ANGELA B. PAN

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ll know that Navin Sarma was one of my first ever photo friends…. ever.

I’m not sure how we found each other but it had to have been before instagram was even a thing. I even remember being kinda hesitant meeting up with him for the first time because I was just meeting some guy I met from the internet really early in the morning. And as usual, he was late.

But in the end, he has become one of my favorite people to go out to shoot with. It’s always been super casual and talking about the most random stuff. He was with me when I unintentionally captured my very first lightning shot! And the following year we sat on the hill by the Air Force Memorial and intentionally captured even more lightning shots like this one.

Last year he left the Washington DC area to move to California. We’ve stayed in touch so when I booked the trip to San Francisco, he was one of the first people to know about it. I definietly wanted to try to meet up and shoot again. So luckily it worked out that the first night we were in the Bay Area, Navin was able to pick Andrew and I up and take us to Marin Headlands. We noticed the fog approaching and thought a higher point of view would be really cool image  of the Golden Gate Bridge. It was so great to see him again.

You can notice the fog a little bit above the Golden Gate Bridge but what I like most about this image is the light that hitting the top of the bridge. I love how it just pops. Betcha didn’t notice the sailboat in the water. I actually didn’t notice it at first either. HAHA

My camera settings for this image is F8 at 1/250th of a second at ISO 640 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom lens handheld.

This is a portrait of my friend, Albert from one of Artechouse’s installations earlier this summer. I love it because of the cool lights in the background, the color, the mood but my favorite part of this image is because it is of Albert.

I’ve known him from a few years now and have been following him on instagram even longer than that. But it hasn’t been until the past year where I have really gotten to know him. We’ve spent some beautiful mornings together taking pictures and have spent some amazing evenings together talking and laughing. We have a lot of things in common, one of the main things being photography but he just inspires me so much every time we get together. I am always amazed by his images but what I love most about him is that he is not afraid to be himself. I mean look at this!

But because of him, my interest in street photography and portraiture has grown so much. Even when I’m standing right next to him, he can see things that just pass me by. He has taught me to be more patient, not care what anyone else thinks and I appreciate him so much for that.

To be honest, I don’t think he reads my blog or will ever know that I’m writing this about him. But I just would like him to know how much he inspires me to be me and how much I value his friendship. Thank you, Pootie! Hope we can get together soon after I get back from California to catch up and take more pics <3

My camera settings for this image is F4.0 at 1/500th of a second at ISO 5000 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle lens. Have I mentioned how much I love this camera in low light situations?

A little while ago, my friend, Bryon from Utah came and visited Washington. I know him through the Arcanum and have spent quiet a few months talking through email. So when he came to visit we set up a little photowalk session with my other friend from the Arcanum, Larry.

We started at the Reflecting Pool, then the to Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Constitution Gardens, WWII Memorial, and eventually left at the Tidal Basin. It was a long photowalk but so much fun getting to know Bryon. We talked about everything from Salt Lake City to his initial impressions of Washington DC. It’s so funny because he said that before his first ever trip to the district, he thought that it would just be a concrete jungle. Now that he has visited a few times he knows now that ‘there are so many trees you can barely see the other side of the street’. I thought that was such a compliment.

I love how our city is more than just buildings. It’s beautiful with it’s own little spots of nature.

This was taken at Constitution Gardens. I don’t think a lot of people know about it but it’s a great place to just sit and relax. While walking around the pond, all three of us noticed the amazing light that was hitting the Washington Monument. It was probably a good hour after the sun had actually risen. I immediately busted out with my wide angle lens and got down as low as I could to the water without touching it. OMG I love it when the light can just change everything. Change your view on what you’re looking at and also change how you feel. Not that I wasn’t already happy but seeing that light made me super excited.

The settings for this image is F4.0 at 1/500th of a second ISO 500 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle.

If you haven’t noticed before, but this is my favorite puddle at the Tidal Basin as seen here and here. It is a little sad to say that statement because there really aren’t supposed to be puddles and this one is pretty much there all the time. But if I had to choose, it would be this one. It’s hard to miss, if you turn towards the left right when you get off the footbridge, just look down. You will see it. I love it so much because the trees around the puddle are so long that they stretch into the tidal basin and when you see the reflection from the puddle, it looks like this awesome tunnel of flowers.

Last week, before all the crazy wind and weather we were supposed to have, I made a last minute decision to head down to the Tidal Basin. It was a sunny day and I wasn’t sure if that would be my only opportunity to capture my favorite trees. So I went down to the puddle and didn’t have any plans or ideas in my mind, I was just going to let my camera do all the work. I crouched down and was just letting everyone pass by me. I loved the way this one turned out because the green Lime bike stood out so nicely in the pink flowers. But then my friend Frithjov is right there behind the bike! I didn’t even notice that was him until after I captured this image. A big hug happened afterwards followed by an interesting discussion about Japanese french fries and fried food. LOL. A great way to spend a cherry blossom morning 🙂

My camera settings for this image is F8 at 1/160th of a second at ISO 200 with my Sony A7II and 28-70mm zoom lens.

Did you watch the vlog I uploaded last week of the Yayoi Kusama Infinity Mirrors exhibit? At the very end of the video, I was behind the Smithsonian Institution Building (otherwise known as the castle) in the Enid A. Haupt garden. This image depitcs what was distracting me from what I was talking about. I had walked over from the Hirshhorn Museum and I don’t know why but I’ve never seen this view before. Maybe it’s because the magnolia trees weren’t bloomed or I have never walked through that particular entrance before but it literally stopped me in my tracks. The mid day sun was hitting the monument so perfectly. The flowers were looking so pink and beautiful. It was the perfect morning to take a little bit of time and appreciate these beautiful flowers. It really feels like spring is in the air and it’s here so early in the year.

This makes me really look forward to the next couple of weeks in the city. Not only because the cherry blossoms are expected to peak soon but that means I’ll be seeing tons of photo friends. Old ones and new ones. Some that are local and some that are from out of town. It’s so great how everyone sort of comes out of hibernation and goes to the Tidal Basin to photograph the beautiful flowers. It’s like a high school reunion every year, except I didn’t actually go to high school with any of them. So, if you’re at the tidal basin and you see me, please come say hi. It’s always so fun meeting new people who have the same interests 🙂

Here’s to hoping we have beautiful sunrises and sunsets, moody mornings, calming afternoons and no wind! Wind is pretty much the death of the cherry blossom flowers.