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Wow! It’s September already. Time when temperatures cool and colors change. It’s a great time to be a photographer!

I went out this past weekend up Queen’s Canyon in Glen Eyrie with some friends. We enjoyed the green trees, the lovely scent of the blossoming flowers and quiet sounds of the cool creek flowing by. Soon this summer will chill into fall and its yellows and reds and browns. But for now, the photo above is up above the waterfall as the water heads down the mountain. Enjoy the cool water on a hot day while the summer lasts. I call this photo “Blur”.

As the seasons change, I want to say thank you for joining me in this artistic endeavor. To say thank you specifically for joining my email list to get updates on new products, photos and shows. So by joining the mailing list today, I would like to give you a free desktop wallpaper for your computer of the photo above. (If you are already on the mailing list, watch for our eLetter Coming out September 1 for how to download your wallpaper.)

Simply join the mailing list here. The link for your downloads will be in the confirmation email.

Thank you again for enjoying these photos of God’s beauty with me.

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Colorado has been unusually wet for August. But we all know what that means – lots and lots of green and lots and lots of flowers!

My mother and I went downtown a few weeks ago and captured some of the summer beauty. This photo is from that little excursion. You can see more from Downtown and a few from elsewhere right here on the Portfolio Shop.

I’ve been gearing up for my first holiday season with First Century Studios. Working hard to bring you some great gifts for your friends and family! Already available are photo coasters. These were a big hit last year. Currently for sale are beautiful tile coasters with photos from Europe. I am working on making some with flower photos as well.

There will also be a great 2011 calendar featuring photos from right here in Colorado and neighboring states.

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

Continuing in the night photos – here is a photo from last night – well rather this morning about 3 am. My good friend Pam and I ventured out to watch the Perseid meteor showers. This was my first time really star gazing. The last time I stayed up late to do anything space-y was when I was about 10. Somehow we got set up to talk to the Nasa Shuttle Astronauts as they flew over head. So we were all huddled on our roof staring at the sky and listening for their call.

But no astronauts tonight – just us and the Milky Way. We actually went to several places since we weren’t sure where to get a good view and to keep us awake. This shot was at Monument Lake in Monument CO. Sadly none of the meteors wanted to listen to my directions and remained camera shy – but wow I do like the stars. I just love the way they are streaking across the sky.

You can see a few more photos for our star gazing at the Portfolio Shop.

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Friday, August 13th, 2010

My parents graciously invited me along on their trip to Arches National Park this weekend. It was my first “Official” photo trip as an official artist. It’s hot in Utah in July, but I really didn’t notice. It’s funny how when you are doing something you love, nothing seems to bother you.

This photo was the one I was hoping to get. I had just spent the sunset running around trying to find the perfect shot along with all the tourists and other photog’s. It was quite a community experience. And I got some great shots, which I will post later on. But this was “THE ONE”.

The sun had gone down and we were re-hydrating in the the car waiting for the moon and stars to appear. I had finally gotten around to buying a remote for my camera so I could leave the shutter open longer and now was my chance to use it. A guy parked next to us had driven to the park on his motorcycle and was also waiting for the moon to come up. He left his bike a few minutes before my dad and I ventured back up to this arch. It is the North Window Arch.

On our way up the hill another photographer was coming down with tripod in hand. He pointed out where the moon was coming up. It was blocked from our view by the rocks. We continued on armed with my tripod and a newly acquired flashlight.

By the time we reached the arch, only our motorcycle friend and his friend were there. They had the one spot you could see this from. He was shooting with a small digital point and shoot and could not seem to get it just right. He graciously let me take his place. Photographers are such nice people

He continued to try to get his shot while I worked on mine. Here is one of the many that I took.

Our motorcycle friend finally got his shot too and we shared our photos with each other before heading back down the trail in the dark.

To see more pics from this trip, check out the Portfolio.

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Wednesday, July 28th, 2010

I have been suffering from Insomina of late – not fun if you couple it with my current case of vertigo – but what are you going to do. I really wish I could capture the feeling on film. Hmmm, maybe I will try.

So last night, while I couldn’t sleep, I was standing on my deck looking at the stars. This action sets off some nice spinning action for me so I had to look down to regain my balance. It was a good thing too! As I looked down in the dark, I saw something moving in the parking lot across the lawn. Something big followed by a bunch of something small.

The something big made it into a patch of light – and OMG! is was a bear and her FOUR cubs! In my backyard too. It was a good thing it wasn’t garbage day. Just last week at the pool (see the last post) we had been discussing this very bear and her habit of tearing down people’s fences. Well, here she was but thankfully there were no broken fences that I know of.

I wish I had a photo, but it was too dark and I didn’t want to make her mad with the flash – so I just watched Ursa Major on the ground instead of in the sky.

On an unrelated note: this photo is a fun one playing with focus and the night sky.

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

The other day I was hanging out with a neighbor at our pool. Another neighbor who she knew joined us and we got to talking. And you know how it goes when you first meet someone, their first or second question is usually, “So what do you do?” or “Where do you work?”

So I answered that I was a photographer and graphic designer. He asked then what kind of photography I did. Most people think “weddings” right away. Of course, I have to be different from all the other photographers I know, so I said that I mostly shot landscapes and fine art.

After a slightly confused expression and some further conversation, we came back to my subject matter.

“So you take photos of people’s yards? Like landscaping?” he asked.

“Oh! No, I take photos of mountains, lakes, flowers and sometimes more abstract stuff! Sometimes they are in people’s yards I suppose.”

“Ah! I get it now.”

Landscape can mean so many things! It’s how you arrange your yard, a way to print on paper horizontally and it’s how you see the world around you in art. I would challenge you to see things in a different perspective like my new found friend. It can make for a more interesting life.

Incidentally, this photo is the view from our pool. Gotta love Colorado scenery!

Posted in Blog,Featured — by alicia on Tuesday, July 13th, 2010