Adventures of a Quantum Cowboy

Blog moved!

2008-08-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, the new domain space is finally here! This blog has officially moved to www.qcowboyphoto.com. It will be under some construction the next few days, but overall it is functional.

Please update your links, and I'll see you at the new site!

Gallery and Print Ordering

2008-06-17T21:43:00.003-07:00

Ok, so the gallery has moved back from Flickr to ExposureManager... enough people have asked whether or not I sell prints before, and the recent wedding shoot has sort of pushed the potential demand up further, so I'm back to selling prints if anyone is interested. Please click the Gallery link at right on the navigation bar or point your browser to www.qcowboyphoto.com.

I eventually plan to merge the blog and gallery into one site at the new domain, though I don't see this as immediately necessary.

Almost done with the wedding photos... whew, I can see now why wedding photographers charge what they do... As per a license agreement, I will be posting certain images to the public portfolio folder on the gallery. About 260 digital keepers, and 59 Kodak Pro Tri-X 400 film keepers (out of 61... get *that* ratio on your digital...). Some of the better ones will be blogged about here of course.

Update

2008-06-15T11:29:00.000-07:00

Long time no update.... but now that theater is over for the summer, I've had a lot more time to devote to photography.

Upcoming soon: my first wedding shoot (w00t!), a historical tour of LA (done in black and white film with no light meter), and some shots from the beautiful mountain areas off of CA-126.

Stay tuned!

Poppies, my pretty, poppies!

2008-04-17T23:54:00.000-07:00

HPPS_0004, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

No wicked witch here to add a bit of danger, but the colors at the poppy reserve a couple of weeks ago were fantastic. The Antelope Valley California State Poppy Reserve blooms every spring in an explosion of wildflowers, mainly in the yellow, orange, and purple range. The orange ones are, of course, the state flower and Dorothy's bane, the poppy.

There's a fair amount of wind out there during the day, so unless you get out there real early, plan on using fast shutter speeds and Image Stabilization if you've got it. During the blooming season, there is a fair amount of traffic out there, and you'll find it impossible to get shots without any people in them (again, unless you get out there early morning). However, in a lot of the ones I took, the people added a great sense of perspective and scale, so it really isn't all a bad thing.

The flowers attract plenty of interesting insects and beautiful butterflies on the leeward sides of the hills, which means the birds that eat them are around too. Bring both a long and a short lens because of this. Landscapes traditionally call for wide angle, but this and every other shot on the roll are with my 70-300... its a matter of framing, and if course Image Stabilization is a bonus. The circular polarizer really makes those clouds pop against a darkened blue sky.

Only three uploaded for now, more on the way as I get them through the scanner and PSPXI for cropping, straightening, and some sharpening to compensate for my crappy scanner.... no saturation boost necessary for these colors! Superia is great at getting true warm colors anyway, so I hardly ever need any at all, unlike the XTi, which needs some fiddling in post-process.

Get out there fast, the blooms won't last long!

Camera: Canon EOS Elan 7ne
Lens: Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Film: Fujicolor Superia 200
(circular polarizer)

Antelope Valley California State Poppy Reserve
Lancaster, CA

Red Rock in Black and White

2008-04-05T11:11:00.000-07:00

HPPS_0006, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

Camera: Pentax ME Super
Lens: Pentax-M 50mm f/2.0 manual
Film: Ilford Pan-F 50
1/125s at f/8

We started the day early, leaving Palmcaster around 6:30am. I knew sunrise was at about 7:30, but wasn't really looking to catch the event itself... that magical morning light that photographer always rave about on forums is what I was after. From previous experience, my Nissan Sentra I knew was not the best offroading vehicle, so this time around I managed to convince my friend Andrew that we should take his truck and try it out on the rugged roads of the Red Rock backcountry, on the CA-14 just north of the California City junction.

About the time we reached Mojave, everyone in the truck (Andrew drove) was in a bad way for some breakfast and coffee, so we stopped and acquired a hefty supply of both. When we arrived at the cliffs, full and caffeinated, the soft light of the early to mid morning was perfect. We left the truck in a clearing and began walking the blasted terrain.

It was like an alien world... dead silence but for a slight beeeze and the occasional conversation, fantastic rock formations, and all over specimens of those hardy yet beautiful species that want to live enough to thrive in the desert. A large part of the park, especially near the cliffs, was closed to visitors due to raptor breeding season.... note to self, bring the telephoto in the summer!

I chose this photo to blog about because you can see the range of capability for the film. There are some possibly more interesting shots on my Flickr gallery.

I LOVE THIS FILM!!!! Note the wide range of tonal detail; exposing for the middle tones, this film gets you true black in the crevices at left, and a nice luster on the brighter cliff walls at right. What grain you might be able to make out probably reflects more on the quality of my scanner than the film, as the prints I have are brilliant.

Ilford Pan-F 50 cost me $7.50/36 at King Photo. Post-processing true black and white film is more expensive than normal 35mm color film. If I recall right, it was about $12.00 for developing and a contact sheet, and something like $1.30 per 4x6.

I just bought another roll.... can't wait to use this film again!

Red Rock in color

2008-04-05T10:47:00.000-07:00

DPP_0001, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

Last month I took a trip up to Red Rock to try out this new film I found, Ilford Pan-F 50. But wouldn't you know it, I left the film at home... Doh! Luckily I had taken my XTi along as a sighting/backup body, so I was still able to shoot. Here is one of the better ones.

Camera: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
Lens: Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM
Red Rock Canyon State Park, California

Last weekend I made up again, remembering the film this time. Scanning as I type this, so stay tuned....

Sorry no posts in awhile, its been the month from hell so far.

Lunar Eclipse

2008-02-22T18:07:00.001-08:00

2/20/08 Lunar Eclipse, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

For those of you who didn't look to the sky on Wednesday, you missed a great show. A total lunar eclipse, which won't happen again for three years, bathed the full moon in a red hue... spectacular hanging up there on a clear desert night.

This shot was taken in a great hurry believe it or not. I was late for rehearsal (starts at 7pm on Wednesdays) but I couldn't resist grabbing the tripod out of the trunk to set up a few shots. I only got six or seven before I had to run, and I think this is one of the best.

Had I time, I would have tried to set up a shot of it with the mountains as a foreground, or perhaps a Joshua tree... oh well. Do what you can right? Good thing I had my camera with me on the off chance the shuttle might land at Edwards that day... no luck on that, but got this shot out of it!

Camera: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
Lens: Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

Tv(Shutter Speed)
1.3Sec.
Av(Aperture Value)
F5.6
Exposure Compensation
-2
ISO Speed
400
Focal Length
300.0 mm

More photos from this and other collections are available at QuantumCowboy's Flickr Gallery.

High Contrast Trees

2008-02-17T17:42:00.001-08:00

DPP_NZ02_0014, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

These trees were up against the sun near One Tree Hill. A slight underexposure resulted in this nice, high -contrast shot. I warmed the color temperature a bit in PSPXI. Make sure to use a filter before shooting into the sun like this... you could damage your eyes or your equipment!

Camera: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
Lens: Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM

Auckland, New Zealand

More photos from this and other collections are available at QuantumCowboy's Flickr Gallery.

One Tree Hill

2008-02-17T16:43:00.001-08:00

One Tree Hill, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

This is the famous One Tree Hill in Auckland, New Zealand. The hill area is lush and green, much like most of the rest of the country, and one climbs a narrow road winding through grazing sheep to reach the spectacular panoramic view of the city from the top. Apparently, there used to actually be a single tree at the top of One Tree Hill, but for some reason or another somebody cut it down. Oops. I'll bet everyone hates that guy. In any case, the monument they put up in its place is fairly impressive.

More photos from Auckland can be found on my Flickr gallery, in the New Zealand collection.

Back from Down-Under!

2008-01-01T16:23:00.000-08:00

I've returned from New Zealand and can't wait to get the photos up. I have to say that currently I'm convinced that NZ must be the most beautiful place in the world. Definitely worth it. Go. Right now.

The 70-300 IS was definitely the right purchase... image stabilization was a godsend. No time for tripods + low clouds on a couple days means I would have been dead in the water without it. I also tried something new: panoramas. I'll have to experiment with Canon Photostitch to see how to piece those long series together.

600+ images to post-process, so bear with me... I'll get them up as soon as I can. Photos will be uploaded to the Flickr gallery first, then a few will be blogged about here.

A Legend's Last Flight

2007-12-21T18:14:00.001-08:00

Gordo F/A-18 Flyby 2, originally uploaded by Quantum Cowboy.

What a happy coincidence that I brought my new telephoto to work today... it happened to be Gordon Fullerton's last flight at Dryden. Check out the blurb from the PACE office below:

Long-time Dryden research pilot and former astronaut Gordon Fullerton will fly his last NASA flight in a Dryden F/A-18 this morning, Dec. 21. Fullerton, who is retiring Dec. 31 after a more than 49-year career with NASA and the Air Force, and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka are scheduled to take off about 9 a.m. on a 75- to 90-minute pilot proficiency formation flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38.

