Happy Summer Solstice

A Summer Evening at Hawk Hill

The Golden Gate Bridge and The City at Sunset

Bridge and City Lights (45 Min Later)

View of the City from "Little Willow"

San Francisco at Dawn

Dawn Serenity

Golden Gate Bridge at Sunrise

Dusk Serenity

Golden Gate Bridge Basking in Dusk Sky

New Views from An Old Favorite

The views from Grizzly Peak Boulevard have changed since my school days and they are as spectacular as ever.

View of the Bay from Grizzly Peak Boulevard

Closeup of the Bay Bridge and the San Francisco Skyline 

The Long and Winding Road

Now that's a road for a roadster. Maybe it's the abundance of roads like this one that explains the large number of roadsters in a town where precipitation days consistently outnumber sunny days in a year.

Thirsty?

The water flow over Niagara Falls peaks during late spring and early summer. Up to 20,000 cuft or over 500,000 liters of water fell over the crest of Niagara Falls while this picture was taken (1/10 s exposure).

The Canadian Horseshoe Fall of Niagara Falls

The North Face

of Mount Hood on a clear spring morning.

Mt Hood with Mt Jefferson, the Three Sisters, and Mt Bachelor in the Background

After the Storm

Mt Hood from Southern Washington

Roll On You Bears!

Best of luck to the California Golden Bears Women Basketball team at their first Final Four this weekend in New Orleans!

(Oski) Bear is a little sad about the semifinal loss
after an exciting game.

Sixth Sense

She seems to be whispering to him "I see dead people". 

Nightlife under Cherry Blossoms at Portland Waterfront Park

Sakura in Portland

Cherry Blossom and the White Stag Sign

Portland Convention Center and Sakura Blossoms

Waves or No Waves

Drag the green line or the box to the left or right to see if you like the picture better with waves or without waves. "Before and After" javascript courtesy of CatchMyFame. (No Waves was shot w/ a 10 stop ND filter.)

Scenes from Highway 101

Still Waters off Northern California Coast - False Klamath Cove

The history of the steamer Mary D Hume is quite amazing. Built in 1881, she first served as a cargo ship hauling goods between Oregon and San Francisco, then as a whaler in Alaska, as a service vessel in the Alaskan cannery trade, and lastly as a tugboat until 1977 when she retired to her home in Gold Beach. Sadly she sank in 1985 in the Roque River. Full history can be found here.

Steamer Mary D Hume in Rogue River in Gold Beach, OR

My New Pet Cat

Peril of Nearsightedness

This is how I see the Golden Gate Bridge without my contacts. Roll your mouse over the picture for the view of the Bridge after I put on my contacts...

Roll Your Mouse over Picture for with/without Contacts View

Sakura in Japantown

Cherry Blossoms are starting to bloom in San Francisco Japantown. 

Cherry Blossoms with the Peace Pagoda in the Background

Fog in the City

When the San Francisco side of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area is fogged in, it's a good time to head up to Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands.

Fog Flowing Down Marin Headlands

The Sun Broke Through the Clouds Right around Sunset

End of an Era

After 76 years, there are no more human toll collectors on the Golden Gate Bridge.  Early morning on March 27, 2013 the Bridge switched to automatic toll collection. Here is one last picture of the afternoon rush hour at the Golden Gate Bridge. Question(s) remain: Will the inbound traffic be less congested in the future? And do drivers of brand new cars (with no license plates yet) and who don't have FasTrak get a free ride? 

Evening Rush Hour Traffic on Last Day before Automatic Toll Collection

Two for One

Middle Harbor Shoreline Park is tucked away in the Port of Oakland and offers a great view of the skyline of San Francisco, the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge, and the Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day.

San Francisco Skyline, the Bay Bridge, and the Golden Gate Bridge behind the Bay Bridge.

"Close-up" of the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge

Dusk at Sutro Baths

Sutro Baths at Lands End is a great place to watch sunsets and people who enjoy experiencing nice sunsets.

Couple sharing a Sunset Moment at Sutro Baths.

Sutro Baths at Blue Hour

The "Other" Bridge

It may not be as photogenic as the other bridge spanning a nearby gate, but at twilight the Bay Bridge is glamorous, too.

The Western Span of the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge at Dusk

The Bay Bridge and San Francisco Skyline.

Day's End

After a day of grey sky, the sunset was a nice surprise.

Colorful Sky over Golden Gate Bridge and Albany Bulb

Crescent Moon over the City

It was a little early to catch the the full effect of city lights, but the waxing crescent moon was sitting beautifully over the Bay Bridge. 

San Francisco Skyline rising behind Bay Bridge

View of the City from Texas

Texas Street, that is.  View of the City during evening rush hour while the fog is rolling in. 

San Francisco Skyline from Potrero Hill

Waiting for the Sun

While waiting for the sunrise took advantage of the changing light to use some neutral density filters.

San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge West Span (Still dark 45 min to sunrise, no filters)

San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge West Span (about 15 min to Sunrise: .6 GND, .9 ND)

Ferry Building (about 15 min to Sunrise: .6 GND, .9 ND)

Sun is finally up (.6 GND)

Lombard at Dusk

Lombard Street at Dusk with the Cable Cars of the Powell-Hyde Line

Bridge Art

The west span suspension cables of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge are lit up as the latest art project by famed artists Leo Villareal. 25,000 individually programmable lights turns the Bay Bridge the into world largest illuminated sculpture for (at least) the next two years. The official debut will be Tuesday March 5, at 8:30pm.

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge lit by 25,000 lights

Firefall

For a few weeks around Valentine's Day, Horsetail Falls in Yosemite National Park turns itself into a natural firefall as a result of the setting sun reflecting off the waterfall off El Capitan. Made famous by Galen Rowell in 1973 (Natural Firefall photograph), innumerable photographers try to capture the firefall year after year. This winter, Yosemite saw relatively little snow and as a result the firefall looks less spectacular than other years. Nevertheless, here is a shot close to the end of this year's term when the spectacle is visible.

Horsetail Fall "Natural Firefall" 2013

Chinese New Year Parade

The annual San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade which started around the time of the Gold Rush is 1860s is estimated to draw over a million visitors to San Francisco downtown streets for an evening spectacle. This is San Francisco welcoming the Year of the Snake.

One of the many dragons

Parade of the Lions

Beauty and the ... eh... Lion

More View(s) of the City

View of San Francisco from Pier 7 with the Transamerica Pyramid in the center and Coit Tower on the right.

San Francisco Skyline from Pier 7 at Dusk

Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park

It was a little early in the season to visit Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park as many roads and attractions were still closed. However the sites to the Giant Sequoia trees were open. The Giant Sequoia trees may not be as tall as the Redwood trees along the California coast, but they are definitely larger by volume, and diameter.

General Grant Giant Sequoia
in Kings Canyon National Park
The 3rd largest tree in the world
(by volume)

General Sherman Giant Sequoia
in Sequoia National Park
The largest tree in the world
(by volume)

Person standing at the base of General Grant

Inside a fallen Giant Sequoia

Person at opening of
fallen Giant Sequoia

The General Highway