| Author | Content |
palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
 September 23, 2006
02:18 AM Post #2751272
| I used to think this was such an icky medium.. .like drawing with children's chalk... but then I took a class in it, and found it about as close to painting as someone who likes to draw can get without actually painting or having to use a brush. The colors are amazing, and it's a pretty fast way of making an image. Still, it's terribly messing/dusty, and drawings are really a pain to store- smear all over each other, even when fixed fairly well... but I have to say, it's probably my favorite medium... but I haven't done it for a while, mostly because of the mess.
These are a few of the drawings I did during one of the two classes I took
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:20 AM Post #2751274
| This is a scene where I used to live (where I grew up, in New Mexico) called Black Mesa. When you draw 'plein air' (from life) you have to draw fast as the light is always changing, and if you don't want your drawing to look like it was done at different times of the day, you have to be swift... This took me about 30minutes, and though at the time I was not happy with it, it looks better later on (typical for plein air drawings I find). 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:23 AM Post #2751277
| This was one of the most difficult drawings, as the cattle, though peacefully chewing and standing about when you drive by, would get very nervous and mill about when you actually get out of the car and sit down to draw them... so none would stand still for more than a moment, making putting any details down near impossible. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:26 AM Post #2751279
| This drawing I did of the sky in Eastern New Mexico looks better the farther you get away from it... up close, you can tell it was a struggle. Clouds move fast, and aren't really this color... oh well. The landscape is a lot more accurate than they are. Done on 'regular' paper, while the others were done on sand paper. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:27 AM Post #2751282
| Quickie sketch done from roadside (were several of us hurrying to get a drawing in before sun went down). 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:30 AM Post #2751286
| Sometimes working too long on a drawing works against you.. this was one that took me nearly an hour, and the light had changed multiple times, not to mention it was just about to storm... spent too much time futzing with the foreground and it didnt work.. but pretty accurate storm cloud and distance representation (still in New Mexico) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:31 AM Post #2751289
| another longer sketch on a sunnier day eastern New Mexico sitting low in the grass 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:32 AM Post #2751290
| Back yard of some school eastern New Mexico 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:33 AM Post #2751292
| another drawing a bit too much time spent on. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:34 AM Post #2751295
| really weird rock structures, typical of some areas of New Mexico 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:36 AM Post #2751296
| This is the mesa in New Mexico right next to the one I grew up on (all look alike to me, actually) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:37 AM Post #2751297
| another view of it in the background, with a cliff of 'tufa' rock in the foreground 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:38 AM Post #2751299
| More hilly terrain, with too much detail in foreground 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:39 AM Post #2751303
| Cliffs where I used to go arrow-head hunting, New Mexico 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:40 AM Post #2751306
| sometimes the fastest drawings i do work out the best.. this was really quick study I did on a spare strip of sand paper... 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:42 AM Post #2751308
| this was the first drawing I did in this one class, and though I hated it at the time, it actually is a good representation of a New Mexico landscape. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:43 AM Post #2751310
| too much realism? just drawing the night sky from backyard... maybe should have left out the power lines? 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:44 AM Post #2751311
| quickie of the Rio Grande 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:45 AM Post #2751314
| drawing of another classmate working on her pastel in courtyard, eastern New mexico. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:47 AM Post #2751320
| this was a different sort of project- not plein air, but done in the studio... drawing of the Superstition mtns over Phoenix Arizona (that's supposed to be a Phoenix in the background... ) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:48 AM Post #2751322
| Done during the pastel class, but totally made up the background and 'bison' (probably didn't need to tell you that). 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:51 AM Post #2751326
| this was a VERY quick sketch... several of us did quickie landscape studies in just a few minutes (5 minutes, which included getting out of the car, setting up, taping off your paper, drawing, and getting back in the car). Not much of a landscape- eastern New Mexico..., but actually captured the sky fairly well. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:52 AM Post #2751327
| Here's another view of Black Mesa, done on sanded gessoed wood. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:54 AM Post #2751331