Fullerton and the other pilots are tentatively slated to make a low-level formation flyover of Dryden prior to landing. An announcement will be made over Dryden's public address system about 5 minutes before the flyover occurs. Upon taxiing into the Dryden ramp, Gordon will be honored with a water-arch provided by two Fire/Rescue trucks from the Air Force Flight Test Center. All members of the Dryden family are encouraged to come out on the back ramp behind B/4800 to greet Fullerton upon his return.

A retired Air Force colonel, Fullerton was assigned to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969 after the Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory program to which he had been assigned was canceled. Fullerton served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986.

At Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of space shuttle landing gear components installed on a modified Convair 990 jetliner, the C-140 JetStar Laminar Flow Control, F-111 Mission Adaptive Wing, F-14 Variable Sweep Flow Transition, X-29 vortex flow control, the Russian Tu-144LL supersonic transport and Dryden's F-18 Systems Research Aircraft. He also was project pilot for a number of research efforts involving Dryden's now-retired B-52B mothership, and piloted NASA's DC-8 science laboratory on world-wide missions. Fullerton also served as Associate Director of Flight Operations and chief of the flight crew branch in recent years.

New Gallery

2007-12-20T20:56:00.000-08:00

My online gallery has moved from ExposureManager to a Flickr Pro account. You can visit it at the link below:

http://flickr.com/photos/quantumcowboy/

This gallery contains some of my better shots sorted by category. The photos posted in the gallery are of viewing resolution only. If you would like to order prints, please contact me.

I'm still working on the format and layout of the gallery, as well as the descriptions and tags of the photos. Should have all that done in January, when I return from down under. Enjoy in the meanwhile!

Telephoto Acquired

2007-12-20T20:25:00.000-08:00

I debated long and hard about which telephoto to get for my upcoming trip to New Zealand, and ended up choosing the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. The fairly long reach and the definite added bonus of the Image Stabilizer were prime factors in making the decision.

The close runner up was the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM, which besides being an Canon signature L-series white telephoto (the top of the line pro-grade), had constant aperture, superb clarity, and a non-rotating front piece (ring-type USM) as well. Surprisingly, this excellent piece of work was in a comparable price range to the 70-300 IS, which is a consumer-grade lens. The opportunity to purchase an L-series lens was difficult to pass up, but I sacrificed the superior build quality and slightly better image quality for the lighter weight, longer reach, and the IS feature, which is a huge advantage for wildlife and airshows and allows slower shutter speeds. For reference, a great debate about these lenses can be found on the Canon Digital Photography Forums. There is a nifty lens comparison tool which I used as well.

Other lenses I considered but eventually discarded before the final showdown were much less expensive:

Canon 75-300mm f/4.5-5.6 III USM (*not* recommended at all)
Canon 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM (pretty decent, but the IS seduced me)
Sigma 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 APO DG Macro (neat macro feature and good optics, but LOUD and SLOW autofocus)

The last two are decent lenses and should be considered if you are relatively new to SLR photography and/or on a budget and are looking for a telephoto in this range.

I purchased from King Photo Supply in Lancaster, CA for $650.00. This is more than what I could have gotten it for online, but several factors made me buy in person:

1. I could test out the lens on my camera against other lenses... important, especially for spending this much.
2. The personal advice and information from the experienced shop guys (who mostly know me by now) is invaluable.
3. It's good to support good locally-owned camera shops, especially if you're in the middle of nowhere like me, because otherwise someday the big online giants will put them out of business and you'll be stuck squinting at online pictures and trusting only user reviews for your pricey equipment.

So that's a wrap on this post. Look out for some nice telephoto shots from New Zealand when I return in January. Happy Holidays everyone!

Horses near Tehachapi / Arvin

2007-12-11T21:06:00.001-08:00

Snapped these with the XTi on the way home from Bakersfield. Why was I in the lovely teeming metropolis of Bakersfield you might ask? Federal court. Yay for speeding tickets on a government installation. (Talked a $291 fine and 3-day base driving suspension down to $90 and traffic school by the way).

This stretch of CA-58 connects Bakersfield to Mojave, and crosses the Tehachapi Pass through the mountains. Look for some snowy winter shots from there these next few months.

Taken with "Shade" white balance, cropped to square in PSPXI.
ISO 200 - 1/320 - f/9.0 - 70mm.

Taken in monochrome mode. UV filter only.
ISO 200 - 1/400 - f/8.0 - 105mm.

More Butterflies!

2007-12-10T18:03:00.001-08:00

Couldn't resist, they all turned out so well... here are a few more from the collection. Camera: Canon EOS Elan 7ne. Lens: Canon 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 USM.

New XTi

2007-12-10T17:57:00.000-08:00

I saw that the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi bodies had gone down in price, and so on a whim I bought one to replace the one I lost in the waterfall back in July. Definitely keeping the Elan though, film has it's own wonderful feel.

Butterflies!

2007-12-06T19:30:00.000-08:00

While I was in Boston, Emily took me to the science museum (boy does she know me). Much to my photographic delight, there was a butterfly garden that we could walk around in. Check out these shots with the Elan + Kodak Gold 200.

I Pahked the Cah in Hahvahd Yahd...

2007-11-09T20:03:00.000-08:00

A few shots from my trip to Boston last month. What a beautiful city! I loved it. Those of you who know me know that I'm awfully skeptical of that strange land east of Denver, as well as that other coast over there that sometimes comes up in conversation. But Boston blew me away for its fantastic food (my key factor), friendly people, and ample picturesque scenes for any photographer. (As an aside, if you're looking for good Indian food while you're in that area, see my post of 11/9/07 on Hartog's Den.)

These all with the Elan 7ne on Kodak Gold 200 and Kodak BW400CN.

Beautiful fall colors... hooray for lovely New England! This one in is actually on Harvard campus in Cambridge.

A churchyard in Boston at night.

The T is Boston's very clean and convenient public transit. Definitely worth not dealing with that traffic and those parking rates!

Walking through the Italian district in the North End is one of the best experiences your nose (and tastebuds) will have. The food here is *so* good... I don't even know where to start in describing it. I had better Italian food here than I did when I was in Italy (granted I was on a student budget when I was in Italy, but still).
Try the fettuccine napolitano at Cibo... heavenly. They had a fantastic pinot noir that went perfectly with it too. I don't remember the name, but it was the only pinot noir on their menu, so it should be easy to find.

Don't gorge on dinner too much... the canoli and dessert at this and other pastry shops is to die for. Mmmmm canoli... *so* not on my doctor-ordered low-cholesterol diet, but... whatever.

A cool graveyard in Cambridge. Em and I took a nice quiet walk through here one evening and I found it very picturesque.

A different graveyard in Boston, taken in black-and-white... I love how the light came out in this one. A little erie and a little beautiful. Note the "Franklin" tomb isn't Ben, who was of course from Philly; this grave is his parents. (Thanks to Emily for the historical note).

Back in action

2007-11-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the two month hiatus without any updates... work hit me like a tidal wave these last few weeks. I'm on three projects, and on top of that I've had to travel all over the place as well as keep up with my community theater committments. Oof! The good news is that I have indeed been taking pictures here and there this whole time, and I just got a bunch of rolls back from King that have been gathering up. So, coming soon: the Butterfly Garden at the Boston Science Center, a desert sunrise out by a farm, the old west town of Coloma, CA, and some nice B&W street photos from Boston.

Scanning, scanning, scanning....

N.

Leaving Ventura Harbor

2007-09-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

Looking off the side of the boat, the water was surprisingly still, and I snagged this shot while we were waiting to cast off.

Elan + Fujicolor Superia 200.

Sunset on the Islands

2007-09-06T22:13:00.000-07:00

Sunset from the Channel Islands backpacking trip... these from Del Norte Camp.

Elan + Fujicolor Superia 100
Tiffen Circular Polarizer

On the Trail: Del Norte, Santa Cruz

2007-09-06T21:59:00.000-07:00

Emily and I recently went backpacking on the Channel Islands, hiking to the Del Norte campsite on Santa Cruz island. A wonderfully romantic weekend of 1,200 ft climbs into the middle of nowhere carrying 35 lb packs so that we could get up at the buttcrack of dawn to photograph sunrises. And she hasn't broken up with me yet! See why I love her?

It was fantastic really. The whole time it really felt like we were the only ones on the entire island... there were only two other campers we saw. There is no fresh water along the trail or at the campsite (except maybe during a few weeks in spring). Pack in plenty of water and supplies, because the boat doesn't return until the next day! We took 7 liters of water, and used the better part of six with the hike in and out, normal drinking at camp, as well as for coffee and oatmeal in the morning.

These photos with the Elan + Fujicolor Superia 400.

The trail is arduous, especially with packs. The net 1,200 ft elevation gain over 4.5 miles includes descending into and climbing out of two canyons along the way. We were almost bushwacking at points.

A few signs along the way helped.

Spectacular mountain views... less spectacular on the way up than down as I recall.

Sunrise at Del Norte Camp.

On the Trail: Mt Waterman Sunrise Decent

2007-09-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

On the decent from Mt Waterman, we passed through several little valleys and canyons, most with some kind of yellow wildflower. I caught this bee up close. I really need a macro lens...

Elan + Fujicolor Superia 200

On the Trail: Mt Waterman Sunrise Climb, B&W Shots.

