Seeing 2013 (#14)

For your consideration:

Last weekend I attended a Men's Retreat, one held annually at this time of year by a particular group of close friends and acquaintances.  As usual (and inevitably), it was powerful, moving and sublime.

This edition, however, provided a potent dose of enlightenment arising out of an experience entirely absent from the planned agenda:  a sacred and essentially extemporaneous communion with, and by way of, a Healing Through Poetry group also assembled on the Center's grounds.

Perhaps a third of my peers decided to participate in this courageous, cathartic and creative sharing; the enunciated verses were truly the profound essence which is the language of the heart.

As was the case for all but one of my friends present, I wrote and then spoke my first ever "public" reading.

I humbly offer my maiden poetic voyage herein, framed by two images:  one taken long before the notion of such an event was in my consciousness, the other in direct response to the opening of The Door.

§  §  §  §  §

Quadrivium, #0035-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: February 21, 2011, Canon 7D; f/6.3 @ 1/500 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 200;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 100mm

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All I Want is a Window

All I want is a window

that I might be seen anew

All I want is a window

that I may have space for my soul to pass through

All I want is a window

that the Sun may bathe my heart

All I want is a window

that I may encompass, and not be apart

All I want is a window

that I might taste a myriad of weather

All I want is a window

that I may expand, free from weight and tether

All I want is a window

that I may witness and experience Enlightenment

All I want is a window

through which I may see

All I want is a window: so we might unite, you and me.

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

All I want is a Window, #2280-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: February 24, 2013, Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/1000 sec; —1 EV; ISO 400;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 76mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#13)

For your consideration:  a small study in compositional formalism, mood and symbolism.

Here we have a series of repeating motifs . . . potent, missile-like verticals anchor not only the left of the frame but also define and support the horizon line; a precariously late warning sign upholds the other end of the boundary, while triangles somewhat more subtly also echo throughout, balanced both left and right.

Ill-defined geography hovers in the distance, presumably carpeted with organic canopies, while ironically the only distinct suggestion of life intrudes into the frame in skeletal form, simultaneously dynamic in flow and inanimate.

The scene is appropriately grey, and both implicitly and obviously a terminus and transition point — endings flowing into beginnings with mysteries yet to unfold . . . the truly observant will duly note the moment of the equinox.

Taken during the midst of a wintry bit of wandering along the largely abandoned streets of Lakeport, this is a view across Clear Lake from one of its several boat launches.

This offering is posted on an evening featuring rare snow on the local hills (of San Jose); it also is offered as a honorific to the memory of my late grandfather, Marshall Weston Petersen, whose ancient Argus 35mm camera (c. 1930s) was the genesis, long ago, of my passion for all things photographic — today, February 21, would've marked his 102nd birthday.

Dead Ends, #1113-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  December 21, 2012, Canon 7D; f/9 @ 1/640 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 236mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#12)

For your consideration:  the view from Baker Beach, nearing sunset on an autumn afternoon, just beyond the entrance to the Golden Gate. The weather was as splendid as the scenery.

This large tanker steadily, slowly steered its way towards safe harbor; perhaps its home port?  Undoubtedly the crew was anticipating a welcome respite from the unrelenting challenges, perils and ironic confinement of navigating the vast open ocean.

This scene is emblematic of the close of what has been a long, trying week. There have been stretches  of calm and clear steerage . . . and significant intrusions of torrid, harrowing, raging weather. Emergence into warm, soothing sunlight, calm seas and the promise of a safe berth is mouthwatering indeed.

(PS:  happy Arizona Statehood Day [2/14/12] . . . rest assured there are no vistas like this in my home state!)

(Golden Gate) Incoming, #0502-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: October 13, 2012, Canon 7D; f/10 @ 1/600 sec; —2/3 EV; ISO 320;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 207mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#11)

For your consideration:  an x-ray of the current state of my soul.

Cold, oppressive, obscuring blankets sometimes persist far longer than would seem plausible.  Yet, eventually, nurturing light penetrates and dispels, allowing growth and beauty to return.  (Fortitude and persistence ultimately have their rewards — don't they?)

§ § §

Image taken just past noon; mild application of Noise Ninja in post-processing.

Fog, Lincoln Park, Legion of Honor, #0538-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  October 14, 2012, Canon 7D; f/9 @ 1/250 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 300mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#10)

For your consideration . . .

Here, a relatively rare view of the presumptive, alleged artist.

