Saturday, April 16, 2016
Twilight Harbor Mist

The evening mist rolling in over Santa Barbara always puts on a beautiful show. This particular evening the beautiful fog was just enveloping Stearns Wharf and the Santa Barbara Harbor as the last colors of the setting sun bathed the city in a beautiful glow.

Sunday, October 4, 2015
Endless Wonder

Every day is a work of art! Although the weather conditions can be similar and there are things I look for to give me hints where to stand with my camera, I never cease to be in awe of the individual beauty of each day. I can return to the same spot over and over, but there is always something new to see. This is from one of my favorite perches in the foothills overlooking the Santa Barbara Harbor, Stearns Wharf and Santa Cruz Island in the distance. This is the direction I like to face on a clear evening with high beautiful clouds like this. On an evening like this it's tempting to go somewhere and watch the sun set over the hills or at the beach. But when the conditions are right, the glow cast by that spectacular sunset can bathe everything in a wonderful new light. If you take the time to look around and not be distracted by the obvious show, sometimes you'll find something even more amazing. And if you can manage it, don't ever loose that sense of wonder, It makes every day amazing!

Saturday, September 5, 2015
Clocktower Twilight

An amazing view of Santa Barbara just after sunset from the top of the Santa Barbara County Courthouse.

Monday, August 17, 2015
Santa Barbara Courthouse Mountain Sunset

A beautiful evening at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse. It's hard to match the beauty of the Santa Barbara Courthouse, but then again, from the right view on an evening like this it just fits right into its amazing surroundings.

Sunday, July 26, 2015
Clocktower Reopens

The beautiful view from the Santa Barbra County Courthouse Clock Tower officially reopened Friday after many months of work. Now the view is easily accessible by all with the elevator opening right out on the observation deck. The only drawback is, newcomers might not notice the beautiful clock gallery below that you had to walk past to get to that last flight of steps to the tower. The elevator still stops at the Clock Gallery though, so you can still enjoy every part of this local treasure!

Sunday, May 31, 2015
Twilight Over Santa Barbara

Evening view from the Santa Barbara County Courthouse Clock Tower where construction continues to make the tower more accessible. In the very near future everyone will be able to easily enjoy the view from the top. In the mean time, however, the trek to the top for this shot was even more of a walk than normal. With no elevator at all you start to appreciate really how tall the clock tower is. Currently the tower is still closed to the public, but the major elevator work is nearing an end with the opening at the top already complete.

Sunday, December 14, 2014
End of the Rainbow

Friday after the storm, the late afternoon sun on the mountains was spectacular and the air was clear and beautiful from the rain. As the sun slipped below the remaining clouds there were several light rainbows appearing and disappearing moment by moment as the shafts of light played among the remaining clouds. It was an amazing afternoon to just enjoy our beautiful city at the end of the rainbow.

Sunday, October 12, 2014
Clock Tower View

I'm often surprised at how many locals have never been to the observation deck at the Santa Barbara Courthouse Clocktower. It's a wondeful experience, even for those of us who may be used to looking at the beauty of Santa Barbara all the time. A wonderful experience that is, if you can easily navigate the tight metal stairways winding up the last story from the top of the elevator.

But that is all about to change. Thanks to the caretakers of the courthouse a new project is underway to extend the elevator the last story all the way to the observation deck. But unlike some of the accessibility stories you hear where someone sued or complained to get action, the story behind the project is very positive. The courthouse has had ADA accessibility plans in the works for some time, but this particular project was accellerated by the people who forged ahead, rather than let it stop them. Even though the climb to the top was tough there are many who make the trek apparently even in the face of extreme difficulty. Inspired by the people who felt the experience was worth the effort, the Courthouse Docents urged the powers that be to fast track the project. Led by a guy who's love of the history and heritage in his care is quite apprent when you talk to him, the County Arcitect Robert Ooley, the project got the green light this week.

Of course, extending the elevator another floor is no easy task. Starting January the Clock Gallery and the observation deck will be closed to the public to allow for construction, which is slated to run through July 2015. So if you've never been to the top because you've just never got around to it, now is a great time to go before construction starts! Of course if you've stayed away because of the climb, your wait is almost over. Either way, during the construction I'll do my best to bring the wonderful views right to you.

You can find out more about this project and others in the works at http://www.santabarbaracourthouse.org/

Saturday, March 22, 2014
Santa Barbara Mountain View

A view of the Santa Barbara hills from downtown State Street

Monday, November 18, 2013
Sunset Cruise

The beautiful catamaran in the reflection of the sun is called the Double Dolphin. They do whale watching cruises and sunset crusies around the Santa Barbara Channel. Looks like a great way to spend an evening.

