Category Archives: Beach

Fog at the Huntington Beach Pier.

Sights: Fog at the Huntington Beach Pier

Beach, Bicycling, Bicycling: sights

One of the reasons I love cycling is that it gets me out, exploring the environment and seeing sights I otherwise would have missed.  Today was a great example of that.

I was on one of my usual loops up Huntington Beach and then down around Newport Back Bay; the weather seemed like nothing special (you know, it’s January and 70F outside).

As is usual of mid-week rides this time of year, the Huntington State Beach trail was nearly empty:

The Huntington Beach Trail midweek in the winter is a lovely place to bike.
You can zip along the Huntington State Beach Trail midweek – whee!

I rode past the pier, and paused to enjoy the view and snap a couple pictures with the sun barely visible through the clouds:

Huntington Beach Pier, when I first arrived.
Huntington Beach Pier, when I first arrived.

I went just a bit further on up the trail, then realized that the white blur in the distance and cold breeze I was feeling meant that fog was rolling in.  I turned around, and the pier was nearly gone: Continue reading Sights: Fog at the Huntington Beach Pier →

Waves crashing over the La Jolla Children’s Pool Beach sea wall

Beach, California, Photography, San Diego County

Greg and I walked to La Jolla Children’s Pool Beach (Casa Beach) back in January after we got our pelican pictures at La Jolla Cove. La Jolla Children’s pool is a small area of sandy beach that’s been walled in by a beautiful brick sea wall, apparently with the plan being that children could go swimming. Seals have had other plans for the beach, though, so there aren’t many children.

While I’m not entirely pleased with my seal pictures from the day, there was something else on view: waves crashing into the sea wall.

Water cascades over a brick sea wall at La Jolla Children's Pool, with its slightly rusty fence visible to the top. A wave has just hit the wall, and white foamy water is flying over the bricks as the water crashes to the sea in front of the wall. This contrasts with the perfectly calm blue water in the background. (Marc C. Perkins)
Crash of the wave; La Jolla Children's Pool, San Diego.

Big waves were somewhat infrequent, so I wasn’t able to get too many good captures, but I did get these two.

Water cascades over a brick sea wall at La Jolla Children's Pool on a gorgeous sunny winter day. A wave has just hit the wall, and white foamy drops are dripping and streaming off the bricks, as the water foams to the side and front of the wall. The water and sky, though, are perfectly calm, making a great contrast. (Marc C. Perkins)
Cascade of the wave; La Jolla Children's Pool, San Diego.

My only problem is this: I can’t decide which picture I like better. Each time I look at the pair I pick one that I like, but then I wait a few days, come back, and find myself preferring the other one.

So, I need you, my kind reader, to solve this dilemma for me. Which do you like better?

Getting There

La Jolla Children’s Pool Beach (Casa Beach): Found in La Jolla (San Diego), the beach is (to quote Wikipedia) “located at 850 Coast Boulevard, at the end of Jenner Street, in La Jolla, California.” Greg and I left our cars in the lot we used for our pelican pictures (directions can be found in this post) and walked; it was a very pleasant 10 minute or so walk. I have no idea how available parking is in La Jolla or what would be the best location to park, so I can’t help you much; sorry. The beach can be freely accessed by walking down a few concrete stairs, but much of the beach’s sand is roped off to allow seals to lay on the beach unperturbed.

Gulls at La Jolla

Beach, California, Photography, San Diego County

In addition to the pelicans Greg and I found in La Jolla last week (see post 1 and post 2), there were also a lot of western gulls (Larus occidentalis) on the cliffs. While the pelicans are a bit showier, I think the gulls are every bit as gorgeous:

This western gull (Larus occidentalis) is standing in front of a rock on a coastal cliff with the blue ocean visibile blurred in the background. Getting the proper exposure to bring out the detail in their white feathers was non-trivial! Note: a small piece of debris on the bird's feathers was digitally removed; I can provide an unedited version of the image if needed/desired. (Marc C. Perkins)
Western gull: standing by the sea.

With the gulls I also wanted to try something a bit more landscape-ish, putting them in context with the sloping oceanside cliffs leading to a sea of blue. I’m happiest with this attempt:

This western gull (Larus occidentalis) is sitting on a rock in front of a coastal cliff with the blue ocean and sky visibile blurred in the background. Getting the proper exposure to bring out the detail in their white feathers was non-trivial! (Marc C. Perkins)
Western gull: relaxing morning on the ocean cliffs.

