Heaven

Spring or 2019 - Wildflowers, snow, and winter that won’t go away!

A few years ago, I experienced a drought of clouds for what seemed like an eternity.  Every time I went on a photo expedition it was nothing but blue skies. It was frustrating as I love clouds in my landscape images. 

Now the cloud “drought” was not all bad as any day in the Eastern Sierra is a good day; with or without clouds.  The lack of clouds forced me to experiment with new compositions and subjects which made me a better photographer.  In the end I still wanted clouds.

That is were we are heading to!

I am here to say with the Spring of 2109 my cloud drought is over.  The last couple of meanderings has been off the charts.  There were clouds, and I mean awesome clouds, everywhere you looked.  They weren’t high clouds, so they didn’t go orange and red at sunrise and sunset, but it didn’t matter.  Their size, complexity, brutishness made them totally photogenic.  The main key to getting great images was to just get out there, and stay out there, capturing the clouds as they morphed throughout the day.  All the while I was in heaven. 

The road and clouds inviting us to explore!

I am doing research on a photography class I am going to teach at the Mono Arts Council in the fall.  The class will not focus technology but on using personal vision, style, and composition to create “remarkable” photographs.  During this cloudfest I started to apply some of the things that were newly learned from my research..  It was difficult to do things differently. 

I may be biased but it made a huge positive difference in the impact of the images I was able to create. I will have to wait to see if the peer reviews from my fellow photographers agree with my self-assessment.

In any case sit back and enjoy my vision of heaven on earth, even though it is extremely cloudy.

Storms over the Eastern Sierra. Lots of snow still on Mammoth!

Symmetry in Nature

and on and on and on! Truly Heaven on Earth!

FYI, as I mentioned above I will be teaching a Photography Composition class at the Mono Arts Gallery on September 28th. Then on the 29th will facilitate a field trip to put what you learn into practice. You can sign up here. Would love to see you there!

Feel free to comment and share!

Hike Big Sycamore Canyon - Tejon Ranch

If you go to the Tejon Ranch Conservancy website they have this quote:

“There is no other place like Tejon Ranch in California...and perhaps in the world.”

I have to say it is true, it is true. 

•   It is immense at 270,000 acres, the largest contiguous private property in California.

•   It is diverse lying at the boundaries of multiple ecosystems as diverse as the Sierra Nevada and the Mojave Desert.

•   It is magnificently beautiful.  Especially when there is weather happening!

The Ranch is private property but through the hospitality of Tejon Ranch Conservancy you can explore it for yourself.  I highly recommend you do. Hopefully this post will inspire you to sign up to visit the Ranch. 

The hike today was in Big Sycamore Canyon.  It was a moderate five mile in-and-out hike.

A major storm had hit the day before and the storm was clearing out the day of our hike.  Driving to the Ranch from the south, Mt. Pinos was stunning covered in new snow.  There were low lying clouds in the direction of where the hike is so I was excited for the possibility of some awesome views. I was not disappointed.

I enjoy entering the Ranch from the gate we used because there is an experimental wind turbine that in the vastness of nothingness looks out of place.  It is so surreal, it reminds me of the planet Tatooine where Luke Skywalker grew up in the first Star Wars movie.

The hike starts out with a gentle grade f or a long while in a mix of Oaks and Sycamores. As you get farther into the canyon the grade gets a little steeper.

There are enough interesting sights along the way that you tend to stop, check them out, and catch your breath. 

Is it me or do you see a Dolphin too?

With the low clouds and a bit of fog the colors of the canyon were very rich.

The turn around point is a small meadow with a half built abandoned cabin and an open barn.  They have a picnic table in the meadow that makes a nice place to rest, talk, and have lunch.

When we got back to the car, Reema our excellent guide, drove us over to the entrance of Little Sycamore Canyon.  It is ironic that some of the biggest Sycamores we saw that day were at “Little” Sycamore canyon.

As we packed up to head off the ranch the clouds continued to give us a beautiful send off.

It was a great day on the Tejon Ranch.  I highly recommend you give it a try.  The Conservancy has a great outreach program and you can check out the calendar of events here!

Have a great week!

Bob Kent

www.bob-kent-photography.com

My 12 Best Images of 2018

The 12 Best of 2018

Why 12?  To be different.  Everyone else has a Top 10.  Besides I like the idea of one for each month.  Even though I did not take as many images last year, it was an awesome year for my photography. Mainly for two reasons.

