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Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Photo Essay: Golden Gate Bridge 75th Anniversary

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Happy birthday to the San Francisco Bay Area’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge!

Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay Panorama - Panorama of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, and the San Francisco Bay in dramatic morning light.
Panorama of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, and the San Francisco Bay in dramatic morning light.

Photographed from near the north end of the bridge, the sweep of the cables leading to the top of the north tower frames a panorama from Alcatraz Island at the far left, past beams of morning sun on the east end of the Bay Bridge, across the skyline of downtown San Francisco, with the Bay in the foreground.

Having lived and photographed in the San Francisco Bay Area for decades, the Golden Gate Bridge has been a central part of my experience of the area. I frequently photograph in San Francisco and across the bridge to the north, and even when the bridge itself is not my primary intended subject I almost always look in its direction to see what it will offer up as a new photographic opportunity. I have been fortunate to be close enough to see the bridge in an incredible range of conditions – at night, in winter storms, at sunrise, and more.

Since the 75th Anniversary of the opening of the bridge is being celebrated today, it seems like a good time to collect a few of my favorite Golden Gate Bridge photographs that feature, include, or are part of the experience of this icon. In keeping with the retrospective theme of such a birthday, I’ve chosen mostly black and white photographs. But first, a panorama…

Golden Gate Bridge Tower, Transamerica Building, San Francisco Skyline
Golden Gate Bridge Tower, Transamerica Building, San Francisco Skyline

Among the most famous views of the bridge are those looking back across the Golden Gate (which, technically, refers to the mouth of the bay) past the bridge toward the skyline of San Francisco.

 

North Tower, Golden Gate Bridge, Night - Black and white night photograph of the north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California.
Black and white night photograph of the north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California.

The bridge and the city take on a completely different appearance at night. This photograph was made from the hills near the north end of the bridge, looking back through it towards San Francisco.

 

Ships, San Francisco Bay, Morning - Freighter departing San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning is seen through the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge with the San Francisco skyline in the background. Black and white photograph.
Freighter departing San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning is seen through the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge with the San Francisco skyline in the background. Black and white photograph. September 18, 2007.

I am especially fond of the very early morning views of the bridge and the bay, and I often stop here on my way to photograph other locations. While one can certainly end up completely socked in by fog here, at other times the range of effects of atmosphere and light is extraordinary. Here several ships pass under the bridge on a morning when the fog is just beginning to clear east of The City.

 

Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, Morning Haze - Black and white photograph of Golden Gate Bridge north tower, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and the East Bay Hills in morning haze.
Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, Morning Haze - Black and white photograph of Golden Gate Bridge north tower, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and the East Bay Hills in morning haze.

Seen from high in the Marin Headlands, the silhouette of the north tower of the bridge bisects the western span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge on a morning when low haze blanketed the Bay Area.

 

Clearing Fog, North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge - Clearing Fog, North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge - Morning fog clears from the North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California.
Clearing Fog, North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge - Morning fog clears from the North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California.

Classic Golden Gate Bridge fog passes fills the entrance to the Bay and rises up over the hills of the Marin Headlands, with the skyline of The City visible on the horizon.

 

Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay, Morning Haze - Winter morning haze partially obstructs the view across San Francisco Bay, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Treasure Island, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and the city of Oakland.
Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay, Morning Haze

The Oakland area and the eastern section of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge – both the old version and the new one under construction –  seem over one of the towers of the Golden Gate Bridge.

 

Sutro Tower and Golden Gate Bridge South Tower, Morning - Morning traffic crosses the Golden Gate Bridge approaching the south tower with haze-shrouded San Francisco hills and Sutro Tower beyond.
Morning traffic crosses the Golden Gate Bridge approaching the south tower with haze-shrouded San Francisco hills and Sutro Tower beyond.

Looking south across the bridge toward the even taller structure of the Sutro Tower.

 

North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, Morning - The north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, with San Francisco Bay, the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, a departing ship, and the East Bay hills beyond in morning fog and haze.
North Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, Morning

The silhouette of a large outgoing freighter passes beneath the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in the distance beyond the north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge.

 

Alcatraz and Yerba Buena Islands, San Francisco Bay, Foggy Morning Light - San Francisco Bay morning fog over begins to break up over Alcatraz and Yerba Buena Islands and the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge.
San Francisco Bay morning fog over begins to break up over Alcatraz and Yerba Buena Islands and the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge.

Alcatraz Island and the Bay, lit by golden early morning light.

 

San Francisco Skyline, Golden Gate Bridge Cables, Night - Photograph of the night skyline of San Francisco shot through the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge. Holiday lighting on downtown buildings.
Photograph of the night skyline of San Francisco shot through the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge. Holiday lighting on downtown buildings.

I’ll include one real night photograph of the bridge, though I’ll be sneaky about it and not show the whole bridge. (There are plenty of those photographs floating around and, yes, I have those, too!) Here I shot through the cables with a very long lens on a late autumn night when the holiday lights had been put up on the downtown San Francisco buildings – Look at the far left to see the Transamerica Building and the Embarcadero Center lights.

