Tag Archives: Etsy Untouchedtcphotos

Really Long and Thin

15 Friday Jan 2021

Posted by in Canon, Costa Rica, Golden Orb Weaver Spider, Spider

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Have you seen a Costa Rican spider? This spider’s length was about the size of my fist. So I did not use a macro lens to take this picture. This spider is long and thin.

This is a golden orb weaver spider. I spotted this spider as we were hiking in the rainforest in Costa Rica. It’s yellow striped legs popped out to me.

A big spider needs a big web. It was probably 5 to 6 feet in diameter. it is good that this spider is in Costa Rica and not living near us. My wife hates spiders.

We’ve been home for 10 months now, and we are getting a tired of this routine. Even though we do not physically see too many people, we feel the stress of our nation’s conflicts. We feel stress from being home for such a long time. We are losing our patience with one another in our family due to being together a little too much.

So my wife says let’s think about a future blog post. We go and look at my collection of pictures and see this happy spider in his big web home. This photograph diverts our attention to this interesting creature. Our stress level decreases. The spider reminds us about this happy time on vacation seeing all the different creatures in Costa Rica. 

Maybe we are a little like this spider who is stuck on his web home. One day, we will get immunized. Hopefully, the vast population will be immunized, and we will be free to leave our homes to enjoy vacations, restaurants, and parties.

What photographs make you happy and forget current circumstances?

Display photographs which draw your attention to another place and time. We all need a diversion from our pandemic life.

Photos make us happy!

Blowing kisses to say Good Bye to Tommy Lasorda

09 Saturday Jan 2021

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Canon, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants, tell it goodbye, the stick, Tommy Lasorda

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The Opening Night pregame lineup for the 1991 season with the San Francisco Giants facing the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Giants’ manager Roger Craig is seen greeting the Dodger’s manager, Tommy Lasorda. The rivalry between the teams is intense but for the introduction of the line-up, it was on the lighter side.

SF Giants fans will miss Los Angeles Dodgers’ manager, Tommy Lasorda. Despite the rivalry between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants, SF Giants fans had fun watching Tommy Lasorda.

SF Giants fans loved booing Tommy Lasorda, and he loved blowing kisses to the booing fans at Candlestick Park. It was very entertaining to watch. This was a ritual whenever Tommy Lasorda visited the Stick. I appreciated his excellent attitude in receiving the boo’s. Tommy Lasorda taught us how to exhibit good sportsmanship.

It was natural for this Dodger coach to get mad when the players did not perform. He would get angry and yell at players to play better. But we all need to hear the yelling to push to the limits for the best performance. We all need someone to cheer and criticize us to be our best. A good coach will suggest us to try new things to improve. Old routines are good. But change is constant, and we need to change too.

A few years ago, I was encouraged to start this blog. I was not too keen to showing my photographs online. I did not think there would be interest in my photography. Creating a website was a challenge. It was a big hurdle and challenge that I was not willing to attempt initially. It was a learning experience, and we are still learning how to do a better blog. We are learning to express our thoughts and revelations to show off my photographs. If people in my life did not encourage and coach me in different ways, I would not have started this blog. It is still a challenge. But I learned the more work I do on my photography, I do reap rewards. It has been a step by step journey. It is a work of faith not knowing where the journey will lead.

Tommy Lasorda’s good attitude and fighting spirit is an example to all of us. We need to smile at adversity, even as he welcomed the SF Giants fans boo greetings. Welcoming challenges will help us to push to win. Welcoming rivalry encourages us to be our best.

Tommy Lasorda deserves us blowing him kisses to say “Good Bye”. He also earned our respect to follow his excellent attitude example.

Photos remember a great icon!

Never Giving up my Old Tickets from Candlestick Park

02 Saturday Jan 2021

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

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These were some ticket stubs from SF Giants games I went to at Candlestick Park in 1988. I took this picture sitting in the general admission section behind the centerfield fence before a night game. I took the picture with 35mm color film with my Canon camera.

