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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. Gear: Digital: 6 Mpix DSLR Film: 35mm and 120 (slide film [V50/100; E100G...]). Lenses: 35mm: 20mm, 50mm, 100mm, 135mm, 28-70, 80-200 (all f/2.8 or faster) 120: 80, 120 and 150mm (may rent a 40mm too). Tripod/geared head. Cheers, Alan -- -- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm -- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm -- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin -- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch. |
#2
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this
summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. Death Valley will definitely not be fun at the end of July. Average high temperature in July is115F. 120F is common. Yosemite and Sequoia are big, beautiful and unique. You can use wide angle, telephoto and everything in between. Temperature should be good. Warmer at low elevations and cooler at higher elevations. Air is clear in the summer unless there are fires nearby. Yosemite can be a little crowded, but a short hike will get you away from everybody. Yosemite is about a 3.5 hour drive from SF. |
#3
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
We drove through Death Valley in August a few years ago. Didn't seem so bad.
The hotels there claim that summer is the favorite time for Europeans to visit Death Valley. It definitely is hot, but a lot to see. Yosemite is our favorite park (we live about two hours from there). It will be crowded and unless you already have a reservation you will probably not be able to stay inside the park. You will likely wear out your camera taking pictures in Yosemite. As the previous poster said, you will be able to use all of your equipment. Sometimes the falls (except for Bridal Veil) are dry by the end of July, so you may have some disappointments there. May/June would be better for the waterfalls and Merced River pictures. Sequoia is nice, but Yosemite is the best of them all. Tom "Alan Browne" wrote in message ... Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. Gear: Digital: 6 Mpix DSLR Film: 35mm and 120 (slide film [V50/100; E100G...]). Lenses: 35mm: 20mm, 50mm, 100mm, 135mm, 28-70, 80-200 (all f/2.8 or faster) 120: 80, 120 and 150mm (may rent a 40mm too). Tripod/geared head. Cheers, Alan -- -- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm -- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm -- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin -- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch. |
#4
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
Alan Browne wrote:
Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Nice, but a lot of driving. It's also prime season for Yosemite and Sequoia (but off season for Death Valley) so expect crowds. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. Just got back from a trip to Sequoia. Much less crowded in the winter but snowshoes or cross-country skis are a must for the trails. We saw a foot of snow overnight. Gear: Digital: 6 Mpix DSLR Film: 35mm and 120 (slide film [V50/100; E100G...]). Lenses: 35mm: 20mm, 50mm, 100mm, 135mm, 28-70, 80-200 (all f/2.8 or faster) 120: 80, 120 and 150mm (may rent a 40mm too). Tripod/geared head. Yosemite is tough to photograph. It's easy to get lost in the majesty and not be able to find the good shot. Plan ahead and have some idea of what you want to shoot - even the valley has a lot to see. But it also has lots of visitors, so make you travel plans early. As in: now. No, I'm not kidding. Sequoia is tough. You want to shoot the trees but it's so hard to capture just how massive they are. Put people in front of one and they turn into specks in the photo. Again, plan ahead. You can hit the Congress trail for the trees in a day, catch a sunset at Beetle rock, and not drive more than 20 miles. Or you can spend months in the park and go as far as the peak of Mt. Whitney while shooting the high Sierras. Death Valley is great - I was there this past July. Awesome views from almost anywhere, but daytime temperatures are 105 to 120 in July. Wear a hat, take lots of water, and don't try any long hikes. The heat _will_ kill you if you're not careful. Digital cameras get noticably nosier in the heat so nighttime shots will need a little more work, but the skies are the clearest in the country. No pollution, little humidity, and no cities for a hundred miles. -- Ray Fischer |
#5
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
"The Augur" wrote in
t: Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. Death Valley will definitely not be fun at the end of July. Average high temperature in July is115F. 120F is common. Yosemite and Sequoia are big, beautiful and unique. You can use wide angle, telephoto and everything in between. Temperature should be good. Warmer at low elevations and cooler at higher elevations. Air is clear in the summer unless there are fires nearby. Yosemite can be a little crowded, but a short hike will get you away from everybody. Yosemite is about a 3.5 hour drive from SF. Another destination worth the excursion is the Muir Woods just north of SF. Try for very early morning. Normal to ultra-wide angle, or even fisheye, will give you the most dramatic views. Enjoy the trip! http://www.nps.gov/muwo/planyourvisit/index.htm |
#6
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
Cross the golden gate bridge to the Marin County side and visit the Marin
Headlands. The turn off is just after the bridge. Besides some great or World War II structures and gun mounts there is a fort, nice beach and a lighthouse. Well, worth a visit, not to mention some great shots of the bridge and city. |
