Autumn Portraits

  












I love my family, I love photography, though I have very few photos of my family. We have many, many photos of our girls when they were smaller, now that they're older, I think they are tired of being told to "smile", "one more time" or "this is the last one". I understand, I don't like having my picture taken. As much as we (people) don't like our pictures taken, we will always look at ourselves first in group photos.


This evening, my family and I drove to Kaweah Oaks Preserve to take some photos of our girls. We had a great time, a mixture of hiking and photography. Our girls didn't mind at all. In between shoots, the girls would run down the trail yelling "we have to save our planet!". They were also impressed by the size of "cow pie" waypoints that dotted the terrain. 


We are proud parents of two smart and beautiful girls and now we have more photos of them.

California Coast Daytrip

We started the day off right. My family and I went out to breakfast then headed west toward the coast. we went to Pismo first and walked around on the pier. There were quite a few people out today, it seems like there was a band competition, because we saw a lot of people wearing band t-shirts from different schools. I saw couple of shirts from the valley like Fowler and Dinuba. At the beginning of the pier, people were setting up speakers and trophies. Before the announcements, they played dance music and one gentleman was not embarrassed to show-off his moves in front of everyone. We picked up lunch at Splash Cafe and ate outside near Sandcastle Inn. After lunch we drove to Montana de Oro. This was our first time visiting so we drove around for a bit then stopped to play on the beach. Later we went to the small Morro Bay "Aquarium" to feed the seals. As the evening began to fall, we made our way back to Montana de Oro so I can take some twilight photos. My family stayed in the car and watched The Wizard of Oz while I played in the dark for an hour and a half. We ended the evening with dinner at Pizza Port in Morro Bay and a two and a half hour drive home.      

Alta Peak - Three times a charm

So we went for a hike. 
DJ is a friend from Maine that was doing some work here in California. He hasn't been hiking here before, so I thought Alta Peak would be a great day-hike with many great views along the way and a panoramic view of the Sierra from the peak. The sky was clear all day with temperatures ranging in the mid-30's (F) to mid-40's (F) throughout the day. This was my third trip to Alta Peak in less than a year. My first trip was NOV-15 2008 and second was JUN-6 2009. Each trip was different, for instance, this is the first time that I could follow the trail all the way to the peak. The first two times, the peak was covered with snow. We made it to the summit in five hours and returned to the trailhead in three hours.


Alta Peak - 11,204 feet
13.6 miles roundtrip
4000 feet elevation gain
Sequoia National Park
November 6th 2009

Lakes Trail - Sequoia National Park

The time changed one hour back today. The amount of light at 6:00 am made it feel as though we were running late. On the drive up the "hill", we stopped to see a Momma bear and two cubs walking along the side of the road. Momma bear had an ear-tag, I'm told this means she has been in trouble (mischievous) before . This beautiful Sunday morning, Mike and I hiked the Lakes Trail in Sequoia National Park. There is a junction where you can take  the Hump Trail or the Watchtower Trail, they both meet on the opposite side of the ridge. The Hump Trail goes over the ridge and the Watchtower Trail goes around the ridge. I've hiked this trail before and took the Hump route because the Watchtower Trail was closed due to ice and snow. This time the Watchtower was open, what a view. You hike along the edge of a cliff part of the way looking down at Tokopah Falls 1400 feet below. We ate lunch at Heather Lake then continued on to Aster and Emerald Lakes. The weather was in the low 70's F with clear skies, it was much cooler in the shade and in the blowing wind. Light was fading quickly on the last mile back to the trailhead. Just as we returned the car, a full moon rose over the tall pines and lit up the parking area like a searchlight to see us on our way.


Aster Lake 9200 feet
Sequoia National Park
November 1st 2009

Halloween - Ghosts Ghouls and Goblins

To celebrate this day of horror, we spent time with family. We had a great time as always, eating lots of food, trying a new wine and watched the kids carve pumpkins into "Jack-O-Lanterns". 


As the evening sky grew, those participating, prepared themselves in costumes. The line-up included the following: She-devil, Baby-doll, Alien, Darth-Vader, Ninja and a Lucha Libre Mexican Wrestler.


After gathering sweets from neighbors, the two oldest (brave) children went through a haunted house to close the evening. 

