Curiouser and Curiouser!

Photography

Day #48 – A Photo A Day 2013

Chris and I have decided to do more things together that are physically active. When we were looking for an apartment here, we saw these basketball courts near one of the apartment complexes that we toured and made a note to go back.

Yesterday we went there to shoot hoops, and ended up going again today, vowing to make this our weekend morning tradition. We had such fun! It made me realize just how awful at shooting baskets I have become but it’s still fun nonetheless and I’m determined to up my skill level to what it used to be. (or at least try!)

Chris was getting some serious air time – he says that he wasn’t jumping high enough, but I was certainly impressed and of course I brought out the iPhone to snap some pics, much to his chagrin but he was still a sweetie and didn’t complain.

Chris - Michael Jordan Style

Chris – Michael Jordan Style

We played at the Berry Street Basketball Courts at the end of Mission Creek Park – there is also a sand volleyball court there too!

It’s underneath Highway 280 which provides some nice shade and an interesting setting. It’s clean and quiet and steps away from Mission Bay and a super nice walkway along the water, which is the route that Chris and I like to take to walk there.

I’m sure we will have many more happy one-on-one games there! It’s a nice spot.


Day #47 – A Photo A Day 2013

Mass transit is definitely one of the best ways to get around here in San Francisco, other than using my two legs to get me from point A to point B and the various options available here is a source of endless fascination.

There is the Muni which is the bus system here – that’s not so unusual except that they run off of electricity so they have connecters that go up to lines suspended above the city streets – similar to what you’ll see in Seattle.

Of course there are the Cable Cars that are the quintessential mode of transportation that you see in connection with San Francisco all of the time. They’re beautiful, and I have yet to ride one – can you believe that? I need to start doing all of the touristy things!

There is BART – the Bay Area Rapid Transit which I use often and is very convenient since there is a stop not too far from my apartment.

There is Caltrain, which takes you places in the Bay Area outside of the city – oh goodness I need pics of those trains! (I am in love with trains! I totally understand Sheldon Cooper’s obsession)

Then there is the bus-type-cable-car-ish-on-rails-thing – what are these things called! I love them! They look so retro, like 30’s or 40’s or 50’s retro. Sleek and colorful, they really add to the fun atmosphere of the city and I HAVE TO RIDE ONE!

Retro-Bus-Thing

Retro-Bus-Thing

This was taken near Market Street and The Embarcadero – I’ve obviously altered this photo, as there are not that many stars visible in the skies above San Francisco.

Don’t these things look romantic! They make a lot of noise going down the street – they’re on rails and derive their power from electric lines above the street. I need to see the inside of one! I’m guessing that I’ll be as impressed with the inside as the outside. Ha. It takes so little to please me.


Day #46 – A Photo A Day 2013

This past week has been a fun one! So many photos shot, and so many that I need to sort through and edit… and certainly many that I’ll need to trash too. 🙂

Today I’m posting a pic that I shot and edited on my 4s on Thursday when I was at the Raygun Gothic Rocketship. I just can’t stay away from that spot – I have already taken SO MANY pics of this thing, and I’m sure that I’ll probably continue the trend of redundancy with more. Perhaps I should apologize in advance for too many rocket pic posts in the future.

Raygun Gothic Rocketship Up Close

Raygun Gothic Rocketship Up Close

I ran this pic through Photo FX, then Iris, then back to Photo FX again. I REALLY wanted to do a grunge-y effect on this one, but I was so happy with the results of my tinkering that I felt that any further modification would have displeased me.

Every time I visit this awesome piece, I want to climb inside and see what’s there – there IS a door!


Day #44 – A Photo A Day 2013

A few weeks ago I discovered an awesome website called SF Fun Cheap where there are listings of tons of free or cheap events happening all around San Francisco and the Bay Area and since then I’ve found many great things to do which has introduced me to several awesome people.

As we only know just a few people here it’s nice to find venues that make it easy to meet people with similar interests. It’s not a meetup source but so far a few of the events have made it possible to meet some really nice people.

I went to an event this evening at the Ferry Building – it was scheduled to start at 5:30, but I walked to the waterfront early so that I could catch a few shots of the Raygun Gothic Rocketship, one of my favorite places so far here in the city.

It was COLD. I didn’t think about the fact that it can be a few degrees cooler there despite the fact that it’s only 4-5 city blocks from my apartment, so I was FREEZING after spending a half hour in my hoodie next to the water. So, I walked a few more yards down to the Ferry Building and walked around inside to warm up.

