Postcard from Hearst Castle

If you were lucky enough to be invited for the weekend to Hearst Castle, there were four rules that had to be obeyed:

1. No telling of off-color jokes or using of bad language

2. No getting drunk

3. No eating in the bedrooms

4. Unmarried couples had to sleep in separate bedrooms

Of course we are talking about the 30’s and 40’s. Way back then, the double standard for men and women was scrupulously maintained…even in the master’s 3rd floor suite.

For much of his adult life, William Randolph Hearst had a mistress: film star Marion Davies. She was a beautiful woman and the couple were devoted to each other. If they could have married they would have…but Hearst was already married and his wife, being a good and devoted Catholic, refused to give him a divorce. Obviously this was before California’s no-fault divorce laws.

Mrs. Hearst never visited the castle, probably because Ms. Davies was a an ensconced fixture there. She was the lady of the house. It is said that they were only in the same room once…at some event in Los Angeles. The story is they never acknowledged the other’s existence. Figures.

It would have been fun if Mrs. Hearst would have shown up at the castle unannounced at least once. What would William do? But she never did, although she had every right to, according to the mores of the day.

But, true to the double standard (and in case she ever did show up), Hearst and Davies maintained separate bedrooms…even though they were right across the hall from each other. Since there is a dress on the bed in this photo, this is obviously Ms. Davies bedroom (although it could easily be mistaken for J. Edgar Hoover’s bedroom).

But when the lights when out at night at Hearst Castle, all was fair in love and war…if you get my drift. Ain’t love grand? But you damn well better not bring a ham sandwich into the bedroom for a late night snack.

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Postcard from Coulterville

It was a happy accident that I wound up here in Coulterville, CA…in the heart of the California Gold Country. My friend Susan and I were on our way to Yosemite to meet up with other friends for a long weekend.

We blissfully drove east along Highway 120 until we came to Priest Grade, a steep stretch of road that twists and turns its way up to higher elevations. A big sign said the road was closed. But fortunately, there was a detour…which took us south for a while…right into the town of Coulterville.

For the Gold Country, Coulterville is a boring name. This part of California is known for little towns and geographic locations with exotic names, usually selected by inebriated gold miners. Think I’m kidding? Here are a few examples:

You Bet, Yellow Jacket Mine, Smuggler Mine, Hangtown, Gold Hill, Poverty Hill, Rich Bar, Dutch Creek, Gold Run, Dutch Flat and Poorman Creek. Then there’s Grizzly Canyon, Rough and Ready, Jackass Creek, Humbug, Stringtown, Angel's Camp, Whiskey Creek, and Volcano. I know, drunk or sober, they thought these names were funny.

See why I think Coulterville is a boring name? The fact that it was once called Maxwell Creek doesn’t improve its image. Must not have been much drinking going on here back in the 1850’s.

Of course the folks that started the towns here had a unique name of their own. Gold was discovered in California in 1848. It wasn’t long before the secret was out and these wannabe gold miners poured into San Francisco in 1849 to head up into the hills.

This allowed them to call themselves 49ers…and while most people think they were named after the year, the truth is they stole the name from a small, relatively unknown, but rugged, football team that played their games in The City. The miners thought this was funny too.

But I digress.

While the name may be a bit mundane, Coulterville is a lovely little town of 201 people that really shines in the spring. Many of the buildings are from the 1850’s…its one of the last remaining unspoiled gold country towns (even the utilities are underground to help camera freaks like me).

The wisteria runs along the main street, from the Hotel Jeffrey to this assay office/antique store…and it was all in bloom this fine May day.

The Hotel Jeffrey was built in 1851, which explains why it was not called Wisteria Lodge. Too bad as Sherlock Holmes fans would flock there in droves.

But, there is also the wildly misnamed Magnolia Saloon and a Chinese store, Sun Sun Wo Co. And let me not forget Whistling Billy, an eight ton locomotive that brought ore down from the mines.

Such a lovely place to visit…but time was of the essence that day and we had to keep going meet our friend up in Yosemite Valley. Of course, that beautiful place had the great fortune not to be named by drunken miners. The native Americans who lived there called it “Awooni,” which in their language meant Big Mouth. They thought it was funny too.   

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Postcard from Hearst Castle

Presenting today, a poem by William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951). Today’s photo is of the Neptune Pool at Hearst Castle. FYI, the columns on the left are from ancient Rome.

The Song of the River

The snow melts on the mountain

And the water runs down to the spring,

And the spring in a turbulent fountain,

With a song of youth to sing,

Runs down to the riotous river,

And the river flows to the sea,

And the water again

Goes back in rain

To the hills where it used to be.

And I wonder if life’s deep mystery

Isn’t much like the rain and the snow

Returning through all eternity

To the places it used to know.

For life was born on the lofty heights

And flows in a laughing stream,

To the river below

Whose onward flow

Ends in a peaceful dream.

And so at last,

When our life has passed

And the river has run its course,

It again goes back,

O’er the selfsame track,

To the mountain which was its source.

So why prize life

Or why fear death,

Or dread what is to be?

The river ran

Its allotted span

Till it reached the silent sea.

Then the water harked back

To the mountain-top

To begin its course once more.

So we shall run

The course begun

Till we reach the silent shore.

Then revisit earth

In a pure rebirth

From the heart of the virgin snow.

So don’t ask why

We live or die,

Or whither, or when we go,

Or wonder about the mysteries

That only God may know.

William Randolph Hearst - 1941

Postcard from San Simeon

“In suggesting gifts: Money is appropriate, and one size fits all.” - William Randolph Hearst

Hearst Castle is the symbol of opulence run amok. But, you gotta love it! It’s beauty is beyond belief. Here, unlimited money magically became beauty. Art in every flavor abounds here, yet it is all so tasteful…well mostly. 

There is nothing like it anywhere else in the world. Yet, here it is. It could never be duplicated in this day and age. Perhaps that is a good thing.

This was my first trip to Castle Moneystein…aka: La Cuesta Encantada, even though I lived in California much of my life. It is a bit out of the way. It’s north of San Luis Obispo and south of Monterey. The only way to get there is via the twists and turns of California Highway One.

But here’s a dirty little secret…go north from San Luis Obispo to visit the castle. The twist and turns are mostly north of San Simeon. It’s a pretty straight shot from the south. Of course, when it was built, there was no Highway One. You figure it out.

And, by the way, you don’t drive to the castle. Rather, you park down below at the Visitor’s Center and take a bus up a twisty five-mile road to the top. Along the way up (and back), you get a recorded guided tour by Alex Trebek which is informative, although he does throw in an infomercial here and there. I’ll take Renaissance Art for $500, Alex. 

Upon landing, one is immediately blown away by the spectacular beauty of the place. Looking out, you see the Pacific Ocean far below…looking up, there are the two Spanish twin cathedral towers that would thrill the soul of Father Junipero Serra. And then there are the gardens. Wow!

