Sunrise over San Francisco, and a Walk Along the Pier

🔗 | by Chris McLeod
2 skyscrapers and a crane in San Francisco, framed by a sunrise sky which transitions from dark blue at the top to fiery orange near the bottom third. In the foreground is the silhouette of another building

Sunrise over San Francisco, framing 2 skyscrapers and a crane
low-light, long exposure, photograph of Howard Street in San Francisco at sunrise, taken from a high vantage point. There are some light trails caused by passing cars. In the background is part of the bay, and the San Francisco-Oakland bridge.
Boats in San Francisco Bay, at sunrise. Oakland can be seen in the background, across the water.
The San Francisco-Oakland bridge at sunrise. The bridge is illuminated with lights to show off the support cables. In the foreground are the silhouettes of various buildings and some streets.
A vintage, well-worn, sign painted on the side of a red-brick wall. It advertises Gallo Salame, and features a stylised illustration of a tram car
A pier jutting out into the water of the San Francisco bay, from the left side of the frame. In the hazy distance, hills can be seen
A vintage style bicycle, padlocked to a railing next to Red's Java House in San Francisco. In the background is a pier building, and to the right is a partial view of a sign advertising Double Cheeseburger & Beer, and Red's Special Hot-Dog and Soda
A pier jutting out into the water of the San Francisco bay, from the left side of the frame. In the hazy distance, hills can be seen. The pier has a building with several warehouse doors on it.
A bronze sculpture of an octopus, attached to a wall. The sculpture is covered in dark green verdigris, which is worn away in some places to reveal the natural orangey-brown of the metal.
A bronze sculpture of a turtle, attached to a wall. The sculpture is covered in dark green verdigris, which is worn away in many places to reveal the natural orangey-brown of the metal.
A large sculpture of a bow-and-arrow, sunk into the grassy ground, with the tip of arrow and some of the bow obscured by the ground. The fletchings of the arrow are bright red, and its shaft is painted white. The bow is a golden yellow colour. In the background are palm trees, some buildings of the San Francisco skyline, and a bright blue sky

Thanks to the travelling, my body-clock was a little on the fritz, which meant I was wide-awake at around 4am local time. Not ideal, but it meant I got to see a fairly spectacular sunrise, coming up over San Francisco Bay. Feeling a little inspired, I set my camera up on its tripod, opened the window shutters, and experimented with a few long-exposure shots. I need a little more practice (sunset, anyone??), but I’m pretty pleased with how a couple of the shots came out.

The remaining photos are from a walk I took along the pier-front (Embarcadero). I didn’t go all the way along - I was tempted to walk right around as far as Fisherman’s Wharf (I started at South Beach), so I might get a few snaps of the Golden Gate Bridge, but I decided I would cut back into downtown at Market Street, so I could get a few things for my stay. I think I’ll make my trip up that way on Tuesday, perhaps taking in a ferry ride of the Bay, and maybe a tour of Alcatraz.