White Sands National Monument, Get to the Visitor's Center early on the day you want to visit if you intend to camp. Each camper must have a permit, and they issue only 25 permits a day. You can enjoy the sunset, which are some of the finest in New Mexico, and the moonrise without camping, if you prefer to stay elsewhere, but they close the gate in and out at 11 on full moon nights and at 10 all other nights. The gates open at 7:00 A.M. each morning. You can pay extra to get in early and they will give you a map of the best photo ops. If you stay out of the park stay in Alamagordo

Albuquerque Zoo

Salinas National Monument

Guadalupe Mission

Salinas Mission

Pueblo Missions

Lincoln Forrest

Wheeler Peak

Ghost Towns, Madrid and Cerrillos, Chloride, Lake Valley, Shakespeare, Elizabethtown, Old Hachita, Columbus and Mogollon.

Old Town near Albuquerque old pueblo type buildings, an old church

Petroglyphs National Monument, Take the Mesa Trail. A bit steep but you can stop often. Plenty of Petroglyph sites.

Indian Pueblo Culture Center, Sometimes you can photograph Indian dances

Acoma, the Sky City. You have to go on a tour and they will charge you extra for your camera, but there are some interesting adobe structures, a church and some good views looking out over the mesa.

Santa Fe, start at the 400 year old Plaza, St. Francis Cathedral just of the plaza and work your way down to the Loretto Chapel and famed spiral staircase , then onto the Mission. Governors Palace and Canyon Road, Then there is an old-town area west of the mission near the river. Abiquiu about an hour north of Santa Fe, Santa Fe Opera House about 15 miles north of the city, Pecos National Monument ruins, 25 miles east of Santa Fe along I-25, National Cemetery, O'Keeffe Museum. Day Trips: Go north through Tesuque, Nambe, Santa Cruz, Chimayo, Cordova, and Truchas. You'll find some great old adobe churches. Take the road toward Christ in the Desert Monastery. This is about a mile north of Ghost Ranch on the left. It provides good views of Georgia O'Keefee country and follows the Chama River upstream. Ghost Ranch itself is a good spot to get out and hike. You can arrange to stay there overnight also. The road up the Pecos Gorge, along the Pecos River, is beautiful. You may see a herd of Elk at the top. I have seen Bald Eagles fishing along the river. Places to eat: Gualadupe's (have the cheese enchiladas with the red sauce and ask for a fried egg on top. Tomasita's The old Santa Fe Railroad depot. Get the chile rellenos with the green sauce, Pink Adobe Get ANYTHING, Maria's Ask for the sampler plate, Tia Sofia's Ask for the sampler plate (only open at lunch for some reason), The Shed Ask for anything, Steaksmith at El Gancho (towards Glorieta east of town) great steaks, Pinon Grill Great Steaks, LaFonda Hotel Get the guacamole (made right at your table), the best hamburger is at Bobcat Bite, out Old Las Vegas Highway. It is worth the 6 mi. drive. If you want world-class cuisine try Santa Café, The Old House or Geronimo. Pasquale's

Taos visit the Church of San Francisco, a very popular photo subject. Best in the morning (for the front) and the late afternoon (for the back). old Santa Fe Trail, The High Road from Santa Fe to Taos many beautiful landscapes and historic old churches along the way especially in Chimayo (Santuario de Chimayo), Truchas and Las Trampas and the historic Picuris Pueblo. The churches all allow you to photograph the interiors but do not use flash. A tripod is allowed however. Ranchos de Taos with it's famous and much photographed St. Francis of Assisi Church, Just west of Taos along US 64 is the 800 foot deep Rio Grand Gorge. There is also a fish hatchery just South of Questa.  In Taos visit Ladoux street in the morning.

Madrid

Chaco Culture National Historical Park south of Farmington. The turnoff is at Nageezi on highway 550. It’s easily accessible by car or short trails. The canyon runs roughly southeast to northwest. So the ruins on the west side of the canyon would be best shot in the morning. Those on the east side would be best in the evening. Be sure and climb up to the canyon rims for an excellent vantage point shot of most of the ruins.

Aztec Ruins National Monument just east of Farmington in Aztec.

Taos Pueblo just a few miles north of Taos. They charge extra for each camera you plan to use inside the pueblo. They give guided tours.

