I do love Santa Fe, NM.  It is a wonderful town.  And it is truly a town - not a city - but it has such an incredible allure.  I am always happy to return there.  In fact, we recently booked a trip there for this summer.  It's an interesting story - I'll share that one later.  Anyways, this is the big cathedral which is a block off their main plaza.  Be sure and shoot it if you go there!! 

Just a post and run, sorta.  I am in Las Vegas this week, and work is crazy busy and tiring.  I am shooting some though, so that's nice!  More on that later...

I caught this shot during an incredible sunrise at Radnor Lake outside of Nashville, TN a while back.  It was one of the most stunning sunrises I have ever seen.  Just a fabulous way to start a day!

There is just something about the Bay Bridge that captures me.  I am a fan of bridges for starters - so there's that piece - but it has this classic form and with those old pilings in front it is just impossible for me to resist.  Literally, I shoot it every time I visit San Francisco.  So, that means I have a lot more shots like this one to share sometime!  Anyways, I caught this image on one of my trips there last year, during what turned out to be a colorful sunrise.  It was like the sky had 2 personalities that morning - I'll be pink, no wait I'll be blue!! - and with some HDR magic it brings it all to life!  Ah, how I love my brackets!

I loved being here.  I was driving along the Eastern shore of Loch Lomond, in Scotland.  I had been out for a while, having already shot quite a bit and was heading back towards the small town of Drymen, where my hotel was located.  En route, I saw this little park area called Milarrochy Bay, so I pulled over in case there was anything interesting to shoot here.  Um...well, there was quite a bit.  Before I even got out of the car, I could see this tree standing there in the shallow water, and I already was envisioning this shot.  I was totally alone - there was just the sound of water hitting the shore, and I hadn't seen another person in hours.  It was awesome.

The River Liffey is the river which runs through the center of Dublin, Ireland.  It's a great place to wander with a camera, as there are a lot of bridges crossing it at various points.  I spent quite a bit of time in this area, because the main entertainment area known as Temple Bar is right next to it, and areas like this are rich with photographic opportunities.  There is just so much to shoot in a historic district like this, so I spent all my free time looking for interesting stuff - and I didn't have to look far!  I caught this image one evening while wandering.  It was a calm, beautiful blue hour and I was staring up the river.  The Temple Bar area is just up the river a short walk, on the left.  Behind me, down the river, is where the Samuel Beckett Bridge is located - it's the one in my last Dublin photo!

Ok, a little break from my Ireland/Scotland shots, just to mix it up a bit.  I'll have more from that trip that I will post next week.  This one comes from a little closer to home.  In fact, it was real close to home since I took it in downtown Austin a while back.  This is a fun spot to shoot, since you have the train tracks and the decaying building with graffiti all over it.  It's like a perfect combo of all the cool stuff!!

Scotland is a beautiful country.  Part of my overseas adventure last week consisted of some time spent in the Scottish countryside, sort of northwest of Glasgow.  It's an area that lies just on the edge of the Scottish Highlands and specifically where I was is called Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.  I read online that Loch Lomond is the largest lake in Great Britain based on surface area.  All I know is that it seems to spread out everywhere, which is ok by me since I was busy firing off brackets left and right!

As you can see, it was a foggy, overcast day, but the lake - I mean loch! - was like glass.  I got rained on a little here and there but I don't really mind, and my Nikon wasn't complaining either!

Ah, Dublin.  It's a great town.  There is so much to shoot, and despite firing off something like 1400 frames there, I feel like I barely scratched the surface.  That's the way it is with travel photography - you are always left wanting more.  Anyways, after work one day I headed out as sunset was nearing and I knew the light would only last a little while.  I had seen this incredible bridge - the Samuel Beckett Bridge - and knew that it would make for some interesting photo opps.  I was hoping for a dramatic sunset that night, but had to settle for a beautiful, cloudless blue hour.  I did however find some nice vantage points, and with such interesting architecture across the river - and lots of sparkly, twinkly lights - I was rather happy with how my evening turned out!

This is the famed Temple Bar located in the historic district in downtown Dublin, Ireland.  It's a wonderful place.  When I found out I was going to Ireland, this was one of the top places on my list to photograph.  I arrived late on Saturday, so instead of fighting the Saturday evening crowds, I decided to get up on Sunday morning so I could enjoy it alone.  It works every time - all the tourists are in bed, and I am firing off brackets to my hearts content.  I ended up coming back by on Sunday evening, so I got some night shots here after all!  The entire area is actually called Temple Bar, and consists of several blocks of these historic buildings with many Irish bars scattered around.  It's quite fun, day or night!  Bring the camera!

As some of you may know, I spent last week in the UK - Dublin, Ireland and in the Scottish countryside near Glasgow, to be specific.  It was fabulous.  I saw many sights, and I took many, many pictures.  In fact, I have over 2100 shots to sort through.  I just haven't gotten to them yet.  So, look for some cool stuff coming soon, with some good stories to go with them!

Also, I want to thank everyone for the visits and comments last week.  I have not been too good about returning the favor, and plan to do so this week.  For those of you who do visit but do not comment, that's ok too (but go ahead and say something if you like!).

As far as this shot goes, I grabbed it last summer while in Corpus Christi, TX.  I got up early one morning to get out and shoot the sunrise, which was beautiful.  The color was just inbelievable that morning!