One shot - Two versions

Joshua Tree along Hwy 395

On my drive home from Death Valley last month I saw some Joshua Trees at the side of 395 south of Lone Pine. I've never been tempted to stop here before, but the interesting cloud formations lured me into taking a few photos. By the time I got out and walked over to an attractive Joshua Tree, things were already starting to change. I just had time to take a couple of shots before the clouds started to break up leaving mostly blue skies behind. It is one of the things I keep re-learning about photography - the light never waits for me to take my time and get everything set up 'just so' the way I would like. Still, I'm glad I stopped and took this shot. I decided to process a second version in B&W with a slight Sepia tone. I also added an edge to the photo. I like both of them. With all the tools available to us nowadays the possibilities are endless.

Full Moon set at Cayucos Pier

All too often here on the West Coast fog obscures the sky making full moon photography impossible. We were lucky to have clear skies this March at full moon time. It must be the luck of the Irish since St. Patrick's Day is in a few days. :-) I took advantage of two fog free mornings to photograph the full moon setting over Cayucos Pier. On the first morning (top 2 shots) the moon was 'imprisoned' by the 'bars' of the pier as it sank toward the horizon. I went back on the second morning and got the light I was hoping to see - beautiful bands of pink and blue in the sky and their reflection on the water and wet sand of the beach. The blue is the Earth's shadow and the pink is the sun hitting the atmosphere above the Earth. The full moon and it's reflection completes the shot.