Bisti Badlands near Farmington, NM is the weirdest place I've been. Park and head east and just be amazed It's famous for its strange rock formations. There are two sections, north and south, both worth exploring. The wings, cracked eggs, bisti arch and many other strange formations are well worth the trip. You can camp in your car

City of Rocks State Park, Silver City, It is sort of like Stonehenge without the "arranged" formations.

Gila Cliff Swellings National Monument, Silver City

The Cat Walk, The Glenwood- just north of Silver City

Mogollon (Ghost Town), Glenwood

Dripping Springs Recreation Area, Las Cruces Take University Blvd east

Fort Seldon State Monument, Las Cruces

Aguirre Springs National Recreation Area, Las

Oliver Lee Memorial State Park, Alamogordo

Alamogordo Space Center, Alamogordo, Astronaut Memorial Garden, Clyde Wombaugh Space Theater, Hubbard Space Science Education Building. International Space Hall of Fame, John P. Stapp Air Space Park

Apache Point Observatory a beautiful drive through the Sacramento Mountains.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Carlsbad

Living Desert State Park, Carlsbad

Sitting Bull Falls, Carlsbad

Three Rivers Petroglyphs National Recreation Area, Three Rivers Between Alamogordo and Carrizozo

Valley of Fires State Park, west of Carrizozo

White Oaks (Ghost Town), north of Carrizozo

Shiprock. US Highway 666 runs between Gallup and Shiprock, New Mexico and passes Shiprock Peak on the east side. State Highway 33 runs from US 666 to Red Rock, Arizona and passes the peak on the south side. US Highway 64 runs from Shiprock to Teec Nos Pos, Arizona and passes the peak to the north. The best places from which to photograph the peak is from a dirt road that turns north from State Highway 33 and follows the eastern edge of the volcanic dike that runs south from Shiprock peak. State Highway 33 is about 6 miles south of the town of Shiprock. The dirt road will be just on the eastern edge of the dike where the highway passes through a gap in the dike

Turquoise Trail is worth the drive and takes one through 'ghost towns' while circling Sandia Peak.

Capulin Volcano National Monument. Capulin Volcano is an almost perfect cinder cone that rises over 1200 feet above the surrounding area. There is a paved road that will take you up to the rim and from there you will find trails that lead around the rim as well as down into the crater.

Balloon Fiesta...show up early (5:30 or 6:00) do NOT bring a tripod to the morning ascensions, it will just slow you down, Balloon Glow at night is (obviously) where you need a tripod. They tether the balloons to the ground and illuminate them simultaneously. They give photographers a countdown so you trip your shutter at the right time.. There is a 20 foot earthen bank on the north end of the field which will give you a great vantage point if the winds are from the east or west. There is a 40 foot bank with parking on the east side of the field which will give you a great vantage point and overview if the winds are from the north or south. Bring telephoto and wide angle if you have them. Bring a polarizer and a warming filter for each. On Friday sunset go to the top of Sandia peak on the tram which has some great aspens and then look back west to the launch field in the distance. Sunsets. Also stay for the fireworks show afterwards

Trinity Site, where the first Atomic bomb was detonated, is open only on the first Saturday of April and October. Reservations need to be made to go there.

Bandelier National Park just outside of Los Alamos has ancient ruins and cliff-dwellings and Frijoles Trail goes past a great waterfall, then goes down to the Rio Grande River.

Four Corners

Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument on the way to Santa Fe, unique rock formation similar to a hoodoo. slot canyon, and a scenic trail it is only about 2.5 miles long

Pecos National Historic Monument: about 25 miles east of Santa Fe right off of I-25. Access it at the Glorieta exit. Pretty interesting old adobe church ruins.

"The Persistence of Memory, New Mexico's Churches," by Robert Brewer and Steve McDowell, and "Built of Earth and Song, Churches of Northern New Mexico," by Marie Romero Cash with photographs by Jack Parsons.

El Santuario de Chimayo is a nice church to photograph and very interesting to see and located at the Intersection of Highway. 76 & 520, then south one mile.

Valle Caldera near Los Alamos is, a 15 mile crater caused by an exploding volcano many times larger than Mt. St. Helens

Betatakin and Navaho beautiful ruins

Sanctuario de Chimayo

Box Canyon-Ghost Ranch

Fall Colors, The Aspens change color in Northern New Mexico in late September. Try the Sangre de Christo mountains. In late September to mid October in south and central New Mexico try the Lincoln mountains around Ruidoso and Cloudcroft.

Abiquiu

Home | About Us | Contact Us | Visitor Agreement | Advertise | Privacy | Store | Newsletter