Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Bicyclists ride by an automated real-time bike counter on Market Street on May 9 in San Francisco, California. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has installed an automated real-time bike counter, also known as a bicycle barometer, on Market Street that will display daily and annual counts. According to the SFMTA, the number of cyclists on the streets of San Francisco has surged 71 percent between 2006 and 2011.
Jeff Chiu / AP
Golden Gate Knights instructor Alain Block and Gary Ripper, dressed as Darth Vader, demonstrate light saber moves during class in San Francisco.
Jeff Chiu / AP
Golden Gate Knights instructor Alain Block, right, teaches during class in San Francisco.
Jeff Chiu / AP
Jim Collum and other students work on their light saber skills during a Golden Gate Knights class in San Francisco.
Jeff Chiu / AP
Aaron Cheng jumps over a light saber swung by fellow student Starshine Medeiros during a Golden Gate Knights class.
Jeff Chiu / AP
Sophianna Ardinger meditates after a Golden Gate Knights class.
The Golden Gate Knights, a group of San Francisco Star Wars fans who want to travel to a galaxy not that far away have created a combat choreography class for Jedis-in-training with their weapon of choice: the light saber.
Continue reading Associated Press article.
Editor's note: The images were photographed on Feb. 10, but made available to NBC News today.
Jeff Chiu / AP
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. cleans out his locker at the team's NFL football training facility in Santa Clara, Calif., Tuesday. The 49ers lost to the Baltimore Ravens 34-31 in Super Bowl XLVII on Sunday.
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Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP
San Francisco Giants pitcher Sergio Romo looks up as confetti falls during the baseball team's World Series victory parade in San Francisco on Oct. 31.
Robert Galbraith / Reuters
Cousins Reagan Hagerstrand and Ryan Magnani react as they are lifted above the crowd during the Giants' World Series winners parade along Market Street in San Francisco on Oct. 31.
Robert Galbraith / Reuters
Thousands of fans resplendent in orange and black choked downtown San Francisco's largest thoroughfare on Wednesday, noisily celebrating the Giants' second World Series baseball title in three years.
Jeff Chiu / AP
San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy holds the World Series trophy as confetti falls during the baseball team's World Series victory parade.
Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP
San Francisco Giants fans cheer during the team's World Series baseball victory parade on Oct. 31.
Associated Press reported: Orange-and-black clad hordes flooded the streets of San Francisco on Wednesday for a ticker-tape parade celebrating the World Series champion Giants.
Tens of thousands of people decked out in the team's holiday-appropriate colors stood 30 deep behind barriers, climbed trees and mounted rooftops along the city's main commercial street to watch their favorite players wave from individual convertibles.
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Stephen Lam / Reuters
A baseball fan sits on a light post in celebration outside AT&T Park after the San Francisco Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers to win the MLB World Series baseball championship, in San Francisco on October 28, 2012.
The Giants capped a wild post-season ride by beating the Tigers 4-3 in 10 innings on Sunday to complete a four-game sweep and be crowned World Series champions for the second time in three years.
Take a look at the post-game reactions and read Ray Ratto's analysis of the Giants, who he describes as "the new platinum standard of modern baseball".
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Noah Berger / AP
Mark Wilson carries a rainbow flag during San Francisco's 42nd annual gay pride parade, June 24.
The sidewalks of downtown San Francisco were filled with colorful participants and spectators as the city marked its 42nd year celebrating the lesbian, gay and transgender community. Organizers said more than 200 floats, vehicles and marching bands are taking part. The city's mayor, Ed Lee, was to address the crowd at the city's Civic Center.
Related story: Conservatives target Republicans who back gay marriage: 'You could lose your career'
Noah Berger / AP
Niki Ryan, left, applies lipstick for her niece Brenna Ryan as they wait for the start of San Francisco's 42nd annual gay pride parade, June 24.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Views of the Golden Gate Bridge taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" on May 2, left, and May 3.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
In this photo taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" hanger cables on the Golden Gate Bridge are seen on May 2.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
A view of the Golden Gate Bridge taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter
Getty Images photographer Justin Sullivan has photographed the Golden Gate Bridge countless times. Based in northern California, Sullivan frequently gets assignments at the iconic bridge, a popular spot not only for tourists, but for all kinds of news events – from protests to security threats.
