8.29.13 : sunrise in malibu.

As some of you know, I recently drove up the entirety of the West Coast, starting in San Diego. Spurred by a wedding I was shooting on September 1st in Santa Cruz, I left August 29th and had planned to take a week to travel up to San Francisco and back. Somewhere along the way, a spark was ignited within me, and I made the decision to keep going. By the morning of September 8th, I'd crossed over into Oregon. Conveniently, I had family in the area, so after making it up to Coos Bay, I headed inland to my aunt and uncle's house in Roseburg, OR to do some much needed laundry and consider my next move. I made my way over to Crater Lake on September 11th, but had started to feel the nagging of responsibilities calling me back to San Diego.

Before I left Roseburg, it was suggested that I simply go back to pack my stuff (and sell what wouldn't fit), then come back up with the intentions of finishing the coast.  So I did.

On October 2nd, I moved to Roseburg. My poor little Honda Civic was packed to the gills with everything I owned, including my dear cat Loulou. Once here, I took a few days to settle in before hitting the road again on October 9th. 

Making my way back to Coos Bay to pick up where I left off, I drove the remainder of the coast all the way up to Vancouver, BC, where I spent a long weekend during their Thanksgiving holiday. I had some detours inland in Washington to see some friends, but headed back to the coast to complete what I hadn't gotten to on the way back. 

By the morning of October 18th, I'd successfully finished the coast. 

So now, I am faithfully parked on the couch in my temporary home in Roseburg, editing through the thousands of photos I managed to snap on this great adventure of mine. My goal is to post a blog every single day representing the entire trip. I'm certain that will be easier said than done, but I plan to stick to that resolve as diligently as possible.

So, today, you get to see day one…my very first stop to watch the sunrise in Malibu, CA. 

amber in malibu.

Last Monday, I made a spontaneous trip up to Malibu to see my old friend Amber, who just moved to the area to begin attending Pepperdine in the fall. She's got a quaint little studio in a large house that sits on the side of a hill overlooking the ocean, which meant we could literally stepp out of her doorway and begin hiking from there. The morning fog was still covering a lot of the area, but it created a beautiful contrast between the grey fog and the blue skies that covered the other half of the sky. I snapped this of Amber and just fell in love with her expression paired with the chilly grey look of the landscape surrounding her. It's even more interesting to me knowing that there were bright blue skies with wispy clouds at my back. Just goes to show that shooting from a different angle can change the whole feel of a photo.