Bodie - California State Historic Ghost Town... worth saving?

Historic Bodie, California... A ghost town in decay. Hopefully the State of California will preserve it (at least in the condition it is in today) for future generations to enjoy. (Note: NO SOUND... but watch the video and see history fade away.... then answer the question at the end).......

North Central California - So much to see in such a small space

Well, as promised (warned) you... pictures of the past week.... (Ta Da)...  I took a four day loop of the majestic North State California (Lassen National Park, Mt. Shasta, Shasta Lake, Redding and Red Bluff)...The photos are just a few of the hundreds I took.... If you have not been to this part of the state (North Central California), I highly recommend it. Burney Falls near Lassen - really beautiful... Little side trips led from one discovery to another (mostly unexpected)... Going to one of Frank Lloyd Wrights last building designs (Pilgrim Congregational Church in Redding) took me past the Sacramento River were we discovered the Redding Train Trestle. Another venture of discovery took me to the Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay Exploration Park in Redding (amazing on it's own with its botanical gardens). Shasta Dam (and a very low lake)... I could go on and on (and as my Camera Club buddy's know... I often do) about the places I am blessed to visit and photograph.... so I'll just post the pictures....  If you have the opportunity to visit... take it...

Harland D. Miller Memorial Bridge (AKA: Dog Creek Bridge)

 

The Harland D. Miller Memorial Bridge (AKA: Dog Creek Bridge) is off Hwy 5 just north of Redding... down a long dirt road down to the river below where great fishing (I'm told) can be had. This is an afternoon shot... the morning shot is from the East side and there is another bridge you cross and it too will be in your picture along with railroad tracks... very picturesque.

McArthur Burney Falls

 Leaving Red Bluff heading to Lassen National Park is the little town of Burney, Ca. A few miles into the Park you'll detour a bit to McArthur Burney Falls. It is spring fed and the water flows as if we were in a very wet year and the drought is long forgotten... so the falls never goes dry (as you can tell from this photo). The park has a great walking trail and easy access to the falls. Very user friendly....

                                                                        Mt. Shasta

 This shot of Mt. Shasta was taken from a vantage point just north of Redding at a place where to the West you can see the awe-inspiring granite towers of Castle Crags State Park. It too is just off Hwy I-5. Once in the park you drive up a narrow road - park and then go up Crags Trail (it's a hike, but once at the top of the trail (make sure you take the "right" fork otherwise you will be in for a really long hike up and down the mountains <like we did>). The trail to the right is a short one that takes you to the observation area. To the West you wee Castle Crags and to the East is Mount Shasta..... You can really see some fantastic views from that location...

                                                                 "Bumpass Hell"

 For a trek off the beaten path try this one. It is in Lassen Volcanic National Park (the little Yellowstone of the West).... The place is called "Bumpass Hell" and well,it lives up to it's name. The hike is about 3 miles round trip from the road.... Elevation change of about 300 feet at 8,000 feet. The trail is narrow (and if your like me... I don't like heights... it can be tricky so plan on going very 'slow'; if heights don't bother you, it is a good walk. ) It is the largest hydrothermal area in Norther California... and has high-velocity steam jetting from Big Boiler, the largest fumarole in the park. It has been measured as high as 322°F (161°C), making it one of the hottest fumaroles in the world. The steam heated waters are typically acidic and are not safe, even for bathing. Well worth the effort to see.

                                                                    
                                                                          Osprey

 This Osprey and it's young were nesting next to Shasta Dam near the visitor center. Wildlife can be see if you keep your eyes open and on the lookout. You will need a long lens thought as most are perched or roaming at a distance to where humans will find it difficult to reach. Just take your time and you'll see views like this one.


                 Frank Lloyd Wright:  "Pilgrim Congregational Church"

 This church was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. It is in Redding, Ca. and is called "Pilgrim Congregational Church".. It sits on a hill with views of the surrounding mountains. Very unusual... and not large.

 This view of Pilgrims Congregational Church is a composite of seven photos made into a panoramic photo. This building to the left is actually at a 45-degree angle to the main part of the church (in my other picture of the church I mentioned the church was not large)....

                                 Shasta Dam

 Shasta Dam...... On July 10 (2014) it was only 33% full (a football field or deeper with just dirt where water should be)... Looking at the lake you can see that California (even in an area that has water flowing from the mountains) is in a severe drought.... Beautiful lake and dam regardless.

                                        Shasta Mountain

Shasta Mountain from just east of the downtown area of Mt. Shasta, Ca. I decided to take some roads less traveled through residential areas in the hills just east of the town.  The hunch paid off and I was given really great views of the volcano. Still has some snow (not much) but beautiful none-the-less.

                                   Sundial Bridge

Sundial Bridge ~ Redding Calif. opened in July 2004.... it is 21 stories high (a 217 foot mast that acts as a giant sundial) and has a clear pathway that does not block the sunlight so it does not disrupt the Salmon spawning area. It's 700 feet long and none of the bridge is in the water. BEAUTIFUL!!! (At one end is the Turtle Bay Exploration Park and at the other is the 200 acre arboretum and Sacramento River Trail system. So much to see and do, so little time to do it...

Hope you enjoyed the quick tour.... This is an area of California that has not changed in a very long time.  It gives you the comfort of today, while taking you back to a time where humans did not roam the land.  All withing a short drive (or a long one if you're up to adventures and you just want to take a wander)....  At every turn something new and beautiful.  A photographers delight.  

Things I've seen while "Looking Throught My Eyes" early 2014....

It has been awhile since I posted some photos and I was just going through a folder of pictures and decided I'd better post some...  I don't think I've posted any of these before (however, in case I have, I hope you will forgive the duplication).....  

