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Staircase
30 July 2024
Yesterday we showed you the first image we took on our weekend walk (after we caught our lens as it fell off the camera). Today, you can see the last image we took.
Staircase. Olympus E-PL1 with Lensbaby Tilt Transformer adapter and Nikkor 43-86mm f3.5 at f8, 1/100 second and ISO 200. Processed in Adobe Camera Raw.
Could they be much different?
This staircase descends from Twin Peaks Blvd. and is, in fact, Stanyan Street. This part of Stanyan doesn't actually connect to the rest of Stanyan below it but ends in a cul-de-sac a few steps beyond this staircase. The staircase leads to a few homes nestled in the side of the hill.
The gate, were it kept closed, would have prevented access to anyone not living there but it's a public street and, apparently, the gate is never completely closed.
Which makes for a better shot looking up than down.
We went monochrome with it because we wanted to minimizes the distractions introduced by the varicolored vegetation.
What we did like about the scene was preserved in monochrome because it was primarily the tonalities cast by the sunlight on the steps and railing. The color there was very nice as well but we didn't miss it.
This is a high contrast shot and tough to handle for a smartphone, which tends to blow out highlights. Our Raw capture let us recover some detail in the sunlit handrail and some tonality in the sky that otherwise would have been lost.
Yes, we did have to climb back up the stairs to get home. But it was (almost) all downhill after that.