| this is a pastel on sanded paper of some of the bizarre rock formations just down the canyon from where I lived... there were lots of these tall, skinny cones of rocks, all topped with one extra large boulder (drawn, but unfortunately not photographed completely here) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:55 AM Post #2751333
| Only pastels I have done of landscapes out here in Southern California- obviously one is upside down, sorry... done on same sheet of paper. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:56 AM Post #2751334
| a manzanita bush I tried to draw (early in the class) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:57 AM Post #2751335
| Santa Fe night time sky 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:57 AM Post #2751336
| Eastern New mexico scene 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:58 AM Post #2751337
| another made up scene done in pastel class 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
02:59 AM Post #2751338
| New Mexico is a great place for amazing sunsets 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
03:00 AM Post #2751340
| This is near where I grew up.. the Rio Grande ... it is a 360 degree view done in three sections. Done on white paper and only part done plein air... rest done later in studio 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 23, 2006
03:02 AM Post #2751341
| Color is actualy pretty realistic, of the aspen mountainsides in New Mexico as seen from my back yard (when I lived out there) 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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crowellli
Houston, TX
(Zone 9a)
September 23, 2006
10:09 AM Post #2751687
| Excellent work palmbob. The one with "tufa" rock in the foreground is my favorite. Do you sell any of your work? They are all very good. I'm still struggling with watercolor and about ready to give up and go back to oils and pastels since they are so much easier to control. I do agree that it's easy to "overwork" a drawing/painting and I always have a hard time knowing when to quit. Thanks for posting these, they are really beautiful. |
pepper23
KC Metro area, MO
(Zone 5b)
September 23, 2006
12:15 PM Post #2752008
| I love them all!! Great work!! |
Stinkerweed
Fortuna, CA
September 25, 2006
02:12 PM Post #2757810
| I always wanted to be an artist. I can visualize scenes and know just how I want it to look but have never been able to translate my vision onto the canvas. I admire your talent! The depth you achieve in your vistas is wonderful and draws my eye into it. Bravo! |
nap
Depew, NY
(Zone 6a)
September 25, 2006
04:52 PM Post #2758287
| Palmbob! These are excellent! I kept thinking " I'm going to tell him I like this one the best ", but I kept changing my mind as I went along. Still, I think I do have a favorite. It's your 2:52 pm post. It's beautiful. |
balvenie
Marysville, WA
(Zone 7a)
 September 26, 2006
12:14 PM Post #2760443
| Beautiful work. You do so well in such a variety of mediums. You mentioned "sandpaper" and "sanded paper" in the descriptions. Is that something unique to pastels ? I would guess it isn't like woodworkers sandpaper. |
grampapa
Wheatfield, NY
(Zone 6a)
September 26, 2006
02:04 PM Post #2760763
| they really are quite wonderful. it's interesting to go back up and just look at the thumbnails the second time...gives you some distance. I'm rather drawn to the one from 2:42, the first one from the class. I feel like I could walk right into it.
Bob, is there any medium you haven't tried that you want to? |
palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
September 26, 2006
10:12 PM Post #2761990
| Not really tried Oils... though have some. Sound too messy and complicated. The sanded paper is really just colored Sandpaper. You can you regular sandpaper, but it's not archival and tends to deteriorate over time. |
Mahnot
DFW area, TX
(Zone 7b)
September 27, 2006
01:33 AM Post #2762422
| Palmbob, these are wonderful images. Your skies are
beautifully done. If I had to pick a favorite - no easy task -
I'm partial to the one where you say you were sitting low
in the grass - the foreground is done in oranges and there
is a cluster of white buildings at the center - posted at
1:31 AM.
Have you ever tried Wallis Sanded Pastel Paper?
It is archival, and highly recommended by Albert Handell
and Bob Rohm, two amazing artists.
http://www.dickblick.com/zz108/08/ |
GD_Rankin
San Antonio, TX
(Zone 9a)
September 30, 2006
02:07 AM Post #2771979
| Great work Bob . . . what a show! Thanks for share'n :) |
TxTurqoize
San Antonio, TX
(Zone 8b)
September 30, 2006
06:04 PM Post #2773478
| *sigh* You make me wish that I were in northern NM again...my favorite place on earth. Wonderful work, palmbob...you captured the area so beautifully... :)
Melanie |
woodthrush
Albrightsville, PA
(Zone 4a)
September 30, 2006
06:50 PM Post #2773635
| I just love the sunset ones. Simply beautiful!
Pam |
bivbiv
Central FL, FL
(Zone 9b)
October 04, 2006
02:39 PM Post #2785577
| Thanks so much for posting these. I always enjoy your work, no matter which medium you use. |
UniQueTreasures
Beaumont, TX
(Zone 8b)
October 04, 2006
02:42 PM Post #2785586
| Awesome job Bob! I love the colors in your landscapes.
I've always wanted to go out West. But never been west of San Antonio yet. Thanks to your work, I feel I've been there. The thumbnails look like photographs.
Janet |
renatelynne
Boerne, TX
(Zone 8b)
October 04, 2006
03:22 PM Post #2785711
| Well you have to go a little west next time you come here... Just about an hour from me is the greatest place. A wild seed farm that is a great place to go to if you like gardening.
http://www.wildseedfarms.com/ |
UniQueTreasures
Beaumont, TX
(Zone 8b)
October 04, 2006
03:45 PM Post #2785783
| What a beautiful place! Great site about the flowers and butterflies.
