Autumn Leaves (...sounds familiar...)

 

Fresno is not exactly Vermont or the Blue Ridge Parkway, but we have autumn leaves!

The day I took these photos, the moon was still gracing the sky, too.

Thanks to the shape of the leaves, we have the sun, moon, and stars in the same frame.

I took these photos on 18 December 2018.

Here's a bonus!  Nat King Cole singing "Autumn Leaves."

Brickwork

I took this first photo on 14 October 2018.

This church (Bethel Evangelical Lutheran) is more or less on my way to work.

I would see it every morning about a block off of my accustomed route.

The brickwork caught my attention.

 

I took these next two photos on 22 March 2021.

I thought the ambient light and the color of the sky were good, and I wanted to get a closer shot of the bricks above the door and above the stained glass window.

Inyo and Van Ness

 

At the corner of Inyo and Van Ness in downtown Fresno.

The prominent multi-story structure with the arched parapet in the center of the frame is the beautiful, historic Hotel Californian.

The concrete spirals are a municipal parking structure.

You can almost see Joe's Steak House just to the left of the city bus.

Taken December 2018.

Welcome to Fresno

 

A mural on the Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Company building in downtown Fresno.   

You can see the stadium lights for Chukchansi Park (home of the Fresno Grizzlies minor league baseball team) in the background to the left.

Taken December 2018.

Babe

I shot this because of the style of the sign

and just the word itself, "Babe."

It is a commercial storage business.

I like the balance of the blue wall and the blue sky.

I like the lines - the power line, the cinder block rectangles,

the fence and the windows and the bars on the windows,

and especially the shadows of the fence and the window bars.

There are even several horizontal shadows cutting across the wall 

from the multiple power lines above.

And I like the little clouds in the bright blue sky.

Taken 30 November 2018.

J. M. Rustigian Building, 1920

If you zoom in, you can read the "banner" above the terra cotta.

It reads, "J. M. Rustigian Building,"

and just above that is imprinted (engraved? embossed?)

1920.

So this building is approaching its 100th anniversary.

I love the details, especially the way it has been freshly painted.

Taken 17 May 2019.

Cowboy Cafe

A relatively simple facade

that is nevertheless reminiscent

of The Alamo;

bull-riding silhouette

against a western sunset;

palm tree,

blue sky;

what more could one ask?

Taken 30 November 2018.

Cloud, Sky, Tree

I noticed the blue sky and the fluffy cloud,

and I always like palm trees...

but what really caught my attention

was the stylized holiday tree

hugging the lamp post.

Taken 26 December 2018.

Arrow to Somewhere

Whatever it is,

it's right over there.

Apparently.

Taken 12 October 2018.

St. Anthony

This Catholic church is named for

St. Anthony of Padua.

Taken 12 October 2018.

Skyscraper

This is what passes for a skyscraper

in Fresno's skyline.

I was focused on the old-school fire escape.

That flight from the penthouse

looks frighteningly steep!

Taken 12 October 2018.

Goldstein's

Don't ask,

because

I don't know.

I have not yet summoned the gumption

to visit this establishment during

its hours of operation.

Taken 16 September 2018.

Palm Bluffs Water Tower

I like water towers.

There is something comforting and nostalgic about them.

This one appears to be as much a cell tower

as a water tower these days.

Welcome to the 21st century.

Taken 14 September 2018.

Lovers Point Cypresses

Lovers Point,

in Pacific Grove, California,

is one of those places where,

on any given day,

one could stand in one spot

and take a hundred pictures or more

without taking exactly the same picture twice.

I honestly could just sit on a park bench

and look at these trees,

listening to the ocean

all day.

On the day I took these pictures,

I was at Lovers Point to officiate a wedding.

Taken 19 October 2016.

Distant Desert Flowers, Mountains, Palms, and Sky

I think this one with the palms

was actually taken in Indio, CA.

The rest of these photos

were taken at a rest area along I-10

somewhere between Quartzite and Phoenix.

Taken 8 February 2017.

IN-N-OUT

"IN-N-OUT BURGER"

A west coast favorite

for sixty-five years.

Blue skies,

sunshine,

palm trees -

and the iconic

logo-sign -

how can we resist?

Blue Wall #5

There is a point

just off the center off this photograph

where the lines

of the wooden slats

converge,

creating a slight optical illusion;

and all the

several shades of blue

conspire

to soothe the eye

and brighten the spirit

even while the

straight lines

enforce structure,

the shadows hint

at pending darkness,

and the peeling paint

professes decay.

The clear blue sky

promises purity,

simplicity,

and perspective.

Harbor Illusion

This cluster of boats at anchor

in the Monterey Harbor

makes an appealing composition

in itself,

and they disguise the fact

that the Coast Guard Pier

cuts a horizontal line

through the middle of the photo.

But almost dead center in the frame

is a transport vehicle

that at first glance 

seems out of place.

Taken 30 September 2011.

Blue Wall #4

Something about

the condition

of the paint

draws the eye.

And

the shades of blue,

with a wedge of clear blue sky

rakishly adorning an upper corner;

then

the lines and the shadows,

especially all of those

straight, parallel lines

crowned by the single

curving line of the roof,

foreshadowed in miniature

by the vent-cap

just below the roof line...

plus

the three louvered vents

leaning into the frame

at opposing angles...

and the corner

formed by the two walls

coming together -

a focal point

that calls attention to itself.

Pleasing.

Taken 7 October 2011.

Ready for Spring

The official calendar start of spring

is still a couple of weeks away,

but I am sooooo ready

for it to be here 

right now.

!!!

!

Seriously.

This pic was taken along the recreational path

in Pacific Grove, California,

between Lover's Point

and Point Pinos

where Monterey Bay

meets the Pacific Ocean.

The botanicals

are iceplant in bloom.

Always stunning.

Taken 13 May 2011.