Last of 2010 and Christmas

Here are some shots from this holiday season. Most of these were taken around my house before and during the recent blizzard.

Rancho Palos Verdes - Is this LA?

Some family had recently relocated to Rancho Palos Verdes in Los Angeles. I had never been to this part of LA, and it is very different than any other part of LA. The first few shots below are of a fountain found in one of the shopping centers at the base of the hill.

The sunset that first night and the sunrise that next morning, were the most vivid of the trip. It is not often you have that deep of a red in the sky.

The Point Vicente Lighthouse, was just 10 minutes from the house, so this was a favorite subject to shoot. The first shot below, was taken on our first night. The sun made the cliff glow in this amazing golden light, as shown below.

Wayfarers Chapel is located on one of the hillsides in Rancho Palos Verdes. It is used often in movie shoots, and commercials. The church has massive glass windows, and a mostly glass roof. It is a very intimate setting, as the pews can really only accomodate 72 people, with some standing room available at the back.

Los Angeles - Around the town

The following photos were taken around the coast of Los Angeles, mostly in Santa Monica and Manhattan Beach.

The shot directly below, was taken in Santa Monica, where a memorial is setup each weekend to show the human cost of war. The red crosses represent 10 soldiers each.

On our last night in LA, we went to Manhattan Beach, where the Pier makes for an amazing subject. We arrived shortly before sunset, and stayed well past the point when the sun had fallen beyond the horizon. Everyone always asks, "How do you get those vivid sunset images?", well the secret is, "Stay past the actual sun setting - the bending of the sun's rays over the horizon is what makes the vivid colors in the sky." There were many people along the beach and the pier when I started this evening, but by the time I had shot the last image below, there were less than five of us still on the beach.

The image below is a much longer exposure than the one above, notice how the reflection of the lamp posts changes as the exposure time increases.

Sedona, AZ - Mornings

Usually on vacation, I try to catch the sunrise and sunset each day. The advantage of traveling to the west coast is that I have the time difference to my advantage. The unfortunate side to that, is that I end up waking up so early. On this vacation, that was usually 4:30am, even though the sun didn't rise until 6:45am.

Because there is not a natural horizon in the valleys, the sunsets and sunrises were not as grand as you get on the coasts. Nevertheless, the sun at a low angle, is always good light to shoot in, as can be seen in the shots below.

Sedona, AZ - Pink Jeep Tour

On our first full day in Sedona, we went on a Pink Jeep tour. The tour consisted of the Broken Arrow jeep trail, and a ride up Schnebly Hill Road.

Along the ride, the driver points out some of the recognizeable rock formations, directly below is Snoopy Rock and the one below that is the Indian Head on the rock. Further down below is Barney rock.

The view below is called "four points", see if you can make them all out.

Not sure what the real name of the formation below, but I'm going to call it pipe organ rock, as all of those individual tall formations remind me of a pipe organ.

The tree below is growing out of solid rock. One of the strangest sights I've ever seen.

The shot below is purposely dark, so that you can make out Barney Rock, the rocks make it look like Barney from the Flintstones.