Mom is due back in San Antonio this Sunday. It won't be long until Connie and I venture out that way. We'll be sure to take a drive out there when we go. We've taken many a drive out that direction (but never quite that far) over the years, just to see the wildflowers in bloom.
Janet |
bootandall
Blenheim
New Zealand
October 05, 2006
06:12 AM Post #2787449
| you do see, more than me. love what you do. |
palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
October 13, 2006
01:25 PM Post #2813957
| Have to admit I was a bit nervous about doing Pastel again, as I hadn't lifted a piece of it in years. TRied on this old piece of watercolor paper, and turns out not to be a good surface for pastel... local scene here in southern California 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
|
Mahnot
DFW area, TX
(Zone 7b)
October 13, 2006
01:48 PM Post #2814037
| Palmbob, what a lovely rendering !
Watercolor paper just doesn't have enough tooth for pastels.
Even with a fixative sprayed on, I've found that it is not stable.
Oh, well. Lessons learned. |
weedsgalore
Tampa, FL
October 13, 2006
04:51 PM Post #2814454
| bob, that was a real treat, one really must go through the thumbnails again...my favorite..is the one at1:26 Eastern N. Mexico sky..the lavender bottomed clouds are heavenly...i can feel the wind blowing...so enjoy your work! thanks, for taking us through your "gallery". sue |
grampapa
Wheatfield, NY
(Zone 6a)
October 15, 2006
11:10 AM Post #2819074
| Bob, good surface or no, that's beautiful. good to keep your hand in |
KayJones
Panama City Beach, FL
(Zone 8b)
October 21, 2006
12:37 PM Post #2837878
| Bob, those are WONDERFUL - wish I had some artist in me, but alas... My son is a terrific scetch-artist, but he got that from the mail man, I guess! LOL |
shellabella
West Central, FL
(Zone 9b)
October 25, 2006
08:35 AM Post #2848385
| Incredible Bob!...I couldn't pick a favorite either, hard as I tried.
I felt as if I was standing there for real looking at each scene. Your perspective is amazing and the blending of colors and color choices is wonderful. If only my pastels looked that good...
Michelle:) |
2pugdogs
(Linda) Winfield, KS
(Zone 6a)
October 25, 2006
05:06 PM Post #2849913
| OMG these are beautiful. You are a great artist. |
pepper23
KC Metro area, MO
(Zone 5b)
October 25, 2006
08:15 PM Post #2850478
| I think his head is getting big now. LOL. Whatta say palmbob? Keep up the good work. I can't paint or draw at all. I can dream it up but forget about putting it on paper. Won't happen. lol |
katsu
Columbus, OH
(Zone 6a)
October 28, 2006
12:18 PM Post #2858862
| Dayum! That brought back memories of our family's trip out west, you really captured the look of the land and sky. I've seen those lavender-bottomed clouds,and the purple road in your 2:27 post. Excellent work!
Lisa |
caganimalover
Joshua, TX
(Zone 8a)
November 11, 2006
10:59 AM Post #2904109
| Fabulous! I never would have guessed pastels could be so detailed. It would be difficult to choose a favorite, there are so many that I like. ~~~ Carol |
2zeus
(Zone 7b)
December 03, 2006
02:37 PM Post #2965091
| Bob, you have that oh-so-rare ability to capture and fill your creations with light - beautiful.
One sees so many technically perfect artworks that are dead on the paper/canvas because of no light - but yours are alive! |
Jenks
Social Circle, GA
(Zone 8a)
December 03, 2006
04:36 PM Post #2965405
| I don't think I've ever seen pastels like that! Very nice- I'd frame every single one-especially the sandpaper one. That would go nicely right over my door. |
zenpotter
Minneapolis, MN
(Zone 4b)
December 03, 2006
05:15 PM Post #2965497
| The way you handle light and color amazes me. I keep saying I want to go to New Mexico now I really want to go. There is no way I could choose a favorite. |
Bhavana34
Medford, NJ
May 12, 2007
05:37 PM Post #3490745
| Hi, I work in pastels as well and like your work - you should check out Handell - he lives in the southwest and his pastels are very inspiring! |
palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
May 12, 2007
06:09 PM Post #3490816
| I know him... he is very good. I took a one day class from him many many years ago. |
imapigeon
Gilroy (Sunset Z14), CA
(Zone 9a)
May 12, 2007
10:09 PM Post #3491498
| So glad this thread got popped to the top----what a wonderful tour I've had! Your SoCal with the double image looks like Simi Valley? Did some photographs there when I lived there, and the rock formations are nice----but pale in comparison to New Mexico. I really admire your work! |
Bhavana34
Medford, NJ
May 13, 2007
10:17 AM Post #3492731
| Yeah, he's great, I love the looseness and colors of his work, have a few of his books, he doesn't do many workshops here in the northeast, but occasionally in Mass.. I find it surprising that I live in one of the most densely populated parts of the US but very few artists have workshops here.
