Santa Monica Mountain

Lately, I've been learning how to build a house out of Styrofoam. Got your attention? Actually, it's form of foam called ICF (insulated concrete form), interlocking, hollow blocks that feel like Styrofoam and once constructed into a house, are filled with concrete. Makes a pretty sturdy abode, I can tell you.

The project I'm working on is in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu and every (early) morning, I'm treated to incredible ocean air, coastal light and all sorts of other phenomena. Here are some recent shots as I was winding the hill to the job site.

Wildflowers, Death Valley

I'm not a big one for taking pictures of wildflowers only because it feels like there's not more I can say about a flower that someone else hasn't already done, often better. But when it comes to flowers in the desert, I can't resist. I think it's the novelty of something so colorful, so delicate in an otherwise barren, often colorless environment. Plus, you know that what you're capturing is only hanging around for a few days, so it's also the rarity of the subject that makes it special. I was never able to nail down exactly what these blooms are which is odd because they were everywhere the day I was shooting in Death Valley National Park toward the end of February. I got down on my knees with the tripod legs spread out and using the widest setting on my lens focused on these beauts just a few inches from the lens' front element. It allowed me to gather in a close-up while at the same showing the surrounding environment.

tech stuff: Canon 5D, 16mm f/2.8 lens set to 16mm, f/13, 1/50, ISO 400