San Francisco Fleet Week 2021

Both of my grandfathers were formerly servicemen of the U.S. Navy and what has trickled down to me was an exposure to numerous military aircraft and ships deployed throughout history. I would come across these vehicles on my visits to military bases, in history documentaries and especially at air shows attended with family. A great opportunity to see them in action is at San Francisco’s Fleet Week, which I photographed this past weekend. It is a week in San Francisco when all of these vehicles come out in full display, topped off with air shows by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels and other aircraft.

Blue Angels in Delta Formation.

Yours truly photographing the Blue Angels at Crissy Field in San Francisco (shot by Anna-Lee).

Shooting Conditions

I will admit that the weather was not kind to the schedule of aerial displays when I went to photograph. High winds did cancel some aircraft appearances this year and it made the 4-hour wait at Crissy Field an especially cold one (but you should always bundle up when shooting in San Francisco anyways). So compared to the performances of previous years, there was more downtime until the Blue Angels finally took for the skies. To keep ourselves occupied during this downtime, myself and the other photographers packed around me turned to shooting the nearby pelicans and kite surfers as they went up and down the bay. At least somebody was enjoying the weather.

Composing

Steps away from the Crissy Field Center, my two main points of interest were the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island. Tracking focus and anticipation of the action are very critical here to get the shot that you want of aircraft that are flying hundreds of miles an hour through the air and in every which direction. Very often will you get shots of aircraft with a clean backdrop of blue sky and clouds. But when it comes to shooting more contextual shots of the aircraft with the points of interest mentioned, I found that it helps to first quickly compose the shot around the point of interest then allow the aircraft to pass through it. Results may vary as it is never really known what their flight path will be at any given time.

Gear

The longer the focal length here, the better. The maximum focal length that I had available to me at this time was 200mm and I recommend that as the bare minimum from my vantage point of Crissy Field. Cropping in post-production was required for a handful of images but despite this, I was able to grab wider, more contextual shots instead of only tight details of the aircraft.

Tight shots, no context:

Blue Angels' Marine Corps Lockheed C-130 Hercules "Fat Albert"

437th OG - C-17

Wide shots, with context:

Fat Albert making a run next to the Golden Gate Bridge.

C-17 making a run over Alcatraz Island.

Conclusion

It was overall a great time pushing my camera’s tracking features and hearing the loud screaming of the Blue Angels breaking the sound barrier right over my head. Bring ear plugs if you need to.

Blue Angels break off formation over Alcatraz Island.

Yellow Days on a Rainy Day

(Recommended tracks by Yellow Days: Gap in the Clouds, Your Hand Holding Mine, People, That Easy)

I took a gamble and found myself riding in through rapid transit and trudging through San Francisco’s Market Street on what seemed to be the rainiest day of the year so far. Having the day off to see a favorite music artist of mine finally perform near me was what lead me to take such a gamble - given that I had not even purchased tickets yet and they were all sold out.

George Van Den Broek, also known by Yellow Days, is an indie soul-pop artist from the UK who I’ve enjoyed listening to for quite some time now. It was to my disappointment that all his scheduled concerts were overseas until one day, this same rainy day, I found out that he would be performing near me in San Francisco. To even more disappointment, this event was already sold out but was offering a limited amount of tickets at the door. This was all I needed to hear before grabbing my umbrella and heading out.

Yellow Days (George Van Den Broek) performs at a venue in San Francisco, CA.

Finally searching on foot for this rather obscure concert venue, I almost passed it from the lack of anybody at all on the street. Nobody else was trying to wait in the rain for hours before the doors even opened like the maniac that I was. George himself had not even arrived yet either at this point until I suddenly noticed him and his band mates exiting their car right in front of me. I was shocked to be meeting them amidst all of this. After finally explaining my situation and sharing a few laughs with them, they generously added my name to the guest list for the concert.

The amount of trouble this lucky turn of events has saved me in addition to suddenly meeting one of my favorite artists has made this gamble absolutely worth the risk.

Enjoyed the concert, enjoyed photographing it as well.

Wheels up to Colorado

I had the pleasure of visiting Colorado for a bachelor party this past weekend. Being born and raised in the Bay Area as well as being spoiled with everything that comes with it, it felt great to pry myself from the hustle and bustle of things. 

View out the window on a flight from Oakland International (OAK) to Denver International (DEN).

Cozy views from where I stayed in Evergreen, Colorado.

A basketball hoops with the downtown Denver skyline in the background.

My ride back to Oakland International (OAK).

Liftoff

Welcome to my blog page! Here, I'll be sharing photos that arise from my day to day as well as thoughts and ideas... Of a miscellaneous assortment to just share what I'm up to.