I chose the canal/Paseo Trail as my subject for several reasons. First, it's a quarter mile from my house, so it was easy to revisit. The fact that we have mountain biking conditioning practice once a week made it a convenient choice, too. Third, I have a strong connection with the canal after walking, running, and biking on it so often over so many years. We are tight, the canal and I. And lastly, though it's certainly a modern marvel that allows us to live in this dry desert, the idea of the canals is an ancient technique engineered by the Hohokam. It's remarkable that these canals are not only still supporting life but also enriching lives by serving as a beautiful space for so much activity.
I tried my best, as always, but really enjoyed being there and trying to capture how valuable and special this particular stretch of canal is to me. This was my favorite assignment so far, and according to my grade Professor Buzzy felt it was my best submitted work.
I woke up early one morning, packed my camera in my backpack, hopped on my bike, and arrived at the canal just before sunrise. The light was really pretty then, so I got a few good landscape shots.
I took this one during our evening practice. None of the bikers in this photo are on our team. Yet. Matthew is being groomed for next year.
This next photo was taken in the early morning. I set up my shot and waited a long time for a cyclist to breeze through this still intersection. Then I waited some more. Finally I saw a runner approaching and thought that will have to do! I liked how it turned out, even though he's blurry. Though I would have preferred him blurrier (like a cyclist would have been) but I decided to get the runner and didn't have time to change my shutter speed. Blurry was what I was going for to show movement through the stillness. It does the job. And when I got home and edited the image, I realized that is Elizabeth's former PE teacher!
The canal provides a lovely habitat for wildlife, too.
Though the city has created a really beautiful path, the canal's true purpose isn't superficial; it's one of supreme importance. I tried to get some industrial shots to illustrate that.
A little flora to go with the fauna.
Water is life!
Here's another shot from our evening practice. Night shots are a challenge. Always.
My friend Aimee said these make her want to run the canal again. I think I'll stick to the bike.
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