It was time for the event to start… I didn’t see anyone gathered yet, and from the information on the event page, it was going to be obvious when they arrived. Minutes passed… I was not going to go outside and freeze again so I just hoped that they hadn’t changed the meeting place… checked Facebook… no notice there.

I patiently waited at the doors… watching from my nice warm spot, people filling in and out of the building as the ferries came and went – no one even noticed me, which was good because I was snapping shots of people walking without anyone noticing. 🙂

Suddenly, they appeared! The first person I saw was a girl in a cute black and red tutu with hearts all over it… I walked outside, and was glomped by a lady in a huge heart costume! Free hugs for all! The First Annual Operation Street Love was in session!

Crack A Smile!

Crack A Smile!

Only 6 people showed to give random people hugs… a smaller turnout than was expected based on the responses on Facebook, but 6 was still fun! They hugged commuters, scared tourists off with their offers of hugs and high-fived joggers, spreading love and smiles everywhere. I hope that there is a bigger turnout next year – people need to have a reason to smile more.


Day #41 – A Photo A Day 2013

Today I am busy editing photos from Friday’s photo walk and I don’t have anything that I feel is ready to post here yet, so for now I will leave an experiment with long exposure from a few nights ago.

Long Exposure of Downtown San Francisco

Long Exposure of Downtown San Francisco

Slow Shutter app was used – I really need a tripod attachment for my iPhone… or a bendable Joby tripod! 🙂

Okay… back to editing!


Day #39 – A Photo A Day 2013

This afternoon I had the opportunity to go on a iPhone Photowalk with some users from Instagram – some were local, some were from as far away as LA or San Diego!

I am so glad that I went! Not only did I take some great shots, but in the company of like-minded people who understand the need to stop and “take a picture of that”. Also… they don’t mind being in your shots, which is something that many of my friends just won’t do.

We met at Crissy Field and walked from there all the way to Fort Point which sits right underneath the San Francisco side of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Fort Point visitors hours were over, so we could not go inside, but there was plenty to keep us busy outside for sure.

The sun was going down, and it was the PERFECT time for shadow pictures – here is the first edit from today, with 4 of the Instagrammers casting shadows for us:

Instagrammers Shadows at Fort Point

Instagrammers Shadows at Fort Point

It was great to spend time with that group, and I’m already looking forward to the next outing! Hopefully it won’t be too soon, because I have around 200 iPhone photos to sort through – hopefully I’ll have a few gems to edit and share!


Day #38 – A Photo A Day 2013

More fun was had with the Pro HDR app this afternoon. I was on Market Street running some errands and the late afternoon sun was blindingly bright and casting the most interesting shadows from the mass of people walking toward me.

Market Street was even more crowded than usual due to the droves of people freshly out of a day of convention going over at Moscone Center, which made it difficult at times to move upstream (since I happened to be going in the opposite direction of what seemed to be EVERY person who had been at the optics convention today) but this proved to be the PERFECT conditions for capturing people in motion without them noticing me taking their pictures. Stealth for the win.

I am really having such fun with movement while using this Pro HDR app. I end up with some very interesting double exposures and in this case, some of the people toward the top of this picture look like ghosts.

Shadows on Market Street

Shadows on Market Street

Look for a couple more pics from this day! I have a couple of unusual edits in mind.


Day #37 – A Photo A Day 2013

Epic clouds today! It’s been so sunny this winter and I have LONGED to see some epic fluffy clouds like we get back home in Portland, Oregon – today did not disappoint!

I was working away at my desk and glanced out my window when I noticed the clouds… grabbed my iPhone and started clicking when it hit me… I could get a really cool effect with the Slow Shutter app if I held the phone instead of setting it on a stable surface or using a tripod for the long exposure.

So, I held my breath, tapped the screen and the seconds ticked by… 1… 2… 3… 4… 5… ahhh done!

Wow! I was pleased – it looked a little like a painting, and I wanted to enhance that a bit so I pulled up Iris and started editing…

Balcony View - Slow Shutter and Edited

Balcony View – Slow Shutter and Edited

Rather sort of an impressionist painting, dirty gritty look – I like it! I am really having fun experimenting with the scratched gritty looks that you can achieve. It’s interesting to see how it can transform an every day sort of photo into something a bit more unusual.


Day #35 – A Photo A Day 2013

A pic from our walk to The Presidio for today – there were loads of these skinny trees everywhere near the entrance to the area and it smelled like eucalyptus! I think they may have been some variety of such, but a little research is due before I say it is thus and so.