2007-09-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I went out to Mt Waterman at the butt-crack of dawn in an attempt to photograph the sunrise from the top. We left Palmdale at 4:00am... oof. Didn't quite make it to the peak by sunrise, but definitely got a lot of good photos. I'm still scanning the ones of the actual sunrise, but here are some B&W shots I took about an hour after sunrise in the slanted light.

Elan + 28-105mm + Kodak BW400CN

Is it me or is there a face in the one at left?

A curiously leaning tree. I like how it came out as a silhouette.

A stump.

Someone had built this contraption in attempt to extend the standing room at the peak, overlooking the valley. I didn't trust it, but it made a good photo in itself.

B&W is all about interesting exercises in contrast and luminosity.

TRAIL STATS:
Mileage: 7.0
Elevation delta: ~1,300 ft
Time on trail: 5 hrs (lots of photography stops)
Nearest highway: CA-2, mile marker 58.00

Update

2007-08-30T22:27:00.000-07:00

Photos from a sunrise climb of Mt. Waterman in Angeles National Forest, as well as 4 rolls from backpacking on the Channel Islands, should be posted this weekend. Safe travels everyone!

Sunset from Barrel Springs Trail

2007-08-17T18:08:00.001-07:00

Finished off the roll of Fujicolor Superia 100 with the sunset from Barrel Springs, just on the south end of Palmdale.

Castaic Lake

2007-08-17T06:05:00.000-07:00

Andrew and I decided to hit the lake last Saturday for some relaxation. He spent the day exploring the many mountain biking trails in the area while I hiked into the hills surrounding the lake and played photography. I took a small notebook this time to keep track of my settings for interesting shots.

Camera: Canon EOS Elan 7ne 35mm
Lens: Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM
Film: Fujicolor Superia 100

Many boats and jetskis use the upper part of the reservoir. Being an easy drive from LA as well as the AV, this place is pretty popular. We were almost alone when we arrived (~6:00am) but by mid-morning the upper lake was roaring with engines. Oh yeah, and one really annoying waterskiing group that was blasting music loud enough for me to rock out over a mile away and roughly 500 ft above in elevation.

A feather fallen on branches. I'm glad I caught it before the wind picked up and blew away the photo opportunity.

About half an hour after sunrise, looking over Castaic Lake.

Interesting color balance on this one. I think its the scanner, because the print doesn't have the weird blues at the top... I've noticed a weakness in differentiating blues on some others as well. I may pull back the cyan saturation and lightness in PSPXI and repost later.

There are many shaded groves up in the hills, which provided a welcome respite from the heat once the day got going. I caught this interesting light pattern on the rocks next to me... the blur may be a bit much here, I had it opened to f/3.5 intentionally to get some blur in the background, but it may actually almost have worked better with more of the rocks in focus. (shrug).

Scanner Finally Came!

2007-08-16T18:02:00.000-07:00

Picked up an HP Scanjet G3010 for around $100. It's not the most professional scanner in the world, but it easily gets me the resolution I had with the XTi in about 20 seconds per 4x6 print (3600x2400 pixels, scanned at 600dpi). The max is a 4200dpi scan! Though that max setting takes more RAM and time than I care to use... and seriously, a 4200ppi image? For what, like a 20 ft print? Oh well, will try out the new toy soon.

A Walk on the Beach

2007-08-12T18:21:00.000-07:00

I recently had the privilege of practicing my portrait photography on Danielle for the second time. After a few drinks and catching up on old times, I tried out the first full roll of film with my new Elan on my model friend. These are with the Elan 7ne, on Kodak Portra 160NC.

Exposure #1. I almost didn't even realize that I took it, the Elan is so quiet. I had to look at the exposure counter twice before I believed it. The camera operates so smoothly that I found myself having to actively refrain from blasting away on fully automatic.

Apparently she's found something interesting...

And as for the circular effect, holy vignetting Batman! This is not a post processing thing, but a result of a really wide aperture and really wide focal length. I was very surprised to see this. I know that certain lenses are designed for the smaller digital camera sensor cross-section, as opposed to the 35mm frame. My Sigma is one of them (the whole DC series is like this). However, I was not aware that this lens was anything but a normal Canon EF mount, and the Elan manual just says "Not Compatible with EF-S lenses". It's actually a neat effect, though I didn't intend it here. What I suspect is the case is that due to the difference in size between the 35mm frame and a digital sensor, focal lengths mean different things. I seem to remember reading somewhere that there is something like a 1.6 factor difference in effective focal length for digital SLRs. So my 28mm lens on the 35mm SLR is actually 17.5mm lens in the XTi world... essentially almost a fisheye in the terms in which I'm used to thinking. I'll have to be careful.

I couldn't tell what it was at this point, but it turned out that she found a bright blue rock, and was rather fascinated by it.

I thought it was a bead or something when I first saw it, but upon closer inspection it really was a very cool, natural pebble.

Beaches are fun (clearly). I really like how this one turned out, though I've received the suggestion that her right arm should not have been cut off. I also think that the vignetting does not add to the image in this case. Oh well, the shot was quick and the moment was fleeting. I'll try and compose better next time.

It works here though, IMHO.

The film worked out well. I like the low contrast and soft tones, it works well with people. I think maybe the Kodak Portra 160VC film may be better next time, over the NC... especially with that yellow top, some more color saturation would have been nice.

And all in all I'm definitely in love with my new camera... wonderful world of film, here I come!

Gallery and Print Ordering

2007-08-10T20:13:00.000-07:00

At long last I have gotten around to setting up an ExposureManager gallery. If you would like to see what I feel are my best photos and to order prints, check it out:

Adventures of a Quantum Cowboy: The Gallery.

The Ratnayake Estate

2007-08-02T17:43:00.000-07:00

My parents recently moved to El Dorado Hills, a small community outside of Sacramento. Here are some photos collected over multiple visits during the last several months.

My mom likes roses... could you tell?

You may recognize this birdhouse from previous bird shots in NorCal.

Backyard Effects.

A path fit for an emperor.

Roses inside against the light.

Dragonfly.

Summertime, and the livin's easy...

2007-07-31T20:15:00.000-07:00

A hot summer afternoon sitting on the backyard porch in Carmel, Indiana. All of these with the Pentax ME Super and Kodal Professional BW400CN film.

Mmmm ice cold juice.

A bird soars above.

Aspen and Roxie wrestling.

I didn't do anything, I promise!

Wet, Wild, and Making Some Changes

2007-07-31T18:13:00.000-07:00

So, fell down a waterfall last weekend... took a few bruises and cuts but no major damage to me. The camera it turns out is not so robust; long story short, the EF-S 18-55mm, the XTi body, a 2GB CF card, and a battery are being chalked up as total losses right now.

I debated replacing the XTi, but came to the conclusion that this is an opportunity to branch out. Thanks to digital, I was able to take hundreds of dud pictures in a row at no expense while I was learning how to use the myriad functions on an SLR camera. Now that I know a bit more about exposure and photography in general, I think I feel more comfortable diving into the real craft of photography... not to mention that semi-pro film SLRs with lots of advanced features are about half the price of even entry-level digital SLRs.

Long story short, in the mail is my new primary kit:
Canon EOS Elan 7ne 35mm film SLR
Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM

I also ordered UV and polarizer filters, as well as a new tripod and several highly reviewed films to try out:

Kodak High Definition 200, for general use.
Fujicolor Superia 100, for landscapes and nature.
Kodak Portra 160NC, for portraiture and people.

I will still be posting digital images, though obviously the workflow has changed somewhat. There is a pro lab in Lancaster that I will be using to get high-def scans of the negatives, or if nothing else I can always use film mailers to the major pro labs.

Lenses Possibly for Sale

2007-07-24T20:51:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking about selling the two lenses for my XTi and replacing them with a single Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC.

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 USM
Retail new: $139.00
Used 7 months, excellent condition.

Sigma 55-200mm f/4-5.6 DC (for Canon mount)
Retail new: $149.00
Used 7 months, excellent condition.

Email me with an offer if interested, quantumcowboy@gmail.com

A horse in Amish Country

2007-07-24T20:04:00.000-07:00

Met this lovely lady while in Amish Country for a wedding.

Exposed for the whole scene, focused on the gate. (XTi)

Exposed for the horse exclusively in this one, so the rest seems dark... brings out the animal though, I think. (XTi)

(Pentax, Kodak Ultra Color)

(Pentax, Kodak Ultra Color, channel filtered in PSPXI)

(Pentax, Kodak Ultra Color)

" 'Ey! You want dem onyonsh up on?"

2007-07-24T19:31:00.000-07:00

"Excuse me, what?" I was lost in south Philly and had decided to get a real cheesesteak from a street vendor while I was about it.

"Dem onyonsh!" He gestured to a pile of chopped, grilled onions with his spatula.

"Oh!" It all became clear. "Oh yeah, sure." Armed with the genuine article (and yes it is as good as they say), I ventured out into Philadelphia. Mind you, a real philly is not just twice as good as any other you've had anywhere else, its twice as heavy... the gf's digestive tract was none too pleased for quite some time.

Here are some images from my foray into the City of Brotherly Love.

