Layers

Layers

This is probably the last of the erosion inspired images for a little bit. I know, I know, you're all thankful and want to see the sunset images I created while using the Chris Skopec Homemade Custom Camera Water Proof Housing (patent pending) and those are coming, I promise!

Near the bottom of this image, you can see the Swirlstone from the previous post. I was drawn to both the form of the swirl and the surrounding layers. Those above don't show the same twisting deformation and those below show only a slight curve. Also noticeable is the effect of erosion on the texture of the stone. The Swirlstone marks the top of an outcropping of sandstone, if you look closely you should see the edge all the way across the image. Judging by the textures alone, it's a relatively safe assumption that the smooth stone of the outcropping gets some regular attention from the waves while the water rarely reaches the much rougher rock above.

As in the previous image, the late evening, low angle sunlight set this stone a glow and I actually had to desaturate the colors a touch to keep the image realistic looking.

Swirlstone

The Swirlstone variant of Sandstone

As a follow up to last week's Grains of Sand image post, I offer another image showing the finer details brought to light by the forces of erosion. On the surface, this image speaks more of the process of sedimentation and how the sandstone was created and subsequently twisted. However, without the effects of erosion to remove the rock above and around this twisted knot of stone, we would probably never see it.

Here, the sandstone's regular, warm tone has been enhanced by the late evening light as the sun was beginning to set. The light in the late evening "Magic Hour" adds a warm glow and enhances the stone's texture. Scenes like this abound along the California Coastline as the ocean has cut into the bordering rock surface exposing the details of the relatively soft rock. Up until this particular evening, most of my attention while at the coast has been focused out over the ocean waiting for the sun to dip to just the right angle but this image is a healthy reminder that I shouldn't ignore the good light and scenery behind me.

New Product Available!

Keep your camera safe while at the coast!

I'm pleased to announce that the Chris Skopec Homemade Custom Camera Water Proof Housing (patent pending) is now available for the low, low price of $74.98 plus $9.99 shipping & handling!

The Chris Skopec Homemade Custom Camera Water Proof Housing (patent pending) was developed through a rigorous trial and error process along the treacherous California Coastline to keep your camera safe from hazards of salt water! The Chris Skopec Homemade Custom Camera Water Proof Housing (patent pending) is designed to allow you full access to your camera, tripod head, lens focusing mechanism and remote shutter release giving you greater peace of mind while photographing at the coast!

No more ruined cameras when a rogue wave splashes higher than expected. No more watching the waves and losing a good composition running from the splash! Just set your camera where you want and leave it!

A "must-have" for any photographer, pro or amateur, planning a visit to the coast!

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Grains of Sand

Grains of Sand on a sandstone ledge.

Here's something a little different for me, a macro (almost) image. My eye, at the moment, seems trained to see the grand sweeping expanse of the landscape and I often miss these smaller scene that can be found by getting up close to the details. And in fact I really just chanced upon this view down at La Jolla Cove a few nights ago.

The La Jolla area coastline is composed almost entirely of sandstone in various stages of erosion. Steep vertical cliffs drop into the ocean or give way to small, course-grained sand beaches while other areas, as seen in my previously image,  feature an expanse of wave polished rocks extending some distance out into the ocean.

While waiting for sunset, leaning against one of the areas sandstone cliffs with my feet firmly planted in the warm sand, I looked to my right to find these small grains of sand perched on a small ledge and lighting up in the late afternoon sun. The majority of my lenses are better suited for the wide vistas my eye favors, but my 50mm prime lens allows for super close focusing so I was able to get almost right on top of these grains of sand and still have them in sharp focus. Such a close focus creates a razor thin depth of field (the area of the image in focus) allowing the textures of the sandstone to melt away into a pleasing, golden blur.

I've yet to find a better illustration of Elegant Erosion than these grains of sand resting on a ledge they were most probably a part of not too long ago.

Last shot of the Day

Last Light at La Jolla Cove

After nearly 2 months of not taking any new photos because of various other projects, I've been down at the coast three times in the last week. Now that some other projects are done (or at least done for now) I can get back to having some fun.

The first two nights, last Thursday and last Saturday nights, were both something of a bust. I haven't looked through the complete catalog of images from those two nights and may very well find some compelling images, but neither night had a true sunset. On Thursday, the sun dipped behind some low lying clouds our over the ocean just before sunset and on Saturday it never even had a chance with near total cloud cover at the coast from late afternoon on. When photographing the landscape, you're really counting on Mother Nature to do the lighting for you and when she decides to end the show early, there's not much you can do about it except go home and try again another night.

And try again I did! Last night more than made up for the previous two nights. I headed down to La Jolla Cove where a high tide about twenty minutes after sunset meant the full power of the ocean was coming straight at me for much of the night. And though there was a sizable cloud bank out over the ocean, it was still small enough to let the post-sunset glow show through.

High tide here at La Jolla Cove is a dangerous time, both for camera and person. The splash of the waves can wreak havoc with a digital camera if proper precautions aren't taken (I fashioned a "dry suit" for my camera and lens out of a one gallon Ziploc bag. Worked like a charm!) and this rock under foot, even though it's sandstone, has very little texture to it after countless years of abuse by the sea. I opted to go barefoot while out there as my feet offered better traction on the rocks than my sandals.