Killdeer Calling

On my way to work each morning, I pass by this cattle pasture. During the fall and winter months, this area fills with water and shares some great reflections of the morning sky. Well, today I left for work a little early and brought my camera along. I had to crawl under a post and cable fence to access this pasture. It was still dark and I forgot my headlamp so I carefully made my way across the pasture to this pond. Though I couldn't see it, the smell of manure was pretty fresh. I was amazed as the light and colors grew in the sky. While making photos, I saw some Mallards circling the pond looking for a place to rest and I can hear the Killdeer calling, probably warning others that I was in the area. 


Listen to Killdeer calling: http://www.birdjam.com/birdsong.php?id=18

Upper Mosquito Lake

There were three of us, Mike, Allen and myself.
Chip, I'm sorry you couldn't make this trip, you were missed.

We started on the trail about 8:30 am. The weather: clear skies, dry and cool, upper 30'sF. Along the hike, we saw three buck mule deer. We made it to the first of six mosquito lakes by 11:30am where we stopped and ate lunch. While resting at the lake, we can see our next challenge, an eighty-foot wall of granite boulders. During the hike up the granite wall, we pass Lake No.2 then arrive at Lake No.3 for a second break. Mike, Chip and myself camped at this lake last year (2008) in September. It's a beautiful lake with a small island. From this lake, you can look North to see Empire Mtn. and Timber Gap or look South to view Hengst Peak. The surroundings here are mostly granite and few clusters of different types of pine. We now have another 100ft of elevation gain. On our way to the 6th lake, we pass Lake No.4 and stop at a couple of ponds that had great reflections for that that time of day. In one of the ponds, there was a large boulder at one edge and a fallen tree in the water leaning against the large rock. We didn't notice it at first, but as Mike was scrolling through his recent photos, he noticed that, with the reflection, the boulder and fallen tree looked like a skull and cross-bones. A cool find and added memory to the trip.

It's 4:30pm, we finally arrive at our destination, Upper Mosquito Lake (Mosquito Lake No.6). The view is breathtaking. This lake is in a bowl at the base of Hengst Peak and the view to the South includes Sawtooth and in the distance, Kaweah peaks. The water is clean and clear. I saw a few Golden Trout cruisin' around. I'm guessing the temperature is in the upper 40'sF (7C). We setup camp then took a walk around.

As light was falling, the reflections in the water improved, some clouds rolled-in and the temperature dropped. We split up for a little while, making photos of different parts of the lake. As Mike and Allen returned to camp to layer-up and eat supper, I waited across the lake for the alpenglow to hit the northwest face of Hengst peak. Well, I guess this time of year, this doesn't happen. As my fingers become numb and stiff, I figure it's time to head back to camp and warm-up. I layered-up, put on a down jacket, fleece underpants and gloves. I was ready to eat too, but noticed the light in the sky changing to the North of us and decided to make a few more photos. Allen and Mike joined me, this is when I shot the image above. We were at this spot until it was completely dark. Now it's supper time for me. The time is around 7:30pm and temperature is 24F (-4C). What's for supper? Mountain House's Teriyaki Chicken and Rice. Not bad, my favorite is still Chili-Mac and Beef. For dessert, we had Dark chocolate (60% cocoa) and wine. Allen brought Tobin James' "Liquid Love", a late harvest Zinfandel and I brought Bogle's "Old Vine Zinfandel" and Mike's drink of choice, Mike's Hard Lime (of course). We turned-in about 9:30pm, we were tired and cold.

The night was restful for the most part. I would wake every once-in-while when gusts of wind would rattle my tent. When the 2:00am bladder alarm went off, I elected to stay in my warm sleeping bag. This made the rest of time a little restless until finally I got up at 6:30am. Mike and Allen were also getting up. There was frost on the outside of our tents, my water bladder, which I had in my tent, was a block of ice and a pot of water that I left out overnight was also frozen solid. Allen asked if I wanted to know what the temperature was, I said "no", then I said "okay, how cold is it?". It was 15F (-9C). We made some photos around the lake in the early morning light. Fog was rising from the lake's surface as the water temperature was warmer than the air. It also began to snow. I've never experienced snow like this before, it wasn't fluffy clumps, it was tiny individual snowflakes. This was the first time I got to see a whole snowflake in person. Each one with six points and many different designs.

Here is a video of part of the lake that morning.

Our campsite is just to the right of where this video starts.

