Your Bio

Structural Engineer, scuba diver, mountain biker, hiker, architectural restoration, structural repair.
All photos copyrighted. Do not copy, print or use without permission.
gainesengr@earthlink.net

Galleries

Pasadena's Architectural Heritage : Pasadena, California is a town that’s known for its turn of the century (1880-1930) Victorian, Craftsman, Colonial revival and Mediteranean architecture. Old Pasadena was transformed from Victorian architecture to Mediteranean and Art Deco in 1929 when the main streets were widened. I hope you like the historic architecture you see in these photos. For more info on upcoming tours of Pasadena go to www.pasadenaheritage.org All images are copyrighted and may not be used or copied without permission.

Pasadena's Architectural Heritage

Pasadena, California is a town that’s known for its turn of the centur ...

Updated: Dec 04, 2012 11:17pm PST

Madison House, Pasadena : Madison House, Pasadena is need of maintenance and repair. On December 11, 2010 a dozen Board Members, members and interested volunteers got together to solve some of the most immediate problems: lighting, interior plaster, basement cleanup, rain gutter clearing, drainage and waterproofing issues. Scroll down below the main photo for a caption describing that it is, where it occurs and when the photo was taken. The end of this gallery is the 2009 Pasadena Heritage Spring Home Tour at the Annie Wilson House and the Barber House, both designed by Roland Coates in 1927.

Madison House, Pasadena

Madison House, Pasadena is need of maintenance and repair. On December ...

Updated: Oct 31, 2012 10:46pm PST

Craftsman Restoration : The house was built in 1912. We’re just beginning to prepare, patch and paint the exterior again, after 10 years. It’s a Craftsman style home with wide overhangs, plenty of exposed wood inside and out and broad window and door mullions. Heavy wood beams form a triangular truss over the full-width front porch. At each corner of the house there are cantilever 6x6 wood beam corbels extending out over diagonal kickers that support the end rafters of the gabled roof. The 6:12 roof has a high center ridge running full width, with lesser ridges running forward and back, so each side of the house has a large gabled end. It’s painted in a four color scheme. The stucco walls below the gable ends are light brown. The gable ends above the first floor and the 3 roof dormers are covered in cedar shingles, painted dark green. The wood beams, window mullions and door trim is all painted dark brown and the narrow wood window casements are burgundy red accents to the brown. The south facing carriage house doors were in the worst shape of all and in danger of deteriorating quickly so we started with the restoration of the doors.

Craftsman Restoration

The house was built in 1912. We’re just beginning to prepare, patch an ...

Updated: Mar 23, 2013 11:23pm PST

Craftsman House roof repair : Roof replacement on our 1912 Craftsman house required extensive wood repairs. Plywood was added over the entire roof on top of the 1x4 spaced sheathing before new asphalt compostion shingles could be installed. The original wood shingles were nailed to the 1x4 skip sheathing. Composition shingles are a practical choice today and the plywood is needed to make the house earthquake resistant. Much work was done to restore the original look of the house. We replaced a termite-damaged beam, reattached loose corbels and replaced split and weathered fascia rafters that were deteriorating.

Craftsman House roof repair

Roof replacement on our 1912 Craftsman house required extensive wood r ...

Updated: Sep 08, 2010 12:39pm PST

People and Portraits : Photographs by Dave Gaines - Structural engineer, photographer, architecural restoration enthusiast, scuba diver, hiker, mountain biker and outdoorsman. Here are 45 photos of the AIA P&F Fall Formal and Installation of the 2013 Board of Directors. It was a wonderful social gathering, diner and recognition of excellence in architecture at the Western Justice Center, Maxwell House.

People and Portraits

Photographs by Dave Gaines - Structural engineer, photographer, archit ...

Updated: Dec 05, 2012 3:45pm PST

Craftsman Weekend : Craftsman Weekend homes on the Pasadena Heritage home tour. The annual Craftsman Weekend occurs on the 3rd weekend of October.

Craftsman Weekend

Craftsman Weekend homes on the Pasadena Heritage home tour. The annual ...

Updated: Dec 06, 2012 11:11am PST

Christmas Lights and Parties : A lot of these images were taken with an ultra wide angle, 14 mm lens. Because of the ultra wide angle view, the size and proportions of everyone you know and love are completely out of proportion in the wide angle photos. Everything close to the lens appears larger than it really is and everyone farther away seems smaller than you might remember. I did this on purpose so I could get in close to people and capture group shots. And this was a lot more fun than your normal party shots. Somehow - I don't know why - but a few people actually came out looking like themselve, which was not my intention!