I love the extraordinary performance of my Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro lens;  the sharpness and contrast it produces are exquisite.  Its dual role as a spectacular tool for not only its intended purpose — extreme closeups of usually small objects — but also as a superb portrait lens is the source of frequent personal amazement and delight.

Another preliminary studio effort, this shot utilized the identical lighting configuration as employed for the image in this blog's prior post.  (Minor adjustments were made to the on-camera exposure settings.)

Having only a primitive studio setup at hand, and lacking a substitute model for framing and focusing considerations, the best I could do was scrunch down and occupy the same head space as my prior, albeit smaller subject, one Ansel Bear (sometimes known by the stage name Ursa Ansel).   Thus the odd, foreshortened pose.

(The author anticipates your concurrence that the use of odd is all too apropos.)

Self Portrait, #1935-7D

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 31, 2013, Canon 7D; f/11 @ 1/80 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 100;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#9)

For your consideration:  a portrait of a long-time friend, companion, and silent confident.

During the recent holiday season I found myself in San Francisco's Ghirardelli Square, famous tourist mecca and the center of the universe for chocolate and ice cream cravers.

As I approached the main entrance, well before the intoxicating effects of sugar overload set in, I experienced a strange sense of déjà vu:  I'd not been to this locale in far more than a decade — perhaps as many as twenty years had passed — yet in an instant a long buried memory percolated up hazily from the depths of formerly dormant mental archives . . .  I suddenly recalled that it was in a shop in this square where I first laid eyes on Ansel.

Whether or not Ansel noticed me is hard to say;  he is to this day, after all, rather stoic and closed-mouthed.  Nonetheless I was drawn to him.  The attraction was not derived from any sense I had of fuzzy cuteness and all that promises.  Au contraire, Ansel stood out (or sat out, as it were) due to his studied frown and clearly skeptical, if not outright irritable expression.  No saccarine version of warm-and-fuzzy bromide, this creature.  Nope, far from it.

From that first sighting it was clear to me that I'd discovered a suitable foil to my perpetual need (at the time) for superficial soothing.  Here, if I could but bear it, was the chance to establish a relationship with a creature who would perhaps provide a bit of security and comfort in times of need . . . but always with an accompanying dose of quietly fierce admonishments that I embrace reality and deal with it.

And so it has been through the years since we left that nominally escapist establishment together. Partners in time.

I admit to having selfishly kept Ansel nearly completely out of the limelight of my social circles;  ours is a very private relationship.  Indeed, only my wife and, to a lesser extent, my daughter have gotten to know know him closely.  Few others have even met him.

Thus, this submission's image is a great risk — his reluctant agreement to assist in my new pursuit of studio lighting (and portraiture in particular) is a Big Deal.  Much like Salinger's example, he guards his space fiercely, and shuns publicity.  Even so, sit for me he did, just this past evening, for a rare photograph.

Naturally I'm deeply grateful for Ansel's patient cooperation:  he posed at some length, without uttering a single complaint, despite many nudges and adjustments in search of just the right perspective, composition, and (above all) lighting.  Goldilocks moments, he might say, if only he dared.

In the end this result emerged. The setup:  two studio strobes, both using black umbrella reflectors.  Close in, at nearly right-angled to his left,  was the "primary", set to 1/2 of full output.  The secondary, somewhat farther away and at roughy 45-degrees to the right of his nose, was set to 1/8th power.  No on-camera flash was utilized.  Minor adjustments in post-processing were applied using LightRoom 3.4 and Photoshop CS5.

Thus, I present not only my first "formal" portraiture experiment using studio lighting, but also the world-wide first introduction of a close, closely-guarded member of our family.

Ansel Bear, #1918-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 31, 2013, Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/160 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 200;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

________

Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#8)

For your consideration:  a study of what often transpires as the result of misplaced energy — inner radiance can  be vibrant and even enlightening, yet as with all things constraints are always in play, and for healthy reasons. Unbridled, wanton flow of energy in any direction ultimately escapes the confines and control of its container,  shattering an otherwise benign intent.  Vessels of all kinds are subject to such universal laws.  Thus, ever again, there's the inconvenience of no free lunch:  unrestrained current, regardless of purpose, can result in destruction and blindness.

Caveat lector.