And the tour has not even begun yet. I chose to take the Upstairs Suite Tour as it looked more interesting. These old legs had to negotiate 273 stairs, but damned if I didn’t do it….And that doesn’t count all the other stairs I took while exploring the grounds. Of course, all that exercise required a long nap before dinner. No long walk on the beach that night.

But, it was worth every step.

Pictured above is Hearst’s private study. I say private as it was off-limits to most of his guests. The only folks beside Hearst, and perhaps his mistress, Marion Davies (and I’m not even sure about her) were those men who ran his vast empire who were at the castle on business. It is up on the second floor near the library and Hearst’s bedroom.

I asked the tour guide if Hearst’s kids came in here to do their homework. He wasn’t sure. Today, desktop computers would be out of place here, but a properly cased iPad might be OK…although a Wi-Fi signal might be difficult to find. Life was so much simpler back then.

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Postcard from San Francisco

Sometimes I’m fascinated with my fascination of walking through my past. I don’t do it often, but when I do, I want to understand why.

So here I was again in one of my favorite cities in the world, San Francisco…which also happens to be my hometown. I was born and raised here.

My father was born and raised here.

My grandmother was born and raised here.

My grandfather was born in Walla Walla, WA…but he had the good sense to move here, then marry my grandmother. The City took him to its bosom.

Oh, and lest I forget my own mother…she moved to San Francisco right off an Oregon farm…so The City adopted her also, even before she married a native.

So you see, I have every right to call The City my hometown. PS: It’s called “The City” by everyone who lives in and around San Francisco…and that means millions of folks. Wanderers like me who leave San Francisco still call it The City because it is THE CITY. There is no other.

And if a native ever hears you refer to it as San Fran or, God forbid, Frisco, be prepared to have your throat cut. It’s THE CITY. Get used to it.

Back in the late 40’s and 50’s, when my mother had a hankering to visit her family back on the farm, we needed to get from San Francisco to Oakland to catch Southern Pacific’s Shasta Daylight train (now that was a great ride).

The best way then, if you wanted to leave your car at home, was to take a ferry boat across San Francisco Bay. This trip began at the Ferry Building at the water’s edge on what is known as the Embarcadero. As a young boy, it was the only time I ever sailed on a ship (OK it’s a boat). 

My father would take me by the hand through the Ferry Building, purchase our tickets, then lead me out to the docks and on to the ferry boat. How well I remember, standing outside on the bow feeling the wind as I watched The City shrink from view. Seeing The City from The Bay…now that was a sight!

Over the years, I’ve been around the Embarcadero and the Ferry Building many times, but this was the first time since I was a child that I ventured inside. It was nothing like I remembered…probably because it was renovated in 2003. Probably a good thing since it has been there since 1898 and has survived numerous earthquakes.    

The lower floor, once a baggage area, is now an upscale gourmet marketplace, while the upper floors were adapted for offices. Too bad it wasn’t like that when I was a kid…would have loved to board the ferry with a Peet’s coffee in hand.

The ferries still run, although not the same ones from my childhood. Much more modern ones now. I know, because this time I did get a Peet’s coffee and sat out on the docks, resting my weary legs and watching the commuters make their way on to their respective ships (sorry, boats).

So, what did I get from visiting this part of my past? Not much, really. Most of the memories of those days are listed above. Did I feel the ghosts of my parents walking with me? Nope, sorry. It was just another place from my past. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t happy to be there. I do love most all things San Francisco. Did I mention it is my hometown?

 

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Postcard from Monterey

Monterey is an acquaintance. It’s not a friend, like San Francisco, or Chicago or Tucson. It’s just an acquaintance…and maybe just a passing one at that. I doubt we could ever be friends, but I like it all the same…just not that much.

Its been many years since my last visit. Much has changed, much has stayed the same, with just perhaps a hint of change.  It seems to me that the downtown wharf used to have more fishing boats in harbor. Now, it’s a haven for toys-for-the-rich (or for those folks who hang out with the rich, but are, in reality, up to their derriere in debt). But, it made for a nice walk for me and my camera.

At one time, Monterey wanted to become a big city with nice new shiny brick buildings. They wanted to tear out all those old buildings along the harbor. But, then they found that tourists like those old buildings. So where once Japanese women beat abalone steaks to make them tender, there are cutesy chain restaurants with even cuter names like Bubba Gump's.  

So, yes, Monterey is a big-time tourist town…and I guess at my advanced age, I’ve seen all the tourist traps in all the towns and they all look alike to me…none offer anything of value. Been there…done that.

But, lest you think I am an old curmudgeon and didn’t find anything good in Monterey, there were a few saving graces. The aquarium was wonderful and well worth a visit (but it may be awhile before I go to another aquarium again…I am fished out).

My hotel room had a gas-fired fireplace. Now, I don’t see many fireplaces down here in the Sonoran desert. So, it was enjoyable to fire it up when the fog came in. Too bad it was in the back corner of the room where one could not really enjoy it. Still…

I also found a wonderful large Starbucks downtown near the wharf that had a delightful patio just perfect for sitting in the sun, drinking coffee, reading, and watching the world go by. There aren’t many Starbucks that can say that.

The best discovery of all was the Crown and Anchor, a downtown British pub that actually seemed like a British pub (Sorry, but so-called British pubs in strip malls don’t count). A great selection of British beers and some excellent pub fare food.

After a couple of beers (the knowledgeable barman let me taste them before my selections), I ordered Nelson’s Cottage Pie…ground beef, vegetables, and onions cooked in a rich spicy sauce, topped with mashed potatoes and baked in the oven until golden brown. Wonderful. Now that was a great evening. Finding the Crown and Anchor was like going to a party filled with acquaintances and discovering one true friend.  

 

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Postcard from Tucson

I showed this photo nearly two years ago…but back then it was in color and pretty much how it came out of the camera. The other day, I was again fooling around with filters and plug-ins in Photoshop and for reasons still unclear to me, was playing with this photo.

As happens, sometime you hit on something magic (or so it seems to me) and your say to yourself, “That’s it!!”. So it was with the photo you see before you. I titled the photo, “Almost a Cartoon,” as that was my immediate impression. It has a surrealistic effect, especially with the people. Maybe that is why I like it.

The picture was taken at our semi-annual 4th Ave. Street Fair. I say semi-annual as it happens in the fall and in the spring. It is a very popular event as thousands of people wander up and down the street gazing at the merchant’s wares. And there are between 400-500 exhibiters there for each show.

The festival is going to be interesting from here on in. Right now part of 4th Ave is completely torn up as they are installing steel rails for our new light rail system. Part of 4th Ave. is already completed (as a matter of fact, many streets are ripped up right now including the downtown area and the UofA). I am not sure how the festival will be set up as there are rails going up each side of the street.  So it should be interesting. However, I have no idea how the trolleys will run with all the people roaming the streets. But they say the show will go on. Good for them.

