Tag: light

Learning to dance on a ferry.

A restful day. I spent some time at the Maritime Museum of San Diego.

I sat on the indescribably beautiful passenger deck of the steam ferry Berkeley, reading and writing.

For a while I watched as elegantly dressed folk moved upon the historic ferryboat’s wooden dance floor. In time with sprightly music, they danced on reflected, golden light. The dancers weaved, promenaded, whirled, and gracefully bowed to one another.

After the event had ended, I learned that the Maritime Museum Dancers had been joined by the San Diego Regency Dancers, who are members of the Jane Austen Society.

With great big smiles they were learning a few new steps.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

A few short stories about light in one’s life.

To an ancient person, light is a life-sustaining gift from a distant bright god. To a modern person, light is electromagnetic radiation that can be detected by the eye’s retina. To an artist, light might be some of both . . . and much more.

When I write, I’m never certain what precise thing light represents. In many stories it seems to symbolize a life-sustaining hope, or a radiation of the spirit detected by the heart. It might signal a burning love, living with eyes wide open, or intangible rays from beyond that define life’s shape. A glimpse of ultimate truth. A bright gift that is magical, momentary, precious.

I don’t know. What is light to you?

Following are seven short works of fiction where light is an integral part of the story:

Light at the Edges

The Firefly

One Lone Candle

One Strange, Shimmering Dream

How to Paint Angels

A Dance in the Lightning

Walking on Light

Light and shadow, above and below.

A long walk after work yesterday.

As I came to the pedestrian bridge over Harbor Drive, the late sunlight produced magic. The space through which I walked and the train tracks below appeared dreamlike.

My eyes were fascinated by light and shadow.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Dramatic clouds from atop convention center!

A stormy day today. Dramatic clouds marched across the sky.

After work I climbed to the top of the San Diego Convention Center for a sweeping view.

To the south, the Coronado Bay Bridge and Hilton caught a few late rays from the sun. To the north, magnificent clouds glowed above the Flame of Friendship sculpture and Marriott. In the distance, beams of light touched the bay, making the water shimmer.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

A photographic adventure by the water.

I enjoyed a small photographic adventure yesterday evening.

Walking along the Embarcadero, camera in hand, I gazed out toward San Diego Bay and the descending sun. Occasionally I paused to frame long shadows, glowing clouds, silhouettes and bright reflections on the water.

These photographs represent a segment of my walk from Broadway Pier to the Greatest Generation Walk, just south of the USS Midway.

The exaggerated contrasts in these photos were produced by my camera’s automatic mode. When I shoot into the sun, many of the resulting images can appear very dramatic. And darkly mysterious!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Slowly rising sunlight and a downtown walk.

Sunlight gradually streamed into downtown early this morning. Like clear water, light rose in the long channels of glass and steel.

I wandered for a few minutes around Broadway, near Pacific Highway and Harbor Drive.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Star of India, painted by light and by hand.

The STAR, by artist Marie Huggin.
The STAR, by artist Marie Huggin.

I was drawn to the Star of India today. I sat on a wooden bench of the historic tall ship and gazed out at sailboats gliding across the sparkling water of San Diego Bay.

Finally I stood up and walked about the Star of India’s sunny deck, trying to frame interesting effects of light and shadow with the lens of my camera.

Later, as I walked through the Maritime Museum of San Diego’s other vessels, I halted inside the Compass Gallery of the steam ferry Berkeley. My eyes were held fast by an exhibition of paintings titled Sea and Shore. Many of the canvases, painted by the hands of local artists, all members of the Plein Air Painters Association of San Diego, depict the Star of India.

I thought that contrasting a few of my photos with some of the dreamlike artwork might be fun.

Dozens of pieces in the Compass Gallery are available for purchase! If you’d like to sail through an ocean of beautiful nautical paintings, and perhaps take one home, head downtown to the Maritime Museum of San Diego!

Bert and Wes Working on the STAR, by artist Jeffrey Remmer.
Bert and Wes Working on the STAR, by artist Jeffrey Remmer.

She Rests, by artist Pamela Ingwers.
She Rests, by artist Pamela Ingwers.

Aloft on STAR of INDIA, by artist Norm Daniels.
Aloft on STAR of INDIA, by artist Norm Daniels.

The STAR of INDIA at Sunset, by artist Pamela Ingwers.
The STAR of INDIA at Sunset, by artist Pamela Ingwers.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Splashes of morning light in the city.

As I walked through downtown San Diego early this morning, my eyes climbed up the sides of walls and buildings. They found unexpected splashes of light.

Another adventure in the city!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Photos inside the historic Ohr Shalom building.

On Sunday I enjoyed a tour of the Ohr Shalom building in San Diego’s Bankers Hill neighborhood. The historic 1925 building, acquired by the Ohr Shalom Synagogue in 2002, was one of many sites around the city that were open to the public during the San Diego Architectural Foundation’s 2019 OPEN HOUSE SAN DIEGO.

The Ohr Shalom building was designed by architect William H. Wheeler, who is also known for downtown’s iconic Balboa Theatre building.

According to description provided by the San Diego Architectural Foundation: “With its dominant Moorish-style dome suspended high above an octagonal sanctuary embellished with Middle Eastern decorative motifs, the Synagogue . . . is one of the foremost examples of Mediterranean Revival, an architectural style that caught momentum around the mid-1920s.”

I learned that the synagogue was originally built for Congregation Beth Israel by M. Trepte & Son. It is constructed of steel-framed concrete and hollow clay tile, which was innovative for its time. Inside the sanctuary, which features a free-standing balcony, the lines are clean and simple, and worshipers are touched by light shining through the dome and a variety of stained glass windows and panels. Illustrations in the beautiful glass include the Ten Commandments, the menorah and Star of David, and a depiction of the twelve tribes of Israel.

During our tour we were allowed to stand near the pulpit. We were privileged to view one of the Torah scrolls and hear a sample of its reading.

Here are some photos that provide a feel for what it’s like to enter the Ohr Shalom Synagogue.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

A fine morning walk down Ash Street.

These photos are from early this morning. I pulled out my camera and began walking west down Ash Street from the top of Cortez Hill. I ended near the trolley and railroad tracks, just north of the Santa Fe Depot.

Over the years my blog has shown many of these downtown buildings. Often I provide description. Today I just want to share what it’s like to walk down Ash Street on a clear spring morning.

Here we go…

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!