Tag: McDowell Sonoran Preserve

Desert Shadows

Long shadows (including mine) stretch up into the desert landscape full of saguaros and boulders on the Granite Mountain Loop Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on April 13, 2024. Original: _Z728602.NEF

A different take on a favored scene, deliberately adding my shadow to the desert’s own. I can’t remember if Bear’s shadow mixed in with mine or if his was too short even for this wide view, but I loved hiking this trail with him this past winter and spring.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 24-200
🗓️: April 13, 2024

Coming Down the Mountain

A view of saguaros and wildflowers on the Granite Mountain Loop Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on April 13, 2024. Original: _Z728573.NEF

A quick snap of a favored view as Bear and I were on our way back to the trailhead, surrounded by saguaros and wildflowers with mountains in the distance. I had been back at work for a couple of months and missed our daily hikes, but these days I’d settle for even weekend walks as I haven’t been able to get up early enough on my days off to beat the heat. We did go swimming yesterday for two hours lest you feel too sorry for us.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 24-200
🗓️: April 13, 2024

The Pupil, A Master

A great horned owl sits in a round opening in a large boulder at McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on April 20, 2024. Original: _A679192.ARW

Ensconced in the cliff face looks to be the skull of a leviathan that once swam in long dead seas. One day I noticed a pupil in the empty eye socket, the pupil a master, waiting for night to fall. I started bringing my telephoto lens on our walks and one day caught the pupil stepping into the light, my favorite wildlife picture in a long while. Bear and I shared a little laugh wondering how many times we walked past not knowing the unseeing eye watched us from on high.

📷: Sony A6700 | Sony 100-400mm | Sony 1.4X
🗓️: April 20, 2024

Same Spirit, Different View

Massive saguaros grow beside the Granite Mountain Loop Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on April 7, 2024. Original: _Z728173.NEF

Whether walking Ellie in our old Portland neighborhood or hiking with Bear in the desert, I value quality but compact and light camera gear so I can keep my focus on our time together rather than photography. I love the mementos of these treasured times, even if you don’t see Ellie or Bear in the picture, I do. If the spirit behind why I take pictures hasn’t changed, the view certainly has.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 24-200
🗓️: April 7, 2024