While I was eating my oatmeal, a really cool thing happened. The sun was coming over the ridge and snowflakes were blowing in from the north and over the lake. The backlit snowflakes looked like glitter, Allen called it "Diamond Dust". It was a beautiful experience.

After packing-up, we left camp around 11:00am. The hike down the granite wall's was much easier and faster. Along the way, we stopped again at the small pond. This time the surface was frozen with a thin layer of snow on it. As we passed Lower Mosquito lake, I found an old 11oz beer can from the 1950's, Burgermeister. After a little research, it looks like it was produced by Schlitz. It was a little rusty on the ends but the label was legible. It had two holes punched into the top, one to vent and one to enjoy.

When we got back to the trailhead on the Mineral King Valley floor (7400ft), it was about 4:00pm and the temperature was 32F (0C). Shortly after leaving the parking lot, we pulled over to shoot the Asepn's. They were mostly green with some just turning yellow.

On the two hour drive home, we usually talk about the trip, photography and the number one topic is food. We talk about favorite foods, favorite restaurants, best places to stop when traveling, etc. It's body over mind when it's hungry.

Good times, great friends and a beautiful landscape.

Robert Adriaansen

Upper Mosquito Lake - 10,010 feet

Mineral King - John Krebs Wilderness

October 3rd and 4th 2009

September Moon

The moon was full. My wife and I were outside at 5am this morning to setup for a yard sale. After parking the car with signs, I went to Sixbucks for an americano and vanilla latte. On my drive back to the house, the sky began to lighten up with shades of blue and pink from the Earth's shadow. And there she was, in all her glory, the Moon.

Star Trails - Mt. Silliman

This weekend's backpack trip took us to Mt. Silliman in Sequoia National Park. My buddy Allen and I started the hike at the Lodgepole trailhead. about 6,800 feet. The weather was cool but warm enough to wear shorts and a t-shirt. We stopped about three miles in where the trail crosses Silliman creek. The creek was very photogenic. After about an hour of taking photos, it was time to get back on the trail. As I was about to cross the creek, Allen corrected me and said " we're going this way. . ", which was along the side of the creek and up the mountain. At this junction, there is a small sign that reads "Twin Lakes" and "Ranger Lake" and points across the creek in a NW direction. The trail that we needed to follow didn't have a sign. In fact, if you look at a trail map, there is no trail marking for this route. Allen has been there before, so he led the way.

It is definite that this trail is not used often. Shrub and grass have grown over parts of this trail. When we got to the first meadow, we rested for a few minutes and took photos of the many wildflowers. There were Columbine, Leopard Lily, Indian Paintbrush and many others but the majority was the large patch of Shooting Star.

We continued up the mountain with the whispering roar of the creek to the left of us.

It's lunchtime and we have just arrived at the base of a large granite wall. Also known as "The Slabs" My thought, "Holy Mackerel". The sight of this wall is very intimidating. My wife made me three burritos that morning, "God bless her", two for breakfast and one for lunch. The burritos had diced red potatoes, egg, bacon, cheddar cheese and green onions. Yeah, I definitely keep the calories replenished on these trips. Alright, break is over, let's get movin'.

About halfway up the slabs, we stopped to refill our water reservoirs. Water from Silliman Lake, runs down the granite face which then turns into Silliman Creek at the base. At this point, I was pretty hot and needed to cool off, so I laid across the flowing water with great enjoyment. After re-energizing, we continued up the slabs. As we got closer to the top, we could see the bowl that surrounds Silliman Lake, which was encouraging. Looking back toward the west, we could see the valley (SJV). Finally, we made it to our campsite at the lake. The view is phenomenal! I dropped my pack and camera then jumped into the lake. A little over 10,000 feet. The water is very clear, deep and little cold, I'm guessing in the fifties. I didn't stay in very long. We washed clothes and relaxed until dinner time.

THE MARMOT
We noticed up the hill, atop a large granite boulder, a marmot looking down at us. It wasn't long before he made his way down to our camp. He got closer and closer and didn't care that we were there. He tried chewing on backpack straps, taking a shirt and tried for the socks. We tried to shoo him away, stomping our feet, clapping hands, he would back-up a little bit but was definitley not afraid. After about twenty minutes of this, he has really become a pest. We started tossing pebbles at him and wouldn't flinch. I picked up some larger stones and threw them at him until he started back up the hill. When he started back down I would throw rocks up toward him until he turned around.

