winter-like day. I left Denver at 1230 or so on Saturday, headed east on I-70.  The weather was cold and windy, temps just above freezing.  A large snow storm was on the way, and the low clouds around Denver were a clear sign of what was on the way.  Since the storm was primarily a foothills and mountain event, the plains would be windy and cold with low, broken clouds filling the entire sky.  I headed east on I-70 then exited at Bennett.  The plan was to drive east on US36, then south on Hwy71, ultimately ending up in Limon.

GPS Track

GPS Track

The first location I returned to was an old Quonset hut on off US36, west of Strasburg,  that at one time had been used for farming, but has since been left to serve as a dump ground for the locals.  There is a fiberglass boat and lots of graffiti, tons of garbage, not to mention an impressive amount of owl shit. The shots feel cold and windy, which is entirely appropriate.

Hut and Boat 01

Hut and Boat

From there I moved east on US36, the clouds became wavy due to the upper level winds.   Approximately 10 miles west of Last Chance, a large trailer and a couple of pieces of farm equipment decay quietly next to a dusty road.  Interesting scene, but hardly unique. The sky is very large around this location, so the weather plays big part with getting good shots.  During the previous visit, a distant thunderstorm took up a good portion of the SE sky. On this visit, it was all about the low clouds and texture of the equipment.  The shots came out with a sort of rusty sadness, a common vibe out in the middle of nowhere.  I shot for 15 minutes, then moved on.

On Hwy71, about 5 miles south of Last Chance, there is a location that is one of my favorites.  The house sits on the rim of a small valley, set back from the road only about 50 feet.  The entire property seems to have been several acres.  A corral, a few old trucks, and some collapsed grain silos dot the landscape on the other side of the basin.  The house itself is large and in very bad shape.  It seems to have been abandoned relatively recently, perhaps sometime in the last 10 years.  Like the Quonset hut from the previous location, the locals use the property as a dump.  There are appliances of every type strewn about.  Looking through the windows, I could see that the furniture had been abandoned along with the home. It is also possible that couches and chairs that had been dumped on the property were dragged into the house by teenagers with not enough supervision.  Either way, there is furniture everywhere, and it has all been turned over.

Red Tractor

Red Tractor

As with many abandoned structures, there is a thin film of bird poo on every surface.  The feeling of location is more dread than sadness.  The place just feels unpleasant.  I worked my way around the perimeter of the house, trying to take advantage of the gloomy sky, I wanted to express the feeling of dread in the shots.

The big reason that this location is one of my favorites is because it incorporates my two favorite subjects: abandoned places and rusty cars.  Along with the exceedingly creepy house, there are three beautifully rusted cars on the west side of the property.  There is an old 30′s era truck with old equipment and rusty wheels on its bed, a 70′s era truck looks like an old dog that has settled for the night, and a 40′s era truck with its rusty door swinging in the breeze.  The fifteen minutes I spent shooting these trucks were the best of the day.

I climbed back into the car and headed to Limon, for a quick stop and then back to Denver to enjoy my family and the gathering snow storm.

Shooting Info:

  • Nikon D300, RAW format
  • Sigma 12mm Nikkor 18-70mm
  • All images shot as HDR, five frames over two stops.
  • Processed by Photomatix Pro

Shots from the day

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On the road

Hitting the road on a cold, snowy Saturday. Winter storm watch tonight for Denver,6-12 inches expected. Will try to update locations via Twitter and other info here.

Update: decided to change the route to I-70 east, the snow and low clouds will make I-76 more dangerous.

Friday night science and space thread

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The week brought great news from our largest satellite.  There is water on the moon!  Plus, get ready for the upcoming Leonid meteor shower, and read a great article from Astronomy.com.  We round out the day with the wise Carl Sagan, telling us about the pale blue dot.

Wet moon

NASA’s LCROSS project found clear signs of significant water on the moon.  Evidence of water was detected in the plumes of debris ejected by the impact of rockets on the Cabeus crater.

The impact created by the LCROSS Centaur upper stage rocket created a two-part plume of material from the bottom of the crater. The first part was a high angle plume of vapor and fine dust and the second a lower angle ejecta curtain of heavier material. This material has not seen sunlight in billions of years.

The discovery helps explain why there is so much hydrogen on the moon.

Scientists have long speculated about the source of vast quantities of hydrogen that have been observed at the lunar poles. The LCROSS findings are shedding new light on the question of water, which could be more widespread and in greater quantity than previously suspected.

While the over hyped impacts may have not made much of a splash with the media, the data gathered will help open doors for scientists in the future.  LCROSS was launched on June 18, 2009.

Extras

  • A great article about celebrating the International Year of Astronomy via Astronomy.com.
  • The Leonid meteor shower peaks on Nov 17.  Viewing tips and locations here.
  • The new moon is Nov 16 (should make for great meteor viewing)

And finally… Carl Sagan drops the science:

Photo tips: Preparing for a day trip

RLP

Jumping in the car and hitting the road for a day of exploring is a great way to expand your horizons and improve your photography skills. But before you snap a single photo, you will need to cover a few bases.  Listed below are several tips designed to help you avoid making mistakes that can ruin a day of shooting.