Christmas Lights and Parties

A lot of these images were taken with an ultra wide angle, 14 mm lens. ...

Updated: Dec 04, 2012 11:10pm PST

Colorado Street Bridge, Pasadena : A steam flows out of the rugged, steep San Gabriel Mountains through the Arroyo Seco Canyon to meet the Los Angeles River near Griffith Park. The Colorodo Street Bridge was built in 1913 to span the Arroyo Seco in Pasadena. The bridge deck offers one 15 foot wide lane each way with sidewalks and seating alcoves on either side. The galvanized steel guardrails, railings and streetlamps have a blue luster to them. This historic bridge was once the main connection for travellers driving from Pasadena to Eagle Rock and Glendale. The route connects two large valleys of Los Angeles County - the San Gabriel Valley to the east and the San Fernando Valley to the west. Following the Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1984 the bridge was closed to traffic as a precaution. A seismic retrofit and restoration of the bridge was completed in 1993. The Foothill Freeway (134 & 210) was built in the 1970's connecting the two valleys. Just north of the Colorado Street Bridge the freeway spans across the Arroyo Seco on a modern arched bridge that compliments the design of the original bridge. Every year since 1979 Pasadena Heritage Society has celebrated the unique beauty of the Colorado Street Bridge with a huge party in mid-July. More info at http://www.pasadenaheritage.org

Colorado Street Bridge, Pasadena

A steam flows out of the rugged, steep San Gabriel Mountains through t ...

Updated: Jan 16, 2013 10:33pm PST

Colorado Street Bridge Party : On Saturday, July 14, 2012 the Pasadena Heritage, Colorado Street Bridge Celebration occured again. The 2012 party was named the 35th Birthday Party for Pasadena Heritage. The first third of these photos are from the 2012 Colorado Street Bridge Party. The second group are from the 2010 Bridge Party and the last third are from the 2008 Bridge Party. Both sets are in chronological order, beginning with closing the bridge to traffic at 6:00 am followed by afternoon set-up, the daylight Party opening and up to the end of the Bridge Party at 11:00 pm. Some of these photos are the posed media shots of honored guests that Pasadena Heritage wanted. The rest are what I found wandering about capturing people having a good time. At night around the band stages I got quite a few fun portraits of the ladies as well as the band members. All photographs are copyrighted. Do not use, print, copy or reproduce without permission. Contact me at gainesengr@earthlink.net with any requests.

Colorado Street Bridge Party

On Saturday, July 14, 2012 the Pasadena Heritage, Colorado Street Brid ...

Updated: Aug 24, 2012 11:55pm PST

Old Pasadena : Old Pasadena was the social and economic center of town in the 1880's when Pasadena began to take life. Originally Victorian in style, the facades of buildings along Colorado Boulevard were cut back 14 feet to allow widening of the street in 1929. Victorian was no longer in style so most facades were redesigned in Art Deco and Mediterranean styles that were popular in 1929. These photos, taken over a 2 year period, include buildings from St Andrews Catholic Church above Walnut Street to the Castle Green below Green Street (originally named Kansas Street), from Tanner's Market at Pasadena Avenue on the west to the Chamber of Commerce Building at Arroyo Boulevard on the east. We can thank the founders of Pasadena Heritage for saving Old Pasadena from the wrecking ball in the 1970's and 1980's. Historical information contained in the photo captions can be heard in greater detail on the Old Pasadena Walking Tour given quarterly by Pasadena Heritage and to groups on request by arrangement. All photos copyrighted. Use by written permission only. For info about specific photos, contact: gainesengr@earthlink.net

Old Pasadena

Old Pasadena was the social and economic center of town in the 1880's ...

Updated: Oct 12, 2011 10:24pm PST

San Gabriel Mountains : This gallery contains a series of adventures in the local mountains above Pasadena, La Crescenta and Azusa. Also some from the San Bernardino Mountains to the east.

San Gabriel Mountains

This gallery contains a series of adventures in the local mountains ab ...

