Dusk Under the Ringling

I have a disproportionate number of photos of the Ringling Bridge in Sarasota Florida, after all it’s an area icon and I just can’t resist. This was the last shot one evening a few weeks back. On this evening I was in “the zone” and just did’t want to stop and had to mentally slap myself to break the spell. Nothing wrong with enjoying photography, it’s just that I was on the hook to bring home take out. Nonetheless, on any given evening this pier is filled with local fishermen, tourist out for an evening stroll and sometimes the occasional photographer fighting against the clock.

I have a disproportionate number of photos of the Ringling Bridge in Sarasota Florida, after all it's an area icon and I just can't resist. This was the last shot one evening a few weeks back. On this evening I was in

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Terra Ceia

This bridge is in Terra Ceia Florida just a few minutes from my home in Palmetto. This is another one of those bridges I cross constantly without much notice and wanted to go back and take a closer look. Fishermen are always throwing nets from the bridge as it crosses a channel the fish use to come and go with the tides. I’m not sure why but I seem to enjoy the perspective under a bridge, it’s a perspective that most of us never get. I also like looking at the structure of the bridge, gives me a little more appreciation for what went into making it. I guess I’m just a bridge guy.

<This bridge is in Terra Ceia Florida just a few minutes from my home in Palmetto. This is another one of those bridges I cross constantly without much notice and wanted to go back and take a closer look. Fishermen are always throwing nets from the bridge as it crosses a channel the fish use to come and go with the tides. I'm not sure why but I seem to enjoy the perspective under a bridge, it's a perspective that most of us never get. I also like looking at the structure of the bridge, gives me a little more appreciation for what went into making it. I guess I'm just a bridge guy.

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Bridges

Bridges is a trendy restaurant in Vancouver’s Granville Island. It’s a cool place because in summer you can sit outside and be surrounded by the lights of the harbor, the two main bridges in to the city and the lights of the city at night. For some reason I was intrigued by how many people arrived here this evening by bicycle. Somewhat reminiscent of a european city don’t you think? Anyway, I see this when crossing over the Granville or Burrard bridges in a cab back to the airport and finally managed to get close enough for a photo one evening while exploring. Silly me, I just realized why it’s called bridges.

Bridges is a trendy restaurant in Vancouver's Granville Island. It's a cool place because in summer you can sit outside and be surrounded by the lights of the harbor, the two main bridges in to the city and the lights of the city at night. For some reason I was intrigued by how many people arrived here this evening by bicycle. Somewhat reminiscent of a european city don't you think? Anyway, I see this when crossing over the Granville or Burrard bridges in a cab back to the airport and finally managed to get close enough for a photo one evening while exploring. Silly me, I just realized why it's called bridges.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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