Buena Vista Park

San Francisco Solitary Trees

On consecutive walks in the city

I came upon separate solitary trees sharing their light and oxygen with me.

I found reflections of self in these lonesome trees

and knew no way to take them in my car or even across the street

So I shot them, not with cannon or laser but handy little phone

Edited them quickly and now they are never alone.

From the initial image I saw promise

some paint and Spackle dotted here and there

a few lens filters for texture

now I have them with me

my solitary trees posted here on the web of information for all to see

Share my days I wish so often could be

with each of you blissful readers

while you likely cannot come with me

you may take your own bit of joy from

my San Francisco Solitary Trees

Maritime Dream

San Francisco Lands End is my short photo essay on one of the city by the bay's greatest natural assets. The image above is my favorite shot of 2013 thus far and it reminds me of the stark beauty surrounding this city on all sides. Land's End is part of the Golden Gate National Park Conservancy and after years of work is now one of the most pristine parks I have seen in the US. I say that because I actually preferred the place when it was bit more ramshackle and difficult to maneuver. Now, there are buses, tourists, and a gift shop?

I took the previous shot and this one from the ruins of the 19th Century Sutro Baths. In this image the pool of the baths overlooking the Pacific gives the impression of an exotic resort on the ocean rather than a graffiti mired wasteland which is now the home of a cute little river otter. I love the clouds in this image and when I am here I feel so far from the inner grit of San Francisco.

The Cliffhouse is a famous SF restaurant on the Pacific. Mavericks are waves that come in sometimes that bring surfers on emergency flights from around the world to surf 25-40 foot swells. I loved seeing these bad boys break and the shimmering light on the sea behind them.

Just on the edge of Sutro Baths are these craggy rocks and the cappuccino-like foam of the Pacific this day at San Francisco's Lands End. There are amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge on this walk around the park but I was a little late for the good light on the bridge and my images were not up to standard. Next time :-)

With the challenging light I was able to capture a final image worth sharing. I had hoped to present a few more images but this day at San Francisco Lands End proved to be more for hiking than photography. I recently read some Ansel Adams quote about if one gets one good image a month they are doing well. I feel like I am doing pretty well.

Ciao Tutti!