California – Page 5 – Decaseconds

Trio vs. Trio

2023-Jan-162023-Jan-15 adohertyhLeave a comment

I found myself returning to one of my earliest Decaseconds posts (almost exactly 11 years ago) as I updated my Top 32 album on Flickr—the digital portfolio where I display my best (or simply favorite) photographs. Finding “Waves and Rocks Dwarf Man” in that set, I saw both the excellent light and composition that my old Nikon had captured in 2011, as well as all of the places where my choices in processing the original image now left my unsatisfied. Rather than simply reprocessing that original image, I went back to the folder of camera raws from that day and selected an image I took just moments later to tackle. (Always keep save those raw files!) I not only like this composition better than the older one, but I also feel that I have brought something new out here, rather than simply reprocessing something old.

At the Top

2023-Jan-11 adohertyh2 Comments

Making it up to a good view in time to catch some sunset colors is great in any area, of course, but the open nature of desert landscapes means that at least I won’t miss the colors if I don’t make it all the way there.

Hills Beyond

2023-Jan-06 adohertyhLeave a comment

This grand desert setting has a tiny bonus: can you spot the tiny walker in the foreground?

Exploring La Quinta Cove

2022-Dec-232022-Dec-22 adohertyhLeave a comment

A hike through La Quinta Cove, like many hikes, is a mix of experiencing natural and human-adjusted forms. That’s normally more subtle on the east coast, but this desert hike shows the clear shapes of water retention and control structures carved into the landscape.

Erosion can be a major issue in areas with sparse vegetation; the areas supported by the roots of this small tree stand apart from the eroded absence-of-soil nearby.

The alien (to me) landscapes and strange life forms make the hike feel like exploring a strange new world.

Night Arrives Above Empire Polo Club

2022-Dec-212022-Dec-20 adohertyhLeave a comment

I guess I’m still discovering new tricks up the DJI Mini 3 Pro’s sleeve. I’ve never managed to create a panorama (much less one looking up) from drone images before, but this massive shot of the sunset over the San Jacinto Mountains has changed all of that. The pink clouds arc above and the Empire Polo Club (home of the Coachella Music and Arts Festival) spreads across the foreground.

(You’ll definitely want to click through for full resolution on this one.)

Creosote on Christmas

2022-Dec-16 adohertyhLeave a comment

Just before a snowstorm battered the northeast, we’ve escaped back to the desert. The rocks are craggy, the nights are weirdly cold, and there’s always a palm tree swaying in the distance.

Tiny Figures and Big Rocks

2022-Dec-14 adohertyh1 Comment

Can you spot the tiny figures at the top of the hill? I’m confident that tiny figures produce a sense of grand scale in images—particular desert shots, like this one, where the inhuman nature of the place can make understanding the sizes of objects difficult. Nonetheless, I find myself wondering how small the figures in an image can be before the viewer loses the ability to recognize them as human.

Off for a Hike

2022-Nov-28 adohertyhLeave a comment

My favorite images are those that contrast (apparently) natural and human-populated places. Escaping all of the noise of the holidays to a hike in the desert has a certain appeal at this time of year.

Palms Back Into Town

2022-Sep-302022-Sep-30 adohertyhLeave a comment

A sunset Christmas Eve drive through the less-inhabited parts of Coachella Valley has to end eventually. The palm trees mark the seconds of the drive back into town.

Wind Farm

2022-Sep-142022-Sep-13 adohertyhLeave a comment

The iconic arrays of white wind turbines at the northern end of Coachella Valley scatter whatever color of light is available—quite a blue situation as the sunset fades over the mountains.

California Road at Dusk

2022-Sep-09 adohertyhLeave a comment

If the past few posts have been dedicated to creating cinematic vibes, I’ll dedicate these big sunset clouds and desert hillsides at the end of the road to a California cult classic: Repo Man.

Baby and Hypercube Shadow

2022-Aug-052022-Aug-04 adohertyh1 Comment

The welded three-dimensional shadow of a four-dimensional hypercube amongst the desolate setting of Bombay Beach does not seem to fit all that well with a baby.

Pyramid at Sea

2022-Jul-27 adohertyhLeave a comment

Today, a completely different view of the tetrahedral sculpture at Bombay Beach that I’ve showcased previously. I really find this thing fascinating; placing it in greater landscape context takes away none of its surreal presence.

THE ONLY OTHER THING IS NOTHING

2022-Jul-222022-Jul-20 adohertyhLeave a comment

I guess there are worse tautological statements to make into a sign.

Stuck in the Salton Sea

2022-Jul-15 adohertyhLeave a comment

Even might Jeep Life™ has its limits, as this Wrangler found at Bombay Beach. The Salton Sea is an artificial body of water in a valley that was once home to an ancient ocean, and the result includes these large flats made from the calcium carbonate skeletons of long-dead sea creatures. Though the outer surface may look like a desert—and the dry surroundings might support the assumption—this is really just a thin crust, below which is a lot of mud.

I’m guessing this kind of thing happens regularly, because the entrance ramp to the beach included multiple signs with telephone numbers of locals offering to pull people out if they get stuck—for a fee, of course.