1. During most of my trips up to the Eastern Sierra there were luscious clouds in the sky.  Nothing improves a landscape photo like clouds.

2.   I started concentrating on the improving the composition of my images. Specifically working on improving the foreground area.  To me, it made a huge difference.

So here we go.

# 12 Independence God Rays

The most unexpected spots sometimes consistently provide the most awesome images.  In this case there is a pocket park located on the south side of Independence.  It is a nice spot to stretch the legs and take a health break.  On multiple times I have captured incredible images like this with awesome light and clouds.  Right from within 15 feet of the street next to the park.  Notice how the foreground creates an alter for the God rays.

# 11 Hot Creek Sunset

The area behind the Hot Creek gorge is one of my favorite places to watch a sunrise or sunset.  The area around a certain white bridge is well magical during a sunrise or sunset.  Add awesome clouds high enough to catch the suns last rays and change colors, well see for yourself.  Think a couple of chairs, a bottle of wine, and some good company.

# 10 Clouds Over the Owens Valley

Remember the first reason I said my 2018 images were awesome? Yes clouds.  I have always loved the cumulus clouds that have a flat bottom.  Bit of trivia as here is the explanation of why they have flat bottoms. The flat bottoms of cumulus clouds define the exact height at which a critical combination of temperature and air pressure causes water vapor within the rising current to condense into a visible cloud.

# 9 Minaret Sunset

Sometime bad things produce beautiful scenes.  Forest fires are natural but with the drought and other factors the fires of late have been terrible.  Their smoke at sunset though creates some of the most beautiful sunsets you will see.  This is the case with this sunset over the Minarets and the smoke from the Lions fire. The Minaret vista has a wonderful view but trying to capture it as a still image is difficult. In some places there are tall trees that obstruct the main image. In others there is nothing and the impact of the image gets lost in a mass of complexity.  Even though I only had a few minutes to capture the scene I walked around and found the foreground to anchor the image. I think it paid off. Do you?

# 8 June Lake with Moon

June Lake is gorgeous.  For years I have tried to get an image of June Lake that captured the feelings I get when I view the lake.  I have always come up empty and this year I focused on getting an image that I liked.  I got several, but I think this one shows the lake off at its best.  Morning alpenglow, still water, clouds, and the moon.

# 7 Heart Lake Viewpoint

The Heart Lake trail out of Coldwater campground, was a hike I did not take for years because I thought it was too short and did not have any special scenery.  Was I ever wrong as it had some spectacular view, wildflower, and if you walked past the lake just a bit this scene?! This scene has three of Mammoth’s most widely recognizable locations in one view: Mammoth Mountain, Lake Mary, and Mammoth Crest.  Another example of using the foreground to make the image more interesting.

# 6 Heart Lake

Heart Lake is a small lake with only a hint of any interesting geology formations visible  Just a simple little alpine lake.  Sometimes simpler is better.

# 5 Grant Lake with White Line

Three things led to this capture.  

One, the willingness just to wander. We had done the June Lake Loop earlier from the other direction but coming home with the clouds and sunset we decided to do it again.

Two, preparedness - five minutes before the clouds were ten times more colorful, five minutes after the light was gone.  Like Goldilocks’ porridge this was just right.  I usually travel with the camera ready to go and already on the tripod.  Being ready allowed me to capture the image.

Three, listen to your photographer’s assistant. My wife has developed a keen eye for scenes worth stopping for.  I was in a keep driving mode and she told me to stop and take the image. She was right, this image got more comments on Facebook than almost all my other posts.

# 4 Parker Lake with Logs

I do most of my shooting very early in the morning or around sunset.  The hike to Parke Lake is one of my favorite hikes; one I have done many times.  When I went with some others on a mid-morning hike, I did not plan on doing much shooting.  I was stunned when we reached the lake, the water was still fairly calm and the light was not too harsh.  I took my time to find the foreground to anchor the image and came away with one of my favorite images of my favorite lake.  Shows that you should never assume and approach the creation of your art with an open mind.

# 3 Sage Hen Road with Trees

We were taking some friends on a day tour of the cool things around Mammoth in the fall.  Even though this location had passed its fall color peak, I thought the views were worth going there.  Well sometimes it all just works; the light coming through the leaves, the blue sky with clouds, and a nice leading line.

