The Land Down Under

My travels through the Southern Hemisphere led to me to Sydney, Australia. I didn't have enough time to see the entire country, that's for a separate trip. But I did manage to sneak in a few days in Sydney which was well worth the time. The two most recognizable landmarks are the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The Sydney Opera House is quite impressive when you see it in person. Photographs often don't do it justice because the details, such as the tiles on the outside, are not always clear. Click on the photos to enlarge them.





The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an iconic image of Australia as well. The bridge's steel arch makes it one of the most identifiable in the world. You can walk across it, climb it with a tour or climb about 200 stairs inside one of the pylons to get a view from the top. That's where I shot this next photograph. The following picture I took as I walked across the length of the bridge which is less than a mile. You can click on both images to enlarge them.

Light Square

The Birds

I was in a bathroom stall on Baker Beach in San Francisco when I heard strange sounds coming from the roof. I looked up and saw two seagulls walking around on the outside of the bathroom, their webbed feet practically glowing through the sky light. Click on the photo to make it larger.

California Coast

Click on the picture to enlarge it. In the larger version, you can see the detail in the light along the magnificient coast of Northern California.

Traveling Through Thailand

My trip to Thailand took me to various parts of the country, from the madness of Bangkok to the calm of the North and the overwhelming beauty of the South. The landscape is diverse, the people are so kind and of course the food is worth the trip alone. I shot these first two pictures on the Railay Peninsula in Thailand's Southern Krabi province. The area is surrounded by high, sharp cliffs. Some of that same rock formed the outcropping I shot in these picture at sundown.


Click on this next image to enlarge it so you can really see the detail. There are actually two mischievous macaques not just the one in the foreground. They were running all up and down the same beach where I took the previous photo, snatching food from wherever they could get it. It was a strange experience at first because living in the United States, you're not really used to seeing macaques or any primate for that matter running free on the beach or anywhere else.

Thailand's temples and ruins are plentiful, beautiful and more importantly, amazingly intricate. This one is made completely of small, pastel colored tiles some of which are used to make flowers while others appear to form jaws or teeth. Clicking on the photo will reveal more details.



I was on the River Kwai Bridge in the Kanchanaburi province when a group of Thai schoolchildren on a field trip walked by with their teacher. The area is perhaps best known internationally as being part of the Japanese government's so-called "Death Railway" during World War Two. POWs were used to construct the bridge which resulted in the deaths of some 16,000 Allied POWs and 90,000 Asian laborers.


For another image from Thailand's Kanchanaburi province, go to my previous post. If you're interested in the history of the bridge, you can find some archive photos by clicking here.

Thai Tranquility

I shot these photos as I zig-zagged across Thailand. The first picture is of Buddha's hand at a ruin in Sukhothai, one of the former Thai capitals.



This second photo I took at a cemetery for American servicemembers in the province of Kanchanaburi which is about 150 miles outside of the modern capital, Bangkok. That's where the River Kwai is and the cemetery holds the remains of Americans who died during World War Two. If you look closely, you can see two Thai women taking care of the grass and weeds around the headstones. There is also a small wheelbarrow on the right-hand side of the frame. The ruins were so ancient and the cemetery was so grounding. Both images struck me as so serene and calm and I wanted to capture the feeling while I was in the moment. You can click on both images to make them larger.

Office Daydream

Click on the photo to enlarge it.

Bright Beach

Click on the photo to enlarge it.

Through the Looking Glass

Interesting pictures don't always have to be of sweeping landscapes or faraway travels. A different perspective can turn every day things around the house into worthy subjects. I shot both of these photographs in a bedroom. They are of the same drape only the first photo is taken from an angle and the second one is a reflection of the drape on a CD. You can click on the images to check out the extraordinary details.

Jammed Jellyfish

For a closer look, click on the photo which I took at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California.

Misty Hike

Breathing Orange

I was coming back from a hike at Tree People when I looked over on the east side of Mulholland Drive and thought the sky was on fire. It was near sundown. Some mist had set in and the wind blew it down the hill, breathing bright orange life into what was just a short time ago a pale blue sky. My friend pulled over so I could take these pictures. When we got out of the car, the scene was a bit overwhelming. We couldn't stop watching. There was an orange glow to everything around us. The sky was so bright, we were all almost convinced there was a massive forest fire nearby because it was just so eerie. Click on the photographs to make them larger, the bigger versions do them more justice.








photography

Boogie On

Palm Tuesday

A Bridge Over Solid Water

The Ravenel (Cooper River Bridge) in South Carolina has the longest cable-stay span in North America and reportedly cost more than $630 million to build. The suspension bridge features two diamond shaped towers. I shot this photo from the Charleston side of the bridge, near the city's aquarium. What attracted me to the scene was the span of the bridge as well as the way the water looked. It looked almost solid, as if it had a definable shape and texture. Click here to view a larger, more detailed version of the above photograph. To see a picture taken from underneath one of the bridge's towers, click here.

Persian Painting

Was Ist Das?

Variations on a Curtain

Contemplations on a Kitchen Counter

I was making breakfast when the phone rang and took me away from my task, breaking my concentration. As I navigated the conversation, my mind drifted and my eyes wandered until I saw this image. The light beaming through the kitchen window, bouncing off the counter in a way that makes an ordinary room seem curious.

Sneaking a Peek

Another Day at Work

For my several other Morocco posts on this blog, you can click here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.

Three's a Crowd

Man vs. Nature, Round 2

I took this photo because I thought it was odd and intruging at the same time. There were all these kids playing in the water seemingly oblivious to these forboding, polluting smoke stacks hovering over them. The juxtaposition was amusing if not a little worrisome. The scene reminded me of something out of the Simpsons TV show. I thought a fish with three eyes was going to come shooting out of the water. Click here to see a bigger version of the picture, the details are fascinating.

Elephant Legs

Cast Away

The Strength of Sand

What struck me about the Sahara was the sand. I mean, other than the fact that it is a desert. When you approach the dunes, they look soft... almost fluid. But once you get close, you realize that a lot of the sand has been packed by wind and hardened by the sun. The texture was actually a lot different than what I had expected. It was a surprising discovery.

Into the White Light

In Pacific Palisades, there is an underground pedestrian tunnel so you don't have to defy death to cross Highway 1. That's where I snapped this photograph. The tunnel doesn't smell all that great but as you approach the end of it, the sun comes pouring through and then it just opens up onto the beach and the Pacific Ocean. It's actually quite impressive the first time you walk through it.

Just as we were about to approach the end of the tunnel, we saw a guy and a girl hanging out near the sand while smoking a questionable substance. The girl exhaled just in time to warn us about Pterodactyls loose on the beach. Apparently, she didn't get the memo that they are extinct. Or maybe she just scored some really good stuff.

Not My Left Foot