2008 March, Natural History Photography Blog

Photo of the Bellagio Fountains and the Eiffel Tower

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 36° 6' 43.94" N, Longitude: 115° 10' 28.68" W, Coord: 36.112208°, -115.17464°
Filed under: Las Vegas, Nevada on 3/31/2008

Here is another view of the Bellagio Hotel fountains, this time with the Paris Hotel’s half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower (yet another Las Vegas landmark) in the background. Bally’s is just seen on the left, and the Planet Hollywood Hotel is on the right.

The Bellagio Hotel fountains light up the reflection pool as the half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas rises above them, at night.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20559, all rights reserved worldwide.
The Bellagio Hotel fountains light up the reflection pool as the half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas rises above them, at night. Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Image: 20559  
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

More photos of Las Vegas at night.

Photo of the Bellagio Hotel Fountains

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 36° 6' 46.5" N, Longitude: 115° 10' 23.9" W, Coord: 36.112919°, -115.17331°
Filed under: Las Vegas, Nevada on 3/30/2008

One of my favorite attractions in Las Vegas doesn’t cost any money: the superb Bellagio Hotel fountain show in the reflecting pool in front of the Bellagio Hotel on the Strip. Choreographed to music, punctuated with bright lights and showing frequently throughout the day and night, the fountain show is a hit and — a rarity in Vegas — is totally free.

The Bellagio Hotel fountains, at night.  The Bellagio Hotel fountains are one of the most popular attractions in Las Vegas, showing every half hour or so throughout the day, choreographed to famous Hollywood music.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20557, all rights reserved worldwide.
The Bellagio Hotel fountains, at night. The Bellagio Hotel fountains are one of the most popular attractions in Las Vegas, showing every half hour or so throughout the day, choreographed to famous Hollywood music. Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Image: 20557  
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

More photos of Las Vegas at night.

Las Vegas Blvd, 3am

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 36° 6' 41.64" N, Longitude: 115° 10' 23.64" W, Coord: 36.111567°, -115.17324°
Filed under: Las Vegas, Nevada on 3/29/2008

View from a taxicab after a hard night on the Las Vegas Strip, trying to figure out whether to hit another club, bar, casino or just call it a night.

 Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20566, all rights reserved worldwide.
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Image: 20566  
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

More photos of Las Vegas at night.

Photo of California Poppy

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 2' 42.48" N, Longitude: 117° 8' 12.6" W, Coord: 33.045136°, -117.13684°
Filed under: San Diego, Wildflowers on 3/14/2008

Here are a few more photos of California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) near Del Dios, California. I got lucky with the weather, with lots of sun and blue skies the day I shot these. Now we have leaden gray skies and its supposed to be windy and cold this weekend.

California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20497, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20497  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20541, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20541  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

See lots more California poppy photos as well as photos of Eschscholzia californica.

Photos of Eschscholzia californica

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 2' 42.48" N, Longitude: 117° 8' 12.6" W, Coord: 33.045136°, -117.13684°
Filed under: San Diego, Wildflowers on 3/13/2008

This field of dreams is a literal carpet of California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) on the hillsides above Lake Hodges in Del Dios, California. In October this hill was ablaze with the Witch Creek wildfire, one of the worst fires southern California has experienced. Five months later it is ablaze again with the wild orange and yellow hues of California poppies. Stunning.

California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20499, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20499  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

See lots more California poppy photos as well as photos of Eschscholzia californica.

Photos of the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 30' 39.54" N, Longitude: 117° 16' 57.74" W, Coord: 33.510986°, -117.28271°
Filed under: Photo of the Day on 3/12/2008

We went for an easy hike at the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve in Murrieta on Sunday. We hit the reserve shortly after sunrise to be there before the crowds and to give the poppies in Elsinore, which we would see later in the morning, some time to warm in the sun and open up. Mike took me to his secret spot where chocolate lilies (Fritillaria biflora) are blooming. We saw lots of them, it was quite a display. Indeed, they look like chocolate. I was more interested in the oaks along the trail, they are bigger so I don’t have to blowout my knees crouching down to photograph them like I would with the lilies. Backlit as they were by the morning sun, the oaks were so contrasty that I had to resort to the old HDR multi-exposure technique to make them look reasonable.

