- It was a real pain to retrieve the stuffed seagull when the tide came up! hehe..
- The fog was moving quickly!
- These high clouds were super-red since they caught the first light. I had to de-saturate them a bit to keep the detail.
- This was a medium tide, which seems to make the long exposures look their best. Low tide makes the posts too long and high tide makes them almost disappear.
- The Bay Bridge: The second-longest high level bridge in the world and the second-busiest in terms of traffic. Only 3% less traffic than the George Washington in New York City.
- Alkatraz! That's a long swim to get off of 'The Rock.'
- It looks grainy here but the big version is super-smooth. I think it is Flickr upload compression.
- I made sure to keep these pilings separate.
- I moved around to keep these pilings separate.
- Wonderful tip - Parkinson Sniper
Sausalito Morning #2 - Marin County California
It was a misty and foggy morning on San Francisco Bay. Since I have no good photos of this view with my 5D mkII, I decided to go for it. Only as the sun nears the summer solstace is the city lit by the morning sun from this angle. No HDR.
Free wallpaper for over 100 of my images in 6 different screen sizes is now available!
See the 1200 pixel version!
www.flickr.com/photos/patrick-smith-photography/576604722...
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Settings etc.:
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Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105L @70
1-minute exposure @ F10
1 Lee Big Stopper 10-stop glass filter (slides into filter holder)
2 0.9 (3-stop) Lee neutral density soft grad filters
(Lee is having production problems (can't keep up with demand) so
Singh Ray makes good ones too.)
No polarizer
ISO 100
Small Slik tripod with Manfrotto 322RC2 pistol grip ball head
RAW file processed with Capture One by Phase One
TIFF file processed with Photoshop
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Story:
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I never tire of this view and even at sunrise, there are lots of walkers, runners and bike riders passing by. If you ever have a chance to see this place at sunrise, I highly recommend it! But fog can happen so check the forecast first. The Golden Gate Bridge is just to the right of the frame and the fog flows right through it to this spot and across to the islands and the Bay Bridge in the distance.
Usually, April is the start of the dry season, but this year there have been a lot of clouds and much cooler than average temperatures while the arctic and sub-arctic areas are enjoying warm temps. For the next week for example, it will be warmer in much of central Alaska than along the California coast. Of course bad weather can make the best light so I'll take the clouds while I can get them! But the north Pacific has been churned up for 6 months and it looks like it does in the middle of the stormy winter. It is very odd to see. For example look at this sat movie. (Let it download and loop a few times.)
www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/nepac/loop-vis.html
The map shows exactly where this is.
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Resources:
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Google Earth
earth.google.com/
Simply the best way to scout out locations that there is. You can see sun angles and pre-visualize light under lots of different conditions. Sometimes you can actually pre-compose your shots! This has saved me many thousands of vertical feet of climbing by avoiding spots with blocked views etc.
Satellite imagery (choose 'National' for a local US region or use your
fave website)
www.wrh.noaa.gov/satellite/?wfo=mtr
Tide charting and preditions: (chose your area in US, other countries
have similar websites)
tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/tide_predictions.shtml?gid=235
Wave Heights (I choose 'North Pacific from Global')
polar.ncep.noaa.gov/waves/main_int.html
Or Here:
www.opc.ncep.noaa.gov/shtml/RP1bw.gif
Photos of every inch of the California coastline from a small plane. Excellent for close in detailed views.
I get my cameras, filters, etc. here:
www.bhphotovideo.com/
or
www.adorama.com/
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Comments and faves
Gary Ngo | Photography, Claire Chao, Savannah Daras, rchrdstranger, and 1278 other people added this photo to their favorites.
Gary Ngo | Photography (24 months ago | reply)
So beautiful Patrick! Funny I have an almost 100% exact same shot but in B&W due to the rainy weather on my last visit to the Bay area. =)
p.s. hahaa, and 1st too!!
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rchrdstranger (24 months ago | reply)
I KNOW
"THAT FEELING"...
A very SAFE, SANE & ENJOYABLE
MEMORIAL DAY WEEK & TIGHT END
to YOU & yours...
Claire Chao (24 months ago | reply)
wow........ this is so beautiful.............
great capture and thanks for sharing!! :-)
Chaos2k (24 months ago | reply)
beautiful shot
koonsphotography (24 months ago | reply)
Great soft capture. I love the light colours.
JaveFoto (24 months ago | reply)
Nice Patrick like the subtle soft light and feel to this one, excellent work as always.
goldrooster707 (24 months ago | reply)
the colors just amazing.
