We are twin brothers devoted to Earth adventures and environmental protection. We've been buddies since we were in utero. We produce videos, in high and ultra-high definition, photographs, articles, and books covering topics on understanding and enjoying National Parks, natural and human history, including native cultures. Our YouTube channel has videos on the above topics. Search Robinson Twins, Richard and Robert. At the bottom of the page, click on Older Posts to see more.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
Roadrunners are members of the cuckoo family and prefer running along the ground rather than flying. They got their common name from their habit of running along side wagons in the Old West waiting for the wagon wheels to scare out a lizard or a snake that it could then pounce upon for an easy meal.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!
View of Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan, Atlas) from Morro Bay, California. Rick was camped next to Morro Creek for two nights hoping to get a photo of the comet with Morro Rock, but it was foggy for those two nights. The third morning appeared mostly sunny, so Rick paid for another night hoping for clear skies that night. He was fortunate that it worked out well that time. The nearly full moon helped to light the foreground for this long exposure. The end of Morro Rock and Pillar Rock appear on the left side of the photo.
October 16, 2024, Fuji GFX100S, 20 seconds, 45 mm (36 mm equivalent), f/5.7, ISO 800
You can watch our YouTube video about this project at: https://youtu.be/j-zvldptmLc
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!
This photo is of the aurora looking like a green curtain in the sky. The igloo in the lower left corner happened to be lit by a car's headlights as it was driving in among the igloo accommodations for visitors, while the shutter on Bob's camera was open. It was a happy accident that helped light paint the scene.
Auroras occur when charged particles from the sun strike the Earth's atmosphere and are directed toward both the north and south poles by the Earth's magnetosphere. These charged particles energize oxygen and nitrogen molecules causing them to glow. Around the South Pole, the southern lights are also called aurora australis.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
We attempted to determine if Point Reyes's Alamere Falls could produce a moonbow during the July full moon period. We hiked along the beach from Wildcat Camp while the tide was changing from high to low. This also was one day before the full moon, which means an earlier start to the moonbow, if it happens. We didn't find a moonbow, but we may have arrived too late. We still have hope that it can happen here.
While near the base of the falls, we set up our cameras and tried taking moonlit images and light-painted images. Light painting involves using a source of light combined with a long exposure to artificially light up a night-time scene. This one worked out quite well.
Fuji GFX100S: 30 sec, f5.6, ISO 1600, 45mm (36mm equivalent)
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!
The image was actually two images captured with a Samsung 152 smartphone and merged together to create a larger image. ISO 100, f 2.2, 1/100 sec, 13 mm equivalent focal length
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!
Here's an image of Yosemite's moonbow in the lower falls as viewed from the bridge over Yosemite Creek. Moonlight tends to make soft shadows and a less sharp photo. Here's the link to our YouTube video: What is a Moonbow? - https://youtu.be/S_ay06ZPjqA
ISO 3200, f4, 60 seconds
A second night of moonbow chasing for us (see the previous post).
This is the moonbow in the Upper Yosemite Falls as seen from Cooks Meadow during the night of Saturday into Sunday, June 22-23, 2024.
This was part of our trip to see Yosemite moonbows from all three of the viewpoints that Brian Hawkins predicts on his website yosemitemoonbow.com.
For more info about these phenomenon, check out our YouTube video "What is a Moonbow?" Link: https://youtu.be/S_ay06ZPjqA
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
We started with Glacier Point, especially since Rick hadn't seen the moonbow from that viewpoint before. Here is one of the photos that we got from there on Saturday, June 22, 2024, the night of the full moon. From this perspective, the moonbow doesn't really show up as an arc of white light like it does from the Lower Yosemite Falls viewpoint, which makes it more difficult to discern when the moonbow is actually happening.
Please check out YouTube video "What is a Moonbow?" to learn more about this phenomenon.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
Saguaro cactus are the largest cacti in the United States. They frequently grow as one main trunk that eventually develop "arms." The national park with their name consists of two districts near the city of Tucson. The unit to the west is called the Tucson Mountain District and the unit to the west, the one that Bob visited, is the Rincon Mountain District.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
During this particular visit to Delicate Arch on October 11, 2023, thunderstorms were passing overhead and the clouds were letting loose of rain periodically. During the downpours, Bob just hunkered down and waited for the rain to stop. Between downpours, he got this wide angle shot with his GoPro Hero 8 Black. This was the first time Bob visited Delicate Arch when it had been rained on.
Remember, it's just not a picture, it's a story.
One of the places he wanted to visit was the Great Sand Dunes National Park in the eastern part of the state. To his surprise, the park allowed backpackers to spend the night out in the dunes. Surprising because there's no water source out there. It happened to be the night of the full moon when Bob made a point of hiking out into the dunes. He wanted to see the dunes lit up by the full moonlight. This photo is one of many he took during his overnight backpacking trip. Notice the stars in the sky as well as two tents of other backpackers in this image.
This park has the tallest sand dunes in North America, the tallest being 750 feet. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains are in the background.
Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.