My wife asked me if I still have these tickets. My answer is “YES”! I am glad I kept these tickets especially whenever we go back to seeing live games, we will be using tickets on our cellphones. If we print out our tickets, they will not look like the old paper tickets. 

We are celebrating the new year – 2021! Often we think about getting rid of the “old” to make room for the “new”. We are trying to clean up. But I will keep these Candlestick Park tickets forever.

Why do I want to keep these old tickets? They remind me of the good times I had at Candlestick Park. For many sports fans who grew up at Candlestick Park, we remember the good times where tickets were easy to purchase. The tickets were cheap. I did not have to plan way in advance to buy the tickets. I could just walk up to the ticket window and purchase a seat. It is cool I can buy a ticket online whenever we can go back to Oracle Park. But the experience of going up to the ticket office to purchase a ticket is history.

It is a tough decision to know what to keep and what to throw away. We need to keep our good memories especially during this pandemic period when times are tough. We keep mementos and photographs to get our minds to think about good things. Our hallway has canvas photographs which make us smile. 

Our goal for 2021 is to keep what makes us smile and get rid of stuff which makes life difficult. We hope to create our happy space and improve it to be more efficient and functional.

Be happy with good memories and pictures in 2021!

Keep Photos to be Happy!

 

 

Past View of Candlestick Park

29 Sunday Nov 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Canon, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants, tell it goodbye, the stick

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I took this picture many years ago with black and white Kodak T-Max high speed 35mm film. This explains the large grain in the picture. I was in the right field pavilion section. Battling practice ended and the grounds crew were preparing the field for the game between the SF Giants and the Chicago Cubs.

Since this picture was shot as batting practice ended, the upper deck is still empty since it is before the game started. The crowd in the lower decks are the fans who came early to watch batting practice.

Bayview Park is behind Candlestick Park. Candlestick Park was not in the best part of town. It will be interesting how long it will take to build anything in the old location of the Stick.

This pandemic is causing economic turmoil for many businesses. There was discussion of creating a mall in this area. I have not gone to any shopping mall since this pandemic began. I’ve only gone to one retail store which is 5 minutes from my house. I only go to buy food or for other important errands.

Looking back at my old Candlestick Park photographs reminds me how much fun it was to watch live sports. Even watching the 49ers versus the Rams play on 11/29/2020 in LA is good, but not the same as live football.

During our pandemic crisis, the 49ers are now banned from playing in Levi’s Stadium due our purple status in Santa Clara until at least December 21, 2020.

Since we are banned from any games due to the pandemic, at least I can look back at my different stadium pictures to remember and dream what it was like to be at the Stick to enjoy a live game.

We all need to keep old photos since we never know what will change to prevent us from going to a place we always thought was available to us.

Photos remind us to be prepared for the unexpected!

 

Flashback Memories of Candlestick Park

22 Sunday Nov 2020

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

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Here’s a flashback photo of the Scoreboard at Candlestick Park in 1988. The centerfield TV camera was mounted near the base of the scoreboard. This was the General Admission area of Candlestick, and the ticket prices were the most affordable. I have tickets stubs with the price of $2.50 for a General Admission ticket in 1988. Those were the days. These tickets were from a few of the games that I attended in 1988. I took this picture sitting in the front of the General Admission area behind the Centerfield fence in 1988.

It is interesting how tickets have changed since 1988. We don’t have to display a paper ticket for entrance into an event. We can show a computer printed paper with the scan code to enter. Or we can show our ticket scan code from our smart phone.

Things we take for granted eventually will be considered archaic. How many younger people will never use an actual paper ticket. Or it seems the term of “ticket” will not be needed since we only need to show our scan code.

Technology gives us continuous change. So now we do need to hold a paper ticket.

But I think I prefer having a paper ticket. If I did not photograph these old tickets, I would not have recorded the actual old price of a ticket was $2.50.

