OpenRoadTV talks with Michael Adams

Yosemite Night and Day

Sunday I drove to Yosemite just for the night. Just like last year in June I went to capture a Lunar Rainbow or Moonbow. This time I went in May on the night after the full moon. The difference from the two months June and May, May has a lot more water coming out of the waterfalls. Here is a link to last years post on Lunar Rainbows or Moonbows June 2008.

Here is a Shot that I took from the pathway in Cooks Meadow parallel to the Merced River. It was almost 2:00 AM and the Moonbow was starting to disappear.

This video was shot on the same day May 11, 2009. It is a 360º view from the highest point on Sentinel Dome.

Sentinel Dome 360º from KiHo on Vimeo.

Sentinel Dome 360º May 11, 2009

Schmap Destination Guide: Photo Inclusion

Pumpkin Pile
Originally uploaded by Kirk Howard

One of my photographs has been selected to be included for the Schmap Destination Guide.

I have personally never used this guide before, but I checked them out to make sure it was on the up and up. It seems to be directed to the mobile phone market specifically the iPhone.

I have included the letters that were sent to me via Flickr mail.

************************************************************************

From: Emma J. Williams
Subject: Schmap: San Francisco Photo Short-list


Hi Kirk,

I am writing to let you know that one of your photos has been short-listed for inclusion in the sixth edition of our Schmap San Francisco Guide, to be published mid-March 2009.

www.schmap.com/shortlist/p=66304943N00/c=SJ20012965

Clicking this link will take you to a page where you can:
i) See which of your photos has been short-listed.
ii) Submit or withdraw your photo from our final selection phase.
iii) Learn how we credit photos in our Schmap Guides.
iv) Browse online or download the fifth edition of our Schmap San Francisco Guide.

While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure, and are free of charge to readers. Photos are published at a maximum width of 150 pixels, are clearly attributed, and link to high-resolution originals at Flickr.

Our submission deadline is Tuesday, February 24. If you happen to be reading this message after this date, please still click on the link above (our Schmap Guides are updated frequently - photos submitted after this deadline will be considered for later releases).

Best regards,

Emma Williams,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides
www.schmap.me/emma.williams

***************************************************************************

From: Emma J. Williams
Subject: Schmap San Francisco Sixth Edition: Photo Inclusion


Hi Kirk,

I am delighted to let you know that your submitted photo has been selected for inclusion in the newly released sixth edition of our Schmap San Francisco Guide:

Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival
www.schmap.com/sanfrancisco/events_outandabout/p=20581/i=20581_4.jpg

If you use an iPhone or iPod touch, then this same link will take you directly to your photo in the iPhone version of our guide. On a desktop computer, you can still see exactly how your photo is displayed and credited in the iPhone version of our guide at:

Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival
www.schmap.com/?m=iphone#uid=sanfrancisco&sid=events_outandabout&p=20581&i=20581_4

Finally, if you have a blog, you might also like to check out the customizable widgetized version of our Schmap San Francisco Guide, complete with your published photo:

www.schmap.com/guidewidgets/p=66304943N00/c=SJ20012191

Thanks so much for letting us include your photo - please enjoy the guide!

Best regards,

Emma Williams,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides
www.schmap.me/emma.williams

Reflection at Dawn

Reflection at Dawn
Originally uploaded by Kirk Howard

An early February snowy morning in Yosemite National Park. This is a photo from Stoneman Bridge take with my Panasonic Point n Shoot.

What attracted me to this image is the glassy calm of the Merced River and the dawn colors in the reflection.

Holiday Message...

24 Beams of Light...

This was my first year to Pigeon Point Light Station to watch and photograph the light of the old first order Fresnel lens. It was a fantastic opportunity to capture the beams of light emanate from the 24 prism panels in the lens.

They light was lit at 6pm and for the first five minutes they held the carriage still to keep the lens from rotating. Giving an untold amount of photographers the opportunity to capture 24 beams of light. After the first five minutes the lens rotates beaming a signature flash of light every ten seconds.

The closer you stood the lighthouse structure the more the beams were pronounced. It was amazing to see the beams of light streak past on the distant hillsides and in the ocean.
In the lantern room the bull’s-eye lens is 100' above ground to the focal plane of the lens. Also 150' (about) above sea level to the focal plane of the lens. This height compensates for the curvature of the earth. On a clear night, light has a visual distance of 24 miles from the ocean.

It was announced on Saturday that this might be the last lighting of the Pigeon Point Lighthouse Lantern. With further investigation it may be discontinued until the necessary renovations are completed to fix the damaged lighthouse structure.

The reason why they may not light the lamp in 2009 is a safety issue and not a cost issue. The Coast Guard engineering studies report the structure may collapse if an earthquake or a very strong wind storm were to batter the lighthouse.

Over the years the sea spray and salt air have slowly decayed the exterior structure. In 2001 part of the west facing caprice fell (cornice on the exterior of the lighthouse fell off). The result was the closure of the Lighthouse Structure to the public.

