Wednesday, October 13, 2010

What A View

Sometimes when I take pictures I do it just for the pleasure of it and some practice.  Most turn out pretty decent but there are little things that keep them from being great.  I don’t use photo shop just the limited processing of the existing programs in the puter.  Every once in a while I’ll be going through them and say wow.  This time it is not the picture but what it revealed, a view.

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This abandoned house sits on the side of the hill overlooking the crick and when I took the picture I wanted to show the colors of the cottonwoods along the crick and the old house would make a nice foreground element.  After I downloaded the images and was browsing through I stopped and said to myself, what a view.  Out across the valley, other ranch homes dot the horizon that rolls in the distance.  The railroad tracks out in front and the highway just below the front yard.  The crick bends here and curls off to the left and town is off to the right about a mile away.

It has been so dry here there is lots of dust in the air creating a haze, cutting down on the sharpness of the photo and changing the color saturation.  What a pastoral over look.  One could sit on the front porch in the evening, watch the sun set, the occasional animal in the woods pass by and relax.

Originally I was train chasing and i hit a couple of roadblocks so I went looking for other things.  If it had not been for road construction I probably would of ended up in Kansas chasing the circus train.

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The circus had finished up in the big city and was headed to the next big city.  It came through town and I loaded up the train chasing jalopy and caught up to it just east of town when I was stopped by a one lane detour.  This is a picture of it going away from me.  i sat dead for a half hour then took off after it.  Got behind big rigs and just cruised along then there was another road block, so I surrendered.

The circus train is over a mile long and i was hoping to get a full picture of it from a couple of overlooks on a big curve.  All the performers, animals, vehicles, roustabouts and support people are on board.  Pretty impressive train.  There is a red train and a blue one.  this is the blue train.  The troupe lives on board for about 9 months out of the year.  True traveling life.

10 comments:

TenMile said...

Good post, John. http://pokerfunds.blogspot.com
is the link to a friends blog. He is a train engineer, conductor, a real estate person and a poker player. His wife is a school teacher. They live in MT.

I haven't sent him your addy, but he does have, somewhere, RR photos I've managed to coerced. He's originally a Kansan.

Anonymous said...

Over looking the crick, you've written. I'm not sure what a crick is John, don't have it here in N.Z. unless the photo is having some kind of a muscle spasm.
Have a lovely day
Hugs Lady Jude

john bord said...

Lady.... a crick is a dry creek that only runs after heavy rains. most of the stream is under the sand in the crick.

Admiral Hestorb said...

John. I'm afraid I am still helping the Admiral do her blog..so I am over here to see what you said. Too lazy to re-log in.

That would have been terrific if only you could have caught the view of the circus train the way you wanted too.

Very sere look to the view in the picture. You could use some beneficial rains for certain.

Ramblingon

Unknown said...

I wonder if the troupe sings "On the Rail again" by Willie Nelson. Wait that's on the road again eh? Oh that view is wonderful, really. I could sit ah long time just watching that view. Your photos are great, true life, a slice of country raw. Hope you and dogs are enjoying the week.

Unknown said...

Love the photos and the background info you provide on each shot. I wouldn't mind that life, living on the train for that time. I love trains.

stephenrowepainter said...

John, Always enjoy your photographs and text as they portray life and experience through your lens and perspective. Am still getting used to a new computer and keypad. If you find time could you please repost the comment that you recently left at my last post. I hit the wrong key when adding your comment and it went poof! Seniors and computers. Smile and as ever be well my friend.

Kathryn Magendie said...

OMG! laughing! just read the comment about "crick" ...haw! ..teheehee

anyway- wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your posts, but also the poetic comment you left the other day on my blog! :-)

Dewey D said...

John, like Stephen says your photos and words are enjoyable. (Maybe not the same words as Stephen, but the meaning is the same)
Keep up the good work.

Dewey D

Here I Am Carrie said...

I always enjoy a different view. Being hemmed in here in the valley. I would love to be out were you can look for long distances. I am sure the colors of the cotton wood was very vibrate. We have them along our creek in places. In places our creek is a crick also. But around our house its full of ponds from the beavers. Always so pleasant to read your discriptions of the area. I am so glad you are seeing so much beauty that does exist there. Hugs Carrie