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Sunset in Paradise

The story behind this shot is a little creepy so don’t read this if you hate bugs. Ok, here goes. I came here to the fishing pier at the Sunshine Skyway Bridge near my home in Florida to get a photo of the sunset. To get to this spot I had to walk on a concrete seawall by climbing over a fence and then over a bunch of big concrete boulders. Once on the seawall I started walking with my equipment to this spot and noticed something was not quite right. As I looked down, hundreds, if not thousands of bugs, not unlike cockroaches, were scampering out of the way. I was having my own little Indiana Jones moment, less the snakes (as far as I know). My guess is they feed upon the dead fish and bait from local fishermen, but whatever the case, there is a thriving population. I was committed to the shot so I steeled myself, marched on, setup, took about 20 frames, picked up my tripod and got the *%^#* outta there. During that episode I heard some noise in the water just a few feet away but was too pre-occupied with getting the job done that not until I got home did I notice that a dolphin and pelican passed by. I suspect they had a good laugh at the silly human freaking out in Paradise.

The story behind this shot is a little creepy so don't read this if you hate bugs. Ok, here goes. I came here to the fishing pier at the Sunshine Skyway Bridge near my home in Florida to get a photo of the sunset. To get to this spot I had to walk on a concrete seawall by climbing over a fence and then over a bunch of big concrete boulders. Once on the seawall I started walking with my equipment to this spot and noticed something was not quite right. As I looked down, hundreds, if not thousands of bugs, not unlike cockroaches, were scampering out of the way. I was having my own little Indiana Jones moment, less the snakes (as far as I know). My guess is they feed upon the dead fish and bait from local fishermen, but whatever the case, there is a thriving population. I was committed to the shot so I steeled myself, marched on, setup, took about 20 frames, picked up my tripod and got the *%^#* outta there. During that episode I heard some noise in the water just a few feet away but was too pre-occupied with getting the job done that not until I got home did I notice that a dolphin and pelican passed by. I suspect they had a good laugh at the silly human freaking out in Paradise.

Follow link to obtain a limited edition print of this photo.

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Venice Pier

This is the Venice Pier which is attached to Sharky’s on the Pier in Venice Florida. A couple of wooden versions of this washed away in hurricanes and so they built this newer stronger concrete version. It’s such an iconic setting that we always bring guests here. When my sister-in-law was down she lamented she hadn’t seen any dolphins, however the day we came here we spotted a small pod frolicking at the end. Florida’s west coast is dotted with establishments like this, but this is one of our favorite. Everything just seems to add up.

This is the Venice Pier which is attached to Sharky's on the Pier in Venice Florida. A couple of wooden versions of this washed away in hurricanes and so this newer stronger concrete version is here to stay. This is such an iconic setting that we always bring our guests here. My sister-in-law was down and was lamenting she hadn't seen any dolphins until the day we came here where we spotted a small pod frolicking at the end of the pier. Florida's west coast is dotted with establishments like this, but this is one of our favorite. Everything just seems to add up here.

Follow link to obtain a print of this photo.

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Gulf of Mexico

So this might not look familiar but it’s under the Sunshine Skyway bridge between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Sometimes I find myself in the craziest places in search of a shot, especially when not traveling. When I do travel I cross this bridge in a car on my way to the airport at a pretty good rate of speed. The bridge is so level and smooth I forget I’m traveling over a vast body of water with dolphins, sharks and swift currents below. Before this was built the old one collapsed and a bus and cars just drove right off the bridge into the water. Yeah I know, scary. But today I doubt anything like that will happen again, this bridge is constantly under maintenance, no chances are being taken. And thanks to all that maintenance its a very smooth ride and I forget I’m driving over the Gulf of Mexico. Thankfully though, the state of Florida does not.

So this might not look familiar but it's under the Sunshine Skyway bridge between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Sometimes I find myself in the craziest places in search of a shot, especially when not traveling. When I do travel I cross this bridge in a car on my way to the airport at a pretty good rate of speed. The bridge is so level and smooth I forget I'm traveling over a vast body of water with dolphins, sharks and swift currents below. Before this was built the old one collapsed and a bus and cars just drove right off the bridge into the water. Yeah I know, scary. But today I doubt anything like that will happen again, this bridge is constantly under maintenance, no chances are being taken. And thanks to all that maintenance its a very smooth ride and I forget I'm driving over the Gulf of Mexico. Thankfully though, the state of Florida does not.

