Art in Construction Part 1

Marty CohenArchitecture, B+W, California, Carmel, U.S.7 Comments

I am increasingly working with architectural photography. Most of the work I’ve done has been homes that were either recently built or remodeled. I enjoy this type of photography because it’s challenging and fun to see the art in architecture, sometimes obvious and sometimes more discreet. I’ve been commissioned to photograph the steel work construction of a house being built on a lot in the High Meadows area of Carmel, CA. It will have amazing views of Carmel Highlands, Point Lobos and Carmel Bay in the Pacific Ocean. Carmel Bay is south of Monterey Bay.
I processed the four images below in both color and black & white. Black & white was the clear winner. Without color, your eyes are free to follow the lines, shapes and juxtaposition of the components without being distracted by color. I’ll be shooting more photographs this weekend and again when the house is completed.

The best way to view the images is to click on the first one,
then use the forward and back arrows.
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Warm Memories of the 50’s

Marty CohenArizona, B+W, Bisbee, U.S.9 Comments

The interior of Dot's Diner, a 1950’s diner in Bisbee, AZ

The interior of Dot’s Diner, a 1950’s diner in Bisbee, AZ

In looking back through some of my older images, I came across this one. What I thought of when I saw it was how sweet it was in the 50’s and 60’s to have diners in local communities where the servers, chef and owners know their customers by name and the customers know the servers, chef and owners. This image reminds me of the soda fountain that was in my parents’ corner Drug Store, Gold Coast Drug in Los Angeles. I pretty much grew up in that store and I had fun behind the counter of the soda fountain. I think this is one reason why we are regular and frequent customers of some of our local family restaurants where we’ve gotten to know the staff and owners.

What are your memories of diners and soda fountains in the 50’s and 60’s? Share them in the comments section below.
 

Family Generations

Marty CohenB+W, Elephant, Kenya8 Comments

Family Generations

Multiple generations of an elephant family in Aamboseli, Kenya

Elephants exhibit very strong matriarchal family behavior. They have a matriarchal head, usually an older matriarch, her daughters (3 or 4 of them) and their calves. The typical elephant family is from 6 to 12 individual elephants. The females assist each other with the birth and care of their young. This ‘babysitting’ is a very important part of the young elephant’s preparation for when she is a first-timer mother. The matriarch is usually replaced by one of her daughters when she dies. The bulls stick to a bachelor (all-male) herd in which they live and travel. When males want to mate, they leave their herd and search for a herd of female elephants. They return to their bachelor herd after mating and have nothing to do with the rearing or caring for their young.


“Elephants value their family structure, perhaps more so than many other animals. They are naturally outgoing, sociable animals and, as such, enjoy the interaction with fellow family- and herd members. Although structured, the herd is fluid enough to compensate for unforeseen circumstances (such as the death of one of the mothers, where other mothers allow the orphaned calf to suckle). Such ties are rare, and the empathetic and insightful nature of these magnificent animals continues to lure researchers deeper and deeper into the elephant psyche.”

ref: Elephants Forever

AH NUTS!

Marty CohenCalifornia, Carmel Valley, Carmel Valley Ranch, Trees7 Comments

The Fruit (Nut) of the Native California Buckeye Tree

The Fruit (Nut) of the Native California Buckeye Tree

 

Ready to Shoot the MoonOk, this post isn’t really about the poisonous nut that falls from the Native California Buckeye trees around where we live. It’s about how I tried to photograph the Lunar Eclipse last night and was thwarted by the fog. Yesterday afternoon, I set up my tripod, Canon 6D camera, telephoto lens and cable release in preparation. My plan was to awaken early this morning and capture images of the Lunar Eclipse and the reddish color the moon acquires during the total eclipse.

My alarm was set for 1:30 am, a short time before the partial eclipse was to begin, only to see a very hazy vision of a full moon hidden behind the fog or low clouds. I know that one can never tell when that fog will lift, so I reset my alarm for 2:30 am, woke up, and went out on our front deck again. The partial eclipse had begun, and was again, mostly covered by the hazy low clouds. Frustrated, but determined, I set my alarm for 3:15 am and tried to fall back asleep, but tossed and turned until 3:10, got up and went outside. Wow, it was almost a full eclipse now, that I could barely detect from the faint glow coming from behind the clouds. Ugggh!

So it goes for determined photographers. But you have to be there to get the shot! Better luck next eclipse.

Fork-Tailed Bush Katydid

Marty CohenCarmel Valley, Carmel Valley Ranch, insects7 Comments

Fork-Tailed Bush Katydid

Our Fuchsia plant is a tasty meal for this Fork-Tailed Bush Katydid

This is an iPhone 6 photograph of this beautifully green colored Fork-Tailed Bush Katydid, Scudderia cuneata (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae). They are a similar species to the short-horned grasshopper and are widespread in the eastern and southeastern United States. They’re also found in California, Maine and Texas. They are native to the U.S.

They resemble grasshoppers but their rear legs are long and thin. Males have an unusual forked appendage at the end of their abdomen called a furcula. Katydids have much longer antennae than grasshoppers. They have excellent eyesight and, when startled, they can hide behind leaves very quickly. Their hosts are primarily citrus plants especially the sweet orange. They feed on the young fruit causing a circular scar in the peel and, on the leaves, they leave ragged circular holes (very noticeable on our plant). While we do not have any citrus plants directly around our house, there is a citrus tree at the house across the court from us.

reference: Citrus Pests