Dead on the Creek 2013 // Saturday

Saturday morning. The kitchen staff are the first to rise, already harvesting lettuce from the garden for that night’s meal. Each piece needs to be washed and then torn in a way so that no leaf is crushed by the weight of it all. There is an art and a science to feeding three meals to 300 people and it takes an army all day to prepare...After breakfast the parachute goes up, with a body posted at each tree and two on the roof, it rises, only briefly getting caught on the apple tree. Granny Smiths rain down...Drum circle, tie-dye, weaving on the loom. Jeffery’s post is on the road to assist with parking, though most people have already arrived...The day settles into a relaxing trance as the first band begins to play. Bluegrass during the day, Dead songs at night...Teenagers more talented than anyone thought possible given their short existence pick up their instruments and own the crowd...Washing and dicing, singing and dancing, continue into the evening.

I lost about 250 images during the dinner hour/ the golden hour that can only be imagined. They must have been too magical for the world to see.

Too see images from Friday night click here.  And for more information on DOTC and to bookmark for next year check out the website. 

Dead on the Creek 2013 // Friday Night

We drove up to Willits from the Bay Friday night, and got up String Creek just in time for the late night party to start. Mars Hotel was rocking. The coals in the outdoor oven were nearing perfection, and the popcorn was popping. Pizza turned art, fresh cookies, late night badminton. The music kept playing long after we were full of food and fireside conversation with old friends and all zipped into our tents for the night. And that's how it started. 

For more information on the festival, click here. 

Cats of Hillegass // Hiking Berkeley Hills

Walking around Berkeley I found these lovelies. The green eyed tabby, "Flower," kept running towards me, proving a difficult subject. I have lived in the East Bay just over a year now and I feel like I am finally starting to really know my way around Oakland and Berkeley. But tonight I went for a run and discovered the Stonewall-Panoramic Train, up above the Claremont Hotel. It was steep. Really steep. It's part of the Claremont Canyon Regional Preserve in the Oakland and Berkeley Hills. I have hiked trails in the Preserve before, but none that are walking distance from civilization. It was a popular choice tonight, a couple even hiked some beer up to the top and were enjoying the sunset on a bench at the summit. I do not plan on taking my camera up that high, but I think it is worth another visit. Going down was an entirely different challenge, you kind of have to shimmy and let gravity help you out, but not allow yourself to pick up too much speed. I could feel my feet sliding all the way to the front of my shoes. It was invigorating feeling connected to my body in two different ways. Thighs, calves and lungs burning on the way up, concentration and agility all the way down. 

I had three family shoot cancelations the month of July, so I'm hurting for models. If you know of anyone who wants to get in front of my lens, let me know! 

(You can check out my portrait series of cats in Norwich here.) 

Black and White

Two beauties for your Wednesday...

I've been taking less photos lately, mostly because I only want to shoot under perfect lighting conditions with beautiful subjects and if I don't have them I won't shoot, and these things are hard to come by. I've always been hypercritical of subject matter, especially when I was studying writing, no matter how much my professors lectured to "silence the inner critic!" Really it is about always having my camera with me and not being afraid to use it (or just writing, writing, writing). And creating something beautiful under imperfect conditions. The nice thing about art is that if you work at it enough you are bound to get something good. And I'm starting to feel inspired again.

Green Things

I've been inspired lately to add some more green to our home. We don't yet have an outdoor space but we may as well liven up the indoors as long as we're in this apartment. Jeffery used to work at a garden center and spent a couple months interning at my mom's farm before joining me in England. The man knows plants. Some things I've learned from him: 

  • The only way to learn if something will live is to give it a try.
  • Be sure not to over water.
  • Open the curtains to let the light in.

Pretty basic. I'm still on the lookout for a fiddle leaf fig.  I spend a lot of time admiring other people's gardens when I'm out walking or running in Oakland and Berkeley. (You can check out my instagram for photos.) We're nearing the end of dahlia season, and tomatoes are starting to ripen on the vine. I'm learning to appreciate the subtle transition of what's in season. It can be so fleeting. I know that when we have the space Jeffery and I will both enjoy planting, tending and harvesting our outdoor flowers and edibles.  Until then, a girl can dream.

Santa Cruz 2.0

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Looks like we've made it a tradition. 