Equipment checklist:

  1. Make sure all chargeable devices are charged and in the camera bag:  Camera batteries, GPS, phone, flash units, etc.. Also make sure to bring extra disposable batteries for the devices that need them.
  2. Make sure all devices are reset and ready for new input.  Format the memory cards, clear GPS tracks, etc.
  3. Make preliminary adjustments to your camera.  Set ISO, fstop, and speed to generally match the days lighting conditions.
  4. Make sure all devices are properly synchronized.  Accurate geotagging requires the camera’s clock and the GPS to be synced.
  5. Make sure everything listed above is in the camera bag.
  6. Also included in your bag:  Reflective vest, pepper spray, pocket knife, bug spray, small flashlight, and sunscreen.

Vehicle Checklist:

  1. A paper map or atlas.  The GPS is very handy for recording tracks and providing real time telemetry, but paper map is extremely handy for quick reference.
  2. Have a jacket, hat, food, and water on hand in case you get stuck or stranded.
  3. Make sure the vehicle is operating safely.  Check tire pressure, hazard lights, washer fluid, fuel level.
  4. Stow your gear in a way that will be easy to access from the curb side of the vehicle.
  5. Make sure someone knows where you are going and when you intend to be back.

Shooting strategy:

  1. Have a general idea of the area you want to cover, decide where you would like to be during the best light.
  2. Drive with the sun behind you.  If you are shooting in the morning,  drive west and north.  If you are shooting in the evening, drive east and north.  Driving due south will provide good lighting, except during mid day when the sun is in the middle of the sky.  You will undoubtedly come across scenes and locations that will look better at a different time of day.  This is one of the benefits of geotagging each image.
  3. Check the weather.  A dreary day doesn’t necessarily mean bad photos, cloudy days make great high contrast black and white photos.  If you live in an area where storm chasing is an option, get a sense of the intensity and direction of the storms.  Plan your route so that you are following the storms, not being chased by them.  You will have more time to shoot as the storms move away from you.  It also helps to reduce the chances of being swept over the rainbow.
  4. Some of the best photo opportunities come from taking roads that run along or near an interstate.  Before interstates, these roads were the primary roads for the locals as well as people traveling through.  Many businesses were forced to close as the traffic sped by, but the buildings still stand.
  5. Follow local speed limits carefully.  I try to remember that I am the outsider in small towns I visit, a little courtesy goes a long way.
  6. Obey all “No Trespassing” signs.
  7. Use caution when entering abandoned structures. I do not go into structures when I am shooting alone, but that’s because I am chicken.

A full day of shooting could cover 500-700 miles and around 12 hours, so eat your Wheaties.  You may have a cluster of photo opportunities all at once followed by three hours of nothing. There will be plenty of time to practice being patient.

There are unlimited photographic opportunities on the roads that crisscross our country, leave the interstate and go exploring.

Road Trip: Sunset in Merino, Colorado

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This was a short trip during the late afternoon on Halloween.  While many people were partying at places made up to look scary, I was looking for places that were actually scary.  I drove the side roads that run along Interstate 76 as the afternoon light grew shorter.  I came to the town of Merino about 15 minutes before the sun went down.  The old train buildings and the grain silos gleamed in the low angle light, and a few pools of melted snow provided a couple opportunities for reflections.  On the way to the Interstate I found an old truck near an abandoned silo, the light was right for one more shot.

Images taken as HDR, five frames over two stops.  Nikon D300, various lenses.

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Abandoned Colorado: The Last Chance Motel in Last Chance, Colorado.

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The town of Last Chance is barely more than a few dozen buildings at the intersection of highways 36 and 71 in eastern Colorado.  Limon is 40 miles to the south, Brush is 80 miles to the north.  Denver is 80 miles west.  An abandoned motel slowly deteriorates on a large lot at the northeast corner of the main intersection.  The 4 or 5 buildings have been stripped and vandalized.  Missing floorboards and dangling roof elements make entering any of the buildings very dangerous.  I was fortunate enough to have a fantastic sky, adding an extra dimension to the eerie scene.  An operating burger stand occupies the lot directly east of the old motel.  I have never seen it open, but it is clearly used on a regular basis judging from the obvious upkeep.

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All images were captured as HDR, using 5 images covering two stops over/under a matrix reading.  Nikon D300, Nikkor 18-70mm.  HDR processed by PhotomatixPro.


Road Trip: 703 Miles through eastern Colorado and Nebraska

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It had been six weeks since I was able to get out of town for a full day of driving and shooting. By the time shooting day arrived, I was very anxious to hit the road. My route would be: I-70 east to Burlington, Hwy 385 North to Julesberg, then back roads into Nebraska. I wanted to end up in North Platte, Nebraska by sundown.

By mid October the days are short, and an early start is critical. I left Denver at 9am, stopping briefly for fuel and provisions. By 10:30 I was cruising past Limon, only an hour or so from Burlington. Heading north from Burlington on Hwy 385 is pretty typical of the highways that course through the plains, there are plenty of farms and quiet little towns. I passed through Wray, where I photographed one of the creepiest locations I have seen. Abandoned structures are scattered along the route, some provide great photographic opportunities, but most do not. I arrived in Julesberg, Colorado mid afternoon, the sun was well on its path across the southwestern sky, and the light was getting warmer as the sun got lower. I drove the country roads between Julesberg and North Platte, the opportunity to shoot came rarely, but I did get some great shots of some old cars as the sun set. It was a 4 hour drive back to Denver, it was time to get into get in the zone and hit the road.

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