According to Staff and California State Parks, lack the funding needed it to fix the lighthouse and lantern room. Current estimated figures are around 5 million dollars to repair and renovate the structure and rework the lens. Most of the funds required, have to be provided by private funding.
Donations can be made to restore the Pigeon Point Light Station or to Cal. State Parks Foundation.

Photographer of Light…

One of Magellan’s favorite artists is Thomas Kinkade, the Painter of Light. She loves him so much just his spoken name wants to make her puke. Actually even though Magellan thinks the guy is paint by numbers artist, she admires his business skills and the ability to make a fortune out of a pile of crap.

Last weekend for our anniversary we drove south on Hwy 1 on our way to Cambria. During our trip we stopped (Forced at Lens Point) at famous landmarks i.e. Bixby Bridge, Point Sur Light Station and Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.

Last year I set out to work on a photography project. This project was to help me keep my focus on an idea while improving my photography skills. My project I selected for myself was to photograph all the California Lighthouses and Light Stations.

During the Point Sur stop we took a Three Hour Tour of the Light Station. The Point Sur State Park offers two tours, one at 10:00AM and another at 2:00PM. Once you begin the tour you can’t leave, nor can you not go and stay in your car. This tour is either all or none. I recommend the tour it is well done and the restoration is almost complete.

The Point Sur stop gave me the opportunity to get closer to completing my project. While on the tour I made the remark I was the Photographer of Light. It was a spoof of Thomas Kinkade and his paintings of Lighthouses.

Here are some images I have taken since I started. One of my favorites is not of the Lantern (light) itself, but of the glass prisms from the Prism Deck at Point Sur Light Station. To see more images got to my Flickr Set California Lighthouses.

Have a good weekend…

Pigeon Point Light Station
Point Arena Lighthouse

Moonbow...

Moonbow sounds like the name of one of Frank Zappas daughters...

The dynamics of my office are changing, and my bosses, boss suggested I take a few days off. Because they don’t know if I will get any time off in the near future. I took advantage of the offer and decided to take the last two days of last week off. This coincided with the June full moon.

Armed with the knowledge of a full moon and the understanding that Magellan had to work. I decided to take another trip to Yosemite Valley, alone. Last month when Magellan and I were in Yosemite it was also a full moon, but unfortunately I didn’t know about the “Lunar Rainbow” phenomenon. I found out about it after I got back to the house. However, this month I knew about it and was given the time to take advantage of the moon.

On Wednesday late afternoon I made reservations at Housekeeping campsite, and I think I got the last site available. Its summer and every hotel, cabin and campsite are booked through the summer and early fall.

I walked over to the Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite Village. If you are a photographer and find yourself in the Yosemite Valley, you need to make a stop at the Gallery. Not only is it a good place to cool down on a hot summer day, but it is a valuable fountain of knowledge. Most of the Ansel Adams Gallery staff are photography students or professionals. With very little coaxing they are willing to share their knowledge and expertise for free.

Example: I walked to the gallery and talked to the lady behind the photo counter. I told her that I had made the journey for the “Lunar Rainbow”. Immediately she told me that the previous night was the actually the full moon, but I should still get some good shots.

I explained that this was my fist time… taking lunar rainbow images, and before I could get the last syllable out she laid down a list of tips. The most important tip was the time. I knew the moon would rise around 9:30~10:00 PM. Yes it does for the rest of the world, but in the Yosemite Valley it has to clear the south rim. Which translates to several hours later. On Wednesday full moon for the Valley was around midnight. The next night, the night I was there, it was expected to be an hour later at 1:00 AM. I also asked for some tips and tricks.

My first image was shot with an ISO of 400. With and exposure of 101.0 seconds and an aperture of f/3.5. I didn’t want to blow it so I made sure I was wide open to get the image. As the night or morning progressed and I became more confident, I changed my ISO to 200, but kept the aperture wide open.

I shot from three different locations. Each time I changed location, I moved closer to the river and further away from the falls. My final position I found a flat boulder about 10 feet into the river. It was the perfect platform to set up shop. This allowed me to have more of the river flow in my image.

For my fist attempt I will say I didn’t do a bad job. However I did make some notes for next time. I would use a small aperture like f/16 or f/22 to give greater Depth of Field. I would also use a wider angle lens. I was used an 18mm ~ 200mm lens, set to 18mm. If I had a little wider lens I could have incorporated more of the night sky. Last, I would have done this at full moon in May. But I understand on the night of the full moon in May with the melt off water flow at full throttle that over 800 photographers were present to capture the event. More people then I would want to deal with.

Buenos dias...

Good Morning,

Here I am at work waiting for the opening bell to ring. I looked out the bay window as the sun was rising, and this is what I saw @ 5:59AM.

“Hey Taylor” didn’t you say you wanted to see more boats?

Mirror, Mirror…

Here is a picture taken in Yosemite Valley National Park last weekend. We happened to be walking on the southwest bank of the Merced River. The river was calm the surface was glassy smooth. I set up my tripod and snapped a few incredible images. Can you figure out if this picture is right side up or up side down? Hint look at the lighter spot in the upper middle left of the image.