This particular shot is out of order. It's the last photograph of the night from last night. It's a thirty second exposure taken about twenty minutes after sunset and just a split second before a large wave crashed down on my location almost knocking my tripod over. I saw the wave coming in and had appropriately braced myself for the wave, but going from mostly dry to knee deep in a split second was enough to tell me that it was time to get out of the way before the waves got any more intense. Thus I present to you this last photograph of the night as a Badge of Honor that my camera and I made it out safely!

Done

Seashell, down by the seashore.
(Found, not sold by Sally)

Lately I've been doing a LOT of work on my website, hopefully it shows. Some of the recent improvements include:

• The "Buy" button is back! Now you can enjoy beautiful prints in your home without all the hassle of visiting local galleries.
• There's a new "Share" button. Now when you find a photo you like, not only can you leave a comment and vote it into my popular photos, but you can now share it with friends. In just about any way you can imagine! Send an email, get a link to post it right on your own blog, Be Social and share it on Facebook or add it to a Social Bookmarking site like Digg.
• Hand in hand with the sharing, I've got a new watermark on my photos, as seen in the nice seashell photo here on the right. The problem with sharing is that once a photo is off my site, it's completely out of my hands and in the Wild Wild West of the Internet, there are those unscrupulous folks who would try take a photo and sell it as their own. The watermark won't completely solve the problem, but at least it gives me a little piece of mind.
• There's a new logo and navbar just to make the site a little sleeker and snazzier (that's right, "snazzier").
• Print Packages are now available. Currently there are 2 available for metal prints (printed right on metal!) with a couple more coming soon.
• And a few other, behind the scenes type changes.

I've still got a couple notebook pages (the small, pocket sized variety) filled with items that I would still like to make happen, but for now, I'm calling it DONE! The problem is, I've been so focused on making these changes and making the website look good, I haven't taken my camera out in nearly 2 months! It's incredibly hard to tackle both the creative aspect of taking and processing the photos and the technical side of website coding and management. So for the foreseeable future, the website is done for all intents and purposed (not including new photo postings) and I'll be spending my time enjoying the outdoors with my camera. And there's no better time to start than tomorrow, with a low tide just 20 minutes after sunset and a predicted 25% cloud cover for (hopefully) just the right amount of clouds to pick up the colors.

In the meantime, I encourage you to take a look around the website, take advantage of the new offerings and if you're so inclined to support my photo habit, take 25% off the price of all prints! Just enter SupportMyHabit when you check out! (Hurry offer end July 31st, 2010!)

America's Southwestern Treasures

America's Southwestern Treasures' Front Cover

I'm happy to announce that the second book from my dad and I, America's Southwestern Treasures, is now available to purchase!

As a follow up to our original publication, The Ancestral Puebloan Primer, Treasures is your concise guide to America's Southwest and the remnants of number of distinct ancient cultures who resided there, not just the Ancestral Puebloans. More than 170 archeological sites and 13 museums are covered and the 130 plus pages of Treasures detail which culture built the site, what is important about it and what you can expect to find there on your visit, both in terms of modern services and ancient ruins or artwork.

Additionally, each site is rated on a scale of 0 to 3 so you can spend your limited vacation time at one of the 30 "must see" sites instead of a site with only scholarly interest.

Our six Suggested Itineraries mean you can make the most of a quickly planned trip and the indexes (sorted by geographic location and cultures) help plan an impromptu visit to nearby sites of interest.

You can  purchase the book direct from our publisher, Createspace, right here.

Panoramas Part 2: Return to the Same Locations

Late Evening Light on Lake Hodges

Another panorama from the shores of Lake Hodges. This one is a combination of 4 horizontally oriented frames, taken back in December (or about 3 months before the other panorama I already posted). Both were taken at sunrise and illustrate why it's possible to keep visiting the same locations time and time again. Don't get me wrong, I love finding interesting new locations, and while it's not a perfect comparison, (this one was taken from a slightly different vantage point looking North instead of East) this image and the previous panorama image could have been taken at two vastly different locations not just different conditions.

In this image, San Diego had yet to receive its spring rains and the water level of the reservoir is much lower, showing more reds in the foreground than in the previous image. The air temperature was much closer to the water temperature in this image than the last, as evidenced by the lack of steam rising from the water's surface. Those are seasonal changes though, and can be predicted with relative ease. The major difference is much harder to predict. The light! Light is building blocks of any photograph, landscape or otherwise. Portrait photographers have the luxury of carefully crafting their studio lighting set up to achieve the desired effect time after time. For landscapes, you can make your best guess at how the sunrise or sunset will turn out based on the natural conditions (temperature, cloud cover, etc) but by and large you just need to be there and hope you get lucky. Good days go bad if the clouds aren't in the right spots and bad days can go good at a moment's notice if there's a break in the clouds in the distance. This unpredictable nature is exactly what makes an image such as this one and the previous panorama so rewarding to capture.
See more of my panoramas here, in the appropriately title Panoramas gallery.