As I approached this particular subject from a multitude of angles, utilizing various studio lighting configurations, each perspective yielded its own surprising organic sense of demise.  Presented is that image which most deeply resonated with me.  It stands as if an alien diplomat, at once formal, upright, properly stoic and forthright.  Yet the face has become one yawning, gaping orifice, one not so much conveying rational, reasoned messages but rather a moment of explosive fury, or anguish.  Either way, the result is a fractured, disconnected interior, awash in the smoky stains of excess.

Emissary (Blown), #1835-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 14, 2013, Canon 7D; f/22 @ 1/80 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 100;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#7)

For your consideration:

In a word, a study of compositional flow, symmetries, lines and depth of field.

As a child I discovered a love of dictionaries. Difficult to describe, but several facets were captivating to me: the various fonts (bold for the entries, italics for grammatical notes, etymology, and foreign usage); accent marks for syballic emphasis; illustrations with such attention to detail that they seemed works of art in their own right; and of course the definitions of a myriad of words previously beyond my knowledge.  So many of them!

As Steve Martin remarked, (paraphrasing), English has a word for everything!

Oh, and this:  the unique, distinct scent of an old book well made.  (Is there a Kindle app for that?  I think not.)

I recently acquired such an aged, rather pristine specimen, abandoned (gasp!).

Beloved tome, new studio lighting genre on which to focus . . . well, the addition of reading glasses just lends itself to photographic possibilities!

Focus, #1775-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 10, 2013, Canon 7D; f/22 @ 1/30 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 400;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#6)

For your consideration:  a study inspired by one the earliest of my influences, Andre Kertesz.  He was a master (naturally) of elegant simplicity in his still life compositions, imagery which feature strong lighting and consequent shadow play.

Continuing a theme which has held my attention for quite some time, the frequent observation, discovery and experience of larger realities which often exist beyond surface characteristics, this submission provides a case in point.  Had I set the illumination from a different angle the true nature of this photographic subject would be beyond any reasonable perception;  not much of any interest could be said of the coiled tube per se.

A bit of meditation unveils a more pointed understanding, that the central essence of this scene is utterly ethereal.  This is something to note.  C'est n'est pas une pipe, as it were.

Among some of my compatriots the phrase more will be revealed is well known and understood.  Pay attention:  there is always more to be gleaned from the universe in which we are largely unconsciously immersed.

Trumpet Etude, #1818-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 13, 2013, Canon 7D; f/32 @ 1/40 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 200;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#5)

For your consideration:  simple experimentation with newly acquired studio lighting equipment, on a macro scale.

The actual setting is the the surface of a small dining table leaf, itself perched across the arms of a recently repurposed office chair.  Lighting was via a single 160-watt strobe with a 33" lighting umbrella.

This submission is mostly "just for fun", but there's a opaque visual pun as well as another hidden pun implied within the title . . . the latter will be revealed only to the more creative, investigative viewer.

Glowing Piglet (Homage à Tirpitz), #1745-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: January 5, 2013, Canon 7D; f/32 @ 1/40 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 1000;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#4)

For your consideration:  perhaps a scene from the opening segment of an early 1970s television series, Night Gallery, an appropriately bizarre setting which served as Rod Serling's last significant pulpit.

Or perhaps, a Rorschach test?  (You decide . . . of course!)

In any case, the color red has long represented anger, passion, blood, fire, sacrifice and intensity . . . immersed in this chromatic atmosphere is an abstract form which immediately struck me as human in nature, albeit ambiguous in spatial orientation. Consequently I see a contradictory duality of both helpless falling and acutely focused fleeing.

The actual subject will remain a mystery except to those who offer their observations, thoughts, or speculations via comment (or email);  one hint is that a Macro lens was used with extremely strong back-lighting from the Sun.

Enjoy!

Red Scare Escape, #1527-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 31, 2012, Canon 7D; f/5.6 @ 1/400 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 640;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#3)

For your consideration:   a Christmas Day evening portrait of a dear friend, taken moments before he was to head off for a lengthly drive back to his Nevada home under the lash of a winter storm.  (Better he than me!)

I've known Mr O'Brien for quite a few years now;  I've always found him to be serious thinker also possessed of a quick wit and engaging socially.  We've shared quite a journey on a mutual spiritual path; his candor and persistence are solid, invaluable characteristics which continue to impress me; he is capable of deep insights and more than a few men have benefited from his wise counsel.

Here he agreed to pose for me, such that I might practice a bit of flash techniques I'd just learned; my primary purpose were was to capture a serious man confronting stormy times (and standing tall throughout all).  This was taken well after sundown, under the last remaining, quickly evaporating light of dusk.