After our morning with the birds we photographed seals and lighthouses, but those pictures will have to wait for another post.

More pictures

To see more pictures from the day, head to my Birds: Pelicans and gulls gallery

Getting There

La Jolla Cove Cliffs: This location doesn’t have an official name as far as I can tell, but it’s accessed from a small parking lot on the right side of Coast Blvd. in La Jolla (San Diego, CA), just after Coast Blvd. branches off from Prospect Place. The best I can do for you is give you GPS coordinates: N 32.84936 W 117.27038. Parking at the location is highly limited (and has a 2-hour max during the day), but it’s a short walk from other parking areas in La Jolla and the lot was virtually empty when I got there half an hour before sunrise on a weekday. The cliffs are accessed from a stairway that descends from the parking lot; be careful to stay well back from the edge, as the cliffs are steep and venturing too far forward will scare the birds away and prevent them from landing.

Pelicans at La Jolla, part 2: active birds

Beach, California, Photography, San Diego County

Last week I headed to La Jolla with Greg to photograph pelicans. In my previous post I shared my highlights from the day, but most of those shots were of calm, sedate birds. There was also a lot of action and anatomy on display:

This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is photographed on a rock standing in front the ocean. The pelican is seen from the side standing on one leg. It's right leg (easily visible) has been pulled up and is arched up against its body, while the other stands on the rock. It's wings are open and back, and it looks like its doing yoga or some martial arts move (a'la Karate Kid). (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: yoga bird.

Who knew that pelicans did yoga?

And, if you remember my Cat anatomy: the third eyelid post, you’ll probably appreciate this picture:

This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is photographed sitting on a peaked rock in front of the ocean. The third eyelid of the pelican (palpebra tertia or nictitating membrane) is in the middle of a blink, half-covering the eye. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: The third eyelid.

In that image the third eyelid (palpebra tertia or nictitating membrane) of the pelican is in the middle of a blink, half-covering the eye (click on the image to see it somewhat larger). In birds the third eyelid is under more conscious control of the animal, and is often visible (and is reportedly used to protect the eyes of marine birds while diving, for instance).

And who could resist a bird just about to jump in the air and fly:

This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is photographed standing on a rock in front of the ocean, just about to take off. The pelican's feet are splayed out on the rock, and it's hunched forward with its wings arched out, ready to leap into the air and start flying. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: about to fly. A frame taken less than a second later shows the bird in the air.

One of the distinguishing features of pelicans is their large bill pouch (gular sac) that they use to capture and carry food in. While grooming themselves they will sometimes move their bills in such a way that they invert their gular sac (so the inside is visible), as in this image:

This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is inverting its bill pouch (gular sac) on a rock in front of the ocean. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: inverted bill pouch.

Oddly, in some of my images of inverted gular sacs (see, for instance, this image) there appears to be some type of gland or organ at the base of it. I have no idea what it is.

For a last photo of pelicans, who can resist a picture of a photographer taking a picture of a pelican?

A California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) standing on a rock with a photographer blurred out of focus in the foreground, both of which are standing in front of a peaceful blue ocean. The photographer is Greg Russell of Alpenglow Images (http://www.alpenglowimagesphotography.com/). (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican and a photographer (Greg Russell).

Oh, and I was also asked by e-mail whether my pelican images were heavily cropped.  Most of these images are essentially full-frame captures, with just a bit of rotation or cosmetic trimming; they should easily be able to print up to 16×24″ or even possibly 20×30″.  The location Greg took me to was just amazing; we could literally get just a few yards from the birds.

I’d appreciate any and all comments on these pictures. 

More pictures

To see more pictures from the day, head to my Birds: Pelicans and gulls gallery

Getting There

La Jolla Cove Cliffs: This location doesn’t have an official name as far as I can tell, but it’s accessed from a small parking lot on the right side of Coast Blvd. in La Jolla (San Diego, CA), just after Coast Blvd. branches off from Prospect Place. The best I can do for you is give you GPS coordinates: N32.84936 W117.27038. Parking at the location is highly limited (and has a 2-hour max during the day), but it’s a short walk from other parking areas in La Jolla and the lot was virtually empty when I got there half an hour before sunrise on a weekday. The cliffs are accessed from a stairway that descends from the parking lot; be careful to stay well back from the edge, as the cliffs are steep and venturing too far forward will scare the birds away and prevent them from landing.

