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Thirsty Thursday: Throwback Film Love

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: No. 209 Gin + tonic 

Well, its been awhile since we got our ducks in a row to post on a Thursday. Don't really have a good excuse other than that we've been busy. Nothing big, just lots of little stuff that take away from spending time with the photography blog. So, here we go, with a little throwback because, well, Thursdays. 

Between 2003 and 2007, we were lucky enough to live in Japan. Besides being just a beautiful country with amazing culture and melt-in-your-mouth fresh tuna sushi, its a country that takes its photography very seriously. Back in 2006 when these photos were taken, digital was quickly gaining momentum, but I believed that film was the purest form of photography. I had a Canon 20D, but I loved film. Terry had already embraced digital and was running amok and producing some great imagery with his Rebel, but I still loved my Canon Elan 7e. And when I really wanted to immerse myself in a creative shooting project, I'd take an old fully manual Nikon loaned to me from Terry's mom to get my film fix. Sure I had to wait a week to see the results, but I didn't mind. 

Part of my film love might have been the camera stores in Tokyo. There was one not far away in Tachikawa. They had long refrigerated cases of film, not unlike the dairy aisle in an American grocery store. Kodak, Fuji, Ilford, Agfa, 35mm, 120, negative, slide...it was all there. The Air Force base where we were stationed had a dark room, so I could even play around with my own black and white processing. 

When we left Japan, I no longer had a dark room or massive camera stores with huge film selections. I was busy with grad school, and I upgraded to a Canon 40D as shooting digital was just easier and far more affordable. Without access to a place to browse and buy film, and without a lot of time to shoot creatively, the film cameras sat idle in the camera cabinet. That idleness continued until a little over a year ago when our house was burglarized and both of my film cameras were stolen (and ironically the digital cameras were left untouched). Now I have no film camera and I miss having that option. 

So tonight, a few frames from a ski trip to Zao in Japan. The snow in Japan gets a lot of hype, and I can say that the powdery goodness is definitely worth the hype. The Zao snow monsters are unique, and as you can see I had a little obsession with trees at the time. Especially frosty trees. Sometimes I look back and cringe at my photographic technique (and am happy with the way I have evolved and progressed as a photographer), but I still love how pure these frames captured on film turned out. 

Might have to find myself another film body soon. But in the meantime, I have plenty of digital work to keep me busy! 

Thirsty Thursday: The Sandwich

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Prosecco with Pomegranate Seeds...mmm, pomegranate

This was almost called Tasty Thursday but that would be too much. A couple weeks ago, Terry (aka #culinaryterry) made the most unbelievable sandwich. This is the story of the sandwich. 

The story begins several years ago when Terry found this video about a pastrami sandwich at Duck's Eatery (no really, watch the video). Seriously, for weeks he wouldn't shut up about it. Years later, when we were in New Jersey (note: not the East Village of Manhattan) for a wedding, we nearly missed our flight home in a failed attempt to get this damn pastrami sandwich. 

So imagine how jealous Terry was when I got to indulge in this incredible pastrami sandwich at Duck's Eatery sister deli, Harry & Ida's, during a work trip to NYC in June. And of course I had to 'gram it to rub it in. It was one of those moment when Terry was totally stoked for me and bitter all at the same time. And yes, the sandwich was freakin' phenomenal. 

A few weeks ago, several work colleagues were headed to NYC and all Terry could tell them was to go to Duck's Eatery and have the sandwich. Then he'd show them the video. Most rolled their eyes, but a few were intrigued. And low and behold, his boss somehow brought back, all the way from the East Village, a sandwich-sized portion of Harry & Ida's pastrami in a vacuum-sealed package. Challenge extended, #culinaryterry.

I was, of course, stoked to have the sandwich again, but Terry still hasn't had this sandwich, so he was guessing at how to create it. But he got right to work...

I just love watching him work in the kitchen. His knife skills are incredible, and it makes it all look so easy. 

The details of this pastrami sandwich are critical. The spread is a mixture of mustard, anchovies, herbs, spices, and Meyer lemon juice...all of which he gets to pound together in the mortar and pestle.  

Massey was, of course, interested, too. 

A critical element of the sandwich is the pickle. Terry didn't quite nail the pickle choice, but who can blame him...he hasn't had the sandwich yet. And he made a pretty good choice. 

Then it was almost time for the pastrami. The meat came with some very sparse directions...

It was now time to start slicing that pristine slab of pastrami.

