Category: Uncategorized

Sunset Mission San Juan Bautista, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004.

Copyright © 2010 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
San Juan Bautista Mission
Outer Courtyard
Twilight
Nikon D90
Nikkor 15-35 f2.8 AF-S

I drove out to Mission San Juan Bautista to photograph the Mission and grounds before meeting up with friends from my Night Photography group. The town is very rural with roosters, hens, and chicks roaming freely through it, and there are many original building still in use.
I plan to go back and photograph more of the town.

My entire gallery of this day is here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmzajac2004/sets/72157624145463865/

In June, 1803, the cornerstone was laid for the present church. With three naves or aisles, it became the widest of all the mission churches. It was dedicated on June 23, 1812. Padre Esteban Tapis is buried in the sanctuary of the church. He was, at one time, Presidente of the Missions and he is founder of the Mission Santa Ines. When he retired from office he came to San Juan Bautista where his musical talents brought fame and a new name to San Juan, “THE MISSION OF MUSIC.” Two of his handwritten choir books can be seen in the Museum.

Interior completion of the church continued through 1817 when the floor was tiled and the main altar and reredos (which holds the six statues) were completed by Thomas Doak, an American sailor who jumped ship in Monterey. He painted the reredos in exchange for room and board.
The Old Mission San Juan Bautista has had an unbroken succession of pastors since its founding on June 24,1797.

Can I have the table by the lake please?, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004/.

Copyright © Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

Silver Lake
Inyo National Forrest
Hwy 395

This was one of the first lakes Theresa and I visited on my first full day in the Eastern Sierras.
What a beautiful valley this is.
We are resolved to go back in the fall.
I’d love to walk this path again and see how the colors have changed.

Nikon D300s
Nikkor 17-35mm f2.8 AF-S
B+W Circular Polarizer
Hoya 81A warming filter

Good morning, good morning, good morning!, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004/.

Copyright © Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
Mono Lake Tufa SNR
State Natural Reserve
Nikon D300s
Nikkor 17-35mm f2.8AF-S

I spent 3 days in the 395 corridor. My last morning a girl-friend from a Meet-up group and I got up just before 3AM to drive out to Mono (Moe-noh) Lake to photograph sunrise.
We started out at Navy Beach but there weren’t as many tufas (two-fahs) there and the few that were there were quite a walk out. We would have missed the sunrise had we walked out there so we drove over to the south side where all the tufas are. Yes, these have probably been shot a zillion times by other photographers…many were here this morning, but this was my first time to the lake. I was so thrilled to see them and photograph them.

The “Save the Mono Lake” group has won their battle and the lake will be restored. When it hits it’s mandatory depth all these tufas will be submerged under water. Get there while you can!

B+W Circular Polarizer

PP-Clarity, vibrance and wee bit of adjustment of the midtone curve. I’m liking that adjustment feature.

Historical Information:
The reserve was established to preserve the spectacular “tufa towers,” calcium-carbonate spires and knobs formed by interaction of freshwater springs and alkaline lake water. It also protects the lake surface itself as well as the wetlands and other sensitive habitat for the 1 – 2 million birds that feed and rest at Mono Lake each year.

Mono Lake is a majestic body of water covering about 65 square miles. It is an ancient lake, over 1 million years old — one of the oldest lakes in North America. It has no outlet.

Throughout its long existence, salts and minerals have washed into the lake from Eastern Sierra streams. Freshwater evaporating from the lake each year has left the salts and minerals behind so that the lake is now about 2 1/2 times as salty as the ocean and very alkaline.

Foresta Barns, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004/.

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

Foresta Barns
Stream
Croaking Frogs
Pine Trees
Recovering from Fire

We drove out of Yosemite Nat. Park to get here. I’d have to look it up to know exactly where “here” is though. The barns are park property, but the property surrounding them is private.
It’s a very quite place except if you’re near the stream. The frogs were singing on this morning, and later there was bird up at the very top of a pin tree singing. The best kind of music while in country or mountains.
I had a nice walk about here.

Somewhere south of Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park
California
Big Sur
Coastal
Aqua Sea
Tall grass
Fresh Sea Breeze
Breath Deeply
Sigh

Nikon D300s/ Nikkor 17-35mm @35mm/ f22/ 1/125s/ ISO 800 Aperture Priority- Tripod

PP- vibrance, clarity, boosted saturation to bring out more of that wonderful aqua color, resized CS5

Over the Rainbow, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004/.

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

El Portal, CA
Yosemite Water-Works Workshop
Dave Wyman
Bridalveil Fall
Tunnel View
Rainbow

My birthday present from God one day early! We had come up here in the morning, but it was overcast, and there was no rainbow. We decided to try coming back up in the afternoon because the light and clouds had shifted and it looked more promising. What a great decision!

This was the highlight of the trip for me. This was the shot to beat.