Postcard from San Francisco

This photo shows the front entrance to the Federal Reserve Bank on Market Street, near the Embarcadero. In fact, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco is for the twelfth district in the United States and represents 9 western states and some American held islands in the Pacific.

The building was designed by George W. Kelham,. This entrance is is described as being an Ionic colonnade that is pure Beaux-Arts. The upper part of the building is in the new “Moderne” fashion of 1924. Whatever you call it, it makes for an interesting photographic composition.

I gave it an almost-but-not-quite black and white treatment. It was fun experimenting with different filters before settling on this final image. The figures inside give you a feeling for its size and depth. I used a longer lens that compressed the distance between the columns just enough to make it interesting.

I would have liked to explore this building a little longer, but I was walking to AT&T Park to see a Giants game, and was running a little behind schedule. Vacations can be so demanding on one’s time.

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Postcard from Silicon Valley

There is always at least one surprise when I take one of my trips. On this last adventure, one of the big surprises was finding the The Computer History Museum in Mountain View. Of course, it makes perfect sense that such a museum would exist in the heart of Silicon Valley, but that fact does not make the surprise any less fun.

Located in a new, modern building next to Moffat Field Air Base, the museum was obviously built with a plan in mind. By that, I mean the layout of the museum was carefully created as a walk through history. After watching a short introductory film, you follow a winding path through various rooms beginning with the earliest form of computers. As you follow the arrows on the floor, you move forward in time, eventually coming to today…and the future. As the sign says when you enter, this museum celebrates the first 2,000 years of computing.

In the first room, you find the earliest tools used for computing including the abacus. There is a short film there showing how to use one (I still don’t get it). In every room there are TV’s showing films about the various computing devices on display.

In the room that shows artifacts from World War II, there is an authentic German Enigma machine. This machine encoded messages from the German High Command to commanders in the field. The Germans thought the codes unbreakable, but the Allies broke the codes early in the war.

In other rooms you see the giant IBM 360 machines, the first optical drive, the first Cray Supercomputer and more…far too much to describe here. As you move forward in time, one eventually comes upon the first personal computers, which is where I stepped into the computing world. They had almost all of the earliest personal computers there, from the Apple 1 to the PET, the TSR, Commodore 64 and many more.

From here on was familiar territory as each room showed hardware and software from the 80’s until now. There was a room set aside for hand held devices (including phones), the history of games (Pong, anyone?), software, and later, the history of networking and the Internet. The last room is set aside for a film about the future, featuring some of the giants of the industry and their predictions.

The photo here is a semi-arch formed by replicas of software boxes. I thought it made a good photograph and was representative of the museum. Obviously it was from the Software section of the museum.

Besides the museum, I saw several home offices of some the major technology companies headquartered in Silicon Valley…including Apple, Yahoo, IBM, Cisco, Oracle and many others. I also got to see the new 49er football stadium under construction in the heart of Silicon Valley. It was quite a journey. 

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Postcard from San Jose

Isn’t it ironic that during this year’s Olympics I went to visit my Alma Mater, San Jose State University, and came across this sculpture. It shows, of course, that famous moment at the 1968 Olympics when Tommy Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists in the Black Power salute on the medal stand while the National Anthem was playing. That brought back a few memories.

You see, both Smith and Carlos were at San Jose State the same time as me. In fact, I knew Tommy Smith (only slightly) as he lived in the same dorm as me. I have no memory of ever meeting Carlos.  At the time, both athletes took a lot of heat for what they did. I remember being disturbed when it happened…I was torn because they were San Jose State students and I was rooting hard for their success…but was not happy that they chose the Olympic games for their protest. I am OK with it now, not that it matters.

But, time heals all wounds and both athletes have been praised in these later years for their act of courage.  In 2008, they jointly accepted the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage for their salute, at the 2008 ESPY Awards. By the way, in 1966, Smith set the world record for 200 meter sprint…a record that stood for 44 years until 2010.

This sculpture, done by political artist Rigo 23, dates back to 2005. The third athlete on the stand with them that day, Peter Norman, is not part of the sculpture. The space where he was is empty. The building in the background is the School of Journalism where I spend countless hours learning the journalism craft. Talk about memories…

It was fun to visit the old campus again and see all the changes. Of course, there are several buildings from my time there still in existence, but I estimate that 70% of the campus has changed for the better since I left.

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Postcard from Morro Bay

You are looking at my one and only decent photo of a beach sunset on this last vacation. I spent four nights on the California Coast, from Morro Bay to Monterey. And this was the only night (and day for that matter) that the ocean wasn’t shrouded in fog.

After two nights in Morro Bay, I drove all the way to Monterey along California’s beautiful Highway One and never saw the ocean. It was fog, fog, fog, the whole way. I eventually got out of the fog around Big Sur, but only when I was inland from the ocean. As soon as the road led me back to the coast, there was the fog again. Oh well…sometimes that is just how it is.

But back to this photo. I spent part of this day scouting locations for a great sunset shot, only to discover that the beaches around Morro Bay were not photographer friendly. Oh, they are lovely and beachcombers do love them, but it is miles and miles of endless beach with no other elements to make a great shot at sunset.

I take that back…I did find a few elements that might make an interesting photo, but those locations were blocked off any kind of access. I also found a good location to photograph the famous Morro Rock with some rolling sand dunes in front, but as sunset approached, I realized the light was all wrong and the giant rock was not going to get any sunset light.

Still I persevered and wandered along the beach looking for something interesting. Finally, I saw some surfers walking along the beach, heading home after a day riding the waves. I got lucky and managed to get this one shot that included them and the setting sun. On this day, I took whatever I could get…and I think it turned out OK.

If there is a lesson here, it is never give up when looking for that one good photograph. Sometimes it just comes out of the blue and you grab it while you can. Oh wait, there is another lesson…try to avoid photo expeditions to the Central California beaches in the summer months.

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Postcard from Monterey

Hey…I’m back. After a fantastic month-long vacation, mostly in Northern California, I’m back in Tucson, just in time to enjoy the monsoons and all the hot and humid weather. But it is my home now and I love it.

I got lucky on my trip as I spent the majority of my time in fantastic weather. I did a lot, visiting friends and family, seeing sites, both familiar and new…and met some interesting new people along the way.  The only disappointment was the drive up the California Coast along Highway One. Sadly, the ocean was covered in fog the entire trip, so no photo ops there. But, I did get some new photos which I will share with you over time, along with some interesting (I hope) stories.

Today, we begin with a photo from my visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Located right next to the famous Cannery Row, this aquarium offers some interesting and spectacular displays. But, my favorite section by far, was the jellyfish section. Called, “The Jellies Experience”, it features many different kinds of jellyfish, from the small to the large, and from the harmless to the deadly. It alone is worth the price of admission.

