Monday, April 20, 2009
Our Lady of Mount Carmel

After an unseasonably hot day my intention was to go down to Stearns Wharf to both take some evening pictures and enjoy the cool sea breeze. Unfortunately, the day had been too much for the power grid and there was a strange intermittent power outage down by the beach including the wharf.

After cruising around for a while and enjoying the cool evening we ended up at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Montecito. There was just enough blue left in the sky to get a few nice shots. And, in the end, it was an even nicer place to spend the evening.

Friday, January 30, 2009
Lamp at the Church of the Wayfarer

Today we tried to stop at the Carmel Bakery after getting to Monterey for the weekend. But we got there ten minutes too late. Bummer!

While we were driving around looking for a parking space (which I'm thinking took just a bit over ten minutes!) my wife pointed out this beautiful lantern as we passed the Church of the Wayfarer. I just happen to carry my camera almost everywhere these days so we had a nice walk and got a few night shots of the Church and had a great time anyway.

Friday, December 26, 2008
Candelight Blessing of the Creche

About a week ago (the 20th) we were lucky enough to happen by the Mission at just the right time. My wife had reminded me to go check to see if the Creche (Nativity Scene) had been set up. When we got there we saw that the animals were there, but we also saw a large parade of unlit luminaries. (lanterns made of candles in a paper bag with a little sand to hold them in place.) So after a quick trip home for an unsuccessful scouring of the Internet to try to see what the occasion was and to get my camera (D'OH! Should always have that with me!) we headed back. We were lucky enough to get there just as the congregation of the Saint Barbara Parish (The church that calls the Mission home) were starting to sing christmas carols around the steps of the mission. It turns out it was the Blessing of the Creche ceremony. Ahhh, what perfect timing my wife has!!

Sunday, June 29, 2008
Theresa Ann

Another shot from our recent wanderings at the Santa Barbara harbor. It's a nice peaceful scene, but just to my left was a popular restaurant on a balcony overlooking the harbor. There were lots of people around waiting to get in and having a good time. Next time I'll get an image that includes the restaurants.

Monday, January 21, 2008
Moonlit Tree

This evening I went out to take some test shots for my current project. The moon was doing some beautiful things with the clouds so it got me a little sidetracked. But that is always lots of fun too.

Thursday, January 10, 2008
Our Lady of Mount Carmel

My intent was to get some nice sunset shots of this beautiful church in Montecito. I was a little late, but it was still a nice night.

If you tilt your head to the left and use your imagination a little you can make out half of the constellation Orion rising from behind the church.

Friday, December 14, 2007
Sunset at 1525 State

When the evening sun does beautiful things like this I find myself wishing I could drop everything and take pictures. Today I had a busy afternoon of meetings and appointments, fortunately one of them was with a new client so I just happened to have my camera handy. I think the wispy pink clouds really add a lot! Not to mention the cool bus tail lights that came through at just the right time.

This is a combination of five images in what is called a High Dynamic Range Image, mostly used in this case to pick out the details in the bright spots. One of the interesting things about one of those bright spots is the color of the sign. That lovely green is the way film (or in this case a digital sensor) sees fluorescent lights. As they ummm... "encourage" us in California to use the CFLs my evening shots are going to get a lot greener, supposedly in more ways than one.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Leadbetter Beach Woodcut - No Lifeguard On Duty

I went out this evening to get some evening shots of the city. I was not sure exactly what I was looking for, but when I drove by Leadbetter Beach I saw it. :-D

This scene reminds me of a woodcut technique where the black silhouette is printed over a gradient background. The sky was cloudless, the dark outline at the left on the horizon is Santa Cruz Island part of Channel Islands National Park.

Sunday, December 9, 2007
Archway Palms

I still have not had a chance to get my film developed from my adventures last week. (Been a busy week with a sick hound dog.) But this was one of my test shots from my digital camera.

For the next couple of weeks the christmas decorations will be at their peak so I'm going to try to get as much time behind my camera as possible. So, with a little luck, I should have some nice new images under the tree for Christmas. That is if the hound has not managed to knock the tree over by then.

Thursday, December 6, 2007
Mission Nativity

By request! This is actually a little older shot, I still have not seen if they are doing the nativity this year. I'll have to go check it out. This is one of my favorite Christmas attractions in Santa Barbara too.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Tuesday Night Farmers' Market

It's been a busy couple of months but last night the fog was so beautiful I thought I would try to get some sunset fog shots at the Farmers' Market. (Then I could get a little Thanksgiving shopping done too! :) Unfortunately, the fog was much lighter tonight and I was a little late for the sunset (still have not adjusted to that time change!) but it was still a fun night with my camera.

Friday, October 19, 2007
Harbor Earth Shadow

I really love this shot and all the others I took along with it. It was a great evening right after a Photography show walking with my dad at the Santa Barbara harbor.

