Monday, January 30, 2023

Point Reyes National Seashore (Cellphone Photos) - Marin County, CA

On 29 January 2023, my parents and I took a trip to Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County, CA to see elephant seal pups at Drakes Beach. It was a very cloudy and overcast day, and I even got rained on for short periods of time while photographing the elephant seals. I took photos with my cellphones and mirrorless camera. The photos are split into 2 blog posts. I hope you enjoy viewing my photos!

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Photos

These photos were shot on my cellphones. The photos are from Drakes Beach, Drakes Beach Road, and Pierce Point Road.

Our first and main stop on this trip was Drakes Beach. All of the elephant seal photos I took on my trip was shot at Drakes Beach. Most of the cellphone photos were shot through my monocular (since my mirrorless camera didn't have enough zoom).

Travel Tip: You can't visit Drakes Beach during breeding and pupping season (December 15 through March 31). You can only take photos from the Drakes Beach parking lot during limited hours (10 AM to 4 PM which is when rangers are present). Bring a camera with a telephoto lens if you want good photos. You can also use your phone with a monocular (like me) to get okay results. 

Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject is an elephant seal bull.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), seagulls, the beach, and the ocean.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A photo shot through my monocular.
A photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). The main subject are an elephant seal pup and its mother.
Monocular Used: Adasion 12x56mm HD Monocular (Product Link - Affiliate Link)

A scenery photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), the beach, the ocean, and the visitor barrier (to close off the beach). The main subject is an elephant seal bull.

A scenery photo of elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), the beach, the ocean, and the visitor barrier (to close off the beach). The main subject is an elephant seal bull.

It was 4 PM so it was time to leave. We drove towards Pierce Point Road to see the sunset.

A scenery photo of clouds, grassy plains, the Pacific Ocean, and rain (out in the distance). The photo was shot on Drakes Beach Road.

A sunset scenery photo of clouds and grassy hills.

A sunset scenery photo of clouds and grassy hills.

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Photos

Saturday, January 28, 2023

Mt. Tamalpais East Peak (Part 2) - Marin County, CA

On 28 December 2022, my parents and I took a day trip to Mount Tamalpais State Park in Marin County, CA. We visited Trojan Point and Mt. Tamalpais East Peak. Recently, it has been raining quite heavily in the San Francisco Bay Area, and we took this trip on a day where there was a break from the storms. It was quite foggy and cloudy on the day we went. You'll see a lot of clouds and fog in the photos. The photos are split into 3 blog posts. I hope you enjoy viewing my photos!

High Resolution Photos: If you want to see high resolution photos of any of the photos you see here, use the following links. If you wish to purchase prints of any of the photos, please contact me here. To view my best Mt. Tamalpais State Park  photos, use this link. To see all of my photos from Mt. Tamalpais State Park & Bolinas, CA from 2016 to 2022, use this link.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2

This is part 2 of the photos I took with my Olympus mirrorless camera. The photos are of sunset and were shot on Verna Dunshee Trail at Mt. Tamalpais East Peak.

A scenery photo of Bon Tempe Lake (left), forest, clouds, and fog.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 47" N 122° 34' 44" W

A black and white process of the photo above.

An abstract process of the photo above.

A scenery photo of Bon Tempe Lake (left), forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Angel Island (left), Sausalito (right), Treasure Island & Yerba Buena Island (in the distance on the left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (in the distance in the center), and San Francisco (in the distance on the right).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 45" N 122° 34' 35" W

An abstract process of the photo above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): Mill Valley, Angel Island, Marin City, and Sausalito.
In the Photo (in the distance): Richmond (left), Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Bay Bridge (center), Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, and Golden Gate Bridge (right).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 38" N 122° 34' 35" W

A black and white process of the photo above.

An abstract process of the photo above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): San Rafael, Corte Madera Creek (left), and Corte Madera (center).
In the Photo (in the distance): Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, San Quentin State Prison, and Richmond.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A black and white process of the photo above.

An abstract process of the photo above.

