September 21, 2007

Our vast arid-wasteland-cum-metropolis has been parched past the point of desiccation after our [lowest annual rainfall on record](http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Los_Angeles_suffers_longest_dry_spe_04012007.html) this year. Finally our city is breathing a collective, rain-drenched, sigh of relief. The rain is falling right now, the streets are wet and glimmering, if I was outside my nostrils would be filled with the smell of soaked pavement. The thing I miss most about growing up in the Bay Area is the rain... the rain that fell more often than it does here in the desert that [Mulholland](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Mulholland) converted. Hopefully this next year will be a wet one, like it was in 2005. That was the year the Mojave was carpeted with wildflowers, many of which hadn't bloomed in centuries.

Today the sky in Los Angeles was filled with the most beautiful clouds that we've had in some time now. I couldn't resist driving around my favorite industrial areas South of Los Angeles and shooting some photos. I even got a chance to try out my new [Gobi Stealth](http://www.gobiracks.com/Toyota/FJ.htm) roof rack, which has a mesh top and can support 300lbs, making it a perfect photographic platform. Here are the results from my excursion: [](https://eecue.com/p/29538/Bridge-Over-Los-Angeles-River.html) [](https://eecue.com/p/29540/Boilers.html) [](https://eecue.com/p/29536/Railroad-Bridge-Over-River.html) [](https://eecue.com/p/29543/Trains-Below-the-710.html) All photos were taken with a Canon EOS 5D, through a Canon 24-70 EF f/2.8 L atop my trusty Bogen Manfrotto 3021BN connected to a Arca Swiss B1 Monoball Head triggered using a wired remote. Each photo you see here is a combination of 3 bracketed shots: 0,-,+ 2 EV which were combined with [Photomatix](http://hdrsoft.com/). More photos [after the jump](http://eecue.com/log_archive/eecue-log-760-South_of_Los_Angeles__an_HDR_Excursion.html).