Aside from the beauty of the scene and the great memories it brings back (as most of my photos do for me), I like the science in this shot. If you poke around the photo of the day it's not hard to notice other evidence of the left side of my brain creeping into my photography. In this case, the dark blue near the horizon that slopes upward to the left is what intrigues me. It is actually the shadow of the Earth. As the sun was slipping further below the horizon behind me on my right side, it still lit the atmosphere above me. It is easiest to see this effect looking out over the ocean so there are no hills or even buildings and trees to block it.

BTW, I finally got back to the photo of the day thanks to a really nice post the other day from Mary Ann. Always wonderful to know people are enjoying my creativity. One of the many things I was doing in my absence was working on a new gallery site of my Santa Barbara photos... www.ImagesOfSantaBarbara.com.

Thanks again Mary Ann!

Sunday, August 26, 2007
Courthouse Light

We are getting some unseasonable moisture from the hurricane that went through the Gulf of Mexico last week. The days have been really humid, but the clouds have been a nice change. Seemed like a good time for some evening shots of the courthouse.

This is actually a combination of about ten exposures in a technique called a High Dynamic Range Image. Takes a little work, but a normal long exposure would have blown out the image around the lantern and you would still not have been able to see the clouds and stars.

Saturday, March 3, 2007
Canon Perdido

I never really noticed the streetlights around here before I started taking my evening shots of the city. They are actually very interesting and add a lot to the photos. Now I try to get them in the shot whenever I can.

If you look closely to the left of the streetlight on the sidewalk you will see a couple of black smudges in the photo. Those were actually people walking on the sidewalk. The exposure was almost long enough for them to disappear completely because of their movement, but not quite.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Shoreline Access

One of the many beautiful images that are a result of an early morning hound walk during our last trip to Monterey. As I have said before, that was not really my idea of a relaxing trip but the hound sure can sniff out a good photo opportunity!

Monday, December 25, 2006
Frohe Weihnachten! Natale allegro! Merry Christmas!

This is an amazing little restaurant where we had a wonderful Christmas dinner today. The first thing that called our attention to this it was the Maitre D'. As we got out of our car the first night we were in Carmel he came over to the wall under the lamp post and howled at Zoe. He was very excited to see her, he explained in a German accent that he had grown up with hounds just like her. He then asked us if we were ready for dinner and told us that he had a patio where Zoe would be welcome.

We were not ready for dinner then, but he left a real impression on us. Any place that was that friendly to our hound had to be ok.

It was a good assumption, the waiters were very friendly and the food was absolutely delicious. A perfect Christmas memory! We will be back again for sure!

Saturday, November 18, 2006
Savoy Nights

This week I had the enviable task of shooting and designing a new ad for a great restaurant in town. I love this kind of evening shot, and since the primary objective of the ad was to let everyone know they are now open for dinner it seemed the perfect opportunity for some dusk photography.

If you would like to see the finished ad, watch for the upcoming issue of Santa Barbara Food & Home or contact me for a sneak preview.

Thursday, October 13, 2005
Dolphins at the Wharf

I really like the water in this image. The long exposure hid the fact that the water was moving pretty well in the fountain. If you look closely you can see where the drops of water leave the edge of the fountain and hit the pool below. But they disappear in between. The surface of the water was covered with ripples which caused the blurred surface as opposed to a smooth reflective surface of a less agitated pool at night.

Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Mission Palms at Night

Always lookin' for a different angle on a subject. Especially one as photographed as the Mission.

Sunday, April 24, 2005
La Arcada Phone

Still experimenting with the evening shots. I particularly like the phone booth in this shot.

Thursday, April 21, 2005
Blue Fire

I know, the Fourth of July is a long way off. But, as I was organizing my photos this afternoon I came across this one and it really caught my eye.

Besides, if I made this the image of the day in July that would be too predictable. :-)

Sunday, April 17, 2005
Nighttime at the Mission

I almost lost this image. It was on a roll of film in a camera that I had not used in a few weeks. Assuming it was empty I opened the back of the camera. Luckily the best shots seemed to be early on the roll and deep enough in the camera to not be affected.

This was a long exposure from the edge of the fountain. the blurry area in the water is the affect of the water on the surface over the length of the exposure.

Sunday, March 20, 2005
Stearns Wharf Dolphin Fountain

I like the fact that this exposure was long enough to get the red, green and amber lights on the traffic signal. The people were waiting for an evening tour bus so they were there long enough to be visible in the photo.

Thursday, March 17, 2005
Santa Barbara Courthouse Sunset

The Spanish Style of the Santa Barbara Courthouse makes a beautiful subject at any time. But in the evening the lighting makes it spectacular.