I love pastels, though I paint mostly wildlife with them and some of our local coastal scenery. |
Calalily
South Padre Island, TX
(Zone 10a)
May 14, 2007
11:18 AM Post #3496114
| Very nice pastels Palmbob. |
Georgart53
Clifton, TX
July 06, 2007
01:01 PM Post #3703304
| You are so prolific.. I don't work that fast.
You have a wonderful eye for color. are you going to enter the Pastel competition?
I was thinking about it.. thought I don't work in pastels as often as acrylic.
I am doing an oil now.. I think I like it.. I've done it in the past but I like the vibrant colors. |
yayacaruana
Goose Creek, SC
August 04, 2007
01:42 PM Post #3817119
| I'm from Portales, NM, transplanted to Charleston, SC going on two years ago. Your images make me homesick for the drive from the house to the farm while the sun was thinking about coming up. I'm not missing the 4 am wake-up calls. (grin) Thanks for sharing. Please, keep working and posting. |
roybird
Santa Fe, NM
August 10, 2007
05:36 PM Post #3841771
| Hey, PalmBob! You're really good. I like the landscapes as well as the agaves. Plein air isn't easy. I love it. New Mexico has no ocean but we compensate with our clouds. Nice to see this. |
DonnieBrook
Southern Gulf Coast, FL
(Zone 10b)
September 10, 2007
09:06 PM Post #3960515
| What a wonderful collection of really lovely pastels, PalmBob. Thanks for taking the time to share them with us. I also really enjoyed your commentary and your self-critiquing...very interesting to walk through these with you. I am most impressed...would give anything to be even a bit artistic! Keep 'em coming, please! |
confident_realm
Houston, TX
February 01, 2008
02:14 PM Post #4482684
| I paint with both oil pastel and soft pastel along with charcoal for a mixed medium effect. I love pastel drawings (paintings). My first love will always be oil painting though. Here is one of my pastel paintings. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
|
jmcdowell
San Antonio, TX
February 01, 2008
02:52 PM Post #4482815
| palmbob, I love your paintings! I wish I had such amazing scenery around me. How inspiring.
Have you ever used velour paper? I have done a few pastel paintings and I found the velour paper really neat. The fibers in the paper really soak up the pastel and you can layer like crazy.
Here is one I did on the velour paper.
Click the image for an enlarged view.
|
2vernes
Blytheville, AR
(Zone 7a)
February 01, 2008
10:33 PM Post #4484556
| We have so many talented artists in this forum and I enjoy looking at all their work. Confident_realm, your pastel flowers are lovely and I really like the intense depth of the color. Jmcdowell, the wolf, what can I say, it is breathtaking. So realistic and the eyes are beautiful and are looking right at me. Laverne |
palmbob
Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b)
February 01, 2008
11:37 PM Post #4484837
| Wow... pretty nice! |
pepper23
KC Metro area, MO
(Zone 5b)
February 02, 2008
11:08 PM Post #4488665
| Jmc, your wolf is so well done it looks real. |
AYankeeCat
Fairfield County, CT
(Zone 6b)
February 02, 2008
11:12 PM Post #4488681
| palmbob - your pastels are amazing! |
jmcdowell
San Antonio, TX
February 02, 2008
11:14 PM Post #4488686
| Thanks guys. Sorry palmbob, I don't want to hijack your thread, I was just curious if you had used the velour paper. |
sugarweed
Jacksonville, FL
(Zone 9a)
February 04, 2008
11:17 AM Post #4494057
| Palmbob,
Having recently won the 'motherload' of pastels on ebay I am so inspired by your work.
I will take a class as soon as I can.
I also grew up in the Texas Panhandle and love your NM paintings.
;) |
2vernes
Blytheville, AR
(Zone 7a)
February 04, 2008
12:50 PM Post #4494388
| Palmbob, I just went back to the top of this thread and looked at all your pastels and they are beautiful. Makes me want to take a trip to New Mexico and surrounding areas--have never been there. Your talent is amazing. Thanks for sharing. Laverne |
terriculture
london England
United Kingdom
February 05, 2008
06:25 PM Post #4499609
| Palmbob, your work is beautiful, the colours are so vibrant. Thankyou! |
atenkley
Robertsdale, AL
(Zone 8b)
February 05, 2008
08:14 PM Post #4499970
| Wow, just stumbled upon this thread! Thank you for the fine tour and commentary to your gallery. Like has been said many times above...just love your ability to capture the light. Your work is very fresh. Thank You for sharing!
I once worked for a company that had a manufacturing plant on the Navajo reservation in NE Arizona...what a beautiful part of the country. Your work brought back fond memories of former trips to that area.
Arlan |