#7
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
Alan Browne wrote:
Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. From San Francisco to Tracy to Yosemite go via Jamestown, Sonora and Columbia then to Yosemite via route 120. These are interesting gold rush era towns with historic old buildings. Along country roads outside of Jamestown you can find some old non-creosoted fence posts that woodpeckers have used for acorn storage -- some still with acorns, some looking like wood lace with the holes where acorns were. If you have time in Sequoia consider a drive down into Kings Canyon. The Kings River and surrounds can be quite senic, even in July if we've had a good wet spring season; and there are lots of side canyon falls not far off the main road. To get to the eastern side of the Sierras and Death Valley you'll likelyt traverse Yosemite's Tioga Pass. Not far from Lee Vining the end of route 120 at 395 is Mono Lake -- scenic, particularly early or late in the day. From Lee Vining to Death Valley take a side trip to the ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains. These are among the world's oldest living trees -- very photogenic. Bob Shomler www.shomler.com |
#8
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
"Alan Browne" wrote in message ... Just turned in a pile of points for a trip to CA via San Francisco this summer (2 weeks, Last half of July). Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. MotoGP at Laguna Seca July 18-20. |
#9
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
wrote in message ... Cross the golden gate bridge to the Marin County side and visit the Marin Headlands. The turn off is just after the bridge. Besides some great or World War II structures and gun mounts there is a fort, nice beach and a lighthouse. Well, worth a visit, not to mention some great shots of the bridge and city. My kids and I went up there to screw around and let me take some shots of the bridge but when it got dark we were totally lost and it took a while to find our way out. Had a great time and the kids always tell me they want to go back and play around the old gun sites again. |
#10
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SFO, Yosemite, etc.
On Feb 24, 11:56 am, Alan Browne wrote: Nature destinations are Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley. I wouldn't go to Death Valley in July. It is fantastic in early spring. But if you must, make sure you have a good broad brimmed hat and sun screen. Do not leave film or equipment in a closed car. I have seen camera seals fried in 90 min left in a closed sedan. No Joke, I have also seen a few second degree burns from slipping onto vinyl or leather seats in shorts or bathing suits. Not sure if we'll spend much time in San Francisco. Too Bad! Greatest City in the World and very Photogenic. If you get a chance go to the Palace of Legion Of Honor for great views of the ocean, lands end, point lobos and the Golden Gate. Every Wedding photgrapher in the Bay Area take their subjects there for portraits. Any and all ideas, pointers gratefully received. I do not agree that air will be clear in Yosemite. In the summer there are often inversions over Yosemite Valley. When this occurs air pollution in the valley can be significant. Water vapor also is often trapped by the inversion reducing visibility dramatically. I recommend a drive up to Tuolumne Meadows in the north eastern area of Yosemite Park This will provide you with dramatic overlooks of the Valley from El Capitan. If you are fit (don't need to be too fit) and like hiking you can hike down the Tuolumne River and shoot 8 Gb in a few hours. Continuing out Hwy 120 will take you over Tioga pass to Mono Lake. All of this is a photographer's heaven. At short drive to the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and a little more hiking will also provide dramatic sights that will delight any Photographer. Very few visitors from outside CA get up to Hetch Hetchy. But it is a favorite trailhead for backpackers and one John Muir's favorite subjects. If you haven't already done so look at Muir's images. They will give you some good ideas. The Road out to Hetch Hetchy will take you through Tuolumne Grove for some shots of Sequoia giganticus. You don't need to be warned about Bears do you? . They make great subjects. They are not aggressive, but use that 200mm lens and stay aware of your surroundings. Night shots of Half Dome and El Capitan are fun and beautiful and will wow your friends. These monoliths stay pretty hot during the blue hours so I sometimes take two exposures. One for the rock and one for the stars. Then I put them together in PhotoShop. A night shot from up in the Tuolumne Meadows area will reveal more stars than you knew could exist. Gear: Digital: 6 Mpix DSLR Film: 35mm and 120 (slide film [V50/100; E100G...]). Lenses: 35mm: 20mm, 50mm, 100mm, 135mm, 28-70, 80-200 (all f/2.8 or faster) 120: 80, 120 and 150mm (may rent a 40mm too). Tripod/geared head. You must have a good Circular Polarizer Filter and a good UV filter. If you can afford it I would get a good quality Ball Head like a Markins M10 instead of your gear head. Is your Tripod good for low angle shots. I find myself shooting a lot of low angle detail shots in the Sierras. Bring lots of memory. You can burn CDs at the store in Yosemite village or Curry Camp if you don't have a lap top or other mass storage device. Have fun Alan |
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