San Francisco – Slow Shutter Speed

Posted on November 7, 2021 by Anne Sandler · 25 Comments

Lens Artist Challenge #173: Interesting Architecture

Architecture surrounds us whether it’s a historical building, a small store, a different sort of home or an iconic skyscraper. In this week’s challenge, Tina encourages us to share our images of interesting architecture, opening the field to what is fascinating to us.

While California is known for cities like Hollywood and San Francisco, it is primarily an agricultural state. In Sacramento we are so close to a countryside of farms, ranches and orchards. Here are two country houses, very different in architecture, that I’ve visited through the Yolo Arts & Ag Project.

Close to Sacramento is Donner Lake, a busy place for summer and winter recreation. Some people live there full time and some have homes to enjoy as a get away. Here is a winter scene.

We also have buildings of historical value. One is the Gibson House, It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, in Woodland and another, bulging in the front for years, is located in Locke which is a historic district. I think it’s amazing that it is still standing.

And, of course there’s Folsom State Prison. Its architecture gives us a hint as to its age–141 years. Built in 1880, it’s a minimum to medium security prison and houses only men.

Next is Sacramento’s very own Tower Bridge. Spanning the Sacramento River, it connects Sacramento to West Sacramento, and is used as a branding image for many ad campaigns.

And finally, my favorite building, the CALSTRS building. In the picture above, it’s located just after another amazing architectural wonder, the Pyramid (The Ziggurat) Office Building. Here you can see it up close.

This ends my tour of interesting architecture in and around Sacramento. Thank you Tina for this fun challenge!

Posted on July 4, 2021 by Anne Sandler · 27 Comments

Lens Artists Challenge #155: On the Water

Sacramento may be called the “City of Trees” but a truer name would be “River City!” Or maybe Rivers City for the two main rivers that run through Sacramento. In addition, there are many creeks. Cripple Creek runs through my community. If we travel an hour or two, we can visit water areas in the Bay Area.

So, John, it’s a pleasure to take your challenge on! I love living here so close to the rivers, creeks and ponds. But as my images will show, there are many aspects to water around here.

How about the San Francisco Bay shore line where many water fowl are present. This one was photographed while walking the Marina Bay Trail which is a short 1.7 miles. If I still had my bird book (lost when I moved), I could probably ID it for you.

We also have water in fountains. This one was photographed in Tiburon while waiting for the ferry to Angel Island.

The city of San Francisco seen from Treasure Island also gives us a great bay view.

Put ah Creek runs through the UC Davis Arboretum, attracting all sorts of water birds. Here we see a great egret.

And then there are ponds. We found this on on private property, and yes we asked if we could photograph it.

Rain water leaves puddles behind that capture wonderful reflections.

Water can also hide hidden treasure. My friend Ken is gold panning near a river.

Last we have the Spirit of Sacramento. She’s an old paddle boat that got stranded when the Sacramento River receded. Once after a lot of rain, I saw her in water. She hasn’t been moved in ages.

So there you have some of the water examples in and near Sacramento. Thank you John for this fun challenge. Next week I’ll be hosting a Black and White challenge. Take care and have a great week.

Posted on June 28, 2020June 28, 2020 by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

Len-Artist Challenge #103: Surprise

Now this is a challenge. A surprised moment could be photographed in many ways. I was thinking about this and came up with the idea that sometimes people would be surprised they were photographed candidly. So here goes my interpretation of this week’s challenge by Ann-Christine.

Let’s begin with a most recent picture taken on my son’s boat during an outing to Folsom Lake. This was part of my birthday present. I love to shoot the backs of people. Totally unaware were my daughter-in-law, granddaughter, and grandson. Maybe I should have told Ryan to straighten up his head, but then it would ruin the candid moment. Separately, the kids were also surprised.

Now, we go back in time (2018) to a photo walk along the Embarcadero in San Francisco. In this shot we have a young couple helping their very senior dog into her stroller. This touched my heart.