Pelicans at La Jolla, part 1: the highlights

Beach, California, Photography, San Diego County

Last week I headed to La Jolla with Greg to spend a day photographing birds, seals, and lighthouses. The day started with the two of us sitting on cliffs above the Pacific Ocean watching California brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) wake up in the soft pre-sunrise light.

This long exposure image taken before dawn on a calm morning at La Jolla Cove shows hundreds of nesting pelicans sitting on the coastal cliffs above the ocean. Palm trees and the ocean define the horizon. (Marc C. Perkins)
Nesting pelicans on coastal cliffs before sunrise.

There are few better ways to start a day.

Soon after that picture was taken, the pelicans began to fly over to the cliffs Greg and I had set up on (illusion warning: we weren’t alone — a half dozen or so other photographers were also there, including the awesomely skilled and friendly Maxis Gamez). Greg and I stayed there for around three hours, and in that time dozens of pelicans flew up and landed only a few yards from us. They didn’t seem to mind our presence, and just sat their grooming themselves, resting, and doing other birdy things.

Here are my highlights from the day:

This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is photographed sitting on a rock in front of the ocean. This closeup shows only a portion of the bird, focusing on the beak with its The beak, bill pouch (gular sac), and eye are all sharply in focus, and visible clearly above the folded-up body. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: Closeup.
This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is standing proudly on a rock in front of a blurred-out calm blue ocean background. The pelican is seen in profile, with its beak, bill pouch, and legs clearly visible. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: Proud.
This California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is photographed in profile closeup. The Pelican is seen against the blue California sky with the ocean/horizon just visible at the bottom of the frame, and has just returned from fishing. A single drop of water can be seen dropping from its beak, frozen in mid air. (Marc C. Perkins)
California brown pelican: Profile and water drop.

I don’t typically do bird photography, but if there are more places like the La Jolla cliffs I could see myself doing lots more.

I’d appreciate any and all comments on these pictures. This was functionally my first bird photography shoot, and I’d love to improve.

More pictures

To see more pictures from the day, head to my Birds: Pelicans and gulls gallery (and wait for my next few blog posts).

Getting There

La Jolla Cove Cliffs: This location doesn’t have an official name as far as I can tell, but it’s accessed from a small parking lot on the right side of Coast Blvd. in La Jolla (San Diego, CA), just after Coast Blvd. branches off from Prospect Place. The best I can do for you is give you GPS coordinates: N32.84936 W117.27038. Parking at the location is highly limited (and has a 2-hour max during the day), but it’s a short walk from other parking areas in La Jolla and the lot was virtually empty when I got there half an hour before sunrise on a weekday. The cliffs are accessed from a stairway that descends from the parking lot; be careful to stay well back from the edge, as the cliffs are steep and venturing too far forward will scare the birds away and prevent them from landing.  The cliffs are within walking distance of beautiful seaside La Jolla, with much to see and do. I don’t know how often pelicans are there, but I’ve heard they’re only there during a short period in the winter.

Silly Sunday: The Legend of Sleepy La Jolla

Beach, California, Photography, San Diego County, Silly

A few days ago I was out at La Jolla with Greg taking pictures of California Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus), when I suddenly realized that I was on the set of a new movie.  There were big cameras all around me, and in front of me was the star!

The movie was a remake of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow set in La Jolla, but instead of the headless horseman, it starred this fine creature:

This bird is starring in a remade of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", called "The Legend of Sleepy La Jolla". Instead of the headless horseman, the movie features a headless pelican. (Marc C. Perkins)
The Headless Pelican: star of The Legend of Sleepy La Jolla

I’ll post some more serious pelican pictures shortly, but thought I’d share this fun one first 🙂

Hope your weekend is going well!

Sunset at Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge: Highlight of the trip

Beach, East Coast, Massachusetts, Photography,

Earlier this month we visited family and friends in Cape Cod, New York City, and Philadelphia.  I’m still merrily processing images from the trip, but today I want to share a highlight.

For our last night in Massachusetts we decided to visit Chatham, a small town at the “elbow” of Cape Cod. There’s a lighthouse there1, a bunch of restaurants and little shops (most of which were sadly closed for the winter), and the start of Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is made up of a string of sandy barrier islands consisting of more than 7,500 acres of protected habitat; most of these islands are only accessible by ferry, but the northernmost edge of the refuge is accessible by car and a short walk.

