my new favorite photo | a community game

[mollyc]

How often do you take or find in your archives a photo that becomes an instant favorite? Maybe for the emotional sentiment, the colors, the memories attached. I know we have the POTD thread but I was thinking this would be a bit different. If we can only post one photo a day there, we limit what photos we share. And for me personally, I shoot nearly daily and often take more than one image a day, so sharing just one is hard.

My idea for this is that this thread is for the really special images, even if they are just special for you. I would love to see your favorites, maybe your new phone wallpaper or something you've sent off to print, and you can post more than one at once, although we'd try not to have more than 2-3 a day. You can already have shared them in the POTD, or maybe they are just a couple of extras you've shot during the day that you don't want to wait to share.

Standard forum rules apply: must be SFW and be your own image.

 

[mollyc]

I found a new pocket of light this evening, and I was taken with the orange and green color combo, and the repeating orange colors in the tree bokeh outside. I wish I'd taken this vertically also for a phone background.

 

[Alli]

This is a relatively old photo, but has always been a favorite. I just love water droplets.

 

[Citysnaps]

This is difficult, because I have different favorites depending on subject matter.

The man holding up the paper is a SF Chronicle newspaper vendor, and sells papers at a plaza at Powell and Market streets in downtown San Francisco - a very busy place.

It was Inauguration Day in January 2009. I hit him up for some conversation and he was as stoked as I was that Obama was elected President. I made a couple of photos, got his contact information, and a few days later mailed him a couple prints, one of which he sent to his mother in the Middle East. He said she'd be so proud of him holding up that paper. That really made my day!

 

[mollyc]

This is difficult, because I have different favorites depending on subject matter.

That's why it's a game and you can come back with a different one later! Favorites change all the time, and that's okay, and you can even have a favorite for different genres.

Alternatively, maybe someone has a photo get picked up by the news or a magazine, etc., and you want to share that. The idea of this is just to showcase images we are proud of for one reason or another, and it's fine if you have more than one, and we recognize that our body of work keeps growing and we'll have new images to share.

 

[Alli]

Didn’t take me long.

 

[Citysnaps]

Every once in awhile I come across a scene that conjures some kind of supporting narrative in my mind. This is a photo I made in one of San Francisco's underground BART (subway) stations a few years ago.

A caption that came to mind was: "Practicing for the Rapture"

 

[Alli]

A caption that came to mind was: "Practicing for the Rapture"

Exactly my thought when I saw it!

 

[oldBCguy]

.. I really liked this threesome of the Fraser River at Hope, BC - photos taken during an early-morning walk, the first day of a recent 3-night stay - the morning awakened to such a fine day, allowing some lovely views of the river in 'high' spring flow.

 

[r.harris1]

Funnily enough, it doesn't look as sharp here as it does on my monitor. Dunno why. Looks great for me
EDIT: I hadn't worked on this image since 2018 - another lifetime! - so I reset everything and took it back through Capture One, which has changed a lot since then and I've changed a lot too.

 

[Eric]

This is the city I grew up in, I've always been a fan of the angles, hills and density but what really makes it for me are the colors. Not just this area but San Francisco is full of homes with really vibrant colors and I'm always drawn to them.

 

[Citysnaps]

This is the city I grew up in, I've always been a fan of the angles, hills and density but what really makes it for me are the colors. Not just this area but San Francisco is full of homes with really vibrant colors and I'm always drawn to them.

View attachment 24406

That's a pretty amazing photo. I can see that printed large, say 20x30 (or bigger) and framed. Kind of reminds me of a big bowl of colorful candy. What's great is the density of homes (likely all by the same builder), and that you don't see any streets and cars. It's very unique.

 

[oldBCguy]

This is the city I grew up in, I've always been a fan of the angles, hills and density but what really makes it for me are the colors. Not just this area but San Francisco is full of homes with really vibrant colors and I'm always drawn to them.

View attachment 24406

.. Can't help thinking of what a wonderful 1,000 or 2,000 piece jigsaw puzzle it would make.

