A few 6x9 photos from Redondo Beach

 Well, it was a sizzling day today. The heatwave is back, and it won't leave anytime soon. We are at the end of June, and we have the entire summer and fall to deal with these conditions. What can you do? Just endure the heat.

Yesterday I went to Redondo Beach and, as described, spent my time wandering around with my cameras. I didn't take my 6x17 camera, I wanted to give it a rest. I don't want vast empty panoramas, and that is what I am finding with those compositions. With my 90mm lens, either I need to get up close to buildings or post myself in the thick of a crowd, or else, choose another camera, because otherwise, I feel I will waste all that film on vast stretches of ground, sky and empty space. So, it was time to take my Fuji GW690ii again.

I took that camera and a digital camera, my Nikon D500. I have not used this camera since right before the start of the pandemic, in March of 2020. It was good that I stopped using it, I no longer want to return to photographing dance groups and clicking away, taking two thousand photos in one hour (and that is not hyperbole!). I have been wanting to move away from that photography, but couldn't find the occasion. Well, the pandemic gave that to me, at least. 

Reaching Redondo Beach at about 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, there was plenty of parking in the underground lot next to the pier. It was a different matter, of course, at 3:00 p.m. when the "hordes" were arriving and circulating around desperately. Note to self, arrive before noon because, otherwise, the beach parking fills up quickly, and the situation will only get worse as the gloom disappears and we entire into scorching weather at the beach. It is scoring inland,where I live, and when I left, it was about 80 degrees, but all day at the beach there is gloom, so that cuts down on visits, I think. That will change when sol enters the peak of its powers.

I walked around Redondo Beach, walking towards the south, then did what I wanted to do, which was walk to Hermosa Beach. It was supposed to be a 40 minute walk, but I managed to do it in 30 minute. It was quite pleasant, but it was long. It was also not as crowded as I expect it will get in a few weeks. 

Here are some 6x9 photos from Redondo Beach. I was doing street photography, mostly, not taking photos of the yachts and boats. (Although I do have a photo with yachts. I couldn't help myself, I had to take the cliché shot.) It was about time, there is no harm in doing people watching with a camera. Like I said, I want to make my photography more contemplative and slow, and stop with the high-volume (and mindless) mode of photography.