We got to the refuge in time to walk down to the beach and enjoy the sunset. I’ll post more about the day in an upcoming post, but suffice to say that it was a gorgeous beach where our only companions were birds and a few folks off in the distance. Best of all, the sunset was spectacular:

Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge is in Chatham, MA at the elbow of Cape Cod; this was taken just before sunset from the beach accessible from the Monomoy headquarters. The low clouds tinged with fiery red from the sunset, the golden yellow of the sun setting in the sky, the silhouetted house, the leafless winter trees, and the calm ripply water reflecting it all made the sunset tremendously beautiful. And I got to enjoy it all with good friends I hadn't seen in nearly a year; it was a perfect sunset. (Marc C. Perkins)
Fire and water: sunset at Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge.

Sharing this sunset with dear friends was a great way to end our visit to Massachusetts. Here’s to you, Marin and Steve!

1 That’s enough to make me love a town.

New Year’s Eve at Huntington State Beach

Beach, Bicycling, California, Orange County, Photography

This afternoon I went for an end-of-the-year sunset bicycle ride along the Santa Ana River Trail and Huntington State Beach. I was mildly hoping for a last gorgeous sunset over the water, but dense fog rolled in well before sunset. The fog made it even more fun, though, as what few people there were largely headed home, leaving the beach to myself and a few other dedicated folks to enjoy a solitary and atmospheric end of the last day of the year.

A fire pit on the sand at Huntington State Beach in Huntington Beach, CA on a foggy New Year's Eve. The beach was nearly empty for this gorgeous foggy sunset. It reads "Caution hot ashes". (Marc C. Perkins)
A fire pit on the sand at Huntington State Beach on a foggy New Year's Eve.

Huntington Beach is lined with hundreds of giant concrete fire pits, which on summer evenings are often surrounded by people having beach parties. It was a cold day today (in the mid 60’s!), so there were only a brave few out to enjoy New Year’s Eve with a beach fire:

A group of adults celebrates New Year's Eve 2011 by having a beach party complete with raging fire in a fire pit at Huntington State Beach in Huntington Beach, CA. The fog made the beach feel wonderfully isolated. (Marc C. Perkins)
Room to spare.

While black and white suits the feel of the evening well, the fire made me have to process at least one in color; the warmth of the fire just draws your eye in (as it drew me in while I was there – it looked so wonderfully warm):

A fire pit on the sand at Huntington State Beach in Huntington Beach, CA on a foggy New Year's Eve. The beach was nearly empty for this gorgeous foggy sunset on New Year's Eve, but you can see one group of people having a New Year's Eve fire in the background. (Marc C. Perkins)
An empty fire pit on the sand at Huntington State Beach with a lone group of people having a New Year's Eve fire in the background.

Before I headed home on a beautiful foggy dusk bike ride, I couldn’t help but take a picture of this amazing nesting set of fire pits:

A row of fire pits on the sandy beach appear as though they're a nesting set of matryoshka dolls (Russian nesting dolls). Seen at Huntington State Beach in Huntington Beach, CA on a foggy New Year's eve. They read "Caution hot ashes" (Marc C. Perkins)
Matryoshka beach fire pits.

And, to show how foggy it was, here’s a picture of the Pacific Coast Highway bridge that crosses the Santa Ana “River” at the southern end of the beach:

The Santa Ana "River" runs underneath Pacific Coast Highway to get to the ocean on a foggy New Year's Eve. The "river" runs in a man-made channel from the mountains east of Los Angeles all the way through multiple counties to the ocean; for most of that distance there's a trail (the Santa Ana River Trail), which is where this picture was taken from. (Marc C. Perkins)
Bridge over foggy waters.

Happy New Year!

Getting There

Huntington State Beach: The beach is a state park, and runs for miles along the coast of southern Huntington Beach. It is accessible from multiple points along Pacific Coast Highway (Highway 1) anywhere between Beach Blvd. to the north and Brookhurst St. to the south. There’s plenty of parking for cars right on the beach (unless you’re going on July 4th or at another peak time), though parking requires paying an entry fee to the park. I love visiting the beach in the winter, as the giant beach is largely empty, leading to a great feeling of solitude (especially when it’s foggy!). There’s a paved trail that runs the length of the beach, which is frequently used for bicycling, jogging, or roller blading.