As you might guess, these jellyfish are of the smaller variety. But their colors and movement are captivating. One could spent some time here just watching and enjoying their gentle movements. You will see more jellyfish photos in the future as well as other photos from the aquarium. If you get the chance to visit Monterey, be sure and add this place to your itinerary.

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Postcard from San Francisco

San Francisco was my first home town. I was born and raised there and spent most of my childhood in and around The City. I lived first in the famous Haight-Ashbury District…long before the hippies took over. It was near the old Kezar Stadium where my beloved 49ers played their games, long before the NFL was popular and players had to take jobs in the off-season to make ends meet.

I was there in ‘58 when the Giants moved from New York. Before them, there was the San Francisco Seals who played in the long-gone Seals Stadium. Then there was the Cow Palace on the southern edge of The City where I spent many nights watching hockey.

But, of course, there is more to San Francisco than sports. I spent many hours walking up and down Market Street. I took cable cars from downtown on Powell Street all the way to Fisherman’s Wharf. And I’ve walked the Embarcadero all the way from Fisherman’s Wharf to the Ferry Building at the end of market street. In the 50’s I took many a ferry ride from there over to Oakland and back.

And I’ve walked most of the hills. From Nob Hill down California Street and more. I’ve explored Chinatown many times and frequented the jazz clubs at North Beach where I saw many of the jazz legends of bygone days.

Yes San Francisco was and is my home…if not in body, definitely in my heart. It is one of the great cities of the world and I am privileged to have spent part of my life there.

I tell you this because I am on my way back there, beginning tomorrow. No, I am not moving, I am just going there for a nice vacation. What better area to cool off after the hot muggy summers we experience in Tucson. And the good news is that I have close friends and family who live in and around San Francisco. I look forward to seeing all of them.

So, that is to say, you probably won’t hear much from me for a while…perhaps the occasional photograph and quick blurb. I am taking the long way to northern California, going up Highway 1 along the ocean, beginning at San Luis Obispo, with a stop along the coast here and there to photograph. I also plan to stop at Hearst Castle to see what all the fuss is about.

But I will be back in August full time with a whole new arsenal of photographs and stories to share with you. So, until then, Ciao for now.

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Postcard from Oakland

This is another one of my architectural photos done in downtown Oakland last year. I really got lucky with the light, and, especially the clouds. The horizontal and vertical lines really add a couple of interesting elements to the photo…but the real story is the cloud reflections. It is like an impressionist painting…and to be honest, I did nothing to the cloud reflections to give them that look.

What I did do, thanks to the magic of Lightroom, was change the horizontal and vertical alignments. It appears as if I was up high photographing this image across the street. In reality, I was on the ground shooting upwards. A little manipulation and it appears I am on the same level as the windows. Pretty neat trick, eh?

I love shooting in large cities and on my next photo expedition (which starts at the end of this week) I hope to spend more time with my camera in some of my favorite cities. Plus, I hope to do a little shooting on the Pacific Ocean coastline, something I haven’t done in a long while. The ocean shores seem very attractive to me right now, as sit in 105-110 temperatures every day.

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Postcard from Tucson

Here is another image from a trip I made to our local Pima Air and Space Museum. I took it as an artistic exercise and like how it turned out. I do not remember what kind of aircraft this engine is on, but obviously it is a single engine aircraft, probably used in reconnaissance during WWII. I just like the way it looked and the detail visible on the engine...and of course, the colors.

I’ve already talked about the museum in other blogs so won’t repeat myself again. What I will do is reprint the most famous poem ever written about flying. I always think of it when around airplanes.

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there

I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air.

Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,

I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or even eagle flew -

And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod

The high untresspassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Pilot Officer Gillespie Magee
No 412 squadron, RCAF
Killed 11 December 1941

 

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Postcard from Oakland

As you may have seen from time to time, if you follow this blog, I love window reflections. I find them fascinating…the way light is reflected and distorted by light. One can see the reflection, and at the same time, see through the glass to what is behind it. It’s almost a visual dichotomy that can yield many different (and nearly unlimited) results. And, of course, there is always the distortion effect caused by imperfections in the glass.

In the case of this building, it is difficult to discern what is reflected and what is behind. It has a large building frontage with lots of glass and is broken up by horizontal and vertical lines…here you have a difficult puzzle for your mind to figure out. Throw in some curved lines and distance clouds, and you really have a mystery. Perhaps that is why I love it so much…and why it really doesn’t matter what is where.

This is the entrance to the Elihu M. Harris State of California Building in downtown Oakland…one of the largest buildings in Oakland. To me, the artist, only the reflections and the architectural designs of the building interest me. There are a few more interesting architectural bits that are part of this building that I will share sometime in the future.

Also, I will be returning to Oakland and San Francisco and other great places in the very near future as I head out on one of my photographic road trips with visits to friends along the way. With the non-stop 100+ temps, higher humidity, and monsoon season now upon us here in Tucson, I am ready to bail out and head for cooler climates…not too cool as I still want to wear my shorts and t-shirts when possible. Maybe in the 70’s or 80’s would be nice. But I am also considering a trip up the California Coast to do some ocean photography. Not sure when I will be leaving, but it won’t be long.

Besides, I need more new photos to share here. Can’t live forever on past glories!

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Postcard from Oak Park

This lovely old home is in Oak Park, IL…a suburb of Chicago. If the name sounds familiar, it is because this city was home for many years of Frank Lloyd Wright, America’s foremost architect

In fact, this home is just a few doors down from Wright’s home. It was a lovely October afternoon in Chicago and my friend Susan and I took a Green Line train west from the city to Oak Park. From the station, we hopped a local bus down to the street where Mr. Wright lived. After visiting his former home and studio, we decided to walk back to the train station rather than take another bus.

I am glad we did as the street was filled with beautiful homes, many of them obviously designed by Mr. Wright. You do not have to be an architectural expert to spot one of his designs. His “Prairie School” style of architecture becomes easy to spot, once you know what to look for. But, this lovely home isn’t one of them. But it and the surrounding landscape have an innate beauty all their own and would be lovely no matter where they were located. But, as I said, this special street makes for a wondrous walk on a beautiful day.

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Postcard from Chicago

What do you do when it’s 108 outside and there is nothing to do? Why, of course, you open up Photoshop on your computer and see what mischief you can get achieve. And that is what I did yesterday.

I came across several photos I took of paintings in the Chicago Institute of Art. One of their most prized possessions is Edward Hopper’s most famous painting, “Nighthawks.” And I had a nice photo of it. So being that I was a little heat-crazed from being outside earlier, I decided to see if I could make it better. No that is wrong. I could not do it better than Hopper did. I could only do it differently.

