Sunday, March 31, 2019

Pales offsetting my deep choices



Opaque whites don't really look right in some contexts: they need to be warmer or cooler, to fit well with adjacent (or opposite) colors nearby...

Color collecting from banal places

Have I written about my color collecting habit yet?

color palette for a patterned carpet

So, I'm a watercolor painter (among many other things), and I'm pretty fussy about my colors.  I've got some construction coming up in my house, and so I've been on a color-collecting bender.  Conveniently, there is an app for that (of course), and I've resumed using it to photograph colors that please me, or even photograph other photos with a charming color, and sample the areas that could do something for me.

While I've found that the colors on my screen differ from the paint chip samples in the store, that is reasonable: screen colors are internally lit, paint chips are reflective - there SHOULD be a difference, even with a color-calibrated monitor.  Also, lighting matters - a color that looks great in natural light may be less satisfying in artificial light, and so it is worth taking samples home to test it out.  Even colors that I like IN REAL LIFE sometimes are annoying in a small room (as I learned while testing colors in my bathroom - a pale green that looked good in a large space made my bathroom feel like an ice-cream-colored closet.

I've got some nice colors going!

Bunching blossoms



Yes, I'm too excited about "saukura season."

Green and unfolding

Cherry time



There is always the sequence: first the purple-leaf plum trees bloom, then the green-leafed ones, and then the single blossom cherries follow weeks later.

(The double-blossom cherries will keep us waiting much longer.)

In this City of Microclimates, not all of the cherries in my neighborhood will bloom at the same time, but it is nice to see these ramping up. :)

Gulled

Nara’s Big Dog evoking dome & spire of City Hall

Nara’s Big Dog



Installed just outside our Asian Art Museum here in San Francisco.

Saturday, March 30, 2019

Wisteria, new growth

Wisteria (in March!)

Early giant echium



My favorite Dr. Seuss-like plant, used extensively along the Bay Trail and throughout the general Oyster Point and Point San Bruno area. :)

Monday, March 25, 2019

Central Valley, Sunday Afternoon (weekend in review)



The sky feels very large in California's Central Valley.

North Bay through a dirty window (weekend in review)



My old fashioned, single-deck Amtrak train didn't have photo-ready windows, but I still enjoyed looking at Marin from the East.  The train has a great path along the shoreline.

Peeking Through the Bridge (weekend in review, cropped image)



The Bay Bridge has GREAT views, but my timing was consistently off while traveling across it on Saturday.  So, every photo from the lower deck has structural members in it.  :-\  I know I'm silly for even trying, but going across in a high up bus provides much better views than from a car, so I got excited.

New Downtown Shapes (weekend in review)

Sky reflector (weekend in review)



This building surprises me every time I see it.  I've had plenty of time to get used to it, yet...

Saturday, March 16, 2019

New Moscone with light-up bridge



Now that LEDs can be programmed to shift color, we want to use those lights everywhere!  This is a nice effect, though.  I stood still for a few moments to watch it cycle through its range.

The original Moscone center had a much lower profile, and was primarily below ground, with a park and windows to allow light in above.  I haven't yet adjusted to the size of the convention center's new massing.

Crisp white camellia

Spring red in my garden


This camellia lost flowers in the storms, and I was worried I would miss enjoying them entirely, but it has gone out of its festive way to impress me.

Saturday, March 9, 2019

Monday, March 4, 2019

Cargo under clouds

Port of Oakland with Cloudy City



I always enjoy seeing the Port of Oakland's many cranes, which inspired Atats in Star Wars.

I'm still getting used to seeing the new tower downtown.

Altamont

Acres of almond blossoms


The central valley has been flooded by almond blossoms in recent weeks, and now they are beginning to carpet the orchards.

Saturday, March 2, 2019

Calm Friday



Dawn skies over a reflective, wide bay are just the thing to charm me before work.
#sanfranciscobay