Dick Estel's Photo Albums

      

Slide Show Menu          Photo  Albums

Check back frequently to see what's been added; eventually there
should be a slide show for nearly every photo page listed below

   

Please enjoy these photos, share them with friends and family, but do not violate copyright laws by using them for commercial purposes. Click on the links below to open the full album. Click here for commentary about specific photos, and here for camera information. Click here for sample photos. In that section, scroll down to see more samples. Click here for other links. Click here to report non-working links or other problems.

      
Albums
Animals
Arizona Photos

Artifacts 1
: Gas & Steam Engine Museum, Other Stuff
Artifacts 2
: Barns, Windmills & Water Tanks, Corrals, Fences, etc.
Artifacts 3
:
Bridges & Tunnels, Railroad, Vehicles
Artifacts 4
:
Bodie, Mariposa, Mendocino
Artifacts 5
:
Clovis, Sacramento, St. Louis
Bluegrass T-Shirts

Borrowed Photos
Central Coast and Coastal Mountains
Central Sierra Nevada

Central Valley & Sierra Foothills

Colorado Photos

Conifers
Death Valley Photos
Dinosaur National Monument etc. 2023
Domestic Flowers
Eastern Sierra Nevada

Fender Tucker Makes a Book
Fire Photos
Flowers

Foothill & Mountain Plants

Four Wheel Driving
Journey of 2014 (California to Michigan)

Junipers

Kings & San Joaquin River Areas

Kings Canyon, Sequoia & Yosemite National Parks

Loadstar Disk Magazine Photos
Merrill's Saw Mill
Midwestern United States
Mother Lode Country

Nevada Photos
None of the Above

Northern California Scenery
Oak Trees

Old Mariposa

Oregon Photos
Parkfield, CA
People
Plants - Other
Redwood Gallery
San Joaquin & Kings River Areas

San Joaquin River Gorge

Sky & Weather
Southern California
Southeastern US
Utah Photos
Utah Parks 2022

Waterfalls

Western United States

Wildflowers Page 1

Wildflowers Page 2

Yosemite, Kings Canyon & Sequoia National Parks
   
Sample Photos 
(Text links open the full album; click on the photos to see a larger version in a new page)
Animals Arizona Photos
How Furry Lewis observed his 10th birthday party Rattlesnake, Siera foothills The Four Peaks View from Cape Royal
How Furry Lewis observed his 10th birthday party Rattlesnake, Sierra foothills The Four Peaks View from Point Royal
     
Artifacts 1: Gas & Steam Engine Museum, Other Stuff Artifacts 2: Barns, Windmills & Water Tanks, Corrals, Fences, etc.
Equipment at the Antique Gas & Steam Museum, Vista CA Water turning the wheel at Bale Grist Mill Barn, Fresno, 1966 Old fence in Rocky Mountain National Park
Equipment at the Antique Gas & Steam Museum, Vista CA Bale Grist Mill, Napa Valley Barn, Fresno CA 1966 Old fence in Rocky Mountain National Park
  
Artifacts 3: Bridges & Tunnels, Railroad, Vehicles Artifacts 4: Bodie, Mariposa, Mendocino
California Highway 1 bridge across Russian Gulch near Fort Bragg

Caboose at Parkfield CA

Mariposa County Court House (built 1854) House in Mendocino Village

Highway 1 bridge across Russian Gulch near Fort Bragg

Caboose at Parkfield CA

Mariposa County Court House, built in 1854 House in Mendocino Village
    
Artifacts 5: Clovis, Sacramento, St. Louis Bluegrass T-Shirts

Former Tarpey Station, moved to downtown Clovis from several miles away; now the visitor center

General Grant home at Grant's Farm KIngs River Bluegrass Festival Parkfield Bluegrass Festival

Former Tarpey Station, now the visitor center

General Grant home at Grant's Farm, St. Louis Kings River Festival, Sanger CA, 2001 Parkfield Bluegrass Festival, Parkfield CA, 2004
    
Borrowed Photos Central Coast and Coastal Mountains
Red Neely at Plumas Fire  "When Joel went out west in 1891"
Rod Neely at Plumas County Fire, August 1999  "When Joel went out west in 1891" Windmill near San Ramon Coastal cliffs at Capitola
Central Sierra Nevada Central Valley & Sierra Foothills
Silver Divide from White Bark Vista Point

Failing to climb this feature, I named it Hopeless Dome

Falls on Pegleg Creek near Highway 49, Mariposa County Millerton Lake, San Joaquin River
      
