Author Archives: untouchedtcphotos

Should the Fences move at Oracle Park?

18 Thursday Apr 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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This might be a preview of Triples Alley at Oracle Park. This photograph was taken on April 21, 2015, at AT&T Park. This was during batting practice when Triples Alley was fenced off for fans to hang out in this area before a SF Giants game.

The SF Giants are considering fencing off Triples Alley and putting the bullpen there. When a batter hits a ball toward this corner which is very difficult, it usually results in a triple. The deep right field corner is 421 feet. Any decisions about Oracle Park’s configuration will take at least a few years.

Bruce Bochy’s opinion is open minded about the change feeling if someone can hit a ball 400 feet, it should be a home run.

Is it wise to recognize when goals are out of reach and need to be adjusted to be more realistic? Analyzing what can be fairly achieved in the game of life is hard to comprehend. Goals can be assumed to be unattainable until the attempts are performed. Reaching a goal thought as unattainable can also be a wonderful surprise and achievement.

For the SF Giants, will removing Triples Alley make the game of baseball a more even playing ground at Oracle Park?

Link to CBS Sports about Oracle Park

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Where to go for Mother’s Day? Filoli Gardens

17 Wednesday Apr 2019

Posted by in Canon 5D Mark IV, Filoli Gardens

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Here are more photographs of the grounds at Filoli Gardens. I used my wide angle zoom lens to shoot the first 3 pictures above. The contrast in the colors with the yellow tulips and lavender flowers is pretty.

The 2nd photo shows the swimming pool. I went to Filoli Gardens at the invitation of good friends. My friends grew up visiting these gardens since their grandfather was a chef for the residents. My friends swam in this swimming pool as children. It was a luxury for the friends to spend an afternoon at this estate. The good memories are relived when they return to visit this garden.

In the 3rd photograph, it almost looks like the gardens are endless. I could have spent a lot more time walking and shooting photographs at Filoli Gardens.

The last photo is interesting with all the green moss growing on the circular container surrounded by the potted bright orange tulips.

The gardens were beautiful when I visited. But if you go on Mother’s Day, there will be an abundance of flowers on display. In the mansion, each room is filled to the max with beautiful arrangements. Filoli Gardens has a wonderful display of flowers that any mother would appreciate.

Hope you will consider spending precious time with your mom and treat her to an afternoon at Filoli Gardens to celebrate her.

Link to Filoili Gardens

How to enjoy Filoli Gardens, Woodside, CA

13 Saturday Apr 2019

Posted by in Filoli Gardens

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I enjoyed a wonderful afternoon at Filoli Gardens in Woodside, California. On April 3, 2019,my friends invited me to this garden for lunch and to shoot pictures for an early surprise birthday celebration. We’ve been busy with a variety of tasks at home, and it has been a while since I went out to shoot pictures. Spending time with my friends to chat, eat and shoot pictures was just what I needed.

It was mostly overcast that day, and there was some light rain. The colors of the flowers were saturated as the lighting was even and low contrast because of the overcast skies. Many photographers enjoy shooting with overcast skies due to the good light benefits with color.

The first photo was shot with my wide angle lens. The contrast in color with the bright tulips and the lavender little flowers caught my eye. Also the background pink tree provides a variety of colors.

The second photograph was shot with my macro lens. The bright orange with the streaks of red in the petals is striking. My wife would not notice the pattern of colors just normally looking at the flower. But up close, the pattern details of the flowers are very interesting.

This was my first time at Filoli Gardens. Even though I live in the Bay Area, I never took time to visit this vast estate. My friend’s grandfather was the chef at this estate. So my friend has good memories of swimming in the pool as a child. I’m glad my friends have sentimental memories of this estate where their grandfather worked to earn a living for their family. It is nice the gardens are available for us to visit.

Every year, this garden has special displays for Mother’s Day with a special meal. This garden is a wonderful place to spend time with friends and family. I know I could have spent even more time examining the flowers and shooting pictures. If you don’t know where to take your mother on Mother’s Day, consider going to Filoli Gardens.

