Life with Dylan

Category: photography

  • The art of doing nothing

    Everyone needs to do this. The art of doing nothing can do wonders for your mind and body. Take time to relax, take a walk through nature or just hang out and enjoy the beauty that surrounds us.

  • Sunset Sunday – Sharing the beauty

    One of my favorite things about taking pictures of the sunsets is sharing them with others. I also love seeing pictures that my friends take of the sunsets from other places. Don’t get me wrong, Orange County, California has some pretty amazing sunsets, but why not share the beauty of sunsets from all over the world?

    This week’s Sunset Sunday picture is from my friend Katie who also lives in Southern California, but she lives in an area surrounded by mountains and wide open spaces. Katie has the most amazing view of an open field from her kitchen window and captured this beautiful sunset with her phone. What did we ever do before Instagram?

    Do you have a favorite sunset picture that you would like me to feature here? If so, send me your picture and the location it was taken. After all, what good is a beautiful sunset if you can’t share it with others?

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

    *Please only submit pictures you have personally taken and own the rights to.

  • Sunset Sunday – Catalina Island

    One thing I love about the Santa Ana winds is they blow away all the smog. On a clear day like this, Catalina Island appears to be close enough that you can reach out and touch it.

    Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera with me, but I did have my iPhone.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Sunset Sunday – Going Home

    Sometimes it is good to look down instead of up when watching a sunset.

    As the sun sets on another beautiful day in Orange County, a family of ducks swims home to the banks of the bay for the night. 
    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Giraffe lashes are the best

    The best Halloween costumes are those with false lashes, but this girl doesn’t need any.

    Who needs false lashes when you are born with these?

  • Sunset Sunday – Looking Back

    This week I decided to reflect on the beauty that was captured through the lens of my camera over the past 4 months of sunset pictures. One of the items on our family bucket list is to take a picture of the sunset every month for 1 year. So far, we are one-third of the way there.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Sunset Sunday – Changing views

    One of my favorite places to watch the sunset growing up was from the balcony of my parents house. I stood up there many nights as a teenager and couldn’t believe the beauty I was seeing. Unfortunately, over the years the trees have grown taller, houses have been built, and many new office buildings now block what was once a magnificent view of Catalina.

    With a new storm rolling in, what looks like it might be Catalina is actually a layer of fog covering the ocean. It still made for a beautiful sunset though.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Sharing a love of photography through pictures

    One of my favorite things about photography is sharing my pictures with others. If something is beautiful enough for me to pull over, stop my car, and take a photo, then I believe someone else will enjoy it too. I enjoy looking at photographs others have taken.

    Sometimes for inspiration – other times for pure enjoyment of the image. And yes, there are those times when I think I wish I had taken that.

    It has been almost a year now since I started taking photography more seriously. Not just clicking away at random, but looking at my backgrounds, my subjects, and the lighting with an end result in mind. I have recently joined a group of fellow photographers and although we all have different equipment and varying levels of experience, we have a camaraderie when we get together. I love all the knowledge we share and the group support as a whole is amazing. 

    However, I have noticed one thing that we do differ on – How we choose to share our photographs with others. 
    A small percentage of those in the group place a watermark on their photos. I have never watermarked my pictures, but have always gone back and forth with this concept. I understand the purpose of using a watermark, but sometimes feel that it distracts from the actual photograph. Also, if someone is going to “steal” an image, then they will just crop it regardless of a watermark. What it all boils down to is ethics and morals.
    So this brings me back to why I love sharing photographs. If a friend of mine shares a photo on social media platform and I like it, then I want to be able to share it with others – giving proper credit of course. If they took the time to post it, then I would think they are proud of the work and want others to see it. However, I have discovered that not everyone wants their pictures shared in this manner; claiming that it is stealing and promoting copyright infringement. This is something that I don’t understand.
    Why bother taking beautiful photographs and posting them if you don’t want to share them for fear that someone will steal your work? Personally, I am flattered if someone wants to re-post, re-tweet, or share any of my photographs. Giving me credit for taking the photo of course. 
    What are your feelings on sharing your photographs with others?

  • Sunset Sunday – Stormy Skies

    Beautiful sunsets aren’t just found at the end of a summer day …

    Even stormy skies, like the ones we had last week, can give way to a beautiful sunset. The clouds may hide the sun from the horizon, but the reflection of light is still there. It’s all in the way you look at it.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Stop the presses! Rain fell in Southern California

    After what seems like forever, Southern California finally had its first big rainfall of the season.

    I can only think of one thing that gets us Southern Californians talking more than a storm and that is earthquakes.

    You see, we don’t have a very visible change of seasons. We pretty much have blue skies and sunshine year round.

    I’m not complaining about the weather, but you can understand why we get so excited when the rain comes.

    I was in awe of the clouds today and the past few days leading up to the rain. In fact, if you follow me on Instagram you might think that I am a tad bit obsessed with clouds.

    Storm clouds are coming.

    It rained – stormy sunrise
    That’s one big rain cloud!

    We didn’t get tons of rain – but enough to wet the roads, clean the car, and get people talking. Oh, and there was thunder and lightening too! I love the sound of the rain – it totally relaxes me. I’m looking forward to more rain and the bright green hills that the rain leaves behind.

    Beautiful skies over the ocean. The worst was yet to come. 

    Do you like the rain?