Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“The Garden is a metaphor for the following: our minds, and our thinking in terms of pairs of opposites–man and woman, good and evil–are as holy as that of a god.” ―
The Garden of the Gods is a public park that’s located in Colorado Springs and was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1971.
In August 1859, two surveyors who had helped to set up Colorado City (another fun place to visit and photograph) explored the site. One of the surveyors, M.S. Beach, suggested that it would be a “capital place for a beer garden.” His companion, Rufus Cable, awestruck by the impressive rock formations, exclaimed, “Beer Garden! Why it is a fit place for the gods to assemble. We will call it the Garden of the Gods.”
The Garden of the Gods’ red rock formations were created millions of years ago during a geological upheaval along a natural fault line. Archaeological evidence shows prehistoric people visited Garden of the Gods about 1330 BC. At around 250 BC, Native American people camped in the area attracted to the wildlife and plant life in the area and used overhangs that are created by the rocks for shelter. Many native peoples have reported a connection to Garden of the Gods, including Apache, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kiowa, Lakota, Pawnee, Shoshone and Ute people.
How I made this photo: This image is from an unpublished Shutterbug review of Canon’s EOS Rebel T2i. (Why was it unpublished? That’s a story for another time.) The photograph was made with the 18-55mm kit lens (at 55 ro 88mm equivalent) with an exposure of 1/320 sec at f/11 and ISO 400.
For more about shooting with a different Canon Rebel DSLR, you can read my published Shutterbug review of the EOS Rebel SL3. And for more information about shooting with entry-level cameras, please check out my post Shooting Outdoor Portraits with Entry-Level Cameras, featuring an outdoor portrait of the lovely model Maria Cedar.
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