Heading Back to San Diego

Yesterday, we had a very warm, humid, and tropical day in San Diego. We had these sort of tropical high clouds all throughout the day. Therefore, after work, I decided to head over to Coronado Island and take late day and sunset pics of San Diego, from there.

When I got there, the light was gorgeous and with the clouds, I was sure we would have a gorgeous sunset. That was until this one patch of clouds decided to follow the sun and obscure it rays from lighting up the rest of the sky. Ahhhhh! What could have been.

Regardless, I still came away with a few photos which I thought turned out just fine. I was really lacking some foreground subjects, as the bay was unusually very quiet. Finally, I got the ferry heading back over to San Diego and that was a foreground object I sorely needed. As you can see, the sky was set for the sun. It just never happened. Next time, I guess.

Remembering 9/11

This past week, I was on a business up in Oxnard, CA. After fighting through the typical Los Angeles traffic, I like to take the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH or Highway 1) the last 40-50 miles to get to Oxnard. You get nice vistas of the Pacific Ocean, as well as the rugged coastline, and the mansions in Malibu.

On my way up, I noticed all these flags (not all are USA flags). All these flags were posted on the grounds of Pepperdine University, in Malibu, CA. I didn't have time to stop on my way up and I hoped that they would be still there, when I was traveling back down to San Diego, later in the week.

After some research online, I found out that Pepperdine University puts on this display every year, in memory of all the fallen victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. This year, it is on display from 9/11 till 9/19. It is a very striking scene, when you pass by on the PCH. You will see some foreign flags amongst the American flags, as it is about all the victims of the 9/11 attack, not just Americans who lost their lives. I think that is very nice they did that.

Well, you have this weekend to check out this site. Otherwise, you will have to wait till next year's 9/11 remembrance.

Shelves & Layers

One thing that I really like about living in San Diego is how quickly you can be surrounded by the tall buildings of downtown and then in about 15 minutes, be at a place like you see in this photo. Quite the contrast between the two settings.

This was taken at the tide pools at Cabrillo National Monument, in Point Loma. At Cabrillo, you can get your money's worth. It is only $5 per car. You get 7 days visit from the time you pay the $5 entrance fee. Definitely one of the better bargains.

The tide pools are one of the most popular attractions at Cabrillo. The kids really love it there and the views are just spectacular. You can really see the power that water has, when you look at the cliffs along here. What I love looking at are these shelves that extend out from the cliff walls and all the layers these shelves have. I also find the round boulders, that seem totally out of place, laying in the most peculiar spots, very interesting.

If you ever find yourself taking where you live for granted, then spend a few hours at a place like this. I am sure you will feel rejuvenated and great about this great place you call home.

WIPEOUT!!!

The last two nights, I have been going through old photos, as far as 5-10 years back. Most I was pretty horrified at what I was taking photos of. I certainly have assembled quite a collection of photographic garbage. But then, I came across the gem.

I took this photo around 5 1/2 years ago. I cropped it from it's original landscape composition. To me, this could almost be a sort of movie poster.

Now, I reprocessed this and applied some cross-processing to it. I really wanted a bluish tint to this photo, to accent the water.

I took this shot from the Ocean beach pier, which is quite a long pier and a great spot to get a good vantage of the surfers, when there are good swells. You really don't need that much zoom, unlike if you were shooting from the beach.

The elements that I really like are the kid's expression. I also like how he is flailing his arms. The surfboard is really powerful here. Finally, I really like the water action surrounding the bottom of the surfboard. Almost makes it look like I was in the water with my camera.

Well, I  am going to continue to look through more old photos and see if there are forgotten gems, besides this one.