Colorado Photos Conifers
State Capitol (with real gold on the dome) Looking west at Denver from Cherry Creek State Park
State Capitol (with real gold on the dome) Looking west at Denver from Cherry Creek State Park Bristlecone pines - the world's oldest living thing A large piñon tree in Dinosaur National Monument
Death Valley Photos Eastern Sierra Nevada
Fascinating formations at Zabriskie Point Artist Palette A look at Mt. Whitney from south of Lone Pine Water spout on Mono Lake
  
Fender Tucker Makes a Book Fire Photos
A few books, clamped together to keep things straight A hot iron keeps the glue warm as the book and cover come together Flames dominate the landscape at the Hunter Fire. Rod at Plumas County Fire, summer 1999
A few books, clamped together to keep things straight A hot iron keeps the glue warm as the book and cover come together Flames dominate the landscape at the Hunter Fire Dan Patchett & Francoise Tremblay at the Hunter Fire
  
Flowers Foothill & Mountain Plants
Spectacular Carpenteria blossoms are about two inches across Cactus Blossoms Nature's planter box Lupines and fiddlenecks between Trimmer Springs Road and the Kings River
Spectacular Carpenteria blossoms Cactus blossoms Nature's planter box Lupines and fiddlenecks on Trimmer Springs Road
      
Four Wheel Driving Journey of 2014 (California to Michigan)
Jeremy's Jeep Over the top
Jeremy's Jeep Over the top Upper end of box canyon in Dinosaur National Monument Mountains and tundra in Rocky Mountain National Park
     
More journey of 2014 (California to Michigan) Junipers
Entrance to the Sound of Silence Trail in Dinosaur A pair of junipers near Courtright Reservoir

Juniper on the Kaiser Pass Road

   
Kings & San Joaquin River Areas Kings Canyon, Sequoia & Yosemite National Parks

Tehipite Dome from south
Falls on North Fork of the Kings River, near Balch Camp

Fuller Buttes on the left; Balloon Dome on the right

Tehipite Dome from northwest Lower Cathedral Lake
Loadstar Disk Magazine Photos Merrill's Saw Mill
Issue 44 Issue 45 Log rollway Billy Lewis & Jimmy Carlton
Issue 44 Issue 45 Log rollway, 1935 Billy Lewis & Jimmy Carlton, 1939
   
Midwestern United States Mother Lode Country
Ohio Minnesota
Ohio Minnesota Old Masonic Hall in Mariposa Merced River canyon & Yosemite Valley from Hwy 49 near top of Bagby Grade
      
Nevada Photos None of the Above
Nevada Nevada Not a pair Old ways
Basin in central Nevada Arch in Valley of Fire State Park Not a pair Old ways
Northern California Scenery Oak Trees
Mt. Shasta Russian River along Highway 116, inland from Jenner Valley Oak near Parkfield CA Massive black oak on the Wawona Meadow Loop Trail
Mt. Shasta from the south Russian River along Highway 116, inland from Jenner Valley Oak near Parkfield CA Massive black oak on the Wawona Meadow Loop Trail
  
Old Mariposa (The Charlie Walker Collection) Oregon Photos
Charlie Walker's garage, early 1920s Downtown Mariposa, facing north, 1920s
Charlie Walker's garage, early 1920s Downtown Mariposa, facing north, 1920s Mt. Hood from Dufur Crater Lake
     
Parkfield, CA People
Cholame Creek north of town The fountain when no one's in town

Donnie over Teddy in a knockout

A misty day in Blue Canyon
Cholame Creek north of town One of two fountains in the town Donnie over Teddy in a knockout A misty day in Blue Canyon
  
Plants - Other Redwood Gallery
Echium plant Barrel Cactus General Grant Tree, Kings Canyon Park Bull Buck Tree, Nelder Grove
Pride of Madeira at Mendocino Barrel Cactus General Grant Tree, Kings Canyon Park Bull Buck Tree, Nelder Grove
  
San Joaquin River Gorge Sky & Weather
A unique trail entrance Foot bridge across San Joaquin River Fresno Sunrise
A unique trail entrance Foot bridge across
San Joaquin River
Clouds Fresno Sunrise
    
Southern California Southeastern US
Holes were created by volcanic gas bubbles plus weathering Joshua tree and rock formation Southern Mississippi Bayou Full size Saturn rocket replica
Holes at Mojave Preserve were created by volcanic gas bubbles plus weathering Joshua Tree and Rock Formations Southern Mississippi Bayou Full size Saturn rocket replica
  
Utah Photos Utah Parks 2022
Double Arch Canyonlands Nat'l Park Along the Fremont River Inside Eye of the Whale Arch
  
