“After the Storm, Mt. Gibbs” — Evening light comes to Mt. Gibbs and Tuolumne Meadows as an afternoon storm clears.
I have learned that sometimes the light arrives when you don’t expect it. The day had unexpectedly turned stormy, and to my surprise it rained for hours, continuing past the time when Sierra afternoon thunderstorms typically dissipate. I wondered if it would clear at all, but I headed into the Tuolumne area anyway, thinking that I’d surely want to be there if the light did arrive. And it did! Right around sunset the clouds to the west thinned and beams of light played across the landscape.
One of the biggest surprises when I entered the park late on this afternoon was that a significant hail storm had apparently moved through earlier, dropping so much hail that from a distance it looked like fresh snowfall on Mt. Gibbs.
“Passing Storm, Split, Croatia” — A summer storm passes over Split, Croatia.
While staying in Trogir, Croatia, a ways up the coast from Split, we went for a long, looping drive into the mountains and to some rural, agricultural country. Our main objective was an olive-growing area where we stopped in the middle of the day. After that we continued on a route that would take us closer to Split on our return to Trogir.
As we topped the ridge to the east of the town we came to the Klis Fortress — as I understand it, historically this remarkable ridge-top structure guarded the pass that provided access to Split. As we explored the place the weather began to deteriorate, and before long we were running for cover as strong rain showers passed over. This view looks out over Split towards the passing storm.
“Pena Palace” — The Pena Palace, on the summt of a mountain near Sintra, Portugal.
We missed the Pena Palace when we visited Lisbon a few years ago, so this time we made sure to set aside a day for the train ride to Sintra to see it. (It isn’t the only thing there — a remarkable “Moorish castle” is nearby.) The weather was… interesting. We had rain and wind and fog, to the point that it was difficult to be outside on the castle grounds. However, these conditions also made the scene more dramatic than it would have been on another pleasant, blue sky day.
Later I’ll share photographs made on the palace grounds. I made this one while traversing the old walls of the Moorish Castle. It also lies on a ridge, but a lower one than the palace. From there I had a dramatic view looking up to the summit of the ridge where the wildly colorful Pena Palace sits, complete with dark clouds moving past.
“Oh See O.C.” — The O.C. McDonald sign in San Jose, California
This is not the first time I have photographed this sign. I walk a lot, and one of my routes takes me past this place, the site of a venerable light industrial business in San Jose. The accidental abstraction of the shadows from the neon light always gets my attention, and I can barely see the actual sign now that this comes to the foreground of my attention.
This place is located in an area that is rapidly changing. Years ago it was filled with small businesses and light industrial sites, the latter likely because of its proximity to a rail hub. Over time, like so many similar areas, it began to decay — there are now many abandoned buildings and closed businesses. However, this area that was formerly considered to be far enough from the city center to house less attractive businesses now feels like it is in the center of town. It is rapidly become a development site with new apartments and businesses. It won’t be long before places like “O.C. McDonald” are lost to memory.
Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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