Cayucos

Cayucos is a funky little fishing village about 20 miles north of San Luis Obispo. I discovered it several years ago while on a Califorina-beach-cities-photographic-walk-about that extended down to San Diego. This time I was driving to my sister's for Christmas and instead of jamming down I-5 in 5 hours, I took the scenic route. Cayucos was my first stop.

The forecast for Monday was partly cloudy skies with little chance of rain, but by late afternoon, it was pouring. I didn't mind. I was glad to be out of the house, on the road, and near the ocean.

Overnight the skies cleared and I awoke to a beautiful, sunny Tuesday. I was glad to walk around town again, this time with a blue sky in the background.I stayed at the Shoreline Inn, which was perfect for me; right on the beach and only a block from the pier. My room was the last one on the far right of the photo. It had a sliding glass door that opened to the beach. I fell asleep listening to the waves crash.

All small beach towns have a wooden pier. It's a mandatory part of their charm. The one in Cayucos is long and straight and extends out well past the breakers.

The many signs along the pier that prohibit climbing on or jumping off the pier are routinely ignored by the surfers. Most of them run the length of the pier and they are up and over the rail before one can even raise one's camera. But this surfer was in no hurry. He calmly walked out past the breakers...

climbed over the railing...

waited for a swell to roll in under him...

and jumped.

I took many photos of the pier on Monday afternoon, but Tuesday's more favorable conditions of a morning sun and a beautiful blue sky, forced me to return and take more.

The bright blue sky also meant blue reflective water.

Morro Bay

I hated to leave Cayucos, but I had to make some progress south. My next stop was Morro Bay, just 5 miles down the road. Morro Rock is an ancient volcanic plug that dominates this small, scenic fishing village.
Although climbing the rock is prohibited, you can drive out along its base, park and walk to the breakwater, which can be seen to the left of the rock in this photo.

Huge waves were breaking over the rocks. I was on the beach and too low to see them coming, but I could hear their approach. I didn't get too close. This was taken with a telephoto lens.

The Morro Bay Estuary is home to hundreds of bird species,
including this Dock Gull

Pismo Beach

My progress south continued Tuesday afternoon. My next stop was Pismo Beach, a great little town 10 miles south of Morro Bay. For those many of you who follow my visual journey, you'll remember that in early November, I and others from the photography club visited the Monarch Butterfly Preserve in Pacific Grove. The butterflies were few and difficult to spot, and I ended the blog by saying I wanted to go back when there were more. Then I discovered that Pismo has it's own butterfly preserve and the current population numbered in the thousands. I temporarily bypassed the beach and drove straight to the preserve. This is the photo I couldn't get in PG.

The Monarchs make an incredible journey, from as far away as Canada, across the Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada ranges, to spend the winter in balmy Pismo Beach. This Pismo location holds the largest colony of Monarchs in the country. They huddle together in Eucalyptus and Pine trees until the temperature warms, and then they flutter about in the sun and pose for individual and small group portraits. The blue sky provided some wonderful background color.

After several hours, I left the butterflies and drove into town. The 1,200 foot pier is at the center of Pismo's beach, fishing and surfing activities. This pier is HUGE, wide with many outcroppings for viewing and fishing. Spending the night in Pismo allowed me to leisurely explore the town and photograph the sunset. Many others were on the beach with cameras in hand (on tripod) with the same goal in mind. The only difference was, they all left as soon as the sun disappeared. I stayed until there was just no light left in the sky.

The reflections were spectacular.

The next day (Wednesday) was again clear and beautiful, and I was on the beach soon after the sun was up to continue photographing the pier. There is something about piers that I find fascinating.

I liked this forest of pilings

The surfers at Pismo don't jump off the pier (It's a long drop to the water.). They walk and paddle out to the breakers. It seemed like a perfect day to ride the waves.Finally I had to tear myself away from Pismo
and continue on my way south.
Christmas and my sister were awaiting my arrival.

Merry Christmas

Hello Everyone. Do you like to drive around the neighborhood and look at the Christmas Lights? It's a tradition for many, including me.

Please take a ride through my images of lights.

I make the lights "explode" by setting a slow shutter speed and twisting the zoom lens during the exposure. It's fun to see what kind of effects I can create. Below are a few before and after effects

This last one is my favorite because it looks so celestial.

I hope you have a very happy holiday
and that all your wishes come true.

Uvas Canyon Shoot-out

The photography club held its monthly shoot-out at Uvas Canyon County Park, which is just a few miles from my house. I visited the park three times last year to photograph along "Waterfall Loop Trail." On this day, only six members braved the 43 degree temperatures, but we were rewarded with wonderful, diffused light that helped make the colors pop. There hasn't been enough recent rain for the waterfalls to flow at full force, but still, it is a wonderful place to spend an afternoon.

I hope you enjoyed your scroll through the park.

December Full Moon

My quest to photograph the full moon every month continues.
You can view previous full moons
by clicking on the links at the top right of the page.

This next shot is a multiple exposure, something I just found out my camera can do. I wanted three separate moons, but had to guess at the time between shots. I was too impatient to wait longer than two minutes. I'll try this again
I tried to set up the shot to include a big beautiful oak tree, but I was a bit too close with the 400 lens to include the moon and the whole tree.

I like the moon in this shot
because the wispy clouds make it glow.

The moon is way over exposed in this shot (I was trying to save some detail in the tree), but I like the effect with the clouds.Look for photos of the rare Blue Moon on December 3oth.

Auguste Rodin

I was in Palo Alto for two medical appointments at Stanford (and for those who know my story, after three years, my brain is intact and in normal working order). I had an hour between appointments, so I took my brown bag lunch to the Rodin Sculpture Garden on campus. A single parking place was open right at the entrance. I had been wanting to see these sculptures for some time, so after eating, I wondered the grounds with camera in hand. I don't know much about Rodin, but he must have been a tortured man. Most of his sculptures are of people who seem to be in agony. The sky was bright, so I moved in close to frame just the face of Pierre DeWissant, a Burger of Callais
I liked this statue of Adam mainly because of the shadow he cast. Eve was there also, but with no shadow. They are on either side of the "Gates of Hell" which was too tortured to look at, much less photograph.

This is an isolation of Adam's hand.
All the sculptures have very large extremities.

"The Thinker" was not available to photograph.
It's inside the museum.

Pacific Grove: Butterflies & High Surf

The photography club held a shoot-out at the Pacific Grove Butterfly Sanctuary. This is a small, protected grove of trees and bushes that Monarch Butterflies are free to use for a little R&R. At times, there are thousands hanging and flitting around, but on this day, there were only a few hundred. They were not easy to spot. It took a long time and many people pointing before I finally spotted this next one.

I had a 400 mm lens and still could not fill the frame.
I think I will have to go back when there are more.
I'd like to get a photo of a cluster hanging in tree.

As it happened, there were high surf warnings along the coast on this day: another great photo opportunity. We left the sanctuary around 11:30 and headed for the coastal drive. The day was beautiful, the waves were tremendous, and the place was crowded with people and cars. Parking was at a premium because all the normal parking areas were closed due to the dangerous surf.

Pacific Grove is beautiful any day of the year,
(See my previous posts in April & May.)
but this day's combination of blue sky, big rocks, and high surf
made it especially photogenic.

As I photographed, I kept a look out for that rogue tidal wave
that always shows up in the movies, like this one.

To see more of my photos of Pacific Grove,
click "My Flickr Site," under Favorite Links
or copy/paste this URL

http://www.flickr.com/photos/suebrazelton/