Monterey, CA November 2020
After approximately seven months of shelter in place rules and mostly staying home. The wife and I had about enough with staying home as much as possible. We decided to spend some time along the coast for a breath of fresh air and the smell of salt water to bring us back to a sense sanity. These photos took some time and patience to take. I hope that you enjoy them.
Lassen Volcanic National Park Oct. 2020
The weekend of the new moon. I paid a visit to Lassen Volcanic NP in hopes of getting some more astrophotography photos before my next chance in January. I also had plenty of time during the day to get some nice landscape photos.
The left side of the mountain range is Chaos Crags. Geological study of the Chaos Crags began in the late 1920s when Howel Williams wrote about its pyroclastic rock deposits, rockfall avalanches, and the dome-producing eruptions. Though Williams initially suggested that volcanic activity and the ensuing landslides took place about 200 years ago, additional study of the rockfalls by James P. Heath placed their age between 1,500 and 300 years ago.
On my last day before prepping for one last night of Astrophotography, I got to take a nice time-lapse of Chaos Crags and the neighboring dome. For me, it was very exciting to watch the whole mountain range change from its greyish color during the day. to a more gold-like color right after sunset. You can view the time-lapse > here. or in the Time-lapse section in the menu above.
Enjoy! :)
My Visit to China
In 2016 with the help of my wife and family. I was able to take a fantastic trip through western China. The land there is massive when comparing to locations in the U.S.A. and has many beautiful views throughout the country. The Chinese people in general were kind and nice. I feel that they would be more generous and friendly if it were not for the oppressive government that they live under. The downside to traveling in China is that once they saw an American attempting to do business with them, they would double or triple their prices. Hotels were really known for doing this. So with a little strategy, The family and I were able to keep the costs to a minimal as possible.
One expense that we did not count on having to pay for. Was the food and board of our tour guide. What our tour guide did not tell us during our conversations on cost of the trip was that we were also responsible for his room and board. And we did not think to ask because we are used to doing business within areas that do not ask for us to be responsible for their wellbeing. Usually when we book a trip and ask for the cost of the trip, we expect to know all expenses ahead of time. In china they bring you in with the idea of low cost for being on a horse, but once the horse starts to walk, you’re charged for each step the horse takes.
Back to our landscape photo. There were so many wonderful views I saw during my trip through China that I had forgotten many of the names of the places I had been to. Telling a story with these massive landscapes was easy, especially when clouds were passing by. The Clouds would have their shadows cast along the mountain sides. Helping with the creation of some depth to the photographs taken during my trip.
These are some of my first images of landscape photography after the moment I decided to start pursuing better photography skills. I have more recent photos to share. I will post them in time.
If you would like to arrange for a trip through much of Asia, I would suggest contacting Luca Travels through their Facebook Page.
