The San Francisco Image

green fields, stormy sky

2009-03-05T22:33:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted any pictures for a while... so long that the seasons have already changed! The hills have turned emerald green from all the rain and I forgot how much I love it this way.

We passed through this landscape on the way back to San Francisco from Tahoe (where it was snowing a lot). Dramatic sky...

sunset from Badger Pass

2009-01-10T02:35:00.001-08:00

We glimpsed this sunset on the way down from cross-country skiing at Badger Pass.

Reflections in the Merced river

2009-01-07T07:19:00.000-08:00

Taken on a peaceful snowy morning.

Tree in the evening mist

2009-01-06T03:21:00.000-08:00

We saw this tree in the Yosemite Valley just around sunset, as the mists had crept into the valley and the last golden rays were hitting the tops of the mountains.

Yosemite Valley, Tunnel view

2009-01-03T17:19:00.000-08:00

This is the grand sweeping view you see as you exit the Tunnel down into the Yosemite Valley. You can see all the main granite sites of Yosemite (the massive El Capitan is on the left, and Half Dome is peeking out in the center in the distance). It is so picture perfect you can hardly believe your eyes...

view in the Yosemite valley

2009-01-03T07:41:00.001-08:00

I have been terrible at posting lately - and I don't have any recent San Francisco pics, but I did go to Yosemite National Park in the snow, and it was so gorgeous I thought I would post some images from my trip there. Here is one taken form the Swinging Bridge down in the Yosemite valley. More to follow...

Cali night shot

2008-12-02T15:56:00.000-08:00

I just got back from a trip to New York. It was cold and grey. But here, it looks like this! The palm tree says it all...

foggy night shot

2008-11-27T08:30:00.000-08:00

The fog blanket streams down the side of the hills as the city settles in for the night.

foggy evening

2008-11-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

I love the pink and mauve-ish hues brought on by the evening fog. The quiet and stillness reminds me of when it snows back East and everything in the city becomes muffled and white.

oldie diner

2008-11-25T08:30:00.000-08:00

While I'm on the oldie theme, here is a snap taken from the counter of one of my favorite diners, It's Tops, on Market near Octavia. I'll have to try one of those malts one day...

old car on Mission St

2008-11-24T07:16:00.000-08:00

The great thing about snowless winters is that you see many more old cars up and running here in California than in the Northeast coast because they don't rust. We were stuck behind this one on an unusual rainy day. I think they look so much cooler than modern day cars.

Lithotype Co at sunset

2008-11-23T12:40:00.000-08:00

I drove past this building in South San Francisco reflecting the orange of sunset.

Union Machine Co

2008-11-12T23:44:00.000-08:00

An old industrial building under a dramatic sky, viewed from the Trader Joe's parking lot.

dusk in the city

2008-11-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

People driving home (or so I'd like to imagine) under a pink evening sky.

Moorish house

2008-10-29T08:19:00.000-07:00

I came across this huge Moorish house in the Union St neighborhood, not far from the Marina. That whole neighborhood has some pretty interested "in the style of X" architecture.

crowd at Dolores Park for Red Bull soap box races

2008-10-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

This weekend there was a soap box race hosted by Red Bull at Dolores Park. the racecourse was the really steep hill (one of my favorites!) on Dolores between the South end of the park and the couple blocks further south. It was a pretty goofy event but there were tons of people there (as you can see here). They estimated 60,000 to 70,000 people were there.

Mickey Governator at the Radio Habana Social Club

2008-10-19T10:29:00.000-07:00

The Radio Habana Social Club on Valencia between 22nd and 23rd has a ton of very cool paraphernalia/artistic chimeras adorning every single inch of wallspace. Definitely worth checking out.

one tree

2008-10-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

This sign is in SoMA just off the 101 freeway at 9th St. I've been meaning to snap a picture of it for a while. I like it!! and the tree too.

Green near the Embarcadero

2008-10-03T07:52:00.000-07:00

A peaceful green in the early evening. You can almost feel the bright clean air in this city...

hip people in hip SF coffee shop

2008-10-02T07:55:00.001-07:00

Good coffee is an obsession in this town... This is at Blue Bottle coffee at Jessie and Mint.

palm shadows and woman on the phone

2008-09-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

The palm trees in this picture are so California to me, even though palms aren't native to this country. They either say Florida or California (or other places in the US that have palm trees that I haven't been to...)

ocean creature sculptures

2008-09-26T23:28:00.000-07:00

These amazing sculptures with their shadows are on view at the De Young museum in the exhibition space at the bottom of the elevators up to the tower.

Rodeo Beach

2008-09-24T19:13:00.000-07:00

Another dark sanded beach on the Pacific. If you cross the Golden Gate Bridge and wander into the Marin Headlands, you might come across this lovely beach. Just nearby is the marine mammal conservancy where they tend to injured seals, sea otters, and the like. It's currently under renovations, due to reopen next June.

road in the Presidio

2008-09-23T07:50:00.001-07:00

view of Bay Bridge from halfway up Telegraph Hill

2008-09-09T21:46:00.000-07:00

Taken on a morning walk up towards Coit Tower. There was a foggy view of the Bay Bridge and Treasure Island (on the distant left).

