On Rocky Surfaces, Blossoms Reflect their Shadow Beauty

Shadow Flowers © 2014 Bo Mackison

Shadow Flowers © 2014 Bo Mackison

“We often walk without knowing the beautiful and the mysterious art created behind us by our shadows.”
~ Mehmet Murat Ildan

Palo Verde Yellow – In Rocks

Palo Verde Yellow with Rocks

Palo Verde Yellow with Rocks © 2012 Bo Mackison

“To hear never-heard sounds,
To see never-seen colors and shapes,
To try to understand the imperceptible
Power pervading the world;
To fly and find pure ethereal substances
That are not of matter
But of that invisible soul pervading reality.
To hear another soul and to whisper to another soul;
To be a lantern in the darkness
Or an umbrella in a stormy day;
To feel much more than know.
To be the eyes of an eagle, slope of a mountain;
To be a wave understanding the influence of the moon;
To be a tree and read the memory of the leaves;
To be an insignificant pedestrian on the streets
Of crazy cities watching, watching, and watching.
To be a smile on the face of a woman
And shine in her memory
As a moment saved without planning.”

~ Dejan Stojanovic

Water Trajectory

Water Trajectory

Water Trajectory © 2011 Bo Mackison

I know not how I may seem to others, but to myself I am but a small child wandering upon the vast shores of knowledge, every now and then finding a small bright pebble to content myself with. ~ Plato

Something as simple as drops of water falling from the edge of a fountain on to colored pebbles can make a fascinating photo. I took my time and played with the shutter speed. Love the way the water is hitting the rocks and splashing up in random trajectories. Cameras can capture the unseen – amazing!

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. When she was a young teenager she dreamed of being a famous geologist. Now she dreams of being a famous photographer who takes photos of pebbles!

Wilderness Exposure

Devil’s Garden Trail explores some of the Utah back country in Arches National Park. Your reward for scrambling over rocky surfaces, navigating the narrow tops of exposed sandstone fins, and then climbing up and down short, steep crevices is a view not many people see – eight spectacular arches, and back-country worthy of many oohs and ahs, and a few comments, such as “I can’t walk on that #%*& ledge!”

Creative Cairn

Creative Cairn © 2008 Bo Mackison

Though most cairns (markers that let you know – really – you are still on the trail) are rocks stacked up in a pile, a previous hiker took the time to re-arrange this cairn into replicas of two hikers. So by looking at this photo, you can see we are precisely where we are supposed to be, even though we are vaguely lost.

This is the Trail? Are you Sure?

This is the Trail? Are you Sure? © 2008 Bo Mackison

At this spot, our choices were to scramble over the dome in front of us, or deal with the tangle of dead wood around the side. We scrambled up the rock, which thankfully was not slippery, and then slid down the other side. No sweat! (Yeah, right!)

The Worn Part iS the Trail

The WORN Part is the Trail © 2008 Bo Mackison

As was most evident to us, the trail was the worn path on the rocks. I kept my sights on the spectacular stand of fins ahead, and kept taking deep breaths. The trail marker at the beginning said the hike was not appropriate for people who suffer from extreme agoraphobia (fear of heights) – what about those of us who only have a minor case?

But I exaggerate! I loved this hike. We started at dawn and returned to the trailhead about 2 in the afternoon. I’ve seldom seen such magnificence. Worth all the bits of anxiety and lack of oxygen. (We were at a high elevation for Wisconsin folk!)

Then we went out for beer and pizza. It seemed the only reasonable thing to do.