My 11 favorite pictures of 2011

Beach, Blogging, California, OCC, Orange County, People, Pets, Photography

It’s the end of the year, and that means that it’s time to make “best of 2011” lists.  This blog will be no exception.

This year was a year of exploration for me, thanks mainly to my good friend Greg (of Alpenglow Images; he just posted his own top 12 of 2011), who inspired me to push my boundaries photographically, as well as to start sharing my photography online.  But it’s far too easy to ramble on in posts like this. So, here are my 11 favorite images from 2011 (with many thanks to Michael Russell and Mike Cavaroc for inspiring this with their own posts earlier this week).

First, my top three:

Closeup of flower buds on the Agave vilmoriniana inflorescence. (Marc Perkins)
The Future, from my Agave and Aloe series (1 | 2).

I woke up to a foggy morning at Lower Moro campground in Crystal Cove, and found this beautiful little purple and white flower covered in dew. I love the few strands of spider silk connecting the flower to its stalk, also covered in water droplets. A botanist friend of mine identified this as _Stephanomeria sp._, a plant in Asteraceae. (Thanks Jeremy!) (Marc C. Perkins)
Foggy Morning Sunshine, from my Crystal Cove State Park series (1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6).

Kira, a brown tabby, relaxing on a shelf next to a brick wall. I love how she looks mildly inquirous while also looking serenly peaceful and comfortable. She's also got her paws cutely folded up underneath her. How cat like! (Marc C. Perkins)
Listening Cat is Happy to Hear About Your Problems – 2 (aka: Kira relaxing), from my cat galleries (1 | 2).

And now for the rest:

Sunset at Corona Del Mar State Beach, seen from a lookout above the beach at Inspiration Point. I love how the wet beach sand looks golden / silver in color. Three silhouetted figures stand in the foreground (a photographer, lighting assistant, and girl having quinceanera pictures taken of her in a fancy dress). (Marc C. Perkins)
Metallic Beach, from my Inspiration Point and Corona Del Mar gallery; taken at Inspiration Point in Newport Beach, CA.

Nauset Light at dusk on a cloudy winter night shortly after Christmas. The light streams out to sea, visible thanks to a light mist in the air. This image is far better viewed on a solid black background, so the glow of the sky is more visible. Nauset light is in Eastham, MA on Cape Cod. (Marc Perkins)
A Light in the Dark (aka: Nauset Light at dusk), from an unpublished gallery. Taken in Eastham, MA shortly after Christmas 2010.

Mohammed (Marc C. Perkins)
Mohammed, from my 24 Faces of Occupy Irvine series.

Lucca looking decidedly unimpressed. This picture reminds me of a typical LOLCat image (e.g., http://icanhascheezburger.com); I think the caption would be something like "Unimpressed cat is unimpressed", "Meh", or "Is it really Monday already?". But, sadly, I won't be submitting it to that website, as their terms of service for uploaded images give them way too many rights for free (http://corp.cheezburger.com/legal/terms-of-service/). (Marc C. Perkins)
Unimpressed Cat is Unimpressed, from my cat galleries (1 | 2).

Nobska Lighthouse in Woods Hole, MA on Cape Cod. The red-roofed keeper's house and white and black lighthouse are both visible, as the wind blows the flags in front of a clear blue sky. I love how the lighthouse feels like it standing proud; a little bit of Americana. This image is cropped to be printed at 12x18". (Marc Perkins)
Nobska Light: Classic Americana, from an unpublished gallery. Taken in Woods Hole, MA.

A closeup of a poinsettia flower cluster from the side. Many people confuse the bracts (red leaves) with the actual flowers; they're quite different. This macro shot shows multiple pseudanthia (flowering structures) surrounded by a sea of red bracts (colored leaves associated with a flower; mostly out of focus in this picture). The flowers themselves are called cyanthia; the green tissue surrounding each flower is an involucre, a cluster of bracts (leaves) fused into a cup-shaped structure that contains multiple male flowers and one female flower within it. Emerging from the involucre you can see red filaments supporting yellow anthers on the male flowers, and you can even see some of the pollen grains. Also emerging from each involucre you can see a number of dark-purple structures supported by short stalks (that are about a tenth of the height of the filaments). The bright yellow, liquid-filled structures attached to the involucre are nectar glands filled with nectar to attract pollinators. (Marc C. Perkins)
Poinsettia Inflorescence Extreme Closeup, from my poinsettia series (1 | 2). Taken at Orange Coast College’s Ornamental Horticulture Department.

