Better Days Gone

Given the state of the world, one has to wonder if the better days are gone.... Here's to wishing for the best in the days ahead...

Wait for it.... Happy New Year! (almost)

The only constant

Nothing better than a simple composition.... and a sunset!

Pushing my ISO

I was showing someone how you can squeeze in a few more shots by pushing up the ISO. This was taken at 1600. Though the sun had gone down, I was able to pick up the detail in the darker areas.

This image looks a bit flat to me, it probably would have turned out better using a lower ISO, and longer shutter speed. In which case I would have needed a tripod, and subject matter that wasn't moving around.

Surfer Sunset

All I needed was a few minutes of time and the right setting....

Modern Times (redux)

Ten months ago I used this photo as a statement, to sum up what I thought about the economy. Nearly a year later, and things have gotten worse. I'd say let's hope 2010 is better..... At this point I think it best for us all to tough it out as best we can.... the bumpy ride is far from over.

We three walkers

It didn't take long to sum up things and put the situation to rest...

Christmas at the Mission

I wanted to take advantage of the fact that the Mission was decorated for Christmas. The lights, people,and manger all added to the festiveness the image.

On Scene

Time is what you make of it...

A chance meeting

Merry Christmas everyone.... Life's a gift, enjoy it!

Additional Parking

Sometimes the sole purpose of a photograph is to document something. In which case, you can't dictate the time or place.

Raised on promises

Things don't always work out the way you want them to.

Punker

Animals make great subjects and are a good reason to use long lenses.

Enjoying some freedom

There's nothing like being completely free, if only for a little while...

Before things fell apart

There are times when the light is just perfect.... The trick is being out with your camera when it is...

Looking up

A change in perspective can do a lot for a person!


-- Post From My iPhone

Empty streets

And the empty streets speak volumes. These are different days.


-- Post From My iPhone

What's on your mind?

Looking at thing a little more closely, and spending some time doing so, can reveal a lot....

Clouds and Water

Living in perfect balance...

Sun Hoist

Sometimes we all can use a little lift...

Crashing Waves

Nature has no obstacles...

Lights on Water

Well, I gave it another go... but as you can see, even with my ISO set at 1,600 and a slow shutter speed, it's just too dark to get much of an image of moving boats on the water...

Catching Hues

Does the sun still set in the west when there's no one around to watch?

Chance of Rain

Who says you can't take photos in the rain? It's simple enough.... Camera on steering wheel, wipers on low...

Heartbreaker

I've been seriously considering leaving California for a long long time... It's a beautiful place that I love dearly, which makes it so hard to watch it fall apart.

If/when I do go there's so much I will miss.

The trick is to not look back...

Emotional Rescue

Interesting how the smallest things can raise our spirits...

Putting things in perspective

Our place in the scheme of things isn't that big, really...

I used to live across the from the beach and found that when I needed to put the weight of the world into perspective, it was as simple as standing on the shore listening to the waves break, gazing up at all the stars in the middle of a moonless night.

I put a spell on you

Light and color make a nice subject all by themselves...

Surfs Up

Something I've not been able to get a handle on, photographing decorated boats as the move about in the dark. Sure, I can crank up the ISO.... but the noise.... grr

The lights reflected on the water looks cool... just so hard to shoot!

Nautical Silhouette

Its shape tells us a lot about its purpose and function.

Walking off

It's very easy to get lost in the moment as the sun sets over the sea...

Christmas Cutter

Lights and water make a good combo. Around the holidays it gets even better.

Once, no more

The number of closed down businesses is shocking. A once vibrant downtown has taken on a new life. One that reflects the times.

The way it's supposed to be

These days I find that I'm limited on the amount of shooting that I can do. I don't lament this fact, and actually have been trying to embrace this limitation.

I more or less made a decision to keep going back to the same beach and practice beach shots, and play with lighting conditions.

In the process I've been building up a story. Sort of, "A year in the life of a beach".

Singular images wouldn't say much about the beach, but put them in some sort of chronological order and you'll begin to notice things.

The most obvious being the position of the sun. This alone could tell you the time of the year, but then you throw in things like tides, amount of rocks on the beach, and what the people are doing (hint there are more surfers in Fall and Winter) and wearing, as well as weather patterns and you get a more complete picture.

So, a series of pictures becomes an essay... and the sum of the parts becomes a much bigger picture. Another aspect of photography.

Once last thing, for those who don't think California has Seasons... it does, they're subtle, but even the beaches have them....

Like days of old

Sitting quietly off in the distance as the new day fills the world with light.

Cell Phone Strut

It's all a question of priorities...

Abandoned Road

It's not always a bad idea to take a different direction in life. Like they say: The road is full of surprises.

With her friend

The right lens and lighting conditions make it a rather simple task to capture some silhouettes. The trick is getting people to walk in front of the camera without knowing it.

Just about the break of day

It's peaceful in the morning. The madness of the day has yet to begin and you've got time to collect your thoughts.

Walking in the sun

My first morning shoot in over a year.... Like riding a bike. I forgot how cold it gets while waiting for the sun to rise...

Circa 2008

Time magazine has an interesting article on the economy....

I have to disagree with the conclusion. It just might be that America's better days are behind her.

Considering the Country is living on borrowed money, I don't think we can dictate our future any longer.

We've been dumbing down for decades and sending our jobs overseas... We live in a time where we know more about the characters on "reality" TV than what truly made this a great Country. So, I can see how wishful thinking might be tempting, but do we really have the wherewithal to turn things around?

I have my doubts...

Lava Lamp

I was down on the beach on Saturday taking some sunset shots, when I got approached by a gentleman with a Nikon D50. It turns out that he hadn't had his camera too long and was struggling with getting a shot of the setting sun over the Pacific Ocean.

Having been through this myself, I was more than happy to assist. He seemed generally interested in what I was showing him, and grateful for the help.

We chatted for a while, and I even took a few shots for him with his wife as the sun set in the background.

It made my day.

It's no surprise

The waves drew out the surfers en masse providing ample opportunity to grab some shots before the sun set for the day.

Perfect Day

The waves made for a nice playground as the sun slowly set.

Cutting the day short

I went down to the beach to see if the little bit of clouds in the sky were going to light up at dusk. Nothing.

In fact, because they were so low on the horizon, sunset was about fifteen minutes earlier than it should have been.. That happens.

All in all, still not a bad why to end the day.

Admiralty Head Lighthouse

In the days before HDR exposing for this type of a scene was a real challenge for me. I didn't have the chance to shoot this in the morning or late afternoon. It was take what you can get, so I had to expose for the lighthouse and let the trees go dark.

Sure, I can dodge and burn... this is out of the camera.

HDR is an area I've yet to seriously explore. I like the possibilities it opens up, so, yet another project to pursue.

Father and Son

Spending time with family is just about the best thing about the holidays.

Around the Bend

Safe travels. Happy Thanksgiving.

Heavy Lifting

Clouds have the amazing ability to capture color and bring so much to an image.

The chase is on

Even this small dog on wet sand somehow makes things just a bit more interesting...

There's room at the top

If that's where you really want to be...

I've got to apologize for all these sunset shots. I've had very little time to shoot since the time change, and have mostly been able to get very little time behind the lens on the weekends if I'm lucky.