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Continue reading →: I admit it, I’m a papparazziThar, she blows! I don’t care if I’m on the dock or in a kayak, and I’ll even pay to see whales in the beautiful Pacific Ocean. I call them the paparazzi boats. Like the photographers who chase stars for the supermarket tabloids, I arm myself with my best equipment,…
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Continue reading →: Calero Reservoir-The Other Silicon ValleyCinnabar, quicksilver or mercury, it is all the same element. The hills to the south of San Jose used to contain a lot it, whatever you decide to call it. Most of the mercury, used to separate gold from the surrounding rock, was mined and sold during the California gold…
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Continue reading →: Postcard from Stuart IslandIt starts at about San Luis Obispo. The desert that meets the Pacific in Southern California and the O.C. gives way to taller trees, the coast line gets tall and hilly, and the fog is blocked by the coastal range; the water gets cooler and the mammals change. By Big…
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Continue reading →: Postcards-Austin, TexasToday’s postcard comes from August 2006. I was in Austin, Texas visiting family and we went over to the University of Texas. It was late August it was hot and compared to California, a bit muggy. We visited the university library (of course I’m a history teacher) and the LBJ…
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Continue reading →: Postcards from Central California
I want to go somewhere: this COVID thing is driving me insane. Like Jimmy Buffett (he shot six holes in his freezer) I think I have cabin fever. Four of the past five years my summer vacation has taken me to Washington state and the Puget Sound. This year I’d…
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Continue reading →: Back to the basics
In its simplest form a camera is elementary. A box, an opening, and light sensitive paper or film. Lens, selectable shutter speeds, aperture control, even focus are not necessary. You can make a simple pinhole camera yourself or buy a kit or even a completed version from many online shops.…
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Continue reading →: The Other Silicon Valley-Grant Ranch PondJoseph Grant was a legislator and person of importance in the 1920’s. He purchased a ranch just outside of San Jose over the hill. The ranch has a pond to irrigate the property and keep the cattle well-watered. For today’s trip I decided to stay off the ranch house and…
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Continue reading →: Three Cameras-So Close and Yet So Far
It was the best of machines; it was the worst of machines. With apologies to Charles Dickens, this week I’m looking at three cameras that look nearly identical. It seems there may be an ideal size camera. There are two distinct parts of the camera market. The first is the…
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Continue reading →: Cowboys in the Other Silicon Valley
In the Silicon Valley right now the IT guys are busy. They’re busy helping us communicate without being in the same room. They’re busy working in teams from home to provide something of value as we are all sequestered in our houses practicing social distancing. Some of the Silicon Valley…
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Continue reading →: Not Powell’s Colorado River
John Wesley Powell defied the myth of the Colorado River’s invincibility and led the first expedition through the Grand Canyon, according to history.net. His bravery and heroism, some might say foolishness and bravado, put him in the middle of Americas exploration of the west. Along with the great migration to…
Hello,
I’m Dave
I’m a retired civics and history teacher and photographer. On this site you can access posts about taking better photographs and visit various places I’ve been.
I also host a monthly live series called History with Dave where I look at important events and issues from the past that might have some relevance to today. History with Dave is a voice over PowerPoint talk.
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Talkin' about the past, photographing the present 