These next two are of homeless guys. One is asleep and the other is trying to get his belongings into the restroom. More images to touch my soul.

Last, was opening day at Daffodil Hill. This was run by a family who plant these lovely flowers each year and open their property to the public. They closed permanently after the first weekend because of the crowds on the property and traffic mayhem on the road in/out. From left to right: The traffic on the road in, the line for the restrooms, the congestion along a path.

I may have been behind the camera for these images, but I’ve also been on the receiving end of a candid shot or two by my photo buddies! I love candid images.

Posted on August 27, 2018August 27, 2018 by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

An annoying cold in the summer: Catching up

I thought I was over the 2-week cold, but I guess I wasn’t. I’m in my fourth week of it and not feeling really well. Can I continue to complain a bit? The worse part of it is the fog brain that keeps me from posting, etc. I didn’t even realize that I haven’t posted in a long while. Okay, that’s enough complaining.

I’ve been on a few shoots since my trip to San Francisco, and I’ll try to post about two of them here. My Tuesday group visited The Fountains Shopping Center again. It’s always a challenge to come up with something different at a place you’ve photographed many times. So here’s what I came up with:

Another visit was to downtown Sacramento and the third year of the Wide Open Walls Festival. This time we shot on the second and last days of the week’s artistry. On the second day, we found only one artist at work. On the last day, we were treated to two amazing murals: Johnny Cash and Monkeys (which was three-dimensional with metal parts and paint). Here’s some of what we saw:

While shooting our first set of murals, we stopped by William Land Park in Sacramento to photograph the lotus pond:

And, of course, I do enjoy shooting buildings:

That’s it for now. Have to rest. I do hope this cold is over before my next post!

Posted on August 5, 2018 by Anne Sandler · 4 Comments

Street Photography: San Francisco, part 2

When the going gets tough, the tough plow through it! Marlene and I walked between four and five miles the day we walked the length of the Embarcadero in San Francisco. Now that may be nothing to younger folks, but to seniors with feet and leg issues, it’s success!

Yes, we got some good images that day. In my previous post (part 1), I showed you some of people I photographed and told my interpretation of their stories in the captions. Some, I didn’t need to interpret like the old dog being helped into her stroller. I talked to her owners who were intent on making her last years as easy as possible.

However, I couldn’t resist taking pictures of buildings, structures and crowds. It’s amazing how many people can move along a street without problems. I also took some pictures from the ferry we picked up in Vallejo. So, to finish off our trip to San Francisco, I have some more to show you.

Skyline taken from the ferry.

Beginning our walk.

Sometimes you just have to get those lines.

A sculpture.

Can you imagine people buying gifts to commerate their prison visit!

A tour boat leaving the harbor.

Coming down the stairs to the bottom level.

Getting close to Pier 39.

Fortunately we didn’t have to pay the big bucks to park.

Looking over the street.

This was beautiful finding a boat within a structure that framed it.

Another one taken from the ferry.

Posted on August 1, 2018 by Anne Sandler · 12 Comments

Walking and shooting: San Francisco

Many people have asked me what type of photography I enjoy doing. I always answer, “Everything but portriat!” Of course that leaves landscape, buildings, macro and more. One is street photography, and I don’t feel as comfortable with this as I do macro, etc.

Part of the problem is that I’m not fast enough to catch the moment. I also fail to see the opportunity. I think I can do better with some training and experience. So, I jumped on the chance to walk along the Embarcarado in San Francisco. This fun day was sponsored by the Exploring Photography Meetup group. We started at 8:30 a.m., taking the ferry from Vallejo to San Francisco. We were to walk and take photos along the way and meet back to catch the ferry ferry at 4 p.m.

We were told to take small sized gear so we wouldn’t be conspicuous. So I took my D3100, my 50 mm lens and shot on aperture priority. But, how can you be conspicuous with a bunch of tourists snapping pictures! At least the D3100 was lighter than the D7100.

It was also good experience using the 50 mm prime lens. I stopped trying to twist the barrel after a while! It was a fun day as I looked for people their stories. I took so many pictures that this will be a two-part post.