# 2 Whitney Fish Hatchery

The Whitney Fish Hatchery is a wonderful oasis in the Owens Valley.  The building is picture card perfect but one I had never captured to my liking.  This day all the elements of a great image were working overtime; the clouds, the light, just everything.  While my photographer’s assistant was setting up our picnic, I walked around to see if I could find a new perspective.  Did I hit the jackpot!  This was the FB post and calendar page that got the most comments. I think you can see why.

# 1 Cloudy Silver Lake

I knew as soon as I took this picture it would be the best image I captured on this trip and probably of the whole year.  It is a rare gift to get still water and storm clouds.  It is even a rare gift to get them late in the day.  This image is taken from one of our favorite places to sit and have a picnic.  We just sit and soak up the beauty around us. Occasionally, we will have deer and ducks join us to make it even more special. it was tough to choose between Whitney Fish Hatchery and this image as the best.  Our personal connection to this spot was the tie breaker.

The above is my ranking, which of these images was your favorite?  The bar is set high for 2019 but it will be fun to beat this list. Just pray for a cloudy 2018!

Eastern Sierra Early Morning Scramble (ESMS)

A great "Eastern Sierra Morning Scramble" (ESMS) is a plate of “Golden Hour” light, beautiful puffy white clouds, and a side of water (a still lake or a running stream will do.)

When you get up to enjoy an ESMS that is cooked just right, it truly is a moving experience! Sorry for the food reference but we have eaten twice at the Aberdeen Resort in the last couple of weeks and good food is on my mind!

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Majestic Scene

The problem is that to truly enjoy an ESMS you need to get up pretty early to get served. Once nature runs out it is gone till dinner! I usually get up early for work so you would think it should be easy for me to get up early for an enjoyable ESMS. Unfortunately, I tend to enjoy sleeping in on days I don’t work.

So when that alarm goes off at 4AMish there is an epic battle between good and evil. Evil is to fall into the sins of the body and continue to enjoy that comfy warm bed. Good is forget the temptations of the flesh and get up and go to enrich your spirituality.

My past routine was to silence the alarm and lay there for a bit re-thinking of where to go. What I was really debating was if I should get out of bed. If "Good" is winning I get up and take a peak outside the bedroom window. If the wind is blowing or it looks like a cloudless sky it is like "Evil" gave "Good" a knock out punch and I jump back into bed to the temptress' warm sheets.

That routine has cost me to miss out on some epic ESMSs. So I have begun to try the stoic method to give "Good" the advantage over "Evil."  Here is my simple two step stoic method:

1. Jump out of bed. Don’t let the temptress of warm sheets sing her siren of evil to get me to stay.

2. Use Shawn Achor’s (author of “The Happiness Advantage”) 20 second rule. His research has found that you greatly increase your chances to continue a positive habit by making it three to 20 seconds easier to start a good habit. So now I get everything ready the night before so it is just a grab and go.  Saving way more than 20 seconds!

The new method seems to give “Good” a big competitive advantage over “Evil.” Not perfect but a way better winning percentage.

This particular morning “Good” won. I got up and went.  As I was driving the clouds that had a chance to turn colors seemed to be best in the east so Hot Creek won out over Convict Lake. As the sky was lightening up I was bummed.  Several of the spots I normally shoot were already occupied by folks illegally camping. It was still pretty early so I did not want to wake them up tromping around with my camera and tripod.

Turned out being considerate was the right choice. Shooting at the Hot Creek’s little white bridge turned into a “target” rich environment.

The location was the perfect recipe for an ESMS. Beautiful warm light, high clouds that the sun was painting with wonderful colors, and a wonderful running stream!

So sit back while I replay the wondrous ESMS morning:

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Pre-Sunrise with the clouds hinting of what's to come!

I had time to take pictures at as the sunrise unfolded and in different spots.

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Hot Creek Alpemglow

A nice person made a comment on my Facebook post of the image below that summed the scene in one word perfectly "majestic!”

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Hot Creek's Little White Bridge

So I figured I had captured the bridge as best as I could so I would try some other spots and compositions.  I don't think you could have taken a bad picture this particular morning.

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Sunlight playing with the top of the sage!

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The moment when you realized it was a good decision to get up that morning

I then packed up my camera and tripod and decided to wander the fire roads while I let the ESMS digest. Doing so I found nice spot on the north side of Hot Creek.

