Wow, I’ve gotten behind on posting photos again! I just recently spent 10 days in La Ventana, Baja California for the 2010 La Ventana Classic and KiteXpo. This is an annual kiteboarding event that raises money for the local schools. I had a great time down there, and came home with over 40 GB of images! Especially interesting was the Burning Bush, a giant party in the middle of the desert where they set stuff on fire and shoot flames into the sky!
Last night was the annual Ocean Beach Christmas Parade here in San Diego. Always a good/interesting time in OB! All images shot with a Canon 50D at ISO 1600-2000.
On Friday, I headed down to the Ocean Beach Pier in San Diego to take a few pictures of the large waves. It was high tide when I got there and waves were hitting the bottom of the pier. I shot from the pier for a few minutes before the lifeguards chased everyone off and closed it down.
My good friend Nate just got married last week. For awhile, Nate was the most dedicated windsurfer you could imagine. It’s hard to imagine that not long ago this guy was a shaggy-haired windsurfing/sailing instructor living on my couch in OB!
Robin and I just got back from a trip to the Northern California Coast. On the way up, we stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge to walk around for a few minutes.
I decided to go for a little something different for some images for the Mission Bay Aquatic Center and ended up strapping a camera to the top of a Hobie 16 catamaran mast to get a unique view.
The camera was actually very secure up there, despite what the image of the set up looked like. This was done with a Canon 30D and 16mm Zenitar Fisheye, fired with a Pocket Wizard. I’m stoked with the first attempt, and will probably give it another go when the light is a little better.
The last time I was in San Quintin, I was walking on the beach by myself taking a few photos. As I looked over I noticed this family and waving me over to join them.
As soon as I approached their cars parked on the beach, they asked, “Ceviche?” while pointing to a giant bowl of the stuff that they had just made. Before I could answer, I was holding a small bowl of fresh ceviche topped with hot sauce and a few tortillas on the side while being handed a cup of Coke. I stayed and hung out with them for awhile, and this family further confirmed what I already knew about the people in Mexico. They are the friendliest people you can meet, and while they may not have a lot, they always want to share what they have.
As soon as I was done, one of the women handed me a strawberry jam sandwich gently wrapped in a paper towel. Finishing that, I asked them if I could take a photo, fully expecting to be told no as I had been in the past when asking people if I could take their photos down here before, but this family was excited. The two younger girls were using their poses that I’m sure they practiced in the mirror and after a few photos, I even got them to give a big yell. All in all a great experience with some of the friendliest people in the world.
This is the newer of two computer controlled shaping machines at the Lost Surfboard factory in San Clemente, California. This thing turns out more than 20 boards per day. We will be posting video from this visit on thekiteboarder.com very soon.