Category Archives: Photographs: San Francisco

Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Up The Stairs

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Up The Stairs
A woman pauses at the bottom of a staircase, San Francisco.

Up The Stairs. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A woman pauses at the bottom of a staircase, San Francisco.

This was one of those unexpected opportunities that make me operate on pure instinct, with almost no time to carefully think about what I’m doing. I saw the staircase in this fascinating light because we were at this concert hall in the daytime instead of at nighttime. I quickly whipped out the iPhone and framed a shot of the stairs. The masked woman — whose presence makes this a very different photograph than it might have been — was completely serendipitous.

We sometimes dismiss iPhone photography as not being serious. Well, some people do — but more and more folks recognize that it has its place. I wouldn’t normally carry a “real camera” to a symphony concert, but I do almost always have the phone. In this situation I was able to deploy it quickly, make a few adjustments, and capture a raw image that otherwise would have escaped.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Too Many Layers

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Too Many Layers
Multiple layers of reflections produce a complex whole.

Too Many Layers. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Multiple layers of reflections produce a complex whole.

The urban landscape can be quite complex and even deceptive. I think that we imagine it to be the most rational of landscapes, where everything is objectively “real” and describable. But when you begin to look more closely, if frequently isn’t quite what it seems to be. The surfaces of things are often elusive, and you may find yourself looking more at the reflections of other things than at the object you think you are viewing.

It is somewhat difficult to make sense of this image at all once you start looking closely. There are, obviously, things from the street — parts of automobiles, a bit of a crosswalk. But nothing in this scene is viewed directly — everything is a reflect, or a reflection of a reflection, or a reflection viewed through another reflection.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

San Francisco Tree

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San Francisco Tree
A few new leaves sprout from a nearly-bare tree on an San Francisco street.

San Francisco Tree. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A few new leaves sprout from a nearly-bare tree on an San Francisco street.

After the recent string of wilderness photographs I’m going to change things up and move — at least briefly — to some urban photography. The first few in this series will come from San Francisco… a different sort of wilderness at times!

These trees are found all over San Francisco, squeezed onto sidewalks between multi-story buildings and the busy streets. In most cases the lower limbs are bare, revealing the trees’ interesting, twisted shapes — shapes that contrast with the more regular and geometrical forms of the city’s architecture.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Colorful Buildings

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Colorful Buildings
The boundary between two colorfully painted San Francisco buildings.

Colorful Buildings. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

The boundary between two colorfully painted San Francisco buildings.

These two buildings appeared in another recent photograph, also shot straight on and focusing on the fascinating geometry and color scheme of the structure. The location is, broadly speaking, near North Beach and Fisherman’s Wharf, on a less-travelled side street. The architecture is within the typical San Francisco model — multi-story residences packed wall-to-wall, right up against the sidewalks.

The colors, of course, caught my attention. But there are a few other things going on that also fascinate me. For one, there’s a sort of dissonance between the extremely regular and geometric features of the two residences… and the odd lack of alignment between things like the two windows, the lower edge of the windows in the doors, and the garage door on the left.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.