Photo Essay Archives - San Diego Magazine

Photos: On Location With SD’s Top Travel Photographers

Cole Novak — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 19:20:19 +0000

The world is a stunning place full of culture, nature, and really great food. To celebrate our annual travel and adventure issue, we tapped some of our favorite globetrotting photographers to help us experience life through their lenses. To tickle your travel bug we’re heading around the world to buy cheese in a Puglian market, stroll the streets of Osaka, and admire wild donkeys in the Oaxacan mountains. You’re guaranteed to come away longing for your own far-flung adventure. These photos are even sexier and more enticing on the page, so be sure to subscribe to San Diego Magazine for more gorgeous travel photos.

Matt Furman

Suva, Fiji

Guatemala City, Guatemala

Lucianna McIntosh

Puglina, Italy

Bahamas

Kauai, Hawai’i

Valerie Durham

Osaka, Japan

Andrew Reiner

Oaxaca, Mexico

The post Photos: On Location With SD’s Top Travel Photographers appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

In Search of Water With Border Kindness

San Diego Magazine — Fri, 30 Sep 2022 00:45:00 +0000

A Border Kindness group heads out just after sunrise. An average group is “usually around 8 to 12 people with an average hike length of 5 to 10 miles,” Cordero says.

James Cordero

Every week a group of volunteers heads to the eastern reaches of San Diego County, somewhere in the mountains, past the end of the big fence. They’re with Border Kindness, a California-based nonprofit that provides food, shelter, clothing, medical care, and legal aid to asylum-seekers, migrants, refugees, and the displaced along the United States-Mexico border. The San Diego chapter, run by James Cordero and his fiancé Jacqueline Arellano, handles the area’s water drops, which require arduous hikes into the deserts where migrants cross by foot, regardless of whether there’s searing summer temperatures or snow.

Border Kindness volunteers leave water, food, and clothing in canyons, mountains, and desert flats known to be frequented both by migrants and Customs and Border Protection (CBP, border patrol). They also remove trash from through-hikers and migrants who leave their personal effects along the rocks. The team has come across just about every likely scenario from border patrol apprehensions to encountering the remains of people who lost their lives in the final stretch of what was almost surely a long journey throughout the Americas.

A keychain left behind with the image of la Virgen de Guadalupe—patron saint of both the Americas and vulnerable people. It’s a common image seen on items belonging to migrants.

James Cordero

Aside from witnessing and experiencing trauma in real-time, there are other risks: in 2019 a volunteer with an organization doing similar water drops in Arizona was charged with two counts of felony harboring and one count of conspiracy. In the end, he went free with a hung jury, but the legal risks of unsanctioned humanitarian aid are real.

“We provide humanitarian aid for many reasons,” Cordero says. “We have family that has immigrated to the United States. We want to help minimize the suffering and death that occurs all too frequently along the US-Mexico border. When you have a serious issue presented in front of you, it becomes a moral responsibility to do what you can to help. That is what we do.”

A view from the top of a mountain ridge shows the canyons where migrants have to travel to try to evade border patrol. “Some caches are deposited over 5,000ft of elevation in the mountains, but most drop sites are less than 1,000ft, some below sea level,” Cordero says.

James Cordero

A sombrero lays on top of a bush in a very windy area. “We presume the hat blew off the head of someone traveling through,” Cordero says.

James Cordero

Border Kindness Water Drop co-director James Cordero poses with a consumed gallon of water he left behind on a previous drop. The volunteers pick up trash, including discarded water bottles, as they deposit supply caches along their hiking routes.

James Cordero

Border Kindness volunteers leave a supply cache consisting of gallons of water, canned food, and sun-protective clothing.

James Cordero

A juvenile rattlesnake, coiled up, camouflages into the decomposed granite and sandy wash believed to be transited by migrants.

James Cordero

Cordero scribbled a bible verse from Romans 12:13: “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” It is assumed that the vast majority of migrants are culturally familiar with Catholicism.

James Cordero

A camouflaged CBP motion detection surveillance camera was recently installed in a highly migrant-traveled corridor to track human movement.

James Cordero

A border patrol truck races toward the Border Kindness Water Drop team. After realizing who they were, they let them be.

James Cordero

Children’s clothes strewn about a hillside, at the site of a border patrol apprehension, shows the reality of who’s actually crossing the desert.

James Cordero

A Border Kindness group scales a rocky mountainside, scouting for traces of recent migrant travel.

James Cordero

The post In Search of Water With Border Kindness appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

Documenting the Quiet Minimalism of MCASD

San Diego Magazine — Thu, 08 Sep 2022 05:00:00 +0000

“The $105-million overhaul of MCASD, including the new Jacobs Hall, feels more connected to the topography. “It’s a delicate balance in capturing the art and architecture for each space,” says Bazzari of her approach. “Do I highlight the architecture and emphasize the artwork? Will the ocean views be the focal point, or how does the architecture connect with the landscape?”