Sentinel Building

2008-09-09T07:46:00.000-07:00

I love this green copper-trimmed building. It reminds me of Europe. It houses Francis Ford Coppola's movie production company, Zoetrope. And on the ground floor is his Italian restaurant.

sunset at Ocean Beach

2008-09-07T18:28:00.000-07:00

Two people frolicking on the beach at sunset (and some pelicans above).

curvy bike rack

2008-09-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

This amazing shadow was cast off a bike rack along the Embarcadero. Now that the fog has receded, we get this really lovely evening light.

house on Chrissy Field

2008-09-04T22:15:00.000-07:00

This house is part of a marine conservancy at the very West end of Chrissy Field. It's a strange mixture of New England style building and West coast palm trees. These days the skies are very clear. The foggy "summer" is over, and now it's time for the summery fall months.

view of the I.M. Pei building from the pier

2008-09-04T06:42:00.000-07:00

Sutro baths at Land's End

2008-08-31T12:25:00.000-07:00

I still can't believe this is in the city of San Francisco. Seems much to wild and unspoiled to be so close to a big city. That's sort of what makes SF so special - its proximity to lots of beautiful nature.

This is taken from outside the Cliff House at the edge of a park called Land's End - on the Pacific coast and between the Presidio (North) and Golden Gate Park and Ocean Beach (South). In the distance you can see the hills on Marin County - to reach them you need to cross the Golden Gate Bridge.

The sun was about an hour from setting and the pelicans flew across as if on cue.

City Lights bookstore

2008-08-26T07:52:00.001-07:00

This bookstore is a gem. It's famous from the days of the Beat generation when the likes of Ginsberg and Kerouac used to hang out there. There still hold regular poetry readings on the top floor.

statue at the top of Dolores

2008-08-25T08:16:00.000-07:00

Summer mornings often start like this: fog everywhere and a wet chill in the air. It makes this statue at the top of Dolores St look pretty dramatic.

mural by night

2008-08-20T23:30:00.000-07:00

It was barely light enough to still see this mural, but I liked the lady's expression on this otherwise faceless building.

twilight view of downtown from North Beach

2008-08-18T23:05:00.000-07:00

mural in North Beach

2008-08-14T08:19:00.000-07:00

This mural is near Columbus and Broadway, just where Chinatown meets North Beach.

family walking on Bernal Hill

2008-08-11T07:34:00.000-07:00

A San Francisco family taking a weekend walk at the top of Bernal Heights. I love this hill.

bicycle on Abbey Rd

2008-08-08T07:00:00.000-07:00

from Bernal Heights

2008-08-06T07:30:00.000-07:00

From the top of Bernal Heights, you can get a bird's eye view of the city from an interesting angle. In this photo you can see Twin Peaks and Sutro Tower in the distance. Downtown would be to your right (out of the frame.)

This photo was taken in the spring when the grass was still green. Seeing how dry the grass is now, it's hard to believe it was this green only a few months ago...

deserted house

2008-08-06T06:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, I kind of like the way this façade looks with the different unfinished paint jobs, and the forlorn yard space... There aren't many houses like this on Dolores Avenue. Maybe it is or used to be a squat?

floral balcony

2008-08-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

The flowers on this balcony cheer up the otherwise drab colored row of houses on Guerrero.

fuzzy pink flowers

2008-08-03T14:21:00.000-07:00

Does anyone know what these tree blooms are called? They come out here in the spring, either pink or red, and I've never seen them before. A West coast tree, I'm guessing...

esta noche

2008-08-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

Sutro Tower through the glass

2008-07-30T07:30:00.000-07:00

I was riding a bus into San Francisco from the Peninsula (south) and got a good view of Sutro Tower through the window pane.

view of downtown from Dolores Park

2008-07-29T07:47:00.000-07:00

When the weather is nice on weekends, this park gets super crowded with picnickers and frisbee players and people with their dogs. It's a fun and colorful place. And the ice cream around the corner is fantastic (Bi-Rite creamery).

South San Francisco

2008-07-28T07:33:00.000-07:00

This is just by the bay in South San Francisco where you can watch the planes taking off and landing into SFO.

palms at 16th St bart station

2008-07-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

This was taken going up the escalator as I exited the 16th Street bart station (BART is Bay Area Rapid Transit - the public rail transportation system). The skies were unusually sunny for late July - usually this is heavy fog season...

electric wires

2008-07-26T17:16:00.000-07:00

Some of the streets here are so full of electric wires, it's a whole landscape in itself when you look up at the sky. It's very different from New York City where I used to live, where all the wires and everything are underground.