It’s good to keep mementos of the past to appreciate our history. I love the memories of being able to walk into Candlestick Park and not worry about the price of entrance. The price made it possible anyone to enjoy the SF Giants play baseball.

Baseball should be available for everyone to watch live. There is nothing like the excitement generated by fans watching the game.

I’m sure the price of going to a live game will go up after the losses from this pandemic.

But it is nice to remember once upon a time when a game was cheap and affordable to everyone.

Photos Remember!

Back on the Hub Trail in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, Canada

17 Thursday Sep 2020

Posted by in Autumn colors, Canada, Canadian Fall Foliage, Fall Colors, Fall Foliage, Leaves, Northern Ontario, Ontario, Ontario Fall Foliage, Ontario in the Fall, Red Sugar Maple Leaf, sugar maple leaf

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Fall is right around the corner and change is in the air. This Sugar Maple Leaf is transitioning from green to red to start the change of colors from Fall Foliage.

Last year, we were fortunate to go back and visit Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, Canada. This is a border town between Michigan and Ontario. My mother-in-law was born in this town. She did not grow up there, since she was sent to China at the age of 5.

During my first visit to the “Soo”, my wife’s cousins encouraged me to pursue my photography again. I was a professional photographer for a electronic corporate company until it went out of business. Even though my college degree is in Fine Art photography, I assumed it would be too difficult for me to go back to my first love. Interestingly, I fell in love with the fall scenery in this locale. So I wanted to return to not only see the changing colors, but to visit our relatives who encouraged me to do my first photo show and pursue my photography again.

Little did I know 2020 would be a year our family would not be traveling anywhere due to the pandemic. We reside with my senior mother-in-law, so we are extra careful to stay healthy.

I love this leaf with the transitioning colors. It reminds me how life is about transitions. Our world is transitioning with this pandemic, social injustices and issues and the fires which are abundant in the western United States.

This leaf shows me that transitions can produce beauty. This leaf will transition to a pure red color and will be vibrant in appearance.

I am hoping as our lives are in transition, we will also see beauty and a more vibrant era after we endure these difficult times.

Photos teach us to hope in midst of transitions.

Wishing We could be at Oracle Park

19 Tuesday May 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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When was the last time you sat at Oracle Park to watch the SF Giants play? It seems like it will be a long time before any of us will be allowed to return to watch baseball live at the stadium.

I cannot imagine how it will be to sit in the seats with social distancing. It will not be the same to sit in these seats without brushing elbows with other baseball fans next to us.

We all miss not listening and watching the progress of live games this season for the SF Giants. Entertaining ourselves with past games is nice, but I miss the unpredictability of a live game.

Whenever they open baseball season and allow fans in the stands, I may or may not attend any live games. I would rather stay home where it is safe to watch on the TV. I feel for the baseball industry. There are the loyal fans who will adjust to sit at Oracle Park with social distancing.

I would eventually love to attend a live game when it is safe. It may be this fall or next year. Either way, I will be ready to attend a live game. It will be extra special when they do allow fans in the stands for a game.

Unfortunately, this empty stadium depicts the current status of baseball.

At least, I have this picture to remind me what Oracle Park looks like since I probably will not return for a while.

Photos make us ponder what will be.

Remembering Willie Mays 75th Birthday at AT&T Park

07 Thursday May 2020

Posted by in AT&T Park, Baseball, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants, Willie Mays

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How many of us had the privilege to be at Willie Mays’ 75th birthday celebration at AT&T Park? We are blessed we can celebrate Willie’s 89th birthday on May 6, 2020.

This was a fun time back on his 75th birthday! The 75 on the field was his cake. It was huge! We could witness him speak on his special day.

There was a colorful array of balloons released after Willie Mays spoke!

Willie Mays is my favorite baseball player. Why is he my favorite?