Oak tree and dirt walking path.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20531, all rights reserved worldwide.
Oak tree and dirt walking path. Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA.
Image: 20531  
Location: Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
Oak tree and dirt walking path.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20532, all rights reserved worldwide.
Oak tree and dirt walking path. Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA.
Image: 20532  
Location: Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
Oak tree and pastoral rolling grass-covered hills.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20538, all rights reserved worldwide.
Oak tree and pastoral rolling grass-covered hills. Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA.
Image: 20538  
Location: Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, Murrieta, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

California Poppies — Bug’s Eye View

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 2' 42.34" N, Longitude: 117° 8' 13.94" W, Coord: 33.045097°, -117.13721°
Filed under: San Diego, Wildflowers on 3/11/2008

More California poppy (Eschscholzia californica) madness. These were shot with a super-turbo-customized tilt-shift-micro-bugeye lens I just received from Canon Covert Services.

California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20539, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20539  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20540, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20540  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Photos of Elsinore Poppies

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 43' 56.87" N, Longitude: 117° 22' 49.14" W, Coord: 33.732464°, -117.38032°
Filed under: Wildflowers on 3/9/2008

Last week I spent a few hours photographing the California poppy blooms close to home. Today I got out with a friend and we hiked around the Santa Rosa Plateau and the hills around I-15 in Elsinore, looking for good stuff to photograph. These California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) are from today near Lake Elsinore, high in the hills above I-15:

California poppies bloom amidst rock boulders., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20520, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies bloom amidst rock boulders. Elsinore, California, USA.
Image: 20520  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Elsinore, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
A photographer trains his camera on a bright orange bloom of California poppies., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20504, all rights reserved worldwide.
A photographer trains his camera on a bright orange bloom of California poppies. Elsinore, California, USA.
Image: 20504  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Elsinore, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 
California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20505, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppy plants viewed from the perspective of a bug walking below the bright orange blooms. Elsinore, California, USA.
Image: 20505  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Elsinore, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Poppy Explosion

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 2' 37.82" N, Longitude: 117° 8' 7.45" W, Coord: 33.043839°, -117.1354°
Filed under: San Diego, Wildflowers on 3/6/2008

You spins the zoom ring and you takes your chances:

California poppies in a blend of rich orange color, blurred by a time exposure., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20506, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies in a blend of rich orange color, blurred by a time exposure. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20506  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Photos of Poppies in San Diego

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 2' 37.82" N, Longitude: 117° 8' 7.45" W, Coord: 33.043839°, -117.1354°
Filed under: California, Photo of the Day, San Diego on 3/5/2008

California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) have been blooming all over the place in the San Diego area, courtesy of the terrible wildfires last fall and the perfectly spaced rainfall of the last two months. Here is a hillside that was burnt in October, now coming alive with spring color. My friend turned me on to this little spot.

California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires., Eschscholzia californica,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20490, all rights reserved worldwide.
California poppies cover the hillsides in bright orange, just months after the area was devastated by wildfires. Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA.
Image: 20490  
Species: Eschscholzia californica
Location: Del Dios, San Diego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Photo of Dune Evening Primrose

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 17' 47.79" N, Longitude: 116° 18' 8.1" W, Coord: 33.296611°, -116.30225°
Filed under: California, Desert, Wildflowers on 3/4/2008

My favorite desert flower to photograph is the dune evening primrose (Oenothera deltoides). It is so elegant and striking that even a blind monkey with a broken camera can get a good shot of this flower. I’ve seen them in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park during years of good spring bloom, this year being one of them. This from Sunday morning:

Dune primrose (white) and sand verbena (purple) bloom in spring in Anza Borrego Desert State Park, mixing in a rich display of desert color.  Anza Borrego Desert State Park., Oenothera deltoides, Abronia villosa,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20464, all rights reserved worldwide.
Dune primrose (white) and sand verbena (purple) bloom in spring in Anza Borrego Desert State Park, mixing in a rich display of desert color. Anza Borrego Desert State Park. Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Anza Borrego, California, USA.
Image: 20464  
Species: Oenothera deltoides, Abronia villosa
Location: Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Anza Borrego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Found throughout the Mojave, Sonoran and Great Basin deserts of the southwest, dune evening primrose forms a soft white four-petal flower with yellow center, sometimes turning pink or light brown as they age. Dune evening primrose grows in clusters, often mixed with sand verbena. Coyote Canyon in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is chock full of dune evening primrose right now.