Jim O'Brien, Christmas Eve Day, Dusk, #149-7D; 

© 2013 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 25, 2012, Canon 7D; f/5.6 @ 1/30 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 500;
Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4.5-5.0 IS @ 30mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#2)

For your consideration:  a scene I had to scamper to capture.

Light fades and colors change incredibly quickly during the day's closing moments, and the curtain fall on the final such scene of 2012 was no exception.  Not five minutes prior I had left a friend's house, in hasty pursuit of a decent overlook from within the surrounding housing tract . . . and in that brief interval of my dash downhill the massive clouds overhead were drained of their fleetingly crimson glow.

Even so, the sliver of those glorious hues hugging the far horizon serve as a reminder that one can always have faith that radiating beauty awaits if one simply journeys persistently and far enough.

Sunset, December 31, 2012, #1535-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  December 31, 2012; Canon 7D; f/4.5 @ 1/125 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 320;

 Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS @ 17mm

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Visit my full photographic repository at jwmurray.smugmug.com

Seeing 2013 (#1)

For your consideration:  2013's opening salvo.

Without any pretense to profundity, I'm reasonably certain that this shall be a year of many shifts and changes, many welcome, some not; some imposed and others chosen.  Let the fun begin!

After spending a delightful New Year's eve with many assorted friends at Casa Gonzales, my wife and I came home the following evening to the disconcerting discovery that my car had been stolen. After 2012 I felt the bar was set pretty low for the prospects of 2013 being an improvement . . . I'm hoping this latest opportunity for growth is simply residual flotsam.

I find it hard to imagine that little CR-V was an obvious mark — what, with its various dents and considerable scrapes on three of the possible four sides, an attractive beauty it was not.  Add to that the perhaps creepy presence of a decapitated wig head and another mask staring perpetually, blankly from the back cargo area (atop a mishmash of blankets, cardboard boxes and orts of various pedigrees) this humble vehicle doesn't scream "cool ride!"  Maybe that in itself was the magnet, who knows?

Regardless, it is/was a great deal of fun to drive, a rare five-speed with the best visibility of any car I've ever piloted.  (This latter point is increasingly important as the inevitable, inexorable slow decline in my reflexes takes hold.)  Even at 192,000 miles it remains fuel-efficient . . . or at least relatively so.  Ah, loss . . .

Of course it helps to keep a bit of perspective:  it's only a car.  Being afflicted with ALS, MS or paralysis trump this quite temporary inconvenience, certainly.  There's no comparison.

Besides, my very own brother Eric and his wife Sharon suffered a worse assault over the Christmas weekend:  whilst blissfully vacationing at our family home in the serene rural countryside, burglars broke into their Bay Area home, removing materiel and allowing my sibling's indoors-only cat to escape.  Such an intrusion into one's personal, interior space is far more upsetting and frightening than having something stolen from the street. It will likely be awhile before my brother and sister-in-law feel totally at ease again in their own living quarters. 

I am deeply grateful that nobody was hurt (and, the last I heard, kitty is back home, safely behind walls).

All of this has given me pause to consider the flip-side of thievery:  the relentless pressure of wanting to escape, the urge to flee when times become too difficult, particularly when subjected to prolonged duress.  It is fascinating how varied the human spirit is in this regard:  some fold under the slightest conflict, while others endure unimaginable suffering for long periods beyond comprehension.  There exists no clearly defined predictor of which I know of who possesses a given degree of determination when facing acute tribulations.

Much to my surprise — and comfort, oddly — I find that I am able to navigate considerable passages of challenging, often daunting times.  Certainly not easily, nor particularly gracefully.  Even so, deep within I harbor a fundamental reservoir of optimism, a belief that if one simply persists long enough, with the application of tolerance, love, compassion and hope, things will heal and turn out well.

Ergo, no matter what 2013's remaining 361 days hold, I shall trudge on.

This submission is a scene suggesting a kinetic burst of unknown material no longer willing to be restrained; the difference between forcibly taken versus forcible egress. 

A final note to followers of these entries:  for this year I ardently invite you to leave comments on these offerings, of your emotional response to the visual (or written) subject matter, and especially your speculations of the true nature of the images.

Paroxysm, #0807-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  November 15, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 1/2500 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 800;
 Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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Seeing 2012 (#102)

For your consideration:  the year's final photographic offering from your roving reporter.

