Food...glorious food....

Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Ferry Building.... the aroma and variety of food draws the people from the high-rises and the tourists as well.  Do yourself a favor and stop by and enjoy !

Working within the lines...

We're getting closer....

Shorts, flip flops, short sleeve or sleeveless shirts, a cap, shades, working outdoors.... spring and summer is on it's way.

Lucky shot of the day...

Rangefinder cameras typically are not known to be able to capture wildlife in motion.  Just out of the blue, I was able to see this pigeon walking with me.  Decided to take a quick pic, this bird decided to take off and I was the lucky guy to get the shot..... Thanks Mr. Pigeon.

A Positive Sign...

People out enjoying frozen yogurt.  Can it be.  Winter finally has come to an end??  Time to hit the streets.

Dances with Waves...

Now that the sun is starting to come out once again (yeah) and I can stop digging through the archive of material, I hope to bring some new images soon.  One image I ran across was a series of surfers out by Fort Point in San Francisco.  This one just reminded me of Fred Astaire for some reason.  Talk about having good balance.

A Loaf of Bread, A Jug of Wine and thou....

Bright and early one morning inside the Ferry Building, I ran across this cart with freshly baked bread just sitting in front of this wine merchant establishment.  The business was closed and no one was in sight.  I was surprised to see that no one took the liberty of snatching a loaf.  Perhaps there are some civilized people left in the City.

Foyer in my house....

In a previous installment of my blog, I showed the stair case.  Today I present to you the Foyer.  I just want those glass panels with having videos run all day long.  C'mon lottery.....

Happy Anniversary....

For some reason, there is always a picture of a photographer taking a picture of themselves taking a picture....  I just realized that the last posting was the 1 year mark of my return to this art form.
Ironic in that my goal to try to do justice to Street Photography ended the year with a Street scene.

I want to thank you for putting up with the postings and sharing of my pictures along with your critique and feedback !

Special thanks to all those fellow photographers who have helped me mature during this year....
Dan, Ryan, Hal, Michael, Ed, Jack, Travis, Tom, Steph, Kena, Cindy, John, Stephen, Kerry, and to Eric Kim and Steve Huff for posting my articles on their sites.

Hard Times and a dilemma....

This photo was taken months ago.  The place, Old Sacramento.  The change machine is provided by the city so the tourists who were lucky enough to find parking on the street would be able to get the change to feed the meters.

The man in the photo appeared to be homeless and was using two twigs from a tree to try and fish out the small change that has fallen between the cracks of the wooden planks.  The look on his face was sheer determination.

Minutes later, I returned to find him still searching and as determined as ever.

I was amazed at his determination and resourcefulness but at the same time, heartbroken to see what someone will come to when things are not going well.

The dilemma in the title of this posting is all mine.  I sat on the photos for months.  I wanted not to exploit those who are down on their luck but at the same time wanted to share determination and resourcefulness and internal fortitude of people.

To really capture this post, please visit the blog site - http://stevefoonphotography.blogspot.com
I know that some of my readers are seeing this via an email but I ask that you take a minute to see it in published form.  Feel free to send me a comment.

Stairs in my house...

If only they were really made out of gold.... by the way, if you believe this.... I also have a red bridge overlooking the Bay. ;-)

Hi HO....It's Off to Work I Go...

It's official.  I'm an SO OVER with this weather.  As much as I complain about the hot weather.... I never thought I would miss it so much.  Also... welcome to those new to the blog updates.  If you wish to be removed from the list, please let me know.

A Break from the Rain...

For at least a couple of hours today, the sun broke through and I ran across a bunch of flowers on display.  Had to nab a few shots of them before the clouds got dark and it started to sprinkle once again.  Come on Summer.... I have a bunch of projects I wanna shoot !!!

Tranquil....

Sorry that it's been some time since my last posting.
One thing for certain is that I am so over this wet weather.  I can't wait for the sunny days once again.

Although not taking pictures because of the weather is a lame excuse, the camera I am using isn't weather sealed and only recently have I started to use the DSLR once again and may have to use it for the Street Photography.... until the weather turns nice.

