Sedona Trip, Day 2, An evening with Larry Lindahl

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PHOTOS FROM THIS DAY WITH LARRY LINDAHL

As soon as our destination was set for Sedona, Barb went to amazon.com to start her research. She wants to make sure her Kindle is well stocked and she gets a few books about the area to imagine and plan our trip. She always thinks of me when hunting for the best locations and the treasure that she bought for me this time was Secret Sedona, Sacred Moments in the Landscape. It is an amazing find written by photographer Larry Lindahl, and includes a generous number of his incredible photos of this special place.

Ah, modern technology... I was able to "meet" Larry online and set up a hike with him for this evening. He was also coming out with a new book the week before we arrived. Arizona Kicks On Route 66 is a fun read written by Roger Naylor with Larry's beautiful photos showing the way. It instantly sparks the need for another road trip and a hankerin' for some homemade pie.

After reading Secret Sedona I wasn’t sure where he might be taking me. I wanted to be ready for anything so we rested up most of the afternoon. Well, that meant, walk around town and talk with the shopkeepers. Almost all would ask, “Where ya from?” I’d say, “Pee-yea. You?” Many would say “Sedona” at first, but once the conversation started rolling most would have an interesting story of how they chose this place. Smiles were abundant and involuntary.

Since I needed another memory card (long story), I ducked into Rollie's Camera store while Barb was buying some dirt bags and tee shirts. "Need a 16-gigabyte memory card," I said to the efficient kid behind the counter who offered me the SD card before I finished speaking. "No. The compact flash," I gratefully explained. He said, "Oh, you want to go in the back to find Tom." Boy, was he right in more ways than we knew. Tom Kelly is another wonderful personality and I noticed some of his beautiful photos and calendars on display. After some delightful conversation he told me he was off on Sunday and we could go for a hike later in the day. More smiles, and more on that later.

Although we bounced around most of the afternoon having fun, on another plane Time was dragging for me. I couldn't wait to meet Larry and enjoy his personality as we walked through some of the special scenes that is Sedona. We arranged to meet at the Well Red Coyote Bookstore on the corner of US89A and Dry Creek Road at 4, and I told him if I'm not 10 minutes early, I'm late. We were there by 3 but were certainly ready by 1. Since Larry picked this place to meet I planned on buying his new book there. Having the extra time to shop I ended up with about 15 books. Like every other counter I talked across this day the Well Red had an interesting personality that, unfortunately, I didn't get to know as well as I liked. Joe Neri was wearing a Fender tee and that got the conversation going where I always like to be-- jamming the blues. Joe was heading up a blues jam that night at the 10/12 Lounge in Clarkdale. He said they play "AARP hours" --7 to 10, and he was sure his bass player had an extra bass I could use to sit in. Crap!! 7 to 10? No way I'd hike with Larry for 3+ hours, eat and make the jam. Well, maybe. I was hopeful. Jammin' could have been the highlight of this incredible trip, but now it's one more reason to return.

Larry arrived on time and in sandals. "Ok", I thought. "Maybe he has his rattle-snake resistant boots in the car." After a few goodbyes to Barb, and Larry promising to at least being able to tell the authorities which canyon floor I fell to, we were off. I noticed when loading my bag and tripod in the back that he didn't have a camera --at least none visible. That somewhat disappointed me. Larry, of course, was being the professional. It occurred to me then how some photogs would react to their guide/instructor taking their time to photograph. For me it was about the thrill of being there, yielding oneself to the whims of Creativity, and maybe making some memorable moments and capturing digital reminders. To share that with someone like Larry Lindahl would be thrilling to anyone even subliminally cognizant of what the trees and rocks are saying.

Larry drove us north through town, eventually passing Slide Rock, and pulled into the lot for West Fork. After walking through some interesting scenes we'll get back to, we arrive at our first destination, Oak Creek. I certainly didn't get the best shots ever taken there, but it wouldn't have mattered if they were the worst. The thrill was in the taking, the connection between self and subject; you always hope the creative connection returns when later making the photo, but the fusion has already occurred and cannot be undone. Thank God. We came face-to-face with a hill of red rock as it slid to the water. Noticing the smiling rock with a burnt-log toupee, I setup to take them. Although the water was low and barely moving, photos 4, 5 & 6 were attempts to use the reflection of the sweeping rock bank to imply motion. We moved on. When Larry saw me trying to make something out of photo 7, he politely pointed up and suggested a vertical. Number 8 might best be displayed with a rotational tilt.

Just a bit further up canyon we came to a spot that I couldn't leave. Photos 9 thru 24 where from that area. All exposures were between 5:15pm and 5:32pm, but the light was changing so fast that time didn't matter. Only timing mattered. For an example of the drastic changes in a short time, compare photos 9 & 13 which are less than one-and-a-half minutes apart. Never mind timing, Larry had other places to take me. I wasted a little more time when we finally got back on the trail by stopping for a shot of the walrus rock in #25 and the odd pile of stones behind it in 26. Larry gave me a great lesson on focus that really helped with the dof on 28, and henceforward I'm sure. By the time we were retracing our steps we had to really focus on our next location and didn't have time to really explore the Call Of The Canyon, but more on that in the blog for April 23rd. I will mention before leaving that Larry married Wendy through the arch on Photo 30.

Back on the road. This time south back through town and left on the Upper Loop Road to the Red Rock Crossing. Larry talked of Wendy and I probably interrupted him with stories of Barb. Then we hit on baseball, and, if we didn't have a deadline, we probably would have pulled over. Me the coach hitting fungo to my new shortstop. Hell, deadline didn't matter; the real problem was we didn't have a bat and ball. No matter. By this time we were on Chavez Ranch Road. Sunset seemed to wait for us.

After making good with Butch at the toll booth we pulled into the last parking spot and rushed off to The Spot, me trying to keep up with the shortstop, although earlier he mentioned I was one of the faster walkers he ever hiked with. By now I was feeling like I could use a walker. Did I mention that my boots and socks were mud-soaked? We trudge on and come to a whole line of photographers setup to shoot Cathedral Rock when the light screams "NOW!" We excuse ourselves as we pass in front of them, walking across the water (Larry on it, I recall), me carefully following my guide's expert advice like, "You have to step on this rock right on this spot and be sure of your footing." What a sight. Wonder what those other folks thought of the near disruption to their setup. Eventually we come to a point along the water and Larry says, "In this way," and I do. There it is! That's the shot. I immediately setup and peer through the viewfinder. Out of habit I turn to see if I am in anyone's way. We are far from those other guys, but there IS a guy kneeling just 50 yards or so behind us and focusing on the same scene. I motioned for him to let me know if I get in his way. He mumbled or waved with little attempt to communicate so I picked up and walked back to disrupt his creative connection. Turns out this prospector's name is Pete, and, after he realized who Larry was, quickly packed up to hurry to our better location. Now Pete has a shot not only like Photo 36 but one with an added reflection like 32. I was thinking of Ray Listanski from our photo club back home. Ray told me to be sure I got to Red Rock Crossing. Thanks, Ray. Thanks, Larry.

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