California 395

An image that fits nicely into my “Roadside Meditations” series/book but I never paid much attention to it until today despite making it in June of last year. Funny how that works. If you live in Southern California and like the mountains, then the 395 is part of your life. I’ve personally been traveling this road for 12+ years now and always find something new to love about it. Normally that comes with the changing light as is the case with this image. If memory serves, I was in the middle of doing an 8.5 hour drive from Tahoe to San Diego when this scene presented itself and forced me to pull over. Something about the light, lines, color, and textures that really add up.

San Diego Magazine -Hiking and Biking

San Diego Hiking Trails

Fun assignment a month or two back for San Diego Magazine shooting the cover/feature for their Hiking and Biking issue which seems to be a recurring thing for me. It’s been a great way to get out into parts of San Diego that I’ve never seen before. The cover “model” was Karlene Chavis - Chief Meteorologist for CBS 8. She a big hiker and was awesome to shoot/talk with during the couple hours we were out on the trail. It never gets old interacting with the real person that you don’t get to see/know on TV. I’m not at all implying that she is fake while doing the news, but there is only so much a person can do during their live broadcast. And when someone is on television, the public develops a persona for them and they are expected to always act a certain way. So whenever you’re able to see a newscaster, athlete, celebrity, etc. as just normal, not someone putting on a facade, it’s quite refreshing.

Click here to see more of my adventure photography

San Diego Magazine - Best hiking trails in San Diego

San Diego Magazine - Best hiking trails in San Diego

Bishop, CA

Snowboarding is a very selfish act of mine. Aside from photography it’s the thing I love doing most in the world and the only activity where I allow myself to put the camera down. Went up to the Mammoth Lakes this past week to take advantage of the huge dump of snow they finally got and did a couple days of backcountry riding. The camera stayed in the bag except for the trip there and back. Made these two images just outside of Bishop, CA. Happy with them and happy to have made them. The snowboarding leaves me feeling extremely fulfilled, but I’d still feel guilty about being on the road without making any frames at all.

Click here to see more from my “America” series.

Aquatech Elite Sport Housing

Picked up an underwater camera housing from Aquatech a while back, and just got around to shooting with it last month. Thing is a blast, and opens up incredible opportunities that would otherwise be completely out of reach. Just like anything, it take some getting used to. I chose the Aquatech over others in the field because it seems to offer the most options when it comes to camera operation. You can tell right when you get the rig set up, that it's solid. And (knock on wood) you have very little worries about leaks. After playing around a bit, you easily get a feel for it, and understand how get comfortable with it.  I only have the widest angle lens dome port, because I only want to shoot things like you see below. I'm not a surf photographer. What you see was done close to shore and lit with strobes. That to me, is fun. Don't get me wrong, I'll get out in the waves with my friends, but I have more fun with strobes. The shutter button is a little hard to push down, but probably necessary. And it's also a little awkward to hold with two hands. So I definitely recommend getting the trigger handle. It will make your life a lot easier (looks cool too). Another thing you definitely wanna pay attention to is the back piece. It has to be precisely in place or the buttons won't operate the camera properly. Again, something that just needs a little getting used to. Overall, I love the rig and can't wait to use it in clearer waters.