Missiles, Missiles and More Missiles

Out in the middle of the New Mexico desert is a little place called the White Sands Missile Range. And by little I mean its 3,200 square miles, or roughly 2 1/2 Rhode Islands. It’s where the military tests bombs, missiles and just about anything else that you don’t want going off around people. Its also home to Trinity Site, the site of the first nuclear bomb detonation and a spot I explored in a previous post. But in another corner is the headquarters post and the White Sands Missile Park & Museum. They display one of pretty much everything that they’ve shot off there.

Makin’ Flags

I’m not going to lie, I love factories. I could literally sit at home all day and watch the TV show How It’s Made and never get tired of it. So, whenever I get a chance to visit and photograph inside a factory I can barely contain my excitement. This past week I got a chance to visit one of the Annin Flagmakers factories. Annin is the oldest flag making company in the U.S. and the factory I visited is completely dedicated to making American flags. They were a great and very welcoming group of people.

So This Happened

Time flies when you’re having fun. Its hard to believe its already been two weeks since the inauguration. So, I figured it was about time I blogged a few pictures from it. Lets start with the kids concert a few days before the main event:

And of course, the ol’ swearing-in ceremony:

Dirt And Missiles

Another stop on my recent New Mexico trip was the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History. Out behind the museum is a nice little dirt field chock full of missiles and some aircraft.

The Fallout Shelter School

On a recent trip to New Mexico I came across a little Cold War gem. The Abo Elementary School in Artesia, New Mexico. It was the first school built entirely underground to serve as a fallout shelter. It was used up until 1995 when it closed. The roof of the school now serves as the basketball court for a newly built and above ground elementary school right next to it.

Guns, Guns, Guns And Some More Guns

With all of the recent events involving guns and gun control I decided it was time to photograph inside a gun shop. I’ve tried and failed a few times in the past and I’ve always wanted to make it work. So after a whole bunch of phone calls and a whole lot of getting hung up on, I found a shop in Virginia that agreed to it. I’ve photographed a few gun related over the years and showing up with a bunch of cameras and a press credential tends to be greeted with some apprehension and suspicion. But the folks at the shop I visited were incredibly friendly and a lot of fun. And most importantly, very open to having me photograph there. It was a great experience to have after trying on and off for over the years to make it happen.

Concrete N’ Stuff

Time for some more Cold War pictures. This group is from a not so long ago trip out to Arizona. I visited two former Titan Missile silo’s and here’s the results.