“Corkscrew Peak and Desert Hills” — Corkscrew Peak and rugged, eroded desert hills at sunser.

This is not the first time that I have photographed this subject, more or less, in evening light. Corkscrew Peak stands out in this scene of rugged, furrowed desert mountains. Because the location is on the eastern side of Death Valley, late light angles across the scene just bef...

“Detail, Santo Amaro Chapel” — Tile art detail at the Santo Amaro Chapel, Lisbon.

This remarkable bit of Portuguese tile work is in the Santo Amaro Chapel in Lisbon. This is just a small section of a larger installation in the rotunda of the chapel. The tiles are covered with botanical and geometric figures, creatures, people, and body parts such as arms and legs. I presu...

“Desert Star Bouquet” — A bouquet of tiny desert star (monoptilon bellioides) flowers, Death Valley.

We stopped in southern Death Valley to photograph big fields of desert gold flowers along with pink/purple sand verbena. Because they are large plants, the colors from both of those were visible from a distance, especially in the case of desert gold. As we looked for good ...

“Alfama Rooftops” — Looking down at the red-tiled roofs of the Alfama district, Lisbon.

Certain architectural features seem to characterize various cities. In Europe, from what I’ve seen, these include the materials available locally for construction, the types of roofs, and the color scheme. This view of the Alfama neighborhood of Lisbon is a case in point — with mostly ...

“Mud And Stones” — Dark stones embedded in dry, cracked mud, Death Valley.

This little geological vignette intrigued me. While exploring an area in Death Valley featuring very dark, fine gravel that almost has the appearance of shallow dunes, I came across low flat areas where water has obviously collected in the past. Now there was a surface of old mud, cracked into sepa...