So get your walking shoes on and follow along!

This couple were caring for an old dog that could barely walk.

On a smoke and talk break.

Tired and homeless.

Managing to get his belongings into the men’s room.

Just another adorable face I couldn’t resist. I had permission for this one.

He’s smiling because he just received a tip.

Imagine this: waiting in line to go to prison!

Bungee jumping delight.

This juggler had just started packing up, but put on a small show for us. Give a guy an audience!

This street artist was painting two boys while mom waited.

Okay, how many cell phones are needed to take a picture?

One of the many busses taking tourists on a sight-seeing tour.

Another street artist preparing his canvasas for caricatures.

Another street artist whose medium is spray paint.

I would never expect to see this on a biker dude.

Young love and a selfie.

Worth a pound of gold.

She heard music and just had to dance.

Going home after a day of collecting.

She’s still on the job.

Posted on June 28, 2017June 28, 2017 by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

Processing with presets: San Francisco, part 2

Is it okay to use a preset, from a processing program, on your image and call it your own? I had never thought about this until I took a sunflower bud I shot and brought it into Smart Photo Editor, used their presets and found one I liked. I posted it on Facebook and it got a great deal of attention. One photographer said that it was a great edit. I quickly replied that it was a preset. And, that’s when I began to question whether I could post this as my own. Here is the image as posted.

The composition is mine, the fact that it was a sharp image is my doing, but the ultimate look is not mine. The reality is that I, with my lack of artistic ability, could not complete it this way.

So, what do you think? Is it okay to use a preset and call it your photo?

Now, back to the pictures in this post. We are in San Francisco and are headed to the California Academy of Sciences when they open. I got up early and went down to Fisherman’s Wharf to see what I could shoot along the way. It was fun and got my energy flowing. I have some of those shots to show you. What was amazing were the swimmers out for their morning exercise in freezing cold water. There were also walkers, runners and bikers using the old pier as their exercise ground.

The Academy was amazing, but the parking wasn’t. The only place to park was in their very expensive structure–it cost us about $30 for the day. We had coupons for the Academy admission so that helped with the cost. We did opt for an additional tour, but it was worth it, especially since we were the only ones who went on it. We had a guided tour behind locked doors and were able to walk the roof.

A lot will be explained in captions. It was an all day experience. We left about 4 p.m., stopped to take pictures of house boats to take up the time before dinner. We were trying to avoid traffic. It all worked out, and our drive home was easy. Enjoy the academy through my camera lens! I apologize for the many images, but I didn’t want to make this a three part post.

This tree was trying to grow on the hillside along the path to Fisherman’s Wharf.

This is the old decaying pier. Much of it is closed.

One of the early morning swimmers.

Some men, fishing I think, on the old pier.

Another look at the historic pier.

Ghirardelli Square in the distance.

Now at the Academy, fossils under glass.

This was a first for me. As we entered the Rain Forest, my lens fogged up.

The view looking up the three stories of the enclosure.

Eventually my lens acclimated to the humidity.

My body didn’t though. We stayed long enough to capture some butterfly images.

The roof of the Academy is alive with plants. These plants help with research projects and help cool the building.

These are whale bones. It will take approximately three years of roof sitting to dry these. Chemicals are not used.

This is the brush from the whales mouth. Animal remains used in research or display are from those that died naturally.

Notice the round windows. They are used to light and act as the HVAC system for the Academy. Again –fog!

Our tour guide takes us into storage rooms where things are held for various researchers to use.

A great deal of research is done behind the scenes.

Gem stones are stored here also.

This lab is used for in-house needs and outside organizations.

The inside wall and roof.

Now at the aquarium, manatees swim at the base of the Rain Forest.

Jelly fish put on a neon show.

High ISO and fast shutter was needed here.

This fish blends in well.

I think we found Dory!

Beautiful plants.