A large agave inflorescence that's still growing seen at the entrance to Little Corona beach in Corona Del Mar (Newport Beach), CA just before sunset. The distinctive arch rock of Little Corona is visible in the ocean in the background. (Marc C. Perkins)
Agave Inflorescence at the Beach 2, from my Little Corona Agave post. Taken in Corona Del Mar (Newport Beach), CA.

A vertical view of the arch rock offshore at Little Corona after sunset, in black and white using a long exposure to make the ocean water silky smooth. I love the soft curves of the clouds drifting overhead. (Marc C. Perkins)
Vertical Arch Rock and Clouds, from my Little Corona long exposure series (1 | 2). Taken at Robert E Badham Marine Life Refuge in Corona Del Mar (Newport Beach), CA.

Those are my top 11 pictures of the year!

As an encore I’m going to include one more image. While this didn’t make the cut artistically, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and thus seems to belong here.

I'm pretty sure these are two southern pacific rattlesnakes (_Crotalus oreganus_ helleri) mating. I first noticed the pair when I was only a foot or two away from them on a trail; after moving a bit away I captured this shot of the two snakes wrapped around each other. Sadly, I think my presence may have interrupted them. (Marc C. Perkins)
Two Rattlesnakes Mating, from my Crystal Cove State Park series (1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6).  Taken in Crystal Cove State Park, CA.

Thanksgiving eve at Little Corona Del Mar Beach

Beach, California, Orange County, Photography

Wednesday marked my last day of work before Thanksgiving break. Shortly after finishing my final lecture, Michelle and I enjoyed a late lunch out and then zipped down to Little Corona Beach for the sunset. I just happened to have my full set of camera gear with me, so I was able to snap a few large number of frames.

I’ve previously posted about my long exposure work at Little Corona, and yesterday I continued in the same style.  But this time instead of either a crystal clear sky or a marine layer, I had patchy clouds to work with:

Sunset at Little Corona, focusing on the arch rock visible just off shore, with the rocky intertidal in the foreground and clouds drifting overhead. This is a long exposure shot, so the ocean's water looks silky smooth. (Marc C. Perkins)
Clouds over the intertidal at sunset.

The arch rock was particularly photogenic, especially with soft clouds washing overhead:

A vertical view of the arch rock offshore at Little Corona after sunset, in black and white using a long exposure to make the ocean water silky smooth. I love the soft curves of the clouds drifting overhead. (Marc C. Perkins)
Vertical arch rock and clouds in black and white.
The arch rock at Little Corona seen on a cloudy evening just after sunset. I love the soft dusk lighting illumindating the diffuse clouds overhead. The image is a long exposure, so the ocean's waves have morphed into a silky smooth misty layer. (Marc C. Perkins)
Arch rock and soft clouds in black and white.

And while the sunset wasn’t spectacularly colorful, the gorgeous deep blue of dusk was out in full force at the end of the evening:

The sun sets over a cloudy Catalina Island, as seen from Little Corona. This picture was taken after sunset, so stars have started to appear (note the one in the mid-left of the sky), and the sun is leaving just a hint or orange and yellow in an otherwise deep blue sky. (Marc C. Perkins)
The sun sets over a cloud-shrouded Catalina Island, as seen from Little Corona Beach. A single star (planet?) is visible on the left side of the sky.

Visiting Little Corona was a great way to start our Thanksgiving.  I hope you and yours have a most excellent day, and a great start to the holiday season.

More pictures

To see more pictures from my long exposure work at Little Corona, head to my Little Corona Beach Gallery.  Here’s a thumbnail of one more from the last night:

Clouds blow over the arch rock visible offshore at Little Corona. Captured after sunset on a gorgeous day, the long exposure softens the ocean waves into a silky smooth, almost misty, layer. (Marc C. Perkins)

Getting There

Little Corona Beach (Robert E Badham Marine Life Refuge): Located at the intersection of Poppy Ave. and Ocean Blvd. in Corona Del Mar (Newport Beach), CA. From Pacific Coast Highway (Highway 1) turn onto Poppy Ave, and park on the street once you get to Ocean Blvd (a few blocks from PCH). Street parking may be difficult to find at peak times, but was easy to get on weekday evenings. From the street you’ll walk down a moderately steep paved ramp to the beach, just at the intersection of Ocean and Poppy. The park is open from 6am – 10pm.