Updated: Apr 11, 2013 11:10pm PST

Joshua Tree National Park : Joshua Tree National Park is a beautiful place! Here are photos from 5 trips to Joshua Tree, 4 of them in the last 18 months. Captions below most photos describe the location. The first group of 65 photos are from May, 2012. We stayed in a 1950s Modern Cabin high above the town of Joshua Tree and entered the Park each day to see Smith Water Canyon, Ocotillo Gardens, Elephant Arch, "Sheep" canyon, Hidden Valley, Barker Dam and Sheep Pass. The 2nd group of 51 photos are from a solo trip in November, 2011. I camped at White Tank and explored Elephant Arch again. I recorded several images at night under a full moon with 60 second exposures. I hiked out to the Sand Dunes in Pinto Basin, stopped along the way at Cholla Gardens and hiked up to 49 Palms oasis where I found seeping water in pools and small cascades. The 3rd group of 47 photos are from a trip I took with Lars, Cecilia, Max, Gunther and Eileen to Joshua Tree in April, 2005. Photos include the man-made lake northeast of the town of Joshua Tree near Copper Mountain, Barker Dam and lake, a few wildflowers from the BLM land SE of 29 Palms, Squaw Tank reservoir where we found a giant lizard and the “Sheep” canyon we hiked into near the south edge of the park. That trip ends with a shot of Gunther at the old mining ruins in “Sheep” canyon. The 4th group are 70 photos from my solo trip in May, 2011. Those include Elephant Arch at White Tank campground and lots of wildflowers, including a few from “Sheep” canyon. Lots of macro photos of wildflowers in this group. On the last day I met Eileen and Gunther at Black Rock campground. The next morning we toured the Morongo Valley Nature Preserve looking for birds. The last group of 67 photos are from a backpacking trip in October of 2010. It starts with a photo of Jimmy with his backpack on. The hard part about backpacking in Joshua Tree is having enough water. That trip includes a big hike farther into the same “Sheep” canyon and Pushwalla Plateau.

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree National Park is a beautiful place! Here are photos from 5 ...

Updated: Nov 17, 2012 12:11am PST

Plants and Animals : Trees, flowers, plants and turtle studies in urban garden settings. Lots of macro flower images and some turtle photos comparing the various macro lens options for Olympus cameras.

Plants and Animals

Trees, flowers, plants and turtle studies in urban garden settings. Lo ...

Updated: Dec 17, 2012 11:39pm PST

Maggie's Quilts : My mom, Irene McDermott taught me to quilt in the winter of 2000. Since then I have probably made over 50 quilts for friends and family. Dave did a wonderful job of photographing them in the garden using sunlight and flash to bring out the colors. My quilting has been a deep source of joy, creative expression and a way to connect with the people I love. It makes me so happy to think about all of the people I have made quilts for getting under them, snuggling down and going to sleep at day’s end. Captions show who ach quilt was made for and when. The format numbers in each caption, 9x12, 8x10, 6x9, etc, are print format sizes. Dave used these to order prints for a scrapbok of these quilts.

Maggie's Quilts

My mom, Irene McDermott taught me to quilt in the winter of 2000. Sinc ...

Updated: Feb 20, 2013 10:20pm PST

Curacao Island, in the Netherland Antilles : We enjoyed 6 days of incredible scuba diving and underwater photography on Curacao Island. Curacao is in the Netherland Antilles, often called the ABCs for Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao. No one living on the island today is native to Curacao. It was a Dutch Colony since the 1640s. Half way between Africa and the new world, America, it served the Dutch, British, Spanish and Portuguese slave trades until about the 1840s or so. Slavery ended in most parts of the world just 160 years ago. Since then Curacao has gone through many changes. Dutch is still spoken there and the French and British both have influences too. One of our Curacao guides, a warm-hearted black gentleman showed us an old slave quarters on top of the hill across from an old church. From there we had an interesting conversation about slavery in the world today. More info at: http://www.curacao-travelguide.com

Curacao Island, in the Netherland Antilles

We enjoyed 6 days of incredible scuba diving and underwater photograph ...

