Corner of Post and Powell

by James B Toy

Title

Corner of Post and Powell

Artist

James B Toy

Medium

Photograph - Scanned From A Color Negative.

Description

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We were in San Francisco the day before Thanksgiving in 1997. We stopped in Saks across from Union Square for lunch and some browsing. The corner of the building has big windows on each floor overlooking the street. While Mrs. Toy was shopping, I took my camera to the windows and got shots of the streetcorner from a couple of floors. As luck would have it, the mounted police came across. I photographed them waiting for the light to change, and while crossing the street. This was the best of the series. It won first prize in the "People" category at the 1998 Monterey County Fair.

The composition was part planning and part luck. The stoplight offered a good centerpiece. To provide human interest I needed to include the four people on the island waiting for the cable car, and the woman waiting to cross. These elements formed the basis for the composition. I snapped the photo when the horses were in the best position to balance the picture. The man caught stepping off of the curb was a stroke of luck, since I was barely aware of his presence. The positions of the people in the frame work together nicely to draw your eye gently through the picture. The officer's yellow raincoat, and the blue top on the fire hydrant add a nice snap of color in an otherwise subdued scene.

It takes longer to read about it than it took to shoot it. This entire composition was designed in my head in a matter of seconds.

Photo Copyright James B. Toy

Uploaded

April 20th, 2014

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