Four Mile Beach in Black & White

While en route to meet up with a friend in Santa Cruz, I decided to kill some time and hang out at Four Mile Beach. The fading color in the sky wasn't especially appealing, but there still are interesting textures to be found. I had an idea for a black & white photograph, so I thought I'd give it a shot and see what I could come up with. Here is the result after working with a 3-stop, soft graduated neutral density filter by Singh-Ray.

Finalist - "Photographer's Forum" magazine's "Best of College Photography 2011"

Earlier this week, I received a letter confirming that one of my photographs (Mono Lake) will be published in the Photographer's Forum Magazine hardcover book, "Best of College Photography 2011". This will be my 2nd published image. So yes, I am quite excited and honored to have made it this far. My entry is in the finalist selection group, and is in the running for higher honors (First through Fourth Place or Honorable Mention). I thank you all for your continued support of INFIN8 Photography!

The Crown Jewel of California's Coast - Point Lobos

If I were ever pressed to name a single location that has led me pursuing photography as a profession, it would be the Point Lobos State Reserve in California. Located just south of Carmel, this state park is often described as the crown jewel of California's coast. It has served as inspiration to numerous writers and artists such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Robinson Jeffers, Ansel Adams, and the Weston family.

I can spend hours just staring at the waves whenever I visit. Whenever I have friends and family visiting from out of town, Point Lobos always makes the list of must-see locations. So much of my childhood was spent at the park that I know my love of the ocean and sunsets was born here.

This past week, I had the pleasure of visiting twice. I was fortunate enough to witness a few spectacular sunsets. Here are a few images from my most recent shoots at Punta de los Lobos Marinos | Point of the Sea Wolves.

Being In The Moment - Four Mile Beach

I've heard many photographers speak about the difficulty in balancing family life with photography. Over the last 3 weeks, I often noticed beautiful photographic opportunities while en route to functions that didn't allow me time enough to stop and shoot. The more I let myself get frustrated about that, the more I seemed to experience it. I had to force myself to re-evaluate my outlook and remind myself to live in the moment. Usually, I'm pretty easy about things like this. But I definitely had a setback. Luckily, I was able to get back on track in time to really enjoy my holiday season and spend quality time with friends and family.

Now, if I have a personal commitment or engagement that does not involve photography, I'll just leave the camera at home and embrace the decision. Occasionally, I'll whip out my iPhone as a way of documenting an idea that I might have for a later time. In most situations, there will be another opportunity to take photos. Photographic scenes are abundant. I truly believe that something just as good, or greater will present itself if you are able to pay enough attention. This pretty much mirrors my outlook on life.

Yesterday was pretty much the first time that I had a real opportunity to go out and take some photos. It all happened very naturally, which is ideal for me anyway. I had the urge, I had the time, I hopped in the car and enjoyed being in the moment.

Below, are a few examples of my shoot from yesterday at Four Mile Beach, which is just north of Santa Cruz, CA.

Carmel Beach Sunset

While hanging out with my girlfriend in Carmel, CA ... she got the urge to go shooting at the beach with her new Canon S95 (her photos came out beautifully). Since I'm not one that needs to be dragged to the beach, I shot a few frames. This was one of my favorites out of the few I took.

San Francisco - Municipal Pier & Aquatic Park

Whenever I decide to walk around San Francisco and take photos, I often find that some of my more interesting shots of the day come from unintended subjects. My friend and colleague, Edward Chuck, and I decided to shoot in the area around Fisherman's Wharf this past weekend. We only planned to hang out in the area until just before the lights turn on in the city. We had hoped to capture the orange light illuminating City Hall in support of the San Francisco Giants. Neither of us seemed to be paying much attention to the time. We decided that we would just continue walking towards Aquatic Park, and the Municipal Pier. That decision was rewarded with gorgeous light. The bay was lit with orange, pink, and touches of yellow and purple. I can't imagine there being too many areas in the region that got such spectacular light.

Eastern Sierras - Part 1 (Mono Lake)

First off, I'd like to extend my thanks to Phil Richardson, of Phil Richardson Photography. Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of photographing some great scenes in the Easter Sierras of California at Phil's invitation. He has made an annual trip of it and was kind enough to invite me along.

I've been to the Eastern Sierras before, but not in the role of photographer. Its always a great experience seeing things with different eyes. In addition, I've never witnessed the region when all of the beautiful fall colors have set in. There is a relatively small window each year when such vibrant color is so apparent.

Our first stop was Mono Lake. We made it over the Tioga Pass with plenty of time to scout and take photos past the setting of the sun. It came as no surprise to see that the greater majority of people at Mono Lake were photographers. Everyone was so courteous. We all got our shots and made room for each other, or exchanged vantage points once we had finished. It was all just a great experience and the start of a fun adventure.

San Francisco - An Experiment In Color - Part 1

Its funny how we can see color every single day, and fail to really examine it in our environments. Color as shape, as mood or emotion, in motion, and color as it interacts with neutral colors and complimentary colors. I've never done this more than now, but my teachers at De Anza College have really opened my eyes to this through various projects and helped me to take further notice on a daily basis. I am much more aware of color than I've ever been.

Pfeiffer Beach

Yesterday, I went to Pfeiffer Beach in Big Sur, CA., along with my friend and colleague, Edward Chuck. We hoped to get a break in the rain. Once we hit Castroville, things really started to look up. The clouds started to peel back just enough to let the sun through on occasion. Of course, the weather can change on a dime, but we were optimistic. Although we were both prepared to be disappointed, the weather turned in our favor.