Taken after driving from home to the Pacific coast (with visiting guests from Louisiana in tow — greetings Bryan and Susan!),  arriving propitiously literally moments before sunset.

Although this image was not taken on the year's final day, it is a worthy stand-in to serve as an closing ambience and sign-off to the dozen months we've each traversed in our own uniquely personal journeys.

For me, it's been an extremely challenging year.  Yet, of course, one also well-supplied with joys and accomplishments, wonders and growth.

Adieu, 2012.

May the coming three hundred sixty-five days bring all of us plentiful times of beauty, grace, and enlightenment as calming as the essence of this tableau conveys.

Thank you all for visting and sharing my journey;  I hope to see you here next year.

Namaste,
James

Cypress, Sunset, Pigeon Point, #0955-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 8, 2012; Canon 7D; f/5.6 @ 1/500 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 400;
 Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS @ 22mm

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Seeing 2012 (#101)

For your consideration:  a celebratory image presented on the eve of a celebration.

'Tis been a dozen years now since I was smitten by a uniquely dynamic, intelligent and beautiful woman, a spark ignited ironically over a meal in which I sought a female perspective on matters of the heart.  At some quite specific moment during that therapeutic repast a clarifying thought erupted in my consciousness:  why can't I have a woman like her?

Tomorrow, provided of course that the Mayan apocalyptic verdict remains voided, I anticipate congregating with several good friends with whom I'll usher in the New Year.  I must confess, I still  remain amazed that first (in my heart) among the gathered will still be this vivacious, vibrant vision — my muse, my love, my wife Julianna.

We've shared quite a byzantine journey during our time together; as with any meaningful, deeply connected relationship periods of turbulence, discontent, and conflict have made their appearance on the stage.  Yet within the arc of our intimate shared path we've also been blessed with bountiful, nurturing experiences of comfort, tenderness, wisdom, compassion and encouragement.  Even today, revelations and mutual growth continues.

I owe more to this woman for an ascending quality of my life than I can properly enunciate.  Among the countless blessings she's given me has been her unceasing, unwavering support and affirmation of my art. Indeed, Julianna gave me my first digital camera (a Canon G2), a gesture of love which reignited a slumbering, dormant creative flame which has since flourished and continuously grown, beyond dreams, without flagging.  This this blog, my exhibits, and my passion and self-confidence in the photographic arena are all direct results and manifestations of Julianna's vision (and consequent patience!).

It is, indeed, a wondrous grace to watch yet another year draw to a close with Jules by my side.

Je t'aime, ma cherie.  Toujours.

Julianna and James, #0807-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  November 16, 2012; Canon 7D; f/10 @ 1/160 sec; ± 0 EV; ISO 800;
 Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS @ 61mm

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Seeing 2012 (#100)

For your consideration:  the year, like all others before it have done, is coming rapidly to its close. 

It's been quite a wild ride, this particular circuit of the Sun, my Fifty-Second.  Not the best of the bunch; far too much turbulence and uncertainty for my taste (much of which still looms).  Something of a surreal aberration, in numerus.  Even so, of course there was also an ample bounty of loving conviviality and sweet adventures, revelations and expanded horizons.  

Not the least of my personal highlights was the two-month exhibit of 61 of my photographs at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., library, on the campus of San José State University;  it is rare to be allotted such an expansive amount of both space and time to publicly display one's art, and it was a great honor. I also enjoyed the sweet affirmation of having sold several of my prints throughout the year, with more commissions pending.

One can only speculate what the next year holds for fortune and folly.  Certain is this:  there will be many journeys, some following prescribed, predictable vectors and courses, others fraught with confusion, perhaps, with shifting and conflicting signals and enticements.  Such is the human condition. 

It will be especially interesting to see which way the wind really flows in the days to come.  I hope to not find myself tilting at too many windmills, being instead grounded in some degree of reality as the adventure continues to write itself.

Vane Vectors (San Juan Bautista), #0297-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  October 7, 2012; Canon 7D; f/10 @ 1/400 sec; ±0 EV; ISO 400;
 Tokina AT-X Pro 11-16mm f/2.8 DX @ 11mm

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Seeing 2012 (#99)

For your consideration:  not exactly fine art, if for no other reason beyond the reality of this scene's already having been photographed (and undoubtedly painted) a myriad of times before my offering here . . .

