Mesquite Art Gallery/Mel Stone is a fine art photographer who opened an art gallery in a remodeled, 1898 adobe on Mesquite Street in an historic district of Las Cruces about five blocks east of downtown. The three gallery rooms feature the work of select artists and Stone’s fine art photography. The adobe is also his home. “Most of my shooting is early morning or late in the day, although sometimes I have no say in the matter,” Stone said. “My first, serious still photography was chasing butterflies around northern prairies – at that time I was a one-man band TV news guy, which was pretty serious work.” In 2005, he bought his first digital camera and high-quality inkjet printer and now carries around two Fujifilm X-T2s. Websites: www.melstonephotography.com and www.mesquiteartgallery.com.