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I also found a more direct route to the Chalk Bluffs.

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A ton of chalk!

Finally, the "Golden Hour" magic light was pretty much gone and I thought I would finish the shoot with a nice shot of the Eastern Sierra under some nice puffy white clouds.

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Just another boring view in the middle of knowwhere

But the days ESMS was not done. Driving back to our condo Mammoth Mountain, under those puffy white clouds, was just too majestic to pass up.

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Hope you enjoyed the story. Hope to see some of you out there enjoying your ESMS sometime.  Love to hear your thoughts.

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Don Henley was Wrong You can go Back

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Just a Teeny Peek of the Sunset

In Don Henley's song the “Boys of Summer” there are the lyrics:

Out on the road today I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac.
A little voice inside my head said:
"Don't look back, you can never look back."
I thought I knew what love was.
What did I know?
Those days are gone forever.
I should just let 'em go, but

Well this last weekend I successfully looked back and came away with a smile. Forgive the long winded set up to this story but it will put in perspective how I “went back this weekend.”

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Awesome Cove Somewhere South of Pigeon Point Lighthouse

When I had just gotten my permit we went on a family vacation. It was my Mom, Dad, and myself. We were going to drive down from Los Angeles to San Diego. Then we were going to take Highway 1 all the way to San Francisco.

Now at the time we only had a Volkswagen station wagon. At the time with a Volkswagen I don't think there was any thing that was power/automatic. Locks, windows, transmission everything was manual. The clutch on that station wagon, to put it mildly, was super stiff. My Dad drives us down to San Diego and we are having a good time. When we start to head north to San Francisco he asks me if I want to learn to drive a stick. I said sure.

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Up Hill and Stiff Clutches

The on-ramp to the freeway was pretty steep and there was stop-and-go traffic. I had to stop on a hill. That is when I met the “clutch.” I must have stalled that engine 15+ times trying to get moving in first. The line of cars behind us was growing and so were the drivers displeasure. They were not as displeased as my Mom was though. She started telling my Dad to switch seats with me and get us out of there. Each time she repeated herself was a little bit louder and with more urgency. Dad just smiled and said “no he has to learn sometime and now is a good as any.”

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Bixby Bridge

You see when my Dad was on vacation he was never in a hurry. One time at the produce inspection stop Arizona/California border the guard asked my Dad if we had any fruits or vegetables. My Dad said “only this orange.” It had a green spot on it and the guard said we could not take it into California. So my Dad, not wanting to waste it, peeled that orange and ate it. Yup in the car, right in the inspection lane, with the guard watching through the window. That was fun, but I digress.

So after the umpteenth time of popping the clutch and stalling I nailed it and off down the 101 we went.

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The Cool Things You See When You "Turn Here" 

Another thing my Dad liked to do was stop and explore anything interesting. A trait I, have to admit, I have inherited from him. So as I drove up the twisting and turning Hwy 1 he would all of a sudden say “turn here I want to see that.” So across the road I would turn. Each time I thought Mom was going to have a heart attack. Well by the time we got to Monterey, me and that clutch were “simpatico.” I loved that car from that trip on and was sad when we sold it.

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Happy Cows

So this past weekend a friend of mine, who lives in Oakland, was having a party. Now he has a couple of sub woofers that he had replaced and had offered to give the old ones to me. They were big and too heavy to ship. His party gave me an excuse to drive and pick them up. More importantly, it also gave me an excuse to re-live the adventure I had learning to drive on Hwy 1 with my Mom and Dad. As you can see from the pictures in this post the beauty along Hwy 1 is second to none. The memories it brought back were priceless.

New Memory - Pigeon Point Lighthouse

Early Saturday I started the 444 mile journey mostly in the rain and fog. Most of the trip I could not see more than an eighth of a mile in front of me. It was fun and even beautiful through the fog. Sunday. I drove back those same 444 miles; still overcast but no rain and a little fog toward sunset.

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Foggy Cove

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Same Cove Next Day Before the Fog Set In

One memory that this trip brought back was one I always associate with that trip with my Parens. It is the reason, that to this day, I am not a big artichoke fan. Just off of Hwy 1 there is a town called Castorville. Castorville's claim to fame is being the “Artichoke Capital of the World.” My Mom bought a twenty five pound bag of artichokes. For weeks after the trip the three of us were eating artichoke this and artichoke that. By the time we finished that bag I really did not want to see another artichoke again. The memories of my Mom, artichokes, and the whole trip flew back into my mind when I saw the sign for the Castroville turnoff.

