Tall ships in Old Sacramento

My head's still swimming with all the sunshine we've been having. The cold, crisp nights and bright sunny days have produced what, IMHO, has been the BEST fall color Sacramento's ever seen! At least in the 23 years I've lived here.

Last week I kidnapped Fred for a stop off at Old Sacramento's port to see if the old-school tall ships were still there. Making our way to the riverbank, we discovered the most beautiful scene right behind the railroad museum:
I wanted to grab any ol' couple and do an impromptu photo session. The sad thing is, this spot will not stay this way for long.

Meandering down the dock, we watched the train come into the station. The steam boiled over as the engine was refueled.
Sadly, the old sailing ship was nowhere to be seen. The docks were abuzz with visitors, and for once it was fun to linger in the ol' tourist trap. We continued across Capitol to the south of Tower Bridge. Lo and behold -- the old sailing ship was making its way back to port!

Though a rainstorm threatened, sun regularly broke through the grey and backlit the ship's sails. I realized what had to happen next, and soon a deafening horn warned vehicle and pedestrians to get off the bridge! (As you can see, the school-bus-yellow paint that everyone worried was too bright has indeed mellowed into the glint of a gold nugget.)

Even the old ziggurat building was in rare form.

Satisfied with our inspection of the Hawaiian Chieftain, Fred and I wandered back by the taffy store, blissfully happy about our afternoon date.

Sure beats reruns of Cheyenne.

It's all in the light...

Tonight a few photographer friends and I got together for a little experimentation with lighting. One of our PPSV members, Ruben Gonzalez, who recently earned his PPA Certification, led a session of advanced lighting techniques. I'll just call it, "Getting it right with video light."

The lovely Leah was our model. In this dramatic image, we lit the model through the slats of a bamboo tea tray to mimic a moonlit night through shutters. It was amazing to see what a beautiful result you can get with such modest set.

Nothing like a fun night playing around with light to refresh and invigorate the creative spirit. Thank you for your patience, Leah!

Puppy love

I'm not sure how it happened, but somehow I got the rep for being a dog-hater. Me! a hater!

This, just because I don't cuddle up in bed with a couple of hundred-pound canines. Under the covers. Pushing me off. On my pillow. Yech.

Now, don't get me wrong. I've walked my dogs (yes, plural) over the years. It's just that taking them with me sometimes causes more trouble when we confront other pups on their territory. I like my walks to be more serene. Quiet -- that's what I like.

I admit that when I come home and say hi to whomever is present, I don't usually notice that my Australian shepherd mix-mutt is desperate for my attention. To her credit, Freckles persists in tap-dancing before me, click-clacking on the Pergo, non-stop, until I have no choice but to show her the love.

Lately, I've indulged her a little more quickly than usual. Rubbing her ears, which, if she's just come in from outdoors, are frosty and need warming. Tempting her with nose-to-almost-nose contact... no licking! Scratching that place in the middle of her rump that's hard to reach.

She really is sweet. Never messes in the house. Always obeys. Even eats those barbecue chips Fred throws her way, even though it doesn't look like she likes them.

Heck, she's not so bad. And if I'd keep up my pet-owner responsibility of brushing her with the special $40 hair remover once in a while, I wouldn't even have that much to complain about. And it's good for my blood pressure.

But I draw the line at my bed. Sorry.

Jasmine Star comes to PPSV

She came, she shared, she conquered!

Jasmine Star may be relatively new to the photography business, but she certainly lives up to her name.

At last night's meeting of the Professional Photographers of Sacramento Valley, Jasmine shared her philosophy and the secrets to her success--and challenged us to send her photos of her in action. As all I had was my Canon G9, and the house was packed, this video will have to do!

The house was packed with regulars and guests who follow her blog. I know I'll be stalking her from now on.

She was truly an inspiration the way she uses new media to connect with her clients. Hopefully just a couple of megawatts of her energy rubbed off on me!

A fall color explosion in Yosemite

Recently, Fred and I stole away to Yosemite National Park, hoping to see some fall color. I've never been to the park at this time of year before, and I certainly wasn't disappointed. Brilliant yellow leaves were popping out everywhere; warm sunshine-filled days made the sky a vibrant blue.

Inspired by a friend's recent trek to Half Dome, we set out for Vernal Falls along the Mist Trail. Three hours straight up convinced us to come back by a more moderate route, so we returned on the Muir Trial, which you see at left. It was so beautiful that I stopped short in my limping tracks several times to haul out my camera. After a "refreshing" rain, the skies cleared, revealing a starry field I hoped to capture digitally.