Posting on this site probably won't happen as frequently as it once did.... indoor photography is starting to become more of an interest and I'm spending more time doing post production stuff with the images.

Hopefully, I'll be able to post better quality images along with a bit of social commentary from time to time.

Hold on to your wallets folks....

Gas prices at the pump has hit the $4.00 per gallon mark.  Considering it's about $8.00 per gallon in Europe and Asia... perhaps I shouldn't complain.  Can you say.... 1973 all over again??  When are we going to learn??

Well trained....

One day, this man just found a spot and with a gloved hand, had a couple of birds go out, do a few aerobatics and flew back to him.  The phrase "bird brain" should now be a complement.  At least some birds have been smarter than some people.

Addiction...

I realize that this sight isn't all that new.... you can see this sort of image in most major metropolitan areas.  Instead of asking for a job or food or just outright money.... this soul is asking money to buy pot.
Like most... I took my photo and wanted to just get away.  But I went several times to catch more glimpses of this man.  He's been on the street a very long time.   If I were a real reporter, I would have tried to talk to him and see what is the story in this image.

Machines....

Always been fascinated with this place.

Traveling alone has it's drawbacks....

Who is going to take your picture at one of those tourist venues?

Attention to detail...

Imagine putting this thing together.... one day I will travel to Japan and take a picture of the real thing.

Zen water....

Searching for the meaning of being centered..... water, rocks, ripples, grain of stone.

Here's the techie part.  Leica Summilux ASPH v.2 35mm, f/1.4, 1/60s, ISO 250 - heavily cropped.

When eyes meet....

There are just times where you are out shooting and someone notices.  Taking the shot, our eyes met and smiles exchanged.... how I love doing this street photography thing.

Watch out for that.....

....tree.  No, he didn't walk into the tree.
We've all become slaves to our electronic doodads.  I'm just as guilty.

My Neighborhood...

As I traveled about... this white cat was walking down the street if as though it owned it.  Stopped at each business and doorway and gave it a once over.  Nothing phased this cat.  People, cars, guy with a camera.

Business Names....

It's at least creative.  Looked inside and it was just your normal everyday art gallery.  Silly me, I actually expected to see something around "Live Worms".

Close up...

Zeiss Makro-Planar f/2 50mm

Say what you will about...

San Francisco Bay Area and the State of California.  But there are times where things are just damn pretty.

A Neighborhood and a bit of history...

People tend to forget while visiting area's of San Francisco, or in fact any town, that a lot of areas where the tourists visit are actually neighborhoods.

I know that for some tourists, they see people of different ethnic groups or races and either think they are just an attraction or are foreigners living in a certain part of town.  Certainly there are immigrants who live in those areas but there are also Americans living there to.

During World War II, our country.... rounded up American Citizens just because they were of Japanese ancestry and forced them to sell of their belongings and carted them off to what we like to call "relocation" centers.  Let's tell the truth.... Concentration Camps.  Racists in our country, to this day,  will try to paint a different picture of history.

But the truth is.... Presidential Executive Order 9066 was a racist.  It took President Ford in 1976 to finally rescind the order.  President Carter to sign legislation to formally establish a commission to investigate Executive Order 9066 and President Reagan to sign the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 which took the findings from the commission from the Carter Administration which concluded that Executive Order 9066 was indeed, "... based on racial prejudice, war hysteria and failure of political leadership."

Japantown in San Francisco once was a vibrant area of about 30 square blocks.  Today, only about 8 blocks remain.  Recently two statues were placed that is attempting to educate people that this area is not only a tourist destination but a neighborhood and a historical area as well.

We are a unique country where Americans - the true meaning - are made up of people of many races and ethnic groups living together and proud to be an American.

So the next time you encounter someone different than yourself, don't think they are a foreigner, recent immigrant.... not really an "American".  Because chances are.... you too fall into the definition of the word - American.

Remember the words George Santayana (of Spain),"Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it"

How to react...

