Tag Archives: sign

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Windows and Reflections, Union Square

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Windows and Reflections, Union Square
Windows and Reflections, Union Square

Windows and Reflections, Union Square. San Francisco, California. March 6, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Reflections and other subjects in a wall of windows at the Macys’ store, Union Square, San Francisco.

While busy trying to see closer “street” subjects – usually quite a few here – in San Francisco’s Union Square on a Saturday afternoon I looked up and saw these absolutely wild reflections in the wall of windows of this downtown Macy’s store. If you just glance at the image you see the front of a store covered with lots of windows. However, if you start looking more closely – especially at a large print – you begin to see an astonishing and almost hallucinogenic level of strange details. A few “normal” people appear faintly in some windows – in one a person sits at a table and is perhaps reading or eating. In the middle row of windows you can see hot pink pants, some strange fluorescent green item… and the reflected point of the Transamerica Tower. Along the sides bizarrely warped forms of reflected building windows appear.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
ISO 200, f/8, 1/250 second

keywords: san francisco, union square, macy’s, department, store, california, usa, north america, shop, windows, curved, reflection, people, building, architecture, structure, pattern, abstract, merchandise, restaurant, sign, people, distort, warp, downtown, urban, city, street, transamerica, tower, wall, stock

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Brick Building, Ferry Street

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Brick Building, Ferry Street
Brick Building, Ferry Street

Brick Building, Ferry Street. Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California. February 27, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The corner of a brick building at the intersection of Ferry and Nimitz Streets catches glow from nearby outdoor lights – Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

This is another photograph from my late-February night photography shoot a the historic Mare Island Naval Shipyard with The Nocturnes. The panoramic format image shows the corner of one of the brick buildings along Nimitz Avenue near the waterfront at Ferry Street. I’m almost always a sucker for old brick buildings, especially when photographed at night, but a few other things in this scene caught my attention. The right side of the building fronts that “main” roadway of Nimitz Avenue and is more brightly lit by street lights and security lights, while the left side is more in shadow and here is lit mostly by the light of the full moon. I was also intrigued by the contrast between the angular vertical and horizontal forms of the brick wall and the odd curving shape of the cable snaking up the side of the building in the center of the frame. I also noticed the glowing windows along the dark side of the building – the interior walls are picking up light coming in through the windows facing Nimitz Avenue. I also like the tiny bit of contrasting green color in the “Ferry St” sign.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
ISO 200, f/11, 291 seconds

keywords: night, photography, nocturnes, brick, wall, building, structure, architecture, ferry, nimitz, street, avenue, mare, island, naval, shipyard, minsy, vallejo, california, usa, north america, wire, pipe, window, pane, glass, artificial, light, historic, sign, conduit, screen, shadow, perspective, corner, interior, light, cable, stock, panorama, panocturnist

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Textures, Photographs: Urban/Street

Dilapidated Garage, Virgil Street

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Dilapidated Garage, Virgil Street
Dilapidated Garage, Virgil Street

Dilapidated Garage, Virgil Street. San Francisco, California. February 20, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A very old and dilapidated garage with hand-painted sign along Virgil Street in the Mission District, San Francisco, California.

Believe it or not, this is street photography.

I know it looks more like scene from an old farm perhaps, featuring the worn doors of the barn or a storage shed. We can imagine that it sits along a pasture or near the farmhouse, and the bit of green might suggest unseen springtime growth nearby. But it was actually photographed in a narrow and very urban alley in San Francisco’s dense and busy Mission District. It was shot “street style” with a handheld camera equipped with only a 50mm prime as I wandered around on foot.

I had seen this garage and pair of doors many times before, and I had thought about photographing them. However the scene never quite seemed to work as a photograph. But on this day two things came together and provoked me to make a few images. First, the light was very interesting. It was a cloudy day, but occasionally the clouds would thin or almost part enough to let in brighter but still diffused light – and that is the light that I used to make this exposure. Second, the little bit of new plant growth (OK, it is a weed) lends a bit of color contrast and life to the scene.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
ISO 200, f/8, 1/160 second

keywords: the, mission, san francisco, california, usa, north america, street, urban, city, district, garage, door, wall, paneling, hinge, rusty, window, brace, dilapidated, virgil, street, alley, plant, crack, parking, night, sign, peeling, paint, sidewalk, cement, geometric, form, structure, architecture, old, historic, worn, building, stock, gray

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Towers and Brick Building, Full Moon Light

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Towers and Brick Building, Full Moon Light
Towers and Brick Building, Full Moon Light

Towers and Brick Building, Full Moon Light. Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California. February 27, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Industrial towers and brick building under the light of the full moon at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

On February 27, for the second time this month, I visited Mare Island Naval Shipyard to do night photography with The Nocturnes, the San Francisco Bay Area night photography group. (Anyone looking for great resources on night photography should visit their web site. They also offer classes and workshops on night photography.) This was a “Mare Islands Alumni” event, attended by quite a few folks who have done night photography at Mare Island. One of the highlights came before the actual photography began as we met in the museum building and had a chance to view work by participating photographers – the work gets better every time and there was some wonderful night photography on display.

One attraction on this night was the full moon, which appears just above and to the right of the frame in this photograph made near the intersection of 8th and Nimitz Streets, in the heart of the old ship construction area. The was the first subject I photographed – it was something of a “do over,” since I had overlooked some obvious composition problems with the shot earlier this month and wanted to get it right this time. When I originally mentioned that, Tim Baskerville pointed out that I might have a hard time getting the same reflective puddles in the scene, but as luck would have it a good sized storm was just departing and it left great puddles everywhere!

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 35mm f/2.0
ISO 100, f/11, 353 seconds

keywords: 8th, avenue, street, nimitz, asphalt, puddle, reflection, water, twig, manhole, cover, steel, tower, rivets, bolt, brick, shop, building, window, arch, industrial, stop, sign, full, moon, light, sky, star, trail, cloud, minsy, the, nocturnes, mare, island, naval, shipyard, historic, vallejo, california, usa, north america, curb, sidewalk, night, photography