San Francisco City Hall

City Hall, San Francisco, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/4, 5s, ISO: 125

Happy New Year!

Scruffy-looking Western Scrub-jay

Western Scrub-jay -- La Veta, CO
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 320

Bruce has a house in the hills outside of La Veta.  Technically his address is in Walsenberg but he like La Veta better so that's where he tells people he lives.  We were there for the Fourth of July weekend this year.  We did a little recording but mostly we just horsed around.  Wildlife is prevelant in the area.  He's lucky that way.  I think this particular scrub-jay lives near his house.  It always seemed to be around and in fact was often seen in this exact spot in this exact tree.  Scrub-jays are common but I sure do like 'em.

Wolf Creek

Wolf Creek, CO
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/5.6, 1/60s, ISO: 125

Imagine being locked up in a car for two weeks with this guy.  Is there any wonder I've lost my balance?

City Hall All Decked Out

City Hall, San Francisco, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/8, 10s, ISO: 100

It's too late for Merry Christmas, I guess, so Happy New Year!

Black Bear Crossing

Interstate 5, Shasta County, CA
Canon PowerShot SD770 IS

This bear crossing sign can be found on Interstate Five between Redding and Mount Shasta.  I've never seen a bear in that area.  Without exaggeration, I've driven that stretch of road probably one hundred times.  I don't think I've ever seen a wild mammal of any kind through that stretch of road.  I'm always up for seeing a bear.

Old Faithful

Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park, WY
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, ISO: 100, f/10, 1/200s

According to Wikipedia, US military personnel stationed in Yellowstone used Old Faithful as a laundry service.  Soldiers in the late nineteenth century would stuff their dirty laundry into the opening of the geyser then wait for it to erupt.  When it did, the their clothes would be launched into the air while receiving a nice steam cleaning.

I'm not quite sure I believe that, but it's certainly entertaining to imagine that scene, especially when one suspects soldiers of the day probably didn't have a lot of extra underwear at their disposal.

I took this shot in July.  Old Faithful is beginning to build up to an eruption.

Photo inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 143, image #7080.

Oh, what the hell, I can't show the geyser thinking about blowing its top without actually showing the eruption, can I?

Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park, WY
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, ISO: 100, f/5.6, 1/640s

Red-shouldered Hawk

Red-shouldered Hawk -- San Gregorio State Beach, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/2000s, ISO: 4000

Not a particularly nice picture of the bird, I'll admit, and the colors are a bit subdued but I sure do like those pine cones.

Devil's Cauldron

Devil's Cauldron, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/7.1, 1/50s, ISO: 100

This might be the best shot I've ever taken of this particular area of Point Lobos.  I'm usually at the Point in the afternoon so I'm shooting into the light.  I think the dark skies helped me out here.

The inlet is called Sea Lion Cove, this area on general is known as the Devil's Cauldron.  The Oregon Coast has some of the devil's handiwork as well, including Devil's Punchbowl, Devil's Churn and Devil's Lake.  I guess he didn't spend as much time down here.

Headland Cove

Headland Cove, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/7.1, 1/50s, ISO: 100

Kinda looks like a painting, doesn't it?  This place is real, though, and those colors aren't exaggerated.  You can see shades of blue in the waters of Point Lobos that don't even seem possible in nature, but there they are.

Pinnacle Cove

Pinnacle Cove, Point Lobos State Nature Reserve, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/7.1, 1/50s, ISO: 100

The central California coastline put on quite a show yesterday.  I caught the afternoon act from Half Moon Bay to Point Lobos.  Dark Skies, big waves, splashes of sunlight, abundant wildlife and just a hint of rain, it's a tough act to beat.

Lava Beds at Dawn

Lava Beds National Monument, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/5.6, 1/80s, ISO: 320

One of the things I like about camping is waking up early.  I tend to wake up at first light and go to sleep fairly early.  That gives me a chance to catch the occasional sunrise like this one.  This was the view from my campsite at Lava Beds National Monument.  Well, a very short walk away, at least.  I only spent a night there, it's an area that deserves more time.

Manzanar

Manzanar National Historic Site, CA
Canon PowerShot SX40 HS

I'm not really sure what I was going for when I snapped this photo.  The mountains and the fire truck, I think.  I suspect I was after both of those.  The strangely-colored building and the scruffy foreground tree don't do much for the composition, though, do they?  Oh well.

What I like about this picture is that the fire truck IS kinda cool and the Sierras in the background do give a person an idea of why this particular internment camp was the one chosen to memorialize.  Kinda sad to think that even in 2015 this sort of camp probably doesn't seem unreasonable to a large number of US citizens, at least so it seems based on the recent debates.

Photo selection inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 142, image #1343.

Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge

Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/6.3, 1/40s, ISO: 100

Sometimes it's not the animals, it's the locations.

San Luis National Wildlife Refuge

San Luis National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/6.3, 1/100s, ISO: 100

Rain in the lowlands.  Snow in the Sierras.  Here's to hoping we're looking at a wet, wet winter.

Northern Pintail

Northern Pintail -- Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/2000s, ISO: 500

If I had to pick my favorite waterfowl common to the Central Valley in winter I'd probably choose the Northern Pintail.  I like their black and brown coloring and their fancy tails, but it's probably the glossy beak that really does it for me.  These guys have style.

The Sixth at Pebble Beach

Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, CA
Canon PowerShot SD770 IS

It's not too often golf comes up on this blog.  I love golf but I'm not very good at it.  I haven't been playing much in the last few years but I've been meaning to change that.  This was a bucket list gift my wife gave Sam and me six years ago.  We spent the weekend at Pebble Beach with rounds of golf at Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill with caddies.  My brother rode his motorcycle down for the weekend and walked Pebble Beach with us.  They're both in the red shirts in this picture.

Funny thing, we shared a one room suite with two beds and a cot.  The next morning we all complained about how we were kept awake by each other's snoring.  Guess it runs in the family.

Photo inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 141, image #7035.

Red-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk -- Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 1250

I have my best luck with shooting hawks at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge.  They sometimes like to hang out in the trees right along the auto tour route.  They're used to the cars there, I guess.  This was the first of two hawks I saw in the the trees there on Sunday before Thanksgiving.  I took so many pictures of this one I didn't even bother with the second red tail just around the corner.

Geese Darken the Sky

Snow & Ross' Geese -- Sacramento National Wildlfe Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5, 1/1000s, ISO: 125

I've heard there used to be so many geese and ducks in the Central Valley that they would darken the sky.  That's easy to imagine at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge.  If you're in the right place at the right time you might even experience it.

Barn Swallow

Barn Swallow -- Martin Luther King, Jr. Regional Shoreline, Oakland, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II, ISO: 200, f/5.6, 1/1600s

I remember being a little excited about the series of photos I took of this particular bird not so much because the photos were all that interesting but because it's a bird I don't get to photograph all that often.
 Photo inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 140, image #6008.

You talkin' to me?

Emu -- Jefferson, OR
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/2000s, ISO: 4000

Saw this guy in a pasture across the road from Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge.  I was hoping for a bald eagle, this bad ass was a nice consolation prize.