Traveling Down the Coast

by | Jul 13, 2014 | Impressive Places | 4 comments

On the second day of this week’s road trip, we drove down the California coast from Santa Cruz to Los Angeles. We took a stroll through a stand of beautiful redwood trees at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park in the morning while the light was still ambient.

I really liked the path leading through the forest. It provided a secondary (or even primary) element of interest to give more meaning to the pictures. It was hard to find a shot where the redwoods grew thick and close to each other beside the path, so I stopped when I saw this stand. As you can see below, I took two shots: one extremely wide angle, the second zoomed in a little further.

3274_Santa Cruz-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 17 mm, 10.0 sec at f - 11, ISO 100

3273_Santa Cruz-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 33 mm, 10.0 sec at f - 11, ISO 100

I like the first one better because it feels like the trees are taller and the light in the sky sets each tree apart from the others. However, the second one probably gives the impressing of “growing thick and close” better than the first. Whichever one you might happen to like better, one thing is common between the two: a low angle of view. This shot wouldn’t have worked if I had just stopped and stood in the middle of the path to take the picture.

We traveled the rest of the day in broad daylight for the most part, but I did the best I could despite the harsh light by filling the frame, utilizing depth of field, and taking notice of when we were close to the edge of the clouds that rolled in from off the cold Pacific.

3310_Garrapata State Park-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 75 mm, 1-250 sec at f - 4.0, ISO 100

3429_Big Sur-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 200 mm, 1-400 sec at f - 8.0, ISO 100

3351_Bixpy Bridge-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 24 mm, 1-60 sec at f - 11, ISO 200

It was quite the coincidence that we happened to be reading these verses from Psalm 96 that day:

1 O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.
9 O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof.
12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord.

3335_Monterey-California-USA_Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 24 mm, 1-50 sec at f - 11, ISO 200

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4 Comments

  1. Asheville Steve

    Wow, I don’t know when I’ll get a chance to go see those redwood trees, but it’s certainly one of the the trips I have on my list. Of course, with my limited traveling time these last few years, it seems like the list just keeps on growing. For me that’s a good thing, because I’m a person who’s interested in seeing a lot of places on this gorgeous planet of ours. Thanks for sharing the pics James!

    Reply
  2. James Staddon

    Well, if you start planning a trip and want to know where to go for pictures, let me know! (Assuming of course it’s a place I’ve been to . . . which considering our planet as a whole, is but a drop in the bucket.)

    Reply
    • Asheville Steve

      Hey I totally understand James. I’ve been to some incredible places around the world, but it feels like I’ve barely begun to even scratch the surface. It’s like the old saying: the more you learn or experience, the more you realize that you don’t actually know…

      Reply
  3. James

    I agree with that, for sure!

    Reply

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