Iconic Photo Spots in San Francisco for your next Trip
I visited San Francisco for a few days ahead of a west coast road trip in 2015. During my stay, I tried to photograph some of the most iconic photo spots and landmarks in San Francisco using my iPhone 6 Plus.
In this blog post, I’ll share these photo spots with you to give you some ideas of what to see and photograph on your next trip to San Francisco.
Know before you go
Getting around in San Francisco
The best way to get around in San Francisco is by foot and public transportation. I spent three full days in San Francisco, and each day I went sightseeing in a different area. As my hotel was nearby Fisherman’s Warf, I could reach all the photo spots I mention in this article either by foot or public transportation.
Alternatively, you can also get around hop-on-hop-off buses. They’ll take you to all the major attractions.
Iconic Photo Spots in San Francisco
44 Montgomery
The 44 Montgomery building is a skyscraper in the financial district of San Francisco, close to the Transamerica pyramid. It’s a great photo spot for black and white fine art photography.
Fine Art edit of a skyscraper in San Francisco
If you’re using Adobe Lightroom Mobile like I do, you may want to check my tutorial about how to convert photos to black and white in Lightroom Mobile.
You’ll find a lot more photo opportunities if you walk around the streets in the financial district.
Marshall’s Beach
This is one of my favorite photo spots in San Francisco. The 400-foot long beach is located on the west side of Tomalas Bay. You can reach it by foot in just 15–20 minutes from the Golden Gate Bridge. A small sign and a few stairs will take you down to the beach from the top of the bay.
Marshall’s Beach San Francisco
The top of the stairs is the first photo opportunity at this photo spot. Marshall’s Beach forms a perfect line towards the Golden Gate Bridge. So take this opportunity to practice using leading lines in photography.
Allegedly, Mark Twain once said that the coldest winter he ever spent was a summer in San Francisco. But nevertheless, you’ll always find a few people swimming and sunbathing at Marshall’s Beach. To respect their privacy, I’ve removed them from the photo. You can read more about the app I used to remove the people in my Touch Retouch App review
Iconic fire escape stairs
This is not a specific photo spot. But when you stroll around in San Francisco, keep an eye open for all these old buildings with the iconic fire escape stairs. You’ll find lots of them in San Francisco.
Fire Escape Stairs
Alcatraz Island (“The Rock”)
Alcatraz Island also known as “the Rock” was a United States federal prison. After it closed in 1963, the island was abandoned. So if you ever wanted to visit a lost place, this is your chance. You’ll find plenty of tours that depart regularly, e.g. from Fisherman's Wharf or nearby.
Prison Cells on Alcatraz Island
Tip: Make sure to book your tickets for Alcatraz in advance. They sell out quickly!
Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is probably the most iconic photo spot in San Francisco. There are several ways how to get good photos of the bridge. I already mentioned one previously in this article: Marshall’s Beach.
Another great way is to walk across the bridge, especially in the morning, when the towers of the Golden Gate Bridge are in the clouds. I bet you can get some cool photos this way.
Golden Gate Bridge photographed during a boat tour
Lastly, take a boat tour in the San Francisco Bay. Longer tours will pass directly under the bridge. You’ll have plenty of time to photograph the bridge while approaching it. The tour boats seem to attract seagulls; maybe because people feed them. Try to make them a part of your photo. They usually fly steadily and close to the boats.
Palace of Fine Arts
Located in the Marina District of San Francisco, the Palace of Fine Arts is a monumental building next to a lake. It was built in 1915 for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition.
Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco
What you can try here is to capture the monumental building with the lake in the foreground using a long exposure. This way, you can flatten the lake, which may result in a fantastic reflection of the building. For such a long exposure, you can either try to the scene using Live Photos and then convert your Live Photo into a long exposure. Alternatively, you can use one of the other ways I use to take long exposure photos with iPhone.
Coit Tower at the top of Telegraph Hill
This Art Deco Tower was built in the 1930s to beautify San Francisco. From the top of Telegraph Hill, you’ll also enjoy a great view over San Francisco.
Coit Tower San Francisco
Summary
San Francisco is a picturesque city with plenty of interesting photo spots. No matter if you’re into architecture or landscape photography, San Francisco has you covered. You’ll find modern architecture photo spots in and around the financial district. If you ever wanted to visit a lost place, visit Alcatraz Island. And if you’re interested in nature photography, visit the Bay Area and do not forget to visit Marshall’s Beach.
For more picturesque places I visited during my east cost road trip, check my blog posts about photo spots in Las Vegas, about photo spots in the ghost town of Bodie and photo spots in the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada.