Updated: Jun 10, 2009 1:05pm PST

California Oil Rig Diving : Oil rigs are isolated reefs, teeming with marine life. Every square inch is covered with scallops, sponges and anemones. The reef fish are there too. Pelagic fish are attracted to the rigs and sea lions sunbath on the cross bars above water and dive down around you during the dive. There is no game taking allowed on these oil rigs, so everything flourishes and grows. The male sheephead get big here. It is a bit strenuous, it’s advanced diving, you need good buoyancy control and navigation skills and you have to be ready to jump in all together. The skipper brings the boat in as close as they can from the down-current or downwind side of the rig. Everyone gets ready before arrival and they drop you off all at once in a group. You swim 50 to 100 feet, or more, on the surface over to the rig and make your descent. You always dive within the oil rig structure, never losing sight of the rig. The boat is never anchored and they have to stay clear of the rig in order to avoid drifting into it. They also can’t motor around divers so you have to follow their signals for returning to the boat. Ideally you finish your dive where you entered the rig and surface just outside the structure. It’s deep out there. The rigs are in 350 to 700 feet of water. If you drop your camera or knife and you can’t catch it, it’s gone! We had a great time on the Sea Bass with just 12 divers on board. We saw a dozen or more Mola Mola (sunfish), jelly fish and other pelagic invertebrates floating through, rare pelagic rays, sea lions and lots of reef fish. All images were shot with the Olympus E-330 and the Olympus 8 mm f/3.5 fish eye lens in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS-125 strobes at ISO 200, 1/80 second and mostly around f/5.6.

California Oil Rig Diving

Oil rigs are isolated reefs, teeming with marine life. Every square in ...

Updated: Oct 27, 2010 10:12pm PST

Morro Bay Estuary : It's an incredibly beautiful natural estuary where high tide fills the shallow bay with sea water twice a day and twice a day when the tide recedes it morphs into a huge expanding mud flat with groundwater and freshwater creeks flowing in.

Morro Bay Estuary

It's an incredibly beautiful natural estuary where high tide fills the ...

Updated: Dec 08, 2012 11:46pm PST

Montana de Oro : Montana de Oro State Beach and campground is west of San Luis Obispo and south of Morro Bay, through the town of Los Osos, California. It offers the most peaceful, uncrowded camping you'll find on the Central California Coast. Rocky cliffs are interspersed with sandstone pebble beaches. The rocky beaches, kelp beds and reef just off-shore offer good scuba diving. The tide pools are full of life. Otters are often seen from the cliffs. Hawks and osprey float on the breezes above the trees and hills surrounding the park. Hiking trails lead into the rolling hills behind the coastline. Walking and bike trails follow the coastline for several miles. Hazard Beach, which you pass just before entering the park is a local surf spot. A short walk through the eucalyptus trees to Hazard Beach reveals another beautful beach full of tide pools.

Montana de Oro

Montana de Oro State Beach and campground is west of San Luis Obispo a ...

Updated: Oct 10, 2007 11:13pm PST

California Scuba Diving :

California Scuba Diving

Updated: Aug 12, 2011 10:35pm PST

Weather and Water : Your Weather, like mine, may not seem extreme at the moment but extreme depends on your viewpoint. In this gallery I've attempted to go out and find expressions of extreme weather. I thought about how to express photographically what is mostly sky, air, moisture or precipitation. I thought about how weather appears in the various seasons and how to express an interesting image of that. I found that weather can be dramatic too. And if you like some of these it may be that I captured something familiar in a new way that stirs feelings for the subject. The link below leads to a photo challenge I hosted on an Olympus camera forum called "Extreme Weather". The first gallery has about 50 images of weather that people sent me from all over the world. There are about 40 more photos in the 2nd gallery, “Challenge Entry” which was for competition. http://www.pbase.com/otfchallenge/challenge_70_extreme_weather

Weather and Water

Your Weather, like mine, may not seem extreme at the moment but extrem ...

Updated: Feb 22, 2013 8:59pm PST

So Cal Beaches : The birds, sand, tide pools, lagoons and people of coastal So Cal

So Cal Beaches

The birds, sand, tide pools, lagoons and people of coastal So Cal

Updated: Dec 06, 2012 10:48am PST

California Central Coast : California's Central Coast extends north from Santa Barbara to about Big Sur or Carmel. The areas we frequent include, from south to north, the Santa Ynez Valley, Zaca Lake, Mount Figueroa, Point Conception, Lompoc, Point Sal, Santa Maria, Guadalupe Beach, Pismo Beach, Avila Bay, San Luis Obispo, Baywood, Morro Bay, Cambria, San Simeon, Point Piedras and Ragged Point. North of San Simeon is the Big Sur coastline.

California Central Coast

California's Central Coast extends north from Santa Barbara to about B ...

