These photos are from the Northern California coast, north of the Bay Area, and include photos of Sonoma County and the Crescent City area at the far northern end of the state.
Posts Tagged ‘Photography’
May Photo Gallery: Northern California Coast
Sunday, May 9th, 2010
April Photo Gallery: California Foothills Wildflowers
Tuesday, April 6th, 2010Spring is finally here in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada here in California; the birds singing, the hills are green, and the wildflowers are blooming. The foothills have three basic ecological zones: chaparral, oak woodlands, and pine/oak forest. These wildflowers are from the oak woodland area.
White globe lily (Calochortus albus), spring, Folsom Lake State Recreation Area, California
New Photos Added Jan 2010
Friday, January 22nd, 2010I’ve added a new batch of photos to my galleries, featuring pictures of dogs, Half Moon Bay (CA), and some miscellaneous images.
Dogs
I had the chance to photograph our dogs in a variety of locations, including the Sierra Nevada, the beach near Half Moon Bay, and in our backyard during a surprise snow storm this winter. The beach and snow were firsts for our newest dog Jasper, and it was a delight watching him excitedly zoom around digging and pouncing in sand and snow. He never did figure out not to drink the salty sea water, though. He’s still young.
Dog (golden retriever) running on the beach, Montera State Beach, California
Dogs (golden retrievers) playing at the beach, California
Half Moon Bay
We made several trips to Half Moon Bay, and I spent some time at Pillar Point Harbor photographing fishing boats adorned with Christmas lights. Decorating the fishing boats at Christmas is a tradition in Half Moon Bay, and I’m hoping to use some of these images to create some unique Christmas cards for next year.
I also made my way down to Pigeon Point Lighthouse near Pescadero for some classic sunset photos. At 115-feet high, Pigeon Point Lighthouse is one of the tallest in America. The lighthouse was made operational in 1872, and has been aiding ship navigation ever since.
Pigeon Point Lighthouse at Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park at dusk near Pescadero, California
On a particularly overcast morning I quietly parked myself on the beach near Pillar Point and tried getting some good photos of shorebirds. I spent most of the morning with a group of Sanderlings, who made challenging subjects as they darted up and down the beach with the waves, foraging for invertebrates.
Sanderling (Calidris alba) running on the beach, Half Moon Bay, California
Spending just a little time trying to photograph birds gives you a real appreciation for masters such as Arthur Morris and Tim Fitzharris — it ain’t all just big lenses.
January Photo Gallery: Abstracts
Monday, January 4th, 2010This month’s photo gallery features abstracts. Many of these images are close-ups from nature, including bark patterns, lichen, and fungi. The detail and complexity you can find when looking closely can be amazing; I often try to remember this when I find myself in one of those “there’s nothing good to photograph here” moods.
For close-up pictures — depending on your subject — a macro lens is often essential. For a long time I used a Tamron 90mm f/2.9 macro, which gives excellent results for the price.
These days my go-to macro set-up is a Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8
For more info on shooting close-ups, you might check out John Shaw’s Closeups in Nature
Abstract photos don’t have to be close-ups of course. Anything has the potential to become an abstract photo when the surrounding context is removed, forcing the viewer to concentrate on the patterns and shapes instead of the overall scene.
December Photo Gallery: Dogs in Snow
Friday, December 4th, 2009Pictures of dogs playing in the snow is the theme for this month’s photo gallery. Taking good pictures of snow scenes can be challenging if you rely too much on your camera’s meter, since the meter is trying to make everything 18% gray. The solution? Make the snow white by “overexposing” a reading of the snow by 1.5-2 stops. Piece of cake.
New Photos Added Nov 2009
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009I’ve added a bunch of new photos to the website, including a pictures from trip to the tattoo shop, nature & landscape images, and, of course, pictures of dogs.
A trip to the tattoo shop
A big shout out to Justin Shaw of Faith Tattoo in Santa Rosa, CA, who let me photograph him at work creating a tattoo. My wife has been wanting an ankle tattoo for years, and finally took the plunge. Justin took her ideas of what she wanted and created a custom tattoo of just what she had imagined.
Justin Shaw of Faith Tattoo works on an ankle tattoo
The photography for me was pretty different than my normal work, with extensive use of flashes to create the lighting. I used a Nikon SB-800 strobe in an umbrella for the main light, and another SB-800 behind Justin for rim lighting. Both were triggered wirelessly with the built-in flash of a Nikon D300 on commander mode, which let me remotely adjust the power of each flash as I went. Very cool.
Eastern Sierra
Another recent highlight was a camping trip to the Eastern Sierra Nevada in California, where we attempted to camp with two dogs for the first time. Here’s a tip: two adults and two full-size dogs do not fit in a two person tent. (And make sure to bring a towel – check out the shot of the muddy dog outside the tent. Not pretty.)
Morning alpenglow in Wolf Creek area of Toiyabe National Forest in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, California
A muddy dog lies in the dirt waiting to get into a tent
We had a great trip nonetheless, with stops in the Wolf Creek area of Toiyabe National Forest, and Highland Lakes in Stanislaus National Forest.
Half Moon Bay
There are also a group of pictures from Half Moon Bay, on the bluffs at Pillar Point. The wildflowers were out and the sky was typically foggy, which is a great combo for photos. I was able to get some photos of lupine, walking the dogs, and pictures of dogs among the wildflowers.
A golden retreiver rests in a field of wildflowers on the coastal bluffs of Pillar Point, Half Moon Bay, California
November Photo Gallery: Mushrooms
Monday, November 2nd, 2009The wild mushroom season here in Northern California is picking up, so I thought mushrooms would be a good theme for this month’s photo gallery. This selection of fungi photos comes from California, Oregon, and even Arizona.
See the gallery version (no slideshow) »
When you’re walking through the woods looking for pictures this fall and winter, don’t forget to look down at your feet — there’s an amazingly diverse world of mushrooms down there.
Autumn Vineyard, California
Monday, September 21st, 2009Autumn is coming, and often overlooked locations for great fall color are vineyards, especially in the California wine country. This photo of an autumn wine vineyard is from Sonoma County, California. (Please note that vineyards are private property. If you don’t have permission from the vineyard owner to be on their property, stick to shooting from the road.)
Photo Location: Sabino Canyon, Tucson, Arizona
Sunday, September 6th, 2009Sabino Canyon, Coronado National Forest, Arizona
Sabino Canyon Recreation Area (part of Coronado National Forest) sits on the Northeast side of Tucson, Arizona, tucked into the base of the Santa Catalina Mountains.
Surrounded on three sides by the Pusch Ridge Wilderness, the terrain ranges from relatively flat to rugged canyons and mountainsides. Miles of hiking trails and even a paved road (closed to traffic) allow easy access and provide ample photo opportunities.