Friday, November 1, 2013
Marine Layer

Although nothing like closer to San Francisco in the north, Santa Barbara is a favorite hang out for something the weather man calls the "Marine Layer". It's basically a layer of air cooled quickly by the water making it much more dense than the warm air above. This cool layer has a tendency to slide into the coast as the sun is setting, bringing with it some beautiful swirling fog. Once in a while the effect is so pronounced that from the right vantage point you can see it rolling in like a beautiful blanket.

Sunday, May 26, 2013
Fog Over The Good Land

This angle is from the foothills just outside Santa Barbara. Overlooking the city of Goleta (our next-door neighbors, AKA "The Good Land"). The fog was rolling in quickly the night I took this. About ten minutes after this shot there were no discernible points of light. Well not on the ground anyway. The stars were still amazing! In fact you can just make aout some of the Milky Way in the left side of the photo.

Monday, March 11, 2013
Mountain View Patio Evening

View of the Santa Ynez Mountains from the El Paseo building in Santa Barbara. A long exposure to bring out the evening lights of our beautiful city.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Casa de la Guerra Panoramic View

A panoramic view from the top of Santa Barbara overlooking Casa de la Guerra.

Thursday, February 21, 2013
Casa de la Guerra

Perched high above Santa Barbara gives a different perspective. The beautiful red tile rooves giving way to the amazing mountains and Pacific in the distance. In the foreground I was fortunate enough catch an event at Casa de la Guerra. the colored lights and people haveing a great time were the perfect foreground for this amazing view.

Friday, December 14, 2012
Temple Rays

Sunset from the front stairs of the Vednata Temple in Montecito. This little temple out in the hilss above Montecito has some of the best views anywhere. In the winter the sun sets in the area of the Santa Barbara Harbor and the wharf. But closer to the temple the beautiful grounds make for a very peaceful place to spend the evening.

Monday, October 22, 2012
19th Hole Bar B Que

This is what you need after a long day of Golf. A great Bar-B-Que! This is from the Jordano's Fall Golf Classic from a few weeks ago. Sandpiper is one of the most beautiful golf courses I can imagine, but they have a lot more going than just amazing scenery. The people are friendly and the food is amazing!

Saturday, October 20, 2012
Elevated Wharf View

One more elevated view of Stearns Wharf. I really liked this spot, but the wind was really picking up so it made me a little nervous to have the camera suspended high above the water. But I'll be back to this spot again in the near future.

Friday, October 19, 2012
Santa Barbara View from Stearns Wharf

Recently I had a request for a cover shot that showed a view of Santa Barbara from Stearns Wharf. I have quite a few Stearns Wharf shots but the client was looking for a daytime shot, and most of my wanderings on the Wharf have been in the evening. This was one of the first shots after I raised the camera in this spot, the sea gull was really interested in the camera. I think he was planning on landing on it. He only thought better of it at the very last second.

Friday, October 12, 2012
View from the Top of Santa Barbara

A beautiful view over Santa Barbara. This is one of the most amazing spots in Santa Barbara. The top of the Santa Barbara County Courthouse Clocktower. From here you can see from one end of the city to the other, The Mission to the Ocean. This particular angleis overlooking the sunken gardens of the courtyard with the Pacific Ocean on the right.

Monday, October 8, 2012
Santa Barbara, City in the Hills

One of the most amazing views around is, of course, from the Courthouse clocktower. I love the perspective it gives you on the city, like a map laid out in front of you that not even Google can compete with. This is the view over Anapamy Street looking north. On the left you can just make out the towers of the Mission Santa Barbara.

Sunday, October 7, 2012
Santa Barbara

The classic view from the courthouse clocktower. I have been thinking about visiting the courthouse for a few months now. Yesterday the clouds were so beautiful I had to drop everything and go!

Thursday, July 12, 2012
Vedanta Temple View

The view from the Vedanta Temple steps in Montecito during a particularly amazing sunset. From this spot you can clearly see the Santa Barbara Harbor and Stearns Wharf in the distance. The evening this was taken the weather in the hills above Montecito was changing quickly and it looked like you could reach up and touch those clouds.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Silvergreens Sunset

Our winter sunsets are absolutely amazing. Yesterday I was down town running some errands. I had plans to try to catch the sunset, but I knew it was going to be tight so I just brought my camera along for the ride. I was really glad I did. Fortunately there are an abundance of great perches in town to find new angles.