Laguna Beach Winter Sunset

Went down to Moss St. in Laguna Beach to capture the sunset. This image was captured using 3 exposures (one properly exposed, one +2 stops, and one -2 stops). I then used all three exposures to create an HDR image using Photomatix. Just a bit more post processing via Photoshop.

Two more from this shoot on my Flickr Photostream. http://www.flickr.com/photos/36092537@N04/

Happy Holidays!

Old Town Orange

Old Town Orange is one of those areas that is perfect for photo opp's. Today a friend and I went down to the circle at sundown and took some long exposure shots. I wasn't overly excited with any of mine, but it was a great evening and another chance to get to know my camera and equipment a bit better.

Newport Beach Christmas

Went to the Newport Beach boat parade this week. Gorgeous sunset. Too bad they have Plexiglas all around the shore by the Balboa Bay Club. I snapped this shot threw one opening, but couldn't get around the rails to the dock. If I cropped out the rails, I think I would lose too much of the composition's grounding. Still a great evening and memory!

Rainy Day Subjects... Cats?

Most of the time it's pretty sunny in beautiful Orange County, California. However, we do get the occasional rainy day, and unless you're into getting wet with your camera equipment it's time for some indoor subjects. Here are a couple of my cats staying warm together. In this shot our oldest cat yawns, but it looks like there's a chance she may eat the new kitty.

Shot with Canon 50D and 24m-105m Canon L series lens. Processed in Lightroom, with a few Photoshop touch-ups to blur the background.

Check out some of my favorites on Flicker: http://www.flickr.com/photos/36092537@N04/ and purchase on Redbubble.com (socalmark).

Selling a Few Photos on Red Bubble

Click on the images below to access my redbubble shots....

Not A Christmas Tree Ornament

Well, I'm sure I'll have more than a few holiday posts between now and new year, but I had to post this photo of our cat Sydney as she has decided that our Christmas tree was her newest toy. The tree is likely going down at some point this year.

The photo was taken by my wife via her mobile phone, so I will try and upgrade to a shot with my 50D the next opportunity that I get.

Halloween Is Good Day for Photography

Every year it seems that some of my favorite shots and memories come from Halloween. The kids really enjoy dressing up, and there's something about them being in character that seems to increase their tolerance for photo opportunities. This year, I had some fun with my 580 and 430 EXII's, Pocket Wizards, and Photoshop Elements.

Both photos using 24-105mm L. Close-up is on-camera 580 EXII while trick-or-treating. Second photo used both 580 and 430 in soft-boxes off camera (left above, and right subject-height).

To see a couple of other shots from the evening, check out my photo-stream on Flickr! http://www.flickr.com/photos/36092537@N04/

Boo!

Ah, The Pumpkin Patch

In my opinion the Fall season is probably the best for great photo opportunities. The light, the colors and the potential for a bit of weather make for some great shots. This weekend, I went to the local pumpkin patch with my family. When I was little, it was simply a place to get pumpkins. Now, it's basically a carnival, and there happen to be pumpkins there. This particular Pumpkin Patch was at the corner of Imperial Highway and Yorba Linda Blvd.

Not SoCal, but Hong Kong

Was on a business trip in Hong Kong all week, and did manage to capture a few shots while I was there. Put the best shot on Flickr!, but here's a couple from my trip. One that reminds me of a scene from Blade Runner, and one of the HK skyline during the light show. Both have composition problems, but they still remind me of a great trip.

On Flickr I'm SoCal Mark.

Fall in Lake Arrowhead

As the season's change Lake Arrowhead undergoes a transformation that is very different than coastal California. Thirty degree temperature swings in less than twenty-four hours are not uncommon. Here are a couple of shots from Lake Arrowhead Village. One is an HDR image with a wildfire blazing in the background (Lytle Creek / Wrightwood fire). The other is a dusk shot of Lake Arrowhead Village.

Amsterdam

I didn't have a lot of time, but I placed my two best shots from my trip to Holland on my Flickr photo stream http://www.flickr.com/photos/36092537@N04/.

However, I did tinker as well and the shot attache to this post was a hand-held 2 second exposure. I like the phantom headlights from a delivery van that passed by.

