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From Photo Sanity

Pretty in Pink

From Photo Sanity

One of the first things you can visit when you enter the San Diego Zoo is the Flamingo Lagoon. I have spent hours there trying to get decent photos of them, so much so that sometimes I have to remind myself that there is much more to see or I might not get anywhere else. On this trip there were many flamingos sleeping close to the boardwalk and I was able to capture this one peeking out of its feathers as if to say “Do you mind? I am trying to sleep!”

Flame Hills

From Photo Sanity

April 2008 - Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, Lancaster, California

Each spring if the conditions are right, many areas of California blaze with color thanks to the California poppies. I had been to Antelope Valley previously and thought it was spectacular but nothing prepared me for what I was about to see when I got there this year. It was clear one day and we could see the orange of the hills from almost 8 miles away (no, I am not exaggerating!). This was taken from about 2 miles away in the areas surrounding the Reserve, these lands are riddled with dirt roads and are also great places to explore when the conditions are right. It was a wonderful weekend and people who know better than I said it wasn’t the best they had seen there. I hope to one day get there when it is “the best” but if this wasn’t it sure made me happy!

Costas Hummingbird on Ocotillo

From Photo Sanity

March 14, 2009

Was at the Anza Borrego Visitor Center to photograph sunrise and instead found this Costas Hummingbird sitting on an Ocotillo Cactus Flower. It sat there for a few minutes allowing me to photograph to my heart’s content. This was the best of the bunch - of course I could have used a 600mm with extensions but I did the best I could.

Desert in Bloom

From Photo Sanity

March 21, 2009

I was in Anza Borrego Desert State Park this past weekend - a bit past the prime wildflower season but just in time for the cactus bloom. This is a barrel cactus. I like the juxtaposition of the flower against the spines.

Red Panda - Sacramento Zoo

From Photo Sanity

I had only been to the Sacramento Zoo once before for a fundraiser and didn’t even realized they had Red Panda’s there. It was a cold overcast day and most of the animals were inside staying warm, but when we got to the pandas they were out “doing laps”, walking up and down their enclosure branches and stopping to munch on some branches. They were great fun to watch and at one point, it seemed that this one was looking straight at me. Its my favorite shot of the series.

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge - Hawk? Eagle?

From Photo Sanity

Help! I am not very good at identifying birds. I have 4 guidebooks and I still can't figure out if this is a Red tailed or Red shouldered Hawk or a Golden or Immature Bald Eagle. Does anyone out there know? (Thanks to Larry Jordan we now know its a Red Tailed Hawk)

This photo was taken at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, north of Williams, California in late December. At this time of year the Refuge is full of geese that winter here. The sheer number of geese brings in the predators and I have been privileged to see Bald Eagles, Northern Harriers, and Peregrine Falcon here. The geese themselves are pretty impressive too!

Little Sur River - Big Sur, California

From Photo Sanity

We all have our favorite places - places that draw us back over and over again - for me this is one of those places. Every time I drive through Big Sur I stop in the same place and take the same basic photo. However, it’s always different - depending on the time of year, the tides, and the weather, it changes. This photo, taken in 1993, is still one of my personal favorites; probably because it was the first time I remember seeing this area and the rarity (at least for my trips) of actually having a blue sky instead of the marine layer.

Chasing Fall Color in the Snow - Hope Valley, CA

From Photo Sanity

October 11, 2008

I get what I call brain fades sometimes, a wild idea to go do something sort of spur of the moment - this was one of those times. I decided one night that I would go in search of fall color early the next day outside of Lake Tahoe, California.

I knew that there was possibility of an early season snow but didn't think it would amount to much. So I was a little surprised when I found roads covered with snow, snow plows and sand trucks out in force, and chain control in effect. However, I love snow and I had warm clothing in the car so it was more fun than you might think

From Photo Sanity

It was fairly early on Saturday so there wasn't much traffic and there is something insular about a snow storm - it makes you feel like you are the only one around, a sort of soothing quiet feeling. I basked in the sensation while I wandered around looking for opportunities that would show the contrast of snow with the fall color. Another day in awe of the wonderful acts of nature - feeling lucky to be alive!