Link to Filoli Gardens’ website

Lastly, to answer the question in the title – How to enjoy Filoli Gardens? One can enjoy the gardens by strolling around the grounds with family and/or friends. Use your camera or cellphone to take lots of pictures. Pictures will help you to notice the details of patterns and colors in the flowers and the arrangement of plants in the gardens. Slowing down to look at the variety of flowers is relaxing as well as spending quality time with those you love. My friends periodically return to the garden since they love the flowers and the memories of visiting when they were children.

Please stay tuned to see more photographs of my Filoli Gardens visit.

SF Giants Home Opener at Oracle Park, April 5, 2019

11 Thursday Apr 2019

Posted by in Opening Day, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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It was great being at the SF Giants Home Opening Game on April 5, 2019. It has been a while since I attended a home opening game.

I am fortunate my cousin invites me to attend games with her, otherwise I would not have gone. Going to the SF Giants games gives an excuse to hang out together.

This was an extra special home opening game, since it is the last time Bruce Bochy will be there as the manager. Watching him throw the pitch was indeed a special moment.

As is my custom, I arrived at the new Oracle Park before noon to roam around the stadium to shoot photographs. You can see my cousin purchased good seats behind home base.

I brought my Canon lenses – 16-35mm wide angle lens to get a good view of the entire field and the bay. I also used my 100-400mm zoom lens to get some closer shots of Bruce Bochy.

Even though the Giants lost to the Rays, I still enjoyed photographing the stadium and celebrating Bruce Bochy’s past accomplishments with the team.

Winning is important. But it is also important to celebrate a good manager and leader. Our expectation of any leader’s ability should be to give their all in their performance. We cannot expect 100% perfection. But we can be thankful to witness a leader’s passion and endurance to teach and train their players. Bruce Bochy has been a great leader and manager. I personally would like to thank Bruce Bochy for his dedication to the SF Giants and his ability to inspire the players and the fans.

Go Giants!

Chalking AT&T Park’s Foul Line and Batter’s Box

04 Thursday Apr 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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5.4.15

I shot this photo on 5/4/2015 at AT&T Park. It is interesting to see how these professionals are marking the foul line and batter’s box. Precision is important in drawing the 2 batter’s boxes. We know if the batter is not in the correct position in the box, he will be out.

In life, there are lessons we can learn about staying within the boundaries of our batter’s box. Our desire to hit a home run should overrule our rebellious spirit to step out of the box.

Do we have a clear picture of the goals in our life? Do we want to hit a series of home runs in life to succeed? If we have honorable goals, let’s live according to the batter’s box regulations to hit a series of home runs.

Photos remind us of valuable lessons!

Sweeping View at AT&T Park in San Francisco

03 Wednesday Apr 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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Welcome to the upper deck down the left field line at AT&T Park. This photograph was taken in April 2016. The ballpark’s name has been changed to Oracle Park.

There is nothing like standing on the top and looking at the view of the whole ballpark! I do have a fear of heights, so I have to be careful walking around and looking down.

Looking down, we get a perfect view of the entire field and stadium. We can see the San Francisco Bay. We get a good view of the bulk of the seats in the ballpark. So there is an advantage to being up high to see the panoramic view below. Being high (physically) is always a good location for photography.

Finding the ideal location to take good photos can be like hunting for treasure. A good photographer’s goal is to showcase a scene at it’s best. The scene can look better in a photo, than when you actually look at the scene in reality.

My goal will be to see how I can show off AT&T Park now known as Oracle Park at it’s best! I am excited to be going to the San Francisco Giants Home Opening game. So stay tuned to see the stadium art at Oracle Park.

LED Light Show

31 Sunday Mar 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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As a photographer, I have a fascination with lights. Perfect lighting can provide the necessary factor for a great photo.

I went to the lower box seats down the right field line at AT&T Park (Oracle Park) to be under the LED advertisement signs. I used my wide angle zoom lens to get up close to the lights for the photos.

When we are in our seats looking at the ads, we see the entirety of the image and words projected.