After dinner, we cleaned up and prepped our cameras for sunset and twilight shots. We took pictures for about an hour, getting some great sillohette shots and capturing the rich blue, gold and orange colors in the twilight sky. Neither one of us brought a headlamp when we left camp, so we headed back before total darkness.

Back at camp we setup for some star trail photography. While the camera was capturing the image, we had some canadian whisky and later brewed some hot chocolate. We started the second star trail shot at 11:30pm and went to sleep. No tents, just sleeping bags and the stars. The cameras continued capturing the image for an hour and a half before the batteries died. We were thankful that the cameras saved the image before shutting off. About 1:00am, the moon rose over the ridge. You can see the moonlight on the rock in the picture above. The moon was 83% full this evening, so it looked like daylight when it was over us.

6:00am, time to get up. Not to our surprise, the marmot was back and was trying to move my bear canister to get to the food inside. He went away. We washed up, ate oatmeal for breakast, packed-up our gear and was on the trail to Silliman Peak by 8:00am. Actually, there is no trail, you just pick the best route over the many boulders in the direction of the peak.

Silliman Peak - 11,188 feet
The views from the peak are amazing. To the SE is Black Kaweah, in the distance, spires from Whitney, looking south is Sawtooth, Florence, Alta, Farewell Gap and Hengst Peak. Below us to the south is Silliman Lake. And to the west, San Joaquin Valley. We both signed the peak register, Allen was more ellaborate with artwork filling a whole page. We were on the peak for about an hour then headed down the mountain. There's not much more to tell about the hike back, in fact, we hardly spoke while making our way down "The Slabs". I think we were both trying to not think about the burn in our feet, ankles, thighs, hips, you get the idea. We ate lunch at the bottom of "The Slabs" and continued on down the hill.

When we got to the first meadow, we had to lather up with deet to ward off the thriving mosquitoes.

We took one last break at the Silliman Creek crossing. I filled my water reservoir and made sure to save some for my girls. They always ask "Dad, did you bring home some mountain water?"

This was a great trip. The lake is beautiful, comparable to Franklin Lakes and the views from the peak are awesome.

Backpacking can be hard work, but the rewards are plenty.

Robert Adriaansen
Mt. Silliman
Sequoia National Park
July 11th & 12th 2009
http://www.robertadriaansen.com

Potwisha - Pretty Face

Today, a friend and I drove up to the lower part of Sequoia National Park in search of wildflowers. We didn't have a plan, we were just gonna stop at a couple familiar spots and start walking. The first stop was in a lot across the street from Potwisha campgound. Along the trail we came across some old Native American paintings on a granite boulder on the side of the hill. If your not looking for it, you'll definitely miss it. The trail continues along the Middlefork of the Kaweah River until you come to a fairly new suspension bridge where the trail crosses over. At the opposite side of the bridge, we stood and watched he rage of the river as it crashed over large boulders. We were curious as to where the trail was leading to, so we hiked another 20 yards and found patches of wildflowers. We photographed flowers here for about an hour and a half. The trail ended at a flume control house. On our way out, we took a different trail that was leading the same way back to the vehicle. I'm glad we did, because this is where I found this flower in the photo above. The flower is: Triteleia - ixioides "Starlight" or "Pretty Face". We drove up the hill a little further and stopped on the side of the road at Big Fern Springs. Here we found a few cascades, granite boulders with bright green moss and an eight-foot waterfall. We photographed here for about an hour. I think it's funny when tourist driving by, see a couple guys with cameras, immediately pull-over and try to see what their missing then, just as fast, they hop back in their car and continue driving up the hill.

Paradise Creek

My family and I hiked Paradise Creek trail. The weather was perfect. There were plenty of wildflowers, although beginning to dry out, still a beautiful sight. We found a nice spot next to the creek and ate our lunch. The kids played in the water for nearly two hours. I had some time to shoot a nearby cascade and we even got a few family portraits.
A great day with the family!

First FAMILY Dayhike!

Three Rivers, CA - Salt Creek
Five trail-miles roundtrip and 1409 feet of elevation gain.
This was our first hike together as a family. The girls did very well, I am so proud of them. I hope this is the first of many more to come. Now, if could get them to practice "pop-a-squat", then we can work on a backpack trip. That day will come.

