Across the Southwest » Ancestral Puebloan

A visit to Chaco Canyon

Adam Schallau — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:52:52 +0000

A place far from the modern, civilized, world. A place of extremes with brutally frigid winters and scorching hot summers. A place that was once inhabited by the Ancestral Puebloans and was perhaps the trade and spiritual center of their world. A place called Chaco.

Located in Chaco Canyon in far northwestern New Mexico, Chaco Culture National Historical Park protects some of the largest Ancestral Puebloan ruins in the American Southwest. Among these ruins is Pueblo Bonito, the largest Great House in the park which is believed to have been inhabited between AD 828 and 1126. Covering nearly two acres of land it was once four stories tall and may have contained as many as 800 rooms.

Photographically speaking, Pueblo Bonito is an extremely exciting subject to work with. I suggest that photographers come prepared with ultra-wide angle and medium length zooms to capture the interior of the pueblo. The photo of the T-shaped door above and the photo looking up through the pueblo on the left were both created using a Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L lens at the 16mm setting on a 5D Mark II camera.

The exterior of the pueblo can be captured using a a full-array of focal lengths from ultra-wide to telephoto. The photo on the right was captured with my Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS lens set at 150mm. I chose this lens to isolate the back wall of the pueblo against the canyon wall, both of which were bathed in a warm, late-evening light.

In a few days I’ll be sharing more photos from my trip to Chaco Canyon and will be discussing additional photo opportunities in the area.

Kiva ~ Pecos National Historical Park

Adam Schallau — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 02:33:06 +0000

A beam of light from the mid-day sun illuminates the interior of a kiva at Pecos National Historical Park just east of Santa Fe, New Mexico. A kiva is a subterranean ceremonial chamber built by pueblo indians. I love photographing kivas, especially in the summer because they are considerably cooler than the outside air temperature.

This image of a kiva at Pecos National Historical Park and others like it are available for purchase at my website AdamSchallau.com.

~Tech details~

Camera & Lens: Canon EOS 5D Mark II and EF16-35mm f/2.8 II USM lens

Exposure: f/16, 10 seconds and ISO 100

Filters: none

Notes: I used a large collapsible diffuser over the entrance to the kiva to soften the light that was entering the chamber.

Anasazi Gallery – Visions of the Past

Adam Schallau — Mon, 18 May 2009 04:40:03 +0000

For several years now, I have been working on a personal project photographing several of the lesser known Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi), Basketmaker and Freemont Indian sites of the American Southwest. While this is an ongoing project, I have created a new portfolio on my website to exhibit the current collection of photographs.

Window with platform

Titled Visions of the Past, the new portfolio features images of granaries (small structures used for the storage of food) and cliff dwellings (larger structures used for housing) that have been abandoned in the countless canyons of the Four Corners region. At a later time I will add photographs of rock-art sites including both petroglyph and pictograph panels.

Finished in a subdued sepia toning, all images represented in this portfolio are available as limited-edition prints of 50 each. Paper choices include lustre, metallic and watercolor.

Please click on any image for an expanded view.

Anasazi Hands Pictograph

Adam Schallau — Thu, 14 May 2009 04:09:14 +0000

On a recent trip exploring the canyon country of southeast Utah, I came upon a pictograph panel containing several hand prints that were most likely created by the Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi) peoples that once called this area home. Perched high above a canyon in a small alcove, this was obviously a popular spot as evidence by the sheer number of hand prints scattered along the wall. Offering protection from the elements, namely the intense Utah sun, the alcove was considerable cooler than the mesa above and would have been a welcome relief to an Anasazi as it was to me.

We have yet to discover the Anasazi people’s “Rosetta Stone” and thus have no definitive way of knowing what the symbols left behind by the Anasazi mean. Perhaps this ancient graffiti was there way of saying “I was here”.

Please click on the image for an expanded view.

The Spirit Within ~ Anasazi Cliff Dwelling

Adam Schallau — Mon, 11 May 2009 06:46:25 +0000

I have just returned from southern Utah where I spent a few days with friends exploring the many archaeological treasures left behind by the ancestral puebloan people better known as the Anasazi. This particular shot was captured inside a large cliff dwelling that had a fine dust filtering through it.

This site is not part of any national park or monument. It sits deep in a canyon many miles from the nearest paved road and requires considerable effort to visit it.

Please click on the image for an expanded view.

Procession Panel Petroglyphs

Adam Schallau — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 06:12:52 +0000

This past Saturday I hiked up one of the many canyons that cut into Comb Ridge near Bluff, Utah to visit Procession Panel, a huge rock art panel with 179 figures. Comb Ridge is an amazing place that is full of cultural treasures and quite canyons to explore, appreciate and enjoy. I’ll share a few more images of Procession Panel over the next few days, including a large panoramic showcasing the entire panel.

Please remember that it is a privilege to visit Ancestral Puebloan cultural sites, whether in a National Park or public lands such as Comb Ridge. When visiting a cultural site, please do so with respect for their past inhabitants and future visitors alike.

Please click on the image for an expanded view.