Is San Francisco really that bad?

[Arthurwg]

Yikes! SF sounds much worse than NYC, where I am at the moment. Less than 25 people pushed onto the subway tracks here last year, and only two deaths. I do notice that most of the important things in the drug stores, like razor blades and cold meds, are now behind lock and key.

 

[BobD]

Get a big dog and/or some pepper spray.

 

[DDTJRAC]

Buy a Nikkormat. They’re plentiful and cheap. No big loss if it’s stolen and makes a good cudgel if you’re threatened.

That's what I did for dangerous cities or for shoots where they may get stolen or I know they will get ruined.

Not that cam, but a cheaper digital used camera from eBay and cheap manual film lens. I call them disposable cams. It is not a mystery, if you shoot in some of these places you will come back with frozen shutter buttons and focus rings that won't turn any more. All gummed up from being doused in sugary sodas all day.

I had a flash broken off at the hot shoe here...

OP, bring what you would not be sick over if lost. If I was rich, I wouldn't care. I'd have 5 dupe kits in my hotel. But when I shot these, I wasn't in a hotel, nor could I afford 5 kits. I was sleeping in my vehicle.

Good luck OP!

 

[Sirius Glass]

Good grief… some of these folks must not have ever been to Santa Monica!

When my children were growing up, we would tell them to eat what was on their plates because there were starving people in Santa Monica.

 

[MattKing]

This thread is veering from safety advice - which is fine - to political argument - which will get edited or cause the thread to be shut down.

 

[wiltw]

Tokyo is way more interesting visually for some street snaps. And it's safe. Very safe. No windshield washers though

Indeed, and I was impressed that the velour upholstered seats on subway remain in good condition, unlike what US denizens do to public transit.

Ignoring automobile break-ins, and staying out of areas like the Tenderloin and along the Market Street corridor where so many drug pushers and addicts and street denizens lay all over the sidewalks, SF is pretty safe in terms of crimes against persons. It is property crime that are rampant...thieves have a technique to break in through garage doors, and gain access to the residence through the garage entrance; or they establish residence in the front area leading up to the front door, and use the sidewalks as their bathroom.
Late last year, my best friend & his wife who live in a pretty high class area of SF had their car stolen, and it was parked across the street from their house! The car was later located, but it had been vandalized (or harvested of so many things) that it was TOTALED! Truly sad state of affairs in SF, especially when you consider that the residents of that area GIVE so much to others who live all over the Bay area...on Halloween, one house can give many hundreds of dollars of candy to welcome kids less fortunate who live in other communities, who come for the candy! I have been there to help give away CASES of candy.

 

[DREW WILEY]

Easy to get around SF right now if you've got a rubber raft. Darn near need one in my own back yard.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Indeed, and I was impressed that the velour upholstered seats on subway remain in good condition, unlike what US denizens do to public transit.

Sadly, we see the same abuse here in Canada. No respect for others' property. In Japan this is taught from a very young age.

 

[Sirius Glass]

This thread is veering from safety advice - which is fine - to political argument - which will get edited or cause the thread to be shut down.

Thank you for bringing sanity back to the thread.

 

[ymc226]

Thank you all regarding their opinions of San Francisco. Just as I suspected, my concern was not overblown regarding carrying valuable equipment in the open. Before this planned trip, hopefully to occur at next month's end, I was thinking on getting a film P&S, something I never had before. With my film interest rekindled, I want something more casual with AF/auto exposure for outings with the family or on trips where weight, speed of capture or safety would be a potential issue. Thanks to this thread, I went ahead and ordered a P&S which should be arrive in a week or so.

 

[ymc226]

Add to that an even messy wardrobe so you look like a poor guy having fun snapping some pictures (perhaps 'they' might propose you a trip too).

This might not be possible, my wife regularly threatens to leave me at home if I dress in my preferred "comfortable" outfits.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Be aware of your situation surroundings, Situational Awareness.

 

[sterioma]

This thread makes me feel lucky about the two times that I brought my Hasslelbad to SF for business trips before the pandemic.

Some of the pictures I like most were taken there. Such a beautiful city.

 

[ymc226]

I live in central NJ where it's safer. But I have to go to NYC fairly often and enjoy it nonetheless. After all. I am an ex-New Yorker. There's nothing like NYC especially if you like street photography. Always something going on. It's exciting. If I remember, next time I'll shoot pictures of the windshield washers and post them here. I'll give them a tip if my windshield comes out OK. And for the pictures.

