Nature Photography by Pam & Richard
May 29, 2017 14 Comments
Greater Palm Springs Area
Desert Oasis
Looking Up at Oasis Fan Palms
Golden Barrel Cacti
Roadrunner in Desert
Close-up of Roadrunner Face
Anna’s Hummingbird at Mexican Honeysuckle in Desert Garden
Greater Palm Springs was voted one of the top ten places to travel in the United States by Lonely Planet in 2017. We visited in early spring and loved it as usual!
April 6, 2017 2 Comments
Wind Turbines by Mount San Jacinto
Trio of Wind Turbines
Wind Turbines in Desert Landscape
San Gorgonio Pass in Black and White
The San Gorgonio Pass near Palm Springs is one of the windiest places in California. The area is famous for its huge wind farms containing over 4,000 wind turbines. The largest blades measure half the length of a football field. Currently engineers are working on a prototype that would have blades twice the length of a football field mounted on a tower taller than the Empire State Building! Another post is at: https://naturetime.wordpress.com/2014/05/30/california-palm-springs-wind-turbines/
April 3, 2017 Leave a comment
Mirage House of Polished Steel
Kaleidoscopic Mirrored Interior
View of Palm Springs from Inside the House
Outside of House Reflecting Wind Turbines in Distance
Mirrored House Angles
Mirrored Corner Angles
Recently we enjoyed seeing some of the Desert X art installations on view throughout the Coachella Valley in Palm Springs, California (https://www.desertx.org/). Overall the exhibition runs February 25 – April 20, 2017, but this exhibit will remain open until October 31st.
Artist Doug Aitken created this mirrored home of polished steel called “Mirage”. Environment and home are blended together in this unique kaleidoscopic structure. The view is said to be especially stunning at sunset and in moonlight. This was a favorite and a real treat to see on the last day of our trip!
April 1, 2017 2 Comments
Curve of Mirrored Pillars
Pillar Row
Pillars Reflecting Sky
Authors’ Portraits in Pillars
When we visited Palm Springs recently, we were happy to see some of the Desert X art installations on view throughout the Coachella Valley (https://www.desertx.org/). The exhibition runs February 25 – April 20, 2017.
These pictures show a ring of mirrored pillars called “The Circle of Land and Sky” by artist Phillip K. Smith III. I think it would be fun to have a couple of mirrored pillars at home in the flower garden!
March 17, 2017 12 Comments
Male Anna’s Hummingbird’s Spectacular Pink Gorget Feathers
Female Anna’s Hummingbird on Nest
Two Tiny Eggs in Nest
Anna’s Hummingbird at Grevillea Flower
Costa’s Hummingbird’s Purple Gorget
On a recent trip to California we got lucky and saw some spectacular hummingbirds. They are a favorite! Hummingbirds are incredibly beautiful and full of personality. In flight their wings beat at least 50 times per second, which sounds like a buzz when they zoom past you in the garden. Forward flight speed reaches 30 mph, and dive speeds reach 60 mph!
Hummingbird nests are constructed of plant material bound together with sticky, stretchy spider webs. Lichens are attached to the outside of the nest for camouflage. Mother hummingbirds lay two eggs. Although each egg is less than ½ inch long and smaller than a jellybean, they represent as much as 10% of her body weight. These little flying jewels are precious! More fun facts about hummingbirds are at: https://www.thespruce.com/fun-facts-about-hummingbirds-387106 A live cam on Bella’s current active hummingbird nest is at: http://explore.org/live-cams/player/bella-hummingbird-nest
November 25, 2016 2 Comments
Rocky Tide Pool Area on Coast
Beautiful View of San Diego from
Cabrillo National Monument
Statue of Cabrillo
Point Loma Lighthouse
3rd Order Fresnel Lens In Lighthouse Museum
Prismatic Colors of Fresnel Lens
Overlook of Gray Whale “Highway”
A popular place to visit near San Diego is Cabrillo National Monument. At the park’s southern end are some of the most accessible tidepools in southern California. The rocky trails there overlooking the Pacific Ocean are very scenic. Nearby stands a statue of Juan Cabrillo overlooking beautiful San Diego Bay. It commemorates his landing there in 1542. At the top of Point Loma Peninsula stands the old Point Loma Lighthouse. It was in active service from 1855-1891, but was retired because the light was often above the fog line and was thus invisible. A short stroll from the lighthouse leads to the Gray Whale Overlook. It is an excellent place to watch for whale spouts in winter.
Emma Minter, who lived at the lighthouse as a child in 1878, said: “What had I for playthings? The nicest in the world! Pretty shells, colored stones, kelp babies. It seems to me that I can remember every day of my young life there.”
Information on visiting Cabrillo National Monument is at: https://www.nps.gov/cabr/index.htm
June 7, 2016 5 Comments
Disney Concert Hall
Understated Sign
Soaring Architecture
Narrow Passageway Through “Sails”
Photographer Reflections
Glass Reception Desk
Lobby’s Wooden Support Columns Mimic Trees (designed to hide structural/mechanical equipment)
Pre-Concert Lecture Hall for “Talks with Maestro”
Concert Hall’s Massive Pipe Organ (nicknamed “Hurricane Mama”)
Close-up of Unique Curved Pipes
48-Foot Mural “Blue” by Peter Alexander
Rose Fountain Centerpiece in Garden Outside
“A Rose for Lilly” Commissioned by Mrs. Disney’s Children and Grandchildren
Close-up of Fountain’s Delft Porcelain Mosaic
Coral Tree in Blue Ribbon Garden
Hong Kong Orchid Tree Near Triangular Doorway
Hong Kong Orchid Tree Flower
When we visited Los Angeles, California, we attended a classical concert at the Disney Concert Hall. The acoustics were incredible! We sat front row center – so close to the musicians that we could almost read their music. There is nothing quite like being that close to a full orchestra – it is unforgettable! Lillian Disney commissioned the building in tribute to her late husband Walt to honor his dedication to the arts.
Before the LA Philharmonics concert, we went on an architectural tour of the building. It was designed by Frank Gehry, who said the building’s billowing shape was meant to evoke a sailing ship. Initially the stainless steel exterior was buffed to a mirror-like shine, but the shiny metal reflected too much heat, so the surface was changed to matte.
Inside the concert hall the acoustics are absolute perfection. Douglas fir wood lines the walls and ceiling of the auditorium. The cushions of the chairs are engineered to reflect sound in the same way whether people are seated in them or not. The organ at the front of the hall contains 6,134 uniquely curved pipes (its nickname is “Hurricane Mama”). The size of the pipes range from smaller than a pencil to as big as a telephone pole.
Outside the building, visitors can enjoy the public Blue Ribbon Garden (up a left staircase to the second level from the street). The lush garden is a nice counterpoint to the modernistic building. A centerpiece of the garden is a fountain designed for Lillian as a tribute from her children and grandchildren. Its flower shape reflects her fondness for roses, and its composition reflects her passion for Delft porcelain. Designer Frank Gehry commissioned 200 Delft vases from Holland at a cost of $34,000 to produce the thousands of pieces needed for the sculpture’s mosaic. It took a team of 8 artists over 4 months to complete the lovely fountain.
When speaking of his work, Gehry said “Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness.”
A fun TV show about the Disney Concert Hall by Huell Howser of “California’s Gold” is at: https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2007/09/11/disney-concert-hall-downtown-111/
More info is at: http://www.laphil.com/visit/tours