On the Road: CA-14, Desert Stretch

2007-07-17T18:34:00.000-07:00

State highway 14, the Antelope Valley Freeway, extends from its junction with I-5 south of Santa Clarita, through Palmdale, Lancaster, and Rosamond, and then on upward into the stark Mojave Desert until it reaches US-395, the desert spine highway of California. The lower, more mountainous stretch was covered previously.

The desert stretch is not devoid of mountains however, it just skirts by them instead of plowing through like its southern counterpart.

These imposing desert peaks divide the Mojave Desert from the Los Padres National Forest, hoarding the moisture from the Pacific for the western side, and not sparing the east so much as a drop. The joshua trees distinctive to the Mojave Desert coax moisture from the air and from a dry soil to survive.

Check your engine temperature and oil level often... and don't get lost out here.

Update

2007-07-07T15:39:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the long dry spell. Work and travel have kept me very busy this last month, and I have also been working on getting Hartog's Den back up and running. My cameras have not been idle however, and I promise I will get to that enormous backlog of RAW files as soon as I can. There is another birding trip, the shuttle landing, Philadelphia, Amish Country, Cincinnati, and Indiana currently in the to do list. Stay tuned!

Birding in NorCal

2007-06-14T21:03:00.000-07:00

Some shots from El Dorado Hills and Placerville, CA.

Unidentified Butterfly.

Flowers.

Unidentified Butterfly.

Female House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus).

Best friends.

Female Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)

My first thought was Bullock's Oriole, but the shape of the beak and the pattern on the wings make me lean towards a male Black-Headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus)

Dude... where's the Bud Light?

A young American Robin (Turdus migratoris) (??).

male California Quail (Callipepla californica).

Birding: The Kern River Preserve

2007-06-07T18:51:00.000-07:00

I decided to celebrate my recent Audubon Society membership with a trip up to one of their wildlife reserves in California. The Kern River Preserve is located on CA-173, which branches off of CA-14 just south of the junction with US-395. Part of a system of Kern River Valley wildlife refuges that span several hundred thousand acres, the KRP itself is a 1200-acre sanctuary for hundreds of species of birds and other wildlife. Overall I was able to photograph 3 species of butterfly, 7-12 species of birds (not quite sure on some of them... they may be the same), as well as some deer.

These are my first real bird identifications, and I'm still getting use to my field guide. If I have mis-identified any, please let me know.

Red Winged Blackbird (Aegelaius phoeniceus). This is one of the most populous birds in California.

I'm not sure on this, but I'm going to ID it as a young Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna). Anna's Hummingbird is very populous in Southern California, so that is one sign, and also the young look like the female and often are missing the chin spots, which this one is. Not 100% positive though.

Oof, hummingbirds are tough. Ok, from the females of Anna's Hummingbird, the Black-Chinned Hummingbird, and the Calliope Hummingbird... I eliminate Calliope based on the shape of the body, and the fact that the wings while perched do not extend beyond the tail. Between the remaining two, I'm going to call female Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) based on the shape of the head and a close call on the wingtip comparison.

This bird I believe is the male Lesser Goldfinch (Carduelis psaltria). I almost went with American Goldfinch, but note the green-gray back. The American Goldfinch has the same yellow body, black forehead, and black wings, but is solid yellow behind the forehead.

Hard to say with only the head showing, but I would guess a female Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor. I base this on the bluish head, white belly area, and affinity for the next box.

It's a bit far away, but I say this is a House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus). Birding more than anything has pushed me more and more towards getting a new telephoto! This 200mm works, but a 300 or 400 would be better.

Unidentified butterfly.

On the Road: Muir Woods National Monument

2007-05-24T18:43:00.000-07:00

Post 6 of the roadtrip series.

Awe-inspiring. Peaceful. Beautiful. Words fail me. This astounding national monument of towering coastal redwoods was one of Teddy Roosevelt's greatest gifts to the nation.

Adventures in San Francisco: Japanese Tea Gardens

2007-05-24T18:41:00.001-07:00

Post 5 of the roadtrip series. Wonderfully relaxing for a quiet, peaceful walk. We made a note to come back and actually have tea in the cafe sometime.

Adventures in San Francisco: Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square

2007-05-24T18:34:00.001-07:00

Post 4 of the roadtrip series. World famous for seafood, fantastic panoramic views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, and shopping. Ghirardelli of course, is chocolate land... So in summary, seafood and chocolate. Oh man.

In and around Fisherman's Wharf.

Alcatraz Island.

Pier 39: Wholly owned and operated by... sea lions. Apparently.

To quote Homer Simpson: "The land of chocolate... (drool)"

Adventures in San Francisco: Chinatown

2007-05-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

Post 3 of the roadtrip series. A huge district of colorful shops, delicious-smelling food, "interesting" meat markets, and tea parlors.

In retrospect I should have photographed more people.

On the Road: Up the California Coast

2007-05-24T18:05:00.000-07:00

Day 2 of the roadtrip was climbing up the coast from Palmdale to San Francisco, taking CA-166 through the mountains of Los Padres National Forest to Santa Maria, and then north along the Pacific on CA-1, with brief stretches of US-101. Easily the the most beautiful drive I have ever taken. You will be hard pressed to convince me that there is any road so breathtaking anywhere else on the continent. Unfortunately due to the need to make time on the road, I wasn't able to stop and take every picture I wanted to (this would have taken months).

CA-166 winds through the mountains to the coast.

The city of Morro Bay and Morro Rock National Monument are quite close to the college/resort town of San Luis Obispo, home of CalPoly.

The robber baron William Hearst built an enormous (and outrageously ostentatious) castle for himself in the hills near the central coast, and filled it with art from around the world. Upon his death, he donated the entire estate to California, and it is now a state historical monument. We didn't have time to take the tour, but that is something definitely on the list for the next time.

Elephant seals bask on the central coast between San Simeon and Big Sur, north of the castle.

There is a lovely hike along the hilly coastline somewhere along the way... we don't exactly remember where. Find it if you can, its fabulous.

The city of Monterey is located on Monterey Bay just north of Point Lobos State Reserve. It is also the site of the Naval Postgraduate School. Tough life, getting stationed there. This photo is from Carmel State Beach, looking south towards Point Lobos.

From the same location looking north, there is a splendid view of the Pebble Beach golf course.

Farms and vinyards dot the north-central coast.

Alas, we had a birthday bash to get to that night, and the afternoon was creeping into evening with 120 miles to go. We passed fantastically beautiful stretches of road cut into the coastal cliffs, and especially at the Bixby Bridge I wanted to stop to photograph so badly... no dice. Oh well, there will most certainly be a repeat of this one.

Adventures in LA: Near Union Station

2007-05-24T18:00:00.001-07:00

As you may have read earlier, Emily and I just took a massive 5-day tour of the great state of California. Prepare for a flood of posts!

Day 1 was Los Angeles. Many of the places we went I have already shown in previous posts and have many photos of from previous trips down, so I didn't take many photos. Here are three that I thought turned out well though.

My lovely girlfriend.

A bird-of-paradise near LA Union Station.

The plaza between Union Station and Olvera St., the oldest neighborhood in and birthplace of Los Angeles.

What's on the plate.

2007-05-21T07:46:00.001-07:00

Sorry no posts in awhile, but lots of photos are coming your way soon. Emily and I are on the last day of a 5-day California roadtrip encompassing Los Angeles, the coast road, San Francisco, Muir Woods, Napa Valley, Sacramento, and the central valley. Also, next weekend (Memorial Day), there is a 3-day, 100-mile trek through the San Gabriel mountain range coming up. Vengeance Baden-Powell!

On the Trail: Mt. Baden-Powell

2007-05-08T20:54:00.000-07:00

Started off the hiking season with a bit of a doozy for me, especially since I hadn't really done much physical activity for several months. Mt. Baden-Powell has a peak of 9,399 ft and is a somewhat rigorous climb over 4 miles of trail. Darin and Chris of course made it right to the top without much trouble, but Andrew and I only made it to 8,680 ft. Correction, *I* only made it to 8,680 ft and Andrew was kind enough to stick around. But it was a good break-in for the warm season and I plan on running some more and tackling it again in the next few months.

Beautiful views of the San Gabriel Mountains and Angeles National Forest, as well as some wildlife including reportedly bighorn sheep, though I didn't see any. It's still cold at altitude this time of year, and the winds can pick up no the ridges. Be prepared for 20-40 degF changes in perceived temperature, depending on the time of day, season, and current weather.

San Gabriels.

The Antelope Valley from about halfway up.

San Gabriels.

CA-2, The Angeles Crest Highway.

San Gabriels.

TRAIL STATS:
Mileage: 2.9 (4.0 to the top)
Elevation delta: ~2,100 ft (~2,800 ft to the top)
Time on trail: 4.5 hrs (including lunch and some water breaks)
Nearest highway: CA-2, mile marker 69.6, elevation 6,593 ft.

Adventures in Seattle: Pike Place Market, Continued

2007-04-29T12:16:00.000-07:00

I decided to post a few more.

The original Starbucks Coffee, Tea, and Spice Market. Est 1971.

Street Musicians near Pike Place Market.

Ryan poses for the paparazzi.

Mmmmm... spicy. Looks like that place on Olvera St. I posted several weeks ago.