On May 27, the Golden Gate Bridge celebrates its 75th anniversary. Sullivan’s offbeat images of the San Francisco icon offer a refreshing perspective on the much photographed bridge. A quick Google images search shows the view most people think of when picturing the bridge. In his Instagrams, Sullivan captures the various moods of the structure in shifting weather, details of its art deco style, as well as some of the sillier moments, often involving tourists.
But it wasn’t until recently that Sullivan actually began photographing the bridge – or anything else, actually – outside of his news assignments. What changed? His daily camera lost some weight.
“I used to never take pictures outside of work," said Sullivan. "I don’t have any pictures of my friends or family. Now, I take pictures all the time.”
In February, Sullivan got the iPhone and with it has come a newfound freedom behind the lens. He has embraced experimenting taking pictures when – and where – it would not be possible with a heavy, expensive professional SLR. Using the phone’s volume button on the earphones to release the shutter, he will playfully hang his phone out of windows and moving vehicles to see what he gets. Of course, the iPhone has not replaced his professional cameras, which he continues to use regularly when on assignment.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
In this photo taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" a tourist is seen holding a puppet in front of the Golden Gate Bridge on May 2.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
This photo taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" and shot from the window of an airplane shows fog rolling over the Golden Gate Bridge on Feb. 21.
This new flexibility allowed him to revisit an idea that occurred to him in 2007 atop Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands. The spot is known for its vista of the Golden Gate Bridge, and this particular day was shrouded in a thick fog. “I ran into [San Francisco Chronicle photographer] Fred Larson on Hawk Hill. We both said we could come to the same spot, at the same time and it would be different every day,” said Sullivan.
And so began Sullivan’s quest to capture the daily life of the Golden Gate Bridge. The popular photo-sharing app, Instagram, provides the perfect outlet for his daily snapshots as he commutes into San Francisco, or when he ends up covering an assignment on the bridge.
Though Sullivan will usually cross the Golden Gate Bridge 3 or 4 times a week, he falls for the bridge’s charm, as is evident in his Instagram feed. "It is one of the architectural wonders of the world," said Sullivan. “I think it’s pretty amazing to be able to drive over it every day.”
Follow Justin Sullivan on Instagram @sullyfoto or see his feed on Instagrid.
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Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Views of the Golden Gate Bridge taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" on May 3, left and right, and May 1, center.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Views of the Golden Gate Bridge taken with an iPhone 4S using the Instagram filter "LoFi" on March 16, left, and March 19.
Robert Galbraith / Reuters
Two men look out over the San Francisco skyline from above Dolores Park, following a rain shower in San Francisco, California on Thursday.
Phil McGrew via Flickr
San Francisco photographer Phil McGrew says he has been trying to make a picture like this since he moved there two years ago. Thursday's violent storm finally allowed McGrew the opportunity to make the picture, but he says he made it from inside the window of his apartment because he didn't want to get his camera wet.
The Mail Online reported on Friday that an incredible eight bolts struck the Bay Bridge in San Francisco last night which was captured in this incredible shot by photographer Phil McGrew, who took the photo through the rain-soaked window of his apartment.
Mr McGrew, 49, was shocked at the striking image which shows the split-second moment of electric forks hitting the span of the bridge.
See more of Phil McGrew’s photographs on his Flickr page.
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
A job seeker fills out a registration form as he waits to enter the HIREvent job fair at the Hotel Whitcomb on March 27 in San Francisco. Employers at the event were hoping to fill over 400 entry level and management job openings.
The jobless rate has dropped to 8.3 percent from 9.1 percent since last summer, a move Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has said is "somewhat out of sync" with the rather modest pace of economic growth.
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Robert Galbraith / Reuters
The skyline of San Francisco and the south tower of the Golden Gate Bridge are seen from the Marin Headlands as they rise above the fog in Sausalito, Calif. March 21, 2012. A celebration held over the Memorial Day weekend in May will commemorate the bridge's 75th anniversary this year.
Jana Asenbrennerova / Reuters
Joe Calavita, center, stands on a fire truck during the Brides of March parade through downtown San Francisco on March 18, 2012. People don wedding clothes and stroll through the center of San Francisco during the annual event.
"Brides of March started in 1999 as a whimsical protest against the fictitious ideal marriage propagated by commercial interests to fuel consumerism," according to SFBay.ca.
Parades are now held in four other cities and are open to anybody who can rustle up a wedding dress, the more elaborate the better. Read more at the organizers' website.
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