Sep 212013
 

I shot the Electronic Frontier Foundation Pioneer Awards (EFF) Pioneer Awards yesterday. It was amazing. Lawrence Lessig spoke. Aaron Swartz was awarded posthumously. Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras were awarded and were there remotely. (Sad that they fear to travel to their own country because of government overreach)

I got a lot of amazing shots, event photography is one of my things. I’m going to turn most of them over to the EFF to use as they wish. I’m just going to share this one shot that I took for fun. The event was at The Lodge at the Regency Center, which is AMAZING. Passed by this place on Van Ness hundreds of times, never knew it was so cool. Big and old and classy and wood. Cage elevator with an elevator operator.

Around sunset the light started streaming in and I had a photographer fit. I was shooting just for the light. I caught this silhouette of the bartender and I like it a lot.

18-34-12_IMG_7298

Photo © Alex Schoenfeldt 2013. All rights reserved
Alex Schoenfeldt Photography. San Francisco Event Photography

Dec 052012
 

I’ve got exciting news! I am now a “Google Trusted Photographer” or a Google Street View photographer!

What does that mean? First, I will explain in my own words, then I will post a brochure and video or two.

So, you know what Google Street View is right? You are looking at a map on Google, and you can plop yourself down on the map and look around at a panorama. Maybe you’ve even seen the street view car driving around.

Well, if you own a consumer facing business, you can now get street view type panoramas that go inside your store, restaurant, salon, bar etc… So someone sitting at home on their computer can street view inside your business, looking around a big panorama, getting a look at your decor, ambiance, products.

But how can you do this? That is where the “Google Trusted Photographers” (like me) come in. I now have the equipment and training to get the required panoramas. Not only can I shoot them properly, I can shoot them in a way that they will integrate with Google Street View AND I can upload them to Google myself. That’s right, Google has given me the key to their street view program. And it isn’t only for the panoramas. I can put up photos of merchandise, decor, menus, food, all the things you want your clients to see.

I’m going to quote from the brochure:

WHY BUSINESS PHOTOS?
A virtual tour of your business
It’s an opportunity to showcase your business to customers around the world. Our Street View technology will bring your business to life with a high-quality, 360-degree, interactive tour. The virtual tour will be visible on Google Search results, Google Maps, and Google+ Local, to give customers a better sense of the layout, decor and ambience of your business. Easily embed on your own business website and social media to attract even more potential customers.

and

TRUSTED PHOTOGRAPHERS
Google trained and certified

1. All Trusted Photographers are trained and certified to ensure high-quality results for your business.
2. Photographers strive to create a custom experience; highlighting the unique aspects of your business.
3. Photographers take care of all the work so you don’t have to; final photos are uploaded directly to Google.

and

GOOGLE STREET VIEW TECHNOLOGY
A new experience for customers
1. High-quality, 360-degree, panoramic tours help showcase the best features of your business.
2. Have potential customers visit your business directly from Street View.
3. All of your images go through Google blurring and privacy standards to give you peace of mind.
4. Featuring the familiar Google Street View navigation, allowing your customers to easily explore.

HOW CAN THIS HELP MY BUSINESS?
Attract new customers online
1. Enhance your business listing. Images appear on Google Search results, Google+ Local, and Google Maps.
2. Engage with customers who can now explore, walk-through, and truly experience your business.
3. Business Photos is a perfect addition to all businesses; including restaurants, retail shops, gyms, salons, and more!
4. Seasonal shoots are a great way to keep your business up-to-date and show your customers what’s new

So, if you or anyone you know in the San Francisco Bay Area (San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, San Jose, Marin, The East Bay, The Peninsula etc…) has a store, a cafe, a yoga studio, a hair salon, a restaurant, or any type of business where the public comes in and walks around, please call me at (415) 669-4895, or email me at [email protected].

Ok, the brochure (It’s formatted for print, so take it for what you will.)

And some videos.

This first one is an advertisement for the service.
Google Business Photography Advertisement

The next one is an example of how it works.

Virtual Walk-through Video 1 – Restaurant

And one more advertisement video.

Toy Joy marketing video

Aug 232012
 
Bride and groom at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco

Rachel and Brandon got married in the Presidio in San Francisco. After the wedding we did family portraits in the chapel, sent everyone on their way, and took the wedding party to the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. If you haven’t been, the Palace is dreamy and romantic. I took almost 200 shots of the bride and groom there. This is one of the clear winners. I was using my 50mm 1.4 lens at about 2.8, so I was able to get a nice shallow depth of field to make the shot even more romantic.

This is the shot that went straight up to their Facebook pages, so I know they love it too!

Bride and groom at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco

© Alex Schoenfeldt 2012. All rights reserved.
San Francisco Wedding Photographer

Mar 292012
 
Beautiful blond woman in front of graffiti covered metal wall in San Francisco

Yesterday I posted a candid street portrait taken with a bellows lens by Lensbaby in the mission district in San Francisco.

Here are two more photos from my experimenting that I think hold up. They are a lot more dramatic in their effect, as they were taken at a wide open aperture. (yesterdays shot was f 8) With a bellows lens and a wide open aperture, the amount of detail in the photo that is truly in focus is paper thin. If you like that effect of not is another story, but I think it works in these two.

Beautiful blond woman in front of graffiti covered metal wall in San Francisco

Brown hair brown eye selective focus intense look

All photos © Alex Schoenfeldt 2012.
All rights reserved
Alex Schoenfeldt. San Francisco Bay Area Photographer.

Mar 292012
 
San Francisco Street Photography, Guardian Angles 16th and Mission, taken with a bellows lens.

Today I was walking around the Mission in San Francisco getting some random street shots with a trick lens on my camera. The lens is made by a company called Lensbaby. It has bellows on it and it rotates in strange ways, creating interesting effects with focus.

I had lots of fun with the lens, and I got some weird shots, but this was the one that I think holds up the most on it’s photographic merits, and not just because it has trick effects.

San Francisco Street Photography, Guardian Angles 16th and Mission, taken with a bellows lens.

Photo © Alex Schoenfeldt 2012. All rights reserved.
Alex Schoenfeldt Photography