House South of Big Sur

So Henley was wrong. You can go back. I will do this drive again but take my “photographer's assistant, i.e., my wife”. Maybe just maybe we will take longer than two days to go up and back! Maybe, we will play some Grateful Dead instead of Don Henley while we drive...

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Can You Say Wow...

Quests in the Owens Valley are Fun

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Benton Crossing a Cool Place on the way to Hunt Petroglyphs

Over the years I have had fun with quests finding the Petroglyphs that are in the Owens Valley and the Tablelands. The first quest started with some photography friends; Paul, George, Kahlee, Nate, Dave, and some others. We were at a meet up in Lone Pine when I convinced them we should try and find the Petroglyphs near Keeler. We looked near and far and came up empty. Over the course of next few summers I finally found a Ranger that gave me the clues that allowed me to find them.

You see most people won't tell you exact directions to where they are. If you are nice they will give you clues. That's it clues. Giving just clues are done for good reason. The Petroglyphs are treasures, looks into the past, some 6,000 years old. Some folks don't do well in respecting how valuable they are. They either vandalize them or put their own mark next to them to try and become immortal themselves. That mark will only get folks extremely mad and they will be cursed at for the next 5,000 years . So to find these sites you have to do your research on the internet and talk to people to get clues. Then you weave it all together to guess where they are. Finally, you have to go out and look.

It took me three or four years and multiple hikes to find Sky Rock and then I found it by sheer luck. One time I was sure I was on the right path and ran into some rock climbers and we started to talk. I told them what I was looking for and they looked at me funny. She then told me “most people don't access that site using this trail.” Now that was the nicest way that I have ever been told that I am on the wrong freakin' trail! But she was kind and gave me some clues. "Try the trail about a half mile down." She then gave me the clue worth a million bucks. She said “once up the slope get up on the top of the rocks because you won't see it from the trail.” Without that clue I think I would still be looking.

Now that I had found the petroglyphs at Sky Rock, Fish Slough, and Keeler I thought I had only have a couple more to go. The elusive ones for me were the Thirteen Moons and Chalfant Petroglyphs. I am pretty sure I now know where the Thirteen Moons is and I just have to plan a hike to find them. Chalfant was another story. A lot of people know where they are.  After those idiots cut parts of the petroglyphs out with chain saws no one tells you where they are. They just look at you and smile and say no I don't know where they are. Not even any clues.

Well I did my research.  I found a web sight with some detail and then found an old Zerox directions sheet the visitors office gave me years ago. The directions were not that precise. Drive x miles from Bishop, turn left, and go to the end of the road. That's it.

Unfortunately, I was coming from Benton Crossing not Bishop so I had to guess the distance. The road that I thought was the one, wasn't. In the drive down however we passed a road that fit my memory of the internet site's info. So we took a gamble and down the road we went. It was the road! There were the Chaflant Petroglyphs! I felt like I had just won the Kentucky Derby! They were beautiful! I don't think I have used that many exclamation points in a row in my lifetime. But finding those elusive petroglyphs was that exciting to me.

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Chalfant Petroglyphs

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Anyone See a Petrified Crow in the Picture

There was an added bonus that day. A storm was coming in and the clouds were putting on a show. I took some pictures of the clouds at the petroglyph site. Then stopped several times on the way home to take more pictures. In hindsight, I did not stop enough. There was one scene where the clouds had turned gold. They were so bright their reflection turned the water in Crowley Lake gold as well. It was gorgeous and I did no stop. Still kicking myself. Oh well.

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Edge of a Sierra Wave

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Sunburst

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Lenticular Clouds in Gold

As we drove back to Mammoth it looked like it was already snowing in town. It was and we preceded to get 6-8 inches of snow that night and the next day. It was beautiful but it was cold and I was not anxious to put on chains.  So we stayed in and enjoyed the fireplace. So no fresh snow pictures for Christmas cards.

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A Kodak Moment for Sure

Back at home started doing more research on the petroglyphs and read there are like 400 petroglyphs in Red Canyon. Hmmm… I have another quest to go along with finally finding the thirteen moons! Stay tuned.

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