A cormorant speeds home to its nest in the La Jolla seacliffs, flying just above the waves. Shot long before sunrise, this image is blurred from the long time the shutter was open.
Phil CollaJanuary 1, 2014
I once shot photographs of waves by the light of phytoplankton during a major red tide event. That worked out pretty well, although it was pushing the cameras to the limits of what they could record. However, this time I'm not sure what I was thinking: I got up at…
Phil CollaDecember 18, 2013
When I was a kid growing up in Newport Beach, we would often visit Little Corona beach and see tons of black abalone. They would be clinging to the rocks, and empty ab shells would be hidden in the all the tidepools and pockets of water. The abalone are long…
Phil CollaDecember 17, 2013
Seal Rock, a short distance offshore of Crescent Bay in Laguna Beach, is typically covered with many cormorants and at least a few California sea lions. I've made a number of dives at Seal Rock but had never made any effort to photograph it topside. Garry McCarthy and I did…
Phil CollaDecember 16, 2013
When I grew up in Newport Beach, I spent a lot of time at "Big Corona", aka, Corona Del Mar State Beach. Because this is a great place to take the kids, bodyboard and kick back in the sun, this beach gets crowded. Yachts sail by in and out of…
Phil CollaDecember 15, 2013
This was the scene that greeted my camera on a recently cold winter morning, as dawn crept in from the east and the nighttime lights of downtown San Diego gave way to morning. Cheers and thanks for looking! Sunrise over the San Diego City Skyline Image ID: 28858 Location: San…
Phil CollaDecember 14, 2013
Scuba Diver Korea is one beautiful diving magazine! The print quality is excellent and each thick issue is as heavy as a brick. I was recently introduced to Scuba Diver Korea by Kevin Lee. Kevin, a top marine photographer who has photographed underwater on all seven continents, kindly introduced me…
Phil CollaDecember 13, 2013
One of my favorite times to photograph in La Jolla is when night is just transitioning to dawn. Sunrise is till 45 minutes or an hour away. In December it can be chilly at this hour, but it is also quiet and, usually, still. The only people I see are…
Phil CollaDecember 11, 2013
The Owens Valley is home to a variety of radio telescopes. This particular radio telescope, photographed with the Milky Way galaxy rising above it in the night sky, is part of the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), a system of ten widely spaced radio telescopes that make certain forms of…
Phil CollaDecember 9, 2013
I arrived very early one morning at one of my favorite spots from which to photograph America's Finest City, only to find the sky engulfed with thick storm clouds. However, as my eyes adjusted to the dark and I could see the pastel colors that spread outward from the city…
Phil CollaDecember 8, 2013
The Milky Way Galaxy rises in the night sky over the Sierra Nevada, with the Sky Rock Petroglyph panel in the foreground. I'm sure the original creator of this remarkable set of petroglyphs -- considered by some to be the finest petroglyph panel in the world -- had even darker…
Phil CollaDecember 6, 2013
Pauma Valley at night, viewed from atop Mount Palomar, with the full moon and stars high above. This high resolution panoramic image will print up to 100" wide -- Prints available! Cheers and thanks for looking! Moon and Stars over Pauma Valley, viewed from Palomar Mountain State Park Image ID:…
Phil CollaOctober 31, 2013
In this single image (not a composite), made with a special combination of low-light camera and extremely fast lens to best capture the details and colors of the gas areas of the Milky Way, our galaxy rises in the night sky over Mount Rainier. A few specks of light can…
Phil CollaSeptember 5, 2013
Crater Lake National Park is the most panorama-ready national park I have ever visited. The vistas are sweeping from the rim of the extinct volcano's caldera, encompassing a six-mile wide lake. I have made two short visits to Crater Lake National Park, and spent most of my time composing panoramic…
Phil CollaAugust 28, 2013
On my recent trip to Mount Rainier National Park, I had one particular image in mind, and I managed to achieve something very close to what I envisioned with this photograph. Seen here is the northeast side of Mount Rainier, with star trails in the sky and climbers' lights tracing…
Phil CollaAugust 23, 2013
San Diego City Skyline at Sunset with a Rare Blue Moon Tonight I was fortunate to photograph a rare "blue moon" rising at sunset over San Diego's beautiful city skyline. This view is from Harbor Island looking across San Diego Bay toward the downtown waterfront. Tonight's full moon is indeed…
Phil CollaAugust 20, 2013
Perseid Meteor Shower, Milky Way, Half Dome and Yosemite National Park I spent two evenings at Glacier Point during the peak of the 2013 Perseid Meteor Shower, hoping to capture my first photographs of meteors. I have a few landscape astrophotography images that have chance meteors recorded in them, but…
Phil CollaAugust 14, 2013
Photographing Zodiacal Light over Yosemite National Park August 11-12 was near peak viewing for the 2013 Perseid meteor shower, and many people including myself were viewing the show from Yosemite's Glacier Point all evening long. However, because the moon was nearly new and it was late summer, I knew there…
Phil CollaAugust 13, 2013
Mount Rainier is reflected in the perfectly still, calm waters of Reflection Lake, in the southern part of Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. This enormous panoramic photo will print up to 6' tall by 15' wide at full resolution. If you think this image would look good on the wall…
Phil CollaAugust 8, 2013
Night Photo of Owachomo Bridge and the Milky Way After making the long drive to Natural Bridges National Monument, we arrived in time to enjoy a colorful sunset and eat some dinner while waiting for the sky to become dark enough for us to begin our photography. The weather was…
Phil CollaJuly 22, 2013
