#arch bridge

I First Fell as a Snowflake in the Mountains of Colorado by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: I First Fell as a Snowflake in the Mountains of Colorado During the cold winter days and nights, I meet other snowflake friends We played and skied and did all the fun snow type adventures Soon though, I noticed to change in the sun and felt a warmth coming That season of change, you might even say So I became water along with so many other snowflakes We joined together to form a river, a Grande one at that We all headed south through the gorges and valleys and scenic mountain passes So many cities and places I plan to visit as I float on by One day I noticed this bridge with a person taking in the view He captured an image of my friends from way up high Saying hello, we continued our journey through New Mexico to Texas And finally this Gulf of Mexico Another work of short poetry or prose to complement the image captured one afternoon while taking in view on the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. The view is looking to the north at the Rio Grande it flowed by. The poem is me imagining the story of a drop of water and the the journey it took from the headwaters of where the Rio Grande starts and then a journey as it flowed on by through Colorado and into New Mexico where I was that afternoon. In composing this image, I steadied myself on the bridge and then aligned myself to have the river centered with the canyon and gorge walls on both sides. I also wanted to angle my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward and bring the horizon higher into the image, creating a sweeping view looking up the gorge. I also liked the mountains of the Sangre de Cristo Range and Taos Mountains as a backdrop.

Freezing Frames of Things Wondrous by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the south-southeast while taking in views across the northern New Mexico landscape and Rio Grande River Gorge. I was located on the bridge itself. In composing this image, I chose to take advantage of the height I was located on and angle my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward. This would bring the horizon higher into the image, minimizing what I felt was the negative space with the overcast skies, while creating a sweeping view to the river gorge as the waters of the Rio Grande flowed by.

Going to Explore the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While approaching the Rio Grande Gorge with a view to the northeast and bridge crossing. This is in northern New Mexico not far from Taos. The ridges and peaks off in the distance are of the Sangre de Cristo Range and Taos Mountains. In composing this image, I wanted to capture a leveled-on view with the horizon and bridge, aligning the latter across the image center. That would allow me to include some foreground interest with some nearby sagebrush and side of the gorge, leading the eye to the bridge itself. I liked the idea of the mountains as a distant backdrop for this setting.

photo: David Castenson

Exploring Views of the New River Gorge Bridge (New River Gorge National Park & Preserve) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While walking around the Canyon Rim Visitor Center area at the main overlook to the bridge. The view is looking to the west and across the river gorge and valley. Given that I felt the blue skies above were more of a negative space, I decided to focus more on the bridge as it spanned across this river valley. The greens and yellows of the forest around would be that color complement to the blue skies above for this image and setting.

A Portrait Orientation of a Railroad and Bridge (New River Gorge National Park & Preserve) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: At a road and foot crossing around the Fayette Station Bridge area in New River Gorge National Park & Preserve. The view is looking to the northwest, using the railroad tracks as a leading line into the image. The rest of the image composition was centering the bridge, more or less, and using the ridgelines and hillside to draw the viewer further into the image.