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.” ―
When I first arrived in Colorado in February of 1981, one of the first places one of my new friends took me to visit was The Garden of the Gods. What is that, you ask? The Garden of the Gods is a public park that’s located in Colorado Springs and was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1971. But there’s more…
Into the Garden with the Gods
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 this would be a “capital place for a beer garden.” His companion, Rufus Cable, awestruck by the impressive rock formations he saw, 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 the Garden of the Gods about 1330 BC. At around 250 BC, Native American people, attracted to the wildlife and plant life in the region, camped in the area and used overhangs 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. It was considered a neutral ground where diverse tribes gathered in peace, setting aside weapons..
How I made this photo: This image is from an unpublished Shutterbug review of Canon’s EOS Rebel T2i. (Why was it unpublished?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 long story for another time.) The photograph was made with the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens at 55mm (88mm equivalent) with an exposure of 1/320 sec at f/11 and ISO 400.
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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