Tomorrow is Obsolete: 2009

Saturday, December 26, 2009

World of the tiny

One of the things I love about my macro lens is, no matter where I go, there are more things to photograph than there is time. I could spend the day in a 5ft by 5ft space and not run out of things to look at. This day I found myself drawn to flower, butterflies and rusting farm equipment. Oh yea, and a drinking fountain.

Pt. Buchon

At the very end of the road in to Montana De Oro State Park is one of my favorite hiking trails. Most people who go to Montana De Oro never drive to the end of the road. Of those that do, it is easy to miss that the chain link fence and razor wire are actually the entrance to a trail along some of the most beautiful ocean bluffs in the county.

The trail is on land owned by PG&E for their Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. It is only open certain days of the week and sunrise and sunset photographers will be disappointed to see the hours prevent taking either types of pictures. Despite all of this, it is absolutely a beautiful trail and in spring it is covered in wildflowers. Last spring I decided to take a walk with my telephoto lens and macro lens and see what I might find.

About a mile or so before the dead-end, the trail offers a rare view of the nuclear power plant. You cannot actually see the plant from the end of the trail because of a small hill between you and the plant.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Spring

Today is Christmas and it is abt 65 degrees out and sunny. We took a great hike today with the girls. Winter has barely started and already I can see the signs of spring returning. Thinking of spring, I decided to play catch-up and upload some photos from around SLO last spring.

Saturday, December 05, 2009

Crazy bikers

For my stock photography class I went out and took pictures of the girls riding their bikes. Their riding outfits were life vests, swim goggles, bike helmets, and Mae included soccer shin guards. They were ready for anything! My husband provided extra lighting on this trip with my gold reflector. We had fun.

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

Rhyolite

Just outside of Death Valley in the Amargosa Desert is the ghost town of Rhyolite, NV.. I could not spend enough time here. In addition to all the great ruined buildings and wide desert panoramic views there is also a collection of modern sculpture in memorial to the artist who created it. Enjoy the oddity and wonder that is Rhyolite.

Tuesday, December 01, 2009

Death Valley (Part 2)

Death Valley is full of ruins. Despite the environment, many people tried (and many failed) to make a living there. One of the most interesting parts of the park are the things left by people long past. For me, it was photography heaven. One of my favorite subjects are decay, ruins, and rust.

Monday, November 30, 2009

Death Valley

In spring, we went camping (yes, camping) in Death Valley. We had an amazing trip. Death Valley National Park is largest park in the lower 48 states, covering 5,200 sq miles. We drove nearly 3,000 miles on our trip and did not even see all the major sites in the park. If you plan on going, unless you have a fully-contained RV, I would recommend staying at the Inn or the Ranch. I am not sure I'd camp there again. It was just not what I want when I think camping - trees, kicking back in the campground, sitting out under the stars, etc.. The heat was not too bad but it was so windy we could not set up camp (we were caught in a major dust storm as well) and the campground, like the rest of the valley, is pretty much void of anything but dirt, rocks, and red ants. That being said, I wouldn't have picked a different spring vacation if I had it to do over.

Badwater Basin, -282 feet.

Devil's Golf Course

Salt Creek - home of the Pup Fish

Picnic table next to Ashford Mill

See them all here.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Back in the saddle again...

... or something like that. Life sort of got in the way of life in the six months since I blogged last. Spring and summer were amazing . We so much time away from home, I took my first ever photography class (and then another one), did my first real photo assignment for a local magazine, and in between all of those there were amazing photo opportunities every place I looked here at home. Since school started again, my days have been scheduled to the 15-minute. I finally grabbed the reins again and got my schedule back in line and gave Facebook games a swift kick of the closest pier. There are so many pictures to post, I am not sure where to begin. Maybe a greatest hits of the last six months is the best way to start.
Death Valley