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2

Thursday, January 26, 2023

RV Show (NOT RECOMMENDED) - Alameda County Fairgrounds

Today, on 26 January 2023, my dad wanted to go see the RV show at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. I went with him and took a few photos.

I do not recommend going to the show or any Alameda County Fairground events. Parking is $15, and entry is $20. Today happened to be 2 for 1 so my dad and I both got in for a total of $20. The food and concession stands inside are also heavily overpriced.

First, there is only a small amount of RVs on display. The show is very small. That alone, in my opinion, already makes it not worth it, but that wasn't the worst part of it.

Secondly, no one (including females) can bring Mace onto the property, not even a small bottle used for self defence I always keep on me. The security personnel was a black woman who clearly hated her job. She is impatient, irritable, and transphobic. She b***hed at me, purposely misgendered me, and then told me to go put it back in my vehicle. I did end up putting it back in our car.

Finally, we got in, and you'd think the problems are over. Apparently not. It is perfectly fine for the vendors to smoke weed in the outdoor exhibit areas, fill the outdoor exhibit areas with that foul smelling odour, go into their truck, and drive off while high. You'd probably think, hold on, maybe Alameda County Fairgrounds personnel doesn't know it is happening. You'd be wrong. I saw the fairgrounds security guard chatting and laughing with the vendor committing the DUI as if nothing is going on.

Glad to see Alameda County Fairgrounds has safety and security as a priority! This was not my first horrible experience with an event at the Alameda County Fairgrounds, which is why I recommend you skip over any event that takes place here.

With that out of the way, here are the 3 cellphone photos I took at the show.

Airstream BaseCamp 20X Trailer with Overlanding Capability

Airstream BaseCamp 20X Trailer with Overlanding Capability

OPUS Air Camper

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Sunday, January 22, 2023

Mt. Tamalpais State Park (Part 1) - Marin County, CA

On 28 December 2022, my parents and I took a day trip to Mount Tamalpais State Park in Marin County, CA. We visited Trojan Point and Mt. Tamalpais East Peak. Recently, it has been raining quite heavily in the San Francisco Bay Area, and we took this trip on a day where there was a break from the storms. It was quite foggy and cloudy on the day we went. You'll see a lot of clouds and fog in the photos. The photos are split into 3 blog posts. I hope you enjoy viewing my photos!

High Resolution Photos: If you want to see high resolution photos of any of the photos you see here, use the following links. If you wish to purchase prints of any of the photos, please contact me here. To view my best Mt. Tamalpais State Park  photos, use this link. To see all of my photos from Mt. Tamalpais State Park & Bolinas, CA from 2016 to 2022, use this link.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2

This is part 1 of the photos I took with my Olympus mirrorless camera. The photos were shot at Trojan Point and Mt. Tamalpais East Peak.

Our first stop on our trip was Trojan Point.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, fog, and clouds.
In the Photo (in the distance): Angel Island, Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Bay Bridge, and San Francisco.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 20" N 122° 36' 51" W

A black and white process of the photo above.

A scenery photo of forest, ocean, fog, and clouds.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach & San Francisco (in the distance), and Sutro Tower & Twin Peaks (in the distance on the left).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 16" N 122° 36' 50" W

A scenery photo of ships (in the distance), ocean, fog, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 17" N 122° 36' 51" W

A scenery photo of ships (in the distance on the left), ocean, forest, fog, and clouds. The photo was shot near Trojan Point.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach (in the distance on the left).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 21" N 122° 36' 57" W

A scenery photo of forest, ocean, fog, and clouds. The photo was shot near Trojan Point.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach & San Francisco (in the distance), Sutro Tower & Twin Peaks (in the distance on the left)
Photo shot at the same spot as above.

