A day at the races – Infineon Raceway – Sonoma, CA
A co-worker of mine generously gave me her ticket to today’s Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma at Infineon Raceway. This was my first Indy Car race and I had an absolute blast! This unique 12 turn track is a photographer’s paradise… all of my images were taken from general access areas and I did not have credentials (which would’ve gotten me further down along the wall and a few other places around the complex). Got to the track early enough to watch the various pre-race races. In the development race before the Grand Prix, there was a massive crash in turn 2 (7 cars, 4 of which had to be towed). There was a radio broadcast deck over looking the uphill part of the turn and I parked it here for the beginning of the race. Lucky enough, there was a crash in the first lap. This actually helped pole sitter and eventual race winner Dario Franchitti hold the lead for the entire race.
The races and great weather (clear skies with upper 70s) combined to make an excellent day. Definitely need to head back to Sonoma next time NASCAR and IRL come to town.
Gallery of Photos from Indy Grand Prix at Sonoma
20090823 – Indy Grand Prix at Infineon Raceway Sonoma California – Images by Jason O. Watson
Alcatraz Island
Saturday I went to Alcatraz Island (and later Angel Island) with Shannon and hundreds of other tourists on board the ferry from Pier 33 in San Francisco. It was an early morning but an unusually clear and moderately warm day in the Bay Area. I’ve always enjoyed visiting and photographing National Parks and this trip was no exception — the NPS does an exceptional job of presenting the story of the origins of the island as a Civil War military installation, military prison, federal prison, Indian occupied island, and park. 82 year old former Alcatraz guard Frank Heaney was on the dock and gave a brief talk on his experiences working on the island. For me, it was pretty cool to be able to experience and listen to a bit of living history. The self guided walking tour up to the prison was very interesting – as was the audio tour that described the various areas and history of the facility. A great introduction to San Francisco – I learned a lot!
Gallery of Photos from Alcatraz
USA: California: Alcatraz Island – Images by Jason O. Watson
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Shannon took me to Monterey over the weekend and we visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Really cool place – seemed larger than Baltimore – the big difference between the two, IMHO was that Baltimore seems more focused on the diversity of their exhibits where Monterey’s mission is clearly education based. Both are amazing places that are among my favorites places to go… Cannery Row, etc was also fun… was surprised at the quasi-manufactured tourist look/feel of the surrounding shops, etc. Regardless, it’s very nice to be shooting again after a hiatus from moving to California. Used a polarizer on a 16-35mm f/2.8L to cut through the serious glare on the glass… noise ninja helped some with the high iso needed in the dark rooms. Also learned that nearby Castroville is the artichoke center of the world… the entire town smells like artichokes and even the garbage cans have artichoke logos on them. Random trivia.
More images from Monterey Bay Aquarium
USA: California: Monterey Bay Aquarium – Images by Jason O. Watson
