'Ben' Franklin Bridge

My hometown of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has numerous bridges that cross into New Jersey. The Ben Franklin Bridge is almost like the polar opposite of the Golden Gate Bridge found in San Francisco. Blue instead of red, short instead of tall, and relatively narrow in comparison, the Ben Franklin is an icon of Philadelphia. While I was visiting some friends in the Philadelphia area, we decided to walk across the bridge, something I had never done in my 21 years living in Philadelphia. I'm glad that we did. I noticed how the pedestrian walkway of the bridge pulls your eye into the frame, while the clouds paint the sky with a gentle texture that contrasts nicely with the cold steel of the bridge

Temple Entrance

Alviso California is a small town at the southern most point of the San Francisco Bay. A small park sits at the north end of town and it's dotted with these little facades that sit out in the marshland. Many local photographers find them interesting subjects, and at any point of the day, there is usually at least one person walking around them with a camera. After a winter storm passed through the area, I drove out to this park with my camera in hand, and captured this scene. To this day it's one of my favorites. The green grass as the base of the image is a rarity, it's almost always golden brown. The above average winter rains had turned it a mild green. The golden brown marsh grass and the mustard yellow facade stand in the middle of the frame, while dark and mysterious storm clouds hover overhead. A magical picture from a place that people don't even know exists.

Walkway

One of my many shots from Alviso, California. The sun was setting and this walkway out to the tidal pools was bathed in a warm orange light. The clouds begin to glow and as the sun set, this miraculous scene unfolded before me.

Clearing Storm over Alviso

As a winter storm cleared over the town of Alviso, California, I headed out to a personal favorite photographic location. The clouds hadn't yet completely broken up, but a blue sky was moving overhead. I quickly setup my tripod and captured this image of one of Alviso's famous marshland fascades, the brown marsh grass, and dark storm clouds over head. I love how the blue sky is breaking through, pushing the storm further east. while the subdued and earthy tones of the marshland lay in wait.

Painted Golden Gate

The Golden Gate Bridge has been photographed billions of times by millions of people. This is one of my favorite images of the bridge. Many people believe it to be a painting, but it's not. This was a single image I took on Baker Beach at sunset. The sun, which was behind the camera, gave the entire scene a rich warm pinkish light. A slightly longer shutter on the camera caused the breaking waves to streak, and gave the image a nice painterly effect. I have the printed on canvas, as the painterly effect really shines when using a real linen canvas to showcase the image.

Into the Void

Few people realize that underneath the Golden Gate Bridge's southern terminus, is a Civil War era US military fort, Fort Point. It's now part of the Golden Gate National Recreational Area, and thus open to the public. The temperature extremes here are massive! It was about 40F when I took this photograph, while the other side of the bridge was baking in nearly 80F sunny weather. I love this image, because it's a view of the Golden Gate I haven't seen before. The iconic towers are hidden behind a dense fog and the roadway extends into an unknown void. It reminds me of the classic noir movies set in San Francisco, and I can almost see Alfred Hitchcock ending a film in a setting like this.

Negative Space

The Golden Gate Bridge is iconic, but trying to find interesting compositions is difficult. Every time I photograph it, I try and do something I haven't done before. This is one of the most successful of those attempts. The clouds had all but obscured the roadway of the bridge. I drove up to the top of the Marin Headlands, to a point where I was almost eye level with the top of the bridge, and took this shot. I love how bridge breaches the clouds, and how the large amount of space over it shows that while the bridge is massive, it's still quite small in the grand scheme of things.

Long Walk Home

An image of mine that I can most closely relate to the style Henri Cartier-Bresson. This was shot from the balcony of a hotel in Spain, early in the morning as a man walked alone on a city street.

Dominance

New York City Artery

Does any city in the world, spark the same sense of awe, possibility, and magic that New York does? I don't think it's even possible. New York conjures images of limitless potential, and I think this black and white image, shot from the roof of the Port Authority building in the Chelsea neighborhood does just that. I'm thrilled that I can share it with you here today.

Flat Iron

Late Night at Times Square

New York City at Dawn

Visiting New York City just before Christmas time, I had a restless night, and was unable to sleep. I was staying at a friends penthouse apartment in Greenwich Village and I decided to watch the sun come up. Unfortunately, low laying clouds prevented that from happening, however the result was even more magical. The purplish hue that blanketed Manhattan made it a morning, and a photograph, to remember.

Gotham

New York City in the middle of summer is perhaps the least ideal time to visit this fabulous place. It's hot, and to me, almost unbearably so. However, when standing on top of 30 Rockefeller Center, I saw a view of New York that I found unique. No giant steel and glass buildings, but stone, brick, and concrete extending as far as the eye could see. It almost felt like a window in New York of years ago. A large 5 foot wide print of this image hung in my living room for years, and the image does New York justice. It's large, grand, and shows the sheer epic nature of New York City in a unique and inspiring way.

Bodie Number 01

Accessible only by a 13 mile (partially unpaved road) Bodie, CA, is one of the best ghost towns in the Western United States. This cabin, to the south end of the town, called out to me. The majestic clouds, and late spring snow, formed a stage that eerily separated it from the remainder of the town. I grabbed this image just as the clouds passed over head, and the resulting image is one that captures the sense of isolation this ghost town embodies.

Grace Cathedral

This modern Church in San Francisco is amazing. The ceiling arches mimic those of traditional more gothic churches, yet they're left bare, with only the structural arch support. The front vestibule of the church opens to a massive labyrinth on the floor, that looks complicated, but offers only a single path directly to the center. From this center position I took this image, showing the outer rims of the labyrinth and the magnificent church before me.

composed

I almost want to know if this location was planned or an accident. The buildings beautifully frame the Manhattan Bridge, which itself frames the distant Empire State Building. I love this image.

Golden Gate Bridge Number 1

First proposed well over a hundred years ago, the Golden Gate Bridge has survived earthquakes, a world war, and countless millions of automobiles crossing its roadway. I captured this image just as the sun was beginning to set over the pacific ocean. It bathed the bridge, the bay, and the grass in front of the camera in a gloriously warm and gentle light. Despite being one of the most photographed objects in the world, the colors and light in this image, make it one of my favorites, and I'm pleased to share it with you today.

Venice in Prague

Prague is a photographers paradise. Hundreds of curving streets that twist through buildings well over a century in age, make up this gorgeous and mysterious city. Walking across the infamous Charles Bridge, I noticed this canal cutting through two sets of buildings. I walked over to this spot and waited for the light to soften. The result was worth the wait. For me this image captures the color, texture, and allure of Prague in a single shot.