 

[Citysnaps]

I made this selfie during a three day two night stay at Alcatraz prison in San Francisco, where I had my own cell. A group of a dozen or so photographers had unlimited access to the prison and island - day and night. The best times to make photos was when the public wasn't there. I ended up making hundreds of photos, some of which I used in a handmade double accordion style book. While it was neat having my own cell, I ended up not sleeping very much, instead using the time to make photos.

 

[Eric]

I made this selfie during a three day two night stay at Alcatraz prison in San Francisco, where I had my own cell. A group of a dozen or so photographers had unlimited access to the prison and island - day and night. The best times to make photos was when the public wasn't there. I ended up making hundreds of photos, some of which I used in a handmade double accordion style book. While it was neat having my own cell, I ended up not sleeping very much, instead using the time to make photos.

View attachment 24441

Interesting, I didn't realize you could do overnight stays there. I've toured it a few times and I think sleeping there would probably creep me out a bit lol but what a great subject to have to yourself like that. I think I would have a field day with low light noir shots.

 

[Citysnaps]

Interesting, I didn't realize you could do overnight stays there. I've toured it a few times and I think sleeping there would probably creep me out a bit lol but what a great subject to have to yourself like that. I think I would have a field day with low light noir shots.

It was arranged with the National Park Service (which manages Alcatraz) by SF PhotoAlliance, an SF photography group. It was a special situation as overnight access is not offered to the public. IIRC, PhotoAlliance had to secure a large bond to protect the National Park Service from liability.

Some of the best times to shoot were at night and the very early morning when the Sun was breaking over the Bay Bridge. It was also great having access to the back side of the island (facing SF), where the factory and laundry facilities were - which are off limits to the public because of eroding paths to get there. We also had access to a vast area underneath the prison which was used as a Civil War-era military prison. That was really spooky, with writings on the walls by prisoners being held there.

 

[Eric]

It was arranged with the National Park Service (which manages Alcatraz) by SF PhotoAlliance, an SF photography group. It was a special situation as overnight access is not offered to the public. IIRC, PhotoAlliance had to secure a large bond to protect the National Park Service from liability.

Some of the best times to shoot were at night and the very early morning when the Sun was breaking over the Bay Bridge. It was also great having access to the back side of the island (facing SF), where the factory and laundry facilities were - which are off limits to the public because of eroding paths to get there. We also had access to a vast area underneath the prison which was used as a Civil War-era military prison. That was really spooky, with writings on the walls by prisoners being held there.

View attachment 24445

Interesting, had no idea about the military part. This is a beautiful shot.

 

[Citysnaps]

Interesting, had no idea about the military part. This is a beautiful shot.

Yeah...the current above ground prison cellblock structure that you see was built in the 1930s on top of the military prison going back to 1850. From the main cellblock, there's a stairway that goes down to the military prison below. There's a network of tunnels that connects the prison cells below. It gave me the creeps being in that area.

Also...on the 2nd floor of the main Alcatraz cellblock there's a hospital complete with an operating room and recovery cells. And a hydro-therapy tub - a nice luxury. Also a morgue.

 

[rdrr]

So it's not really a good photo because of the lighting, and it's not a subject matter that anyone besides me will care about, but it is my favorite. I debated putting in late to the May photo of the day, because they didn't arrive until very recently. I did request one iconic photo for my "May the Fourth" wedding.

Guess who is/isn't the Star Wars fan? (Long and different story how I bamboozled her into that date.)

 

[mollyc]

So it's not really a good photo because of the lighting, and it's not a subject matter that anyone besides me will care about, but it is my favorite. I debated putting in late to the May photo of the day, because they didn't arrive until very recently. I did request one iconic photo for my "May the Fourth" wedding. Guess who is/isn't the Star Wars fan? (Long and different story how I bamboozled her into that date.)

View attachment 24489

the photo of the day can be taken at anytime; it's not required to be a new photo or taken within that month.