I gave away many things of sentimental value before I left Md, including a film SLR camera that I had taken on many trails since I purchased it in 1982. But I had not used it in years and have given up on film photography anyway. I have been pleased with pocket size digital cameras both for the convenience and the image quality, but with the fantastic photo opportunities out here, I felt that a Digital SLR was justified.
This came to me one night when I was heading home from Mammoth Festival on my bicycle (I very rarely
drive into town). Heading down the hill, at first there were cars to light the way. But then, suddenly, there were no cars and it was pitch black. Don't try to ride a bicycle in pitch black after a couple of beers. Not knowing where the road was or how much I was turning I brought the bike to a graceful collision with the pavement. I found myself looking up at the most beautiful starlit sky and I knew it was time for a new camera (no, I didn't break the old one or anything else).
The top photo is a view from part way up Mammoth Mtn. taken my first day shooting with the new camera. My condo is located about middle right. The mountains about mid distance are the Sherwin mountains,
which loom over my side of the town. Visible to the left, further out, is Crowley Lake which is in the upper Owens Valley. In the distance are the White mountains and beyond those is Death Valley.
The other photos were taken with my pocket camera. Rainbow falls and Lower Rainbow falls, on the San Joaquin river, provided some interesting photo opportunities. Valentine Lake is one of the many beautiful lakes in the area. All of these photos were taken on hikes that started at my front door (and ended with some very sore legs).
