landscape

Pew Oceans Commission

Califonia's Pacific Coast landscape: Pew Oceans Commission final report.

Pew Oceans Commission posted in california , covers , landscape

Golden Gate Fog

One of the signature landmarks of San Francisco is the Golden Gate Bridge. When photographing for my book on San Francisco Bay, I wanted to cover the movement of the fog which sweeps in off the Pacific many summer afternoons, and then recedes in the morning. Often it flows over the hilltops and shrouds the bridge deck in a white cloth.

There's a small hilltop in Marin Headlands, just above the northern anchorage, which seemed promising as a vantage point. It was a fogbound morning. Driving out there in the predawn darkness I doubted if I'd get anything at all. Sometimes you don't. I parked and hiked the fire trail to the ridgetop; it was windy, dark and cold. With my tripod fixed, and mid-range lens set on my Nikon, I waited.

Imperceptibly, the light changed. A gradual brightening, then visible clouds, then a golden hue as a distant sun rose over the Oakland hills. Then the mist cleared with a swift breeze and the bridge tower appeared.

It was a surprise of course. It always is.

Golden Gate Fog posted in california , frames , landscape , san francisco bay , usa

Table Mountain

The rocky prominence of Table Mountain rises up over the streets of Cape Town, an ever present reminder of the beauty and strength of the African landscape. To get this image of first light on the mountain I returned repeatedly to a lookout from neighboring Lion's Head. The brilliant clouds scudding past the mountain and the windswept native plants in the foreground contrast with the silent city, just awakening to a new day.

Table Mountain posted in africa , frames , landscape , south africa

Alaska Eagle

On a late Spring evening on Kodiak Island the light lasts forever. Well over an hour after sunset an orange glow lit the sky above the rugged intgerior mountains across Chiniak Bay. As I came slowly up to a bald eagle perched on a cliffside, it quickly took flight and swooped high in the air, gliding on the last light of the day

© David Sanger. Click on image for licensing and fine art prints.

Alaska Eagle posted in alaska , frames , landscape , usa

Stone walls

Driving through the lush Irish countryside, I was struck by the simplicity and energy of the stone walls. There is an earthy contrast between the rough-hewn gray stones, the deep green of the pastures and the white wooled grazing sheep.

The walls enclose the land, define boundaries between neighbors, and protect the sheep from wandering off.

Climbing carefully on a wall on the narrow verge of a country lane, I composed the image to crop closely, eliminating the sky and letting the walls partition the image into geometric segments. The single wall leads the eye into the distance, while the two sheep lying in the field counterbalance and keep the viewer in the picture.

© David Sanger. Click on image for licensing and fine art prints.

Stone walls posted in europe , frames , ireland , landscape

Grass

How to show the Golden Gate Bridge and not make a cliché? This was the question as I documented the newly restored Crissy Field along the San Francisco waterfront for the National Park Service

It was a bright blue day and the green of the newly planted California bunch grass on the restored meadow caught my eye. Green, blue and the red of the bridge: that was the image! With a Nikon 600mm. lens on a low tripod I lay on the ground and framed the triangle of the bridge tower and cables behind a few tufts of grass. Trying different focus points and apertures for depth of field I selected this shot with a slightly soft but recognizable bridge and the crisp grass caught in the wind.

© David Sanger. Click on image for licensing and fine art prints.

Grass posted in california , frames , landscape