As some of you may know, I spent a week in Northern California late last month.  Specifically, I was in the Bay area to visit family.  It was a wonderful trip, in part because California is a wonderful place--except for the hellacious traffic!!

Coit Tower, Knob Hill, San FranciscoOne of the most iconic places in San Francisco and the Bay area--San Francisco. Victorian home in Alameda.This is one of many beautiful Victorian-style homes in Alameda, a small city in the East Bay across from San Francisco.

As you might expect, I brought my camera along and tried to capture the essence of the places we visited.  These included part of San Francisco, Alameda, Oakland, the Sonoma Valley, Carmel, and Monterey.  The landscape in each area is unbelievable, so it is no wonder people love to live there.  For the photographer there is an overwhelming number of varied and vivid images to capture.  It's not an exaggeration to say it is probably one of the most photographed areas of the country, if not the world, and with good reason.  

I liked every place we visited, for different reasons:  San Francisco for the sights and smells of the Embarcadero Center and Fisherman's Wharf; Sonoma for the mile after mile of grape vines growing in the blazing sun (and the wine was pretty good too); Alameda for the outstanding and unique collection of Victorian homes (far better than I have ever seen anywhere--and that's saying something); and Carmel for Point Lobos State Park. At the last, I paid homage to two of the titans of American photography:  Edward Weston and Ansel Adams.  They photographed that area repeatedly during the 1930s and 1940s and now I see why.  The shapes and sights of the natural landscape are unique and absolutely beautiful.  I grew up as a photographer loving images from that area and in this trip I had the chance to see it for myself.  I was in heaven!!

An ancient California live oak on the beach in Carmel.Gnarled is beautiful. An ancient live oak on the beach in Carmel.

Before I left for California, I planned to create a gallery here of images from California, like I did for images from Cuba, Santa Fe and Bolivia.  I am still planning to do so, but while in California I decided to do something slightly different.  All the images are going to be in black and white.  Not because California is not colorful--that it certainly is.  But for two reasons: 1) as something different, so as no not be too touristy and the same as other images of the area; and 2) as my small homage to Weston and Adams.  I can only hope that some of my work approaches the quality and genius of the work of these two American icons of photography.  

In this edition of the blog, I have included a few of the first images I have edited.  I hope you like them.  More will be coming soon.

San Francisco skyline at sunset.The city where people leave their heart--the iconic skyline of San Francisco, as seen at sunset.