November 4, 2004 — Fremont Older Open Space Preserve, Cupertino, California We first saw a labradoodle in Castine, Maine on the Fourth of July, 2003. Sort of goofy looking and elegant at the same time. Jet black. Affectionate and intelligent. Patient. Gentle. Full of energy and mellow at the same time. What kind of dog is this? Labradoodle. Mix of standard poodle and lab. I was scratching the back of her head — base of […]
June 28, 2018 — Puketeraki Lookout, Otago, South Island, New Zealand When the clouds part over New Zealand, there is a glow. I know the trek is not yet over, but it is being traveled with aplomb. Be well. Do good. Create. (Nikon D500, Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR zoom. RAW processing in DxO PhotoLab 3.2. Final editing in Adobe Photoshop.)
June 28, 2018 — Puketeraki Lookout, Otago, South Island, New Zealand Rescued from the archives. Here’s one that I kept coming back to, but in post-processing I could never get it to do what I saw. Tonight I could. And did. Persistence pays off in the end. This is for all the Kiwis who are showing the rest of the world how it’s done. In adversity, the light shines even brighter. Persistence pays off in […]
January 23, 2017 — Sonoma County Coast, California Rescued from the archives. I think the thing that appeals to me about glints of light on horizons is that I would prefer to think that there is a glint of light on the horizon — no matter how distant the horizon may be. And there is, provided it is we as individuals who supply the light — no matter how distant the horizon may be. I’ll […]
August 27, 2019; St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, England. Long-time followers know that many of my influences as a photographer are painters and chief among them is the English Romantic artist J.M.W. Turner. Yesterday was his birthday, which was most beautifully and thoroughly celebrated in yesterday’s blog post by Marina Kanavaki. Take a look. It’s worth the visit. More than a year ago I posted a story about basking in Turners at the Tate Britain Museum […]
April 15, 2015 — Windy Hill, Woodside, California I was going to post something else today, but a look at an Instagram post by Óli Haukur inspired me to show this instead. Oli made the point that most photography instructors stress low ISO settings for low noise and therefore “best” image quality. Image quality these days seems to be based solely on low noise and extreme sharpness. His opinion is that, based on these criteria, […]
January 10, 2016 — Marin County coast, California Many years ago — longer ago by far than when this picture was shot — someone close to me was enthralled by music that was extremely minimalist, consisting almost entirely of texture and tone. Very little form, rhythm, or melody. Only texture and tone. Although I can’t really say I liked it, I had an appreciation for what he was hearing because he and I are cut […]
February 9, 2020 — East Bay Hills, California The San Francisco Bay Area abounds with breathtaking views. The views from the hills across the Bay from San Francisco are among the best — looking straight back across the Bay. The Golden Gate Bridge is an impressive feat of engineering and construction. When it was built in 1937, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. It has since been surpassed, but the main span […]
April 7, 2020 — San Jose, California I see a soft moon rising… (Would’ve been boring without the clouds.) (Nikon D500; Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6 ED VR zoom. RAW processing in DxO PhotoLab 3.2; Editing in Adobe Photoshop.)
March 18, 2016, Los Gatos Creek Trail, Campbell, California. Not the peak of this season. Can I believe it was four years ago? I can. It was. Be well. Do Good. Be kind. Create. (Nikon D750; Nikon 28-300 f/3.5-5.6G Zoom. RAW processing in DxO PhotoLab 3.2; Editing in Adobe Photoshop.)
January 24, 2020 — Londrangar View Point, Snaefellsjökull Peninsula, Iceland I think I’ve only done this once before: posted that same frame twice in a row, with the second being a re-do. There’s a story. When I posted this picture the other night, I decided at the last minute that the image was too dark. It was late and I was in a hurry, so I simply went back to the 16-bit Photoshop file and […]
January 24, 2020 — Londrangar View Point, Snaefellsjökull Peninsula, Iceland Beside the fact that it was his photography workshop in the first place, I have Gary Hart to thank for this one in another way. His blog post today* prompted me to go back and review my own version of the same scene, and when I did, I came across this shot made about fifteen minutes earlier. I’d overlooked it because the RAW file seemed […]
November 23, 2019 — Pescadero Beach, San Mateo County, California I’ve worked on this image six times between November and now. It was never quite right. Sometimes when I don’t love an image, it’s because I’ll never love it and the best thing to do is abandon it and move on. Other times, I just need to leave it alone for a while and come back with a fresh perspective. This was the latter circumstance […]
December 24, 2018, Sonoma County Coast. I’ve looked at this frame approximately 9,476 times* and failed to see its potential. Today, I saw it with different eyes.** Don’t it make my brown eyes blue. Except they are blue. Be well. Do good. Be kind. Create. (Nikon D500; AF-P NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR. RAW processing in DxO PhotoLab 3.2; Editing in Adobe Photoshop.) *If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times — I never […]
December 23, 2017, Sonoma County Coast. This was taken about two hours before the shot in the last post. This is what this most remarkable day looked like. No post-processing except to straighten the horizon 1/10 degree (hand-held shot) and tone down the white at the top of the frame a just as tiny little bit. That’s it. It was a quicksilver sea. The Pacific was living up to its name. Be well. Be kind. […]
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