Posted on by Anne Sandler · 42 Comments

Lens Artists Challenge #329: Last Chance

I never look forward to last chances. Maybe it’s my age. But, here we are picking photos that didn’t fit into this year’s challenges. I’m just going to reframe this post into Another Chance. Yes, I feel better now.

Here are my photos that didn’t make it into this year’s challenges and the memories that go along with them.

This first one was taken at a Scandinavian Festival in Sacramento. I had high hopes for journalistic photos, but there was hardly any opportunity. It was mostly crafters’ tables. This singer and great food made up for it.

My next was taken in an alley in Woodland Ca. called Dead Cat Alley. This is a three block alley with cat sculptures on the roof tops. This stretch of alley way was recognized in 1853 and officially named in 1962. The sculptures are old and worn. Here’s one.

You never know what you’ll find when you visit Old Sacramento. This man was sleeping just outside the main area of the train depot. I love photo journalism and seldom find an opportunity like this one.

Roseville is home to a fairly large train yard. But, stay off the tracks! There’s a story behind that statement!

I do like to photograph buildings. In one such quest, I found this great reflection.

Lastly, we have many small towns in neighboring Amador County. Sutter Creek is rich in history and its store owners use whatever old things they can. I think the sign may be original, but put on a newer bench.

There, you have my images that were given another chance. I’m looking forward to seeing yours. I enjoyed seeing all your winter photos in response to John’s challenge last week.

The LAPC team will be taking a break for the remainder of the year. We will return on January 4 with our traditional Favorite Photos of the year challenge. In the meantime, stay safe and enjoy the holidays

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 22 Comments

Driving through the countryside: Plymouth and Sutter Creek

It’s been a wet winter. Well, wet by California standards. While we want rain, having rain for weeks is something we are not used to. If I had my choice, it would rain every night and the days would be sunny! But I don’t have my choice do I.

So, on a sunny day Marlene, Ray and I decided to head off for the countryside and the small towns of Plymouth and Sutter Creek.

We stopped to photograph a barn along the roadside. We do pull over for photo opportunities.

We haven’t been to Plymouth in a few years. It’s still the same few blocks that it’s always been. It’s nice to know that some things don’t change.

I did find a unique sign that might be new in Plymouth. Here’s the sign and the object it’s talking about.

Now to see the rest of Plymouth.

Sutter Creek is a slightly larger town, and its main street caters to tourists. I’ve seen stores come and go. We like it best for lunch! Here are some new photos.

The highlight of the outing was meeting this gentleman and his cockatoo. They’ve been friends for more than 20 years.

So that was our sunny get away! More rain is coming!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 37 Comments

Lens Artists Challenge #220: One Subject Three Ways

I find that I’m getting lazy when I photograph. I used to do as Patti suggests in this week’s challenge: bend down, sit down, walk around and even lay down to get the shot. Now I find that I stop myself after I take one shot and begin to walk away. I think it’s more physical aging than being lazy.

Sometimes I don’t have to bend down to get a different perspective. Sometimes I just walk around and aim the camera up. This red sculpture is found in Roseville’s Sculpture Park. While it’s a well known landmark, Roseville has cleverly hidden it behind a shopping center. But it can be seen from the freeway. Maybe the sculpture came first and the shopping center second.

My next example is of stepping back and changing position to get a different scene from the same area. This was taken at Fort Ross Historical Park in Jenner. I’ve never seen wild Calla Lilies, but they are here. We start out with a larger view of the coast and then come in to find the wildflowers (you can barely see them).

Sometimes it’s patience that gives us a new perspective on a picture. This Orangutan at the Sacramento Zoo required patience as I waited and followed his moves.

Finally, it’s taking a shot of many and bringing it down to just one for a different perspective. These poppies were found in Sutter Creek, Amador County.

Thank you Patti for reminding me to position myself to get the “one subject three ways!” When you post on this challenge please remember to link to Patti’s post and use the Lens-Artists tag. We all enjoyed finding our special treasures as prompted by Tina last week. Ann-Christine is hosting next week’s challenge.

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 5 Comments

In search of poppies: Sutter Creek

You never know where you’ll end up when on a photo outing with your photo pod. You start out with a destination in mind and a fork in the road can lead you somewhere else! That’s what happened when we started out to find a field of the California Poppy, our State flower. Our destination was Jackson, but I’m not sure where we ended up. Not Jackson and no poppy fields.

