Rock Identification with Willsey: Intro to Igneous Rocks! 

You're welcome from Idaho. Glad these helped.

Ha, me too, 50 years ago! Perhaps you were in my geology class at the University of Georgia? I retained some basic elements of geology from those two classes; however, I’m finding my knowledge was extremely fragmented (no pun intended). Having recently visited Yellowstone, with plans to return next fall, these videos are a wonderful supplement to accompany the sites we’ve already seen!

I second your sentiment. I am always sad when I come across a bunch of locked research making it hard to self teach.

Thanks for the kind words and glad these are a good learning tool for you.

Awesome. This is exactly my goal and glad my teaching style works for you.

Thank you.

Always!

Oreo blizzard, yummmmmmmm!

Thanks for watching and learning with me. Enjoy perusing all the existing videos while waiting for the new ones.

Yes, I will cover some basic igneous rocks in the coming weeks.

Central Wisconsin by red granet ? Or is pink lady from...devil's lake area? ( That rock is a story in itself..it stacks extremely well..)

@@tomg3290 As a model railroader the train buff folks would always call it pink limestone which it most definitely wasn't. This granite had feldspar crystalline look with some quartzite mixed in. It was tough stuff and great for ballast under the rails and ties. They mined it northwest of Madison,WI in Rock Springs ,WI .

I can spend a lot of time looking at railroad ballast! Found a nice little piece covered in pyrite crystals. A keeper! Hmmm...maybe I'll run down to the railroad tomorrow. 😄

Funny post. Yes, I have a geologist neighbor who is retired from a lifetime of travel and collecting. His backyard is a collage of something-from-everywhere, and he fantasizes happily about some future geologist's bewilderment when a future gardening project turns into a von Donegan conspiracy movie.

Thank you for your support.

Awesome. Glad to hear this was helpful. There’s a whole series of rocks and mineral videos on here for you to check out.

Thanks for sharing!

Glad to hear these videos are helpful and your new passion for geology. Great stuff! Your suggestions for the videos are spot on. The geology is easy. I struggle most with the technical stuff. Currently I am using a GoPro Hero 8 on a selfie stick for outdoor videos, It works well but doesn't focus well when I look closely at rocks. For indoor videos, I use my iphone on a selfie stick (but it also has a tripod which I have used a bit but obviously need to use more). I'm open to getting some other camera setup that will work better so let me know if you have specific recommendations. Having a second person around isn't usually an option, especially for field videos. Again, thanks for the comments.

@@shawnwillsey Shawn, I use heavy pro gear for landscape/nature photography that is not good for what you do. So I asked my son, who is a professional photographer/videographer doing weddings, portraits, events and such. His top choice for what you need is the Sony A6400. It is an interchangeable lens camera, older model, but very good for video. Brand new about $1,000 but my son Nathan says there are dozens available used on eBay for much less that half that. He said just get the kit lens, that is all you will need and it should focus very close, very fast. You could use this camera for both your lab set up, and it is light enough to use out in the field as well. If that is more camera than you want to deal with, he recommended getting the close-up attachments for the iPhone. In any set up, he and I both agree that using a tripod as often as practical is going to have the most effect on improving the presentation. The brand Benro is a very good, and reasonably priced tripod. Look for their compact or travel tripods. Working with a tripod takes a little getting used to but, once you get accustomed it becomes second nature. Anyway, hope this helps. I wish I could take one or two of your courses. But I live in California and I'm and old timer just looking for a new interest in retirement. Thank you so much for all the work you put into these videos. I know they are appreciated by all us viewers.

@@shawnwillsey Shawn, I use heavy pro gear for landscape/nature photography that is not good for what you do. So I asked my son, who is a professional photographer/videographer doing weddings, portraits, events and such. His top choice for what you need is the Sony A6400. It is an interchangeable lens camera, older model, but very good for video. Brand new about $1,000 but my son Nathan says there are dozens available used on eBay for much less that half that. He said just get the kit lens, that is all you will need and it should focus very close, very fast. You could use this camera for both your lab set up, and it is light enough to use out in the field as well. If that is more camera than you want to deal with, he recommended getting the close-up attachments for the iPhone. In any set up, he and I both agree that using a tripod as often as practical is going to have the most effect on improving the presentation. The brand Benro is a very good, and reasonably priced tripod. Look for their compact or travel tripods. Working with a tripod takes a little getting used to but, once you get accustomed it becomes second nature. Anyway, hope this helps. I wish I could take one or two of your courses. But I live in California and I'm and old timer just looking for a new interest in retirement. Thank you so much for all the work you put into these videos. I know they are appreciated by all us viewers. Reply he's the Master he's the Master 20 hours ago (edited)

Hi Brian. A pdf of the notes is available under the description. Enjoy!

@@shawnwillsey brilliant, thanks Shawn!

Good question. Dikes or sills (thin intrusions) might only take a few days or weeks to completely crystallize. Rocks are good insulators so cooling underground takes a long time, likely several million years.

Should be here with my notes. drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1bVvvWZaKxqdPEIk57oL9D14ceBEm6eHL

Found it, thanks Shawn. I hadn't searched thoroughly enough. Great notes.

This video is SO especially helpful!

The ultramafic rocks are just so less common that I decided not include them. I could show a peridotite sample when I cover basalt as an aside.

@@shawnwillsey that would be fantastic. I found a location near the OR/ID border that has an unusual green rock, which so far I have thought to be Dunite. Anything that helps solve this mystery for me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you again

@@Quarterborefan I doubt it is an ultramafic but we can take a look. Is it near the Hells Canyon area? Might be serpentinite.

Yes, in veins where hydrothermal fluids have moved through the rock.

It is a form of obsidian called foamed obsidian . The volcanic gases couldn't escape before it cooled so the gases made bubble holes called vesicles and run throughout it and contains iron as well ( hematite) . In contact with air and moisture it did turn red but there are brownish red and black ones as well that have very little iron in them. All types are mined throughout the Southwestern US. Yes they are pretty sharp as is regular solid obsidian.

Used the tripod throughout the basalt video (most recent one) so let me know how I did.

Yes. This was intro video. See other videos for details on rock names and such.

Thanks, been exploring your channel more and love your content!

Awesome. Yes, start with minerals then go to igneous rocks then sedimentary then metamorphic. Glad you found these back in the archives.

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