Coyote Hill Road by Page Mill Road, Palo Alto, Santa Clara County, CA, 4/20/2006
This tableau of two horses peacefully grazing on a lush grassy hillside beneath an old oak tree is for me a visual metaphor for harmony, contentment, and tranquility. The horses appear to have not a care in the world and live happily here at Pagemill Pastures, an 800 acre horse boarding facility in the city of Palo Alto, CA. The city is also home to Stanford University and many of the technology companies of Silicon Valley. Because these horse pastures lie right along the main road connecting Palo Alto with Interstate 280, thousands of high tech professionals enjoy refreshing views like this on their daily commute! It's not easy to make horses pose this way; they don't stand still for very long while they graze. Over a period of an hour or so I repeatedly moved and re-aimed my camera to keep the horses in the frame while trying to form a balanced, harmonious composition with the tree. I also had to grab my bag of photography gear away from the fence because I could tell one of the horses was about to maul it, looking for food!