I was particularly struck by the lush green grass carpeting the floor of this “forest”. I’d really like to come back here for a few more shots, this time with people.

Trees In The Presidio

Trees In The Presidio

I wish there was some way to give you the scent of these trees as well – it was heavenly!

Shot with Pro HDR.


Day #33 – A Photo A Day 2013

Accidental photos are always fun when they pop up in your phone photo album… you know the ones, the completely black ones where you must have hit the button while you were setting down your phone, the kitchen tile ones where you must have bumped the button after taking a pic of your dinner, and then there are ones like this:

Accidental Photo of Myself - Feb 3, 2013

Accidental Photo of Myself – Feb 3, 2013

I was talking to Chris as I had been messing around with pictures, and the only thing I can figure is that I left a photo app open and I was either picking up my phone from the bed or setting it down.

I like how my hair is all over the place as I’m bent over the phone. I decided that it needed editing.

I tried this, and then I tried that, and finally decided that it needed more color… and scratching. I came up with this:

Edited Accidental Photo of Myself - Feb 3, 2013

Edited Accidental Photo of Myself – Feb 3, 2013

I am pleased with the edit, despite it’s subject! It’s rare that I like a photograph of my own self – I much prefer to snap pictures of others but still, this one turned out okay… now I’m just wishing that I had cropped it down to a square. Never say it’s a “final edit”!


Day #31 – A Photo A Day 2013

The first day of MacWorld was TODAY and OH! I am so so SO inspired and encouraged!

iPhoneography is THE next big thing – I’ve been saying this for about a year now, and have been ridiculed by a few, and gently dissuaded by others seeking to keep me from finding rejection of my photos taken with my iPhone.

Interestingly, all of the speakers at these Tech Talks say the same thing – iPhones won’t replace SLRs (big cameras) but rather are finding their own niche of an art expression. iPhone apps offer mobility and ease of use that you just don’t find with editing software for your computer (such as Photoshop).

Photoshop isn’t bad, but it takes a long time to edit your photos. On your iPhone or iPad, I find it easy to find what I want in each app that will make what is in my head translate into the photo or photos that I am merging on my iDevice.

I have been “layering apps” for quite some time now in order to get the results from pics that I am trying to achieve. Most of that work I have not published at all, just a few on Instagram here and there, but I was afraid of rejection.

Not so after my first round of classes today! All of these people giving the talks were either already artists or professional photographers or both, and all of them have found an unusual creative outlet in their iPhones that is very different from their professional (big camera) photography.

Are my edits good enough to show people? I think so, and that’s not an over-inflated view either. Each one of my photos is agonized over to the point where I probably obsess too much over this light level or that color in that exact spot – I am my own worst critic, and THAT is what has been keeping me from moving forward and making my art known.

Starting today, I am not holding back. I will allow my creativity to flow and I’m putting it out there for everyone to see. Will any of this go anywhere? Maybe! I made a few connections today with local photographers, and they have put me in touch with a few other contacts that I think will be great to network with.

Oddly, in one of the classes today, I was reminded that I had entered a contest on Instagram for Mobile Masters, a chance to have your work featured in the Mobile Masters book to debut today at the conference.

Long story short, I checked Instagram (which I had not done in a week), and found this message, which I snapped a pic of on my phone…

Mobile Masters Winning Entry Notification

Mobile Masters Winning Entry Notification

I almost let out a squeal of delight in the middle of the lecture! MY picture made it? REALLY!?!?!?! It DID!

This was my winning entry – the Matterhorn Edit I originally posted here in December when I was talking about Filtermania 2.

Disneyland's Matterhorn Heavily Modified

Disneyland’s Matterhorn Heavily Modified

DEFINTELY a validation moment for me! You can purchase the ebook here at iTunes: Mobile Masters Book for your iPad. I am so honored to be a part of this – my first published photo!

Now comes today’s photo, since this IS supposed to be a picture of the day entry, and so far all I have done is gush a bit about my day at MacWorld.

I give you a photo that I edited during one of the talks today, originally posted here on Day #16

Here is the edit:

Edit of 4th Street Bridge at Mission Bay

Edit of 4th Street Bridge at Mission Bay

I edited this one in three different iPhone apps, but right now I don’t remember which ones – I was editing this as I was listening to the lecture because I was so inspired at that moment to do something creative that I just went with the flow! Funny though… the speaker was talking about her use of color in her art and I was totally in a black and white and gritty sort of mood.

Two words to sum up day 1 of MacWorld iPhoneography Tech Talks? SUPER INSPIRED!


