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Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

After the lighting of the Fresnel several of us went over to the North side of the Light house to try and shoot Star Trails. Looking north and aiming at the North Star gives one that nice circle, but the foreground wasn’t interesting in that direction. So I chose this Southern view. When you shoot Star Trails looking South from here you get an Arch or a slant, but not a circle.
The fog was coming in and the low stars weren’t visible, then the wind, and dew came up. My lens was beginning to get condensation, and I was getting cold. I bumped my tripod once and had to start over; after 10 frames I lost interest. Once I uploaded them I found only 8 frames were usable and not all together. *sigh* I wasn’t “feeling it”. 😀

It may look like I’ve got ghosting around the Fresnel, but there is another light behind the Fresnal lantern room. That’s the areobeacon. The light that is on all year to guide the mariners at sea.

This is 5 frames stacked in CS5.
Nikon D300s, Nikkor 18mm f/3.5@ 18mm, 151seconds, f3.5, ISO 200, Manual Mode, on a tripod.

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

From the La Sal Mountains Viewpoint in Arches National Park, Utah

A girl friend and fellow photographer had a business trip scheduled in Salt Lake City, Utah and thought it a great idea to go early and photograph Arches National Park. She asked me if I could meet her in SLC and we drive down to the park together. I didn’t find a reasonable airfare so I rented a car and met her in Salt Lake City Friday the 5th. It’s an 11 hour drive from my house.

Saturday morning we got up early (4AM to leave at 5AM) to head to the park. A 4+ hour drive south of Salt Lake City.
I had a car problem which required a replacement car- We waited at a gas station on Hwy 6 for 3+ hours for a replacement car. That story is here:
circadianreflections.wordpress.com/2010/11/10/a-road-trip…

Finally arriving at Arches National Park this was our first stop.
What a view! The space is immense. The soil reminds me so much of Arizona with all the clay.

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved

This heart shaped leaf floating in a little stream somewhere along Highway 89 in Hope Valley caught my eye while out looking for fall foliage with two friends a couple of weeks ago.

I always try to find a detail or two when out looking for the “big” picture. I could easily get forget to see the forest, and because of that I am consciously looking for a detail here in there to zoom in on.

Nikon D300s, Nikkor 17-35mm @ 32mm

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved

Filoli Gardens- I think this is just outside the mens room.
History for those who like it:
After the 1906 earthquake, many wealthy San Francisco families relocated to the Peninsula and built large estates. A
number of these families made their fotunes in the railroad, mining, banking, and mercantile boom of America’s Gilded Age. Filoli is the last of these estates remaining on all of its original 654 acres. Built by Mr. and Mrs. William Bowers Bourn II, who lived here between 1919 and 1936, the estate was sold to Mr. and Mrs. William P. Roth in 1937. In 1975, Mrs. Roth donated the estate to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Today the property is open to the public from February through October with the help of more than 1,000 volunteers.

The Bourns were owners of the Empire Gold Mine, the largest hard-rock mining operation in California (now the Empire Mine State Park in Grass Valley) as well as the Spring Valley Water Comnpany and its Crystal Springs Reservoir, now owned by the San Francisco Water Dept.
Mr Bourn selected this site on the south end of Crystal Springs Lake because it reminded him of Muckross, the Irish estate he bought for his daughter Maud as a wedding present in 1910. He created the name Filoli by combining the first two letters from the key words of his credo: “Fight for a just cause; Love your fellow man; Live a good life.”
~ National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Nikon D300s, Nikkor 17-35mm@19mm, f8, 1/60s, ISO 200, Aperture Priority

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

I was lucky enough to get to ride shotgun with Adrian who is a tour guide at Safari West.
We had a great day. There were lots of babies in the park during this time of year. This little chick was venturing a little bit farther from Mom when I saw him.

PP- vibrance, clarity, levels, sharpening. and resized
Nikon D90, Nikkor 70-300mmVR @ 180mm, f6.3, 1/640s, ISO 640, Aperture Priority, Hand Held

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

The workshop was over, but, we Theresa, Dali, and I were not through looking for color in the Eastern Sierras.
We wanted one last sunrise before leaving Owens Valley for home.
Rising at 4AM and leaving the Lodge at 5:15AM with all our bags, memories carried in our minds, hearts and on SD cards we drove up Highway 395 to greet the Sun.
Arriving at our destination while still dark, we began quietly walking down the paths searching for a good vantage point to watch the Sunrise.
We were walking through a campground, still quiet with slumbering campers, and a few early risers who were quietly starting their morning fires.
Veering off the path Theresa and I made our way through some thick bush to the bank of the lake to set up our tripods. Here, from the misty banks we watched the drama of Sunrise unfold on the craggy walls, and snow capped mountain tops at a place called Silver Lake.
Exposure- Nikon D300s, Nikkor 17-35mm @ 17mm, f11, 20seconds, ISO 200, Manual Mode, On a Tripod, Timer Release Cord, NO FILTERS
PP- Vibrance, clarity, levels, color boost on the mountain tops, cropped off some of the top, sharpened, and resized.

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

I don’t know who said that, but friends do make life more beautiful. This was our first morning with the workshop. We left the Lodge at 5:15AM to head to McGee Creek for a sunrise shot, and hopefully get some Alpen Glow.
I and my friend Dali chose to go with the group taking the long hike in. It was just about 2 miles up to the spot our guide wanted to shoot.
We stayed pretty long out there- back where you see that snow capped mountain…we were back there in that valley. We stayed so long we were late for breakfast which was at 9:30AM.
I dropped off my gear at the car then went to the breakfast truck- we were having a picnic breakfast, when I walked around the truck I stopped in my tracks and exclaimed, “RAINEY!” There in front of me dressed from head to toe in Camouflage was my friend Rainey. I was totally floored.

She is a wonderful Bird Photographer I met through my good friend Alex.
She was part of the workshop and had been here for the week. We, neither of us realized the other was going to be doing this workshop! I hugged her repeatedly for several minutes. I was so surprised to see her.
Had it been a Birding workshop or event I wouldn’t have been as surprised. She was just as surprised and we both were thrilled to see each other way out here in the middle of no where.

Being so late back as we were a lot of the group had left so we had fewer cars to get the rest of us to the next location. This actually turned out well for me and Rainey. She had one spot in her car which I took. We spent the rest of this day together. She made the day much more fun, and beautiful for me.

This meadow is on the road out of McGee Creek. Jeff Sullivan wanted to show us this meadow and the view. We spent 20 minutes shooting here. Out there in the middle right is a corral…for cattle I think.

PP- Vibrance, clarity, levels, sharpened a bit, resized.
Nikon D90, Nikkor 17-35mm @19mm, f14, 1/100s, ISO 200, Manual Mode, On a Tripod, Singh Ray LB ColorCombo/Warming Polarizer, CS5