After we finished up at Trojan Point, our next stop was Mt. Tamalpais East Peak. We first headed up to Gardner Fire Lookout via Plankwalk Trail.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (center), San Quentin State Prison (left), Corte Madera (foreground), and Richmond (in the distance).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 45" N 122° 34' 39" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, rocks, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (slightly right from center), San Quentin State Prison (center), Corte Madera (foreground right), Corte Madera Creek (foreground left), San Rafael (foreground left), and Richmond (in the distance).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Mt. Tamalpais Middle Peak, forest, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 45" N 122° 34' 40" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Angel Island (left), Sausalito (right), Treasure Island & Yerba Buena Island (in the distance on the left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (in the distance in the center), and San Francisco (in the distance on the right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Angel Island (left), Sausalito (right), Treasure Island & Yerba Buena Island (in the distance on the left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (in the distance in the center), and San Francisco (in the distance on the right).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 44" N 122° 34' 40" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): Mill Valley (left), and Sausalito & Marin City (right).
In the Photo (in the distance): Yerba Buena Island (left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (slightly left), and San Francisco (right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (center), San Quentin State Prison (left), Corte Madera (foreground), and Richmond (in the distance).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): Mill Valley and Angel Island.
In the Photo (in the distance): Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Bay Bridge, and Alcatraz Island (right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Bon Tempe Lake, Lake Lagunitas, forest, clouds, and fog. 
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Mt. Tamalpais Middle Peak (right), Mt. Tamalpais East Peak Parking Lot (left), forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

After we were done exploring the area around the Gardner Fire Lookout (Plankwalk Trail), we headed down towards the parking lot for Verna Dunshee Trail. You are technically suppose to use Plankwalk Trail to get back down to the parking lot, but we and a few other tourists got a bit lost and went down a "different trail" which I think was formed by a rockslide. This "different trail" is not on the park map or Google Maps. It is chained off at the bottom of the "trail" but not at the top. We accidentally took that "trail". This "trail" really looks like the main trail from the top. It is very steep and slippery, so don't get lost up there! I think California State Parks need to add more clear signage up at the peak. It is a little hard to find your way back down from up there. This is the second time I have accidentally done this (the previous time was in August 2016 - photos from that trip here).

A scenery photo of Gardner Fire Lookout, forest, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 42" N 122° 34' 39" W

A scenery photo of Gardner Fire Lookout, forest, and clouds.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2

Saturday, January 21, 2023

Shot Rock Vista Overlook (Winter Edition) - Eldorado National Forest

On 19 December 2022, my parents and I took a day trip to Eldorado National Forest and Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest to see snow. We mostly drove along State Route 88 and then a short section of State Route 89. The photos are split into 2 blog posts. I hope you enjoy viewing my photos!

High Resolution Photos: If you want to see full resolution photos of any of the photos you see here, use the following links. If you wish to purchase prints of any of the photos, please contact me here. To see all of my photos from this trip, use this link.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Photos

These are the photos I took on my Olympus mirrorless camera. The photos are from Shot Rock Vista Overlook in the Eldorado National Forest. You will need snowshoes to get to Shot Rock Vista Overlook during winter or you will sink down into the snow.

Travel Tip: There may be bushes buried under a thin layer of snow when you snowshoe. Go slow and be careful. I did accidentally step on a buried bush and nearly fell. I always bring hiking poles which helped me regain my balance after that misstep. Bring hiking poles made for snowshoeing (the ones with a wide disc at the bottom to stop it from sinking in the snow). If there are footprints of people that snowshoed before you, use that. You snowshoe at your own risk. I'm just offering some advice from personal experience.

A snowy scenery photo of smog, clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook. This is not a sunset photo. The orange glow was due to heavy smog.

A snowy scenery photo of clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook. This is not a sunset photo. The orange glow was due to heavy smog.

A snowy scenery photo of smog, clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook. This is not a sunset photo. The orange glow was due to heavy smog.

A snowy scenery photo of clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook. This is not a sunset photo. The orange glow was due to heavy smog.

A snowy scenery photo of clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 38° 37' 27" N 120° 11' 45" W

A black and white process of the photo above.

A snowy scenery photo of clouds, snow, mountains, and forest from Shot Rock Vista Overlook.
Photo shot at the same spot as above.

A black and white process of the photo above.

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Photos