Posted on June 25, 2017June 25, 2017 by Anne Sandler · 12 Comments

24 hours: San Francisco

The California Academy of Sciences, in Golden Gate Park, is more than a museum. It’s a planetarium, a rain forest, and aquarium and natural history museum. Yes, it is a museum, and Linda and I wanted to visit. But we knew it would take us all day to get through it, so we decided to stay overnight at the Ft. Mason Hostel (Once again in a private bedroom.).

Our plan for this adventure was to leave early in the morning, visit some sights, get to the Hostel in the evening and go to the Academy the next morning. That first day our road trip took us to Tiburon, where we had lunch and enjoyed the small town; Sausalito where we shot the Golden Gate Bridge; and to the Sutro Baths in San Francisco.

Given that itinerary, I think this will be a two part post. Remembering that we are seniors, me more than Linda, we packed a lot in. However, we were tired at night and didn’t venture out for night photography.

I had a great time. I was more at ease with my photography than I was during our previous trip. Again, we found fog in San Francisco. I’m still amazed at how fast it moves across the vistas. In less than 5 minutes, you can be shooting in fog, mild fog and no fog.

Let’s begin with Tiburon and end with the Sutro Baths. The next post will have images from the California Academy of Sciences.

Tiburon.

This fountain turns slowly, changing shadows and reflections.

The Bay Bridge and Alcatraz Island.

The shoreline.

Looking across the bay at San Francisco.

A fisherman.

The hillside homes.

A visitor wades in the surf.

I loved the stairs and flowers at this house.

Sausalito and the Golden Gate in fog.

Less fog from this angle.

The remnants of the Sutro Baths.

Another view.

We didn’t walk down into the cave. Maybe next time.

The water crashing the rocks.

The shoreline at the Sutro Baths.

Trees in fog on the way down.

Wildflowers were everywhere on the trail.

Posted on November 6, 2016 by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

Digging it: Copp’s Quarry, Rocklin, CA

A very beautiful, local place, Copp’s Quarry, is making way for houses. Some call it progress, photographers call it sad.

One of Rocklin’s most productive 19th-century granite quarries, Copp’s provided granite for Stockton and San Francisco. Copp’s closed around 1915, but remained one of Rocklin’s most scenic quarries. It is soon to be seen no more.

On a recent Tuesday, we made our way to Copp’s Quarry and walked through it. The landscape was still beautiful. Unfortunately we couldn’t get down to the creek in many places, the small lake was covered in some sort of algae and houses lined the perimeter. But, the weather cooperated and clouds were in the sky.

We all enjoyed what was probably our one and only chance to enjoy the quarry’s beauty.

Posted on July 31, 2016July 31, 2016 by Anne Sandler

On the road again: San Francisco

I didn’t say yes right away, I thought about it. First, I had never stayed in a hostel, and I’m not fond of driving in San Francisco. But I capitulated, and told photo buddy Linda that I’d go with her–if she drove. Oh yes, I also told her I wouldn’t rent an electric bike to take me places. I won’t say how many years it’s been since I’ve been on a bike, but I was worried about my balance and whatever photography gear I would be carrying.

It ended up being three days of fun and adventure. And, we did okay using Linda’s car. We found free parking wherever we went that was close to where we were shooting. I think it had something to do with visiting during the week. We did have to pay to park the last day, but were validated for most of the amount.

So what did we do? Our first stop was Treasure Island. I was there on a night Meetup to photograph the Bliss Dance statue before she was moved, and I wanted to shoot in that same area during the day. It was so much easier to get a sharp image of the city this time, even though there was fog.

After Treasure Island, we went to Fort Point National Historic Site at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge. Built between 1853 and 1861, Fort Point was used as part of a defense system of forts planned for the protection of San Francisco Bay. Designed at the height of the Gold Rush, the Fort and its companion fortifications would protect the Bay’s important commercial and military installations against foreign attack. We made a few more stops before checking in to the Hostel. All this and more will be discussed in the next few posts.

I’m so glad I finally said yes to this photo adventure and probably part of Linda’s bucket list.