Adventures in Seattle: Pike Place Market

2007-04-29T11:47:00.000-07:00

This legendary district in the Emerald City is essentially a giant eclectic mall and farmer's market, weaving through hilly streets, a five-story warehouse-like maze of a building, and the waterfront. With fresh seafood and produce, a flower market, the fish throwers, a brewery, music shops, coffee shops, and hundreds of boutiques, it quite easy to spend the better part of several days here.

Pentax ME Super with 50mm prime f/2.0
Kodak MAX Versatility 400 speed film.

The more famous entrance to Pike Place Market.

Inside, a bustle of people among the street level markets.

The view from the many balconies and decks is superb.

Tea rooms like the one above, as well as the Seattle staple, the coffee shop, abound.

Fresh fish! We catch 'em you buy 'em!

A view of the pier near Ivar's Fish Bar, which has by far the best fish and chips I've ever had. And a full stock of the ultra-hoppy northwestern microbrews that dominate the whole region's beer production.

Adventures in Seattle: "The Ave"

2007-04-27T14:05:00.000-07:00

Located in the "U-District" surrounding the University of Washington, University Avenue, or simply, "The Ave" is an excellent college town block of shops, ethnic food, and cheap pints. Key highlights include a Thai restaurant approximately every 200 ft (much like the rest of Seattle), eclectic coffee lounges, and a bizarre-looking mix of people. The factors that bore the Grunge movement are evident.

All of these taken with my new Pentax ME Super film SLR camera. The film type varies; they are mostly Kodak Ultra Max 400 and Fujicolor Superia 400. One roll was Kodak Professional Ultra Color.

A tea parlor on the Ave.

A rather loud crowd consisting of a rather dirty musician and what appear to be his rather oily groupies. The students refer to the many such people who frequent the Ave as "Ave Rats."

Sunset in the U-District.

A delicious smelling bakery. Good thing they didn't charge for sniffing.

100% Pure American Badassery

2007-04-23T21:43:00.000-07:00

At long last, photos from the airshow almost a month ago. I hope they don't disappoint. March 31st, Naval Air Weapons Station, Point Mugu California.

Mist rolls off the Pacific as a crowd mills around a B-52, the mainstay of American bombing power for over half a century.

Reflections on a century dominated by American air superiority.

The USAF's new F-22 Raptor represents the very cutting edge in fighter technology. Enemies won't even realize it's there before they're dead. Note the afterburner trail and impressive separation highlights from the moisture.

The F-22 pulls a high-G maneuver and sheds vapor-saturated flow.

F-15 Eagle, low and roaring.

The Air Force Heritage Flight. A WWII-era P-51 Mustang flanked by the late cold war era F-15 Eagle and the 21st century F-22 Raptor. A Vietnam-vintage F-4 Phantom on the back of that diamond would have closed that formation nicely.

The Air Force Thunderbirds buzz the crowd in formation.

Update

2007-04-14T15:06:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. No photos in awhile. Sorry. I've been doing a lot of overtime trying to get stuff together for a technical review at Langley this upcoming week, and of course everyone wants everything yesterday. So, long story short, there really hasn't been much time for photography the last two weeks. I'm about halfway done post-processing the airshow pictures, and everything else I have mentioned hasn't even been touched. Oof.

I'll be in Seattle this week on training, but in the evenings I plan on working some photos, so hopefully there will be some by the end of the week.

Claudia has borrowed my 18-55mm for Hawaii, so I do not have a short lens for my XTi, but the good news is that I recently acquired a Pentax ME Super with a 50mm prime f/2.0 from my dad. Circa 1979 and shoots film. It's incredibly lightweight and fairly simple to operate, though I'm going to be guessing at exposure a lot... that's my weak point so maybe this is a good thing for my learning process. Outstanding reviews for this thing, especially for street photography. Seattle, here I come with my first film camera!

Monitor Calibration

2007-04-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

My monitor has been calibrated such that what I see on the screen is pretty close to what comes out on a print. However, as monitor settings vary considerably, you may not be seeing what I'm seeing.

Be sure to calibrate your monitor's brightness and contrast by using the scale near the bottom of this page. Otherwise images may appear too dark or too light. Adjust your brightness and contrast so that you can make out the difference between the first three and the last three squares on the greyscale. This usually involves cranking your contrast up nearly all the way and adjusting the brightness to about 2/3, but this can vary.

Color calibration is more complicated, and generally requires special devices, but these settings are less likely to be significantly off than your brightness and contrast. However, just keep in mind that what you are seeing isn't necessarily how a print would look unless your monitor has bee calibrated using a hardware tool.

A Day at the Beach

2007-04-03T21:48:00.000-07:00

At the insistence of one of my roommates, Liz, the whole house packed up and headed for the beach a couple weekends ago. Unfortunately, we forgot that although the Antelope Valley is sunny 350 days out of the year, the rest of the world isn't necessarily the same. By the time we hit Ventura it was cloudy and slightly drizzling. The temperature was not cold however, and deciding that we hadn't come all that way for nothing, we took a walk on San Buenaventura beach. It ended up being very relaxing, and of course I took the camera along. Here are some shots from that day.

A sand dollar on some seaweed. 1/250 ~ f/5.6 ~ 400 ~ 55mm

A beach vista on a cloudy day. 1/1000 ~ f/10 ~ 400 ~ 55mm

The lovebirds on a stroll. 1/640 ~ f/10 ~ 400 ~ 55mm

Crab! 1/60 ~ f/5.6 ~ 400 ~ 200mm

Sandpiper 1. 1/1600 ~ f/6.3 ~ 400 ~ 220mm

Sandpiper 2. 1/1600 ~ f/6.3 ~ 400 ~ 200mm

Current Purchase Queue

2007-04-03T20:46:00.000-07:00

On the list to buy as funds permit:

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM lens: the wide f-stop provides a narrow depth of field and nice bokeh that is reportedly excellent for portraiture, and this combined with the small size and light weight makes it a positively reviewed lens for street photography. It is close to the 50mm f/1.2L USM, except that its about 1/4 the price of the luxury series... and do I really need that extra 0.2 f-stop? Granted, the L-series lenses seem to have a lot of plusses over the normal EF and EF-S lenses (e.g. build quality, glass quality, etc), but I really can't afford it and probably wouldn't notice the image difference at this stage anyway.

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro lens: for all the fun macro stuff, this seems to be a medium price, good quality pick.

Canon Rebel K2 film SLR camera body: At $134 new and about $40 on Ebay, this is almost too good to pass up. Though digital will probably remain primary, this could become an interesting side adventure. Currently the high bidder! The best part... it fits all my XTi lenses, as they both have the EF mount.

Anyone know anything about these items?

What's on the plate.

2007-04-03T05:56:00.000-07:00

I'm currently working on the SB beach pics, and probably next is CA-128, Bouquet Canyon Road, and the NASPM airshow (F-22!). It's a busy time, so the going is slow unfortunately.

Adventures in LA: In the City

2007-03-28T06:08:00.000-07:00

More images from my second excursion on foot into Los Angeles.

Good food in a rough neighborhood. Note the bars on the outside? Still, I walked through the neighborhood (with a camera) no trouble, and people were friendly enough. Not ecstatic mind you, but the occasional "what's up" head jerk seemed a little nicer than the one-fingered NYC salute... You can be sure I was on the alert for trouble though.

Jinu runs up the stairs at a metro station.

PIGEONS! I don't know why, I just get excited when I see groups of pigeons. Odd thing to get excited about. I agree with Emily, it would seem so satisfying to just run up and grab one. They're probably greasy though. Ugh. Neat picture anyway.

Grand Central Market at midmorning. Lots of good colors and smells here.

Darin and Andrew contemplate in the pews at St. Basil's.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (this is about what it looked like to me at the time).

Adventures in LA: Olvera St.

2007-03-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

Just northwest of union station is a block you might as well call North Mexico. The architecture is all old Spanish mission style, pleasing to the eye. Everything, from the bright colors to the churro dealers (peddling my favorite addiction) conveys a vibrant, richly cultural community.

Hats for sale on Olvera St.

Mmm.... spicy.

Too bad I had already eaten (steamed eel with kimchee and a.. vase (?) of sake in Little Tokyo), because the food on this street smelled good. Definitely going back!

Oh yeah, and I saw the bassist for Metallica there with his little daughter. I do have a picture, but he was on personal time, so I won't post it.

LA is awesome!

Out of the office, back Monday...

2007-03-24T10:39:00.000-07:00

In Sacramento this weekend, so there won't be any updates at least until Monday. I don't have all the photos from the second LA trip done yet, but I think all the Olvera St. pics are finished so I may post just those. Also awaiting processing are photos from San Buenaventura Beach, CA-128, and Bouquet Canyon Road. To add even further to my backlog, I'm planning on stopping in the mountains near Tehachapi for some shots on the way back down to SoCal. So there's a preview of what's coming up this week! Stay tuned...