J Griffin Photography (24 months ago | reply)
What an amazing shot! Great colors and detail!
Excellent job!
Darren Wolley (24 months ago | reply)
Beautiful soft light and pastel colours.
Myron Hensel (24 months ago | reply)
Absolutely wonderful, one of my favorites.
IPOXstudios (24 months ago | reply)
Wow, this is excellent! So much depth and great colors!
Shane Venem (24 months ago | reply)
Very dreamy feel to this one. The long exposure worked really well with this sky.
Neil Kremer (24 months ago | reply)
fantastic shutter work.
Neil Kremer (24 months ago | reply)
Click H E R E if you have time to see curvature of the Earth.
Yannick Lefevre || Photography (24 months ago | reply)
sweet tone to compose this morning day ;-)
Nino H (24 months ago | reply)
excellent shot.
hope to have nice weather there next saturday :)
almost making 5000 km to shoot this city :)
Oram24 (24 months ago | reply)
Outstanding.
max vuong (24 months ago | reply)
Long exposure looks great here Patrick.
M i k e Y (24 months ago | reply)
I gotta get an ND filter
maxcilla (24 months ago | reply)
great shot!
Ten Directions (24 months ago | reply)
great image!
K's EYES (24 months ago | reply)
Beautiful exposure, the clouds are sweet ; )
William Miller 21 (24 months ago | reply)
Another masterful work. I have been to that spot, but I've never seen it like this. Can't tell you how much those of us who are just learning this craft appreciate the detailed information.
PatrickSmithPhotography (24 months ago | reply)
Thanks for stopping by for a look!
William, it is part experience and part luck. I have looked over in this direction from the east bay where I live almost every day for two months before I finally got this shot! You only see the good ones. It is a LOT of effort, though once you are in the right place at the right time, it is not that difficult once you have enough practice.
Read my comments under my other photos and you will see what I mean.
Cheers,
Patrick
Jimmy_Capp (24 months ago | reply)
incredible capture... so much better than just another old city skyline.
skylove...busy (24 months ago | reply)
beautiful composition and color :)
Benjamin Postlewait (24 months ago | reply)
Wow, that's....that's...pretty magical looking. What a scene so perfectly captured. Nice.
shutterbroke-back from digital misery for now (24 months ago | reply)
Thanks for the info. Beautiful composition.
terry wood Photography (24 months ago | reply)
stunning shot...love the tones!
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Marvin Foran Photography (24 months ago | reply)
Great shot Patrick! Awesome!
Francisco Aragão (24 months ago | reply)
Very beautiful composition !!!
gatordr (24 months ago | reply)
another wonderful composition - and great photography lesson! thanks
j man ツ (24 months ago | reply)
This is such a beautiful capture my friend!
Have a great weekend,
Jacob
ken.hubbell (24 months ago | reply)
Very nice Patrick.
Dominique Palombieri (24 months ago | reply)
superbe light
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dodoys_ehdiwoop (24 months ago | reply)
wonderful light!
-Sami(away) (24 months ago | reply)
Great contrasting mood between the serenity of the foreground and the busy metro structures in the background. Very well done (as usual)!
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~ Ray ~ (24 months ago | reply)
fantastic perspective and tone. Magnificent
farhan_381 [deleted] (24 months ago | reply)
dreamy capture...lovely
Dodzki (24 months ago | reply)
wow! excellent shot! fav!
kth_friend (24 months ago | reply)
terrific shot indeed..
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www.visualjourneysstudios.com (24 months ago | reply)
Excellent photo!
Fionn Luk (24 months ago | reply)
Wow beautiful exposure! amazing scene, nice colors Patrick
Dave Berryman (24 months ago | reply)
I like the soft almost fuzzy look in the clouds over the city. They almost look painted in.
Randi Ang (24 months ago | reply)
absolutely stunning!!!
Dean Forbes (24 months ago | reply)
Why two GNDs?
stpauliesgirl(so busy but trying to catch up) (24 months ago | reply)
Another beauty!
jpeder55 (24 months ago | reply)
wow there is so much to this image. It's serene and tranquil, but it's multi-layered with a ton to look at. Fantastic shot!
The Gifted Photographer (24 months ago | reply)
Profound thanks for sharing your beautiful creations and enriching our lives ...
Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend ...
james wang photography - wangjam (24 months ago | reply)
love the colors and the clarity of this beautiful comp! good stuff as always!