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SF Botanical Garden - Magnolia Season! Jan 12 2019

It’s been raining here in the SF Bay Area for the past week, and today would be the one day break before another week of rain. I took advantage of warm 60 degree weather and blue skies to head to the SF Botanical Garden to take some photos of one of my favorite places. I was rewarded with some great pink magnolias (magnolia campbelli), a few hummingbirds, etc.

Here are the hummingbirds- check out the second one- I was taking a photo of the flower, and it flew into the shot!

Here are the Magnolias!!!! Always a treat each year, and I try to take photos that show how the light plays with their blossoms- they sometimes look like vibrant pink lanterns against a blue sky, or lanterns against grayish backgrounds- really fascinating to me to observe- nature truly is amazing.

Some other birds were also around the park

My paving stone at the SF Botanical Garden- near the fountain- go check it out if you visit!

My paving stone at the SF Botanical Garden- near the fountain- go check it out if you visit!

Dec 31st 2018, Stanford Hill Dish Hike looking for Hawks, and finding them!

On this, the last day of 2018, I decided to take a walk out to Stanford Dish and see if I could see some hawks. It was a beautiful, blue sky, crisp morning, but with a wicked chilly wind- around 40 degrees!

First, I took some photos of the beautiful oak trees that I love

Then after the oak trees, I saw a few hawks circling high overhead. It’s really hard to shoot these as they fly through the air. I got some nice light shining through their feathers. (Click below on each image to blow up.)

Then, as I was reaching the top of the hill, I saw something in a tree, quite a ways off (Can you spot it?)- it didn’t look like a branch, so I walked closer (and off trail a little shh…) and this hawk let me get right about 10 feet below it!

And here it is- some photos of the Hawk

Fleet Week SF, Blue Angels October 2018

Golden Gate Park Dahlia Garden 09/15/18

Enjoyed beautiful 72 degree weather at Golden Gate Park’s Dahlia Garden in San Francisco on 9/15/18. I love the way these flowers are symmetrical, how the mid-day sun shines through their petals. I tried to make the photos I took capture this, and some of them even look like paintings! Also fascinating were the various bees that were all over the pollen in these flowers. Bees are hard to get photos of as they are moving around so rapidly collecting the pollen. Taken with my Sony a7rii and Sony 100-400 lens.

(Click the photos to see full size!)

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Hawaii June 2018

Went back to the big island of Hawai'i for my 20th high school reunion. Some highlights included swimming with the Manta Rays off the Kona/Kohala coast, Going deep into the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge to take photos of the Iwi'i and getting up close and personal with the erupting Fissure 8 on June 6th in Leilani Estates.