So I started using my bag of tricks to create a flashy, glitzy version of Nighthawks. And in the end, this is what I came up with. It is different, you will grant me that much. But, I was just having fun, seeing what I could do. If you think you could do better, come on down and live in 100+ temperatures for days on end, then give it a whirl. I would love to see it.

PS: If you are not familiar with the original painting, click here to see it. And by the way, the artist painted himself in the picture…he’s the guy next to the lady in red…and that lady was modeled after his wife.

Postcard from Yuma

This image of an old portable missile launcher was taken at the Yuma Proving Grounds…the part that is accessible to civilians. It is an outdoor museum of weaponry dating from World War II all the way up to Vietnam. There may be even more modern weapons in the collection, but I can’t recall off the top of my head.

Believe it or not the Yuma Proving Ground (known to the locals as YPG), is one of the largest military installations in the world. It is mainly used for testing military equipment and encompasses over 1,300 square miles in the northwestern Sonoran Desert.

The proving ground conducts tests on nearly every weapon system in the ground combat arsenal. Munitions and artillery systems are tested here in an area almost completely removed from urban encroachment and noise concerns. Restricted airspace controlled by the test center amounts to over 2,000 square miles.

According to an article I read, every year, over 500,000 artillery, mortar and missile rounds are fired, 36,000 parachute drops take place, 200,000 miles are driven on military vehicles, and over 4000 air sorties are flown from the proving ground’s Laguna Army Airfield. Though about 90 percent of the proving ground's workload is devoted to the test and evaluation of weapon systems and munitions, dozens of units visit the proving ground each year for realistic desert training, especially before deploying overseas.

In short it is quite a place. I am just glad they have a museum where photographers and weaponry aficionados can go to see weapons that are part of our country’s history. It was fun creating this image in Photoshop with the help of several different plug-ins. God, how I love digital photography.

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Postcard from Red Canyon

There is nothing wrong with your computer. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to...

OK…enough of that. With apologies to the creators of the old TV show, The Outer Limits, the opening paragraph just seemed appropriate for this photo.

And no, I did not forget to rotate the photo to a vertical position before posting it here. This tree was actually growing sideway! I was on this hike in the Red Canyon area in Utah. I believe it was the Arches Trail, if you ever want to find it. And there it was, right along the trail. Now who can resist a photo op like this one?

I have written about Red Canyon before in these pages. But, in case you don’t remember, it is located about 10 miles from the beginning of the famous Highway 12 (western side). Red Canyon is one of the many beautiful and fascinating places you find along this highway. Go a few miles further and you come to the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park.  

I agree there is nothing special or artistic about this photo (save for the uniqueness of the subject), but I like it and was glad I found it on the trail. I don’t know how it came about. Perhaps a landslide pushed the tree over on its side, but it just continued to grow. You know, you just can’t keep a good tree down. What is your guess?

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Postcard from Soap Lake

This image is of the northern end of Soap Lake. The lake got its name from the naturally occurring foam that occasionally appears along the shoreline. The water has a slick soapy feel because of its mineral-rich content, long thought to have healing medicinal powers. In fact, for many years, the VA Administration had a hospital at the south end of the lake to treat skin diseases.  

Compared to the ocean and other naturally occurring mineral resources in the world, Soap Lake still has the highest diverse mineral content of any body of water on the planet. Soap Lake water contains ichthyols, an oil-like substance sold over the counter in Europe to treat infections and abrasions. The icthyol in Soap Lake water most likely come from decomposition of tiny brine-like red shrimp that flourish in the water from late spring to mid-summer (as you might imagine, there are no fish in the lake). Like the Dead Sea, the high mineral content of the lake makes the water very buoyant.

Now, don’t let this scientific analysis take away from the beauty of this scene. Like many photos in my collection, I got lucky with the weather…not to mention no wind to disturb the reflections.

Soap Lake is located in North Central Washington, at the very southern end of the 60 mile-long Grand Coulee. At the northern end of the coulee is the massive Grand Coulee Dam. In the photo, you can see the walls of the coulee start to shrink in size as they go from right to left. By the time they get to the southern part of the lake, they disappear almost completely and you are left on the large, rolling plains that makes up central Washington. The city of Soap Lake lies at the southern end of the lake.

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Postcard from Tucson

This photo was taken at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, here in Tucson. It is just a very small portion of the Air Force Materiel Command's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG)…AKA “The Aircraft Bone Yard.” Its primary mission is to store excess military and government aircraft.  Davis-Monthan was selected due to our low humidity and hard, alkaline soil, which allows the aircraft to be naturally preserved for cannibalization or possible reuse.

Davis-Monthan (named after 2 local World War I pilots) is an active base with many different military units beside AMARG. Among others, it is the home of the A-10 “Warthog” aircraft, used so effectively in both Iraqi wars to destroy enemy tanks. Tucson residents can look up and see them flying overhead on a regular basis.  

The storage facility of AMARG alone covers 2,600 acres. Besides storing excess aircraft, the facility also repairs aircraft, disassembles surplus aircraft for parts (for sale to countries who still use older-style aircraft)…and destroys aircraft to comply with the SALT treaty. Russian spy satellites fly over the base to confirm that the US is living up to the treaty. We also have satellites monitoring similar facilities in Russia.

The number of planes on-site varies, almost day-to-day. The highest number of planes ever stored here was over 10,000 shortly after the end of the Vietnam War. Today, the number is about 4,000…my best guess.

The AMARG facility is easily visible from nearby Tucson streets. In fact, one main street dips down below ground level to accommodate overpasses that are used to move aircraft from one side to another. Its quite a site to see a B-52 bomber being moved on an overpass above your car.

If you want a closer look, tours of the bone yard run daily from the Pima Air and Space Museum. It is a fascinating tour and gives you a good look a some of the most famous aircraft in US Military History. Well worth the time.

I took this photo while on the tour. I used a very long lens to capture the planes, so the Santa Catalina Mountains appear closer than they really are. I got lucky with shadows and light on the mountains.

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Postcard from Tucson

This massive aircraft is the SR-71A Blackbird Long Range Strategic Reconnaissance Aircraft, on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum here in Tucson.

Its job was to fly military and CIA spy missions from 1964 to 1998. There were only 32 of them ever built, only 20 of which survived. 12 were lost to accidents and none were ever lost to enemy action. It could fly as high as 80,000 feet at speeds of Mach 3+. If a ground missile was ever fired at it, it could easily outrun it, which probably explains why none were ever lost to enemy action. It once flew from from Washington to Los Angeles in just over 64 minutes.

The Pima Air and Space Museum houses hundreds of aircraft from all over the world. A few have been featured here in this blog. A few more will be featured in the future. For a sneak peak at some of them, check out the brand new section of my web site entitled, “Weapons of War.” Here you will find some of my best photos of aircraft from the Pima Museum as well as a tank and missile launcher from the Yuma Proving Grounds…all artistically rendered, of course.