Up well before dawn, I fiddled around trying for an acceptable exposure. I did have moderate success painting the cliff face with my flashlight (see left). What an awesome scene -- and unbelievably comfortable for late October.

With the recent rains contributing to the runoff, even Yosemite Falls--usually quiet at this time of year--put on a spectacular show for us. And Mirror Lake was filling up.

The only hardship was staying in the "heated" tent cabins -- the only affordable accommodations in the valley available at the last minute. It was rather chilly at night. Good opportunity to cuddle up!

All in all, it was a wonderful respite. It was so invigorating and inspiring, I'm afraid I went a little crazy:

(Of course it's fake -- you think I'm insane?)

Visit YouTube for a slideshow with more of my images of Yosemite in Fall, complete with music. Enjoy!

A tightrope act worthy of kings

Every night on the zocalo, if you're not too distracted by the many musicians, soccer games, vendors and the yard-of-beer dispenser, you may see a world class tightrope act performed by Jose Esqueda Ochoa, who also sells souvenirs from a cart. Our last evening in Veracruz I asked his name and story, and this is what he told me.

Jose learned his trade 49 years ago from his father, with whom he said he worked in an Italian circus for years. Jose has also spent years harvesting crops in the south in the U.S. (He claims in some way to be related to the Flying Wallendas, though Tino Wallenda didn't know him; he says Esqueda is a common name in the circus.)

Whatever his lineage, I'll let Jose's work speak for itself. All I know is that Jose peformed religiously every night--once to a near-empty plaza during a rainstorm at 2 a.m.

Watch the video on YouTube here. After you see it, tell me what you think!

Life on the Zocalo

We stayed at the Hotels Colonial and Imperial right on the zocalo, a fantastic choice for exposure to local culture. Every day around noon or so, the square freshly swept and washed, the vendors begin laying out their wares on blankets and carts. Indians with blusas, wooden spoons, hand-painted bookmarks and other merchandise bound to their backs patrol the area.

In what was to become our regular practice, we stopped at the Grand Cafe del Portal for a lechero. The espresso comes in a tall glass, to which is added a healthy amount of steamed milk, poured from an impressive height by a skilled waiter. See the process here:
(I apologize for the quality; had the wrong setting! I have another video, but this was the best show.)

The zocalo is, well, intense. Several cafes line the square in front of each hotel. On any given evening, there may be four or five bands vying for attention. When fully employed (they only play when paid), the cacophany is at once exhiliarating and overwhelming and intoxicating. Something NOT to be missed.

By the end of our stay I had come to love the intimacy of the Indian children pressing on us at midnight trying to sell us a macrame bracelet. The first night, while we were still trying to be cool, "No, gracias" was our standard reply. But by night four I think we had purchased just about everything in their inventory.

Mindi did get one girl to crack up when she mimicked her pitiful plea. (These children are well fed and cared for by their parents, who work nearby and watch over them. ) So she sent over her little sister, who was determined not to break character:

One night around midnight, one girl persisted in her quest to get us to buy a bracelet. I didn't really want one, but I relented and slipped her a few small coins to get her to leave. "Shh!" I said, putting my finger to pursed lips, warning her not to tell anyone.

Three minutes later, four or five younger children descended on our table and serenaded us with their simple, childish song. "Copera, copera" (or something that sounded like that), they requested.

"No copera," I insisted. Their sister shouldn't have told, I reckoned. The youngsters soon evaporated into the night. I never saw those little ones again.

Heck, I should have given them something. They deserved it.

Avoiding gunplay and other noble vacation goals...

So, my dad invites me and Mindi to go to Veracruz with him and of course I say yes. I've learned not to get too freaked out by reports of violence, so hearing of beheadings and car bombings in the tourist area didn't dissuade me from hopping the midnight flight to Guadalajara.


I must say, we seemed to step into Mexico the instant we got in line to check in at the Sacramento "International" Airport. Everyone -- and I mean everyone except one other white lady -- was speaking Spanish. Lots and lots of babies on the flight.


Mexicana Airlines is a great company and the flight was uneventful. We retrieved our rental car and got some rudimentary directions into town and headed out. The instant we left the airport we confronted about six vehicles stuffed with armed soldiers. Vehicles were posted at the exit and entrance to the highway, and several guarded entry to the facility we were passing.
"Are we supposed to stop?" I asked Mindi. We slowed to a crawl, trying to get the attention of the soldiers standing on the side of the road. The officer posted on the road had his back to us and did not turn around.

It was quite intimidating, being from California and all, to see regular patrols of soldiers with their trigger fingers poised on their automatic rifles. I gulped mightily and stopped.