Hoping for Some Nice Shots in Holland

A few shots at the pool today, but off to The Netherlands tomorrow. Will be taking the 50D, and hoping that I'll have time for some nice shots of the canals!

Huntington Beach (South of Pier)

Orange County has some very beautiful beaches. Huntington Beach (aka Surf City USA) has a lot of great photo spots. Last Thursday, we went south of the pier to attend my wife's company picnic. Even at the beach it was 94degrees (f), so it was a scorcher.

Still had time for some fun and photos.

Weekend in Lake Arrowhead

Hidden in the San Bernardino Mountains, Lake Arrowhead is a mountain oasis in the desert. Although I didn't capture any of the gorgeous Stellar's Jay's while visiting this weekend, I was able to capture a nice shot of a Doe and a Woodpecker.

Doe:

-EF 100mm-400mm @ 400

- ISO 100

- f/10

- 1/30 sec

Woodpecker:

- EF 100mm-400mm @ 400

- ISO 500

- f/5.6

- 1/500

Ah, San Diego

There are a lot of places in San Diego to take great photograph. I was on vacation with the family, but managed to take a couple of decent early evening shots overlooking Seaport Village, as well as the classic Sea World stuff.

The Shamu shot:

- Canon 50D

- EF 100-400mm f4.0/5.6 L, @ 200mm and f/5.0

- ISO 100

- 1/1000 sec.

- Limited post processing in Lightroom

The Seaport Village shot:

- Canon 50D

- EF 24mm-105mm f/4.0 L, @ 24mm and f/4.0

- ISO 200

- 3 exposures, using "Auto Exposure Bracketing" @ 2 step increments

- Post processingin Photomatix

Golden Sunset Bavaria... Not Newport Beach!

OK, so the blog is focused on Southern California, but I just spent a week in Germany. Thus, before I can make my way to the beach (hopefull "The Wedge", since it is going off this weekend), I thought I would post one photo from Bavaria. Enjoy!

Heading to Germany this week, and although it's a business trip, I'm hoping for a few Bavarian photo opp's...

Trying to think up some good photo opp's for the coming weekend. Head to Germany next week, but may be too crazy to take the good equipment.

Summer Day in Anaheim Hills

It's about 97 degrees and zero humidity, which makes it a perfect for the pool, and pool photos.

Cowen Heights Sunset

Driving home this evening, there was a great sunset. So we pulled over the car at the top of La Loma Drive in Cowan Heights (near Chapman & Santiago Road) in Orange County. Worth a stop.

Just returned from a four day business trip to the Cleveland area. Wish I had my equipment, because there were some amazing sunsets and a blood red sunrise this morning when I woke to return to Orange County. Glad to be home and ready for some great shots this weekend.

Chips N' Salsa

Well, I may have over dipped this one, but I like the light and the drip. Used my EF 35mm f/1.4 L, along with a 580 EXII above-left in a soft box. Happy 4th of July!

Weekend Project

It's "4th of July" weekend here in the US, and I will be taking some outdoor, pool photos for sure. In addition, I am planning to 'channel my innter strobist' with a small project that involves "Chips N' Salsa" -- a Southern California delicacy, and one of my favorite foods. I'll post the final results, and am hoping my vision is realized via a nice capture.

Aneheim Hills Sunset

There's a vacant lot on Via Escola in Anaheim Hills (92807) where you can capture some pretty amazing sunsets.

Moss St., Laguna Beach, California. A little less overcast and this one would have really popped! (Photo Taken on 5/9/09, as seen on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/36092537@N04/3515331257/)

Scouting OC Photo Spots

Went to Newport Beach Pier at dawn yesterday with a friend and fellow photographer, and the June Gloom was so dominant it made all of my photos flat and boring. There were families and kids playing (at 6:00am), but the water was glassy and there were some 2' waves for the surfers to ride. However, only a few of my photos worth spending any time in post-production.

Spent about 45 minutes scouting Anaheim Hills for spots with vistas of the mountains (San Bernardino and Santa Ana), as well as some with the ocean and Catalina. Found a great dead-end road up through Anaheim Hills Estates (off of Serrano). I know there must be 3 to 4 killer spots in AH, worth noting.

When the overcast goes away, I want to head back down to Moss St. in Laguna for some sunset shots, with long exposures.

If you know of a killer SoCal photo vista, please share it via comments.