Day #30 – A Photo A Day 2013

Tomorrow is MacWorld and I am SO excited to attend a few Tech Talks on iPhoneography!

There was a special all-day event today called iPhoneography: The Mobile Masters Sessions that I was not able to attend, but many of the people (and others besides) that taught classes in today’s lineup will also be giving shorter Tech Talks in the two days that I will be attending MacWorld. I can’t wait to hear what they have to say, and I’m hoping to learn a bit more about using apps to edit my photos.

I didn’t get out to take any photos today, but here is an un-edited sunset pic that I took from my balcony with my SlR and a zoom lens.

January 15th Sunset in San Francisco

January 15th Sunset in San Francisco


Day #29 – A Photo A Day 2013

Proximity to San Francisco Bay is one thing that I love about living in this city – just a few short blocks away are seabirds, seawater, a huge bridge, restaurants, people watching, tourist traps and photo opportunities galore.

Today’s pic is one that I snapped two days ago on a walk with Chris – the Bay Bridge again, but this time by day using, again, the Pro HDR app.

Basically, I like this picture as far as composition goes, but I do think that I over-adjusted the saturation and I am not completely happy about it. I share it here so that I can look back at it with more objective eyes later.

In the future, I may have to heavily edit this one and see what I can do to make it a bit more to my liking.

The Bay Bridge

The Bay Bridge


Day #28 – A Photo A Day 2013

I’ve been a little fixated on the Pro HDR app lately – here is the latest addition to my iPhone HDR experimentation:

HDR Pier Light Near AT & T Park

HDR Pier Light Near AT & T Park

Taken at the pier near AT & T park – it’s a nice place to walk around!


Day #27 – A Photo A Day 2013

What a beautiful day it was today! The sun shines here in San Francisco very often, but today was just extra special despite the cold biting wind!

Chris and I decided that we NEEDED to get a coffee from Phillz Coffee so we threw on our coats and started the short walk to the Berry St. location.

We tried Phillz for the first time three weeks ago and we are hooked! BEST. COFFEE. EVER. Hands down, the best coffee experiences we have ever had have come from this place. They grind your coffee at the time you order it so it is fresh fresh fresh – also, it’s not weighted down by heavy syrups and sugar. They’ll add as much, or as little sweetening as you want, and they have many sweetener choices to choose from – even Stevia or honey!

From Phillz, we decided to continue on to AT & T park to go walk near the marina. Right next to the park is the Left O’Doul Bridge, which I find to be an endless source of fascination.

Lefty O'Doul Bridge

Lefty O’Doul Bridge

It’s a fascinating looking thing… I had never seen a drawbridge quite like this one, and I am from a city that is filled with bridges – Portland is affectionately called “Bridgetown”.

I figured those concrete “things” on that one end were counterweights, and turned out that I was correct. The link posted above is where I found some of my information – it turns out that the bridge is “a heel trunnion type bascule drawbridge” and “A heel trunnion is a pivot mounted on bearings and a bascule bridge has one end is weighted to counter balance the structure on the other end when the bridge is open.” They used concrete as the counterbalance because it was a less expensive option to iron.

My only disappointment about this bridge: there were no rusty spots to photograph. Oh well. You can’t always have what you want.

Photo taken on my iPhone 4s with the Pro HDR app.


Day #26 – A Photo A Day 2013

Another search for my CF card reader was fruitful so I was finally able to offload all of the pics from last night onto my MacBook! Wouldn’t you know… it was exactly where I KNEW that I had decided to store it, but another item in the drawer was covering it up and I must not have shuffled things around well enough.

Here is a close-up shot that I took with my SLR – I haven’t processed this one, so what you see is the raw photo:

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Leo Villareal Light Art Testing

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge – Leo Villareal Light Art Testing

The beautiful Bay Bridge – lights being tested for Leo Villreal’s Art display that will officially start on March 3rd.

I read that later that night after Chris and I left that the testing was even more exciting with crazy patterns flashing in the lights. What we saw was pretty cool, but by the sound of it, it’s going to be pretty spectacular!


Day #25 – A Photo A Day 2013

Chris and I took a walk to the Embarcadero tonight, specifically to watch testing of the new light display that artist Leo Villareal has designed for the Bay Bridge.

Testing began tonight, and un-scheduled tests will go on for the next month, with the debut of the the nightly display happening on March 3rd of this year.