Maha Bazzari

“I experience art within the space, sit with it, and then digest it.” That’s not the technical part, but it’s absolutely the starting point for Maha Bazzari, an architectural photographer who splits her time between San Diego and Palm Springs. The trained architectural designer and fine artist is an accidental photographer. She started by shooting her own work, then friends, and then global architecture firm Gensler came knocking.

Most recently, she was tapped by MCASD La Jolla to chronicle the quiet minimalism of the $105-million overhaul by Selldorf Architects. The photographer came often: mid-morning as the marine layer lifted. Golden hour. During a rainstorm. “I know every nook, in every light,” she says, perched on a concrete bench in the museum shop.

When she’s not traveling (Berlin, most recently) she frequents local architectural gems from the Salk Institute to Bell Pavilion. Her work has been featured in Dwell, WSJ Magazine and National Geographic. “Expressive images require an understanding of the artist’s concepts. And being selective.” Bazzari often collaborates with local artist Yomar Augusto, and there’s a fluency that develops between them. “To capture Yomar’s work is to follow the flow of lines and strong colors.”

“Bazzari maximized the rare stormy day to capture this dramatic image of architect Annabelle Selldorf and MCASD director Kathryn Kanjo. “With the use of strobe lighting and image bracketing I was able to uncover the rainy views, bring them to the foreground, and show the expansive lines of the architecture.”

Maha Bazzari

“The size of the exhibit space dictates the photography style. For the smaller exhibitions, the art must be at the right scale to the architecture so they complement each other. For larger gallery spaces, I don’t want the art to get lost or capture too much information.”

Maha Bazzari

“My love for the visual arts goes beyond a still image. I dabble in painting and explore different materials. This is a detail of Gravitational Attraction. I used acrylic paint, graphite, spray paint, and iron filings that were manipulated by the use of magnets to create this shape. Concept: The force of attraction is inescapable, especially the connections between people and their souls through interaction, sharing of ideas, stories, and experiences.”

Maha Bazzari

Macro-micro is a common theme throughout Bazzari’s photos, as shown with these two shots of a piece by San Diego artist Melissa Walters. Of All Things was a site-specific installation made of 2,600 paper tetrahedrons. “The amount of detail that went into this piece is mind-boggling,” Bazzari says. “I had to consider the physical space in relation to the theoretical Omniverse that contains it.”

Maha Bazzari

“I photographed this beautifully dramatic artwork for Yomar’s solo show at Point Loma Nazarene University. Although the mural was the main piece in the exhibition, the pieces came together through the narration of graphics throughout the gallery space.”

Maha Bazzari

For this mural, commissioned by San Diego Made Factory, Bazzari added scale with pedestrians and trolley tracks. “I wanted to underscore the urban setting of the East Village.”

Maha Bazzari

This abstract and colorful geometric calligraphy painting was commissioned for a residence in Mission Hills. “We wanted to highlight the colorful streaks and textures by enhancing the contrast, especially on the dark canvas.”

Maha Bazzari

This light fabrication is by Tecture in collaboration with Gensler San Diego. “I captured the curvilinear sculptural elements made from independent layers of milled extruded PVC with suspended lighting in between.”

Maha Bazzari

“This historic preservation of a mid-century modern house in San Diego [by architect Kristi Byers] is one of those projects that I photograph and admire all the work and consideration that went into it.”

Maha Bazzari

“We arrived before sunrise to make sure we captured the best light on the small chapel at Point Loma Nazarene University. It took us five hours to photograph the saturated colors, clean lines, and thoughtful materials.” The Lyle and Grace Prescott Memorial Prayer Chapel is a collaboration between architects Carrier Johnson and Tecture.

Maha Bazzari

On The Salk Institute by Louis Kahn: “I can spend all day capturing this monumental architecture with its details, observing the light moving across all the surfaces.”

Maha Bazzari

There are many approaches to shooting a door, especially this one designed and built by Tecture for a San Diego beachfront home. “It is a large pivot door with four operable windows, and a wheel operated gear system. So, we played around. Opening, closing and passing through it.”

Maha Bazzari

A symphony of concrete was required to show off the muscularity of this chair designed and fabricated by Tecture. “We connected this piece to its surroundings—the concrete chair to the concrete floor and walls. Aligning textures and materials was the goal.”

Maha Bazzari

The post Documenting the Quiet Minimalism of MCASD appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

A Modernist Utopia on the Sonoma Coast

San Diego Magazine — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 06:11:00 +0000

“I took a ‘selfie’ looking out at the ocean, from the first housing built there, called Condo One. Note the steeply raked rooflines to deflect the wind. My camera here is in the courtyard of the building, which was also designed to provide outdoor space sheltered from the wind and weather.”

Darren Bradley

Darren Bradley’s camera can turn concrete and cedar shingles into symbols of romance. If a structure has charisma, he lures it out. With light. Through angles.

“Architects are always telling stories and making statements through their work,” he says. “I generally try to zero in on that story or statement, and find the best possible way to photograph the building to ensure that the message is conveyed properly.”

“Weather can be unpredictable at Sea Ranch. The development occupies 5,000 acres of rocky coastline. The architecture was meant to blend in with the surroundings, while also deflecting the wind and protecting its inhabitants from the often- unpredictable weather. Sea Ranch is about 100 miles north of San Francisco but feels a world away.”

