Tag: San Diego

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 6, 20239:45 pm

Wash `n Drive

The prominent decoration in San Diego during June are rainbow flags. I don’t love them. There are so many, meaning is pointless. Besides, I see more cultural, political, and societal division because of them than the inclusion the colors supposedly represent.

Continuing along Adams Avenue from the clock, you will pass the self-serve car wash. The Featured Image, from Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, is a refreshing blast of colors compared to the tired and overly displayed rainbow. Hence, my stopping for a shot, on June 2, 2023. Vitals: f/1.7, ISO 10, 1/1400 sec, 23mm (film equivalent); 2:55 p.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 4, 20238:37 pm

Conversely Sneaks

Keeping with my black-and-white commitment for all of June, today, I used Leica Q2 Monochrom to capture the Featured Image, which is composed as shot. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/2.8, ISO 200, 1/6400, 28mm; 2:30 […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 3, 20239:33 pm

Runny Bunny

Walking home from Trader Joe’s this afternoon, I passed a rabbit hanging out on the lawn where Kitty used to go. (One of the “Cats of University Heights“, the tuxedo vanished in September 2021.) The bunny seemed quite content until I reached for Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra; he hoped off and stopped behind the gate leading into the backyard.

The smartphone may not produce the sharpest photos, but they’re good enough, particularly considering the benefit: Massive 10x optical zoom in a device carried in my pocket; no bulky, costly expensive camera gear required.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 2, 20239:00 pm

Light Traffic

Lots of people are overly, ah, proud during June every year, around San Diego neighborhoods Hillcrest, North Park, and (here) University Heights. Stepping back from the parade of flags—and distracting colors galore—I will use Leica Q2 Monochrom to primarily shoot black and white. When need for color arises, Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra will fill in.

The Featured Image is first photo of many other monochromes to follow between now and last day of the month. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/11, ISO 200, 1/250 sec, 28mm.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 1, 20238:06 pm

Sybil and Friend

So why does one dog get let outside but not the other? Who is the second fido, anyway? I had no idea that Sybil, whom you met in August 2021, had a housemate. The Featured […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 30, 202310:20 pm

You Fill Up My Senses

For a seeming paradise environment, San Diego air fills with bad smells: chemical (mostly from pesticides); exhaust (mostly from construction machinery and vehicles); rotting food (from compost and garbage containers); skunky stink (from pot smokers); and urine (from the homeless), among many others. (Got an hour to read? I can give a fuller list.)

So it was a surprise, and relief, when my wife and I hit a sweet smelling zone while walking on May 26, 2023. The Featured Image shows why: Hedge of Honeysuckle. Thank you, neighbor, whomever you are! At a time when more residences erect fortress fences around their properties, someone else chooses a natural barrier that delights the senses—eyes along with the nose.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 27, 202310:07 pm

‘Feed Me! Please?’

The fine family that owns ginger cat Daniel Tiger also keeps three chickens. Typically, a jar of feed is placed in a caddy on the fence so that neighbors can greet and treat the birds. But, today, when my wife and I walked by, the glass wasn’t half full, so to speak, but empty. We had nothing to share, and, oh, did the hens want some.

When we slipped out of the apartment between loads of washed and drying laundry, I left behind Leica Q2. To capture the moment, I relied on Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, choosing the Portrait mode that creates bokeh—or the illusion of blurred background.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 26, 20238:43 pm

Urban Husky Revisited

The “Urban Husky” residence is no longer a construction site. I had wondered if the mural would be a casualty of the renovation, although the artwork might be because of it. During an impulsive change of direction while walking today, my wife and I passed by the property.

I couldn’t go on without grabbing a fresh capture. The Featured Image comes from Leica Q2. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/4, ISO 100, 1/1250 sec,, 28mm; 2:01 p.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 24, 20239:13 pm

For the Love of Ducks

I don’t know San Diego’s Balboa Park well enough to identify the Featured Image‘s exact location. Metadata and Google Maps indicate the Lily Pond, so let’s assume that to be correct.

The ducks made quite the splash when I came upon them on April 20, 2023. I used Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra to shoot the quackers. Vitals: f/2.4, ISO 50, 1/2000 sec, 70mm (film equivalent); 4:08 p.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 23, 20239:09 pm

Ramblin’ Rose

I may regret the Featured Image tomorrow, but it looks pretty good tonight. Admission: My judgement cannot be trusted. Today’s routine eye exam included the dreaded dilation, which blurs my vision. My ability to appropriately assess composition or image quality is unreliable.

The wicked, but temporary, enlargement of my pupils obliterated any meaningful outdoor routine until early evening under a Marine Layer that never lifted. By 7:32 p.m. PDT, with sunset officially 14 minutes away, deep dusk had already set in when, finally walking, I passed the white rose bushes.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 21, 20238:23 pm

The Golden Man

Following up yesterday’s “The Photobomber“, we come to the intended subject of that photo—the golden man in the Featured Image and two companions. When passing him in San Diego’s Balboa Park on April 20, 2023, I was puzzled. He hung so still to the lamppost, I wondered if he was some statue—which there are a few round about. Then he moved, startling me and breaking my stare.

In the first of the three shots—all from Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra—he looks at approaching people. Vitals: f/4.9, ISO 50, 1/310 sec, 230mm (film equivalent); 3:14 p.m. PDT; composed as shot. Unfortunately, none of the trio aptly captures just how gold painted is his face.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 20, 20238:40 pm

The Photobomber

Consider the Featured Image as start of a two-parter. The intended subject of the street shot is the big guy hanging on to a lamppost, and I had planned to close-crop on him. But just as I clicked Leica Q2 Monochrom‘s shutter, someone scooted into the frame. The unintentional photobomber instead makes the moment.

Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/1600 sec, 28mm; 3:11 p.m. PDT, April 20, 2023. Location: San Diego’s Balboa Park.