Andy, My apologies for waiting a week before replying. You don't say what you want to photograph, and that makes an answer a little tough. Here are a few thoughts:
People -- Chinatown, not only along Grant Avenue but around on the side streets and along Kearny St. Find out who Sun Yat Sun was. Move on to the North Beach neighborhood north of Chinatown, out toward Washington Square where the Bank of America ATM machines will talk to you in Chinese, Japanese, Portugese (or maybe that's Spanish), and Italian. Look in the neighborhood saloons like the New Pisa restaurant and bar on Green St. Ask Dante deBenedetti, the owner, about his friendship with Joe DiMaggio. Walk up Market St. to see people (make that "characters") waiting for the bus. Look for blue collar San Francisco, the cops, the truck drivers, the people in restaurants and stores. San Francisco is a good Catholic town. Hang out in front of a church at Christmas. Go to Golden Gate Park to the museums and to the Japanese Tea Garden. At Eighth avenue, walk across Lincoln Way (the street along the south side of the park) into a neighborhood that is predominantly Chinese. Architecture. You could probably photograph a whole book on the churches of San Francisco, not least Temple Emanu-El on Arguello Blvd in the Richmond District. Stand on any corner and ask "Where's the nearest church?" and you can be sure of finding a good subject for a picture. Then you could do another book on San Francisco saloons. Note that many San Francisco saloons and restaurants show their enthusiasm for San Francisco sports teams and sports legends. Try go get some of that into your pictures. By all means, whatever you do, go down to the new ballpark. Take the N Judah St. streetcar to the end of the line. I might also suggest you visit the former Kezar Stadium on Stanyan Street in Golden Gate Park just across from the western border of the Haight-Ashbury District (which you might also want to visit if your idea of San Francisco is old and nouveau hippies). Kezar is where the 49ers played before they moved to Candlestick Park. If you get downtown to Union Square, walk into the Neiman-Marcus store and look straight up at the stained glass ceiling. I would also suggest a walk down Maiden Lane which runs east from Stockton St. at Union Square. Union Square and the stores nearby should be nicely decorated at Christmas. Ghirardelli Square is another place that comes to mind. It's an old factory turned into a shopping emporium. Nearby is the bar where Irish coffee was first introduced. You will also want to walk down to the yacht harbor. I believe it's the Powell and Hyde Street cable that takes you out here. These suggestions are in addition to the usual and predictable. Nature. You will want to visit the beaches and walk along the ocean. In December, you could get a good day after the morning fog burns off. San Francisco weather changes throughout the day. At the Cliff House you will be able to photograph seals on the rocks below. For at least 10 years I have carried in my wallet a portrait I took of my wife in the diffused foggy light at Land's End. Also in that area, ask for directions to Spreckels Gardens. When you consider that western San Francisco is built on sand dunes, Golden Gate Park is quite a work of gardening. I don't know that I ever understood the details of the process, but they use sewage for fertilizer. I recommend you walk the park paths, especially around the lakes. When I used to walk across the park on my way in winter mornings, the lakes would sometimes be frozen. There is an arboretum. It may be early for the rhododendrons and cherry blossom trees. Always remember that San Francisco is a city for walking. To put it another way, you might find its streets uncomfortably narrow for driving, and parking is always tough. I would get maps of the Muni and use it. The Presidio might offer some opportunities. Near the Lombard Street entrance is the Palace of Fine Arts which now houses the Exploratorium which is a science museum. I am sure you will want to photograph vistas with fog from the top of Twin Peaks (you'll need a car to get up there). On the southwest corner of the city, the San Francisco Zoo and Lake Merced might be of interest. If you belong to a golf and country club and can get into the Olympic Club at Lakeside, I am sure you will find it worthwhile. It's a beautiful place. On a recent visit to the City (I haven't lived there for 40 years but I get back once or twice a year to see family and friends) I walked from the Marina up to Pacific Heights and enjoyed the smallish gardens in the tiny front yards of the homes. I was somewhat shocked when one of my former high school classmates who lives in the Marina told me he drove all the way to the southwest side of San Francisco to get to a nursery. If you are accustomed to seeing homes with large green lawns where you come from, you won't believe what you will see in Frisco. If you have thoughts of getting out of the City itself, that's another subject. I would suggest you invest 25 bucks in a copy of Bay Area Wild, a Sierra Club book by photographer Galen Rowell whose school is across the Bay Bridge in Emeryville, if I remember correctly. ----- Original Message ----- From: Andy Vu <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, November 26, 2001 2:39 PM Subject: San Francisco trip > Our group will travel to San Francisco, California this Christmas. Can > someone point me out places good for pictures ? > > Thanks > Andy > - > This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, > go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to > visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org . - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
