If Pigs Could Fly

Smokestacks, originally uploaded by futurballa.

My favorite album cover shot, taken on Cannery Row in Monterey.

Category: Photos

Crocodile Rock

Crocodile Rock, originally uploaded by futurballa.

This is actually San Gregorio Beach just north of Pigeon Point, but friend Bridget dubbed it Crocodile Rock.

Category: Photos

Pigeon Point

Lighthouse, originally uploaded by futurballa.

More in the recycled category...

Travelling up Highway 1 from Santa Cruz towards Half Moon Bay, you pass Pigeon Point Lighthouse.

This image was uploaded from Flickr. I've blogged previously about new ways to share photos, and Flickr.com seems to be at the cutting edge. I'm not too certain about their business plan, but the concept is very cool. My flickr page can be found here.

Category: Photos

Recycling

Work prohibits extensive photo-excursions or verbose postings, so I'm sharing a few of my favorite pieces, yet again.


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/16 @ 1/50 sec - 17-40 L

Category: Photos

Man on the Street


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/5 @ 1/60 sec - 70-200 f4 L

Category: Photos

Absorbent, Yellow and Porous

I guess Spongebob Squarepants is the new Tinky Winky.

And CNN's Quick Vote of the day proves the adage that people will mostly choose the funny answer, as 69% pick the 3rd option.

Quick Vote
SpongeBob SquarePants is:

• Promoting the acceptance of homosexuality
  
• Promoting tolerance and diversity
  
• Absorbent, yellow and porous

Category: Culture

Digital Rights

Another interesting photography post at the 2 Blowhards written by Michael with the help of correspondent Bryan Castaneda. They pose some interesting questions on the subject of rights management in a digital age. To summarize, should a wedding photographer (in this example) be required to supply a customer with digital files on CD.

I come down on the side of not. These are negatives, whether digital or film it doesn't matter.

The comments section of Michael's posting has an interesting ongoing debate.

Category:Photography

Walking Man


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/8 @ 1/50 sec - 70-200 f4 L
From Santa Rosa, near the location of the previous post. Somewhat oversharpened for effect.

Category:Photography
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Moses Invests


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 800 - f/4 @ 1/320 sec - 70-200 f4 L

Neon sign at rescue mission in Santa Rosa, California.

Miscellany

Wired on top photo-sharing sites.

I also recently discovered a neat little set of php scripts to host your own galleries. It is called Minigal (as in Mini Gallery, not tiny woman), and can be downloaded from here. If you want to see some galleries created with these scripts, I have some at futurballa.com. You can view them here.

In a moment of serendipity, Michael Blowhard is also posting some photography links this morning.

Here is another from Santa Rosa. Also taken at Railroad Square, near the ever popular Charlie Brown & Snoopy statue.


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/11 @ 1/80 sec - 70-200 f4 L
Photography

More From Santa Rosa

A big thank you to Our Girl in Chicago for her kind link, and welcome to our visitors from About Last Night.


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 800 - f/4 @ 1/125 sec - 70-200 f4 L
Hotel Oliver, Santa Rosa

Took a liking to this faded sign while walking around Santa Rosa. A bit of Googling (as I like to know the background of things I'm posting) led to this site, with some great pictures of old hotel signs in Northern California. Unfortunately, Google didn't spit up any useful historical information.

Good Grief, Charlie Brown

I spent yesterday in Santa Rosa, California on business. Got there a bit late in the day, Tuesday evening, and had meetings to attend all day Wednesday, so there was not a lot of time for photography. I did manage to take a walk before dusk around a bit of the city's old downtown area and try out my new Canon lens, 70-200 f4 L.

Santa Rosa was home to the late Charles M. Schulz, creator of Peanuts. This statue is located at Railroad Square.