In case you are wondering, I did play with the above image a fair amount using Photoshop and a couple of plug-ins. I was going for art, not accuracy. Hey, I am allowed to have fun! In any case, I am very proud of this image and happy to share it with you.

For more, very in-depth information this airplane, check out the Wikipedia Article on the SR-71.   

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Postcard from Chicago

Here is one photo from downtown Chicago I‘ve never shared before. Not sure how I missed it, but I did. Obviously I got a little creative here. The tilt effect was not done in Photoshop.  Oh no! I did the tilt on site. Every once in a while, especially when shooting architectural scene, I like to tilt the camera slightly in one direction or another. It gives one a different perspective in looking at a scene. Try it sometime…it works with any camera.

The tall red building in the background is known as CNA Plaza. It stands out in the Chicago skyline because of its red color. Its only 44 stories tall, short compared to other buildings in Chicago, but when looking at the skyline of downtown Chicago, your eye is drawn to it because of the color. FYI, it is on Wabash Ave, just one block off of famous Michigan Ave.

It was completed in 1973 and it has a bit of a history, both good and bad. During a 2004 renovation of the lobby the entrances were hard to find for pedestrians. So the entrances were clearly marked with "Enter Here" while other portions of the black plywood wall were marked with a yellow dashed outline of a person and the legend "Don't enter here. You'll get splinters."

In 1999, a shard of glass fell from a 29th floor window and killed a woman on the other side of Wabash Avenue. The ensuing investigation revealed the window had been cracked for months and the building had a history of cracked windows for more than 20 years. The glass couldn't cope with the level of thermal expansion it experienced and when the accident occurred, more than 40 windows were cracked. The building's owner paid a huge fine to the city, settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family, and replaced all 3,000 windows in the building.

As for the other two buildings in the photo, Google Maps says the building on the right houses the Chicago Department of Revenue. The other building appears to be an apartment complex…my best guess, anyway. What makes this photo work is that all three buildings are completely different styles of architecture…and having one of them be red is a major plus. Chicago is indeed a playground for a photographer.

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Postcard from Yosemite

If you follow me via this blog for any length of time, you know I don’t do a lot of wildlife photography…in fact, almost none. But, I could not help but photograph this little fellow while hanging around Yosemite Valley on one of my many visits.

This is a Steller’s Jay, often mistakenly called a Blue Jay. You will find them all over Yosemite, especially if you are eating. You see, these birds will get real close and let you take their picture…if, of course, you drop them a tasty morsel of whatever your eating. The more you give them, the closer they get. So you don’t need a long lens to get a good picture…just a quick trigger finger to catch them while still. They like to move their heads a lot.

Actually, they are a very smart bird and are a bit fussy about what they eat. Many, many years ago, I was on a picnic in the valley with a girlfriend and were feeding the jays. I decided to have a little fun and dip a small potato chip into some very spicy horseradish dip. The little fellow snatched it up and took off. A few minutes later, while wondering how he liked the dip, he flew back and dropped the chip and dip…right on my head. True story. And yes, my friend and I had a good laugh. So watch what you feed them.

There is another reason I showed you this photo today. A few days ago, a fellow artist, photographer and friend, who specialized in wildlife photos, passed away from pancreatic cancer. Don Graham, who lived in Moses Lake, and I did several art shows together each year in various Northwest locations. He was a good friend, a nice guy and I am sad at his passing. Because of distance, I am even sadder that I cannot attend his memorial service. Rest well, Don. 

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Postcard from Glacier

I photographed this small creek on a hike I took in Glacier National Park. Take the two mile trail from the main highway to Avalanche Lake and you will find it. In fact, bring your camera as you will find many wonderful, small places to photograph along the trail where nature shows off some of her finest work.

But make sure you have save room on your camera for the lake itself. It is spectacular! Several cascading waterfalls come down off the high mountains and flow right into the lake.

As for this photograph, I was fortunate to find a bend in the small creek where colorful rocks happen to be. I did not set this up, this was the way I found it. OK, so I did push the colors a bit in post-processing, but that is what artists do...or so I am told. Still it is a good image and is close to what I saw.

 

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Postcard from Oxford

I call this photo "Tyrannosaurus Rex Mans the Information Desk." And that is where the bones of this ancient dinosaur are...right above the information desk of the Oxford Museum of Natural History. This was not meant to be one my artsy pictures, but rather one of wonder and humor. After all, it is the only photograph I have of T-Rex. 

The Oxford Museum of Natural History is a unique experience as it houses countless specimens of animals past and present. From dinosaurs to butterfly's, they are all here waiting to be viewed. Intertwined with this museum is the Pitt River Museum, named after General Augustus Pitt Rivers, who collect thousand and thousands of anthropological items from all over the world. 

There are two museums (both built in the 1800's) as 19th-century thinking declared it was very important to separate objects made by the hand of God (natural history) from objects made by the hand of man (anthropology). Today, one is not sure where one museum begins and the other ends as they are so intertwined. Wouldn't that scandalize those valiant thinkers of the 19th century.

Besides T-Rex, the museum has the only complete skeleton of a single Dodo. Its true that other museums have complete skeletal remains of Dodo's, but they are made up of several individual Dodos. I bring this up because a fellow named Charles Dodgson used an artist's painting of this Dodo as a character in one of the most beloved books of all time. You see, Charles Dodgson's pen name was Lewis Carrol and the book is "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

I have a few more photos of the the place which I shall share in the future.  

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Postcard from Eastern Washington

Highway 25, the road from Davenport, WA to the Canadian border is filled with abandoned trucks like this. They are everywhere. I shared some of their images here before. And this is just another one, left for dead in a lonely field.

Still, as I drive by each one of them, or, in this case, stop and take a photograph, I wonder how it got here to its final resting place. And why here? Why not a wrecking yard? Why by the road? And of course, how long has it been here?

Each abandoned vehicle has its own story, serving their owners for many years, then abandoned and left for dead. Now, its only purpose is to rust among the weeds and bushes that surround it. Without shelter, it must survive the best it can while being pounded by wind, rain, and snow. No doubt it gives shelter to many small animals. At least it has some purpose. 

The motor is gone, the flatbed in back is gone, doors and windows are gone...all that's left is a hulk...a remnant of a once new and proud vehicle that did its job to the best of its ability. But, it had one more purpose in its long life...to sit and wait for someone like me to make a picture of it...turn it once again into something beautiful, and bear witness in writing to the fact that it once was special to someone. Maybe someone will remember me that way when I have served my purpose in this world and moved on to the next great adventure.   

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Postcard from Tucson

Downtown Tucson is very much mixed in with Old Town Tucson. It just happened that way. Here you will find Tucson's tallest structures next to a historic Spanish Hacienda home. They are just intermixed. 

