Evelyn Schmitt lives for Pierhenge, happening again Saturday
For Manhattan Beach resident Evelyn Schmitt, there are no greater days than the twice-yearly Pierhenge natural events at the Manhattan Beach Pier. That is when the sun sets in a way that finds it twinkling directly in-between the pilings of the Pier. (The same thing happens by the Manhattan Beach Library for “Lightgate,” when it […]
The show must go on
Lynne Gross has hosted TV children’s shows, produced PBS shows, taught at two universities, and written 12 textbooks. She’s not done yet inside by Jefferson Graham Lynne Gross retired in 2009, at age 70, after teaching “a little bit of everything” at Cal State University Fullerton for 20 years. During that time, she […]
TRAVEL: How to do Tijuana the right way, with a tour
If you read and watch the news, you’ve heard the message: Tijuana is one of the most dangerous cities in the world, the home to more murders in Mexico than anywhere else in the country, and a place many of us are advised not to go to on our own. The fine print is that most […]
King Tide to be celebrated in the South Bay
Thanks to the position of the Moon and its gravitational pull on our planet this week, it’s time again for the King Tides in California and other coastal states this week. The exact dates for King Tides: Thursday and Friday January 11 & 12 and February 9, 2024. In California, there are state sponsored Tide photowalks […]
Best smartphone photo tips to kick off the new year
The most popular cameras in the world are the ones in our pockets–iPhones, Galaxys and Pixels, and they’ve gotten so good that they now are almost as good as the bigger, expensive cameras. They’re also much easier to use and tote around, but are you getting the most out of them? I’ve pulled ten of […]
TRAVEL: The back streets of Japan’s No. 2, electric city, Osaka
Osaka, Japan’s no. 2 most populated city, is in the southern part of the country, more colorful than Tokyo, less crazy and a whole lot of fun to explore. In the latest #PhotowalksTV episode, we join forces with the folks from Osaka.com, Matt Kaufman and Wes Wesson, to make our way through the back streets, […]
TRAVEL: Christmas in Japan
Christmas doesn’t just belong to Dickens and Coca-Cola. In Japan, despite the language barriers, the same customs exploited by American marketers are alive and well in the Land of the Rising Sun. Department stores have holiday displays in the windows, people stand on long lines to buy boxed holiday packaged chocolates and those endless Christmas […]
See Manhattan Beach Fireworks Highlights
The 35th Annual Skechers Manhattan Beach Holiday Fireworks Festival show went off without a hitch on the Pier Sunday night, with thousands of fireworks sent off into the skies over a 17 minute period that drew thousands to the area. You can watch a highlight reel here: Additionally, the Easy Reader spoke with the organizer […]
TRAVEL: Time to return to San Francisco Again?
Reading all the recent headlines about the seemingly out of control homeless situation, the smash and grabs, rampant thefts, large retailers closing shop in response and open heavy drug use on the streets, I wondered if San Francisco was really on the “doom loop” that many media suggested. Then the APEC conference was staged in the […]
Surfing Santa promises to fill grom stockings with sand
Surfing Santa was besieged in and out of the water by local groms when he returned to Neptune Street last week for his annual pre-holiday surf session. The groms all asked for the same thing in their stockings: Sand to build sandbars so they can surf without getting slammed in the shorepound, like they have […]
TRAVEL: Seal Beach, OC’s smallest beach town is like “Mayberry” by the sea
If you live in the South Bay, there’s usually no need to leave the bubble of Hermosa, Manhattan and Redondo Beach–we have it all here, right? But sometimes it is fun to venture south, and see how different beach cities do it. In Orange County, Newport, Laguna and Huntington are bustling, while the first of […]
TRAVEL: The Great American West for 2024
At this time of the year, we start dreaming about great places to visit in the coming year, and I’d love to share with you a few reasons to start thinking about the great American West. I’ve just completed the #PhotowalksTV episode of the epic 30-day Western travel photography road trip, exploring 9 states from […]
Manhattan Beach Photowalk Sunday 11/19
We’ll be at the Manhattan Beach Pier Sunday morning for a photowalk and tips on how to get pro level smartphone shots on your iPhone or Galaxy. We’ve been doing sunset meetings, but now that she goes down around 5 p.m., we’re moving to the morning for the winter. We’ll meet at the foot of […]
How to do a 10-day timelapse
I recently made a ten-day timelapse video on two mobilephone cameras of hometown of Manhattan Beach, California, for multiple sunsets, moonrises, flowing clouds and all sorts of stuff the naked eye rarely gets to see. And since it launched on YouTube, I’ve received so many questions about how the video came to be, what accessories were […]
Manhattan Beach: Epic 10-day timelapse video
Watch Manhattan Beach sunsets, moonrises, flowing clouds and more in this timelapse video of ten days in the South Bay city, from the roof of a local deck. Filmed on two smartphones, an iPhone 15 and a Samsung Galaxy S23+ for the #PhotowalksTV series.
Angry parents protest alleged anti-semitic MBMS act to school board
Over 70 parents protested to the members of the Manhattan Beach Unified School District board and its superintendent John Bowles Wednesday night over an alleged anti-semitic incident at Manhattan Beach Middle School and how the officials handled it. “You have shown what cowards you are,” said Manhattan Beach Market co-owner Heather Kim. “It’s appalling what […]