A Wing and a Prayer

2007-03-19T20:47:00.000-07:00

Darin is an avid hang glider, and a couple weeks ago he invited me to come out and take a look at how they did things at the launch site. Naturally, I brought the camera along. There is a hang gliding site just a couple miles down on Avenue S, quite close to our house, which makes one more time I've been glad we moved so close to the mountains. Parking Darin's ancient Accord on a field at the foot of the hills, we hitched a ride up to the launch site from Steve, a seasoned veteran hang glider with a Dodge Ram more capable of making the final stages of the steep, rocky, dirt road ascent.

With a brisk 20 mph wind at the top, gusting to 35, the group of about 7 pilots and 4 observers and ground crew got to work setting up for the day.

Darin glances up from his work after assembling his glider.

It was crazy watching these guys just step off of a mountain into the air.

Darin dons his helmet and prepares for a final check.

Darin prepares for takeoff... one or two people are necessary to hold the giant wing down while a third holds the control wires in the center so that the pilot can make a final check before takeoff.

And he's off! Darin takes to the skies as Mike ducks under the wing after letting it go.

I nearly fell off the mountain backwards taking this shot of Darin flying over me across the sun. If you look close there is a rainbow above him.

Another glider pilot prepares to take the leap of faith.

Yet another glider pilot takes off into the sky...

...and grabs some air over Palmdale.

All in all I had a great time. I'll be sure to go out next time Darin flies, hopefully to get some landing shots too. Hmm... with some work some of these might make good desktop wallpapers.

New software, + photos on the way...

2007-03-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the delay in posting new shots. I just got Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo XI, and have been playing with it. The first batch of photos to pass through it will be Darin's hangliding trip (which was awesome), which I expect to post tomorrow evening. I will also be redoing some of Danielle's shots. This weekend will see another trip to LA and also some more hangliding, though this time at a different location.

My Model Friend

2007-03-10T11:04:00.000-08:00

I went to high school with Danielle Louie back in Idaho; now she's pretty much a supermodel... well, she's working on it. :) Being both amateurs at our respective arts, last weekend I drove down to Costa Mesa to give each other some practice; me with people shots (which I really need to improve at) and her with photo shoots.

Constructive criticism welcome on these!

She wears aviators... how cool is that?

Trying some color isolation... green by the lake.

Reflections lakeside. I faded the color except for the reflected sunlight on these ones.

Tried a few poses with trees. This is one of the few that actually didn't end up looking silly. I like the angles.

Adventures in LA: The City

2007-03-09T08:03:00.000-08:00

Downtown LA has a huge variety of things to do, and unfortunately, we only barely got to any significant portion of everything this amazing city has to offer. I will definitely be going back however, the roommates want to do a Saturday just for LA itself. While I did get a lot of shots of the usual buildings and scenes, I'll to post something more unique here.

Passengers shuffle down from an upper level into the main part of Los Angeles Union Station, a massive hub of Metrolink, Amtrak, light rail, subway, and buses.

Skateboarders of the inner city.

A bum naps in MacArthur Park. Now I know why it's frightening in the dark....

A portion of the LA skyline at dusk.

The Union Station tower.

I have to say, for all its hard reputation, Los Angeles had some very friendly people. Noting we looked a little lost downtown, a random guy crossed a busy street just to ask us if we were looking for the metro, and then pointing it out to us before crossing back. A grungy adolescent in a corner of the subway politely suggested an alternate route when he overheard us discussing the next stop at which we wanted to get out. On the bus, a Mexican man who didn't speak a word of English struck up a lively conversation with us about LA after we helped him out with a quarter to top off his bus fare; fortunately we had Jesus (referring the roommate, not the savior) with us or it would have been awkward... I really need to learn some Spanish.

Adventures in LA: Gung Hei Faat Choi!

2007-03-08T14:19:00.000-08:00

Completely by accident, we ended up in Chinatown during the Chinese New Year festivities. Were seeking only to peruse interesting shops and even more interesting meat markets, to grab a cup of tea and maybe some noodles; we were alarmed to step off of the metro into a huge throng of people dressed in bright colors setting off firecrackers and yelling "gung hei faat choi!" in our faces. Knowing now that it simply means "congratulations and be prosperous," looking back on our startled confusion seems amusing.

It looked like our day of quiet puttering was out; but since we were there, we thought, what the hell? So we followed a bunch of revelers doing the locomotion under a paper-mache dragon to the main event: a parade down the main street of LA's Chinatown, complete with fire, dragons, dancers, kung-fu artists, Miss Teen Asia, and mayor Antonio Villaraigosa himself (dressed in a traditional outfit and yelling blessings in Chinese... very funny).

A man ushers his grandson off of the road as confetti from a festive firecracker scatters around them.

Police horses are having fun too!

Dragon dancers of every color... red and yellow shown here.

Twin dragons jut out from the front of a car like ramming prongs on an ancient warship.

(Chinatown, get off Metro Gold Line at Chinatown station).

Adventures in LA: Our Lady of the Angels

2007-03-06T20:34:00.000-08:00

About a week ago I spent a Saturday with some friends down in LA, enjoying the sun, puttering through an extraordinary diversity of people, food, sights, smells (some more interesting than others), and cultures. It was also a test of the public transit in a city notorious for its cars; I have to say I was impressed in that particular regard. I have not been to a city of comparable size where public transit was so cheap, clean, and devoid of crazy people (the last an especially notable feat given the area).

The pictures have been slow to get to blog due to the volume... and since I took so many, they will be arriving on the site in stages. Stage 1: the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. An archdiocese of over 4 million Catholics is bound to have a notable epicenter of faith, and OLA is certainly a masterpiece of spiritual architecture, blending a contemporary style with a decidedly southwestern look to create a monument that strives to project the weight of spiritual tradition onto a modern west-coast megapolis. Sunday Mass is celebrated in 42 languages, a testament to the diverse cross-section of people it draws from the surrounding population.

The main courtyard is open and specious, sporting patio tables and skirted by palm trees and fountains. This entrance is adorned nicely with gold and black.

A cross is embedded in black marble, which provides an angular accent to the mainly sandstone-looking structure.

The main part of the cathedral is huge; the pews looks as if they could easily accommodate thousands. The enormity of the room, coupled with the emptiness of a Saturday late morning, made each footstep echo solemnly in the warm half-light.

An enormous pipe organ rests in an upper corner.

Looking up into a giant cross bathed in streaming light from the outside, it's hard not to feel a bit of awe.

Underneath the main pews lies a mausoleum, decorated with stained glass on otherwise simple white marble... a walk through is a must if you visit.

(Downtown, get off Metro Red Line at Civic Center.)

From the Misc Folders

2007-03-02T19:09:00.000-08:00

The cat...

Figaro. Cute little kitty or spawn of Satan? Any given moment is a crapshoot.

System Maintenence

2007-03-02T18:18:00.000-08:00

Some photos may not appear for the next hour or so, I've made some further color corrections to my monitor and will be uploading re-rendered images.

Also, I know I promised LA photos last week but apparently I took 190 of them and its taking a while to get through them all! Hopefully they will be up soon.

More Sunrises

2007-03-01T20:25:00.000-08:00

More snapshots from the daily commute... these are from three different days I think.

Joshua Tree at Sunrise.

I can't decide which of these I like better:

In the Bushes at Dawn 3 .

White-Hot Calm.

Sunrise Through Rain-Splattered Glass.

Bloody Clouds at Dawn. No color enhancement, this is real (and kind of wierd)!

From the Misc Folders

2007-02-20T18:54:00.000-08:00

So far I've only been posting photos from single, high-volume events, such as hikes or sporting games. These are usually a couple of weeks apart. However, my camera doesn't sit around in the meanwhile gathering dust. I'm a firm believer in an adage from a photo-enthusiast colleague at work: "If you're afraid to take the camera everywhere you go, you paid too much for it." So when I'm not driving the carpool, I have the camera out. When I'm walking around a park or going to the city, I have the camera out. And whenever I travel anywhere out of town, even if I don't think I'm going to use it, I bring the camera along.

What results is photographs taken spur-of-the-moment, in those times (and there are many) where I used to say "damn I wish I had a camera right now..." Often, these come out pretty badly, either due to my present lack of expert skill in choosing the right settings, or sometimes because the situation really isn't as good looking in a camera as I thought. But more and more often, there appear a few that make me say, "neat!" They tend to be more "artistic" in the sense that I usually play with the environment to get the effect I want, as opposed to attempting to capture a pre-existing moment in a certain way.

Here are three of those neato shots, taken at my parents new house in El Dorado Hills.

China in the Cupboard. A glass plate with some backlighting and intentional underexposure.

Stained-Glass Cross.

Gateway to the Night. This one was fun. A seven second exposure through the shaped glass pane on the front door gave this oddly distorted, color-washed peek through the main courtyard.

Back at home... and back to the grind.

2007-02-20T06:23:00.000-08:00

Back! The trips were good, expect some random backlogged shots to show up probably tonight and later this week, as well as a day-long exploration (and public transit test) of Los Angeles on Saturday.

Travel Hiatus

2007-02-09T15:11:00.000-08:00

I'll be in Sacramento this weekend and Phoenix next weekend, so the earliest opportunity for a hike or dedicated photo shoot will be the weekend of the 28th. I have some miscellaneous shots that have been accumulating in the camera however, so some of these may make an appearance. Barring that, it will likely be a couple of weeks before a major new post. Take care in the meantime!

