Explore: Lucas Valley

What could possibly have convinced me to jump into a car and drive for 2+ hours to check out an open space preserve? Was it boredom, a love of driving, an over-active sense of adventure or just plain lunacy? I could try to put into words the stark and calm beauty that I found at Lucas Valley, perhaps try to quantify the amazing views of San Francisco in the far distance...but instead I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

"A Picture Speaks"

Want more? You know what to do

ps. to make up for the long wait, there are more pictures than ever before.

Update: April-May

Lets see whats been happening this past month. Are you guys excited? I bet you are and here's why.

"Sunbathing" 

More, as always, after the jump.

Explore: San Jose

I love San Jose. All the things that could be said can be condensed into those three words. The people, the exotic and diverse restaurants (many with free wifi), the art galleries and clubs, the plentiful and cheap parking, the fact that I can hop onto the light rail for less then 5 bucks if I don't feel like driving, etc. I love it. Here are some pictures from a recent photo trip to Downtown, I really tried to push myself on this trip and approach people to ask them if I could take their picture. A lot said no...and that wasn't pleasant, but when someone said yes; I lit up inside. I was surprised and happy and just wanted to take their picture so that they could share in that joy with me!

When doing street photography its really difficult to put yourself out there and approach strangers, but (as with all things) its all a matter of practice. This isn't my last trip to downtown San Jose, by no means. You hear that people of S.J? Ill be back!

p.s And next time I'll have my 18-50mm lens with me! I love my 50-200mm lens, but there are times where I wished for nothing more than to be able to zoom out and really capture everything. 

"Quiet Afternoon"
Walking past the aisles I almost stumbled as my eyes swept past this scene. 

This was begging to be captured.
Martin Luther King Library, San Jose

More as always after the jump...

Kyrgyzstan

Theres some very dramatic stuff going down in Kyrgyzstan. The Boston Globe has some amazing photos on it.

See the rest on their website Here

Animal Farm

Lets play a game; Word Association.

Hot  -  Water

Pickles  -  Yum!

Snow  -  Boarding!

Old Faithful  -  Napa Valley???

"But thats in Yellowstone" you might say with more than a little disdain. Not the case at all my friends, because lucky for us Californians we have our own Old Faithful geyser right here in the heart of wine country. Now why would anyone want to drive for several hours just to see water erupt from the earth every 10 minutes, not to mention pay 10 big ones, you might say. Well the answer is this... There are animals to see and  pet!

"Upside Down Cows" 

There are more great pictures of animals, not to mention the answer to last post's mysterious eye, inside...

Look Out: Colors

When out on photo journeys its easy to be distracted with the hunt for the spectacular and unique. To be caught up in searching for Vision, to find the extraordinary in the commonplace objects of our lives. We search for interesting Shapes and Leading Lines and sometimes something crucial gets overlooked. Sometimes it takes a simple wall by a park's restrooms to show you what a wonderful thing Color can be.

"jump" Picture courtesy of A.Lemos

More pictures and a Bonus sneak peek at the next entry after the jump...

A Day of Failure

Found myself up and about at 6 in the morning on Thursday and decided to take advantage of the situation by taking a picture of the sun rising off the top of the Santana Row parking garage. A great idea I know, if only the sun had co-operated! Instead, thanks to a combination of the direction the sun rose from/The Valencia/The Mountains I didn't see the sun at ALL. Instead, one second it was dark and then -ever so subtly- it was day. Oh well, I'll be back when the circumstance are a bit more favorable. And its not like I let the day just go to waste.

From the top of the Santana Row parking garage, right before sunrise

But wait, there's more after the jump...