Walking around Marina Greens in San Francisco early one mooning, I noticed that the tide was out and to see what the area looks like, I stumbled on this one single bottle sitting there.

Everything else in the area as clean and looking like a scene of low tide.... I don't know if I should get upset that people are so lazy as to just leave the bottle versus taking it with them.  How would you feel seeing this?  Just wondering if I'm just too sensitive to this stuff.

Remember those "B" movies....

This is perhaps a stretch..... Do you remember those 1950's horror films.
Attack of the...., Them, The Blob, etc....

For some reason, the low fog and how these tree branches made me think..... "Attack of the Wild Tree Limbs.  See the Ferry Building be eaten by these wild limbs."   Ok... I told you it was a stretch.

On a nice sunny day.....

... jog, ride a bike, take the dog for a walk, stretch out and have some coffee, take the baby out on a stroller.

One Man's junk...

... is another man's treasure.  At the very least, recycling at it's artistic.

Your neighborhood coffee shop...

This scene can easily be repeated (no pun intended) countless times around the world.
A little story here.

Long before Starbucks, there was a small coffee shop in Berkeley called Peet's.  Yes, there was a man named Alfred Peet who moved to America in the 1940's.  Coming from Holland, he was shocked at the poor quality coffee that was served in America and decided to bring the art of coffee making to us.

There's a short history of Peet's on their website.

The back story here is that three individuals from Seattle learned of this coffee store.  One of them got hired on at Peet's and learned the business.  You got.... this is how Starbucks was born.

So if someone were to tell you that Starbucks is the end all of coffee, tell them the tale of Peet's.

Jump for joy ....

I can't wait for winter to be over with.  These two visitors to San Francisco were having a blast.  At least they were being creative with their pictures.  The word JOY comes to mind.

Just add water...

This little guy is all set to go.... now if only the tide would come way in.

A Lazy afternoon...

Man on the bench.... catching a few winks.  Swan in the water.... catching a few winks.  This author.... drinking 5 Hour Energy.... what is wrong here??

How many more...

While sitting for an hour to get a table, I was just fascinated with this young lady behind the counter.  People dead ahead, to her right and left, restaurant staff all around her.... everyone asking questions and yet.... she kept it together.

Color or Black and White??

A poll question.  Which one do you like better and why?
Your comments will be most appreciated.

Our Pets trust us...

Just a reminder to everyone.... although the weather has been on the cold side and we all love to bring our pets with us, remember that too many accidents have occurred when pets were left in a closed vehicle.  This little one wasn't by itself too long before the owner came out from the store.  Just remember how hot a vehicle can get!

The Palace is open once again...

After months of renovation, the Palace of Fine Arts is once again fully open to the public.

Built for the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition, this jewel is the last remaining series of structures of a massive complex that was built.

The structure was actually made out of chicken wire and plaster.  When the exposition closed, the entire complex was destroyed to build what is now known as the Marina District.

A complete history is available at http://www.exploratorium.edu/palace/index.html

Time for my closeup....

Recently, the amount of wild life in the Bay Area that have been shot has increased.  Criminologists and Psychologists have said that individuals who perform senseless killing or harming of wildlife typically will progress to killing people next.  May those sick people get their just rewards.... these are God's creatures as well.

You only need a small space...

This thing is only about 2 feet deep and maybe 6 feet wide.  It's not larger than a telephone closet that a small office may have.  It's actually a newsstand that's been there for generations.  It even has an address number.

Going down?...

Another film shot.  Mundane I know.  But if you like this stuff, the smoothness of the contrast changes and the amount of detail.  It's amazing how we hate "noise" in our images but when it comes to film, it becomes wonderful "film grain". 

I got it mom....

Consumerism.  Not really, this little girl couldn't wait to go through her mom's bag.

Lion in the Winter....

There is something special about film.  The amount of grain and how an image is rendered.  The smoothness of the slight changes in shades.  It's been decades since I last shot film.... and I know why, it costs a lot.  Anyway, special thanks to the gang at Camera West for allowing me to shoot film on a Leica M7.