The above photos shows how the individual LED lights and colors are put together for the advertisement image.

We do not usually think about how the individual lights contribute to the final outcome.

The same is true in life. How do we as individuals contribute to reach an (hopefully good) outcome? Do I have a light which contributes to a good purpose in life?

The Old AT&T Park

30 Saturday Mar 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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Here are some photographs of AT&T Park from 3 different games.

As is my practice, I arrived early and roamed about the stadium looking for different views of the stadium.

I love going to the top and shooting the entire stadium! It is nice to see the view down to the Bay and the entirety of the ballpark.

I also shot from the left side from the bleacher area.

You can see this is the old scoreboard at AT&T Park. I am going to the SF Giants Home Opening Day on April 5, 2019. I will be shooting the new scoreboard which is 3 times larger than this old one.

I am looking forward to seeing this new scoreboard! Bigger will be better.

The view from the top will be the same. But with the bigger scoreboard, it will be easier to see from the top of the stadium.

Stay tuned to see my photos from the new Oracle Park! Hopefully the new name will eventually grow on me.

Where can we find a Candlestick Park Chair?

29 Friday Mar 2019

Posted by in AT&T Park, Candlestick Park, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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Do you wonder where did all the Candlestick Park Chairs go after the demolition?

We know some fortunate fans who bought chairs to keep as mementos. They are available for sale from $599.99 to $689.99 for a pair.

But if you do not want to invest to purchase or you do not have space for the chairs, we found the chairs at AT&T Park (Oracle Park) last year. They were located at the back north east corner behind the center field scoreboard. Chairs from 19 to 22 from row W are available for sitting and dreaming that you are back at Candlestick Park.

These chairs show their age. But they are still strong enough to endure all the fans who still need to try out these old chairs.

I plan to go to Oracle Park for the San Francisco Giants Home Opening Day game on April 5, 2019. I will be sure to check if the chairs are still there. I hope the new park’s management did not remove the chairs.

I’m glad even though these chairs may be scratched up and aged, they are still functional and can remind us of our past sitting at Candlestick Park. We need mementos to remind us how we grew up at Candlestick Park watching the SF Giants win and lose. We spent precious moments with our families and friends. These chairs remind us to continue to make time to sit with our loved ones and watch the SF Giants or the 49ers. The games are great excuse for us to be with those who are important to us.

If you want to remember the chairs when they glowed in the sun, please hit the link below to see other photos of Candlestick Park chairs.

Candlestick Park Chair Photos

What is Real?

28 Thursday Mar 2019

Posted by in Candlestick Park, Fall Foliage

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Why untouchedtcphotos? Why did I choose such a long name for our domain and business?

Once upon a time, I was searching for a major and college to attend. Academics did not come easily for me. I did not think I excelled in any subject.

I attended the College of San Mateo to do my undergraduate studies. When I went to visit China with my grandparents and relatives, I started taking photographs. It was fun and I tried to take as many photos I could though I was limited by the number rolls of film I had.

At the College of San Mateo, I had some great instructors – who taught me a lot. It was a turning point for me. I decided to enroll in the Academy of Art to get a degree in Fine Art Photography.

I also found a place where I could spend endless hours taking photos — Candlestick Park. You may have noticed my display of Candlestick Park photos on my blog.

But why “untouched”. Well we live in a world where it is hard to discern what is real and true. Are our news broadcasts projecting truth? What is the real color of someone’s hair? Do we even understand what is true in our individual circumstances. I think often we can be blind to our problems and short comings. We prefer to be the camel with our head in the sand.

I would like to show photos which are real. The color is as true as the quality of the camera and lens. I do not wish to “brighten” or “enhance” the pictures. I do remove the dust marks from my scanned Candlestick Park photos. I hope my skills as a photographer will improve to show you images which are true to the moment in time I shot the pictures.

This is a challenge for each of us to be genuine and real. Let’s not put up a false facade. Can we be transparent? Can we be “real”?

By the way, the “tc” in the domain name is for “Tony Chan”. I think the “photos” part of the name is obvious.

Let’s be real!