Midnight Moonlight Madness

(subtitle - I really should have been sleeping when I took these pictures)

The full moon this week presented some good photo opportunities - I just wish I knew better what I was doing with long night time exposures. Fortunately, digital film is cheap.

So I was up through some late night and early morning hours this week, but it was pleasant, mild weather, and good photo practice.

Photo to left is the moon about ready to set, around 5:45 am along Hiway 46 above Cambria, CA. 1700 ft above the fog. Pentax K20D with 300 mm lens. Underexposed -2.0 EV to show lunar details.




The Carlton Hotel, in beautiful downtown Atascadero CA, shortly after moonrise


Atascadero Feed and Grain elevator highlighted by moonlight


Golden hills, creeping fog, moonset and sunrise combine for interesting textures and colors.
Thursday morning around 6:10 am. Sunrise is still coming at 6:30 am.

Local Atascadero Photos

Here are some pictures from Saturday's car show in Atascadero, which gave me the chance to get some practice editing photos with the Gimp. First there was a very cool pink Cadillac. Then there was the car that looked more interesting without paint - just the rusty unfinished surfaces were very colorful. The final picture is the Atascadero Feed and Grain store along Traffic way, processed to look like a colored sketch. What do you think?

Hot El Camino Cruise Night

Atascadero's officers leading off Cruise Night in front of Rancho Tee

The first real mini van

Vista Cruiser - our family traveled across the west in one in the early 1970's

Red Woody Wagon - never seen one in red before

Baby take me back to your Pink Cadillac ....

Lon and Eileen Allan in their vintage Navy Jeep. Eileen was the director of the North County Women's Shelter Program, now retired, and Lon is a local historian/author and regular columnist in the SLO Tribune.

North County Humane Society

Chloe say "I'm just waiting for your to take me home".


Another of the "old girls" at North County Humane.

SpaceX Dragon Parachute Test at Morro Bay

Space Exploration Technologies Corp, also knows as SpaceX, a private spacecraft development firm, conducted a test of their Dragon capsule parachute recovery system in Morro Bay on August 12, 2010. Morro Bay was selected as the test site because it had a large, secure area which was very close to the ocean. Here are some pics from the test.

For more information, please see the SpaceX website at www.spacex.com


Erickson Air-Crane Helicopter


Erickson helicopter above Morro Bay Strand Beach


Very cool Erickson helicopter at work over Morro Bay

SpaceX Dragon capsule lift off, Morro Bay

SpaceX Dragon test capsule over Morro Rock


SpaceX capsule parachutes deployed - about 5 miles offshore from Morro Bay


SpaceX capsule parachute test - water landing - 5 miles from Morro Bay
Recovery tugboat is in the right side of the pic.
Photo taken from Morro Bay Power Plant roof - elevation 150 ft.
Pentax K20D - Pentax 500 mm f 5.6 lens (750 equiv), ISO 100, 1/320

The Meaning of Life

As the Zen Masters say - Katz!

Buster says - Adopt me from the North County Humane Society!