Thunderheads Over the Sacramento River Delta  LIMITED EDITION OF 100

This dramatic image was taken as the last remnants of a late afternoon thunderstorm passed over Walnut Grove, CA. The air was fresh, a light breeze lingered , and the rays of the setting sun were dramatically reflected in the clouds and horizon over the water. This view is looking west down the Sacramento River from the levee on the east side of the river.

This image is especially powerful on canvas. On canvas, the light from behind the clouds seems to almost naturally glow. As many times as I have seen this, I still get goose bumps and feel like capturing this moment intime was no coincidence.

Limited Edition of 100 prints.
 

24x36 Gicle on Canvas: $375 - unstretched

15x9 image on on 13x19 fine art paper - $90 

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Paintersville Bridge at Dusk

There are a few times during the year when the waters of the Delta become so still that they look like glass. This early evening in October 2004 was one of those times. Look closely and you can see the bridge lights reflected on the water.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Mt. Diablo’s Majesty Reflected in the Quiet Beauty of the Sacramento River Delta  LIMITED EDITION OF 100

The Sacramento River Delta has become an important California wine growing region for premium wine grapes. Vineyards can be seen while driving throughout most of the Delta.

This Spring afternoon provided the opportunity to enjoy this vineyard on the Wilson Ranch near Clarksburg, CA in full spring growth, visually highlighted with the mixture of sky, clouds, sun and shadows that made an ordinary moment such a special one.

Special moments like these are readily available throughout the Delta - all one needs to do is stop long enough to shift your focus from the stress and challenges of daily life and realize the gift of natural beauty the Delta has been blessed with.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Each season of the year in the Delta brings for it’s own unique visual characteristics. I love the first signs of Spring along the banks of the Delta levees, especially after a stormy and foggy winter.

After a few days of springtime sunshine, you begin to see the first green grass emerge along the sides of the levee banks and along the roadways. After about another week passes, you start to see the yellow vegetation of the mustard grass emerge to complete a beautiful painting of greens and yellows like you see along the banks of this stretch of levee on Grand Island.

Catch this view on a calm day, like the day I was able to enjoy this view, and the reflections in the water add a beautiful dimension to this natural painting that is breathtaking in it’s beauty and simplicity,

One of the reason I enjoy scenic photography of the Delta as much as I do is to be able to enjoy these moments “during the moment” and then reflect back on those moments and be able to share them with others to through creating prints like this one.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Sunrises and sunsets are special times in the Delta. When you allow yourself to fully enjoy these moments there are times when you can literally feel the natural beauty and the quiet spirit it conveys making its presence felt around and within you.u

This morning on my way to work was one of those moments, and a special example of the natural Delta beauty we were blessed with.

Feeling that beauty and the quiet sense of inner peace provided me with an inspiring moment I will remember always, especially having this print to remind me of that moment. These feelings stayed with me on my drive in to work that day and helped bring energy and inspiration to my work throughout the day.

There is so much to gain from the natural beauty that surrounds us. I hope sharing this image and the experiences related to it helps remind you of the value of taking time to enjoy the natural beauty around you - wherever you may be.

This is another image that has become a favorite on canvas.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Dawn Embraces the Sacramento River Delta 

This morning was a cold one. But even with the cold, there was a good feeling within as the sun was rising over the horizon. A new day was dawning and you could feel a good energy embracing the Delta that morning. There was a sense that the day would be a good one.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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UFO Cloud Hovers of the Sacramento River Delta

This image captures a rare occurrence of a double anvil” cloud that hovered over the Delta near Clarksburg and stretched over the city of Sacramento as well. It was one of those moments here in the Delta when you find yourself in awe of what nature provides us with on our very door step. It is an art form of a supernatural nature, and I am thankful I had my camera with me on the way home from work this day. Over the past year, many people who have seen this print have told me they remember seeing this cloud and wished they would have had a camera to capture this special moment.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Quiet Fall Afternoon in the Sacramento River Delta  SIGNED EDITION

One of the things I love best about living in the Delta is moments like the one you see in this image, when you are just driving from Point A to Point B, thinking about all the things on your “To Do” list and wondering how you are going to find the time to get them all done, and then a scene like this comes into your conscious view.

It’s nothing special - just “another day in the Delta driving along the levee road”, yet it really is a special moment of calmness and inner peace if you just stop long enough to enjoy it.

It only takes a moment, but the positive effects can be long lasting.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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I grew up in the Delta in the days before the 1,500 ft+ TV towers made their appearances there. Although I enjoyed the view more without them being their, they have now become a classic part of today’s Delta landscape. 

This image, taken at the Cosumnes Preserve near Thornton, CA, highlights the contrast of today’s modern world (the giant TV towers seen as part of the western horizon) and the timeless beauty of the Preserve’s habitat and ponds, reflecting the fiery Delta sunset

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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If you spend time in the Delta during the summers, you know how hot it can get. And you also know how the evening’s Delta breeze can provide such welcome relief from the heat as the long hot day begins to transition to a comfortably cool night.

