San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge

Below the bridge is Fort Point, built by the Spanish in 1769, and is a wonderful, fascinating landmark worth a photography trip all by itself! When I was a little girl, my grandparents took me there for a visit, and upon seeing real cannonballs for the first time, one of the historians there told me that if I could pick one up, I could take it home with me! To the delight and amusement of all who saw me straining at the task, I really did try!! :D This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

I'm always on the lookout for an interesting way to picture something fairly ordinary. These rivets with the lines and angles have their own character and beauty! This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

Once I got onto the bridge, I kept seeing boats passing under it, making their way in and out of the Bay. I was so happy that I could see Alcatraz in the distance, and got this image with a sailboat, tugboat and a freighter in the Bay! This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

Talk about anticipation! I could not WAIT to get out of the car and hot-foot it onto the bridge for up-close-and-personal shots! I saw this view and had to take a picture...what a pretty sight!! This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

As I walked to the South Tower, I got to take one of the pictures I really wanted! Where did the bridge go?! :D As a child, I would stare upwards out of the car window straining to see the tops of the towers through the mist...I rarely could! Winner of FlickrDuel contest: +10 Wins: Black & White Bridges This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

The fog is so thick that the tower disappears into the mist at about the half-way point! Winner of FlickrDuel contest: Alpha Conceptual This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

This is one of the images I'd been looking forward to taking! I hoped the fog would be so thick that I wouldn't be able to see where they attached to the suspension cable at the top, and I was overjoyed to get exactly what I wanted! Winner of FlickrDuel contest: +10 Wins Black/White Conceptual This picture was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

(for those of you who are interested in seeing my San Francisco trip images, I have uploaded 9 pictures in this batch [6 yesterday, 7 the day before yesterday, 11, 10 and 11 before that]. Thanks everyone for your comments and your visits to my photostream! I hope you enjoy the show!) The Golden Gate Bridge is the landmark I identify most strongly with San Francisco and it is considered a modern Wonder of the World. I have crossed it thousands of times in my lifetime--by car, bike, and by foot--and its beauty has never deminished in my eyes since understanding what it was as a small child. I am proud to say that my father's father actually worked on the construction of this bridge! My brilliant mother designed a quilted block which won a placement in a very special GGB 50th Anniversary Quilt presented to and exhibited by the Golden Gate Bridge District Office. This incredibly beautiful, amazing bridge is part of who I am as a hometown San Franciscan, and I love it dearly. Many of you might feel a little sad for me that it was a foggy day for these pictures, but I was delighted because this is how the bridge looks most days of the year! I hoped it would be foggy so that I could take pictures of the bridge how I love it most...disappearing into the mist! If you would like to know more about the Golden Gate Bridge, here is the link to the Wiki page: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Gate_Bridge Winner of FlickrDuel contest: +10 Color: Bridges This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

This HDR shot was taken from the path leading to the bridge and is best appreciated against black in a larger size! Winner of FlickrDuel contest: Alpha Panorama This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.