The dog may have been losing patience at this point. It is, after all, just a sandwich. 

Finally it was time for sandwich construction. 

Secret recipe mustard, pickles, dill...that's the magic of this sandwich. That, and a tasty slab of pastrami. 

Yeah, he had to 'gram his culinary handiwork. Who could blame him? That sandwich is a work of art. 

Finally it was time to slice that sandwich in half and dig in. I made him share with me.

It was so yummy. It wasn't the Harry & Ida's sandwich, but it was still sooooo good, nonetheless. I can't wait for Terry to get to Ducks Eatery to have the real thing...but in the mean time, he made a damn good sandwich!

Thirsty Thursday: A Day in Carmel

Thirsty Thursday: Rainy Days in Iceland

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Ancient Peaks Winery Oyster Ridge

Thirsty Thursday here again! Yep, we've missed a few Thirsty Thursday posts, but I finally found some time to do one tonight. I've been playing with Iceland photos and figured it was time to share a few. 

The weather on our first full day in Iceland was pretty miserable. The rain. The wind. I was pretty bummed to be looking at a lot of this as we set out to explore the Snæfellsnes Peninsula.  

But, we're not ones to hide out in the car, so out into the blustery day we went. Terry wasn't sure about taking the big DSLR out, but I still caught him 'grammin'. 

But we kept hiking along the coast and settled in to the grays and blues and yellows of the landscape.

Soon the landscape started showing itself, with nice lines and interesting shapes playing in the gloomy shadows of the rainy day.

Stay tuned for more images when the weather got marginally better. 

Thirsty Thursday: Jokulsarlon

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: St. George Terroir Gin and Tonic

Hey hey hey...I'm finally getting around to posting a Thirsty Thursday. I definitely poured myself a yummy drink tonight. The St. George Terroir gin is one of my favorite. 

But, I digress, you're here for a photo or two. Tonight I'll just share one. Back in May Terry and I took our dream vacation to Iceland. We spent the better part of two weeks cruising around the country in a Dodge Durango in which the back had been converted to a nice sleeping space. We drove where we wanted, took photos, and parked wherever we wanted each night to sleep. The weather wasn't ideal (rainy and windy), but that country is so beautiful, we didn't care. 

I had two things I wanted to see in Iceland. One was Seljalandsfoss, the waterfall you can walk behind. The other was Jokulsarlon, the black sand beach where huge chunks of ice from a nearby glacial lagoon wash ashore. We found both. And they were awesome. 

Here's a photo from our second stop at Jokulsarlon. We camped on this beach, so all I had to do was stumble out of the Durango and into the windy morning light. Interesting Iceland trivia: sunrise in Iceland in May is at about 3:00 am. No joke. Luckily I like early mornings, and this is what I came away with...

I'm already plotting our return to Iceland. It was incredible. In the mean time, I have plenty more photos to help me relive our vacation. 

 

Thirsty Thursday: Moving Water

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: Ice Water

Since we returned from Iceland, we've been stuck in two worlds...as far as photography is concerned. Our beloved Aperture is dead and we are migrating to Lightroom. Our Iceland images are the first of ours to live completely within the Lightroom workflow. While there are many things that Lightroom does better than Aperture, I'll miss its simplicity and the way the image was the highlight of the application. Such is life...adapt and overcome. I only really say this because learning a new tool is time consuming so processing images has slowed to a crawl. We're learning fast, but unlearning years of process and workflow is slow.

So, for tonight, it's just one image from Iceland. One of the many shots of moving water that we captured. More to come soon...promise.

Thirsty Thursday: Roadside Sunset

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: La Marca Prosecco

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I'm knee-deep in editing a wedding we shot last weekend (yay!) so just one photo tonight. 

During my #desertpixelpedal trip I was trying to get from Moab to Zion ahead of a winter storm. I was getting close to the destination and part of me wanted to push through, but I could tell the sunset was shaping up nicely. The pre-frontal clouds were adding a lot of texture to the sky. So, I stopped. And here's what I got.

 Then I hopped back in the car and kept driving. 

It started snowing just as I was unpacking the car at the hotel in Hurricane. Perfect timing. So glad I took the time to stop. 

Thirsty Thursday: Rattlesnake Slot Canyon

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: 2007 Scheid Reserve Chardonnay 

Thirsty Thursday here again, time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Busy time between work and other stuff here at Welliver Photography, so tonight's post is short and sweet. 