I DID bring my SLR tonight and I got what I feel to be some pretty good shots, but I will not be uploading one of THOSE pics this night because I seem to have um, misplaced my CF card reader, and until I find said reader, I will not be able to transfer those pictures onto my MacBook. (insert sadface here)

SO, for now, here is a pic of my SLR on it’s tripod from tonight’s photo sesh on Pier 14.

Photographing the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

Photographing the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

Hopefully another search for my CF card adapter will be fruitful and I will be posting one of my long exposure pics of the bridge tomorrow evening. 🙂


Day #22 – A Photo A Day 2013

What a good day it was today! I’m finally feeling more like myself than I’ve felt in a week and it was good to actually get outside and stretch my legs for a bit!

My wanderings took me over to the Mission neighborhood here in San Francisco, which was not my original destination, but regardless of where I was going to begin with, I was glad that my wanderings ended up taking me to a couple of places that I totally did not expect to be going to.

At one point when I was way off course, I spotted some street art that looked intriguing, so I went even further out of my way to go take a look. Again, I was without my SLR unfortunately, since I had planned to go shopping and I didn’t want to haul heavy camera equipment around in a clothing store… but of course I had my iPhone at hand!

This mural was so awesome – several notable figures from mythology, some of which I did not recognize, but some I most definitely did like the ones in the picture below:

Wadjet, Horus, Anubis & Nekhbet

Wadjet, Horus, Anubis & Nekhbet

I thought that the portion of the mural with the Egyptian gods Wadjet, Horus, Anubis & Nekhbet was particularly awesome, especially since the style very much reminded me of Stargate: SG1 and I am a HUGE fan of that series. Also notable was the boom box that they have with them. 😉

I have a couple more pictures of that wall to share – perhaps in the next couple of days I will post those as well, but that may be trumped depending on what the next few days bring in photographic opportunity.


Day #21 – A Photo A Day 2013

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is today, and while I was not able to go out to take pics, I do have a nice pic of a place that I pass by and visit often here in San Francisco.

Today’s pic is of the Martin Luther King Jr. Fountain in Yerba Buena Gardens. I love the fountain itself, but one of the nice things is that you can walk behind the fountain! There you will find quotes from the man himself; in this picture, the lovely green glow behind the water is of the illuminated glass panels that bear the etchings of those words.

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Fountain

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Fountain


Day #20 – A Photo A Day 2013

Oooof! Today I am feeling worse than yesterday – no fair! I had photography plans for today!!!!

Ah well. So, today I give you… another window view from breakfast yesterday. (this time, panning to my left)

I like varying colors and the worn look of the window decal.

Worn Out Coca-Cola Window Decal

Worn Out Coca-Cola Window DecalWorn Out Coca-Cola Window Decal


Day #19 – A Photo A Day 2013

Despite not really feeling well, I made a bad decision to go to breakfast with Chris. Breakfast tasted wonderful, but my stomach is quite angry at me for selfishly trying to give my body sustenance!

It is my intent to go back to this restaurant when I am well and do a proper review of the offerings there, since I really did enjoy my meal other than the pain that my body is in, which is obviously no fault of that fine establishment.

This is the view I had at the counter that Chris and I supped at:

Lunch In The Window

Lunch In The Window

It’s not a fancy place, but I think that adds to the charm. It’s lack-luster decor certainly doesn’t deter customers, as that place is always really busy.


Day #17 – A Photo A Day 2013

Okay okay, just ONE MORE from Mission Creek Park, and then that’s all for that place for the week! (maybe…)

I snapped this one as I was crossing the 4th St. bridge:

Mission Creek Park from the 4th Street Bridge

Mission Creek Park from the 4th Street Bridge


Day #16 – A Photo A Day 2013

Abandoned building shot #2 is today’s photo. I especially like the rusty chain link fence that guards the building. Hmmmm…. I may need to do a special series of photos just of rusty objects since I do love rusty metal!

Without further delay… here is the picture:

Graffiti on the Mission Creek Park Abandoned Dock

Graffiti on the Mission Creek Park Abandoned Dock


Day #15 – A Photo A Day 2013

It certainly looks as if I will be visiting Mission Creek Park more often – I like the views, and also it’s a nice place to stroll and look at the scenery and watch people play with their dogs too.

For some reason, I love urban graffiti, especially so when it’s on an abandoned structure. This building is on a dilapidated dock… I wish that I could get inside to take pics of whatever might be in there, but the whole structure does look really unstable, so it’s probably a good thing that the access has been fenced off.

Mission Creek Park Abandoned Dock

Mission Creek Park Abandoned Dock