Try, Try Again - Hole-In-The-Wall Beach

After bombing at Hole-In-The-Wall Beach last weekend, I decided to take another stab at this little gem. My friend, Phil Richardson agreed to meet up with me. Having been in 91˚ heat in San Francisco of all places, I figured that Santa Cruz would offer nothing but great weather. Even Half Moon Bay had great weather. I was absolutely wrong. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. By the time I got close to San Gregorio State Beach, the fog had rolled in thick. We decided to continue on as planned and just enjoy the location. It just goes to show that no one can truly predict the weather. I suppose it wouldn't be as fun if you always knew what you were going to get. There is a lot to be said for going with the flow of things.

Although I had hoped for something completely different, the fog presented an opportunity for me to get more mileage out of my Vari-ND filter. The conditions were rather perfect for black & white images. I'd say Phil and I were out shooting for a pretty short period of time. 45 minutes to an hour I guess if you count parking and walking to the beach. The fog eventually came in so thick that we felt it was best to get out of dodge and count our blessings. Neither of us were keen on a swim in the Pacific Ocean :) We both managed to get some rather interesting images. Once I got around to editing, I did decide to leave a few in color, but most of the shots that I processed ended up looking better as B&Ws. Here are three images from the day.

Chasing Light - Four Mile Beach

It has been a while since I've had the opportunity to shoot at sunset. I've missed a few spectacular sunsets lately. Over the weekend, I drove over Hecker Pass in order to get to the coast by Santa Cruz, CA. I enjoy the drive. Its certainly less frustrating than Hwy. 17 and faster coming from my house.

My first thought was to head over to Panther/Hole-In-The-Wall Beach. Not long after arriving, I noticed an unpleasant haze, and too much wind. Of course, a lot of that can change, so I probably stayed a bit longer than I should have. I thought it would be best to head back down south.

On the drive in, I noticed that it was much more clear towards the south. I thought I'd take a few shots at Four Mile Beach. By the time I arrived, the sun had already started to descend quickly. Although where I parked was not too far from the shoreline, it wasn't exactly close. The light was fading fast. I did have a few shots in mind that I would have taken further down the beach, but as I glanced over the hill, I knew that there would be no time. I planted my tripod down right away, and fired off a few frames with the most interesting composition I could come up with at the time. There was a yellow glow from the sun that touched down just in front of the water. The light was pretty warm. It added a nice little touch to the image that disappeared after taking only a few shots. I did shoot a bit later into the night, but these few were my favorites. They are quite similar, but I thought I'd post them anyway.

Fleet Week In SF - 2010

This year's Fleet Week in San Francisco was considered the largest in 20 years, thanks to a new Fleet Week committee :) I was fortunate enough to attend this past Saturday. The event draws in over one million visitors. I'd love to find out what the actual attendance was. I've rarely seen San Francisco so crowded. Not to mention, the day was absolutely gorgeous!

I set out to capture the aerial show with friends and fellow photographers Kevin Ash, Michael Duarte, and Justin Chase. Thanks to Kevin, we were all able to shoot from the "Friends and family" section for the Blue Angels. Though everyone had fantastic seating. We chose to sit up front and along the water in order to get the best possible view. Its been years since I've had the opportunity to see the Blue Angels. They certainly did not disappoint. I had a great time. I also enjoyed viewing The Patriots, and Sean Tucker! These pilots all put on a stellar performance!

I rented a Canon 100 - 400mm f/4.5-5.6L from BorrowLenses since this would be my first time photographing an event like this. I wanted extra reach. Awesome lens! Great subject matter. There is so much to concentrate on. I have heightened respect for people that shoot these kind of events regularly. Kevin was able to give a lot of great advice on how to capture the aircraft as he has attended several shows (including multiple days from this year's event)! So I have to plug his work. He got some amazing captures. As for me, I managed to get a few decent images! I would have liked to have captured more scenes that depicted how low these planes fly, but sadly the shots weren't very clear. I can't wait to take another crack at an event like this in the future!

Chasing Waterfalls

Although R&B group, TLC, advises us against chasing waterfalls (sorry, couldn't resist), a friend and I decided to do just that. For some time, I've wanted to see, and take photos of Mossbrae Falls. My friend, Thomas Barclay, and I decided to visit Mossbrae, Burney Falls, Potem Falls, the 3 McCloud Falls, and Boulder Creek Falls. Although I highly enjoyed all of the falls that we visited, I was most impressed by Mossbrae and Middle McCloud Falls. The locations were absolutely beautiful. The beauty of California never ceases to amaze. Of course, I believe that there is beauty can be found all around this planet. I just realize how fortunate we are as Californians.

Aside from the sheer beauty of Mossbrae, one of the more interesting parts of the experience was that it almost didn't happen. Thomas and I arrived in Dunsmuir, CA. quite early in the morning. The parking lot was practically empty. The falls can be found along tracks owned by the Union Pacific Railroad. Due to this fact, the path to Mossbrae is actually forbidden. It actually didn't even occur to either of us. Thomas and I were so busy looking at the lighting conditions, and making sure that we were paying attention to the path ahead (didn't want to trip while walking down the tracks), that we didn't even notice the very obvious "No Tresspassing" sign until it was pointed out by a railroad worker after we had returned to the parking lot. I wish I'd spent more time there, but at least we got our photos :). The location of thes falls has caused some conflict between the city of Dunsmuir and the Union Pacific Railroad, as several people have come quite close to getting nailed by the train (though I don't understand exactly how people didn't notice a train). This is a liability issue for the railroad, but the city of Dusmuir (and its hotels) continue to advertise the falls and how to get there. After we finished shooting, a railroad worker recalled seeing busloads full of children walking down the tracks, a wedding party of 400 people, and countless women in stilettos, and mothers pushing baby strollers. With this in mind, I can see how U.P.R. would worry, but it would be a shame if people were no longer able to visit these falls. I truly hope that the railroad company and Dunsmuir can come up with some kind of alternative solution.