A few months back I headed to Page, AZ as part of my self-imposed #desertpixelpedaltrip. I needed a break from work, and when I get time off, I refuse to stay at home. So I went to check out the slot canyons in Arizona. I visited three slots while I was there. Below are a couple from my first slot--Rattlesnake Canyon. For the Antelope Slot Canyons, you have to have a Navajo guide take you; you can't go solo. I lucked out with the tour operator (Adventurous Antelope Canyon Tours) I chose and was the only person to sign up for the Wednesday morning tour. And, it just so happens that Adventurous Antelope is the only tour operator with access to Rattlesnake Slot Canyon, so I had the entire canyon to myself for about 45 minutes. I was lucky. 

Here are a couple shots from this slot. It wasn't a large canyon, and was relatively open, but it was my first taste of the slots. Bucket list location checked off. 

Click here to buy a print.

Click here to purchase a print. 

While I wasn't there at the best time of year for light filtering into the slots, it was still incredible. More to come from these canyons. 

Thirsty Thursday: Coppermine Road

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: 2013 Ancient Peaks Pinot Noir

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Sometimes the best weekend plans involve a road trip, so this week's story is from my recent road trip across the Desert Southwest. 

My first destination on that trip was Page, AZ with the main objectives of checking out Horseshoe Bend and the Antelope Slot Canyons. I arrived with a day to kill before my first canyon tour, and several hours to kill before the good light of sunset at Horseshoe Bend. So, I pulled out the trusty DeLorme Arizona Gazetteer to check out what was around. I noticed a geological feature on the map called "Hole in Rock" not far south of town on Coppermine Road. So off I went. 

I had no idea what this "Hole in the Rock" would look like, but I occasionally stopped to take other photos. There weren't a lot of rocks around to start. 

Eventually the desolate grassland-ish land transitioned to include more cedar trees, but still not a whole lot of rocks, which wasn't boding well for finding this "Hole in the Rock" place. 

Eventually I came to a T-intersection, signaling the end of Coppermine Road. I didn't find the "Hole in Rock" spot. Instead, I found myself in a dusty berg called "The Gap". A place large enough to have a post office, but not much else. 

I went north a bit on Highway 89. The road was dotted with Native American settlements under a towering red rock plateau. 

Eventually road construction forced me to turn around and re-trace my steps, back to The Gap, back up Coppermine Road, and past the unseen Hole in the Rock. But since I had no where to be, I stopped a few times to explore the details in the landscape. 

Just before I got back to Page, I found this vista. In the end, this vista meant I got to take some photos of rocks, which was the original objective. 

Get out there and find your own rocky landscape this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Backyard Guitars

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Junipero G&T...now out of Junipero, time for a new gin to try!

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Astute followers of this news outlet might remember that cool guitar featured in this week's Two Word Tuesday. Well, here's the rest of the story. 

We have some good friends who are getting married in about a month. A couple weeks ago the groom's sister hosted a wedding shower for the happy couple. The shower was really a thinly veiled excuse for us to all get together and drink a lot of wine. And somewhere along the way the guitars came out and we all sang along to familiar tunes in the bright California sun. 

And one in color because, well, strawberry. 

Get out there and enjoy some backyard music this weekend. 

Thirsty Thursday: After the Horseshoe Sunset

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: 2011 Ancient Peaks Jackpot Syrah

Thirsty Thursday here again, time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. We definitely poured a yummy one tonight--perfect wine to go with a Chinese-spiced grilled ribeye. But, on to the photos...

You might remember that this week's Two-Word Tuesday's photo locale was Horseshoe Bend near Page, AZ. Well, after I shot that sunset, there was still a fair amount of light, so I started wandering with the camera. The crowd around the horseshoe overlook was a little much for me, and in my quest for solace and personal time, wandering away from the overlook just felt right. 

I soon found myself drawn to the lines and layers in the rocks, along with the little plants and bushes clinging to the harsh, sandstone surface. 

And then, suddenly it seemed, it was dark. The week I was out and about, Venus and Mars were very close together at twilight just after sunset. So, here's Venus and a barely discernible Mars. 

Hopefully I can find some more fun rocks to shoot this weekend. 


Thirsty Thursday: Big Sur Bikepacking

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Trader Joe's Pomegranate Limeade

Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I just got back from a little overnight solo bikepacking trip to Big Sur. I haven't had much time to go through the images yet from this trip, or from my #desertpixelpedaltrip that just wrapped up, but I pulled these two images from the Big Sur trip as a teaser. I'll write more about and share more photos from this trip very soon!