Harlequin VW Polo

2008-07-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

This car immediately caught my attention because I had seen a photo of a very similar one posted on The Berlin Image daily photo website a little while back. This one looks a lot more beat up...! but it kind of fits SF with its many colors.

bookmobile

2008-07-23T07:11:00.000-07:00

While the public library branch in the Mission is closed for renovation, there is a Bookmobile parked outside. I wonder what books are inside.

rainbow world fund bus

2008-07-22T19:50:00.000-07:00

I spotted this Rainbow World Fund bus as I was walking up Market towards Castro. I hadn't heard of this relief organization before:
www.rainbowfund.org

street at dusk

2008-07-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

A man was sleeping next to his bike on this quiet street.

Golden Gate bridge in fog

2008-07-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it gets so foggy you literally can't see the bridge until you're on it...

enormous kite

2008-07-16T09:01:00.000-07:00

I have to admit this photo was taken a few months ago, in spring when the grass was still green and the wildflowers were out, but it is so cheerful in that SF-in-the-spring way that I had to post it. Took this out the window of our car as we drove by - this guy was flying the most incredibly huge kite and tons of kids were chasing after it. I only wish I could have captured them too.

7th St at dusk

2008-07-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

I took this is on a quiet and eerie bike ride. I like the evening light reflecting off the painted arrows. The 80 freeway is above, to the right.

Takahashi building

2008-07-13T23:53:00.000-07:00

A rare example of a brick building. Most structures in SF are built out of more flexible material such as wood, due to the risk of earthquakes.

house on fire mural

2008-07-12T22:48:00.001-07:00

This mural covers an entire block just off Harrison, near 15th Street. It's a cool one - quite a crazy scene. I couldn't even fit it all into one frame, standing across the street.

swooping freeways

2008-07-11T07:24:00.000-07:00

This was taken in SoMA (south of Market) where the 101 and 80 freeways come into the city.

nightfall

2008-07-11T00:05:00.000-07:00

doll on dashboard

2008-07-09T09:09:00.000-07:00

This doll was sitting on the dashboard in an electric van belonging to a handyman in the Castro.

zipcar and a shack

2008-07-07T22:36:00.000-07:00

Urban parking lot scene... a strange mixture of order and desolation.

Alemany graffiti

2008-07-06T10:33:00.000-07:00

Graffiti is somewhat of a fixture of this town. You see it everywhere, and some of the murals are pretty amazing. This modest example is right by the Alemany market, just southeast of the city.

house in Bernal Heights

2008-07-02T06:43:00.000-07:00

There is a row of little houses snuggled together towards the back of Bernal Heights. This one had caught my eye several times before. It just looks so cute and homey.

on Harrison around 20th

2008-07-01T07:40:00.000-07:00

Harrisson St at the East edge of the Mission. The streets around here are kind of quiet and a mixture of residences and old warehouses. And this street has a good bike lane too.

farmer's market

2008-06-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

This weekend I did one of my favorite things, stock up on delicious fruit and veg at the farmer's market. I recently moved here from the East coast, so California really does feel like a cornucopia produce-wise.

the apple store staircase

2008-06-29T16:42:00.000-07:00

I went to the Apple Store in SF and took this pic from behind the glass staircase. On either side of the stairs you see people milling about in the store, and straight ahead, you see people on the street walking by.

ferry building

2008-06-28T14:02:00.000-07:00

One of the main ferry terminals at the Embarcadero, with downtown buildings in the background. The clock tower belongs to the main ferry building, which houses a farmer's market, shops (mainly gourmet foods), and restaurants.

technicolor house

2008-06-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

While I'm on the subject of Painted Ladies, check this one out. SO ridiculously colorful!

painted ladies with people walking by

2008-06-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

The Victorian style houses of San Francisco are often painted in super bright colors, usually with a different color for the window frames and architectural trimmings. These 3 "Painted Ladies" are located on Valencia St.

Mission pool

2008-06-25T09:37:00.000-07:00

This is the last outdoor community pool in San Francisco. And it has such a cool mural on the front. It is usually only open in the summertime.

Los Rosales - authentic mexican food

2008-06-24T11:18:00.000-07:00

The tables here looked inviting.

foxy lady boutique

2008-06-23T10:00:00.001-07:00

This shop is on Mission near 22nd St. Apparently it's a great place to purchase a Halloween costume.

parking lot

2008-06-22T08:52:00.000-07:00

I liked the way the late afternoon sun was casting shadows on the corrugated metal siding on the buildings at the back of this small parking lot in the Mission.

girl and gulls on beach

2008-06-21T15:11:00.000-07:00

This girl was squealing with delight as the seagulls swooped above her.

This photo was taken just south of San Francisco at Half Moon Bay where they hold the world famous annual surfing competition, Mavericks Surf Contest.

http://www.maverickssurf.com/home/

foggy sunset over sutro tower

2008-06-20T10:37:00.000-07:00

In the evenings, the fog rolls in from the Pacific. As one friend put it, it's like dry ice being poured over the hilltops.

alcatraz in the fog

2008-06-19T10:08:00.000-07:00

Here's Alcatraz prison looking mysterious in the foggy distance.