Category Archives: Lost Ballpark

Flood Light Bulbs Made up Candlestick Park Scoreboard

28 Friday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, San Francisco 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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I enjoyed looking at the old scoreboard at Candlestick Park. It is old technology compared to the new fancy scoreboard at Oracle Park today. But the old scoreboard still has a unique look. It is fascinating to look close up and see the individual round floodlights which together project the words and images. The photographs were taken during the SF Giants’ 1988 season.

It is also cool to see the shadow effect in the 3rd photograph of each of the floodlights.

Besides the actual game, the scoreboard is the “centerpiece” of a ballpark. We constantly look at it for scores, stats, commercials, information, and entertainment.

The first photograph of the Scoreboard reminds us of the “ASK THE GIANTS” event. How exciting to be able to “talk directly to your favorite Giants player”.

I wonder how did the Candlestick Park maintenance team replace these floodlights. I assume they would have to test to see if any lights went out before a game to replace any burned out lights. The scoreboard would not look good if any of the light were dark. There could be a “black hole” on the scoreboard.

It was relatively easy to replace a floodlight at Candlestick Park – I would guess.

In real life, it is not as easy to keep our “brain” light bright. I am noticing people I know who in their younger years were quite sharp. Now due to age and changes in lifestyle are unaware and out of touch on some things. These individuals are under retirement age, but are not in their twenties.

It is a challenge to keep physically and mentally alert. It is a good thing for me to learn the new technology for my photography. Learning slowly about blogging has been an interesting journey. Fumbling and being successful with my own home network system has been rewarding.

How can we keep bright?

  • Be Involved in different people’s lives in addition to your own family. Being interested in other people outside of your family teaches other perspectives in life. It will help us to understand other people’s reality. Also it will teach us the world does not revolve around “ME”.
  • Be Challenged to learn new things. Try to improve in a skill you think you are not good at. My wife has been writing blogs. She never thought of herself as a writer, but is surprised she is learning to love it.
  • Do projects to test your creativity. I have a garden project where I hope to create my oasis for shooting pictures. More details to come later.
  • Do not be afraid of failure. Just keep pursuing and learn. It’s like running a race to get to the finish line. If you give up, you will never know the possible outcomes. Believe in the impossible.

My goal is to continue not to dwell on the times I get frustrated with my learning efforts, but to be determined to keep my brain light bright!

Photos Teach!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Full House at Candlestick Park during SF Giants Game

25 Tuesday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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The SF Giants played the NY Mets on this warm sunny day on Saturday, May 14, 1988 at Candlestick Park. It was a popular promotion day, Fuji Photo Day, which allowed fans to go on the field before the game started.

I loved going to the Fuji Photo Days at Candlestick Park. It was one of my favorite promotions, since fans were allowed to walk on the well groomed field before the game began. I love the feeling of walking on the grass. It is a different sensation for me to walk on the baseball field compared to walking on ordinary grass.

This also was a rare day to attend a game with sunshine at the Stick. Normally, it was cold and foggy whenever I attended a SF Giants game. But this day was a warm and bright day.

It is wonderful that the stadium is filled with fans. Seeing a stadium with every seat occupied creates great energy and excitement.

One reason why I enjoyed going to Candlestick Park a couple of hours before a game is to have the freedom to shoot pictures without the huge crowds of people. I do not enjoy crowds. Crowds make me feel uncomfortable. I end up giving the right of way to people who are cutting in front of me as they are walking to their destinations. My wife can easily and quickly weave her way thru a crowd. She will stop to look back to see where I am behind her as I allow others to go in front of me.

Seeing all fans seated and excited about watching the game is the best scenario of a crowd for me. But of course, the time will come when everyone has to get up and go home. That event is what makes me uneasy.

As I reflect about my feelings whenever I am in a crowd, I realize my yielding to people in a crowd is ok as long as I can control my emotions. I do not need to be on any particular time schedule.  I do not have to be ahead of everyone.

Yielding to other people in life is a good thing.