Updated: Dec 26, 2012 11:23am PST

California North Coast :

California North Coast

Updated: Apr 16, 2012 4:12pm PST

Anza Borrego Desert : Anza Borrego Desert is named for the Spanish explorer, Juan Bautista de Anza who used this route in 1775-1776 to reach the California coastline from Mexico. The park is also named for the big horn sheep that can still be seen in the park today. Borrego is Spanish for sheep. The elevations vary from below sea level to 3100 feet asl. Anza probably followed a sandy wash up through Grapevine Canyon to get over the coastal mountains. Anza Borrego Desert State Park is northeast of San Diego in the big Imperial Valley. It's southeast of Palm Springs, due south of Joshua Tree National Park and west of the Salton Sea. The town of Borrego Springs is near the center of the park at about 450 feet above sea level. The southern reaches of the park are near the Mexican border. From Los Angeles, we drove through the hills southeast of Temecula and about 30 miles east from Warner Springs and Julian.

Anza Borrego Desert

Anza Borrego Desert is named for the Spanish explorer, Juan Bautista d ...

Updated: Apr 08, 2013 10:28pm PST

Carolinas and Smoky Mountains : Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, Hilton Head, South Carolina and Charlestown, SC in May, 2008.

Carolinas and Smoky Mountains

Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, Hilton Head, South Carolina and Charl ...

Updated: Oct 07, 2010 3:00am PST

Hummingbird Nest : Welcome to my gallery of hummingbird photos. We've got a hummingbird nesting outside our window. We've watched her building a nest out of dry wispy puffs of flower topping the tall grasses that grow in our back yard. A hummingbird with eggs will build a nest. Gestation is apparently about 2 to 3 weeks so we should have an ongoing show here. I'm shooting from about 8 feet away from her. I found eggs in the nest yesterday so it's just a matter of time before there are chicks in the nest. I'll be adding photos almost every day to this gallery for the next few weeks so check back once in a while.

Hummingbird Nest

Welcome to my gallery of hummingbird photos. We've got a hummingbird n ...

Updated: Jun 03, 2008 10:57pm PST

Galapagos Islands Underwater :

Galapagos Islands Underwater

Updated: Dec 17, 2008 10:19pm PST

Galapagos Islands topside :

Galapagos Islands topside

Updated: Jan 28, 2010 10:23am PST

Quito, Ecuador : Basilica Del Nacional Voto in the capital of Ecuador, Quito

Quito, Ecuador

Basilica Del Nacional Voto in the capital of Ecuador, Quito

Updated: Dec 17, 2008 10:17pm PST

Color abstracts : Pieces of color and bits of life. Random pic's from my wanderings.

Color abstracts

Pieces of color and bits of life. Random pic's from my wanderings.

Updated: Dec 01, 2012 11:41pm PST

Street Photography & People : Scenes of Pasadena, Los Angeles and Southern California: Local concerts in small venues, shoppers in the rain, Metro Rail stations, Farmer's Market, a shopping plaza, musicians and concerts, Rose Parade floats at night, a Textile Art show and a street party in Eagle Rock

Street Photography & People

Scenes of Pasadena, Los Angeles and Southern California: Local concert ...

Updated: Feb 18, 2013 9:55pm PST

Tour de California : Here in Pasadena on Saturday, February 21st I went to watch the Amgen Tour de California bike races. Somewhere in my bike race shots is an image of Lance Armstrong racing by with 40 other guys. We watched at the Rose Bowl where the whole pack circled around 5 times. To catch them slowing down I found an uphill part of the 5 mile loop and waited for them to come by. It was pretty wild with the crowds standing right on the pavement next to the riders. Everyone moved in closer when the pack came by so it was hard to shoot through the crowd. They got so close I could feel the wind of the pack riding by a few times while I was looking through the lens. http://www.amgentourofcalifornia.com

Tour de California

Here in Pasadena on Saturday, February 21st I went to watch the Amgen ...

Updated: Feb 25, 2009 10:10pm PST

Friends and Family :

Friends and Family

Updated: Mar 12, 2013 9:57pm PST

Camera Equipment :

Camera Equipment

Updated: Aug 13, 2011 9:00am PST

Underwater Camera Equipment :

Underwater Camera Equipment

Updated: Apr 21, 2010 1:44pm PST

California Landscapes :

California Landscapes

Updated: Mar 22, 2013 9:55pm PST