Category Archives: Photographs: Urban/Street

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Happiness…

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Happiness...
Street scene in downtown San Francisco

Happiness…. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Street scene in downtown San Francisco.

There is a good chance that you don’t immediately see why this photograph is titled “Happiness…” But now that you’ve looked more closely, you have probably figured it out. Yes, the word “Happiness” appears in large letters on the wall of one of the buildings. On one hand, I suppose it is a nice word to have on your building. On the other hand… does painting a word on the side of the building bring happiness. Feel free to ponder.

Aside from that, this spot in downtown San Francisco has intrigued me for some time. It is an area that has been undergoing a lot of redevelopment, with the new transit center right behind my camera position. I have photographed this curving freeway ramp from the other side of this scene, looking back towards the camera position of this image. There’s something attractive about the curve as it cuts right through the angular forms of this downtown area. I’m also a sucker for reflected light, such as that falling on the closed roadway at the bottom of the frame. You might say that it brings me… happiness.

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 and Amazon.

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Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Parking Lot, Bay Fog

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Parking Lot, Bay Fog
A parking lot along the edge of San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning

Parking Lot, Bay Fog. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A parking lot along the edge of San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning.

As the end of August approached I realized that I wanted to get up to the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco to see the extensive Andy Warhol exhibit. (While I’m not the world’s biggest Warhol fan, I find his work interesting and thought-provoking and seeing this collection was a rare opportunity.) I often combine visits to this museum with photography, and that was the plan this time, too.

As I often do for such visits, I took the train up from my home, arriving fairly early in the morning. It was a somewhat unusual San Francisco morning along the waterfront of the Bay. It was already warm when I arrived, and it was also humid — unusual for California. Despite the warmth, fog was drifting across the inner San Francisco Bay, backlit by the early morning sun. I’ve walked along this section of the bay between the train station and the Ferry Building many times, so at this point I’m often looking for things aren’t your typical San Francisco photographs, and as I walked past this familiar parking lot, standing on old piers right along the water, I was attracted by the lines and curves and the backlit structures.

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 and Amazon.

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

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

Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze

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Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze
Street vendors and crowds of tourists at the Duomo, Florence, Italy

Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Street vendors and crowds of tourists at the Duomo, Florence, Italy.

One thing you can count on during tourist season in any popular city area like this one is that you’ll find lots of folks trying to sell you stuff, including street vendors of all sorts. The “art” objects for sale range from incredibly cheap trinkets (think of the tiny Eiffel Towers sold by the Paris entrepreneurs), though various kinds of post cards and similar, all the way to hand produced caricatures and others kinds of artistic efforts. (We’re not much for buying such stuff, preferring to make our own memories. Though we do give in on occasion.)

These two fellows were set up in a busy area in the shadow of the Duomo, the gigantic church in the center of the old part of Florence. If I recall, it was still morning, and the crowds were just starting to build, with lines growing at the entrances to this historical feature.

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 and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

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

Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Walking Man, Florence

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Walking Man, Florence
A man walks past businesses in Florence

Walking Man, Florence. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A man walks past businesses in Florence.

Several years ago we concluded a long European trip by visiting Italy, where we spent a week in the hills of Tuscany with members of our extended family. The trip, in total, was about bit longer than a month, and we had about a week and a half in Italy.

Most of our time in Tuscany was in the rural area near where we stayed — that region of fields and vineyards and orchards and small towns and villages. However, at the end of that part of our visit we decided to spend a few days in Florence before flying home. It was our first visit there, and we loved the place. (Yes, it is busy and full of tourists, but if you go out at the right times… less so.) I made this photograph on one of our first walks as we headed toward the Ponte Vecchio bridge.

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 and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

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