Later in the day we hiked to Mirror Lake at the base Half Dome’s front side. They name Mirror Lake was chosen because of the reflected image that can be seen of Half Dome in the very calm lake.

Unfortunately the pictures we took didn’t turn out as expected. The water level in the lake was low and the surface was partially covered in ice. The best time to photograph half dome is when the lake is at its fullest, in late spring.

To get a good mirror image you have to break one of the golden rules in photography. In order to get it to look like a mirror image you line the shot up right in the middle. The will give you an equal amount of mirror image.

Abracadabra...!

As the sun sets and the light starts to fade I witnessed a migration of animals. This wasn’t any ordinary animal this was the stalking photographer.

My wife and I had just emerged from the trail on our way back from the base of Yosemite Falls. We decided to cross north side drive and head into the meadow (sentinel meadow). The meadow was covered with snow. In some places we sank up to our hips in snow. This would make for some great pictures in the fail afternoon light.

As I set up my camera on my tripod to take some pictures of Half Dome and the surrounding landscape, I witnessed a migration of photographers about 100 yards in front of my position. I would say there were about 30 or 40 photographers marching in a straight line into the middle of the meadow.

I thought this was a peculiar image so I captured the moment, of photographers lined up to take pictures of half dome. Once I got the shot I was looking for, I grabbed my gear and took my place in formation along the line.

Once I got set up I asked Kevin, a photographer from Fresno what was going on. He explained that during certain times of the year, as the sun sets, the last rays of light hit the upper part of the Yosemite Valley and turns Half Dome a reddish orange color. He continued to explain that capturing the image is a rare event due to the time of year (February) and weather related issues. Fortunately we were in the right place at the right time and it was going to be a good day to get a good photograph. The weather had cooperated all day and the sky was clear, almost too clear.

As time moved on and the valley darkened, we waited patiently in the cold. Did I mention that we are at 4000 feet elevation and in the middle of winter? Yes, it was cold and as soon as the sunlight disappeared in the valley floor the temperature dropped fast.

Finally, as we watched the shadow creep up the face, and you think that the magic light or as they put it the “color” wasn’t going to happen. Poof it happens. You see the color change on the face of Half Dome from the granite gray to a light pinkish orange. The color continues to deepen to a reddish orange. The “color” only lasts for a few minutes, and then it’s gone.
Once the last of the magic color had gone, the herd of photographers packed up the 200+ thousands worth of photo gear, and retreated to the warmth of their cars. Since my arse was already frozen to point of no feeling, I decided to wait out the light and try to capture Half Dome in the very last light of the day.

I forgot about the feet. I couldn’t do it. I had to leave before I wanted to. My feet lost feeling, and I knew when that happened I was toast. I had to abandon my post and retreat to the warmth of the Element, and change my wet socks. At that point I was done.

¡Feliz Año 2008!...

An early morning image of the Golden Gate Bridge 45 minutes before sunrise. Happy New Year…

This image is actually take several minutes later further up the road. I have not converted the (RAW) image I really want to post into a usable jpeg. When I get it converted I will post that image... It's much better.

Image UpDate 05-2008

Surf City…

Photo by: Kirk Howard Copyright© 2007

Surf City here I come… Jan and Dean immortalized Surf City, written by Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. I imaging they are talking about Huntington Beach and not Santa Cruz.

There is a hot debate going on between the two cities, about which city is to be claimed as Surf City. The debate started in 2005 when Huntington Beach decided they wanted to patient the Surf City U.S.A. for themselves. Christina Glynn says "Wherever the waves are good and you're feeling in the mood to enjoy the surroundings, that's where Surf City is." I think Christina may have something there.

If you would like to read the article and decide for yourselves here it is. Settling the Surf City debate through 80-year-old news article.
"Surf City" article - found reference as early as 1904

Jay Tyrrell...

What’s in a name? Well I have been inspired and intrigued by one of my coworkers. He is an older gentleman that has been working for my company for a few years. I really have just met him.

One day while he was standing looking out one of the large plate glass windows, I approached him. I was just curious to inspect what had caught his eye on the San Francisco Bay. There was a large Norwegian flagged container ship passing in front of our office building. On this container ship were very large blades of those ginormous wind turbines that you would see stalking the windy hills and ridges of the East Bay.

It turns out that this co-worker is an avid photographer. He specializes in large format panoramic images. He is still shooting on film. He has been shooting with one particular camera for years. He says “It’s perfect for the type of shot I am trying to capture”. “The camera gives me more of a cinematographer feel of an elongated movie screen”.

He is working on a series called Wind Army. It is a compellation of Images that he has taken of wind turbines at various wind farms. He was interested in the ship carrying the blades from a turbine, because he said it would fit in his Wind Army series.

You can check out more of the images of Jays “Wind Army” series on his website. Plus you can check out some of his other work there as well. You can also check out Jay’s work on LensWork DVD: LensWork Extended - 72

Website: Jay Tyrrell
LensWork