2nd and King Streets, Dusk

2nd and King Streets, Dusk

2nd and King Streets, Dusk. San Francisco, California. May 26, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The intersection of 2nd and King streets in San Francisco as early evening light illuminates the Bay Bridge and downtown buildings.

This is yet another “take” on this scene from the upper level of the SF Giants’ AT&T Park, shot during a slow inning or two of a game against the Braves as evening was coming on over the Bay. I would understand if some began to wonder why I shoot the same scene so many times. In this case there are a bunch of reasons. On a practical level, I just like to get up and wander around the ball park during games. (Sorry… I can almost see the real fans cringing – but for me going to the game is about more than the game. :-) I also like to reshoot subjects and apply what I learned by shooting a particular scene before. I do not necessarily believe that the first take is always the best take. In this case I had learned somethings about the muni trains, the reflected light on the buildings, the composition, and the timing of the lights on the bridge. And the scene is most certainly not the same every time – this time I “discovered” the slowly increasing effect of the artificial light on King Street as the ambient light decreased.

So, there you have it. My excuses for posting what might seem like almost the same photograph I posted a couple weeks ago.

(A small technical note for those who are interested in such things. This was shot using a Canon 5D Mark II full-frame body with a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS lens… handheld at 1/8 second, f/5.6 and ISO 800. Some people will find all of those details to be somewhat interesting, especially when I point out that the quality of this image is such that I’m positive it would print well at 16 x 24 or possibly even 20 x30 inch dimensions.)

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

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Sebastião Salgado in the NY Times

The New York times features a story on photographer Sebastião Salgado and his epic “Genesis” project. The article is accompanied by a series of ten of Salgado’s photographs. A quotation in the article caught my attention:

“There is no difference photographing a pelican or an albatross and photographing a human being,” he said. “You must pay attention to them, spend time with them, respect their territory.” Even landscapes, he said, have their own personality and reward a certain amount of patience.

Patience. I can relate to that.

Camera or Photographer? Why “or?”

Seen at Paul Butzi’s Musings of Photography blog, a link to something Mike Johnson wrote:

“Cameras don’t take pictures, true; but then, people don’t take pictures either. People with cameras take pictures.”

Yes, a concise and direct response to the unending and pointless debates between those who want to believe that it is either all about the camera or not about the camera at all. Thank you for that!

New Post at California Nature Photography Blog

I just authored a new post at the jointly-authored California Nature Photography blog (“Dogwoods in the Valley”), in which I share five of my dogwood bloom photographs from my early May trip to Yosemite Valley along with some discussion of the photographs.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

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