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Photography

PhotographyWisdom

A Breath-Holding Exercise for Water Photographers

I finish my swim workouts with a few minutes of active breathholding exercises which I feel make me a better waterman and a better photographer. Photographers working in or under the water must often deal with chaotic, stressful or just plain physically demanding situations. I have found that being able…
April 19, 2010
Best Photographs of the Year

Best Photos of 2009

Best Photos of 2009 Looking back on 2009, I realize I was fortunate to spend a lot of time outdoors -- alone, with my family and with friends old and new -- pursuing photographs and adventure. During the course of those outings I brought back some images I am proud…
December 31, 2009
Ocean RealmRose Atoll

Rose Atoll, A World Treasure in Peril

by Phillip Colla and Harrison "Skip" Stubbs, Ph.D. This blog post is now available as a downloadable PDF article. This post was originally published in Ocean Realm Magazine in the Spring 1997 issue, one of a series of articles I contributed to Ocean Realm in the '90s. In August 1995…
November 8, 2009
CaliforniaOcean RealmSan Clemente Island

Kelp Forest Reminiscing

  Kelp forest underwater photography. This story was originally published as a pictorial in Ocean Realm Magazine in the Spring 2001 issue, the last of a series of articles I contributed to Ocean Realm in the '90s.   This blog post is now available as a downloadable PDF article. My…
November 7, 2009
Aerial Photography

Alien Spaceport Discovered In California

Last year on my flight home from Albuquerque (where I went to photograph birds at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge), our plane was driven off-course by a strange stream of magno-gravitronic pulses, and we found ourselves over an area of California not normally seen from commercial planes. The pilot…
August 1, 2009
Aerial PhotographyCaliforniaSan Diego

San Diego Pictures

My San Diego pictures are now organized into a gallery of photos of San Diego on this website. San Diego Coronado Bridge, known locally as the Coronado Bridge, links San Diego with Coronado, California. The bridge was completed in 1969 and was a toll bridge until 2002. It is 2.1…
July 30, 2009
Abstract

Fluid Carpet, Abstract Photo

OK, I admit it, my youngest daughter shot this image. I let her loose with our uber-mikro-digi-kamera one day while we were crashed at a hotel. I set the camera up for long exposures, and this is one of the images she came up with. Kids don't know any rules…
June 19, 2009
AbstractLa Jolla

Layers, Abstract Photo

Another abstract cloud photo. I like using a medium telephoto lens to isolate landscape elements, and patterns in clouds are no exception. This was probably shot with a 70-200 on Velvia film, vintage. Moments after the green flash, orange skies over La Jolla. Today's abstract photo, #12 of 15. Clouds…
June 16, 2009
AbstractGalapagos Diaries

Sunset Booby, Abstract Photo

Our days at Darwin Island in the Galapagos islands have been fantastic. On each of our trips we spent several days, sometimes almost a week, at this usually spectacular, remote and wild place. The diving can be, of course, unsurpassed which is one reason that virtually all visitors to Darwin…
June 15, 2009
AbstractHawaii

Clouds on Fire, Abstract Photo

Resuming the series of abstracts (before it was so rudely interrupted with bird pics): today's abstract photo is an image of clouds on fire, taken from the lanai of Skip's seaside surf pad in Napili, looking out over Lanai and Molokai. Wow, did we ever have some epic sunsets in…
June 14, 2009
Photography

Hammerhead Shark Photo on the cover of Zoology

One of my hammerhead shark photos was chosen for the cover of Zoology to accompany the article "Response of juvenile scalloped hammerhead sharks to electric stimuli" by Stephen Kajiura and Timothy Fitzgerald. See lots more scalloped hammerhead photos (Sphyrna lewini).
May 22, 2009
Abstract

Water and Stones, Abstract Photo

This was shot on a drizzly overcast morning at Ruby Beach in Washington's Olympic National Park. Fresh water flows over cobblestones on its way across the beach and into the sea. Today's abstract photo, #9 of 15: Water flows past beach cobblestones, blur.Image ID: 13794Location: Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park,…
May 19, 2009
Abstract

Predawn Flock of Snow Geese, Abstract Photo

Last winter I joined friends Skip Stubbs and Ken Howard for a few days of bird photography at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. I would get up early each morning to watch the enormous flocks of snow geese that overnight on the ponds take off in a massive predawn…
May 6, 2009
Abstract

Sunlight in the Ocean, Abstract Photo

Another abstract photo, sunlight piercing the ocean surface. I used to shoot a lot of this stuff when I was diving in the 90's, killing time decompressing at the end of a dive. Note how elegantly the rays of the sun break apart and blend into the water. That is…
April 27, 2009
Abstract

Abstract Photo of the Ocean Surface

I have had good luck selling abstract photos the last few years. I just had another last week. Which got me pondering and ruminating (not a sight for the faint of heart). So without further ado, today begins a series of posts highlighting some of my favorite abstract images. Abstract…
April 25, 2009