The parents of one of Katie Rose’s buddies at pre-school are architects who  just bought a classical Berkeley shingle house from the early 1900s. In recent years this grand house has suffered from neglect, and been used as a boarding house. So it’s a good thing that the new owners are architects who know what [...] Related posts:

Are you what you photograph? They say, “You are what you eat.” In a certain simplisitic sense this is obviously true. Therefore, if you photograph what you eat then you are what you photograph—as in the case of the leek I photographed below in cross section that became a flavorful part of our dinner soup. [...] Related posts:

On Christmas Day I calculated that from the summit of Wildcat Peak the sun would set directly behind the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge. This seemed like a great excuse for hiking off some excess holiday indulgence, so in the afternoon I grabbed Julian (my oldest son) and we made for the Inspiration Point trailhead [...] Related posts:

The eye believes what it thinks it sees. This allows us to enjoy magic shows, movies, and two-dimensional art such as painting and photography. Any two-dimensional representation of three dimensions is of course an illusion. Problems begin when the brain gets into the act. The brain thinks it is the smart one, and doesn’t like [...] No related posts.

We’ve had a spate of minor—but surprisingly expensive—plumbing repairs recently. I took advantage of one of these to shoot our new kitchen faucet with my 200mm macro lens. Who knew I’d end up with a self-portrait? Probably all artists have some degree of narcissism, although I do try to keep mine in check. The kids [...]

According to a recent New York Times article, scientific studies have shown that expressing gratitude can improve one’s health and lead to less anxiety and depression. Also, as the article puts it, a “new study shows that feeling grateful makes people less likely to turn aggressive when provoked, which helps explain why so many brothers-in-law survive [...]