Do I have to be the first in everything? Am I putting unnecessary stress by striving with other people.

Is it really that important for me to have everything my own way?

Burger King had an old commercial with their song “Have It Your Way”. Do you remember this old song? Refresh your memory by clicking on the below link.

Being in a “Full House” teaches us we do not always need to “Have It Our Way” Learn to yield and let others “Have it Their Way”.

Photos Teach!

Burger King – YouTube – Have It Your Way

NLCS SF Giants game at Candlestick Park

20 Thursday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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My baseball roots go back to SF Giants game at Candlestick Park when my Dad used to take me to games as a young child. I remember one of my first memories of Candlestick was when he took me there was in the 1970’s and I remember seeing the upper deck in right field was under construction. They were expanding the overall capacity of the ballpark when the 49ers moved to Candlestick Park from Kezar Stadium.

This photograph was taken during the 1989 NLCS when the Giants played the Cubs. It was a late afternoon game in the Fall and the weather was warm and comfortable with not much wind. The baseball postseason at Candlestick usually guaranteed a full house which was extra exciting. There were not too many sellout games during the baseball season for the Giants.

Looking back at old photographs can remind us of old good times in our lives. Candlestick Park was not the “perfect” looking stadium. I have received comments about my Candlestick Park photographs – saying the Stick looks better in my pictures than what they remembered. Many of us still have fond memories being with friends and family watching either baseball or football.

Candlestick Park is more than an old sports stadium to us. It represents a simpler time where we remember spending quality time together. It was not as stressful going to these games for some reason compared to when I go now to an SF Giants game. Perhaps the personality of today’s crowds are different than in the past.

People comment to me how much they love their memories at the Stick.

If you have a good memory from Candlestick Park, please share it. We would love to hear from you!

Photos help us recall great times!

Alone at Candlestick Park

24 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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I enjoyed my solitude at Candlestick Park. I arrived a couple of hours before the SF Giants would play ball and go exploring. I probably explored every nook and cranny at the Stick. There is not a single person in this photograph.

Solitude allowed me to examine the architecture and design of this great sports stadium. I would walk up and down each row. I would climb to the top and make my way down. It’s too bad digital cameras did not exist at this time. If I had a digital camera, I would have shot even more pictures.

We all need some time to examine without distractions. I would roam around the stadium searching for interesting shots. I found my creativity and love for stadium art. I applied my lessons from art college about photography as I was shooting. This was my time of discovery to find out my identity as a photographer.

In these quiet moments, I concentrated to shoot Candlestick Park with a different perspective than an ordinary sports arena. It was my goal to present Candlestick Park from all angles and to “show it off”. My photography marked my beginnings as a photographer. I was in my “happy place” when I was shooting photos at the Stick.

When I shot photos at Candlestick Park, I never thought one day it would be gone. I’m so glad I have these photographs which represent my beginning passions as a photographer.  These photos allow to remember the person I was to compare with the person I am today. It is a reminder of where I was and how I hopefully progressed.

My Lessons learned –

  • Seek your place for solitude to grow and reflect
  • Who am I today versus who was I once upon a time – Look at your old pictures to remind yourself who you were. Hope you can be proud of who you are today.

Photos are good reminders!

 

Picture Perfect Day at Candlestick Park for SF Giants Game

23 Thursday Jan 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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It was a great game with a full house on Fuji Photo Day at Candlestick Park on Saturday, May 14, 1988. The Giants defeated the Mets 3-2 with Mike Krukow getting the win. The weather was fantastic this day with sunshine and a light breeze.

I took this picture so long ago that there were no digital cameras at the time. I used a Canon 35mm camera and shot with Kodachrome transparency film and scanned it. I am glad the image and colors held up over the years on the 35mm transparency.

Candlestick Park was almost like a another home for me to hang out in. It was the first stadium where I could easily go and watch the SF Giants play ball. I did not have to plan way in advance (as I have to do now) to attend a baseball game. I could just walk up to the stadium and buy a ticket.