This image was taking after one of those long hot days in the Delta, shortly after the Delta breeze began to bring its cooling relief.

When I look at this image today, I can still remember how good it felt to cool off - and how striking the combination of cool air and scenic Delta beauty were than night.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Nightfall Settles Over the Grand Island Mansion

The mansion was designed by J.W. Dolliver, the renowned San Francisco architect, in 1917 for Louis Meyers, a native of San Francisco, and his wife, Audrey, daughter of Lubin of the Weinstock Lubin department stores. Meyers, a Delta pear grower, built the house as the centerpiece of his agricultural empire and as a place to entertain his society guests who arrived by riverboat, such as author Erle Stanley Gardiner.

There’s part of me that would have loved to part of life in the Delta during the early 1900’s to see it being shaped and formed as the agricultural and environmental jewel it once was. 
 

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Winter Clouds Over Clarksburg

I’m not sure why, but this print has become one of my best sellers, especially in the Canvas Giclee format. I remember this late afternoon winter day, when I was speeding along the levee road to get home. I was making this drive daily as part of my commute to work, and had never really stopped to pay that much attention to the view captured in this image.

What I remember most about that afternoon were the clouds - they looked so powerful, and I was drawn by their sizes, colors and shapes. A friend of mine who was originally from the mid west told me these clouds reminded him of the days and years he spent there watching clouds that looked very much like these for signs of a forming tornado. Yet that late afternoon there was hardly a breeze blowing, as you can see by the reflections on the calm Sacramento River water that day.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

Canvas Giclee -   $$

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Riverside Elevators - Sacramento River Delta Grain Crop Storage   SIGNED EDITION

This classic California Delta landmark is located in it’s peaceful setting along the orchard-lined banks of the Sacramento River. They say the Ryde Hotel and Event Center is where history meets hospitality - which is a fairly good description for a History 101 sound bite.

(If you’d like to learn more about it, here is the link to the Ryde Hotel web site. I had the opportunity to design develop that web site, and you will see much of my photography there - along with learning a great deal about it’s past and present.)
 

This print, and a similar landscape format, 16x20 Fine Art Collection format print are also best sellers. I think the reason for this, besides both being another one of those exceptionally tranquil and peaceful, quiet Delta moments, is that they also make a great gift for people getting married there or who have gotten married there or celebrated a special event in their lives at the Ryde Hotel and Event center.

ps. Both of our kids work there. Natalie is an Event Coordinator, and Brett tends bar and serves table. If you go there for Sunday Brunch or to a wedding or special event, make sure to look them up and say “HI” from here dad an mom! 

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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I can still remember running down the catwalk of the Rio Vista Bridge, as fast as I could, hoping to catch a shot of the late Fall sun setting over the lone fishing boat left on this popular Delta fishing area along the Sacramento River. 

I was both so nervous and excited as I saw the sun’s reflection moving over the water and nearing the boat - I wanted to catch the image at the precise moment the sun’s reflection passed over the boat - that my hands were shaking.

As you can see, I made it just in the nick of time, and captured what I see as an almost surreal image of a special moment that can very seldom be seen, even here in the Delta.

Capturing an image like this requires split-second timing. I don’t think that happened in this case because of my skill level. I was just beginning my journey into scenic photography then.

 believe it was one of those blessing we receive when we are focused on worthwhile a goal and doing all we can to achieve it - including praying for the help we need beyond ourselves (I was praying all the time I was running down the bridge that I would be able to capture the beauty I saw God creating right before my very eyes!). This invokes a power beyond ourselves that only God can put to work for us.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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This image of the old barn reminds me of the Delta that was - back in the early 1900’s when farming was the major focus of the Delta and horses and men did most of the work done by today’s modern tractors and machinery.

Each farm had it’s own wooden barn with it’s own unique construction and character. Most of these barns are long gone - replaced by modern metal structures that pretty much all look the same.

I find spring days with blue skies and big puffy white clouds a great setting for some relaxed day dreaming. On this day, I had fun imagining what it would have been like to be in this Delta setting 100 years ago.

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Foggy Morning on the Sacramento River

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Sleeping Tree on a Foggy Delta Morning

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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A Day Dreamin’ Day In The Sacramento River Delta   SIGNED EDITION

Steamboat Slough Bridge On A Quiet Fall Morning In The Sacramento River Delta  LIMITED EDITION OF 36

Only 7 Fine Art format prints remain. No longer available in Classic Edition format.

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Isleton Bridge Across The Reflective Sacramento River

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Locke Ranch Fall Panorama

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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Road From The Sacramento River Delta Past

Classic Edition, 15x9 image 13x19 on premium matte paper. $25 unframed

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