We looked pathetically at the group of soldiers and shot a questioning glance. They laughed and waved us on. Turns out that was the entrance to a military base, so not too unusual. (Except we didn't see another such show of force the rest of our trip.)


I do have to apologize for not having a photo of all this. It just seemed more prudent not to do anything questionable.


After taking the possibly more direct, but slower, route into town suggested by the rental car company, we finally got to the zocalo in the old city center of Veracruz. That I do have a picture of:

Young mothers need our support

Last week I accompanied a photographer friend of mine, Brooke from Brooke Imagery, to Sac State to take portraits of some young mothers and their children. Here you see one of the little guys confronting a rather belligerent rooster who escorted us around the Arboretum. He was fearless! (The boy, not the chicken!)

It was nice to see these young women taking their responsiblities seriously and doing their best to rear happy, healthy children. Certainly, they are learning to do the hardest job on the planet--parenting.

Fortunately, they have the support of a great organization that helps foster youth get established after the system cuts them loose. Connections for Youth, Inc., is a Sacramento-based non-profit established by Samantha Olson. Check them out on Facebook. Good work, Sam!

A strange sight on Carmel beach

So far it had been a lovely trip to Carmel. Mindi and I had enjoyed fabulous massages at Le Spa. Full of margaritas and chicken chile relleno with mole sauce from Club Jalapeno, we sauntered down Ocean Avenue until, drawn in by the scent of a thousand bubblebaths, we discovered Lush, the best little soapery this side of Paris. (OK, so it is a franchise, but I'm absolutely hooked on the Godiva solid shampoo bar. It leaves my hair so volumized and shiny!)

So, we were feeling giddily pampered as we strolled down to the beach, sinking luxiously into the sugar-like white sands as we made our way down the dune, until -- EW! What was that?! A dead deer washed up on the beach?

"It's a male," a teen boy declared as we crept upon the swollen animal. "We watched it wash up."

The crowd of youngsters joined us in our inspection. It was, indeed, a male, though the evidence thereto was rapidly diminishing in decomposition. Felt still covered both points of the young innocent's antlers; its tongue dangled loosely in the sea.

The boy and a friend came over to pose for me by the poor thing, mocking a posture of conquest.

We met the girl's father the next day manning the Gallerie Rue Royale, where we were drawn in by Todd White's Night Life collection. The girl blew in noisily past the father, her cell phone trumping his request to keep it down.

The beleaguered gallery manager greeted us wearily and we revealed that we had met his daughter the previous night. He said he'd heard about us, and noting that we were a mother and daugther enjoying a getaway together, he asked hopefully, naively, what to expect of the abyss of adolescence that lay before him: "How long till I get my daughter back?"

We laughed. "How old is she?"

"Thirteen."

We laughed louder. "Oh, about ten years," I replied.

The poor soul visibly caved. He shared his concerns about the coming years, of which there were plenty, his being a retired physician and all. We offered our best strangerly advice and slipped out of the gallery, thankful to have those years behind us.

Now it's just good, honest hardheadness that comes between Me and the Min. At least she comes by it honestly.

Lunch at Nepenthe

Our trip to Carmel in June was humming lazily along as we lounged on the patio of Nepenthe restaurant in Big Sur. I wondered why my beet salad came on a bed of bread crumbs.

While I was trying to summon the will to reach for my fork, BAM! -- a blue jay swooped in, snatched a bread crumb and was gone in an instant. Evidently I had ordered his favorite dish.
I was ready for his next pass, and he was kind enough to smile for my camera. I thought it was hilarious, though Mindi wasn't so keen on dodging birds between bites of crostini.

After lunch we stopped at one of my favorite spots on the coast: Pfeiffer state beach, a 2-mile crawl off Highway 1. My dreams of dramatic sunset shots blew away with the sandstorm, but not before Mindi obliged me with a roll down the sand dune.

Tahoe wildflowers in spring

"What are those red flowers?" I asked the park ranger at Vikingsholm, the Skandinavian castle on Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe.

"Snow flowers," she replied. I became fascinated by the unusual red stems protruding leafless through the sandy soil left softened by the winter's snows. "What do they do after this stage?" I wondered, and she answered smartly: "They die."

I'll resist the urge to grasp at a methaphor about life at this point and say simply that these saprophytes are a uniquely beautiful manifestation of the fragility of spring. (OK, so that's a mouthful anyway. I feel a writing spurt coming on.)

My daughter Mindi enjoyed a late spring Memorial Day getaway with a couple of days at the lake. The crowds had yet to arrive. The weather was still, warm and sunny. Pure bliss.

