Tag Archives: transamerica

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco

San Francisco Skyline, Pre-Dawn Sky

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San Francisco Skyline, Pre-Dawn Sky
San Francisco Skyline, Pre-Dawn Sky

San Francisco Skyline, Pre-Dawn Sky. San Francisco, California. December 10, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Pre-dawn sky begins to light the skyline of San Francisco, California.

While at San Francisco’s Crissy Field to photograph the lunar eclipse over the Golden Gate Bridge I realized that this unusual celestial phenomenon was by no means the only worthy subject at this early morning hour. Meanwhile, there was a beautiful and mysterious sunrise developing in the eastern sky beyond the City and over the East Bay, enhanced by a lot of atmospheric haze. (This was the same haze that ultimately caused the eclipsed moon to fade to invisibility shortly after the sky began to lighten.) So, while 99% of the photographers were still pointing their lenses west, I (along with a few other folks) pointed east and toward this section of the San Francisco skyline in roughly the Knob Hill and Russian Hill areas, with the familiar shape of the Transamerica pyramid partially hidden behind closer buildings and some typical San Francisco neighborhood buildings and trees up close at the bottom.

Yet again, this scene reinforced the idea that it is always important to look around at the whole scene. It is so easy to become completely focused on the single subject that you started out with – and sometimes this is a good thing! – that you may overlook other worthy subjects in other directions. I still have to remind myself sometimes to look up and scan my surroundings to see what else might be worth photographing.

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.

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

Osgood Place

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Osgood Place
Osgood Place

Osgood Place. San Francisco, California. July 12, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A steep street in downtown San Francisco with a sign for “Osgood Place.”

I came across this photograph from last summer while going over old raw files again this week. To be honest, I barely remember shooting this scene, and the only hints about the precise location are the “Osgood Place” sign (referring to one of the buildings) and the base of the Transamerica Pyramid beyond the end of the street.

When I saw it this week, something caught my attention about it. I like the vantage point that roughly as high as the third story of buildings near the bottom of the street – this does some slightly odd things to perspective lines. I also like the various types of red to brick-red coloration and the row of steel posts along the narrow sidewalk. The subtle green beer bottle against the first post at the right is a touch I like, too. ;-) It is surprising that I managed to take a photograph of this area of San Francisco that includes no people.

(Update: Thanks to some folks who saw this photograph elsewhere, I have learned that the street is also called Osgood Place.)

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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.

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

San Francisco Skyline, Light Beams

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San Francisco Skyline, Light Beams
San Francisco Skyline, Light Beams

San Francisco Skyline, Light Beams. San Francisco, California. December 16, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Beams of light from brilliantly lit clouds send beams of light past downtown San Francisco buildings and toward the waterfront.

Anyone who knows San Francisco might be wondering about this light – and I wouldn’t blame them. These were really unusual conditions. Believe it or not, the photograph was made very early in the morning, perhaps a bit less than a half hour after sunrise. Which begs a couple of questions: why is the light coming from the right (west to southwest) at dawn? And, why does the light seem to be coming from such a high angle?

The light beams are not direct sunlight. The sun is actually far to the left of the frame and very low in the sky. Its direct light was blocked by intervening fog clouds. As the clouds moved from left to right, thinner areas in the cloud cover were struck from behind by the very low angle sunlight coming from the left and set aglow. It was the brilliant light from these areas of backlit clouds that cast the light through the mist and between buildings. What you cannot see in the still photograph is that as the clouds moved the beams of light slowly swept from right to left. From moment to moment the light beams would angle from right to left, then straight down, and then left to right.

Another amazing thing was that I appeared to be the only person out making photographs of this…

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
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Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco

Golden Gate Bridge, Transamerica Building, San Francisco Skyline

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

Golden Gate Bridge Tower, Transamerica Building, San Francisco Skyline. San Francisco, California. December 18, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two photos today! Photographer Rebecca Jackrel (Adventures Through the Lens) points out that today is the birthday of the Golden Gate Bridge, which was opened on this date in 1937. Since I have a few photos of this icon lying around I thought I’d repost one of them to celebrate. (More information about this image in the original post)

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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