 

1927 Dodge truck - located in historic Bodie (Ghost Town) California.  This is an area I keep going back to and each time I see something different and new (well, really old if you look at the age of everything)....

This next picture is of a really swinging guy.  These one of the primates at the Oakland Zoo (Oakland California)....  What I like about this zoo is the fact that there are so many animals you can photography without having to look through bars or into cages.  They've done a good job over the past few years making this zoo very accessible. 

 This next shot is of the Modesto Nuts home field in Modesto, California.  The title of this picture is:  Bases Loaded and the Outfield is Ready"...  If you look closely you will see that in fact the bases are loaded and the outfield really is ready to try to stop the Nuts from scoring.  Well, the Nuts did win this game (at this point of the game the bases were loaded, there were no outs in the Nuts inning, and shortly after this picture was taken two runs came in and there was a man on first and third (still no one out)...   Great game!!!   Go NUTS!   (Panoramic photo)

          Nature photography (in case you are new to my blog) and Landscape photography are my two most favorite types of photography.  I like to travel and spend hours picking out and photographing sights not only in California but all over the United States, Europe, and now Central America.  This photo is of the "Court of the Patriarchs" in Zion National Park, Southern Utah. 

 On a recent trip to Costa Rica I shot this Giant Forest Owl Eye Mariposa (Butterfly in Spanish).  You can see why they call it "Owl Eye"...  On the folded inside of the butterfly's wings you'll find a metallic-sky blue color.  While fluttering around in the forest, while they are moving you will see flashes of this metallic blue reflecting off their wings.  Once they land on a tree or other vegetation... this butterfly is almost impossible to see.  In this photo the butterfly is feasting off some rotting local fruit.  Blow the photo up and you'll see the head of the butterfly sticking into a piece of rotting fruit that is covered with tiny fruit fly's.  The butterfly's proboscis is elongated into the fruit sucking up the oozing juices.   Costa Rica has so many interesting insects and mammals...  I hope to be sharing more soon along with some birds and flowers I shot.

 Here is another interesting creature I was able to photograph...  It's a Costa Rican Green Iguana (more golden than green).  They are all over the place and when they want to be, they can be a fierce and aggressive as this one looks.  Shortly after I took this photo it came toward me (it must have smelt the food I was trying to eat) and it's amazing how quickly they can move (and climb).  Yes, it did get part of what I was eating (one bite and it was gone)....

 This next charming happy go lucky fellow is a "Hamadryas Baboon"...  Yes, they really are not a happy lot, and yes, they do like to look you eye to eye.  When you look at their eyes it is almost as if you are looking into human eyes.  This beautiful creature was another animal that the Oakland Zoo has and is easily viewed (well, easily if you're shooting with a lens 750mm at 100 feet.)  I don't think I'd want to be on the other side of the barrier as they move very fast (they are Omnivores but good for us they normally eat fruits, seeds and insects). They can weigh up to 65+ pounds....  Hamadryas baboons often appear in ancient Egyptian art and they were considered by the Egyptians to be sacred to Thoth. Thoth was depicted as a Baboon...  and was considered to be wisest of all the Egyptian gods.  Wise?  Maybe not so much... but I'd hate to have to match wits with this guy.

         Back to Costa Rica - Sunset and Moonset. 

Cat Stevens back in the 1970 wrote a song about moon-shadow.... that went like this:  "Yes, I'm being followed by a moonshadow....Moonshadow, moonshadow. Leaping and hopping on a moonshadow...Moonshadow, moonshadow".  Well, it was an interesting song and this photo kind of reminded me of that song.  

The final photo is of a red Passion Flower I took in Costa Rica...  The rich colors and large size of these flowers make them pop out at you as you walk by.  I'm trying to grow some of these here in Modesto.  If I'm successful, I'll be posting pictures of them later.

That's it for now.  More soon. 

AMERICAN GRAFFITI 2014 Modesto

This video is titled "American Graffiti 2014 Modesto"...  it's about the car cruise that inspired the movie by George Lucas (who grew up here in Modesto, California) and continues to this day.   I took these photos at the beginning of June 2014.  All the photos are photos I took and the song are songs I sang.  Hope you enjoy this. 

Getting into "FACES".....

There are times I wonder why I resist taking certain kinds of photos.  Mainly "FACES".  For some reason or other faces have been difficult for me.  As most who follow my posts know, I mainly photograph landscapes, general nature (animals, insects, and an occasional geographic formation that is unusual.  Recently I have been trying to force myself to face my resistance and taking photos of  faces (not just human, but animal faces up close, insects up close, and things that just jump out at me as being something humans recognize as a face.  

I think one of the reasons I've avoided taking pictures of the human face is because sometimes people just aren't very photogenic and I've had a "slight" fear of upsetting someones feelings.  I've been trying different techniques that has helped eliminate the problem of non-photogenic faces. Filters and other on camera tricks help somewhat, as do post photo computer tricks... however I'm trying to take photos that do not require "tricks" and just relying on natural lighting and expression of the person or thing being photographed.  Here are some samples of some of the photos I've taken while trying to become more of a "face photographer".  You'll probably be seeing more and more of these kinds of photos over the next months (along with my usual landscape, and nature scenes).    .

Footnote:  Here is a quote I read recently by Roald Dahl, The Twits.....“A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose... but if you have good thoughts it will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.”  Maybe that is a reason I've avoided portrait of people....  I might have been looking at what the World considers a perfect exterior and not remembering that the true value (beauty) of a person lies within their good character.  Trying to keep up with what others would consider beauty really was difficult as we're bombarded so much in the photography world with perfection and not enough character in a face.  You can look at a beautiful face and feel emptiness... or see kindness and compassion in an old withered face that has experienced much.  Over the next few months I'm going to be working on rediscovering that beauty in faces I photograph.  One can only try....