Weekend Photography Workshop

This weekend, my friends and I took a photography workshop in Tuscarora.  It was a really fun trip and I learned a lot about how to use my camera.  It is amazing what you can do with a DSLR camera when you know how.  It was good for me because I could actually play with my camera and figure out things like ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed.  I still need to figure out my shutter speed settings, but am very comfortable with setting my ISO, and Aperture settings now.  I have been wanting to photography Tuscarora for a very long time.

We started out at the Tuscarora Cemetery.  There are so many falling down markers and fences.  A lot of the graves are from the turn of the century, but it is still used today, so there were more recent graves as well.  I had a lot of strong mixed emotions being there.  As excited as I was to be there it had a very sobering effect, reading the names and ages of some of the residents.  One girl was just 17 and married when she past away.  We saw several baby headstones that simple said BABY, no other name or date.  Made me very sad.  Just a difference of times I guess, but a lot of the women's graves simple said Wife of _______.  Didn't give any of her information.  I can't fathom being married, losing a baby, or even being known as anyone other than Jennifer.

I like the lilac in this picture.  It is so dry and brown in Tuscarora this time of year and the lilac bushes really stand out.  I imagine this is a beautiful place in the spring, looking out over the Independence Valley with the sweet smell of lilacs in the air, and an endless Nevada Blue as my friend Larry calls the sky here.

Here we have Nevada in a nutshell.  Sage Brush as far as the eye can see, mountains hazy in the far off distance, and the color dry.

This knot hole is in a headstone.  The weather has long ago worn off any recorded words on it as to who it belongs to, or when it was placed here.  I imagine it is a peaceful place to rest regardless.  As you can see it has a rather calming view of the mountains in the distance.

There is some beautiful iron work here in the cemetery.  The fences, and gates are amazing.  This is one of my favorite enclosures with the little lamb resting in the shade.  A lot of the graves are still maintained really well, and others not quite so much.

                                    

Here is another piece of iron work I liked.

After the cemetery we went to the town of Tuscarora.  While many people still live there, there are a lot of crumbling buildings and things that were left and long ago forgotten.  I really like the contrast of the yellow Rabbit Brush (which I am still sneezing from today) against the crumbling rock building.  It also makes me think of my friend Sylvan because just looking at this picture will probably make her sneeze too!

I love all of the old cars, tractors, and pickups that are abandoned here.  I can imagine some really fun family pictures with these relics as backdrops.

Here we have an old Chevy.  It smelled just like I remember my dads old Chevy pick up smelling.

I love brick buildings.  Especially when they have crumbling barn red paint!  This would be another great family picture backdrop.

This gate was just so cool.  I like the lines in the tin.  I will have to go back and photograph it in the summer when all of the Hollyhocks are in bloom.

These are just a handful of the pictures I took yesterday.  Not my normal subject material at all.  I'm feeling rather out of my comfort zone, and appreciate any thoughts you can share!  These are all straight out of the camera, a little cropping and that is it.