Darren Bradley

Architectural photography has developed into its own art form, and it might be as important as the built work itself. A good image can give the viewer a feeling of the atmosphere and design intention without actually being in the place. Bradley does this.

Sea Ranch, 4

Darren Bradley

His Instagram profile, @modarchitecture, which has 117,000 followers, is packed with eye-catching buildings from around the world and those closer to home, including the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the Geisel Library at UC San Diego. Born in Hawai‘i, raised in San Diego, and having studied history at the Sorbonne in Paris, he mostly focuses on modernist architecture from the 1950s through today. On his profile, he shares history, humorous field notes, and insight on his editing methodology.

For the Sea Ranch, he captured the discreet beauty of this secluded, forward-thinking residential enclave set on 53 rugged acres of Northern California coastline about halfway between Bodega Bay and Mendocino. At the time it was built in the 1960s, the vernacular architecture and ecological sensitivity were radical.

“My wife walking down the path towards the cliffs, under the lodge. The ram’s horns are the logo of Sea Ranch, and evoke a time when the area was a sheep ranch. They were designed by local artist Barbara Stauffacher.”

Darren Bradley

A dream team of Bay Area architects—including Charles W. Moore, Donlyn Lyndon, Joseph Esherick, William Turnbull, and landscape architect Lawrence Halprin—evolved a concept of dynamic conservation of “living lightly on the land.” They created a tapestry of 2,200 private homes, clustered by cypress hedgerows, undeveloped lots, undulating meadows, rolling hills, redwood and Douglas fir forests, nature trails, and ocean views. All this on a former sheep ranch.

Last year, The Sea Ranch Lodge reopened after a detailed remodel; it includes a refreshed restaurant, The Bar + Lounge, a new café, and a general store, as well as a roster of cultural events.

“There’s even a San Diego connection to Sea Ranch! Local artist and architect James Hubbell designed this chapel.”

Darren Bradley

“This is the Ohlson Recreation Center. The structure on the right is meant to also serve as a screen to deflect the often-high winds coming in off the cliffs.”

Darren Bradley

Usually, Bradley’s photo assignments are commissions from architects and publishers the likes of Phaidon, for whom he has photographed two midcentury- modern travel books. But Sea Ranch was a family affair, framing his wife, Elise, and daughter, Ava, amid the organic architecture. “I am often alone when I travel to photograph architecture,” says Bradley. “Being able to share that experience with my family was a rare treat and a memorable one. Sea Ranch is an iconic modernist architectural vision that has remained unspoiled by time.”

“Sea Ranch has always been a haven for creative types. Graphic designer and artist Barbara Stauffacher created the ‘Supergraphics’ that are used throughout the development, including in this changing room at one of the site’s several public swimming pools. This pool is known as the Moonraker Pool… yes, like James Bond!”

Darren Bradley

“A view of the Sea Ranch Lodge perched on the steep cliffs overlooking the ocean.”

Darren Bradley

“My daughter enjoying the view at our condo. Okay, I may have asked her to pose there! This complex includes several condos and was the first structure to be built at Sea Ranch. Designed by architects Richard Whitaker, Donlyn Lyndon, Charles Moore, and William Turnbull in the early 1960s.”

Darren Bradley

“View of the lounge area of the Sea Ranch Lodge. I enjoyed sitting here with a cup of coffee with a book while watching the weather and the waves.”

Darren Bradley

“The steep, slanted rooflines are meant to deflect the wind. There are no windows high up on the structures because of the difficulty of keeping them clean.”

Darren Bradley

“On our way up to Sea Ranch, we stopped at the former Russian colony at Fort Ross. In the early 1800s, this fort housed soldiers and fur traders. This Russian Orthodox chapel at the fort also served as inspiration for the architects who designed Sea Ranch.”

Darren Bradley

“Here’s the interior of the chapel designed by San Diego artist and architect James Hubbell.”

Darren Bradley

“The Sea Ranch Lodge also serves 9. as the area’s only restaurant and community post office. It was designed by Joseph Esherick in 1964 and modeled after an old-fashioned country store. The sculpture is by artist Robert Holmes.”

Darren Bradley

The post A Modernist Utopia on the Sonoma Coast appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

On the Field with the Sockers

San Diego Magazine — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 23:19:46 +0000

The life of a photographer for SD Mag! We sent photographer Sam Hodgson to spend the evening at Viejas Arena with the San Diego Sockers, our city’s most under appreciated (and winningest) professional sports team. The photoshoot itself was a challenge with the arena’s low light. Sam pushed his cameras to its limits and got us great images that we showed off in a photo essay in our April issue. It worked out perfectly that the star of our article, Kraig Chiles, was also the star of the game. See his photos of him scoring the game-winning goal in overtime. Sam even got a real nice celebration image in there from that moment. Take a look at the extra photos we couldn’t fit in the magazine!

The post On the Field with the Sockers appeared first on San Diego Magazine.