Sometimes things come together in an accidental way that ends up working so well. Case in point, we were making food images for the Hanford House Inn in Sutter Creek because their breakfast is beyond good. It’s in a class of its own. I know because when we were done with this plate, it was promptly eaten. Innkeeper, Athena Gordon is a culinary school graduate and what she has learned has been put to very good use. Nearly every review of their inn includes a comment about the food. I digress.

The lights were set and the photo was ready to go. I like to make food photos with the actual food without makeup. I know, some people use white glue for milk and motor oil for turkeys, but I like to work with the unadulterated product. We used a mock-up first to get the angles, lights and exposure, then as soon as the french toast was pulled from the pan, it was placed in the shot where the other plate was. Wait! The finishing touch is powdered sugar. I happened to make a frame or two of the shaker in action just to make sure everything was right for the “official frame” a few seconds later. Accidentally, it ended up being my favorite one of the set and used it on their website. The other image without was really great too, but having that slight human interaction made all the difference; especially for a bed and breakfast. Serendipitous.

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Posted by Sacramento Photographer, William Foster.

I happened to be in St. Louis lecturing at a photography conference a few years ago. With plenty of free time and a hotel within walking distance to the Arch, I decided to go make some pictures. There’s hardly a new angle on this American icon, but I wanted some for my collection anyway; after all, my travels to Saint Louis are very few and extremely far between.

I liked this angle a lot since it shows the massive stance of the shining structure. The sun glinting off the top of the arch and the reflectivity of the various panels on the far leg make for an interesting pattern. I thought the overall composition would be even more enhanced by taking out the color and making it a pseudo sepia color.

The most interesting feature of the Saint Louis Arch was not noticed until I was in my hotel room doing a quick edit and playing with the colors and black/white. I noticed on the panel in the shade on the lower right part of the photo, someone etched the name BILL on the structure. Just below it, there’s another etching that looks an awful lot like an F. I hadn’t noticed this when I was making pictures. Maybe it’s the quintessential failure to see the trees for the forest.

Now, I’m very much against vandalism of public property, especially iconic ones like this. Heck, I even get annoyed when people litter cigarette butts, but in this case, I was able to see a little humor to what I was seeing in my photographs. On the other hand, it was disappointing to see just how little regard people have for this and other icons that they feel the need to etch their names, love interests and gang affiliations into them. Bummer.

For anyone who has never taken a few minutes to read the entire text of the Declaration of Independence, it is presented here preserving the original spelling and grammar. This document, carefully and masterfully crafted mostly by Thomas Jefferson represents even to this day a nation which is independent and free. We still owe a debt of gratitude to the original signers who bravely put their names to this document which was one of the cornerstones on which this great country in which we live was built.

In Congress, July 4, 1776
The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

This photo was made using 7 individual exposures. The main index image was metered about halfway between the bright sky and the darker tones of the building models. I have dedicated one of my cameras to making HDR images. I changed several of the settings on my camera to accommodate HDR imaging. Digital Photo Pro has several settings for the camera that lend themselves very well to making HDR photos. For example, expanding auto exposure bracketing to 7 images instead of the default 3. Also, limiting high speed bursts to 7 exposures helps ensure a hand held camera has very little movement between exposures, which limits ghosting.

Camera: Canon 1D Mark II
Lens: 24-70 f2.8 L
Base Exposure: 1/500 f/8
7 exposures set at 2/3 stop increments

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A few years ago, I had the privilege of attending and photographing a visit of Their Royal Highnesses, The Prince of Wales and the Dutchess of Cornwall, to the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. The visit took place on Veterans Day which is in November, but I thought it still apropos to write about it today, Memorial Day.

With many thanks to my friend and mentor, John Harrington, I got to sit with the select number of WWII veterans in the viewing area. After the park docent finished giving them a tour of the memorial, the Royal couple greeted and made conversation with every veteran in attendance. I stayed very close to Prince Charles while he chatted with these men an women who served in the war and listened carefully to their conversations. What impressed me most was the way he talked with the vets. His respect for each of their services and the sacrifices each individual made; some physical, some emotional, but all significant.

Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day and began shortly after the Civil War. It was intended to be a day where the men killed in battle were honored by survivors through the decoration of their graves. Over the years, the theme of Memorial Day seems to evolved into something more like Veterans Day, a blanket recognition of all military personnel.

Memorial Day is an important holiday and each year, we are reminded that without the sacrifices of the men and women who gave their lives for our country, the landscape of the freedom we enjoy today would be very different.

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I received a unique call from an auction house – a nice one. They needed to photograph a collection of fossils that the owner wanted to sell at auction.  The set included very small pieces as well as very large ones including a “slice” of stone containing hundreds of embedded fossils that measured about 8 feet wide. The caveat – it all must be photographed on gray seamless inside the owner’s home in Georgetown. Georgetown homes are not known for their spacious interiors. In fact, we had to set up the seamless parallel to the long dimension of the home because even the widest part of the living area couldn’t accommodate a 9 foot seamless with stands.

Every image had to look great to entice buyers to bid on the pieces. Plus, even the minutest of details had to show through in order for people to see exactly what they were getting. Fossil collectors are a finicky bunch and certain marks or cracks could mean the difference between hundreds of dollars. This ended up being one of my favorite assignments over the years not just because of the unique subject matter, but it was also challenging, but highly rewarding; tiring, but somehow energizing; educational, enlightening and memorable.

The pictured image is of a Hadrosaur skull, quite intact. Note the rows of tiny, flat teeth indicating it was herbivorous.

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For the Hanford House website, the photos had to show details. This image ended up being one of my favorites of the take. The open door showing the detail of the brushed metal fixtures against the dark stained wood. I like the welcoming message it sends with the open door showing the modern furnishings and decor on the inside. The bright room with a modern European feel makes me want to push the door open a little more for a better look.

My goal with the photographs on the website was to give potential guests a glimps that would pique their curiosity. Images like this make you want to see more.

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This image was made for the front page of the website of this bed and breakfast in the Gold Country. The brick building used to be the inn and has ten guestrooms. When the new owners purchased the bed and breakfast in 2008, they immediately set their eyes on purchasing the cottage next door. The two properties are now adjoined and are all part of the Hanford House Inn, but the styles of the two properties are worlds apart.

The brick building is more traditional in the bed and breakfast arena with each room decorated with exquisite antiques and furnishings. The cottage, on the other hand is quite modern and more european feeling. Completely updated throughout, the feel is more like something you’d find in San Francisco or Los Angeles.

The Hanford House Website has plenty more pictures of both buildings if you’re curious. By the way, we didn’t just take the pictures. We built the website.

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posted by: Sacramento Photographer, William Foster

Access to this California coastal treasure involves a short hike down a fairly steep hill. The road is paved, but still steep. A tunnel has been carved in a rock as you near the lighthouse. Finally, before getting to the lighthouse itself, you have to cross a rickety suspension bridge. The bridge is getting a bit long in the tooth, so the volunteer docents keep a watchful eye to monitor bridge traffic. The rule is: no more than two people on the bridge at any time, either direction. As it goes, two people walk from the main rock to the lighthouse, then two may walk from the lighthouse to the main rock. Yeah, it’s slow and there’s a line on each end.

I look at situations like this to be somewhat fortuitous. How else would I have made such a nice shot of the half of my family that waited to cross the bridge?

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Posted by: Sacramento Photographer, William Foster

USS Pampanito with Alcatraz in the background

The USS Pampanito is a diesel/electric submarine used in WWII to patrol the South Pacific. Decommissioned shortly after the war, the sub now serves as a museum permanently moored on San Francisco’s embarcadero.

This photograph was taken about 30 minutes after sunset. White balance was set to account for the low pressure sodium vapor lights on the dock which turned the sky a very dark blue.