Beautiful work, as always. Excellent composition. I especially loved the placement of the 2 people in #1.
Thanks for posting these.

Beautiful portrait. Especially gorgeous in download.

I suspect that rather than being impatient, that bird was wary of you... afraid you were going to ask it to back up!

I know this area, and these are spectacular shots of it! Thanks for sharing.

One of the (unintentionally) best kept photography secrets of S.F.is the pier 24 gallery. Situated at pier 24, near the S.F. end of the BAY (not Golden Gate) Bridge, this is reportedly the largest space devoted to photography in the U.S. and houses a major private collection. Admission is free, but advance reservations are necessary; this is because only 30 visitors at a time are admitted for a 2 hour period, so you will not feel crowded.

I posted a note about this recently, but did not see it published. Guess I'll send in a repeat soon.
You can Google info as to location,times of operation, current show.

There is a chance they may lose their lease at any time, so if anyone is interested better to go sooner rather than later,

Enjoy,

Frank

I wasn't going to add to the already listed fine features, the composition and processing (with which I strongly agree), but I did want to draw attention to the interesting and effective use of "negative space" and to the fact that the words constitute a nicely done haiku. Excellent!

Just visited this spot and strongly recommend you do too,if you live near-by or happen to be visiting... assuming it will stay open. There is a political/financial battle going on which could shut down this gem. It occupies a prime waterfront location so there has been heated "he said"/ "she said" coverage in the press recently. Some feel this is only saber-rattling to solidify a position, and the place will remain open. Who knows?

This is reported to be the largest venue devoted to photography in the country. Located at the base of the Bay Bridge, there are 17 gallery rooms which house a private collection. Admission is free, Mon.-Fri, but only 30 visitors are allowed in for a 2 hour period, so you never feel crowded or rushed. Also, reservations are required.

Rather than take up more space here, since there may be limited interest or desire to see it, I suggest you google "Pier 24 Gallery", or check Wikipedia

Retirement can be a serious stress. Years ago 2 psychiatrists compiled a list of life events and, based on research, assigned a numerical value to each. They found that if someone accumulated a high score, their risk of serious illness over the next 2 years increased accordingly; if the point total reached a certain level, they were practically guaranteed to have one.On that scale, the stress of retirement was higher than, e.g, the death of a close friend. I don't have computer skills to copy that list here, but if you're interested, you can check it out on Google or Wikipedia. Look up Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale.

A young couple decided to try their luck in business and opened a Chinese restaurant which they personally operated. By virtue of hard work, long hours and familiarity with the cuisine, by the end of the first year they had managed to survive and even to turn a modest profit. They decided to celebrate their success and invited the small group of loyal employees out for a night on the town. While the wife stayed home with the kids, the husband hosted the employees to drinks and food at a local pub.
After the bar closed, hubby returned home to his sleeping wife. Feeling amorous and a little risque after the night out, he slid into bed next to her. He gently nudged her awake, and murmured " Honey, how about a little 69?"
At this, the wife opened her sleepy eyes enough to glower at him and screamed
"Are you crazy? You wake me up at 3 A.M. for beef with broccoli ?!!".

Correction to prior post. Last line should read "his old man's a Rolling Stone"

A frog goes into a bank and approaches a teller. He sees from her nameplate that her name is Patricia Whack. He addresses her "Hello, Patricia" and she tells him that she is known as Patty. "O.K.,Patty", he continues, I would like to apply for a $50,00 loan"
Patty asks him his name and he replies " My name is Kermit Jagger. My father's name is Mick and he's pretty famous. He's also a friend of your bank manager."
Patty says that he will need to fill out a loan application and asks him what he will use as collateral for the loan. Kermit gives her a nicely wrapped package; inside is a tiny enamel elephant, about 1 inch long, and lavishly painted. She tells him that this will not do. Kermit pleads with her to present his loan request , along with the elephant to the bank manager, which she does.
Patty relays all the information to the manager and shows him the elephant, asking "What the heck is this?"

He replies "It's a nick-knack, Patty Whack

Give the frog a loan,

is old man's a Rolling Stone"

and goes to heaven, where he is met and greeted by St. Peter. He is told that his arrival was expected and planned for. A house was made ready for him in which to spend eternity. Before being brought to his new home, St. Peter explains that in heaven everyone is given a house, the value and size of which are commensurate with that person's lifetime value to God. That is, the more valuable your lifetime work was to God, the greater value will your eternal abode have.
He is then taken to a fine, if modest dwelling. It contains all furnishings and amenities needed to make him comfortable. He is pleased until, a few days later, on a stroll through his new neighborhood, he comes across an opulent mansion much bigger and grander than his. He tries to guess whose house that could be. He had been a faithful worker in his efforts to bring his congregants closer to God, so whoever lived there must have been a heavy hitter in the field of religion, possibly a pope or someone of similar status in another faith.
His curiosity (and, dare I say it?) envy took over, so he went back to St.Peter to find out who the owner of that mansion was. St. Peter says, "Oh that house? That fellow was a taxi driver in New York."
The clergyman can't believe his ears. He had worked his entire life to bring people closer to God, and this person who wasn't even in the religious field outscores him. He asks St. Peter to help him to understand this mystery.
St. Pete explains, "Simple: when you preached, people slept, When he drove, People prayed."

The recent post by Jerryc41 seeking advice on dogs' hot spots brought to mind the old story of the fella whose dog had the mange.
He ran into a dog-owning acquaintance and asked:

"Didn't your dog have the mange a while ago?"

"Yep, he did."

"What did you give him for it?"

"I gave him turpentine."

"Turpentine??"

"Yep, that's what I gave him."

Sometime later the two met again, and the first fella asked the second:

"Remember when I asked you what you gave your dog for the mange?"

"Yep."

"You told me you gave him turpentine, so I gave it to mine and he died."

"Yep, so did mine."

Yesterday, someone pointed out the widely disparate views 2 on-line critics expressed on the same camera. Since I don't buy much expensive gear, I don't watch much on-line criticism and haven't formed ideas about possible bias by evaluators.
I'm considering a major purchase soon...a full-censor mirrorless camera and lens...and would value UHH members' more sophisticated opinions as to which reviewers they consider reliable and (at least relatively) unbiased. So I'm asking you to give me your opinions on who you trust/distrust and why. I realize that responses may be all over the board, so I'll try to look for consensus in the answers.
I'm not asking for opinions on cameras now, as I need to do some more homework first.
Thanks in advance for your advice.
Frank

If you do go to Segovia, check out the castle there. The famous Disneyland castle is reportedly modeled after it.

Long ago on a desert island in the south Pacific, there were villages of grass huts elevated on stilts, as in Nat'l Geographic. In this area, villagers were fiercely proud and competitive. The chiefs were adored and given thrones whose huge size and weight, as well as adornment, reflected their position and power . When one village warred on a neighboring one, the victors would seize the defeated chief's thrones. These were brought to their chief's hut, and stored there, as trophies of victory. Soon , the hut of the most powerful chiefs were filled with the booty.

Alas, one day tragedy struck. The elevated hut of one of the most successful chiefs,filled with these heavy objects, collapsed due to the weight. Several people were seriously injured, some dying.

Moral of the story: People who live in grass houses shouldn't stow thrones.