The Mega-mind I took this photo at San Francisco's Westfield Mall a while ago. I remember noticing how people seemed to just dredge through the place going from one shop to the other in a mechanical way. I was starting to get weirded out, so I took out my camera and looked around for interesting things to photograph. I found this view and I stood int the middle of a small courtyard looking up and shot a few frames. When I looked back down, everyone around me had stopped and they were just staring at me, as if a bunch of drones had been severed from the mother signal and were starting to think for themselves. They looked up at what I was seeing and a couple of people took some photos with their phones, but it was not long before they went back to their mechanical shopping ... creepy!

Christian OZ Photography

Limited Edition Prints (Each limited to 100 prints)

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Christian Ortiz > Oakland's Cathedral of Christ the Light

I love photographing churches. Their interiors are far more interesting that your average building and they all hold a sense of purpose. Oakland's ultra modern cathedral is way up there on my awesome meter. The interior hull is made of wood with spaces for the light to shine through the glass exterior. The ceiling is a futuristic spaceship design and there is a huge projection of Christ in the center. The best part is that you always feel welcome when you are there (even if you have a camera and tripod!)

Christian Ortiz > Palace Gateway

There is something regal about Stanford's campus. Every time I visit, I feel like a country bumpkin who managed to sneak into the palace by hiding in the hay cart. I keep waiting for the palace guards to decent upon me and throw me in the dungeon. Well, until that day comes, I am happy to roam around and take pictures of this beautiful campus.

Christian Ortiz > Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption

This is one of the most interesting Cathedrals I have found in the Bay Area. It sits on top of a hill in San Francisco and overlooks the city. One of my favorite things about this Cathedral is it's ceiling. It is intricate and geometric and it seems to take on a fluid property as you move about the church. There are so many interesting things to see in here that I ended up spending almost an hour photographing unimpeded. It felt like a little safe-haven.

Christian Ortiz > Old Shanghai

The Huangpu River divides the old and new sections of Shanghai along the Bund District. This is a view of the old French Concession area near the famous Nanjing Road. I got here pretty late in the evening and didn't know that Shanghai turns the lights off at 11pm. I was setting my camera up for a shot of the building on the right when all of the sudden you see the lights going out in a rolling power outage sort of way traveling from right to left. I thought there was some sort of apocalyptic event happening, but after a few moments when the world did not come to an end, so I figured I would just collect my belonging as head home to live to shoot another day.

Christian Ortiz > Burning Rock

I was hiking in Point Lobos reserve when I saw this interesting rock. The thing looked like it was covered in red facial hair and the sun was hitting it at a low angle so it looked like it was on fire. It had a strangely captivating aura to it so I just stood there watching as the sun hit it at different angles. Eventually, I remembered that the park is full of mountain lions and I probably looked like easy prey so I got the heck out of there.

Christian Ortiz > Land of the Lost

I am a bit of a masochist when it comes to photography. I convinced my guide that we had to wake up at 3am to take a one hour bamboo raft ride down the river and then spend two hours climbing up this mountain in the dark so that we could get a good view of the sunrise. It was the only sensible thing to do! In all my scheming, I forgot to check the weather report because there was too much fog to see the sun. At least I was rewarded for my efforts by watching the world wake up from the vantage point of a cherub.

Christian Ortiz > The Trap is Set

I came across this bike in the middle of an alley in Shanghai. I looked around and wondered why its owner had left it unattended in such an obviously visible place. There can only be one explanation: this was a trap meant to lure unsuspecting pedestrians with the promise of a quick ride home. No doubt there was a Wing Chung master lying in wait, ready to decent upon the poor transgressor and dispense swift street justice. Well, lucky for me I had a ride. I wouldn't want to tangle with Mr. Fists of Fury.

Christian Ortiz > The Mega-mind

I took this photo at San Francisco's Westfield Mall a while ago. I remember noticing how people seemed to just dredge through the place going from one shop to the other in a mechanical way. I was starting to get weirded out, so I took out my camera and looked around for interesting things to photograph. I found this view and I stood int the middle of a small courtyard looking up and shot a few frames. When I looked back down, everyone around me had stopped and they were just staring at me, as if a bunch of drones had been severed from the mother signal and were starting to think for themselves. They looked up at what I was seeing and a couple of people took some photos with their phones, but it was not long before they went back to their mechanical shopping ... creepy!

Christian Ortiz > West Fall Bridge

The East Coast thinks it has a monopoly on leaves changing colors, but there are documented cases of this phenomena occurring in over parts of the world. I know this may be hard to believe, so I went out with my camera to grab some proof. I found this bridge near my home and low and behold I did, in fact, find leaves changing colors. How you like them apples?

Christian Ortiz > All Your Base Are Belong To Us

If anyone is missing an astronaut suit, don't worry, I borrowed it temporarily. I just wanted to see what my co-workers would do if I showed up to work wearing it and pretended nothing was out of the ordinary. At first little Timmy in Finance was a bit intimidated when I showed up asking for the quarterly reports. He just stared at me from the corner of his eye and pretended I was not there, but after a few minutes passed in silence, he handed them over. See, everyone trusts a man in a space suit.

Christian Ortiz > Where Have All the Thespians Gone?

Yes, thespians ... the dying breed of theater geeks that entertain the masses. We make fun of them during high school, but then we gladly accept them as idols when they pretend to be vampires on the big screen. I just wanted to let you guys know that some skaters took over you little stage over at Golden Gate park ... in case you want to go down there and try to take it back by breaking into song or something.

Christian Ortiz > Habitat

It seems the good folks over at the San Francisco Academy of Science understand that space exploration can be so uncomfortable. Why else would they have built such a convenient space habitat system? It features things you would need while sailing through deep space: a virtual rain forest, butterflies, a 360 degree view and ... oxygen. They just haven't figured out how to launch this puppy, but as soon as they do, I am sure this space habitat will be a hot item.

Christian Ortiz > Troll Free Zone

According to folklore (and sci-fi nuts), Trolls are supposed to live under bridges. That got me thinking ... would they also make their homes under freeways? Well, there was only one way to find out. I found the first freeway underpass I could and searched high and low, but alas, there was not a single Troll in sight. I mean, there were some rats and roaches, but nothing larger than a small dog. Maybe they are shy, or maybe they prefer the comfort of a nice wooden bridge, but either way, I can assure you that freeway underpasses are Troll free. You are welcome.

Christian Ortiz > I Ate Your Dog

It's hard being the most awesome extinct predator the world has ever seen. People are constantly trying to clone your DNA and build a small theme park around you. Then they have the nerve to complain that you ate their loved ones ... sheesh.

The Mega-mind

I took this photo at San Francisco's Westfield Mall a while ago. I remember noticing how people seemed to just dredge through the place going from one shop to the other in a mechanical way. I was starting to get weirded out, so I took out my camera and looked around for interesting things to photograph. I found this view and I stood int the middle of a small courtyard looking up and shot a few frames. When I looked back down, everyone around me had stopped and they were just staring at me, as if a bunch of drones had been severed from the mother signal and were starting to think for themselves. They looked up at what I was seeing and a couple of people took some photos with their phones, but it was not long before they went back to their mechanical shopping ... creepy!