Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Palm_Springs


Palm_Springs_06, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

Another shot from the Salton Sea - shot on film with my Hasselblad 203. and the 110f2 lens. I have no idea why the colour went the way it did, but I do like the look...

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Palm_Springs_02


Palm_Springs_02, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

...sort of the quintessential view of Palm Springs - palm trees and the hills behind.

Korakia_02


Korakia_02, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

...another shot from Palm Springs - just a quick grab, as you can see by the horizon...

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Palm_Springs_03


Palm_Springs_03, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

I studied Art History in University - and one thing I spent a lot of time working on was modern architecture - you know, Le Corbusier, Mies Van Der Rohe, Johnson, etc. We looked at all kinds of houses and buildings and I was always taken at how beautiful they looked, especially the ones from Southern California.

Palm Springs, if you can look between the Mesa and the stucco-look buildings, has all kinds of amazing mid-century architecture. This is the facade of one of the (unfortunately, but hardly surprisingly) empty bank buildings on Palm Canyon Drive.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Palm Springs Trees


Palm Trees_02, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

When we were in Palm Springs there was this EPIC wind storm - it must have been blowing 50 or 60 knots - high winds - The palm trees took it surprisingly well, with the exception of the old fronds that blew off - otherwise I don't think I saw a single palm tree blow over. Saw lots of other things blow over, though - trees, awnings, nose cones off of windmills...

Monday, April 20, 2009

Korakia Fountain


Korakia Fountain, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

The fountain at the front of the Korakia Hotel in Palm Springs. It was pretty bright, and I love how the water drops are frozen in time - 1/2000 of a second, I think - pretty amazing from my old Hasselblad 203fe...

Windmills 0029


PS - Windmills 0029, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

...another few windmills.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Windmills 0028


PS - Windmills 0028, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

Some of the many windmills around Palm Springs. I wonder how much energy they generate...

Monday, April 13, 2009

Salton Sea 0073


Salton Sea 0073, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

Another view of the Salton Sea - just at sunset. There is the most amazing light in Southern California...

Salton Sea 0007


Salton Sea 0007, originally uploaded by Alastair Bird.

This was on the Beach of the Salton Sea - well, I use the term 'beach' advisedly. The shore is covered in barnacle shells, with a few fish bones here and there.

It's a strange place, the Salton Sea - I had an idea in my mind that it was going to be some sort of a series of ruins in a most romantic mid-20th century sort of a way. Full of old motels and tumble-down places... It is - in order to get to the beach in Salton City we had to meander down a number of roads, all of which obviously were laid out for the coming real estate boom that never happened... Beach Vista Road; Beach View Road; Beach View Crescent - you get the idea.

...but it's not entirely deserted. There are some newer houses there, some old ones, too. Many of the houses, new and old are deserted, with foreclosure notices in the front windows, and George, who was traveling with us pointed out that most of the people who live around here probably have a gun for protection. It was much more a statement of fact than a commentary on the area - we were a LONG way from any sort of police station or any help whatsoever.

Beautiful place in its decay, but much more sobering and real than I had envisioned...