The Chandelier Tree

Quite the tourist trap, but still a must see. There are several of these giants in California that have carved out for travelers to drive through. I have to admit I've been to this one twice. I'm not sure what the allure is. I feel like it's one more chance for us to assert our assumed dominance over mother nature. I do know that as an East coaster, I will never get tired of seeing nature in truly massive scale.

Joshua Tree National Park

Emma and I decided to take a little trip to California this past week. It started out with a drive across I-8 to San Diego. My sister has lived in North County for 2 years now, and I hadn't been able to visit her till now. San Diego was great, way too many people, but the beach was awesome. Unfortunately I had some serious back pain going on, so I opted not carry a camera around. So it wasn't until we left San Diego to head to Joshua Tree National Park that I pulled the camera out.

Joshua Tree was amazing, even after spending 2 months in the Sonoran desert. We also lucked out by catching the Joshua Trees in full bloom. All over the park there were budding flowers, and it couldn't have been more beautiful. This is just a teaser, there will be more photos from the trip soon.
Living the dream,
-Tyler Gates
http://www.GoodLifePhotography.com

Catch-Up

Apparently my posts from cell phones haven't been working! Oh well, here is the update. I've been without my computer for about a week now. Emma and I drove west to the ocean and spent a few days exploring San Diego and North County. It was pretty awesome, but I was suffering from some serious back pain, so I opted not to lug my camera around. (This was when I wish I had a sweet little digi rangefinder! Anyone who wants to donate an M8 or M9 can email me for the address to send it to, in trade I'll offer you a lifetime of photos). Then we drove north along the coast to LA and then out to Joshua Tree National Park. We caught the park at an awesome time when everything, including the Joshua Trees were in bloom. On our way home we spend a few hours in Phoenix(Tempe/Scottsdale to be specific) because picking up my buddy Tony from the airport. Tomorrow we head north to the Petrified Forest National Park, and other points north of Tucson. Tons of photo updates coming next week!

Thanks for checking me out.
-Tyler

http://www.GoodLifePhotograhy.com