Reflection – Page 9 – Decaseconds

Mohonk Reflections (I, II, and III)

2018-Mar-26 adohertyh2 Comments

Mid-March shift from my most photographically productive time on the West Coast (amazing sunsets, end of the rainy season, etc.) to my least in the East (dirty snow, still-bare trees, sandy roads). I’ve been trying to find more beauty in the pre- and post-winter “stick seasons,” examining the shapes revealed when leaves and snow can’t hide branches. Though I’m not yet convinced to do anything more than grudgingly accept its necessity, but it led to some pretty dramatic reflections at Mohonk Mountain House.

Transbay Tower Grating Effect

2017-Oct-022017-Oct-02 adohertyhLeave a comment

No offense to Salesforce, but the rainbow sunset reflections off the curved surface of their tower seem to fit much better with a building named “Transbay Tower”—particularly when it sits on the skyline near the Transamerica Pyramid. The darkened and humble shape of Alcatraz in the foreground makes for an appropriate memento mori to San Francisco’s grand architecture.

The Rock

2017-Aug-23 adohertyhLeave a comment

Alcatraz remains an icon of twentieth-century America. With a 500 mm lens and a view from Berkeley Lab, I was able to arrange the island with Golden Gate Bridge behind it (but not overlapping).

This is also part of my ongoing experiments, of late, trying postprocessing techniques that produce dramatic (if a bit less photorealistic) results.

Reflected Bird

2017-Aug-11 adohertyhLeave a comment

In the Cincinnati Zoo, this bird has a pool of fish from which it can dine at any time. That’s a pretty solid deal, and the bird waited patiently for the right moment to strike—perhaps knowing that it had a captive audience (and a captive meal).

Flooded Flats II

2017-Jul-14 adohertyhLeave a comment

Another image from the flooded Bonneville Salt Flats.

Flooded Flats

2017-Jul-03 adohertyhLeave a comment

So flat are the Bonneville Salt Flats that, during the winter months, the region will be covered uniformly by only about one inch of water. This layer is so thin that it can’t support large waves and surface disturbances, resulting in almost perfect reflection of the far-off hills and clouds.

USS Jackson Visits Portland

2017-Jun-12 adohertyhLeave a comment

This week, Portland was visited by the US Navy ships USS Bunker Hill (the missile cruiser in the background) and USS Jackson (the stealthy littoral combat ship in the foreground). The futuristic structure and military aesthetic makes for odd juxtaposition with Portland’s Old Town/Voodoo Donuts reality.

Morning in the Normandy Village

2017-Mar-31 adohertyhLeave a comment

After a night of storm clouds and rain drops, the historical oddity that is Berkeley’s Normandy Village is most charming. Little corner doors and bonus windows peak out from behind ever turret.

Sunshower Tower

2017-Mar-012017-Mar-01 adohertyhLeave a comment

Monster-smash rain storms the night before left me surprised when this Sunday morning broad blue skies and linear sunlight to reflect from every surface in Berkeley. The Campanile (a.k.a. Sather Tower) was looking particularly proud of itself.

Gold Light on the Rock

2017-Feb-202017-Feb-19 adohertyhLeave a comment

The lights of Alcatraz matched the color of the sunset for just a moment.

Arinell’s Pizza

2017-Feb-17 adohertyhLeave a comment

Like any college town, Berkeley is beset with pizza joints. Almost all of them offer a delicious slice, but a lot of those slices are, well, not really pizza. Deep dish so thick and dense that knife and fork are mandatory? All-organic cheese detonation without sauce? Pizza bagel? All of these can be mouth-watering under the right conditions, but quintessential crispy-yet-foldable slice of (New-York-inspired) pizza is found at Arinell’s in downtown Berkeley. The venue matches the food.

Bonneville Salt Flats Flooded

2016-Dec-262016-Dec-25 adohertyh1 Comment

Driving through the Bonneville Salt Flats, home of land speed records and long empty stretches, was a mirage-filled experience in the summer. Traversing the same alien landscape in the winter, following a series of major storms, is a brain-twisting exploration of optics: perfectly smooth surfaces (too shallow to support waves) make perfect clones of every hill and mountainside. This five-shot panorama captures the full scale of the space; I encourage you to click through to the full-size (32.1 MP) image on Flickr and see the detail for yourself.

Girl on the Lake

2016-Dec-122016-Dec-13 adohertyhLeave a comment

Portraits in the style of intense indie rock album art have always been a favorite of mine. Evergreen branches and melting snow start the package, but it’s the tiny details in the far-off Mohonk Mountain House that really complete the mysterious setting.

Mohonk Dock Snow

2016-Dec-07 adohertyhLeave a comment

Summer canoeing is months in the past at Mohonk Mountain House; snow and rime crust the boat dock. On the cliffs in the distance, the hotel’s signature gazebos are (mostly) unoccupied and winter is settling in.

American Hogwarts

2016-Nov-25 adohertyh1 Comment

Mohonk Mountain House is a unique hotel in the hills above New Paltz, New York. Though I visited there during the summer as a youth (while reading Harry Potter, naturally), this was my first visit as an adult and during the winter. None of the magic has been lost during the seasons in between.