Flying kite

I took this shot for an interesting contest and the challenge is to photograph at a tilted angle.
This colorful kite was on a pole that goes straight up in the air.

Stairway to heaven ...

After a few days being interrupted by some technical difficulties, I am now back online.
I took this photo on a trip to Pacifica beach with my friends.

Lonely swing at Poetry vineyard in Napa Valley

I was looking at Lonely Bench today and realize that I also have another photo I took in Napa of an empty swing.
So here I present to you lonely swing.

Two become One

My cousin called tonight and asked me for some love/relationship advises.
What I told him would not be of interest to you or myself so here is how I see it.
This shot was taken at my friend's wedding at an off-camera moment when they were not "on stage".
I could give the photo a glamous look but then I thought since this is a candid shot of what their true love is without setting up for the camera, I would deliver it as-is.

Beautiful California tangerine

I have a very interesting opportunity to spend some time with my family at my relatives' get-together in San Jose, California.
When I saw this beautiful tangerine fruits in the back yard, as usual I could not resist to take a photograph.
This is the first time I use the Canon 300D and I am impressed.

Sky view from the airplane

This sky view is taken from the airplane on the way back from my business trip in Hartford, Connecticut.
It is ashamed that was too busy on this business trip that I actually have no photo of Hartford, Connecticut.
In this photo, I try to use the window to make a nice natural frame.

Sunset over San Jose

I always wanted to go to the beach to catch a photo of sunset... Well until then, this is the sunset in San Jose.
It is almost impossible to see the sunset going down in San Jose. After 15 minutes chasing the pink clouds, I settle for this sunset.

Happiness' Messenger

My brother is coming home and somehow I remember he once wrote a ode to an old man selling roses on the dusty side of the road to lovers. Similarly, I caught this woman on the sidewalk of Tijuana.
They both have alot in common, not only the exhaustion that shows the sign of time but the fact that they bring happiness to people silently.

Rusty Old Chain in Fort Point, San Francisco

On the same trip that I took the sunrise photos in San Francisco, I found this rusty chain in Fort Point.
It gives me a sense of absolute power and then again the rusty color is very attractive.

Resting Dove in November 2004

I like the black frame very much so you guys are gonna have to bare with another black frame.
Alot of my friends like the flying seagull shot, however, they wonder why I have to shoot a bird from behind.
So, here is a dove I found resting on the grass in the SAn Francisco Palace of Fine Arts.

A Corner of Salt Lake City, Utah

I was at Murray Park in Salt Lake City, Utah around mid July, 2004.
I walked by this fence and somehow the contrast of the vivid yellow wild flowers
and the color of the old fence caught my eyes.
What would I do differently? Well I would change the setting to get more sharpness of the green grass on the bottom.
This time I also like to try black frame instead of white frame.
I always think that black and yellow makes the photo more elegant and bring the photo forward.
Let's see how you all like it.

Flying away seagull in Santa Cruz

Friday I was in the office talking to a friend about how slow and bad focus his lens is.
I went so far as saying that if he uses it to photograph a bird, the only thing in the photo will be the bird's "butt".
Well, I went home trying to pick a photo for my photoblog and see this shot where I shot the seagull from behind... hahaha.
I remember I made people laugh when I chased the seagull with a Canon 10D and the big white lens ( for those non-photog out there, the Canon 10D is not a gun)
I have 2 versions of this shot, both my dad and a new photog friend like this one so I just post it.

Lonely bench at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco

A dear little friend in Los Angeles told me last night
"... I want trees, lots of tall trees... I want leaves and they must be on the trees... I love the path with tall trees along the way, it is so lovely... ".
So, Thi, here is what I come up with.
I capture this when I was wandering around the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Somehow, I feel the loneliness of this bench on an old path with big old trees and Autumn falling leaves.

Y Lan in "ao dai" at White & Blue concert

I showed a friend at work my photo blog today and he complimented the Vietnamese traditional "ao dai" (long dress).
Since he likes to see the photo of the full dress I promise him I will load a photo the next day.
This photo was taken with the Canon EOS 10D at ISO 1600. My post processing workflow includes a little noise reduction.
Now, allow me to present to you Y Lan with traditional "ao dai" at White & Blue concert in San Jose, California last October 6th 2004.

Y Lan at White & Blue concert

To change the atmostphere a little bit, I decided to post something else rather than a landscape photo.
This shot is not new, it was photograph at "White & Blue" concert last October 10th 2004.
I am very pleased with the performance of ISO 1600 even though I have to do some noise filtering.
The singer is one of the top Vietnamese singer in the US.
I hope you enjoy it.

Sunrise over the city of San Francisco November 2004

And here is a different view of the sunrise on the same Saturday November 6th 2004.
I guess I will try to upload one photo a day instead of trying to photograph 1 photo a day. I do not like to photograph for the sake of posting.
Here it is...

Sunrise over thick fog in San Francisco November 2004

Here is another sunrise photo from Saturday November 6th 2004.
It is like a little fire at the horizon.

Golden Gate Bridge view from Fort Point

I finally have time to post process another photo I took on Saturday November 6th 2004.
The process seems to come slowly but I rather take time to play with the photo.
There will be make photos about this bridge from Fort Point so I can't think of a name that I won't end up reuse for another photo.
Enough said... here is the photo...

Sunrise in the San Francisco bay November 2004

Saturday November 6th 2004.
I wake up at 5:00 AM in the morning (yes you read it right, ... in the morning) so I can get together with a group of photographers in the Bay Area at Fort Point to capture the sunrise in San Francisco.
It is quite an interesting experience for me as this is my first time photographing with this group for a few reasons.
There are 2 first things I experiment in the photo bellow that I photographed that day.
The first experiment is the creation of the panorama photo. For those who don't know, it is a technique of stitching several photos into one.
The second experiment is the use of the Photoshop action from Mike Brewer to create the photo frame with the copyright on the bottom. The frame is simple and it does not over power the photo.
So many words ... here is the photo...