Follow link to obtain a limited edition print of this photo.

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West Coast Cities

This is the underside of the Burrard Street Bridge I noticed while walking around one of the neighborhoods of Vancouver. Some of these little streets can be tricky to navigate unless you are familiar with the area. I think these neighborhoods have something vaguely reminiscent of San Francisco. It’s a west coast feel, an attitude that puts a premium on the environment and living healthy. I think there are other cities in the same category, Seattle and Portland come to mind. Vancouver places emphasis on it’s bike lanes and even if you don’t live here you can rent a bike and join the thousands that use it as a primary mode of transportation. Now that I live in a different part of the continent, the west coast attitude is more apparent whenever I come back. Perhaps you know what I mean.

This is the underside of the Burrard Street Bridge I noticed while walking around one of the neighborhoods of Vancouver. Some of these little streets can be tricky to navigate unless you are familiar with the area. I think these neighborhoods have something vaguely reminiscent of San Francisco. It's a west coast feel, an attitude that puts a premium on the environment and living healthy. I think there are other cities in the same category, Seattle and Portland come to mind. Vancouver places emphasis on it's bike lanes and even if you don't live here you can rent a bike and join the thousands that use it as a primary mode of transportation. Now that I live in a different part of the continent, the west coast attitude is more apparent whenever I come back. Perhaps you know what I mean.

Follow link to obtain a limited edition print.

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Ringling at Night

Sarasota was once the home of John and Mable Ringling and to this day the Ringling circus is still headquartered here. Not only that, there’s a Ringling College of Art and Design, the Ringling Museum and this, the Ringling Bridge. It seems everywhere you go here in Sarasota there is either a street, bridge or statue in tribute to this giant of his time. My favorite Ringling is this bridge. I don’t know why, but I feel obliged to come here every few months and take a picture of it, this time at night. Maybe one day I’ll open up a coffee shop near here and display all my photos of the bridge. But in the meantime, I’ll continue to use Starbucks.

Sarasota was once the home of John and Mable Ringling and to this day the Ringling circus is still headquartered here. Not only that, there's a Ringling College of Art and Design, the Ringling Museum and this, the Ringling Bridge. It seems everywhere you go here in Sarasota there is either a street, bridge or statue in tribute to this giant of his time. My favorite Ringling is this bridge. I don't know why, but I feel obliged to come here every few months and take a picture of it, this time at night. Maybe one day I'll open up a coffee shop near here and display all my photos of the bridge. But in the meantime, I'll continue to use Starbucks.

Follow link to obtain a limited edition print of this photo.

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Master

I took this one evening while walking around Granville Island in Vancouver. Sometimes, depending on where I am, there are interesting subjects at every turn. In general this is true for Vancouver, but it’s even more true for this little harbor on False Creek. My guess, and it’s only a guess, is that this fishing boat supplies the local restaurants. And in this section of town, there are a lot of seafood restaurants, I mean a lot.

I took this one evening while walking around Granville Island in Vancouver. Sometimes, depending on where I am, there are interesting subjects at every turn. In general this is true for Vancouver, but it's even more true for this little harbor on False Creek. My guess, and it's only a guess, is that this fishing boat supplies the local restaurants. And in this section of town, there are a lot of seafood restaurants, I mean a lot.

Follow link to obtain a limited edition print of this photo.

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Burrard Bridge Breezeway

This is taken atop the Burrard Bridge in Vancouver. I’m not sure breezeway is the right word since there is a road between the two openings, but it reminds of a breezeway so I’ll stick with it. I kind of liked the architecture and I doubt very much that this little gem is noticed by motorists as they drive by. But if you’re one of the many Vancouverites that walk on this bridge you’ll recognize this right away. Walking is a good way to notice things (as long as it’s not raining).
This is taken atop the Burrard Bridge in Vancouver. I'm not sure breezeway is the right word since there is a road between the two openings, but it reminds of a breezeway so I'll stick with it. I kind of liked the architecture and I doubt very much that this little gem is noticed by motorists as they drive by. But if you one of the many Vancouverites that walk on this bridge you'll recognize this right away. Walking is a good way to notice things (as long as it's not raining).
Follow link to obtain a limited edition print of this photo.