Beaches are wonderful, no? The surf is so majestic.
Tag: HDR
Granada Fire Station
This fire station is right across the street from the beach down in Half Moon Bay. It really adds to the small town vibe, and makes you forget for a second that this place is a destination.
Horses, Trees, and the Bay
I shot another horse show this weekend, which meant a trip to gorgeous Woodside, California. I’d been to nearby Menlo park before, but I was still unprepared by the amount of trees and topography I found. Having a longer lens on to shoot the horses worked really well to compress the series of hills and valleys leading up to the bay. Coming from the East Bay, it was still astonishing to see houses tucked in among the trees. (It almost looks like something from the east coast.)
LeBLOND
Berkeley’s machine shop really is one of my favorite places–so much so that I keep posting on it. It’s so unlike the world of modern consumer technology, and simultaneously so integral to accomplishing much of my scientific work, that I can’t help but feel an attachment.
Today’s shot features one of the enormous lathes that take up the majority of the space in the shop. Every control is manual, mechanical, and enormously satisfying to actuate. Once it’s up and running, the amount of kinetic energy is pretty intimidating.
Looking at the waves
Another shot from our recent excursion to the beach at Half Moon Bay. We were hardly the only folks around but it was still peaceful. Sometimes you just have to enjoy the view.
Civic San Diego
I’ve already posted a few shots from inside the Westgate Hotel, but very few of the view outside. The civic center area of downtown San Diego has a strange claustrophobia to it that I’ve not felt in cities like Chicago or New York, despite their narrower streets. As the morning light first started to battle past the towers, I was feeling this constriction most poignantly.
Green Berkeley
Say what you will, but I do sort of like the urban jungles that folks around Berkeley tend to plant around their houses. Some, like these folks, even attempt to groom the foliage which results in this, a sort of idealized representation of a small corner of forest.
This Is Why I Came to Berkeley
I’ve posted previously on the benefits of Berkeley’s gorgeous campus (and particularly the top of the Chemistry complex.) Today’s shot of Piper relaxing in the sun is perhaps the purest representation yet of how amazing a break can be. Any moment away from the lab bench is heaven when you have a view like this. (Or the right playlist.)
The Walk to Work
Though, like anyone else, some days at work turn out to be excellent while others are slogs to the finish, my morning walk to work is always a high point. I cross this little bridge over Strawberry Creek and stare up at the redwoods and inhale those great pine-y smells–much better than any cup of coffee!
Boat at Sunset
In Pillar Point harbor there were a couple of lonely boats anchored here and there, and not moored to a pier. As the sunset I grabbed a shot of this one silhouetted against the setting sun.
Aftermath
At UC Berkeley, 4/20 is celebrated as a major holiday. At the appointed hour, students and staff gather on Memorial Glade. Today’s shot was taken about an hour later, as folks dispersed and things wound down. The amount of trash and litter left behind was a little sad; it felt like the end of a music festival.
Pillar Point AFS at Sunset
Just north of the hotel featured earlier this week is the Pillar Point Air Force Station on the north side of Pillar Point Harbor, itself just north of Half Moon Bay State Beach. This is home to a radar installation (the dome pictured in the background) which looks particularly impressive in the early evening on days like the day this photo was taken.
Palm Rider
This shot is a single-RAW HDR, derived from a shot I took almost randomly when I was last in San Diego. I loved the muscles of the horse contrasted with the regular pattern on the palm behind it. Still, I’m a little disappointed by how much clutter is in the shot. It’s surprisingly difficult to get “clean” shots in an area like Show Park.
Ocean Front Hotel
This past weekend we shot some photos down in Half Moon Bay on the beach, but as compelling as the beach and bay were, I really thought one of the hotels overlooking the ocean was great. Seated behind a small dune, this place reminds me of places my family used to stay as a kid on the Washington and Oregon coasts.
Secret Lagoon
When I last visited Palm Desert, I found a variety of very strange things. (Some of which I’ve posted about before.) This particular lagoon stores water to keep the dust in the show rings down. I was just astonished to find it; wandering around in the desert, I saw no indication of its existence. When I saw the gorgeous turquoise of the reservoir, and the way the netting reflected off the water, I felt like I’d found an oasis.
Decaseconds 