Moon: Waxing Gibbous 81% Full

ISO:50 Aperture:4.0 Shutter Speed:1/320 Focal Length:100mm
This is my first capture of the moon. 
The next Full Moon: WED 3.11.09

Peach Blossom

I pass these beautiful orchards on my commute to work each day.
I missed an opportunity to join a couple of friends on a lunchtime photowalk yesterday. So, today, I thought I'd better bring my camera and stop by this orchard before the flowers shrivel-up.

Is it Spring?

A small Apple tree in our "back-40" and a Flowering Pear next to our front drive.
Is it Spring?
It's sunny, it's warm, flowers are blooming, occasional precipitation, I think so...
"Official" First Day of Spring is March-20, close enough!
I'm anticipating a daytrip to the foothills to shoot wildflowers, especially California Poppies!

Waterfall - Sequoia National Park

This morning I drove up the hill to Sequoia National park to shoot some water. Just a quick trip, I was home by 9:30am. I first stopped off the side of the road just above Potwisha and spent some time with the Middlefork of the Kaweah River. The rocks in this area must have alot of minerals because the water was a dark rusty brown color. Next, I drove a little way up the road to Hospital Rock. Earlier in the year my family and I stopped here and walked down a short trail where you can see the river up close with large boulders. We didn't make it down to the water because there were too many people.
So, I returned to get a closer look and to my surprise, I found this great looking waterfall flowing over a hunk of granite. I spent a little time on a boulder in the water enjoying the cool morning breeze and the sight and sound of the rushing water around me.
I have to add: On this trip to the park, my annual national park pass paid for itself. woohoo!

White Rock

This past weekend, my family and I went to Monterey-CA. My wife hosted a baby shower for her sister in Carmel. While the girls were at the shower, My two Bro-in-laws and myself drove up to one of their family's beautiful cabin in the mountains above Carmel Valley. We drove up the hill, west of the cabin, on an old jeep trail and found a spot to shoot rifles. That evening the girls met us at the cabin where we enjoyed dinner together and shared stories about the past. Later, we settled in near the fire and watched a movie, then called it a night. I had a hard time sleeping because I couldn't wait for that early morning light. There's this lake just below the cabin that wraps around the the hill then feeds a beautiful waterfall. The water level is much higher in spring and early summer. I hear it's a great place to swim and escape the summer fog down at the coast. In the shallow areas, I could see several large sized Rainbow Trout cruisin' around lookin' for a hook. We will definitely make another trip this summer.

macro photo studio

Yesterday, I pulled out my macro photo studio to practice lighting techniques.
DIY Macro Photo Studio

Lighting Equipment: a couple of shop lights with CFL bulbs.
I don't like the color that the bulbs put out, so I've only been shooting in monochrome.
Click here, for more photos with the macro studio.

Cayucos Pier

This is one of the twilight shots that I mentioned in the last post. The light and colors were amazing. I can remember only a couple of times when we were at the coast and had such clear weather in the evening. I was hoping to catch the sun setting, but we were still eating dinner. Oh well, next time.

Cambria-CA 1.4.09

"My love, my life, my wife..." (...and my camera.)
We took a Family Daytrip to Cambria one Sunday afternoon just to get out of the house. The weather was gorgeous, sunny with a cool breeze. We took some photos with the kids and let them play and explore. The girls found a great example of a holdfast and brought it home to share at school. For dinner, we drove down PCH-1 to Cayucos. This was our first time visiting, so we were'nt sure of where we should stop to eat. We ate at a cozy place called "Sea Shanty". While we were eating the sun was setting. After dinner we drove up the road and parked so I could get some twilight shots of the pier. My family stayed in the car because the breeze was alot cooler and they preferred to stay warm.

Tokopah Falls - Ice

Tokopah Falls - Lodgepole, Sequoia National Park

Tokopah Falls - dayhike

Today, a friend and I hiked to Tokopah Falls in the Lodgepole area of Sequoia National Park. This snow "sculpture" caught my eye. It kinda looks like a screaming dragon or a classic car hood ornament. My daughter said it looks like a high-heeled boot. Now, that's all I see.

manual settings

I usually shoot in aperature priority, but today I wanted to try using manual settings. There was some great light coming in from a rear window and down the hallway. The kids wouldn't participate, so I shot this door knob.