Dinner at The Slanted Door

My son and I were at the Slanted Door early enough to grab a couple of seats before the place filled up last Friday. I was also able to grab a few shots before the food came and one after as well...but only one as the food was occupying my attention by then. The food porn shot is of one of our three shared dishes, the pork belly with lettuce, cucumber, cilantro, and a delicious dipping sauce. All shots taken with the Sony RX 100 at 3200 ISO.

Hyatt Regency San Francisco

Last Friday, I joined my son, Jason, for dinner in San Francisco while he was in the Bay Area for work. Before heading to the restaurant for dinner, we walked through the lobby of the Hyatt Regency. Using my Sony RX 100, I was able to get a few shots of the interesting architecture of this hotel, all in the lobby. All photographs taken at ISO 3200, if memory serves me right. A remarkable result at such high ISOs from the relatively small sensor in this camera.

Ione, California

I'm just back from a golf/watching football weekend at my friend Chris Volta's house in the Gold Country town of Ione. A good day of golf in beautiful, shirtsleeve weather in the middle of January followed by a disappointing day of watching football. Both my teams went down to agonizing defeats, but the food was great! Thanks Volt. These three photographs were taken at the site of the former reform school for boys, commonly referred to as Preston Castle, where actor Rory Calhoun and tennis great Pancho Gonzalez were once incarcerated. Beautiful light just before sunset. Photographs taken with the Sony A7 and kit lens.

More Photographs of People in Istanbul

An assortment of people pictures taken at various spots around Istanbul. I had stopped the man in picture #3 to ask directions to the Grand Bazaar. He spoke only Turkish and French, so I was able to use my French in Turkey. Before walking us to the Bazaar, he insisted we join him for some apple tea at a cafe he frequented. Nice moments like these are a big part of the reason we love to travel. The woman at the bottom and others like her can be seen all over Istanbul in the windows of restaurants making bread. The little girl playing the accordian at the top saddened me. Photographs taken with the Sony NEX 7 and the RX 100.

Portrait of the Week # 8

I took this photograph in the Spice Market in Istanbul. I asked him if I could take his photograph, and he immediately smiled and assumed a relaxed pose. I love "kebaps" but didn't have one for some reason. I look back at this picture and my mouth waters just thinking about one. Taken with the Sony NEX 7 and Tamron 18-200 lens.

Venice at Night 2013

At night, Venice comes alive in a way that doesn't happen during the day. Despite the hoardes of tourists, the warm evenings invite strolling and people watching. The main tourist attractions are great for photography. In other words, watching people who have to leave soon scramble to get the last ounce of Veniceness they can before heading back to the cruise ship or wending their way to the car or bus park. I took the top four photographs with the Sony RX 100, a completely pocketable little camera that works well in low light and is unobtrusive to the max. The bottom photograph was taken with the Sony NEX 5n and the Sony 10-18 wide angle lens on a tripod. I was on the Rialto Bridge, fighting for a position to take the shots and keep people from bumping into me and the camera. I was only partially successful as many of the shots were blurry. At 30 second exposures, there is a good chance somebody will find a way to ruin the shot. That's the price you pay for going to Venice in the summer.

Classic Albums on Vinyl # 5

Today's pick can truly be called a classic album. Released in 1970, "Alone Together" by Dave Mason, a former member of Traffic, became an instant collector's item because of the vinyl coloring which looked very psychedelic spinning around on the turntable. The sleeve also folds out to 36 inches high and is suitable for hanging on a wall. Blue Thumb Records even included a nail hole at the top. It didn't hurt that it was also the finest hour of this talented musician, a height he never reached again, although his popularity in the mid 70's was no measure of the work he was putting out. (Popularity high-musical output mediocre). For me, the album holds up beautifully today, filled with great songs, singing, and guitar playing. A desert island disc for sure. Photographs taken with the Sony RX 100.

Portrait of the Week # 7

This portrait was taken last December, just a few days before New Year's in Barbados. We had just walked off the ship and, on our way into Bridgetown, we stopped at a fish market where I found this couple showing off a fresh catch. I have no idea what kind of fish it is, but they were proud of it. Taken with the Sony NEX 7 and Tamron 18-200 lens.

Classic Albums on Vinyl # 4

As far as classic albums go, this doesn't really qualify since I think it's Van Morrison's worst outing of his career. The live show that accompanied its release was also disappointing. It's also the only Van Morrison LP or DC that I don't own. This is just the cover that I got at a record release party at the Boarding House in San Francisco. I did get the chance to meet Van and have him sign the cover (barely visible in ball-point ink at the upper right), hence its inclusion here. He was polite, if not exactly pleasant, and seemed to hate being there at the behest of Warner Brothers. 

More San Francisco

These photographs are from two visits to "The City' as it's known around here. The top two are from Washington Square where we were waiting for a wedding to begin a couple of weeks ago, the 28th of December to be exact. The next six are from a summer excursion with my son and his family during the America's Cup yacht race. Chinatown is first up, and then a couple of young women taking the sun in a plaza, one of Larry Ellison's yachts, a practice run on San Francisco Bay taken from Coit Tower, a fire hydrant seen on the steep descent down from the Tower to the Embarcadero, and, finally, some mushrooms in the Farmer's Market at the Ferry Building. All photographs taken with the Sony RX 100