Zoom Zoom Zoom
As I make my way north up the coast of San Diego, I stopped off at some huge cliffs that are just north of Salk Institute. Yesterday, the sunset was shaping up to be quite extraordinary and there were many people jumping off the cliffs with nothing more than a hand glider above their head. I was really amazed that they would leap off the cliffs and just hope that the wind would carry the.
The hand glider port is a perfect place to go to watch the sunset. You get the expansive views of the Pacific Ocean, the Incredible Sunset and you get to watch these guys zoom, zoom, zoom by you for the whole thing.
The Happiest Boy in the World
He is always laughing. Sometimes it’s a devious little laugh like he knows he is doing something wrong and other times it’s a laugh out loud moment because he finds just about anything funny. James is a happy little boy that always finds something fun to do no matter where he is.
The Stages of a Photographer
While browsing I found this interesting graphic which was reposted from RobertBenson.Com. It does a great job of showing all of the stages a photographer goes through. I certainly went through almost all of these. It’s a hilarious look at was has turned out to be one of the most rewarding and frustrating hobbies I have ever gotten myself into.
I think the most hilarious part of this graph is the HDR hole which I definitely spent a good deal of time in myself.
The Amazing Salk Institute
The Salk Institute in La Jolla was established in the 1960’s by Jonas Salk. The Institute is comprised of two mirror image structures that are built with concrete and wood – a style that you will find through much of La Jolla.
These materials were chosen because they are relatively maintenance free and can withstand the damages of the ocean air. The Salk Institute has some of the most beautiful architecture that you will find in San Diego.
The Salk Institute was a collaboration between a great scientific mind – Jonas Salk and a great architect – Louis Kahn. The collaboration was one that was perfect for scientific research. In fact today, in the halls of these great buildings scientist work on cures for cancer and HIV.
The rooms are flooded with natural daylight and the labs are spacious – something that was very uncommon for scientific labs of this day which were more like little boxes with artificial light. The building and the architecture is unique because blue sky, green grass, concrete and wood seemingly blend together for a feeling of being inside and outside at the same time.
If the buildings seem to have a timeless fit and finish, it is because of Kahn’s use of old Roman Concrete with a pinkish glow. Once the concrete was poured he did not allow for anybody to touch it – no paint, no sanding and removal of any blemishes.
The angles, the lightness and the shallow water pools with blue water make you feel that you are stepping into another time here. The building sits off high sandy cliffs of some of the best and most wonderful coastline in California. Just steps from this building is the hand glider port where you can watch people take hand gliders off high cliffs into the sunset.
The grounds are locked on weekends and after 5pm. This did not used to be the case, but it is now. Also, photography is limited. If you encounter a security guard, they will tell you that you need a permit. On this particular day, the grounds were open. This is a popular place for engagement photos in San Diego.
When Salk built this institute, he said he wanted the place to be so beautiful that it would be worthy of a visit from Picasso. I am not sure if that visit ever happened but in fact the place is and one of my favorite places to wander around when I am looking for beautiful places in San Diego to photograph.
Thank you for reading about this wonderful place, and I hope you can visit it if you are in La Jolla.
The Princess and the Pea
There was once a prince, and he wanted a princess, but then she must be a real Princess. He travelled right around the world to find one, but there was always something wrong.
There were plenty of princesses, but whether they were real princesses he had great difficulty in discovering; there was always something which was not quite right about them. So at last he had come home again, and he was very sad because he wanted a real princess so badly.
One evening there was a terrible storm; it thundered and lightninged and the rain poured down in torrents; indeed it was a fearful night.
In the middle of the storm somebody knocked at the town gate, and the old King himself sent to open it.
It was a princess who stood outside, but she was in a terrible state from the rain and the storm. The water streamed out of her hair and her clothes; it ran in at the top of her shoes and out at the heel, but she said that she was a real princess.
‘Well we shall soon see if that is true,’ thought the old Queen, but she said nothing. She went into the bedroom, took all the bed clothes off and laid a pea on the bedstead: then she took twenty mattresses and piled them on top of the pea, and then twenty feather beds on top of the mattresses. This was where the princess was to sleep that night. In the morning they asked her how she slept.
‘Oh terribly bad!’ said the princess. ‘I have hardly closed my eyes the whole night! Heaven knows what was in the bed. I seemed to be lying upon some hard thing, and my whole body is black and blue this morning. It is terrible!’
They saw at once that she must be a real princess when she had felt the pea through twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. Nobody but a real princess could have such a delicate skin.
So the prince took her to be his wife, for now he was sure that he had found a real princess, and the pea was put into the Museum, where it may still be seen if no one has stolen it.
Now this is a true story.
Photos at WindanSea
Stephanie and her husband are having a baby in 30 days, so we took some photos at their favorite spot in San Diego – Windansea Beach. You can check out all the pictures at – Maternity Photos.