Astrophotography and Night Photography at the Wave, North Coyote Buttes The Wave, a fantastic area of ancient, stone-frozen sand dunes and tortured rock, is a real favorite of mine. Among photographers it is both something of a Mecca as well as a cliche. There are quite a few photographers who…
Phil CollaJuly 16, 2013
Sky Rock and Moonlight, Bishop, California. (See also my photograph of Sky Rock at Dawn, Bishop, California and a gallery of other Sky Rock Petroglyph photos.) The Sky Rock Petroglyphs sit atop of an enormous volcanic block. The petroglyphs — dozens of them in many shapes and forms — face…
Phil CollaJune 26, 2013
This is the best image I made during a May trip through the White Mountains and Tioga Pass. I set out to find new, photogenic ancient bristlecone pine trees, something other than the two iconic brutes along the Discovery Trail near Schulman Grove and the oft-photographed leaner near the Patriarch…
Phil CollaJune 25, 2013
The Watchman is one of the iconic landmarks in Zion National Park, such that throngs of photographers line the bridge each fall at sunset to photograph the Watchman with the Virgin River and autumn trees in front of it. We elected for a much different image, one with the Milky…
Phil CollaJune 23, 2013
Milky Way Galaxy, Live Oak and Rocks, Joshua Tree National Park at Night I have spent many evenings photographing the landscape and night sky at Joshua Tree National Park. The terrain is harsh and there are few trees other than Yucca and Joshua Tree. I did find one attractive live…
Phil CollaMay 9, 2013
The Milky Way and Stars at Night over the Fire Wave in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada The Fire Wave in Valley of Fire: an interesting striped expanse of sandstone, now commonly photographed. I wanted to make some uncommon images of the Fire Wave, so I set up my…
Phil CollaApril 30, 2013
Joshua Tree National Park, Milky Way and Moon, Shooting Star, Comet Panstarrs, Impending Dawn. This panorama of Joshua Tree National Park was made at astronomical twilight during International Dark Sky Week recently (last week). Some slight blue color from the impending dawn appears behind and to the left of the…
Phil CollaApril 18, 2013
This great white shark photo (Carcharodon carcharias) was shot under dark skies, in early morning. These are tough conditions to shoot underwater with only available light. I prefer to shoot without strobes whenever possible but in the days of film this particular morning would have required I use artificial lights.…
Phil CollaApril 15, 2013
Open Ocean Panoramic Photograph I've spent a lot of time on the open ocean, in small boats, looking for big creatures. Some of the best days of my life have been spent on a glassy ocean surface, traveling one hundred miles or more under blue skies and summer breezes, waiting…
Phil CollaApril 13, 2013
"Times of Time" was a coffee table-type book, a collaborative product of the Jaeger-LeCoutre Watch Company, the United Nations, the World Heritage Centre and the International Herald Tribune, focusing on ocean issues. My photo of a newborn gray whale calf, photographed 17 years ago offshore of Point Lobos / Big…
Phil CollaFebruary 13, 2013
Aerial photographs of Coronado, California, including Coronado Island, the Hotel del Coronado, and the San Diego Coronado Bay Bridge. These five Coronado Aerial Photographs are just a selection. If you like them, please be sure to see also my full collection of Coronado Aerial Photos and a gallery of San…
Phil CollaFebruary 12, 2013
Some of my most profitable images are landscape panoramic photos, selected for large reproduction in office lobbies, museums or sometimes private homes. With the current generation of extremely sharp lenses and very high resolution sensors, and advances in photo processing software and hardware, it is straightforward to make enormous, high…
Phil CollaFebruary 5, 2013
This image is also featured on my Landscape Astrophotography website: Delicate Arch at Night, Milky Way and Shooting Star, Arches National Park, Utah This is spectacular Delicate Arch, the most iconic and popular of the arches in Arches National Park in Utah. Looking back on 2012 I realize I made…
Phil CollaJanuary 13, 2013
New: check out my website for Landscape Astrophotography! What is Landscape Astrophotography? Here is my take on it! Landscape Astrophotography is the discipline of photographing scenes that include both astronomical elements and terrestrial landscape elements. The motivation for landscape astrophotography is a desire to depict the night sky, including stars,…
Phil CollaJanuary 10, 2013
San Diego City Skyline Night Photograph with Star Trails I met friend and photographer Garry McCarthy at 0-dark-30 yesterday morning, with the goal of photographing the downtown San Diego city skyline with star trails circling above. Exceptionally clear skies are required for this sort of photograph since any moisture or…
Phil CollaJanuary 6, 2013
Best Photos of 2012 - My Photography Year in Review It is time to post my annual "Favorite Photos of the Year", as I have since 2007. This year I added fewer than 1000 new images to my stock photography collection, but included in that paltry number are some real…
Phil CollaDecember 31, 2012
Sky Rock Petroglyph and the Milky Way Galaxy, Bishop, California This image has been a goal of mine for some years. Ever since I first saw Sky Rock in person, and realized how fully its skyward gaze ties it -- and its visionary creator of many centuries ago -- to…
Phil CollaNovember 28, 2012
False Kiva Photo, Sunset Canyonlands National Park, Utah One afternoon in Canyonlands National Park I came up with an ambitious plan: to hike to False Kiva on the edge of the Island in the Sky mesa, photograph the dusk and early evening there, hike out and then shoot Mesa Arch…
Phil CollaOctober 16, 2012
Delicate Arch at Night, Milky Way and Stars Overhead. Arches National Park, Utah. I spent a wonderful evening photographing Delicate Arch in Arches National Park. It was warm and dry, with a clear star-filled sky overhead and just a speck of breeze. I photographed Delicate Arch and the moon at…
Phil CollaOctober 15, 2012
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