So we decided to capture the flowers and poppies in Sutter Creek. It’s always fun to visit that small town anyway, and it was getting to be hungry time. We found potted poppies and other things in the town.

On our way back to the town we spotted a mine from the road, but it was too early to enter it, if we could due to the COVID pandemic. So we took our pictures from the road and went into town.

Now in Sutter Creek. Stores and restaurants were just beginning to open.

With full tummies and a nice walk around town, we headed home. We stopped along the way to photograph this barn and vineyard.

We weren’t done yet! We spotted a model airplane airport and Ray instinctively drove in to see what was happening. Once in, I remembered I stopped there with Richard, but there was a new type of plane that I’d never seen before. The wings were like cellophane and it buzzed around the sky fast.

I still want that poppy field and hope to get to it before it’s gone. But, we did have a fun journey!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 21 Comments

Lens-Artists Challenge #141: Geometry

I cringed when I saw the word geometry in Patti’s challenge post. All I could think of was math; my worst subject in school. But, shapes I understand. We look for them as we do our photography. They help make our images interesting. Many give our pictures depth and help them look three dimensional.

Here’s what I found while looking through my archives.

One of my favorite buildings, the CALSTRS building in West Sacramento has many angles, lines and shapes.

And here are a couple from Fort Point in San Francisco: stairs and a shape within a shape within a shape (actually a hallway).

There are lots of triangles and other shapes at the top of the transformers at the Folsom Historic Powerhouse and in the stairs at the Great Bear Vineyard.

And the flowing structural lines at the Manetti Shrem Museum at UC Davis and The Barn in West Sacramento.

Last, a simple store entrance gives us rectangles, squares, triangles and circles. Taken in Sutter Creek.

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 8 Comments

Found and seek: Sutter Creek,California

Very early into our visit to Sutter Creek, I found a wallet on a bench. My first instinct was to just leave it, but I thought maybe the owners ID would be in it. So, I looked inside. I found a driver’s license with a PO box for an address, no other identification and a wad of $20s. With that much cash, I couldn’t leave it. So, began the adventure to find her or the Police Station!

And, yes, it was an adventure. Our photographing stopped, we asked in several stores to see if they knew this person and to ask where the Police Station was. After walking past the end of town, we finally were told that the Police were located in a small white house! Sutter Creek is a small town in Amador County. But it wasn’t open. We had to press a button and wait for the dispatcher to come and take the call. Then we waited for the officer to come and take the wallet.

I don’t know which was more fun, shooting or finding the Police Station! Having been to Sutter Creek before, I concentrated on shooting doors. Of course there were other things that I couldn’t pass up.

We bumped into the wallet’s owner coming out of a coffee shop–literally bumped into. She was rushing over to the bench to retrieve her wallet. We calmed her down and told her we found it and it was at the Police Station. Being grateful, she told us to go into her sister’s coffee shop and order what we wanted and she would pay for it. The coffee shop, Choc-O-Latte, ended up being a photographer’s wonderland. See, do good deeds and you’ll be rewarded. If you find a wallet or purse, try to find the owner. You’ll have fun!

 

One of the many colorful doors.
Simple.
Accented in red.
Welcoming.
Daring to do black.
Another busy but welcoming entrance.
Inside the coffee shop.
Decorated well.
Great lamp.
Taking a break from reading.
An old-fashioned look.
Fence line.
You never know what will turn up in a yard.
Old building.
Proud owner of a cute pup.
I couldn’t resist this window.

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

Back to the 18 – 55: Sutter Creek, California

Old, quaint, touristy, and surviving are just some words to describe Sutter Creek in the California gold country and Amador County wine area. I say surviving because you used to have to go through the town as you drove highway 49. Now there’s a bypass so drivers don’t get bogged down in the town’s traffic.

From the town’s website: A wonderful balance of old and new, today’s Sutter Creek maintains its Gold Rush facade while catering to the wants and needs of visitors from around the world.Shop, dine, slumber, stroll, wine taste, and enjoy the quaint atmosphere of Amador County. Sutter Creek, the jewel of Amador County & the Gold Country,  is steeped in history being born of the California Gold Rush and nurtured by the deep rock gold mines of the 19th & 20th centuries. 

I wasn’t as impressed with Sutter Creek as I was by Downieville. But then, we were able to buy lunch in this town! Sutter Creek was more commercial, not catering to any season. But it is surviving.

Here are some images.