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/4 @ 1/60 sec - 70-200 f4 L

Last Twain from Carmel


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/4 @ 1/400 sec - 17-40L


Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/13 @ 1/30 sec - 17-40L

Crucifix in a Deathand

One of my favorite poems by Charles Bukowski, something of an ode to Los Angeles, place of my birth and partially under water at the moment. I thought it appropriate. There is a connection to the song lyric posted last week (Carmelita). No prizes, but bragging rights to anyone who knows it.

crucifix in a deathhand

yes, they begin out in a willow, I think
the starch mountains begin out in the willow
and keep right on going without regard for
pumas and nectarines
somehow these mountains are like
an old woman with a bad memory and
a shopping basket.
we are in a basin. that is the
idea. down in the sand and the alleys,
this land punched-in, cuffed-out, divided,
held like a crucifix in a deathhand,
this land bought, resold, bought again and
sold again, the wars long over,
the Spaniards all the way back in Spain
down in the thimble again, and now
real estaters, subdividers, landlords, freeway
engineers arguing. this is their land and
I walk on it, live on it a little while
near Hollywook here I see young men in rooms
listening to glazed recordings
and I think too of old men sick of music
sick of everything, and death like suicide
I think is sometimes voluntary, and to get your
hold on the land here it is best to return to the
Grand Central Market, see the old Mexican women,
the poor . . . I am sure you have seen these same women
many years before
arguing
with the same young Japanese clerks
witty, knowledgeable and golden
among their soaring store of oranges, apples
avocados, tomatoes, cucumbers­
and you know how these look, they do look good
as if you could eat them all
light a cigar and smoke away the bad world.
then it's best to go back to the bars, the same bars
wooden, stale, merciless, green
with the young policeman walking through
scared and looking for trouble,
and the beer is still bad
it has an edge that already mixes with vomit and
decay, and you've got to be strong in the shadows
to ignore it, to ignore the poor and to ignore yourself
and the shopping bag between your legs
down there feeling good with its avocados and
oranges and fresh fish and wine bottles, who needs
a Fort Lauderdale winter?
25 years ago there used to be a whore there
with a film over one eye, who was too fat
and made little silver bells out of cigarette
tinfoil. the sun seemed warmer then
although this was probably not
true, and you take your shopping bag
outside and walk along the street
and the green beer hangs there
just above your stomach like
a short and shameful shawl, and
you look around and no longer
see any
old men.

Carmelita



All of this Carmel stuff inspired me to post one of my favorite Warren Zevon Lyrics.


Carmelita

Carmelita hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town

Well, I'm sittin' here playing solitaire
With my pearl-handled deck
The county won't give me no more methadone
And they cut off your welfare check

Carmelita hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town

Well, I pawned my Smith Corona
And I went to meet my man
He hangs out down on Alvarado Street
By the Pioneer chicken stand

Carmelita hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town

Carmelita hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town

Bunuel on DVD

There has long been a shortage of the work of Luis Bunuel available on DVD. Up until now, only a couple of his later works, That Obscure Object of Desire and The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, along with a couple of mid-career classics, Diary of a Chambermaid and Belle de Jour can be found. His Spanish language films, many of which he was grinding out in Mexico while in exile, such as Viridiana, Simon of the Desert, Nazarin and The Exterminating Angel have been sadly missing from DVD.

Happily, his two earliest films are now available on DVD. In collaboration with Salvador Dali, Don Luis created some of the most enduring cinematic imagery ever devised in Un Chien Andalou and L'Age D'Or. A full description can be read at the Onion AV Club, here. Hopefully more will follow. It is long overdue that Bunuel's complete oeuvre be made available.

In a continuing series...


Yet another from what turned out to be a fairly productive trip to Carmel.

I had hoped to make a photo excursion during the Christmas break, but inclement weather hindered my plans. So I hope you will make do with a few more from this particular journey, and let's hope for better weather in Northern California.

Junipero Serra and Mission Carmel


Graveyard beside the Chapel


San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo Mission

Mission Carmel is particularly significant in the history of California because Padre Serra, the man credited with the founding of the California Missions, ended his days at Mission Carmel. He is buried next to the main altar.

A bit of the history of the Carmel Mission can be found here.

Please Give of Yourself

A Happy New Year

to all of our readers, viewers and visitors. You know who you are.


Big Sur as seen from Point Lobos
Canon EOS 20D - ISO 100 - f/10 @ 1/640 sec - 28-135 IS