I’ve developed some odd tradition for epic landscape photography at the end of major holidays (as in this Christmas image)—perhaps it’s something about wanting the day to last forever.
Category: California
Coachella Grid
The human-defined grid of towns has been laid into the ancient lakebed of Coachella Valley, but the places where the rough and natural shapes of the hills intersect it are good reminders that nature doesn’t much care about the orderly systems of people.
Wind Farm Leaving Coachella Valley
I’ve shown you a far different view of the wind farms at the northern end of Coachella Valley, but an aerial view at dawn provides better documentation of the project’s true scale, and its place in the fascinating geological setting of the valley.
Leaving Palm Springs
Night falls and the well-watered communities give way to desert landscapes on the outskirts of Coachella Valley.
Where the Oasis Ends
If ever a reminder was needed that large swaths of Coachella Valley would prefer to be desert, the stark shift that occurs at the border where artificial watering stops provides one.
Rogue AI Sunset
I’ve been excited about the possibilities of advanced algorithms in processing pictures, both to increase resolution and reduce noise. When used in combination on an initially noisy image, however, the results can be… unpredictable. Though this image looks fairly reasonable on the web page, clicking through to the full-resolution version on Flickr shows some exciting rogue AI strangeness—like odd places of varying noise reduction.
Ship at Dawn
Strange sunlight geometries at dawn make for rare reflections on the hull of this ship.
Memorial on the Cliff
A different kind of Rückensfiguren from my last post: Teenagers visiting a memorial along the curving roads of the Pines to Palms Highway, far above the desert of Coachella Valley.
Clear Sky Expanse
The Thanksgiving evening was perfectly clear, as late-autumn evenings in the desert often are, and I felt like I could see forever: stones and brush in the foreground, over the Pines to Palms Highway, across the irrigated valley floor, before slicing the final bits of sunlight off the tops of the Little San Bernardino Mountains.
Salton Sea and the Little House
While Coachella Valley is being aggressively developed, there are areas—around the edges, or in the expanse of the Salton Sea—where reminders of nature’s true intentions for the area are unavoidable.
Dawn at the Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge
I was back in California this week—sneaking some early-morning photography before the events of the 263rd National Meeting of the American Chemical Society began. The underside of the Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge reflected the sunrise and showed off the arc of its structure.
Coachella Valley Off-Roading
When I last flew to southern California, I was relaxing in Coachella Valley and spending time in settings like this. This week, I’m back but in a completely different spatial and mental space: I am on high alert as I prepare a presentation on my scientific work and spending time in the urban core of San Diego. At least I can look back on images from a less stressful time.
Nightfall on the Western Span
This view of Coit Tower and the western span of the Bay Bridge brought to you by the oddness of San Francisco zoning and real estate that prevent view-blocking high-rise construction. (Whether that’s a good thing is another question…)
Lights of the Quarry at La Quinta
Tucked into the jagged mountains of the Coachella Valley, the Quarry at La Quinta seems homey and familiar, if a little out of place.
Datsun with the Right Wheels
The Datsun Z cars are some of my favorites (very likely due to Wangan Midnight), but since the originals arrived in the US on steel wheels, they’re nearly always seen on aftermarket alloys. These Compomotive-style wheels certainly meet my expectations, even if they’re not the “right” (i.e., historically accurate) units.
