2nd roll from Hidden Valley

 Here are the images from my second roll of Foma 200 film taken today at the Hidden Valley Nature Reserve. 

Back to Hidden Valley

Today I wanted to get up early and go out and photograph, but as usual, that is easier said than done. At night, it seems feasible that I might be able to get up early and head on out by 7 a.m., but when the morning rolls around, there is no way I feel I can motivate myself to crawl out of bed. So that is what happened, I was still in bed by 8 a.m. and with no energy to undertake a trip anywhere. Instead, a modest breakfast of oatmeal and then, more time squandered on the web, and finally, I ventured out at 9:30 a.m. I wanted to go originally to the Arlington Garden in Pasadena, CA, but no, I had no desire to forge through highway traffic, not after the heavy traffic I experienced on Friday, so instead, I went back to the Hidden Valley. I figured, if I get there at 10 a.m., it is still early enough for me to get another angle with the sun hitting the Power House. So there I went, while listening once again to my Teaching Company CDs and the lecture about the triumphs and woes of ancient Athens.

I got there and there was a horde of bicycle riders, but they didn't seem to venture down into the interior parking lots. Maybe they might have just concluded their trip, and maybe, they had ridden on the outside street and were merely stopping at the Nature Center? I didn't ask, I parked and headed off west to the Power House.

There was a photographer photographing a model inside. I hope she felt comfortable, she was sitting at one point on a chair she must have brought (there are no chairs nor benches nor any furniture inside), and it is always filthy dirty in there, with horse droppings, smashed and broken bottles, wrappers and trash and sometimes soiled and abandoned clothing items. I didn't interrupt him nor venture inside, I just took a few shots of the outside of the building then wandered back. As I was leaving, another photographer with a bevy of models was arriving. It must be very popular, and I understand completely. It is startling to see this building in this nature reserve with charred trees and the San Gabriel mountains off in the far distance.

As I wandered back, I took more photos. I wanted to try to use my Foma 200 black and white film, with a red 25A filter. I wanted to see how well it captured the images, because the Foma film special concludes tomorrow night and maybe I might want to order more film. Well, I ordered more film about 30 minutes ago, so that tells you that I was pleased with how the film responded. Of course, I don't have to use film, I can get excellent black and white photos with my digital DSLR, but using a film camera just forces you to be so much more selective, and that is what will make me a better photographer, just stopping to really consider each shot. Film is expensive, so I don't snap away the way I do with a digital camera.

I ran into several equestrians and, this time, they were polite. They were Latino and those are always polite, but I even ran into Anglo equestrians, and I am glad to report, no ostensible Trump supporters among them. You can tell when they are MAGAs, they really seem to hate running into Latinos anywhere. Their body language reveals it.

I was there for two hours and got back at about 12:30 p.m. I then developed the two rolls and then, finished some work. I am actually very sleepy right now, and it is only 8:27 p.m. I am holding off, though, because I need to check my academic account at 9 p.m., as I promised my students who are taking tests this weekend.

Now, I'll upload the next batch of photos from the second roll in the next entry. How was it today? It was a mild day, and it seems as if we will not have any significant cold spells this winter. It has been unseasonably warm. And, as I was walking back to my car, I saw a coyote up ahead of me. It scrambled quickly into the bushes where I could hear it but not see it. It looked to me like a Chihuahua dog, but dark. This time I didn't flinch.

Sherman Garden in slides

Taken earlier this week at the Sherman Library and Garden in Corona del Mar, CA. Specifically, it was Feb. 22nd, 2021, and that day was my second trip to this garden. Things have changed. I noticed that they no longer had the statue of the maiden that was present on my first visit, plus, they have cleared away some areas, plus, they had a running railroad display. I was using my Nikon D750, primarily, but I also took my Fuji GW690ii because I wanted to shoot some slides. Surprisingly, they all came out, I received the packaged of developed slides (which follow for one roll) today from the Darkroom. The compositions are not the best, I was winging it with regards to exposure, but I have to train my "inner light meter". Here are the scans from today.

Hidden Valley with Ilford XP2 (chromogenic black and white)

A roll of photos taken at the Hidden Valley Nature Reserve a few weeks back. I know, I know, they are really grainy (which is something I have never seen with XP2 film) and dusty (many of my scans are so with the Epson V600). Still, I like the look. Not the artifacts, not the grain, but the look. 

Redondo Beach with Kodak 400 Portra

A few more photos taken with my Fuji GW690ii with Kodak 400 Portra film from my trip to Redondo Beach, CA, on Feb. 3rd, 2021. I am really surprised by the colors. I think I need to stock up on this film, it really is magical, even on a morning with a dense marine layer, when I thought it was pointless to use color film.

The Hidden Valley Nature Reserve in February, on my walk east

These are from my walk in early February along the Hidden Valley Nature reserve. I wanted to continue walking along the trail, but going east, going east, out to Van Buren Blvd. I didn't make it, the timing was off and I feared not being able to return to my car by 4:30 so that I could exit by then. They are strict, they close down the park at that hour. 

These expansive views still inspire me. I wish we had more defined cumulous clouds, but no, it was the familiar haze. At least that was better than today, Thursday, which was a Zoom teaching day for me, and I can't go anywhere. In reality, every day outside is beautiful. 

 

The California Botanic Garden (I think)

 These are from a visit to the California Botanic Garden, I think. They look like the desert landscape, and these would be from the Joshua Trees as I was preparing to leave. I was tired. HP5+, with a red filter, 25A.

One more from Huntington Library (I think)

I think this one is from my visit on Feb. 17th to the Huntington Library and Garden. It looks too elegant not to be, although I would have to say, my composition is far from elegant. Those shadows in the plants, they do not help at all, but as I recall, this was taken as I was arriving to the site, and I always want to take photos as soon as I arrive. This was a roll of 120 HP5+.