Wine Weekend Get-A-Way

In my last post, we briefly described our get-a-way weekend, but now that I have more time, I will give you the full details. We started our weekend by driving to the Biosphere II in Oracle, Arizona. The biosphere was a science experiment to create a self-sustaining environment that could support human life. It is now used as a research laboratory to understand all different types of ecosystems and environmental changes. The picture to the right is from one of the wings that has been created to be representative of a tropical rain forest.




After the Biosphere, we continued south another hour to hour and a half. Just outside Tucson we visited San Xavier del Bac, which is an old Spanish Mission dating back to the 1700's. The most interesting part of the church, is that the East Tower was never completed, and no-one knows why.






San Xavier is still a functioning mission, church and school. Just to the east of the main building is a small courtyard where the monks would meditate and pray in the 18th & 19th century. Standing there, you can feel what it might of felt like so long again. What I love about this photograph, is that it feels like a worm hole, bringing present day back into the olden days of cowboys and priests.

After our stop at the church, we headed East about an hour to enter Arizona's own wine country! In towns of Sonoita & Elgin, there are approximately 7 wineries in a 10 mile radius. The barrel tasting was held at Canelo Hills Winery who only produces wines using Arizona grown grapes. The winery was established in 2003 with the first production of wine being released in 2007. This was the first time Krag or I have drank wine straight from the barrel.

For more photos from this weekend, you can find them on our Facebook page.

Please visit my site, Red Rain Photography

Arizona Wine Country

Krag and I visited Sonoita, AZ last weekend to go to a barrel tasting at Canelo Hills Winery. We had a GREAT time and were able to taste, straight from the barrel, wines that are yet to be bottled! We were also fortunate enough to get some great shots of the wine vineyards in the area. Our favorite of the evening was the two estate wines that will be coming out this fall.

We also visited some other great sites in Southern Arizona, which I will write about soon. As Robert Louis Stevenson said, "Wine is bottled poetry".

Please visit my site, Red Rain Photography

Digitally Altered Photograph Voting Closed - And the Winner is...

Thank you to everyone who voted on our digitally altered photos. There were an obvious two winners:

First Place Runner-up: "Venetian Taxi Cab"

And Winner, by one vote: "Fighting Against Despair"

This was a small category of photos, which made it an easier vote, but the next category, "Full Color," won't be so easy! =) With lots of photos to choose from, the voting is wide open! Check back in the next couple of weeks for the new voting poll.

Thanks again everyone and don't forget to send us any and all submissions to become the next Photographer of the Month.

Please visit my site, Red Rain Photography

My Husband's Only Good Photo

Ha Ha! I'm kind of joking, but seriously, this may be my husband's only good photograph (he even says so)!

That's me, the redhead without the camera in the red shirt. The person taking a picture with her pocket camera is Hanna, who is one of my best friends in the world and was my Maid of Honor at my wedding.

This trip was special because Hanna lives in Sweden and doesn't get to visit often. When she does, we do as much as we can together and this time, the three of us traveled all over Southern Arizona, visiting Karchner's Caverns, the Chiricahua Mountains, Tombstone, Douglas/Aqua Prieta (border of Mexico), and Sonoita wine country.

It was an amazing trip and I miss Hanna all the time with her so far away. This photo did come out very nicely and I have to give my husband credit, although, the old saying goes, "Even a blind squirrel..." :-P

Please visit my site, Red Rain Photography

A Collection of Red Rain's Twitter Quotes

Over the past few weeks, I have been Tweeting about what photography means to me and what I think it means to the world (as well as some other randome topics like love and life). Now, I have amassed a good bit of quotes and wanted to share some of them.

"Most people try to live day-to-day...When you are a photographer, you live moment-to-moment."

"Love is more than a feeling - it is a way of life."

"The photography community must embrace that those outside of the community care more about beauty than social awareness."

"Digital enhancements to photographs should be about accentuation, not manipulation."

"As soon as you have ::clicked:: the camera, you have made time stand still."

"Look through the camera and you will see the world that you control...Then let go of all control and take the photo."

"The only way to be loved is to be loveable."

"Photography is like love...it must be done without fear and without hesitation."

"A camera sees things a photographer could never see - that's why photographs can say more than the photographer intended."

"Time doesn't exist inside a photograph."

Follow Red Rain on Twitter!!!!

Please visit my site, Red Rain Photography