Travel Photo Diary

[JAS_Photo]

Cool set, Antz! I am wondering if the bird is some sort of exotic turkey?

[AntZ]

Cool set, Antz! I am wondering if the bird is some sort of exotic turkey?

Ding Ding Ding we have a winner. It seems to be an Ocellated Turkey. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction

[jude01]

I believe the one you have labeled as a flamingo, is a scarlet ibis

[AntZ]

I believe the one you have labeled as a flamingo, is a scarlet ibis

Another winner I was just checking to see if everyone was paying attention

[AntZ]

Day 4 was our last day in San Diego and was pretty much a free day before we had to drive to LA in the afternoon.

A little bit of Internet research lead us to the USS Midway, a retired aircraft carrier. We ended up spending 4-5 hours climbing all over it. There was a myriad of air crafts from helicopters to fighter jets(my wife a a few Top Gun moments )

There were no absolute stand out shots for the day, but a lot of good ones. I did some selective colour on this one and is probably my fave.

USS Midway by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

From a different angle

Flags on Aft - USS Midway by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The deck

USS Miday Deck by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

This huge statue was next to the Midway. I tried some shot to capture both, but this was the best angle of the statue.

Sailor and His Girl - USS Midway - San Diego by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The Midway was huge (event though its modern counterparts are even larger)

USS Midway-San Diego by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

I also did a photosynth here. I'm still working how to best shoot for photosynths, but I have some cool ones to post later.

[AntZ]

Day 5 and 6 were photographically pretty dull(so I will combine). Partly because we had our only day of rain on the whole trip on the day we went to Universal Studios, and partly because we really were doing the tourist thing.

Driving in LA.
The freeways in San Diego and LA took us a while to get worked out. San Diego only has a population about the same and where we live, but the traffic volumes were 5 times as much. With this I was trying to convey the enormity of LA Freeways.

Three Way Freeway by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

Back lot tour at Universal

IMG_1126.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The Simpson's Ride at Universal was a real surprise.

IMG_1169.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

Cool Sign

IMG_1191.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

Kodak Theatre(where they hold the Oscars)

IMG_1206.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The iconic Hollywood sign. This one I set up on my little gorilla tripod, which is why it appears a little low and lacking a little headroom. I am in the 2nd row on the right.

IMG_1310.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

[kat]

what a wonderful set and family vacation!!

[AntZ]

what a wonderful set and family vacation!!

Thanks Kat.

[AntZ]

So the next 3 days of our trip were spent at Disneyland, and I have to admit it was bigger and more fun than I was expecting. I think we were there at a pretty good time so that the crowds weren't huge. "The Happiest Place on Earth" certainly was joyous the week before Christmas, with carols playing everywhere.

A number of these shots were taken with my Canon s100 which I had finally managed to get my hands on the night before, after a week of struggling to find a store that had not sold out. At some point I'll do a full review, but it was handy to be able to have such a capable camera in such a small package.

The Toy Soldiers in the daily parade.

Toy Soldiers by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

Our kids managed to get a call up to fight Darth Vader

IMG_0530.jpg by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

These guys bailed up a friend of ours and the kids all jumped to her rescue.

Storm Troopers by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The iconic castle all lit up.

O, Sparkly Castle on Yonder Hill by ~AntZ~, on Flickr

The "Its a Small World" ride

Disney - Its a Small World by ~AntZ~, on Flickr
I also did a photosynth of this one here

The Mickey Wheel at night

California Adventure Park at Night by ~AntZ~, on Flickr