Waterfalls Western United States
Waterfall near Chilkoot Campground Spring waterfall on road above Balch Camp Wyoming Montana
  
Wildflowers Page 1 Wildflowers Page 2
Grand Collomia Kelley's Lily

A never-before-seen mutant
variation of the Mariposa lily

Blazing Star, a spectacular
flower about four inches across
    
Camera Information

I started taking pictures when I was about ten years old, using (what else?) a Kodak Brownie camera. In his younger days, my dad had done some photo processing, so we got out his old trays, bought a cheap film developing tank, and gave it a try. The poor quality of the equipment, and the difficulty of creating a darkroom in our one bathroom house caused us to abandon the effort after a couple of rolls. In addition, we had no enlarger, so all we could make were tiny prints the size of 127 film, about 2.5 by 1.5 inches. A few of the older family photos were probably taken with this camera or its successors.

I continued to take pictures, however, eventually getting into color slides and a few rolls of color print film. While working at a TV station in Bakersfield, I was able to borrow several different 35 mm cameras, and that became my preferred format. I eventually bought a second-hand Nikorex camera, which I always assumed was a low end product from Nikon, but it could have been an even lower end imitation. I also acquired equipment for developing and printing, including a used enlarger, and made many black and white photos this way (this is one of my favorite examples).

The Nikorex reached the end of its useful life, and I finally bought a Nikon, which was stolen in 1987. My insurance covered a replacement, which served me well over the next dozen years. Many of the photos on these pages were scanned from slides taken with the Nikons.

In 1999 I bought my first digital camera, a Kodak DC265, and all photos dated after that time are digital. From 2003 to 2006 I used a Minolta Dimage 7, and then a Canon EOS10D digital SLR, which I still use from time to time. The following year I acquired a Kodak Easy Share, which I used when I was in places where I didn't want to carry a heavier model, but I soon sold it. Starting in July, 2010, a few photos were taken with my cell phone camera when I didn't have a regular camera with me.

In 2012 there were several changes in my photographic equipment. I acquired an iPad, and a few photos from that are or will be included in my galleries. I stopped using a smart phone and got a basic phone. It has a camera, but the photos are worthless, so I don't use it for photographs.

After six years with the Canon DSLR, I decided I needed a good quality small camera. There was a false step when I got a Sony DSC-RX100. This is an excellent camera, but has no optical viewfinder, and the view screen was impossible for me to use in bright light, so I returned it. Photos taken with this camera appear here only. After further research I settled on the Nikon Coolpix P7100, which so far looks like it will be my camera of choice for many years. It has lots of new features, some of which I will no doubt use. I am keeping the Canon for extreme zoom shots. I also acquired a new smart phone, so photos from that source appear occasionally.

Around the middle of 2021, the Coolpix went half blind - the shutter would only open half way, on a diagonal. Made for some interesting effects, useful maybe once a decade. Around this same time I had acquired a new Android phone, which had a far better camera than any previous cell phone, and I decided I would see if that could be my regular camera. Although the pictures are excellent, it suffers from the usual cell phone drawbacks - no optical viewfinder, and you have to hit the device to take the picture. In March of 2022 I decided to see if I could find a good "regular" camera. After much research, I ordered the Canon EOS Rebel 17 digital SLR. I still had my EOS 10D, which was about a pound and a half heavier, so not fun to carry on my frequent hikes. The lenses fit the new camera, and the 28-105 mm lens that came with the earlier one quickly replaced the 18-55 mm lens that came with the Rebel.

For the most part, I have typically let the camera choose the aperture and shutter speed, although the Canons and Nikon both had manual controls. Of course, it's no surprise that the Rebel did not come with a manual, and the lengthy PDF file that I downloaded was not at all easy to use. I never did find out how to keep the automatic flash from popping up at inopportune times. Following advice in the reviews, I started looking for You Tube videos, and soon learned how to use the Program setting instead of the full auto mode. The three videos I watched first were all about 20 minutes, so they certainly did not cover all the settings on this very complex product, but I can tell that I will learn something different each time I watch another one. Stay tuned - a trip to Utah in April will let me do a thorough exploration of the features of the Rebel.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I have received a number of compliments on my photos, and I usually point out that I only share one or two out of fifty shots.

--Dick Estel, August 2009; updated August 2010, September 2012, October 2013, June 2016, and March 2022

  
The Cameras
  
Kodak Easyshare C330 Canon EOS10D digital SLR Nikon Coolpix P7100   Canon EOS Rebel T7
 
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All photos copyright © 2002 through 2023 by Dick Estel & other credited photographers. 
Permission granted for personal use only; commercial use prohibited.

Updated July 13, 2023