This sign is from the 1950's and is still in place, even though the hotel is long since gone. No one would dare take it down as it is an historical landmark and loved by the locals. Although the hotel is gone, the building has been renovated and now contains law offices. And though the sign cleverly advertises a pool, it also is long gone, having been filled in back in the 90's. 

So, pretty much everything about the hotel is gone...but the sign still survives...a remnant from the historic golden era of motor travel. 

It seemed like a perfect image to render in black and white.

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

 

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Postcard from Leavenworth

Recently, I told a friend of mine that I really miss seeing Iris growing all over town. She replied that if I want to see Iris, just go down to Trader Joe's. Sorry, not the same thing. Now don't get me wrong, I love the variety of flowers that grow here, but I do miss certain flowers that flourish up north...and of all those, its the Iris I miss most.

Fortunately, I have a very large collection of Iris photos taken over the years...a few of which you may have seen here in past issues. But I wanted to publish another one with a little bit of a twist. Since the Iris is so tall and slender, I decided to crop the picture in a long and slender mode. I think it turned out well. 

I found a poem about the Iris, oddly enough written by a member of the Tucson Area Iris Society (I guess that means there may be some Iris flowers somewhere around here besides Trader Joe's). It says pretty much how I feel about this beautiful Spring flower.

Iris, Most Beautiful Flower

Iris, most beautiful flower,
Symbol of life, love, and light;
Found by the brook, and the meadow,
Or lofty, on arable height.
You come in such glorious colors,
In hues, the rainbow surpass;
The chart of color portrays you,
In petal, or veins, of your class.
You bloom with the first in Winter,
With the last, in the Fall, you still show;
You steal the full beauty of Springtime,
With your fragrance and sharp color glow.
Your form and beauty of flower,
An artist's desire of full worth;
So Iris, we love you and crown you,
MOST BEAUTIFUL FLOWER ON EARTH!
 

- Edith Buckner Edwards

 

 

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Postcard from Las Vegas

For me, Las Vegas is good for two things these days...drinking Manhattans and taking night photographs. I stopped gambling years ago and there are very few floor shows that interest me. So, I would rather sit with a good friend and drink a quality Manhattan and catch up. 

Now, I am fussy about Manhattans as I make the best one ever found on the planet. I seldom order them at bars or restaurants because few bartenders know how to do it right. But, I found a couple of places in Vegas that do one heck of a good job. 

All this is to say that I am worn out with this city that never sleeps. I have been here countless times, mostly for trade shows, so there is not much I have not seen. And I always feel like someone is trying to lift my wallet to get more money out of me. So, I never go unless absolutely necessary.

But, as for photography, I love wandering up and down Las Vegas Blvd at night photographing the amazing sites that make up this unique city. You may have seen some of my other night photos here before. I've also had some fun photographing on old Fremont Street with my camera in the day. But night, is still my favorite time to shoot.

Fortunately, I use one of the best lenses on the market for anti-shake so I can shoot in low light without image blur...not always true, but most of the time it works. Of course I could use a tripod, but that is quite a challenge on busy Las Vegas Blvd. But, we do what we must to get the quality photo.

This, of course, is Caesar's Palace, an older facility that has been remodeled a few times to stay up with some of the new spectacular casinos like, Paris, New York New York, the Bellagio, Venice and others. This photo is a great example of a photo has a foreground, middle ground, and background. Your eye moves smoothly from each section to the next, just like it is supposed to. Having the red underwater lights in the very front of the photo is the first thing your eye seeks, and from there it is an easy flow to throughout the entire image. 

Sorry for the photo lesson here...I do that sometimes.  So best to just sit back and enjoy this night shot of a Las Vegas landmark. Better yet, sip on a Manhattan and see how the photo gets even better.   

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Postcard from Zion

Two months ago, I published a blog here that showed a photo I took at the Court of the Patriarchs in Zion National Park. In that blog, I explained how most of the sunrise was blocked by a bank of clouds and my photo only had one little section of the mountain lit by the sun.

Well, while waiting for the super sunrise that never came at the Court of the Patriarchs, I glanced off to the left and saw another mountain that did get a bit more of light…and that is what you see here. I swung my camera around and used my longest lens setting to capture this photo. Also managed to capture a little Autumn foliage that helps enhance the overall image. So while I didn’t capture the image I really wanted at the Patriarchs (although what I did get was pretty good), I managed to get a nice bonus image that cold November morning.

Like the image from two months ago, I took five quick images in succession at different exposures and blended the best of them into one image using the Exposure Fusion method.

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Postcard from Oxford

This image laid buried for seven years among many I shot on a trip to Europe. It is the first time it has been seen by anyone, other than myself. This is the entrance to the Keble College Chapel. Keble is one of 38 colleges that comprise Oxford University. It is also one of the newer colleges, having only opened its doors in 1870.

You see, Oxford is a very old university, founded perhaps in 1096 (no one is sure of the exact date). It is the second oldest surviving university (the University of Paris is #1). The university really kicked into high gear around 1167 when King Henry II banned English students from attending the University of Paris. In 1209, after many disagreements between scholars and city residents, many academics moved further north to found Cambridge University.

So, looking at the dates, you can see Keble’s founding in 1870 is quite new. And, in fact, there are several newer colleges than Keble…and there is actually a college in Oxford called “New College.” It can’t be called really new as it was founded in 1379…but it is still called New College. You had to be there…

Of course, it was the light coming through the windows that caught my attention. It’s a lovely sight and I often wonder if the architect planned it this way to capture the afternoon light…the way the light leads you right to the chapel doors...and the patterns of light and shadow is just wonderful.

As if you could not guess, the original image was shot on film…slide film to be exact. Over time, you will see more and more of my best images from the days of film.

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Along the Merced River

Rivers hardly ever run in a straight line.
Rivers are willing to take ten thousand meanders
and enjoy every one
and grow from every one.
When they leave a meander,
they are always more
than when they entered it.
When rivers meet an obstacle,
they do not try to run over it.
They merely go around
but they always get to the other side.
Rivers accept things as they are,
conform to the shape they find the world in,
yet nothing changes things more than rivers.
Rivers move even mountains into the sea.
Rivers hardly ever are in a hurry
yet is there anything more likely
to reach the point it sets out for
than a river?

(James Dillet Freeman, Rivers)

Postcard from Tucson

Yes, it’s that time of year in the Sonoran Desert…when cactus varieties of all kinds start to bloom. It’s wonderful to walk on desert trails and see the cacti in full bloom. The colors are bright and vivid and it still is a great site for me to enjoy.

Three years ago I came here, never having seen a cactus in bloom. I was used to the spring flowers of the northern climes…daffodils, petunias, snapdragons, pansies, and the unforgettable iris, just to name a few.  And we do have some of those here.