We stopped in to the Camp Richardson stables and joined another pair for a ride to the hilltop and back. Our guide was hilarious, keeping up an entertaining narrative the entire time as we trusted the horses to pick their way carefully through the rocky terrain.

I've been to Tahoe many times over the years, but I've never seen it so beautiful. I'm just sad we couldn't tour the inside of Vikingsholm, which opened the day after we visited, I beleive.

Well, life is fragile, and timing is everything.

Pro Photo Expo in Pasadena

Pro Photo Expo is the Professional Photographers of California annual convention. There you'll find great speakers, like Ken Sklute, whose full-day workshop concluded with a demonstration of how he shoots a wedding reception--complete with wedding cake and buffet!

My favorite workshop was by Greg Stangl, whose marketing tips showed me how to "Damn the Recession!" and take my business full speed ahead.

If you missed the convention, you have another chance in August, when the show comes to San Francisco. Stay posted on the PPC website.

While there, I took the opportunity to try my hand at the new fusion video capabilities of the Canon 5D Mark II. It's still a rough cut, and you don't get the full effect of the HD video online, but it'll give you an idea.

Pro Photo Expo 2009 from Kristi Garrett on Vimeo.

Handpainted backgrounds from Madcamp.biz

Todd Rigione of Madcamp Artistic Backgrounds sold me an awesome handpainted background. Here he is with another of his creations. (Look for mine in a senior photo coming soon!)

He drove all the way from Rapid City, South Dakota, to Pasadena for the Pro Photo Expo. 

Visit his website (madcamp.biz) to see more. You won't be sorry!

Speaking of engagements...

Nina and Micah's engagement shoot was lots of fun. We started at the fountain in front of Tower Cafe, where Micah proposed. 

Then we went to an "undisclosed location" where we'll do portraits of the wedding party on their wedding day. The sunset cast a beautiful warm light on a beautiful couple.

I just love how Micah is cradling her in his arms. So in love!

'Out of the Blue' wins best of show

Inspired by last month's speaker at Professional Photographers of Sacramento Valley, I decided to play around with one of my all-time favorite photos for this month's print competition. The crazy thing took Best of Show! So I'm thrilled, since it's just the second time I've entered a print to be judged by the panel.

This was an image I took of my daughter Mindi late one evening a couple years ago, lit by a lone flood floodlight (the kind you put in your yard!). Inspired by Char Crail's work, I pulled at the subject's hair with the blur tool in Photoshop, desaturated the lit side of her face a bit and popped her eye. The graduation in the lighting of the background is all natural--no filters--from the blue floodlight.

The judges found the image mysterious and dramatic, and a departure from what is normally in the portrait category. I just love the blue. What do you think?

Taking the Canon 5D Mark II for a spin...

I picked up my new Canon 5D Mark II last week, just in time to take it for a test spin at Second Saturday in downtown Sacramento. (Just a reminder of the specs: 21.1 megapixel, full HD video, ISOs to 25600!)

I popped on my 50mm f1.4 lens and headed off to see a friend's art show. (She does beautiful chiaroscuro style oil paintings. See them at http://www.catherinecrable.com/)

(this one shot at 6400 ISO.)

One of the first features I was dying to try was the HD video. Shooting video on the 5D was not very intuitive, so I had to pull out the manual. But it's pretty awesome! First you enable Live View, which is accessed through one dedicated button, a vast improvement from my 40D. And you can use any lens when shooting video, but you do need to focus manually. I found that a bit tricky to do the first time with the lens opened all the way to f1.4. But I'll keep practicing.

I must say, figuring out how to convert and edit the footage isn't very clear. I ended up Googling it and downloaded a free program from squared5.com. Then edited and combined the clips in Windows Moviemaker. But I'm sure there's a better way.

Check out this bit of footage along I Street:

And some stills:

And in Barton's Gallery, the ballet dancers mirrored the sculpture in the window:

In all, using the new 5D Mark II is familar and the learning curve isn't too extreme. I'll just look forward to learning how to shoot and edit video to augment my still photography. I just love the flexibility of super-high ISOs. The body has the same weight and dimensions as the previous 5D, making it a very comfortable fit in my camera bag.

Look for some comparison test shots soon.

My first photo lesson: The rule of thirds

If you’re looking to improve your photos, one of the first places to start is with your composition.
Let’s say you have your eye on a beautiful sunset. Many people would simply point the camera toward the west and click, the top of the frame filled with sky and the bottom half with land or sea.

But you can do better than that. If brilliant pink clouds are what caught your attention, make the most of them by placing the horizon line low in the frame.

