It rained, here in Sonoma County, yesterday. Having some free time I decided that I wanted to run down to the Golden Gate Bridge and make some images of the clearing storm. I took my Fuji XT1, a few lenses, my GoPro "Hero" and a tripod. This being a spur of the moment decision, the ability for planning was limited. I did check the Golden Gate Bridge webcam to see if conditions might be favorable for some images. There was heavy cloud cover but it wasn't raining and the weatherman said that it would clear up by the early afternoon. So I jumped in my car and headed South. Hitting some traffic on my way. I made it to the Marin Headlands in about an hour and a half. The clouds were clearing nicely but the fog was my biggest concern. The Headlands are the hills just North of the Golden Gate and afford some of the most beautiful views of this amazing structure. I usually avoid shooting here in the middle of the day, even when conditions are perfect, due to the huge number of tourists in the area. The fog was very erratic, at times blocking the view of the bridge completely. I got lucky and was able to make a few images.
South Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, taken from the Marin Headlands. June, 2016
I set up my tripod to hold my GoPro "Hero" and started the timelapse mode. As I set it up the fog cleared and I saw this shot below.
View of San Francisco looking through the Golden Gate Bridge, taken from the Marin Headlands. June, 2016
One of the challenges of being a photographer and standing in a location such as this is that you are asked to take image after image of tourists. I don't mind this at all, but it tends to get in the way of my purpose, which is to create images. It got to the point where people were crowding me and my tripod so I had to abandon ship. Before I left I was able to make this timelapse.
As I was getting ready to pack up I looked down and noticed a lock attached to the cable of the fence at the viewpoint. The lock had a heart engraved on its' face. It gave me an idea for a couple of images.
Lock attached to fence cable, located at a viewpoint above the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin Headlands, June 2016
Lock attached to fence cable, located at a viewpoint above the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin Headlands, June 2016
I love photography adventures. I have found that I do my best work on spur of the moment trips. Lately these adventures have been inspired by weather events. I love the look of the sky as the clouds start to clear. A clear blue sky can be a beautiful background but I tend to prefer a little something going on in the way of clouds.
Dreaming of the next storm.......