  • He is a 5 tool baseball player – meaning he possessed speed, power, hitting for average, fielding, and arm strength.
  • He is an Army veteran who served our country during the Korean War. He missed most of the season in 1952 and missed all of the 1953 season. Willie played baseball at Fort Eustis in Virginia during most of his service in the Army.
  • Even with all his honors and awards, he is just the “Say Hey” kid.

I admire Willie Mays for his humility even with all his accomplishments and awards. He is a real icon for us to look up to. Often times in our society, we are disappointed with the selfish motives from our country’s leaders or popular celebrities. But Willie Mays is the real thing. He is authentic and real.

I love the story where he charged $100 per an on-air interview. The normal charge was $25 for that era. He charged the $100 so he could split the money 4 ways with the last 4 players on the Giants’ roster.

Willie Mays is an unselfish man to admire in the midst of our self-centered society.

These photos show us a great man – Willie Mays!

 

Candlestick Park Days Past

02 Saturday May 2020

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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Candlestick Park with the Sky Box at the top.

Candlestick Park with the Sky Box at the top.

I shot this Candlestick Park photograph during the 1991 SF Giants baseball season. I am hoping there will be a MLB season for 2020. There are still a few months where this could be a possibility.

It is hard to believe that it has been 5 years since Candlestick Park has been demolished. Some fans commented to me in reality Candlestick Park was an old stadium that was runned down. Yes this is true. The Stick needed to be replaced, and we needed an updated stadium to watch the SF Giants.

I also received comments that my photographs show off the highlights of the Stick. The pictures make Candlestick Park look better than it looked. Thank you for those compliments. To make an object appear at its best is an important goal for a photographer.

I shot Candlestick Park at its best during the various baseball games. I also shot Candlestick Park at its worst during its demolition period. I am so glad I have a large collection of images of the Stick during its life. I even sacrificed my safety and my camera equipment when I was mugged during the demolition.

So I possess a wide range of emotions when I think about Candlestick Park. Even with the bad memories, the good times still warm my heart. I have great memories of my father taking me to Candlestick Park to watch the SF Giants. I had the best times with my friends and family at the Stick.

What are you doing at home since we are sheltering in place? Maybe you can look at old pictures to bring back old memories. You could organize photos into an online or an actual album.

I know my memories molded me into who I am today.

Can you look back at old pictures to see how your past created who you are today?

Photographs are good reminders!

Setting Sun on Candlestick Park

30 Monday Mar 2020

Posted by in 49ers, 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 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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This is the late afternoon before a game at Candlestick Park. I shot this at the south west portion of the stadium. Notice the souvenir and concession stands on the left.

Have you ever noticed the shadows of objects as the sun sets? The shadows of objects become elongated. See the man with the orange jacket walking away from me with a long shadow. It can give an eerie feel to a picture.

Shadows can add an interesting dimension to a photograph. The contrast of the light and dark make shadows interesting.

The sun’s rays are radiating out in the upper portion and provide a nice contrast in this photo.

Showing the contrast with light and dark shades are a nice effect in a photograph.

In life, we need to understand the balance of light and dark in our perspective. We need the light to recognize and understand things in the dark.

We are faced with a critical crisis in our world today. We receive constant updates of this deadly COVID-19 Virus infecting many individuals. We are to remain inside to stay safe. These are dark times with many infected people. Those in the front lines of this battle are working with tremendous difficulties and challenges. We thank all of these people very much who work in the Medical Field, First Responders, Police and Fire Personnel, Grocery and Shop Clerks, Mail and Delivery People, Restaurants Providing Take out orders, and the many other essential people who are working and sacrificing their health and safety. 

We appreciate those who are seeking to find the solutions in the proper “light” to bring about healing.

My wife and I are praying for God’s light to reveal the answers to stop this dark virus and it’s spreading. Just as there is this darkness, there is light to provide hope.

Jesus Christ said in John 12:46 – I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

Photos Teach!