cold & clear

Dec 6, 05
McKinley Park
cold clear sunny morning
w/plein air painters



Very much the city park - traffic passes in regular ebb & flow - palm trees and conifers coexist in Dr Seuss-like synergy.

Geese wander about honking and begging, even to the point of being almost threatening at times. Squirrels scamper closer then farther away, also on the lookout for food.





Can't seem to let go of this tree thing - it's all I can see right now. I get a little concerned about it then wonder why.



A few weeks ago the sycamores were just glorious & golden in the autumn light, now that glory is past and the giants show off their naked beauty instead.



I wander around the perimeter of the park waiting for the light to hit a particular ginko tree just right. In the rose garden, several men help an artist install new garden arches, each with a different floral motif.





More joggers and walkers come out as the morning warms, and I feel comfortable putting my scarf in the car with my first batch of negatives. Several sycamores line the street facing the park, no doubt planted when all here was new, now towering giants, decades old.



The light on the ginko just doesn't seem to want to cooperate with my preconceived notions. Silly tree. Maybe I'll wait more to see what it gives me, maybe I'll be happy with what it's already given.

on the delta

Nov 15, 05 am
Walnut Grove
w' painter pals

Drove around a bit on the delta, ended up here - on the Sacramento River



The delta is another world unto itself: the quiet of the water, the abundance of wildlife, greater rule of nature and lesser rule of man, slower paced, more at peace...

A little magic - a pair of sea lions play and catch a fish on the river -




Ducks feed along the river's edge



Sitting on the dock in the sun, letting the river gently rock me



Tide is rising as time passes -

Phillippe was painting at the water's edge and eventually had to move again & again to avoid being swamped.



Little house off the main road catches my eye, I'm drawn to it and simply must capture the image.



Down on Phillippe's beach as the water begins to rise.





I waited for the light to show off the boats in their docks across the river down on Phillippe's beach before it was completely covered with water -



On my way to get a bite to eat, the trees and houses again grab my attention.



The sun is low this time of year & I try to shade the lens with my hand as I shoot straight into it.



My friends have been painting this little group of buildings across the river - my photo doesn't capture what their eyes do, though.



Getting ready to leave, the reflection of the trees in the river captures my attention and my last piece of film.

Nov 1, 2005

Nov 1, 2005
morning along the American River
with plein air painters again
warmer this week, still air
more clouds that come & go in front of the sun
crickets and birds chirp
traffic roars by on the bridge overhead


Overexposed so I try again


better but still a little hot - usable.

A child stands on the edge of the bank throwing stones into the water. Later an artist sets up her easel near the same spot.



Looking into the sun.



Light is often used as a reference to God - how appropriate this image is to communicate how He shines through His creation.

A pair of geese hang out in the reeds nearby making soft noises to each other, feeding & preening. Kildeer cry in the distance and a yellow jacket buzzes around the river rocks underfoot.





The pair of geese are near another grouping of reeds now, stretching their necks to nibble at the seedpods at the tips of the reeds that arch out over the water.

changing light

10.25.05
American River
morning
cool, breezy, scattered clouds
changing light

Little birds chirp and zip back and forth between the trees. Painters laugh and joke amongst each other.

A hawk flies overhead, calling out repeatedly. What was he saying? Was he angry? Concerned? Calling out for someone? I've seen hawks hunting many times and they're deadly silent then.


Forgetting to focus, Kira says it could be a metaphor for life - funny, since I was just talking to a group of artists last night about that very subject.


Regained focus and a different perspective - another metaphor for life -



Starting to warm up, clouds have blown away, the wind rustles in the trees and the birds have quieted a bit. A cricket chirps somewhere hidden.



I find my way to a big sand bar that juts out into the middle of the river - though sand bar may not be the right words - it's covered by small river rocks and clam shells. A seagull flies low over the water, dipping almost to touch, then rises back up again. A whole flock sits on a quiet spot until suddenly they all take off at once, wheeling and spinning slowly as a group up, around, up and gone.



The water makes a rushing sound over the shallows here. A small white cattle egret flies low overhead, skims the surface of the water and lands in the shallows a few yards away. I sit and watch, torn between wanting to be closer and knowing that as soon as I move the bird will be gone again.



I watch the egret for some time - even get closer, watch him catch & eat a tiny silver fish, slowly getting closer, almost close enough for a shot - then a couple cyclists enter, scaring the bird farther off again and sending me in the opposite direction.



A couple fishermen float/paddle down river.

Old Sac Waterfront

10.18.05
morning
Old Sac Waterfront - on Sacramento River
sunny, cool, breezy

Two fishermen sit quietly on the rocks on the shore - their bikes waiting on the grassy hill above -
A couple jays squawk somewhere unseen and the rustle of wind in the leaves almost masks the traffic sound from the freeway.


I Street Bridge over the Sacramento

Funny to think how much this city grew up around these two rivers here and how little the rivers mean to it now by comparison. A train comes across the bridge - the sleek commuter train both at odds with the old bridge and still at place on it - almost as if traveling through time.


Wandering around, sycamores on the street - and a viewfinder that's off -


Breeze continues to blow strong - but not too cool in the warm sun - still very mild for the date. I've been searching and searching for the view of the Tower Bridge that I know that I've seen but can't seem to find...

suddenly it hits me - I was on a boat - and I have a little ache for the days we had one again.

sunflowers

September 30, 2005
morning
field of sunflowers
summer like heat



We're right by the freeway, so there's lots of traffic noises - semi's roaring by, then relative quiet - a jet takes off overhead to remind us we're right by the airport, too.



An ant bites down hard on my wrist to then remind me that I am indeed sitting on the edge of a farmer's field.



I'm here with my plein air friends - bound and determined to capture these flowers in images, we helped each other get ourselves and equipment over berms and through a muddy irrigation ditch to get ring-side seats - laughing and joking the whole way.



These flowers are so stunning in the flesh - and capturing their essence on black & white film eludes me.



I spend much time wandering the edges of the field, trying to capture the right light, the right angle, or perspective - something to make it feel right.



I envy the color my painter friends are using on their canvases today - usually I am content to wait for that part of my own process - I do finally find some satisfaction in a composition, standing carefully amongst the flowers themselves.



I finally pull out my SX70 with the color film - the manipulations feel more like the paintings of my compatriots.