 

Golden Gate Bridge and Lunar Eclipse - The moon, in full lunar eclipse, passes behind the south tower of the Golden Gate Bridge.
The moon, in full lunar eclipse, passes behind the south tower of the Golden Gate Bridge.

I joined thousands of fellow Bay Area citizens to rise well before dawn and photograph this full lunar eclipse just before sunrise.

You can see many more of my San Francisco photographs in my gallery.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographers, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Photographers, Photographs: San Francisco

Arthur Tress, De Young Museum

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Arthur Tress, De Young Museum - Arthur Tress discusses his photographs with a group of photographers at his exhibit at the De Young Museum, San Francisco.
Arthur Tress discusses his photographs with a group of photographers at his exhibit at the De Young Museum, San Francisco.

Arthur Tress, De Young Museum. San Francisco, California. March 9, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Arthur Tress discusses his photographs with a group of photographers at his exhibit at the De Young Museum, San Francisco.

Back in early March, Adobe invited a number of San Francisco Bay Area photographers to meet with photographer Arthur Tress at his show at the De Young Museum, “San Francisco 1964.” (Thanks, Adobe!) After we assembled in the lobby and had a moment or two to speak to some of Adobe folks, including some working on the just-released new version of Lightroom, we adjourned to the gallery. In this photograph, the group listens to Tress (barely visible at the far side of the taller) as he walks through the gallery and talks about his work.

Tress and a photography curator introduced us to the show and shared some back-story and perspectives on the work it includes. The photographs are all black and white images shot in medium format during a period when Tress first came to the west coast in 1964, a year when a lot of interesting stuff was happening in The City – including the first US concerts by the Beatles, the “Goldwater” Republican convention, civil rights demonstrations, and more. Tress’s photographs are interesting on several levels: as a record of aspects of the period that we might not realize we have lost (especially to this photographer who was a child living in the Bay Area at that time), as a record of actual events, and as an often-witty commentary on much of what he observed.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Coastal Redwoods, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Pink Trillium flower

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Pink Trillium Flower - A pink trillium flower growing in the shade beneath redwood trees, Muir Woods National Monument.
A pink trillium flower growing in the shade beneath redwood trees, Muir Woods National Monument.

Pink Trillium flower. Golden Gate National Recreation Area, California. March 3, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A pink trillium flower growing in the shade beneath redwood trees, Muir Woods National Monument.

As I recall, I decided to photograph this particular trillium flower specimen for several reasons. The subtle pink color attracted me, since most of the flowers here at Muir Woods tend to be more or less white – though there are some that are even a bit more colorful than this one. I also liked the essentially perfect leaves that had not yet been torn or developed holes. The subtle shadowed light had just a hint of sunlight filtering down through the canopy of the redwood forest high above.

There is surprisingly little light to work with down on the redwood forest floor, especially early/late in the day or when there are clouds. Recently a friend who shot here expressed surprise to discover that he was shooting during the day at shutter speeds of around one second! This is not at all unusual, especially when using somewhat large apertures and shooting at low ISO. You quickly become sensitive to the slightest motion in the air, since breezes that you might otherwise not even feel can set the plants moving back and forth.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Coastal Redwoods, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Trillium Flower, Fern Tips

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Trillium Flower, Fern Tips - A trillium flower blooms among ferns beneath the canopy of the redwood forest at Muir Woods National Monument, California.
A trillium flower blooms among ferns beneath the canopy of the redwood forest at Muir Woods National Monument, California.

Trillium Flower, Fern Tips. Muir Woods National Monument, California. March 3, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A trillium flower blooms among ferns beneath the canopy of the redwood forest at Muir Woods National Monument, California.

This was one of the nicer “classic” trillium flowers I found in Muir Woods this season. The petals and leaves were in good shape and almost perfectly aligned with the flower’s petals lined up with the larger, lower leaves. The photograph was made very close to the beginning of March when the first good flowers were appearing in large numbers. Over the next few weeks, more and more of the flowers blossomed at Muir Woods. Other than some of the unusual winter flowers, the trillium flowers here sort of mark the beginning of the Central/Northern California wildflower season for me, and now that the days are lengthening more and more wildflowers will appear in the these areas.

Along the lines of technical information about this photograph… I used a 70-200mm lens on a full frame camera for this shot. This turns out to be the setup I use most often for this subject, though sometimes I’ll photograph them with a prime (ranging from 24mm to 135mm) or even a wider zoom, and every so often I use an extension tube and get in extra close. This photograph was shot at 200mm and cropped a bit, both to tighten the frame around the flower a bit and to get the taller and narrower aspect ratio that I usual prefer. For many flowers I find that 70-200mm zoom to be a great tool. Even though mine only opens to f/4, at 200mm this can create a very nicely blurred background when shooting such subjects, and the long focal length lets me work a bit further back from the flowers.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.