This week, I would like to share more photos of churches from New Mexico with you. As a landscape photographer, I was excited by all the beautiful clouds in the sky day after day. Unfortunately, the landscape was less than photogenic.

When I am on a road trip and drive through small towns, I keep an eye out for buildings and particularly churches, as subjects for a photograph. If I have a few minutes, I'll cruise the side streets paralleling the main drag. It's easy to spot a church a block or two away once I am away from the facade of the main street.

It's the steeple that draws my attention, and sometimes the steeple is all I photograph. I feel it's unfortunate when a building such as a church is obscured by obstacles like power line poles or a parking lot. Things not usually noticed can jump out at the viewer of a photograph. Sometimes I will remove a power line or a phone pole, but if there is an entire parking lot full of cars, that's just too much to alter.

Fortunately, on this trip, there were only two churches out of the many that I couldn't create a worthy photo with. One was the Basilica in Santa Fe, just too many cars parked on the street in front, and a Baptist church that I happened on during Sunday service. Once again, too many cars in front of that beautiful building.

At one time, I had a category on my website titled "Spiritual," which contained images of places of worship. I'm considering bringing that back and reintroducing some of the photos I created of churches, temples, buddhas, and the like.

For now, here are several of the photos I was able to make on my last outing. I hope you enjoy them.

At the top is a church I found on a back road on my way somewhere else. This one is most likely in southern Colorado, just before crossing into New Mexico. It's my favorite of the bunch.
Just below is a church that I feel is done right. The long walkway leading up to the front doors is welcoming and a pleasant way to enter a somber building to contemplate life.
The final two images are of churches that seem to be the center of their respective communities. Not especially awe-inspiring feats of architectural wonder. Nonetheless, these buildings were positioned near the center of their towns and served as anchors to their local communities. It's easy to tell when a place of worship is the center of a community. It's evident by how well the building is kept and the activity around it. It's reassuring to see - people gathering in search of community.

If you have a moment to look around my online art gallery, you might find something pretty to display in your home or office. The link is martin-banks.com