Here was a camping spot for the night off Plaskett Ridge Road in the Los Padres National Forest. That's Chalk Peak in the background. 

Then I decided to wake up at 3:00 am and capture the stars. 

I'm looking forward to more nights under the stars in Big Sur. Get out there and find your own starry night this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Garland

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2009 Paraiso "Faite" Pinot Noir Clone 115 Santa Lucia Highlands
Background Tunes: Counting Crows - Mrs. Potter's Lullaby

Typically, when we go to Garland Park, we run to the top. It's grueling for about 30 minutes on the way up (it's pretty steep) and terrifying for about 15 minutes on the way back down (again, it's pretty steep). But this day we didn't make it to the top...we just hiked around somewhere in the middle. Garland is obviously one of Massey's favorite places (and yes she willingly models for us). I think looking at all this pics in order is kind of cool (even the accidental one of the blue sky before we got in the car). Perhaps this weekend or next we'll opt for the run.

Thirsty Thursday: Rain Day!

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Irony 2011 Small Lot Reserve Merlot

Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Exciting times around here, as it might actually rain this weekend! The rain dancing has paid off! After suffering through the driest January ever in the Monterey and SF Bay areas, and that after posting driest year ever for most of California in 2014, we are definitely excited to have an entire weekend washed out by a big ol' Pineapple Express.  

We actually had an atmospheric river set up nicely in December to provide us with some much needed rain. The rain felt like such a novelty that I captured these photos from the back step during the first few hours of the event. A little sun and some raindrops make for some fun play time with the camera. 

I look forward to enjoying more raindrops this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Goodbye

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2011 Ancient Peaks Oyster Ridge

She was a fireball to the end...she even had to have a little more ice cream before she passed. Goodbye Grandma. Thanks for everything and much love. You will be missed.

Thirsty Thursday: Elements of Garland Ranch

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Junipero Gin and Tonic

Another Thirsty Thursday means its time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. One of our favorite local spots to hit up for a trail run or a leisurely hike on the weekends is Garland Ranch Regional Park. Its a lovely off-leash location, so Massey can run around (and get covered in poison oak) while we either run up the crazy Skyline climb, or wander around with our cameras. 

We went to Garland a few weeks ago on a beautiful, coastal California winter day. Our winter days are pretty fabulous. Here are a few of the little bits of nature I found during our stroll. 

Get out there and find your own bits of nature this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: New Year Stars

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Newman's Limeade

Thirsty Thursday here again. Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. After a fantastic dinner at our favorite place, I decided to go try to shoot some stars to bring in the New Year. Terry has a sore foot, so I set out on my own at Ft Ord...just me, my camera, my headlamp, and a warm down jacket! 

We get very few crispy clear nights around here, due to our close proximity to the ocean. We also live between Monterey and Salinas, both of which produce plenty of light pollution. But, because it was so clear (and cold), I figured it was a good night to try to shoot some stars. There was also a bright moon, which would help illuminate the the foreground.

My first thought was star trails, but I didn't feel like staying out there that long by myself. So I just did a few long exposures near a couple of my favorite Ft Ord trees. I haven't had much luck with star photography in the past, so my expectations were low. So, if you weren't looking at the stars at midnight last night, here's what they looked like. 

The brightest star in the above image isn't a star at all...its Jupiter! The moon really illuminated this scene. Local mountain bikers should recognize that trail! 

I was really happy to get Orion and this tree in the same frame. 

Looking forward to more night sky experimentation...and hopefully something to share on future Thirsty Thursdays. 

Thirsty Thursday: Ft Ord Stroll

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Newman's Limeade

Yep, its Friday, not Thursday. Ooops! We didn't get a Thirsty Thursday posted last night. In fact, it seems its been a few weeks since we've posted our regular Thursday evening babbles and pixels. We've been a bit busy, but hopefully things will settle down soon! 

Back in October, when we still had the luxury of getting home from work before dark (darn daylight savings time change), we hopped over to Ft Ord with our new cameras to play around a bit. Our old cameras were stolen earlier this fall, and we both dearly missed our camera time while we waited through the replacement process. While the location was a spot we hit up a couple times a week (the dog has to run!), we enjoyed having cameras in hand, daylight, cool clouds, and watching a dog that loves her open space just as much as her owners. 

Hopefully we'll have a few less clouds than we've had the last few days to get out and enjoy this weekend.