On the other hand, if the landscape is more compelling, make it fill the lower two-thirds of the frame, leaving just a sliver of sky.

Basically, to get a pleasing balance to your image, the horizon should be placed either high or low in the frame.

Your eye has a natural tendency to scan a photo, searching for the most interesting parts of an image to rest upon or leave the frame. So your objective is a more interesting, asymmetrical division of your frame. It’s called the Rule of Thirds. Here’s a good discussion of how it works from Richard Burke at eHow.

If your subject dictates a vertical (or portrait) orientation, the same rules apply. Imagine a tic-tac-toe grid across the frame. Place the most interesting elements of your image along those lines. Take several shots, paying no attention to the rules, and then placing the subject about one-third of the way into the frame at each corner (along the intersections of your tic-tac-toe grid). See which ones draw your eye toward a pleasing resting place. You’ll know what I mean if you visit Richard Burke’s link above.

Generally speaking, the way you frame a photo either draws your eye toward the most interesting elements, or leads your eye away and out of the frame with no area of special focus.
You could spend decades studying the fine points of composition, but the Rule of Thirds is a foundational principle that will help you improve the next photos you take.

The camera gives you cover

Normally, I hesitate to insert myself in the middle of a situation for fear of intruding. But with a camera in hand, I feel like I have a cloak of invisibility and can go places I never usually would.

For example, I have a slight fear of heights. But if the shot I want requires climbing onto a precipice and dangling over the edge, I’m there. It’s as if my camera has special powers to protect me. Actually, it's just that I don’t notice my fear because I’m intent on getting the shot.

I recently found myself in Paris during Fashion Week. Inspired by the event, my daughter and a friend who were traveling with us got all dolled up and headed for the Ponte Alexander for a photoshoot. We had costume changes and everything. Now, normally I would have been intimidated by shooting there, among the crowd, since all I had with me was my little Canon G9 travel camera. Who was I to pretend to be a fashion photographer with that little gadget?


Amazingly enough, once my model was in place, thirst for the shot took over and I had nary a nerve the whole time. Passersby even stopped to watch and shoot a few frames themselves!

Sure, I would have loved to have my studio camera and the shots could have been better, but the shoot was great fun. I think that’s what’s most important -- recognizing a rare opportunity and seizing it. And if any of those passersby were giggling at me behind my back, I’ll never know!

Am I a writer or a photographer?

I’m actually a writer by trade, but it’s fascinating to me how photography and writing have taken alternate first place in my life since childhood.


My earliest writing was in about seventh grade, when I’d spend my afternoons in my bedroom with a manual typewriter, dreaming up the perfect horse story. I’ll never forget how my father teased me about a line in “The Shadow,” a story about a wild horse that the protagonist comes across in her after-school walks. Evidently, Shadow lived in a cave in the rocky hills, which I described as “your basic cave, with four walls and an entrance.” After that, everything was your “basic” this, your “basic” that. So much for a great literary career.


Although I did recover enough to major in journalism and eventually write a travel memoir titled “Aegean Escape.” That tome was inspired by a yacht trip my father and I took right after Sept. 11, 2001, and is probably the most heartfelt work I’ve done. Usually, my strength is non-fiction and education-related articles.


Meanwhile, as a teenager I was discovering the joy of photography. With tutelage from a friend, I learned about composition and exposure using a manual Minolta SLR. I set up a darkroom at home and developed my own film long before taking a formal class in college. I just loved the way the image would pop out in the developer. It’s magic, really.

Here's an early photo of my husband, Fred, developed and printed in my bathroom darkroom. (Pretty hot, huh?)





But I'll have to admit it was much easier to use the darkroom at Cosumnes River College. It’s a fabulous place, rather like a jazz lounge. You can get lost in there, listening to the music, talking to classmates and making magic happen under the enlarger. It’s one of the things I miss most about switching to digital.


But switch I did, and it’s great, really. I can snap as many frames as my camera will process (which I regularly exceed). I have the most fun during fashion shoots with my daughter, Mindi. We started shooting fashion together when she was in cosmetology school and needed portfolio shots. After my first experiments, I quickly saw the need for real studio lighting, and I haven’t looked back since. Now, it’s just a matter of what new equipment I’ll upgrade to next.

So, naturally, as soon as I can lay hands on one, I’ll be mastering the new Canon 5D Mark II. Besides capturing whopping TWENTY-ONE mega pixel images, this beauty has full HD video. From what I’ve been reading, incorporating video into presentations and slideshows is the next hot trend for photographers. I can hardly wait!

So, for now my personal writing projects are taking a back seat to photography once again. And I couldn’t be happier.