“Curly’s Ghost”-Curly's Ghost
“Curly’s Ghost”
Mitch : Hi Curly. Killed anyone today?
Curly : The day ain't over yet...
.
.
.
Curly : Do you know what the secret of life is?
[holds up one finger]
Curly : This.
Mitch : Your finger?
Curly : One thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don't mean shit.
Mitch : But, what is the "one thing?"
Curly : [smiles] That's what *you* have to find out.
The above lines are from the 1991 Western comedy movie about midlife crisis, “City Slickers” starting Billy Crystal as Mitch and Jack Palance as Curly.
I spent a couple of nights at the famed “Ghost Ranch” in Abiquiu, New Mexico. The ranch was once the home of American artist, Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986). O’Keeffe is known as the "Mother of American modernism”. The spectacular landscapes, plants and skies in the area inspired many of her works. Today, the ranch is used as an educational and retreat center.
I had never been in the area and only heard about it briefly from some photographer friends who had taken a workshop and spent time visiting there. Northern New Mexico has fairly dark skies and I was looking forward to shooting some nightscapes. Unfortunately this time of the year, the monsoon weather makes it hard to shoot at night and this night was no exception. The Milky Way appeared and disappeared often and mysteriously like Curly does in the “City Slickers”. Finally I had one quick capture of the elusive Milky Way and soon it was covered in thick clouds that rolled in from the electrical storms to the right of the frame. You will notice the red light projected on the storm clouds to the right
Why do I keep referring to Curly? I thought this log cabin in a picturesque setting was like one of those Moulton Barns in Grand Teton National Park. Turns out the story is quite the opposite. This cabin was built for the film "City Slickers”. The staff at Ghost Ranch, on whose property the cabin was built, liked it so much they asked the filmʼs producers to let it remain after the film was completed.
Now thousands of people visit each year to spend time photographing or painting it or the wonderful scenery all around like Ansel Adams and Georgia O’Keeffe did decades earlier.
Sony a7RII
Sony SAL Fisheye 16mm f/2.8
Sky: Single exposure: ISO 10000, 20s at f/2.8
Ground: ISO 1000, 3min at f/2.8
Lighting: Three diffused LITRA LitraTorches were used. One inside the cabin, one on the far left near the corral and a third one on the right out of the frame and turned away
“Curly’s Ghost”-Curly's Ghost
“Curly’s Ghost”
Mitch : Hi Curly. Killed anyone today?
Curly : The day ain't over yet...
.
.
.
Curly : Do you know what the secret of life is?
[holds up one finger]
Curly : This.
Mitch : Your finger?
Curly : One thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don't mean shit.
Mitch : But, what is the "one thing?"
Curly : [smiles] That's what *you* have to find out.
The above lines are from the 1991 Western comedy movie about midlife crisis, “City Slickers” starting Billy Crystal as Mitch and Jack Palance as Curly.
I spent a couple of nights at the famed “Ghost Ranch” in Abiquiu, New Mexico. The ranch was once the home of American artist, Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986). O’Keeffe is known as the "Mother of American modernism”. The spectacular landscapes, plants and skies in the area inspired many of her works. Today, the ranch is used as an educational and retreat center.
I had never been in the area and only heard about it briefly from some photographer friends who had taken a workshop and spent time visiting there. Northern New Mexico has fairly dark skies and I was looking forward to shooting some nightscapes. Unfortunately this time of the year, the monsoon weather makes it hard to shoot at night and this night was no exception. The Milky Way appeared and disappeared often and mysteriously like Curly does in the “City Slickers”. Finally I had one quick capture of the elusive Milky Way and soon it was covered in thick clouds that rolled in from the electrical storms to the right of the frame. You will notice the red light projected on the storm clouds to the right
Why do I keep referring to Curly? I thought this log cabin in a picturesque setting was like one of those Moulton Barns in Grand Teton National Park. Turns out the story is quite the opposite. This cabin was built for the film "City Slickers”. The staff at Ghost Ranch, on whose property the cabin was built, liked it so much they asked the filmʼs producers to let it remain after the film was completed.
Now thousands of people visit each year to spend time photographing or painting it or the wonderful scenery all around like Ansel Adams and Georgia O’Keeffe did decades earlier.
Sony a7RII
Sony SAL Fisheye 16mm f/2.8
Sky: Single exposure: ISO 10000, 20s at f/2.8
Ground: ISO 1000, 3min at f/2.8
Lighting: Three diffused LITRA LitraTorches were used. One inside the cabin, one on the far left near the corral and a third one on the right out of the frame and turned away