Yet, nonetheless, this tableau is arguably one of the most beautiful man-made sites on our tiny planet, and seen on a gorgeous day at that. It so happens that I recorded my interpretation during my first ever visit to this particular vantage point, after nearly thirty years of living within an hour's drive!

Posted as a counter to an abundance of overcast, cold and rainy days of late — and as a reminder of the majestic beauty which surrounds all of us, if only we pause to look outward long enough so as to experience the universe beyond our preoccupation with Self.

Golden Gate Sunset from Baker Beach, #0482-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details:  October 13, 2012; Canon 7D; f/11 @ 1/200 sec; —1/3 EV; ISO 320;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @ 116mm

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Seeing 2012 (#98)

For your consideration:  a Christmas season view from the the northern end of the Golden Gate Bridge.

On this particular day's journey  (the date being a usually somber reminiscence of John Lennon's assassination)  I was delightfully treated to a visit from my dear friend Bryan and his lovely love Susan.  Current residents of Louisiana, the Bay Area was a quick jaunt from their previous stop in Colorado, to which they shall be moving come the end of this month.

Never having before been to the West Coast, Susan was eager to see — and touch — the Pacific Ocean.  Naturally happy to accommodate, I acted as something of a tour guide for the day from the copilot's seat of their rental car.  After a few distractions and meanderings (including a stop at the Beethoven Center at San José State University) we arrived seaside moments before a spectacular sunset at Pigeon Point Lighthouse.

The coast was windy and quite chilly; after my friends had time to walk on the beach and I took several photos (some soon to be posted in this blog and on my main image repository) we drove up coastal Highway 1, in search of San Francisco sushi . . . and thanks to both excellent directions and recommendations from Kevin Ahern we were well-rewarded. Extravagantly fed, our next goal was to secure a view of the Golden Gate Bridge; a close option was from the grounds of the Legion of Honor,  from where the beautiful span was a splendid orange thread in the distance.

By now the hour was growing late and the travelers tired, yet the unanimous vote was that the night could not end without a direct experience with the Golden Gate.  Thus we navigated our way down to the northbound crossing, and finished our (amazing) sight-seeing expedition on the Marin end of the iconic structure.

Ergo the offering below, which features one of the world's most beautiful views, particularly bejeweled by the Embarcadero Center buildings' traditional Yuletide season lighting adornments, just to the left of center.  As a superb finale to a splendid day (rare, of late), my photographic composition was nicely enhanced by the serendipitous timing of a passing ship in the foreground.

San Francisco Bay, Ferry, #1041-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: December 8, 2012; Canon 7D; f/8 @ 6 secs; ± 0 EV; ISO 400;
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM @78mm

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Seeing 2012 (#97)

For your consideration: at the precipice of yet another insta-cliché thoroughly inundating the National Conscious, thanks to the media's penchant for relentless and unceasingly dramatic, maladroit employment of sound-bite-sized snippets of attention-getting idea fragments.

Was anybody immediately sick of the "fiscal cliff" admonitory the second time you heard it, spewing from a talking head who earnestly trotted it out for the lead-in to a broadcast network news segment? 

In vain hopes of broadening my own horizons, I quickly set out on a search for this newly discovered, apparently vitally important geographic site.   Being relatively knowledgeable about place names and Earthly features, I was surprised at the time required for me to discern Fiscal Cliff's whereabouts.  It was nowhere to be found amongst all the usual suspects — no mention of it in the Sierras, nor the Rockies, nor the Dakotas;  neither Arizona, Alaska nor even Montana maps mention such a promontory.   

What of New Mexico then?  Idaho?  Perhaps somewhere in the Appalachians even?  Alas, no.

Peeved, then pausing ponderously, perspective presented itself to me:  I had missed the scene by sheer inches, overlooking the obvious locale — 'tis in my own backyard!  Well, metaphorically of course . . . it's in my friend Steve's backyard, actually.

And so, gentle reader, I present the first concrete photograph of this object of so much blathering discourse.  

For those who peer especially closely at the full-size version you may discern its true nature and scale, and thereby gain insight as to why I didn't enter any betting pools for odds on it ever being actually located 'ere the Mayan calendar expired. (Hint:  although the image is unaltered, not all is at it seems . . . those irregularities in the atmosphere betray the true nature of this point of view.)

(Fiscal) Cliff, #0128-7D

© 2012 James W. Murray, all rights reserved.

(click image for larger version)

Details: September 29, 2012; Canon 7D; f/5 @ 1/800 sec; +2/3 EV; ISO 800;
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM

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