All Manner of Stripes

Stripes on Benches

Stripes on Benches ©2013 Bo Mackison

“In photography there are no shadows that cannot be illuminated. ” ~ August Sander

While visiting Casa Grande National Monument, I found plenty of opportunity to play with surfaces striped with light and shadow. And so that is what I did. I played!

Stripes in Corners

Stripes in Corners © 2013 Bo Mackison

Photography means ‘light writing’.~ L. Ron Hubbard 

I took these photos at the visitor center and the outside ramada where Park Rangers give talks about the ancient ruins of a Hohokam-era farming village and a four-story Great House.

Stripes on Roofs

Stripes on Roofs © 2013 Bo Mackison

The camera captures light, our minds capture images. ~ Anonymous

Blue skies, an Arizona hallmark, show through the slatted ramada.

Stripes - Casa Grande National Monument's Visitor Center

Stripes – Casa Grande National Monument ©2013 Bo Mackison

Photos have no narrative content. They only describe light on surface. ~ Garry Winogrand

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.  She explores the desert with her camera, and is mesmerized by the stripes of light and shadow.

Yipes, Stripes at Saguaro National Park

Yipes Stripes, Saguaro National Park Visitor Center

Saguaro National Park Visitor Center © 2013 Bo Mackison

The Red Hills Visitor Center offers information to visitors at Saguaro National Park’s western unit, stands watch over thousands of saguaro cacti on the adjacent mountains, and presents an astounding photo opportunity working with light and dark.

Before I even got my boots dusty of the trails, I spent an hour playing with different camera angles, patterns of light and shadow, and composition. I finally had to stop because first, I did want to go hiking, and second, I was getting darn dizzy!

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.  Bo discovers beauty and inspiration, even when exploring the light play at Saguaro National Park.

Shadow Play on the Patio

Favorite Stop for Coffee - Arizona Sonora Desert Museum

Shadows on the Patio ©2013 Bo Mackison

Almost all my middle-aged and elderly acquaintances, including me, feel about 25, unless we haven’t had our coffee, in which case we feel 107. ~ Martha Beck

Now that I’ve completed the initial phase of my photo project on my Barriers series, I’ve returned to walking the desert trails. One of my favorite stops is the coffee shop at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. This desert discovery place in the midst of the Tucson Mountains, one of my favorite destinations for hiking, wandering, or just setting up my day office at a picnic site for hours of art, journal writing and photography. It’s also a grand way to either start or end my day – complimentary coffee or iced tea for members!

I can never sit on the patio overlooking the desert exhibits without getting at least temporarily distracted by the light and shadow contrasts from the slatted beams of the ramada offering protection from the elements.

And I always appreciate a good cup of coffee or a prickly pear iced tea as I consider the play of light and shadow. Oh, yes I do!

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. And she always enjoys a good shadow photo opportunity!