So, last week was pretty much hell here in Southern California. Many homes were destroyed, and memories wiped out. Due to the high winds and the humiditiy, many homes caught on fire. The fire started out in Santa Barbara and spread all the way down to Brea and Yorba Linda area.

The high winds blew ashes down into the cities like Cerritos and Anaheim. I woke up Saturday morning with the smell of burnt crisp ashes in the air. My skin was dry, and the winds were blowing like crazy outside. I looked out the window and everything was orange. The sun was layered with black smoke, and it was raining ashes.

This photo was taken by my brother. Everthing around was orange.

I went out to eat with my family, so I decided to bring my camera to take pictures of the unique lighting. The streets were somewhat empty, it felt like doomsday. The apartment buildings were dark orange and the streets were layered with ashes. I thought to myself how this kind of mood would make for a good apocalyptic movie.

It was quite outside, I guess people decided to stay away from the bad air. But not my family, we were hungry for some dim sum and I wanted my pictures. As I stepped outside the apartment, the smell was nauseating. The air was dry, and breathing in ashes was bad for my lungs, especially that I have asthma. But, we weren’t out for that long, just long enough for me to take some pictures before jumping into the car.

Ashes in the air.

When we got to the restaurant, I dusted my hair off and all the ashes came falling down. We ate at the restaurant for a good hour. After we were done, everything outside got darker. The sky turned black like a storm was coming, and the winds were still blowing like crazy, so we decided to go home and relax.

Sky is turning black.

After lunch, this was the scene outside the restaurant.

The pictures came out with a lot of contrast. Everything looked crisp, I’m not sure why but I think that the black ashes created more contrast on everything it touched. As an amateur photographer, I like taking pictures of everything that is unique, moods and feelings that are hard to replicate. The fire ablazed for another couple of days after that, but the smell was around for another 4 days after. It was a weird experience, and something I will never forget.

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