Candlestick Park welcomed all of us to be a part of the games whether the SF Giants or the 49ers. We all felt comfortable attending games with our family and friends. Yes, the stadium was not perfect and became a little worn and old looking as time progressed. But it was a place where we could relax and enjoy a sports event.

Did you ever go and visit somebody’s home where you did feel comfortable? Or maybe you encounter new people and they make you uncomfortable for some reason? They could be not very friendly, or their personality does not fit with ours.

It is an amicable trait when you meet someone who is genuinely makes you feel at ease and relaxed. This is a good characteristic we each could strive to have.

How can we make others relaxed and at ease?

  • Be relaxed and don’t exhibit stress
  • Smile so others will smile
  • Ask a few questions but listen more
  • Be genuinely interested and empathic to others

Candlestick Park was a the stadium where we could practice these things with each other while having fun watching baseball or football. It helped us relaxed. It made us smile. It allowed us to talk or be quiet. It allowed us to have a good time with our family and friends.

Can we make others comfortable just as Candlestick Park made us comfortable?

Photos remind us of our old feelings!

Candlestick Park Red Chair Flare

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Football, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, San Francisco 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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This Candlestick Park Red Chairs photograph was shot in the later afternoon before a night game. These chairs are the best memorabilia to remember the Stick! Maybe one day my wife will allow me to own an actual chair. I did buy an orange seat to use as a background for shooting my photo products.

Notice the light flare on the upper right corner. As per 2nd previous post where I mention about most of the time, a photographer will avoid this light flare in a picture. Well this is an example where I wanted the flare to show the light rays over the rows of chairs. The flare also reflects a nice glow on the bright red chairs.

A photograph should show off the best features of the subject. This light accentuates and highlights the good attributes for these chairs at the Stick. The natural flare also gave a great glow to these classic red stadium chairs.

Natural lighting is an important ingredient for a good picture.

My mother-in-law (who is only 99 years old) has a habit of wanting to save money and close the lights. If she gets up in the middle of the night, she will not turn on the light. She already does not have perfect sight, and light will illumine her path to prevent an accident. I have tried to help by putting night and motion lights to help her.

Just like my mother-in-law – we forget how important light is and how much we need it.

Practice shooting pictures with different degrees of natural lighting to see the reflection, flare, and glow in your results.

As always – my photos are not altered via software to give the “glow”.

Get the glow on in your photos!

 

 

SF Giants Opening Night at Candlestick Park Against the LA Dodgers

07 Tuesday Jan 2020

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The fans were getting ready for the SF Giants Opening night game on April 15, 1991. This was before the game started as the stadium crew were getting ready for the pregame fireworks show.

It is always fun to attend a SF Giants Opening game. I cannot say I attended an opening game every year. But it is an exciting time to anticipate the beginning of a new season and the possibilities of victory.

This game was particularly exciting since it was against the Dodgers. You can see in the  photo how the seats were filling up with hopeful fans. Unfortunately, the SF Giants did not get a win that night.

Despite the outcome of the game, fans remember the good times they spent together with family and friends watching either baseball or football.

Even though, there were many games when the SF Giants did not do well, somehow we do not talk as much about the defeats. Instead we reminisce about the relationships we built as we spent time together at the Stick.

Candlestick Park taught us the importance of spending time together to create good memories. We get too busy with work, chores, and just life.

Prioritize to find a way to spend time with those you deem important. Don’t allow our excuses to prevent gathering with friends and family. Find a way to build stronger relationships in 2020.

Photos Inspire me to remember my good memories at Candlestick Park!

Destress with Photos!

 

Setting Sun at SF Giants Batting Practice at Candlestick Park

05 Sunday Jan 2020

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I arrived early to attend an evening SF Giants Game at Candlestick Park. It was nice to go earlier to watch batting practice in the late afternoon and relax by shooting photos at the Stick.

Notice the late afternoon sun created a flare at the upper portion of this photo. This occurs with sun’s light and reflection from the camera’s lens. We often would want to minimize this effect to not obstruct your photograph. Or you could use this effect to accentuate an aspect of your picture.