But seeing the desert in bloom for the first time is an unforgettable experience…I still enjoy it even after three years. Those who know me know that I understand very little about horticulture or the names of plants. But, I believe this is a small barrel cactus with multiple blooms. Please correct me if I got it wrong.

Soon, the biggest of them all, the Saguaro cactus, will start to bloom. Definitely a site worth seeing, especially on my side of town where there are hundreds, if not thousands on the hillsides all around me.

April is not a bad time to come to Tucson, if you are in the mood.

(To see a larger version of this photo, just click on the image)

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from a Rain Forest

I have a few photos, not many, but a few, that I don’t remember taking or where exactly I was when I photographed the scene. All I know for sure is that it is a small creek on the west side of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.

No doubt I was inside the borders of the Olympic National Park. The west side of the Olympic Range faces the ocean and catches all the storms that come in off of the Pacific. Of course, this is where the rain forests are located as the area gets 140-170 inches of rain per year. That’s a lot of rain! It’s the wettest part of the continental United States. Only the island of Kauai in Hawaii gets more rain than here.

Because this is a temperate rainforest, as opposed to a tropical one like the Amazon Rainforest in South America, it is dominated by dense coniferous timber, including Sitka Spruce, Western Hemlock, Coast Douglas-Fir and Western Red Cedar and mosses that coat the bark of these trees and even drip down from their branches in green, moist tendrils.

There are plenty of lovely hiking trails in this area, but be prepared to get wet…even on the rare sunny day. When I hiked these trails, the woods were filled with impromptu lakes overflowing streams and lots and lots of mud…and it was a sunny day. Still, I am glad I did get to hike here and see it all for myself as it is certainly the exact opposite of where I live now.

Oh…just for your information, the eastern part of the National Park, the part separated from the west by the Olympic Mountains, only gets about 16” of rain per year. What a huge difference a mountain range can make.   

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Devil’s Garden

About 17 miles down Hole-in-the-Rock Road is a small area of interesting rocks known as Devil’s Garden. Now, if you are wondering where Hole-in-the-Rock road is located, it is just east of the town of Escalante along the famous Utah Highway 12, so often mentioned here before…and goes 62 miles south the northern shores of Lake Powell.

The road is well known to backpackers and photographers, but not to many other people. It is not a well traveled road as all 62 miles of it are unpaved and a bit rough. Lots of washboard spots for drainage and lots of mud after a rain. Of course, it is covered in snow during the winter.

If you wonder where it got its name, you will find that answer down at the end…a hole in the rock that looks out over the lake. The road was built by Mormon settlers in the area. It originally went down into Glen Canyon, but since Lake Powell now occupies that space, the last 300 feet of the road are underwater. The road itself has little scenery to recommend it to most folks, but there are a few spectacular places along the route that make it worth doing.

My friend and fellow photographer Dave Forster and I headed down that road on our last trip to southern Utah. Our destination was Dance Hall Rock, about 40 miles down the road. We were about halfway there when we ran into a ranger. He told us we would never make it all the way as there was lots of mud ahead because of a rain and snow storm two days earlier. He suggested a stop at Devil’s Garden on our way back to Highway 12.

Dave had been there once before, but it was new to me. So we headed back and took the side road into Devil’s Garden. It is an interesting collection of large eroded rocks, quite similar to Goblin Valley with fewer formations on a bigger scale. There is a picnic area, a short loop path and two interesting arches. The photo above is one of them. That is Dave in the photo to help give scale to the size of the rock formations…and yes, that is snow on the ground and on top of the arch.

It was an interesting place and I have a few more photos of the area I will share in future. We didn’t spent much time there as we decided to head back west along Highway 12 in order to be in Zion National Park by sunset.

And while I was glad to see this Devil’s Garden (there is another place by that name in Arches National Park, shared here before), we both were disappointed we did not get to make it to Dancehall Rock. There was a special photo opportunity there we both badly wanted to make. Hopefully one day in the future.

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Leavenworth

Bavaria in Washington

Not only have I written before about this little Bavarian-style town in Washington, but I have also showed you this photo before(a few years ago)…except that I made it better…much better. Sometimes I look back at photos I did a few years ago and wonder what was I thinking.

But no artist should beat himself up too much over past work. We grow, we change, and we get better. We learn new tricks, acquire new tools, and make our work better. While a painter or sculptor cannot go back and update past work (other than a touch-up here or there), a photographer can…even a photographer in the age of the darkroom. We can make improvements to past works, and I have routinely done so. And in a few years, I will probably come back to this one and make it better.

For those of you not familiar with Leavenworth, it is a Bavarian-style town on the east side of the Cascade Mountains. Everything, including McDonalds and Starbucks must be done in a Bavarian Style. In the stores, employees wear Bavarian-style clothing…and of course, there are Bavarian and not-so-Bavarian festivals all year long. My favorite, of course, being Oktoberfest.

If you haven’t figured it out already, Leavenworth is a tourist town. People come from all over the world to visit and partake in this unique atmosphere. If you like German food, you will find some good restaurants here to satisfy your cravings. Pizza, burgers, hot dogs, and all the other kinds of food you find in the outside world are also abundantly available.

Every weekend during late Spring, Summer, and Fall, you will find an art show in the downtown park. I did that show for a few years, off and on, when I wasn’t doing shows in other West Coast cities. I have fond memories of this little town in the mountains, and I must say, I do miss it. But, that was from a different chapter in my life.  

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Red Cliffs

About 12 miles north of St. George, Utah and around 30 miles west of Zion National Park, lies a protected wilderness area known as Red Cliffs Desert Reserve. It is well know to locals who frequent the area to hike, picnic and camp out…but not so well known to the rest of the world.

On my last trip to Zion, I took a side trip to this lovely spot in the desert and found a few interesting places to photograph. I hiked into the wilderness area along the Red Reef Trail. It was here that I found this lovely scene of a cascade flowing from one quiet pool above, into another quiet pool below the falls.

The trail first leads you along Quail Creek to the lower pool…then it goes up on top of the rock to give you this elevated view. While the falls are lovely, the rock walls and their contours have an almost surrealistic appearance, making the scene quite unique. What I found out later is there is a water-carved cave underneath where I am standing.

From here, the trail continues on to a beautiful slot canyon that I will show here soon. I could only hike into it so far as it had rained a couple days before I got here, so Quail Creek was pretty high.  Often there is no water in the creek and one can hike through the canyons where the creek usually flows. I hope I can do that someday. Again, this is one of those areas where you have to watch the weather forecasts to make sure you don’t get caught in a flash flood.

So if you make a trip to Zion and have the time, be sure and visit this lovely, relatively unknown spot in the Utah desert. You won’t be disappointed, I promise.

(To see a larger version of this photo, just click on the image)

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com.

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.