Joshua Tree, May 2011
It’s no secret that I love to be outside. San Diego county is a playground for just about all manner of outdoor activity. And if I’m looking for a little bit of extreme landscape, fortunately it’s only a couple of hours away.
That was the case with last month’s quick (and spontaneous) trip to Joshua Tree’s Cottonwood Springs. The weather in the park can vary from snow flurries to scorching desert heat depending on the time of year. Shelly and I wanted a desert camp trip before the heat sets in for the summer so we packed up the car and hit it.
Camouflaged on the Mastodon Peak trail
Modern petroglyph, Cottonwood Springs.
Infrared Ocotillo
Happiness at campsite #17A, Cottonwood Springs.
The best part of waking up.
All photos © 2011 Gary Allard Photography, all rights reserved.
iPhone Landscapes
It’s been a while since I put up any of my iPhone photos so I thought I’d toss out a few. These were made over the past month while traveling, working or relaxing around southern California.
The San Bernadino Mountains near Cabazon, CA. (I also shot this with my Mamiya 645, Ilford infared film and a #25 red filter, hoping for a similar effect on film).
Charred tree leftover from the 2007 Witch Fire near Ramona Lake.
Hiking through the Blue Sky Ecological Reserve: Beautiful Coast Live Oaks and yuccas in bloom.
On the highway to Palm Springs, March 2011
This is just a small sampling of my iPhone photos but if you care to see the live feed of all my iPhone photos, check out my Best Camera profile page. Got your own favorite iPhone pics? Drop a link below to share. And a special thanks to Erik Hecht for turning me onto the Dynamic Light app featured in a few of the images here – great app!
My California
© Gary Allard
There’s a great song by Phantom Planet called California. It’s infectious and goes down easy every time I hear it. “California here we come, right back where we started from…”
Though I’m technically a native – a “prune-picker” as my father likes to say – I grew up and spent some formative years in the Northwest. Born in L.A., raised in Seattle, then bouncing back to SoCal for a gig, I’ve got a huge appreciation for both areas. With that in mind I’ve begun shooting more landscapes and have really been enjoying it. On a recent trip to the vast California wine region, I shot some quiet moments while out exploring. Tech note: No HDR here, just good ol’ dramatic California shining through. More photos and a fun video beyond the jump… (more…)
The Darkroom 