Photos from Oceanside

It was Monday, Labor Day, Sept. 7th, and we had just come off a blistering Sunday when we topped 115 degrees Fahrenheit. All my plans to take a trip were dashed due to the sizzling weather, and Monday was my last day to do so before going back to work. I was sitting around the house, doing not much of anything except for frittering my time away on the computer. I wanted to take a photo trip somewhere, but not if it meant risking the temperatures we had had on Sunday. (There was a story published over the weekend about a hiker having died in the Santa Monica mountains.)  It was risky but it wasn't that hot. I was trying to decide.

There were ash clouds in the skies, not billowing smoke that announces the location, just a generalized ash gloom, and a quick search brought up the news that a group of party goers holding a "gender reveal" party, that is, a party where they announce the gender of their upcoming baby, had set the fire in a park with pyrotechnics. As much as it pains me to say it, but I strongly suspect it was Latinos, too. I hated to say that, but given the craze that Latinos have for any kind of fireworks, and the need to pop them off for any occasion, I just suspect that. Besides, who else would be holding a party in a park on the edge of the desert in the middle of a pandemic? (The only thing confirmed up to this point is that it was a smoke bomb, the identity of the people has not been released. I wonder if they will be held accountable.)

By about 2 p.m. I decided it was now or never. I gathered my things and put them in the car and drove down to Oceanside to take photos at the mission. I also wanted to make a side trip to the beach. It would have been great to try to grab an 8x10 pinhole photo of the pier.  

It was a quick drive with not much traffic, although I couldn't help but glance at the other side of the 15 freeway and see slow traffic around the Pechanga area. I started dreading what would await me on the return home, but surprisingly, when I did return, it was not delayed. I missed out on the traffic jam. (I wonder how the casinos are doing in pandemic times?)

I got to San Luis Rey almost at 3:30 p.m. It was very quiet and peaceful. I parked and gathered the big 8x10 pinhole camera, grabbing the heavy tripod because without it, there is no use taking a pinhole shot unless I limit myself to ground vantage points (where I can set it up on the street).  I had three exposures, I had to make them count.

Things were quiet but I found my shots easily. I will post the 8x10 shot I developed yesterday. For the rest, I took many cellphone photos and also some shots with the 4x5 Travelwide. It was actually quite relaxing, not hot at all, although I was sweating profusely. Maybe it was the physical activity although operating a camera is not the same as jogging. The song remains the same, as in, the mission remain the same, but the area around the place has been heavily developed. There is a street just outside of the mission that leads to a retail district with small shops. The Mission is being hemmed in, but no one will touch that place, it is a landmark. Being there transports me to familiar times. I can remember the family gatherings we used to have here with our cousins when we were children. I know a little of my father's spirit, as well as my cousin Ruben's, remains at this site.

Here are the photos I developed yesterday after returning. These are the 4x5 black and white images taken with Arista film. A great thing to notice, there was no mottled sky the way I was seeing with the images taken with Kodak Ektapan film. That kind of confirms it for me, the mottled effect on the emulsion is a product of old and expired film, not my handling of it. I had also been afraid they might have been due to a damaged negative reel, or chemicals, or not enough agitation, etc.

A shot from the pier. It was not nearly as crowded as it would ordinarily be during the summer, especially on a Labor Day. It was gloomy, but there were plenty of people. The pier was very crowded, it seemed to me. I didn't want to hang around courting Covid, much less walk out to the end of the pier where the number of people would be claustrophobic, so I grabbed a few shots where I could and planned to leave quickly. Around me, people were for the most part behaving as if this were last year and there were no disease that has killed almost 200,000 people in the USA. They were laughing, chatting, walking, taking photos and ignoring the pandemic.

Here is the shot I staked out with the 8x10 pinhole camera when I first arrived. Well, this was a little bit down the way from my original shot. I am pleased by this juxtaposition, but I know it is nothing original. I know it has been done many times before. Besides, the church facade is obscured. 

Another pier shot. I saw a photographer holding a photo shoot under the pier, and was trying to catch a glimpse of it with this photo, but I guess it doesn't appear on this frame. Maybe the model is hiding behind a pole. Also, the pier looks abandoned, with just a few people, but trust me, when you are standing there, it was crowded. I just happened to frame an exposure where the attendance seemed light.

The classic fountain shot at San Luis Rey. If the sky had been clear, I would have used a red filter and darkened it, but no, it was gloomy due to the ash in the air. The church almost blends into the sky. I took this photo with the 8x10 pinhole, but I doubt that shot will work out. The tripod was swaying in the breeze.

Walking down to the baths, a place where we used to go as kids. This is a pathway to the other entrance, since some people were posing on the stairwell and performing music. I clipped the entrance, if I hadn't, I would have been satisfied with this image. I love how detailed the plants are. I also took some 4x5 slide photos, so not all is lost, I will have some color scenes. 

That was it, after visiting the pier, I went home. That drive on the 76 is too long. I tried to stop to buy something to eat but the fast food places had long, long lines. I have no patience anymore. 

I got back after 7 p.m. and by 8:23 p.m. was developing film. 

I had plans for today to hopefully go somewhere, but no, it wasn't possible. The gloom is worse than it was yesterday, and on the news they say it is related to the massive fire set by the gender reveal party where they set off a smoke bomb. They revealed a startling amount of stupidity by taking incendiary devices to a bone-dry park, but it did cool things down. Now, when the sunlight enters the house, it has a red haze.