This year we rented a hundred year old house with friends and did a lot of barbecuing, made a couple batches of potato salad, ate our share of ice cream, and spent some time shopping and relaxing at the beach. Sadly, I came down with a cold and didn't start feeling better until the last night we were there, or I would have taken more photos. Jeffery and I stopped in Davenport on the way home, and took a nice little walk up on the cliff. It's a cute little town, but there isn't a lot to it. Inspired by all the beautiful plants where we stayed, we visited at the Half Moon Bay Nursery and bought some more green leafy friends for our home. The cats are still learning not to eat them. Time to plant some cat grass. 

35mm

These photos were taken with the 1968 Pentax Camera my dad gave me.

The top photo and the bottom two were taken on the same beach in Santa Cruz exactly one year apart, back when I had long hair. (Photos from last 4th of July in Santa Cruz can be seen here.) And the only reason it took us an entire year to finish the roll of film was because our camera was held hostage by friends (or forgotten every time we got together) for far too long. It is the same lens that I am using with my digital (35mm, 1.4) and it takes such beautiful images. I plan on using it a whole lot more now that we have it back. More photos from Santa Cruz coming soon.

 

Colorado Road Trip // Part 2 -- What We Saw

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Arches National Park

Colorado National Monument

Maroon Bells outside of Aspen

Ralph Lauren's Double RL Ranch

Telluride Bluegrass Festival

Thank you Colorado. I feel really lucky to have had this opportunity, for the change in scenery, to see a part of our country I knew little about. Everywhere we went the people were friendly and the landscape was dramatic. The high desert is an amazing place. Still hot at high elevations, even if surrounded by snow, and everything was in bloom. And thank you Sadie for being my driving companion and for wanting to stop along the way.

Colorado Road Trip // Part 1 -- Where We Stayed

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My friend Sadie and I rented a Fiat 500 and drove through California and Utah to Colorado. We stayed three nights in Grand Junction at her grandparent's ranch at the base of the Colorado National Monument and took day trips to Aspen, Telluride and various National Parks.

The morning after I took the sunset photos I awoke in the dark and checked my watch: 5:47 am. I googled "Grand Junction Sunrise," and got "5:48" so I jumped out of bed and grabbed my camera and got to witness the monument transform as the sun came up.

What an incredible backdrop. The ranch was amazing. And every time we walked through the doors of their beautiful 1960s log cabin, we were greeted with wet kisses from Lizzie, the Bernese Mountain dog. 

Sadie's grandparents are some of the nicest, most generous people you'll ever meet. They have been married for over 56 years and work together every day to maintaing their ten acres. It is definitely a little piece of paradise in the high dessert. Thank you Grandma Sue and Grandpa Bill for showing this Californian how wonderful Colorado can be.  

Where the wind don't blow so strange.

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A couple weekends ago we drove up to Willits to celebrate Jeffery's ten-year high school reunion. It consisted of a Friday night bar crawl and a Saturday afternoon potluck in the park, both relaxed and interesting, to say the least. The best part was reconnecting with old friends, there are so many good people from Willits.

The real party was Saturday night at our friend Jesse's property where there were so many of my favorite things:

An outdoor kitchen with all of the amenities in a clearing in the woods surrounded by gardens...Barbecued oysters slathered with lemony garlic butter...The lovely Lucy vying for our attention, affection and any meat droppings falling her way...Late night fireside discussion with great friends, so much history between us...Endless music....Stars in the sky, and so many more as the night wore on...Laughter as we tried to find our tents in the dark...

It is the site where his family hosts Dead on the Creek, an intimate music festival each year on the second weekend in August. Bluegrass music, Grateful Dead cover bands and the best local organic food you've ever eaten. Camping, food and libations are all included in the ticket price and there are still some spots available! You can learn more here.

Jeffery has helped with parking the last few years, and I was trying to get in on the kitchen crew, but I was talking to Jesse's dad about my camera and he asked if I'd photograph the festival. So I have that to look forward to in just over a month. This summer is flying by. Soon I will share photos from my road trip to Colorado, and next week we're off to Santa Cruz for three nights with friends. I have some upcoming family shoots scheduled and I'm trying to meet up and shoot a little with some photographers I admire.

It all feels pretty fast paced, but good. I haven't had a chance to venture into the city for too long, but I am ecstatic about the Supreme Court ruling on the unconstitutionality of DOMA and the legalization of gay marriage in California. Happy pride to all my SF and LGBT friends, I love you and I am so happy. Happy to tears over and over again. This is going to be a summer of celebration, I can feel it.