John & Anne Wiley

2012/02/24

Flying Colors

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,Random,SB Region — John @ 06:55

Night flying is fun and interesting, but sunset is far less subtle. The colors of sunset from the air are extremely difficult to photograph, but their impact is easy to remember. I’ve tweaked away at this pic approaching SBA to land, but it pales in comparison to being there even more than most aerial pix.

0271 SBA Sunset Aloft

0271 SBA Sunset Aloft

The exposure range is so wide that the land looks dark, or the sky is overexposed. The color variations in the sky were both more subtle and more extreme, but the land was perfectly clear. Once on the ground, as usual the show had shifted and everything seemed immediately darker the moment we landed.

0280 SBA Sunset

0280 SBA Sunset

The clouds spilling over the mountains were of course part of our view aloft too. I like how the control tower at the bottom-right stands guard against the darkness. Turning to the left I snapped again with UCSB in silhouette.

0282 UCSB Sunset

0282 UCSB Sunset

I’m putting a larger version of that last one on the Photo Page, because the colors approach the subtle riot of colors we saw. So often here sunsets splash a symphony of shapes, textures and colors to herald the night. I like to imagine the birds enjoy it as we do when flying.

2012/02/23

Cliff Dwellers

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 02:58

In the mountains behind Ojai are some sandstone cliffs that look perfect for cliff dwellers. High enough to provide a view and some safety, but not a long climb from food and water.

0266 Cliff Condo?

0266 Cliff Condo?

I imagine ingenious indigenous home improvement types using sticks and wicker to build a roof and deck onto that big hole near bottom-center. Nearby is a longer cliff wall with more options for housing starts.

0267 Hole in the Wall

0267 Hole in the Wall

Now maybe it’s hard to tell from this small low-res pic, but there are signs of current residents on the left side. Here’s a crop of that area.

0267 For the Birds

0267 For the Birds

Looks like the bottom of that hole at the upper-left has a bird-finished white floor. I wonder if any humans ever did live here, or at least maybe extended migratory seasonal camp-outs. As we began descent over Ojai toward Santa Paula, I noticed how similar the mountains are to our view from home. Maybe my ancient ancestors passed this way, and that’s why these mountains are so familiar and beautiful to me.

0269 Hills of Home

0269 Hills of Home

2012/02/20

California

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 04:24

I’ve said it many times: California is my favorite place. One of the attractions of living in the beautiful blue and green of Santa Barbara is that only 30-some minutes of Tripp time away is a place named California Valley. It’s on the Carrizo Plain where Soda Lake always presents interesting shapes for aerial viewing.

0221 Seuss Pond

0221 Seuss Pond

This one I’ll call Seuss Pond is a prime example. It’s fascinating to me how the shapes emerge from what seems on the ground to be a perfectly flat dry lake bed. The whole lake is festooned with fanciful shapes that change as the rain water evaporates. You can see part of Seuss Pond at the bottom-right of this wider shot that still doesn’t show the whole lake.

0224 Soda Lake

0224 Soda Lake

Circling to look more closely at Seuss Pond the textures and subtle colors stand out much more clearly.

 

0228 Textures

0228 Textures

An integral part of this surreal landscape is the enchanting ancient hangout now known as Painted Rock, and home to nesting Peregrine Falcons. We never tire of looking at this magical stone alcove, and communing with the palpable presence of those who have enjoyed it for millennia. The opening beckons those who would walk in to sit in silence as we have done, contemplating the rock art and attending to the sounds of silence.

0237 Painted Rock

0237 Painted Rock

2012/02/17

Rock Concert

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,Random,SB Region — John @ 22:30

It’s partly about shapes, my fascination with rocks. In childhood I remember days lying on my back seeing shapes in clouds, and nights seeing shapes in the textured plaster ceiling. Now I seem to see shapes in rocks, like the “gorilla” in this one.

0202 Gorilla Rock

0202 Gorilla Rock

Tho obvious to me I doubt if you see it, because Anne doesn’t. If you’d like to, try checking the version on my Photo Page (link in right column here). Anyway, this whole area where Hwy. 166 bends East into the Cuyama Valley is a concert for rock lovers.

0216 Cuyama Bend

0216 Cuyama Bend

If you click to see the largest version here, you can almost make out “Gorilla Rock” aka Twin Rocks in the middle slightly less than 1/3 down from the top. If you drive the highway, it might be possible to get a glimpse of the formation from the road where you might notice that it’s actually four or five rock columns as you can see in this pic.

0198 Twins?!

0198 Twins?!

I don’t know how the name Twin Rocks was chosen, but maybe from the highway it looks like two columns? You may also notice several other interesting formations in this area, though this one doesn’t really show up in the “Cuyama Bend” wide shot above.

0206 More Rocks

0206 More Rocks

So why are rocks so fascinating for me? Maybe it’s the brain’s pattern recognition engine running wild. Perhaps some inner sculptor enjoying interpreting impressionist shapes in the dimensionality and texture of rocks. Or is it just another manifestation of the pure joy I find in flying, with the 3D touring of rocky outcrops enhancing our intimate dance with terrain?

2012/02/15

Takeoff & Landing

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 00:53

Most takeoffs in a small plane from SBA begin with this view of UCSB.

0018 UCSB Takeoff

0018 UCSB Takeoff

This end of campus has new buildings that add architectural interest in front of the iconic Storke Tower at upper-left. Of course, this is only a tiny slice of the actual view we get, and it’s degraded by the fact my camera doesn’t do well shooting toward the light. So here’s a look back a moment later, that shows a larger tiny slice that includes Goleta Beach.

0020 Beneath Our Wings

0020 Beneath Our Wings

So if you could imagine a panorama taken with a perfect camera of probably ten pix like this, plus 20 more to show more of our vertical angles … well, then you’d have some idea how magnificent it is to fly here. Of course you need to add the motion of waves and the slowly changing perspective as we wander through this 3D miracle. sigh… Wish I could share it more fully somehow. 🙂

A little further along the beach and rotating our view 45 degrees or so to the right, we see More Mesa nestled between glimmering beach and serene mountains.

0021 More Mesa

0021 More Mesa

As for “landings” I like this Hope Ranch waterfront bluff manse that looks like a flying saucer has landed.

0033 Saucer Land

0033 Saucer Land

I also enjoy the trail down to a landing at the beach hut, and this is one of the rare estates that actually has a path clear down to the beach. Mixed blessing I’d guess, since some disrespectful beachcombers probably venture up the steps occasionally. Such a lovely property! Later when we were landing, we had completely different and equally fascinating views of the airport area. In between our senses were bathed in a constant unfolding of enJoy-ment as we wandered over paradise. I enjoyed another deeply nourishing sigh just now, recalling a few more moments of this short flight.

Hope your Valentine’s Day has overflowed with Love and Joy as ours is. After our growthful and playful years together, each day brings joy, romance, and ever-increasing Love that expands into all we can perceive.

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