Photos of Anza-Borrego Desert Wildflowers

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 18' 2.86" N, Longitude: 116° 19' 12.33" W, Coord: 33.300797°, -116.32009°
Filed under: California, Desert, Wildflowers on 3/3/2008

I got out for a quick look at some wildflowers at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park on Sunday morning. I got out there at 6am just as the sun was rising, and by 8am the light had grown so harsh I put my camera away and just hiked around. The bloom is definitely on and will be going for a few weeks I think. My guess is that it will be good but not great, at least not surpassing the bloom of a few (was it three?) springs ago, but at least it is better than the poor showings we had the last two years. One thing I noticed was a huge abundance of desert lilies. In one area I hiked, I had a hard time finding a place to step without smashing small desert lilies, they were everywhere. The cluster shown here, composed of white dune evening primrose and purple sand verbena, is literally inches from Henderson Canyon Road.

Dune primrose (white) and sand verbena (purple) bloom in spring in Anza Borrego Desert State Park, mixing in a rich display of desert color.  Anza Borrego Desert State Park., Oenothera deltoides, Abronia villosa,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20466, all rights reserved worldwide.
Dune primrose (white) and sand verbena (purple) bloom in spring in Anza Borrego Desert State Park, mixing in a rich display of desert color. Anza Borrego Desert State Park. Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Anza Borrego, California, USA.
Image: 20466  
Species: Oenothera deltoides, Abronia villosa
Location: Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Anza Borrego, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Speeding Cormorant

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 32° 51' 0.46" N, Longitude: 117° 16' 12.96" W, Coord: 32.850128°, -117.27027°
Filed under: California, La Jolla, Photo of the Day on 3/2/2008

This is a photograph of a cormorant speeding over the ocean, viewed from above. Taken in pre-dawn light, the slow shutter speed of the camera allowed the details of the bird and water to smear across the image.

Double-crested cormorants in flight at sunrise, long exposure produces a blurred motion., Phalacrocorax auritus,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20460, all rights reserved worldwide.
Double-crested cormorants in flight at sunrise, long exposure produces a blurred motion. La Jolla, California, USA.
Image: 20460  
Species: Phalacrocorax auritus
Location: La Jolla, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

Palm Tree Farm

View This Blog Post in Google Earth (How Cool Is That?)  View this blog entry in Google Earth
Latitude: 33° 18' 4.38" N, Longitude: 116° 20' 27.98" W, Coord: 33.301219°, -116.34111°
Filed under: Photo of the Day on 3/1/2008

I wandered around a palm tree farm in the desert, feeling like I was amid some kind of midget forest. The palm fronds were just above my head, and the ground was covered in thick fuzz and trimmings from the trees. Due to the wide lens I used, these trees look a lot taller than they really are.

Palm trees on a tree farm, looking like a forest of palms.,  Copyright Phillip Colla, image #20475, all rights reserved worldwide.
Palm trees on a tree farm, looking like a forest of palms. Borrego Springs, California, USA.
Image: 20475  
Location: Borrego Springs, California, USA
Click To View This Location in Google Earth.  You must have Google Earth installed for this feature to work correctly. View this Image in Google Earth!

 

HOME | Online Image Search | Photo of the Day | Contact / Bio | Licensing/Pricing | Prints | Stock List | Image Hierarchy | List of Log Entries | Site Map | Blue Whale | Cetaceans | Pinnipeds | Sharks | Rays | Fishes | Kelp Forest | Sea Birds | Inverts | Man & Animal | Man & Ocean | Ocean & Light | Ocean & Motion | Portraits | About Color and Monitor Calibration | Copyright Statement | All text and photographs copyright © Phillip Colla Natural History Photography   All rights reserved worldwide. The content of this site is made available for purposes of researching images offered for license by Phillip Colla Natural History Photography.  No image is to be copied, duplicated, modified or redistributed in whole or part without the prior written permission of Phillip Colla Natural History Photography.  Whale logo is a trademark of Phillip Colla Natural History Photography, 8021 Paseo Arrayan, Carlsbad, CA 92009, USA.  760.707.7153  Email: oceanlight@OceanLight.com    Web: www.OceanLight.com      Portfolios: www.Gygis.com

Updated: May 21, 2013