Saturday, October 13, 2012

I Love CA: Golden Gate Bridge

It's iconic.  It's beautiful.  It's a symbol of California I love so well.

I wasn't even sure we'd see it on this trip, but at the last minute we found ourselves taking a different route back to San Francisco from Napa that had us stopping in Sausalito just north of this famous bridge for dinner.  And instead of just driving over the bridge to our hotel, we decided on a whim to follow some small curvy roads to a perfect viewing spot on the North side.

It was breathtakingly beautiful (and cold).  I wanted to capture some shots of the bridge, but photographing in the dark is so difficult.  I knew I couldn't hold the camera still enough during the long exposure required.  I was feeling so upset about the missed opportunity when I remembered I had a tiny tripod in my camera bag.  It's only about 6 inches tall, but it screws into the bottom of my camera just like my regular tripod.  I was able to position the camera on the roof of the rental car and snap away.  I was so thankful for my emergency tripod!

It was pitch dark outside, so even with a very long exposure, this is the image I captured:


I think it's beautiful, but a tiny bit too dark.  I adjusted it two different ways in iPhoto.  I can't decide which way I prefer.  So, I'm opening a poll on the side bar of the blog and giving you a chance to vote for image 1 or 2.  If you get a chance, tell me in the comments why you chose as you did.  I'm curious!

one

two

4 comments:

Rachel said...

I've been enjoying the CA posts! Of your two edits, I think I like number two. Although I can't quite put my finger on why. Maybe it is a tad brighter and the details pop more? Actually, there is something I really love about the original photo too.

Lauren C. said...

i really like the original too, but of the edited ones, my favorite is the second. The reds are more vivid. Really beautiful shots. Did you use a remote to take the picture, or were you able to press the shutter release without shaking the camera too much?

Phillip Young said...

I like the second one because I think the contrast of the bridge against the sky in the second picture is striking. In the first picture, my eye is naturally drawn to the bay rather than the bridge for some reason (the bay is quite striking in number 1)

Unknown said...

Lauren- I just pushed the button, but when I really want to avoid shaking I set it on a 2 second delay. That way I can push the button and move my hand away before it actually takes the shot.