On the Trail: Trail Canyon Falls

2007-01-30T18:01:00.000-08:00

This last weekend was probably our most rigorous hike yet. About 10 miles roundtrip, with a nice 1800 ft climb thrown in. I was worried about being too cold this time of year, but I needn't have worried. It was a pleasantly cool day in the San Gabriel Mountains, cloudy but mostly sunny, and about 60 degrees.

The hike was Trail Canyon Falls, in the southern part of Angeles National Forest. The trailheaad starts near the big bend in Big Tujunga Canyon Road, and tracks more or less northward for about a mile and a half to the top of the falls. From there we continued on down the trail for several more miles, climbing all the way... with some fantastic views as a reward!

The trail decends somewhat into a shady forested area right up near the stream, where we had lunch on some rocks. Very moist and green, with soft earth covered by leaves; it definitely reminded me of northwestern Washington. A little further was Tom Lucas campground, where unfortunately we couldn't stop due to the 40-some Sierra Club members taking up every available space. So we turned around and headed back down the mountain.

Fantastic variety of birds... I *really* need to get a field guide. Oof... and a good workout too.

Woodpecker Chillin. He let me come quite close before flying off.

Trail Canyon Falls at a Trickle. I assume the falls pick up in the spring, but gorgeous anyway.

Dancing Water. Tried to freeze the water splash in the exposure while blurring the outside. Didn't quite work the way I visualized it, but I thought it turned out pretty neat anyway.

Mountain Adventure. I really liked the way the light was coming down through the clouds.

The Eye of Sauron? Holy crap I was freaked. But it *is* pretty.

Golden Reflections. Sunlight reflected in water always attracts me... "Oooo flashing lights....."

Duke of the Forest. This fantastic photo op was dumb luck. I was actually putting my camera away in the trunk of the car at the very end of the hike when suddenly I hear a loud squawking. Looking up, I see this Red Tailed Hawk perched atop a pine tree quite nearby. I got several shots of him, the best of which I think is this one where I moved to put the moon behind him. There are others where he's looking up at the moon which are cool too, but I can't post them all! What luck... its almost like he wanted to have his picture taken.

All in all, the best yet, both for hiking and photography. I will definitely be coming back here in the spring and fall. Highly recommended hike!

TRAIL STATS:
Mileage: 10
Elevation delta: ~1,800 ft
Time on trail: 5.5 hrs (including lunch and some water breaks)
Nearest highway: CA-2, Big Tujunga Canyon Road

On the Trail: Punchbowl Canyon / Devil's Chair

2007-01-26T17:05:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Darin and I decided to start the hiking season early and hit Devil's Chair, which is a bit of a hike from the more commonly visited Devil's Punchbowl. These fascinating rock formations are so named for the one's striking resemblance to a sinister throne of rock on a sort of natural altar in the middle of a canyon which happens to be somewhat bowl shaped. I have to admit the rocks do look like floating ice cubes in the right angle and lighting. We hadn't planned for the temperature at 5500 feet however, and after about 3 hours we decided it was a bit too cold to continue in our present attire. Managed to get a few good shots along the way however:

Footsteps in the Sand. Perhaps some sort of bird?

Pretty Blue Bird. Can anyone tell me the type of bird? Man I've got to get a field guide or something.

Red Plant. Don't know the name of this one. Anyone?

Acorns Underfoot.

Melting Ice Cave.

Mountain Soaring.

Remnants of Ice.

TRAIL STATS:
Mileage: 7
Elevation delta: ~1,500 ft
Time on trail: 3.5 hrs.
Nearest highway: CA-138

USA vs Denmark, Highlights

2007-01-24T20:37:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my wonderfully fantastic and loving girlfriend, one of my roommates and I recently had the opportunity to watch the US-Denmark international season kickoff game from VIP midfield seats. w00t! Aren't I lucky?

Denmark scored first against some lazy US defense, and things looked grim. But the Americans got a break on a penalty kick and evened the score for the half. Spirits lifted, the U.S. midfield (and to a lesser extent the forwards) made up for some defensive foot-dragging and managed to finish 3-1 against the Danes. A fine start for the U.S. in their first international game of the season, but they will need to shore up the rear line before taking on Mexico in Phoenix in a couple of weeks, or they might be in for a disappointment.

In between cheering and getting more beer and nachos, I was able to snap a few shots of the action. Oof, I need to get better at using my camera settings... of 127 photos taken, only about 30 were worth keeping, and few were spectacular (even by my standards). I guess that's why we practice... it was a good experience, for both my soccer and photography passions.

Due to some extensive cropping that I needed to do in order to get the composition I wanted, most of these were cut down to 2.5 - 4 megapixel... as such unfortunately large size prints are not recommended, though normal sizes should come out fine. Clearly I need a longer telephoto? Hmm...

GO TEAM USA!

Gameday Goods.

Donovan Busts a Move.

The Danes Let One Slip.

And the Crowd Goes Wild!

Boswell Fires a Bullet.

And the Danes Can't Compete!

Monitor Issues Resolved (I hope)

2007-01-24T20:09:00.000-08:00

Whew, that sucked... redeveloping everything. Anyway, I may still take a few wierd or bad pictures, but if something looks egregiously off from now on, please let me know. Hopefully that monitor setting tweak did the trick.

By the way, if anyone has the same configuration or similar (HP zv5000 w/ NVIDIA GeForce4 440 Go 64M) the (pretty darn close) correct settings are in the screenshot below:

Right click on desktop, click "Properties", click "Settings" tab, click "Advanced", click "GeForce4 440 Go 64M", click "Color Correction" at left.

Monitor Issues! Ugh.....

2007-01-24T18:47:00.000-08:00

Previously uploaded photos from the new Canon will be temporarily unavailable. Apparently my laptop's graphics driver settings turned out to be significantly off visually from that of most monitors and prints. This of course means that my sunrise and sunset photos were significantly off in terms of exposure level and color balance. If they showed up as looking severely under-exposed and way more red than they needed to be, well that was why. Using a printout from one of my photos I have manually retuned my monitor to settings that are much closer to reality. I will post a notification when the photos have been re-developed and re-uploaded. Sorry for the inconvenience and the crappy images.

Mojave Desert Sunset

2007-01-17T20:04:00.000-08:00

As promised, sunset pics are now available.

Clouds at Dusk.

Desert Dusk.

Treeline at Sunset, 110th St. East.

Joshua Tree at Sunset, 90th St. East.

Mojave Sunset, 90th St. East.

Mojave Desert Sunrise

2007-01-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

It's been frustrating trying explain to people how beautiful my commute is without pictures, so today I left for work about half an hour early (at, as my girlfriend would say, "the buttcrack of dawn") in order to be able to shoot some photos of the sunrise. The following images were taken near 120th St E. and Avenue I in the Antelope Valley, between Palmdale, CA and Edwards AFB. It really is out in the middle of nowhere, and of course the stillness out there once the car engine was off only added to the atmosphere. It was really cold though... like say, 12 degrees. And of course I don't have a pair of gloves dexterious enough to operate my camera, so basically I nearly froze my fingers (and come to think of it, the camera). Worth it though, eh?

Crow Delivers the Day.

Crow at Dawn.

In the Bushes at Dawn 1.

In the Bushes at Dawn 2.

Had to get down in the dirt for the last two, must have looked silly. Oh well. Stay tuned... sunset pics from the same day and location coming soon. Oof, these things take so much time to process right!

About This Site

2007-01-04T19:06:00.000-08:00

With all the hiking and photography I've started doing lately, I thought it was time to move all such related stuff to their own blog, reserving my main site for more bland things like personal updates and rather uninteresting political rants.

All posts before this date were transferred from my main blog, and were from hikes and travel using my old Fujifilm point-and-shoot; many of the photos below are not even mine (as indicated in the captions). From now on, I aim to display only original work done with my new Canon EOS 400D, and maybe post some interesting travel essays to go with them.

I'm very much an amateur, and do photography as a side hobby only. I have much to learn about this amazing art, of which I have only recently begun to scratch the surface. Feedback, comments, and constructive criticism are welcome.

Enjoy!

On the Trail: Temescal Canyon / Temescal Ridge

2006-09-11T18:10:00.000-07:00

Temescal Canyon and Ridge; Photo by Dan Edwards, September 2006

I left early Saturday morning with work buddies Dan and Darin and headed down to the Santa Monica mountains near... well, Santa Monica. Stupid me forgot my camera, and Darin's apparently had no batteries, but fortunately Dan managed to both remember his and have it charged. Way to go Dan.

At that early hour there was a thick ocean fog covering most of the Valley, which we hit on the way down as for north as Acton. The fog persisted as we started our hike down through the canyon bottom, climbing slowly over about 2.5 miles to the ridgeline within the bounds of Topango State Park. While the lack of sun made it a bit cool, it did give the riparian, forested canyon floor a peaceful aura as we trekked along a stream still flowing in late summer. Even for this late month, I would still have to use the adjective "lush" to describe the canyon bottom, as captured ocean mists, a small amount of rainfall, and the perennial boost of snowmelt have all combined to make this area a year-round wild forest.