I took this photograph about 25 years ago. Today we can buy lenses that can help minimize the sun’s flare in our photographs.

Light is always important when we take pictures. But we need to be aware of the effects of the sun with the surroundings of the picture as well as the reflection from our lenses.

Just as we need good lighting and reduction of flare to get a good clear picture, we need “good lighting” to see ourselves.

I am thankful to celebrate a new year and am looking forward to continuing my quest to achieve my goals. It is hard to look at ourselves to see the reality of our strengths and weaknesses. Reality is sometimes hard to face. We can be blind to our personal reality especially in seeing our weaknesses.

I hope I can get “good lighting” from my personal reflections as well as from family and friends to have a good look at my life’s reality. I hope to reduce the “flare”effect, so I can see reality to improve in 2020!

Here’s wishing you a great 2020! My Candlestick Park photographs have always been a great inspiration to me in so many ways. Hope you can find photos to inspire and reveal reality in your life.

 

Night SF Giants game at Candlestick Park in 1988

13 Friday Dec 2019

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants, Sports Photography

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The SF Giants played the Montreal Expos (Now the Washington Nationals) in 1988 at Candlestick Park. I took this picture from the back of the lower reserved area behind home plate.

We can see this was not a good year for the SF Giants, since we can see the upper deck and center field seats are empty. Often times there were lots of empty seats during the weeknight games.

Notice also the red glow due to the incandescent lighting over the people in front of me in the photograph.  This lighting accentuates the vintage appearance to this photograph.

The fans who are willing to attend a weeknight game are special and important. It shows their desire to be faithful to their team even when the SF Giants were not performing well. These fans are willing to be an encouragement to the players who are stressed about their ability to score to get a winning game.

It is a good lesson about loyalty to a family, spouse, friend or any association entity group. How faithful are we to stick with someone thru good and bad times. When our relationships get difficult, are we willing to endure and find resolutions to situations. Often times, we prefer an easy way out and leave to avoid difficult times. We need to be available to those who are important to our life. Do your loved ones know they can count on you when they are in need? Do we find ways to serve and help even when we are not asked specifically.

I have been a loyal SF Giants fans since my days of shooting pictures at the Stick. I was depressed in their bad years. I was super excited when they achieved their great triumphs and victories. Their championship wins were even more exciting since I (like many other fans) waited patiently many years.

Whether you are a faithful SF Giants fan like me is not as important as answering the following question — Are you as loyal and faithful to take care of the important people in your life?

Learn Lessons from Pictures!

 

 

 

Glorious Afternoon before Game 4 of the NLCS at Candlestick Park

11 Wednesday Dec 2019

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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Being at Candlestick Park in the afternoon was a treat when there was sunshine and not fog. There was excitement in the air, since we were waiting for Game 4 of National League Championship Series with the SF Giants playing. We can see the fans are slowly filling up the stadium

I love the striped fields with the plaid pattern behind home plate. I noticed that this pattern is much less pronounced at Oracle Park. It would be cool if the Grounds Crew spelled out SF Giants on the field at Oracle Park for a special occasion.

Do you ever imagine crazy ideas and dismiss them thinking they are dumb. As I was writing this post and imagining field patterns at Candlestick Park, I was realizing how we need to relax and spend time daydreaming ideas. Do we allow ourselves the luxury to dream?

When I started roaming around the Stick, I never dreamed this stadium would be gone one day. I had the best time of my life looking for my art before watching the SF Giants play baseball. I never imagined that I would even share my photographs in any way like I am doing today.

My attitude is not always very optimistic. I do not like being disappointed, which is why I am more cautious with my dreaming. We do need to “let it go” and dream. I’m sure there are many successful individuals who were not afraid to dream and “go for it”. This is a lesson I am trying to learn.

If you have seen any other interesting field patterns, please share with me.

Hope this photograph encourages you to dream your own “Field of Dreams” and let your imagine go wild!

Find your inspiration in a photo!