Central NJ is much safer but not immune of course. I lived in Princeton for 20 years and just moved back to Santa Monica several years ago. Recently my wife and her sister had a very threatening encounter while on the walking path of the D&R canal which is a very idyllic setting for photos. Police were called who related the need to be cautious (and actually went looking for the guy) as assaults were on the uptick; the University though, wanted to minimize the bad publicity.

 

[Sirius Glass]

This thread makes me feel lucky about the two times that I brought my Hasslelbad to SF for business trips before the pandemic.

Some of the pictures I like most were taken there. Such a beautiful city.

I am planning to go to San Francisco with my Hasselblads soon.

 

[wiltw]

Thank you all regarding their opinions of San Francisco. Just as I suspected, my concern was not overblown regarding carrying valuable equipment in the open. Before this planned trip, hopefully to occur at next month's end, I was thinking on getting a film P&S, something I never had before. With my film interest rekindled, I want something more casual with AF/auto exposure for outings with the family or on trips where weight, speed of capture or safety would be a potential issue. Thanks to this thread, I went ahead and ordered a P&S which should be arrive in a week or so.

When you go, leave NOTHING visible within the passenger compartment of the car...if necessary, stop a couple blocks from your actual destination, and move things into the trunk BEFORE you park at your final destination, and take anything in the passenger compartment with you...even dirty diaper bags have gotten stolen because 'full of something' is tempting.

 

[awty]

Not to mention out of control car chases! You could be standing on a corner taking a nice picture of a tram chugging along the tracks going down the hill and a air born car can come hurtling along towards you, having to leap out of the way and dropping your beautiful mint Leica onto the footpath and scratching it up, just like on tv, best cover your camera in bubble wrap.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I am planning to go to San Francisco with my Hasselblads soon.

When you go, leave NOTHING visible within the passenger compartment of the car...if necessary, stop a couple blocks from your actual destination, and move things into the trunk BEFORE you park at your final destination, and take anything in the passenger compartment with you...even dirty diaper bags have gotten stolen because 'full of something' is tempting.

For myself I will be on foot and public transportation with my equipment covered by a jacket.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Not to mention out of control car chases! You could be standing on a corner taking a nice picture of a tram chugging along the tracks going down the hill and a air born car can come hurtling along towards you, having to leap out of the way and dropping your beautiful mint Leica onto the footpath and scratching it up, just like on tv, best cover your camera in bubble wrap.

You are thinking about the 1960's Steve McQueen movies, not real life.

 

[ymc226]

When you go, leave NOTHING visible within the passenger compartment of the car...if necessary, stop a couple blocks from your actual destination, and move things into the trunk BEFORE you park at your final destination, and take anything in the passenger compartment with you...even dirty diaper bags have gotten stolen because 'full of something' is tempting.

Thanks for the heads up, I do the same in beautiful Santa Monica.

 

[Steven Lee]

Thank you all regarding their opinions of San Francisco. Just as I suspected, my concern was not overblown regarding carrying valuable equipment in the open.

Obviously one's risk tolerance is a personal thing, but I have not seen a single message in this thread supporting your conclusion. Predictably, the negativity come from external links to news, or from my-cousin-some-years-ago stories, not from personal experience of people who live here.

My prediction: you will show up with a crappy P&S and feel silly seeing dozens of nerdy looking engineers with $5-10K+ worth of photo gear hanging on their necks and taking pictures of everything that moves around fisherman's wharf You'll see some broken car glass, used needles, and human feces too, but it will feel unrelated (because it is).

 

[BrianShaw]

Thank you all regarding their opinions of San Francisco. Just as I suspected, my concern was not overblown regarding carrying valuable equipment in the open.

… and don’t wear a nice watch, or expensive trendy kicks either.

 

[Huss]

Go to San Fran. Take your Leica. Take one lens. Walk with authority not like a mouth breathing deer in headlights tourist. If things look shady walk the other way.
The one change I made - and I did this years ago before any of this nonsense - is I ditched my fancy camera bags for cheapie ones.
I now use the crappy Pentax bag on the left instead of the fancy Fogg one. And the truth? It's a better, easier bag to use.
I love visiting and taking pics in SF.

 

[Mike Lopez]

This thread reminds me of a t-shirt I had years ago. I'm paraphrasing, but it had an image of a hiker with something like the following written on it:

You could get lost in the forest and die.
You could encounter a grizzly bear and die.
Or you can stay home, fall off the couch, and die.

Just live your life and take your pictures. Life's too short to be terrified.

 

[Mike Lopez]

Walk with authority not like a mouth breathing deer in headlights tourist. If things look shady walk the other way.

Yes and yes.