Cacti near Temescal Ridge; Photo by Dan Edwards, September 2006

The climb to the top of the ridge from the canyon is an experience in at least three different ecosystems. From the wetter, lush climate below we transitioned into some more hardy species
, mostly chapparral, some wildflowers, holly, and the like. The climate near the top of the ridge is decidedly drier, sporting mainly sage, tough shrubs, and even the occasional, rare cactus. By the time we reached the top, the sun had at least half emerged, revealing a glimpse of the Pacific Ocean in the distance. Continuing inward on the ridge, we reached "Skull Rock" an interesting landform which of course we had to climb.

Skull Rock; Photo by Dan Edwards, September 2006.

If you squint, you might see a speck named Darin in the "eye," and myself scaling the left side of the rock (scale is a bit deceiving in that shot). From the top of the rock, spectacular panoramic views of the valley, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and the ocean. We followed the ridgeline back instead of taking the canyon route, and decended back to the trailhead through a grove of hollies. Fantastic!

TRAIL STATS:
Mileage: 5
Elevation delta: ~1,000 ft (trailhead to top of Skull Rock)
Time on trail: 3 hrs.
Nearest highway: CA-1 (Pacific Coast Highway)

On the Road: CA-14, Mountain Stretch

2006-08-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

Near CA-14. Photo by Nalin A. Ratnayake, August 2006.

Known as the Antelope Valley Freeway, State Highway 14 itself is relatively short and boring compared to many of the roadtrips you could be taking. From end to end (Mojave to Santa Clarita) the highway is only about 60 miles, and a good portion of it goes through possibly the two most most boring towns in Los Angeles County, Lancaster and Palmdale. However, it does have two major things going for it:

1. At sunrise and and sunset, the northern part of the highway sports spectacularly gorgeous views of the Mojave Desert painted with the warm colors of the sun. Anytime in between, its just hot.

2. The southern part of the highway winds through the border between the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountain ranges, offering an almost arterial level of access to the multiple national forests, state parks, natural areas, wildlife preserves, and other oases of untouched mountain wilderness that separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles metro area.

Canyon near CA-14. Photo by Nalin A. Ratnayake, August 2006.

Many of the canyon highways that crisscross the Santa Clarita Valley have exits or at least straightforward access from CA-14. These backroads are well worth a trip just to drive through, but their hidden treasure is the vast number of hiking, biking, and horseback trails accessible through their travel. Bouquet Canyon Road, Soledad Canyon Road, and Placerita Canyon Road are notable examples.

Joined at : Avenue K, Lancaster
Left at: Placerita Canyon Road
Mileage: 31
Stops: 76 station, Acton

Go on, be a rebel.

2006-08-23T17:55:00.000-07:00

There she is, the Canon Rebel XT Digital SLR Camera. With easy to use advanced features, over 60 optical lens attachments, and a (relatively) low cost, this fine piece of engineering is much-loved standard in the amateur photography world. And boy I certainly can't wait to get one. I can't afford it now, but I'm saving...

The base camera is about $800.00, and with an additional telescopic lens, an additional macro lens, tripod, extra battery, and case I'm probably looking at at least $1,500.00 to $2,000.00. Oof. But I figure I've really liked photography for awhile and have been meaning to get more into it, and besides it will go well with the hiking I plan on doing. I've ordered "101 Hikes in Southern California" as well as "Backpacking California" from Amazon, and they should arrive sometime soon. I'm planning on doing a day hike through Placerita Canyon this Saturday, so be on the lookout for an essay/review and some photos this weekend.

Transferred comment___________________________
At August 25, 2006 4:25 PM, --Valente said...

Dude, very nice camera!

I picked up a Canon EOS 20D last December, and I absolutely love it. I'm sure you'll be very pleased with the quality that these cameras provide.

Transferred comment___________________________
At August 25, 2006 5:15 PM, Nalin said...

Yeah my dad until recently worked for HP, which does a lot of collaborative work with Canon (seamless digital camera to High Quality photo print), so he was able to list a number of reasons that Canon was the best. I'm glad to hear that its not entirely company loyalty! :) There's a couple of guys at work who are really into backpacking, which I would like to get into. I think Em is interested too... if you want to try out that new camera on some gorgeous California mountains and backcountry, let me know!

Transferred comment___________________________
At August 26, 2006 7:35 PM, --Valente said...

Oh hells yeah, I'm down for some backpacking sometime.

Definitely going to have to get together when the work/school schedule isn't killing us all.

On the Road: US-395, California

2006-08-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

Photo by Mike Teague June 2005.

US Route 395 begins at the Canadian border in Washington state, about 50 miles west of the Idaho panhandle. It passes through Spokane, then angles southwestward to Umatilla, where it crosses the Columbia River into Oregon. In Oregon, the highway cuts through two national forests before heading into California near Goose Lake and continuing south almost the entire length of the state to where it meets with I-15 about 20 miles north of San Bernardino. The above picture shows US-395 curving along the east side of Yosemite National Forest, near Mono Lake, CA.

My trip down to the Antelope Valley from Boise, ID took about a day and a half, and by far the best scenery was on US-395 south through eastern California. The west coast of the Golden State is America's Pacific front door, and many are familiar with the coastline and its megapolis major ports such as San Francisco and Los Angeles. But I find few outside those who live here who have traveled through California's backyard: the raw, sparsely populated medley of desert, mountains, forests, and lakes that are strung together by US Route 395.

I entered the highway from I-80 near Reno, in the short stretch of the road that dips briefly into Nevada. From here I didn't have to wait long for some spectacular views of the Sierra Nevada mountains. This long and beautiful range is the spine of California, running on a north-south axis from near the Oregon border to the southern edge of the Mojave Desert. US-395 runs along the eastern edge of this range for most of its time in the Golden State. The top photograph was taken near Mono Lake, CA looking southeast.

If you are looking for places to camp in the midst of awe-inspiring natural beauty, there is no shortage of either along this route. US-395 passes through or near Yosemite National Park, the Hoover Wilderness Area, the Ansel Adams Wilderness Area, the John Muir Wilderness Area, Inyo National Forest, Sierra National Forest, King's Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park, and the South Sierra Wilderness Area.

US-395. Photo by Nalin A. Ratnayake, June 2006.

After traveling through Owens Valley, the highway dumped me into the northern Mojave Desert. It is difficult gauging distances in this region of vast distances and towering mountains (many peaks well over 13,000 ft), as there is little to offer a sense of perspective. For example, see the above picture, taken southward on US-395 between Yosemite National Park and King's Canyon National Park. For the famed wide open spaces and rugged mountains of the west, look no further than this beautiful route surprisingly devoid of traffic and people (note that I was able to stand in the middle of the highway for about 10 minutes taking pictures, and never saw so much as a single vehicle).

Mammoth Lakes, CA. Photo by US Geological Survey.

The best place to stay on the way down is Mammoth Lakes, a small resort town in the mountains near hiking and biking trails, campgrounds, clean motels, and reputedly some of the best skiing in California (look for a second installment this winter).

US-395
Joined at: Jct I-80 (Reno, NV)
Left at: Jct CA-14 (Inyokern, CA)
Mileage: 331
Stops: Best Western, Mammoth Lakes.

Transferred comment__________________________
At August 21, 2006 8:44 AM, Anonymous said...

loser! you posted about that before our santa barbara adventure? Where's the love?

Transferred comment__________________________
At August 21, 2006 5:13 PM, Nalin said...

:) Sorry, I'll get to it... I've started writing the post, but I don't think I have any good pictures of the road itself. Probably I'll put up some of the beach shots for the CA-1, but I've got nothing for the 126 or the 23.

On the Road: The Trail Begins

2006-08-20T17:49:00.000-07:00

Having a car is wonderful. Back in the college days at ASU, I was one of those poor souls without a vehicle, trapped within walking distance of campus unless I lucked out and got a ride from someone. With the exception of Honeywell, the airport, one camping trip in Globe, and a few parties, in four years of living in Arizona I really only saw a four mile square block of Tempe and the immediately surrounding cities. Now that I live in California, I drive way more than I ever thought I would, and not all of it is the commute. Between the move down from Idaho, seeing old friends who fly into town, and taking day trips around my new home state with new collegues at the office, my 2006 Nissan Sentra has put on 6400 miles through five states in the two months since I got it. With all this travel and my love of amatuer photography (though I'm not that good at it), I thought I'd start a new series on the blog about it. I'll be doing some backdated posts to get in some highways that I've previously driven.

So... let's get on the road!

By the way, if you've got suggestions for a roadtrip to take, or have additional photographs from roads I've written about that you don't mind publishing, then just send me an email!

N.

Transferred comment_______________________
At August 20, 2006 5:38 PM, Nalin said...

On the queue:

US-395 (California)
US-101 (Reseda <-> Santa Barbara)
CA-1 (Santa Monica <-> Santa Barbara)
CA-14 (Palmdale <-> Santa Clarita, Soledad Canyon/Bouquet Canyon)
CA-23 (Fillmore <-> CA-1)
CA-58 (Bakersfield <-> Mojave, Tehachapi)
CA-99 (Bakersfield <-> Sacramento)
CA-126 (Santa Clarita <-> Ventura)
ID-55 (Boise <-> McCall)