San Francisco Behind-The-Scenes Trip Report

Tuesday

Feb
2010

Posted by Scott Kelby

Editor and Publisher of Photoshop User Magazine, training director and instructor for the Adobe Photoshop Seminar Tour, President National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP), CEO of Kelby Media Group, author of a string of bestselling technology books. Conference Technical Chair for the Photoshop World Conference & Expo, author of numerous Photoshop training DVDs and online courses, and co-host of PhotoshopTV, and "The Grid."

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http://www.kentoneyphoto.com Ken Toney
Sounds like everything went like clockwork. (can’t never find the fog when you want a little). i bet those passengers had a great time with you guys. It’s a wonder you didn’t have an emergency landing to throw someone off. Sure wished I had been there. Congrats to Dave and his Canadiens getting gold in ice dancing (we beat you in hockey). I just had to get that one in.
Raf
Hi Scott,
I like how you stated: that Dave, Matt, RC, and Corey piled in your trusty Camera (I think you meant to say camry). Must be one big camera. LOL. Now, that just tells me how much you love photography. Thanks for sharing. PS see text from the blog below.
“At around 10:40 pm, Dave, Matt, RC, Corey and I piled in our trusty Camera and headed for the In & Out Burger near our hotel. We had a couple of burgers, but we were all beat, and headed back to the Sheraton.”

Larry B
Raf-
Even though I corrected Scott’s typos early this morning, I too thought it was pretty darn funny that he typed camera instead of Camry twice. You think this guy is into cars or photography more? ;)

Gus Jackson
What a great post. Thank You very much for taking the time to share it.
http://Www.caringo-photo.de Ingoman
Omg. Is Dave Holding an ipad? Cool story looks like a lot of fun.
Greez from Munich
ingoman
http:www.kayviewgallery.blogspot.com Tom Peterson
Sounds very much like the glamorous life of an “on the road” peddler. I did outside sales for the past 30 years and can relate to every point you made. Bad food, bad cars, bad hotels, great fun. Great post.
http://mattkloskowski.com Matt Kloskowski
It was indeed a great trip. Whenever I told anyone about the 6 hour round-trip to Big Sur they said “Awe, I’m sorry”. I told them we had a great time anyway. Lots of stories and jokes that probably wouldn’t have happened had we just gone to the hotel and slept (which is what we really wanted to do).
Oh and for the record. I didn’t make up this “marine layer” thing. Just turn on the news in the morning in California and you’ll see that’s what they call it. Everyone else in the world calls it fog though :)
And why do they put “the” in front of their interstates. Well call it I-4 here in FL, but they’d call it “the” 4. Very puzzling ;-)
- Matt K

http://h William Beem
They do the same thing in Georgia, but up there it’s “the Piggly-Wiggly.”

http://www.jeffrease.com Jeff Rease
Or as some of us call it here in Alabama, “the Pig” :)

http://www.alanhessphotography.com Alan Hess
The marine layer is the official term for “fog so bad you can’t can’t see spit”
Trust me I live at the beach.
Glad to see you had your In and Out fill.
Lets me off the hook for bringing out a cooler full of double doubles to PSW

http://www.photoshopworld.com/index.html NAPP_News
Ummm… No it doesn’t. ;D

Larry Loar
Don’t forget “The Ohio State University!” Scott knows. Larry

http://www.upde.net Dave Updegraff “Upde”
In my second life I want to come back as Scott Kelby :) You captured it all. The fun you have with your buddies, the passion you have for your craft and to be able to make a wonderful living in the middle. “Priceless” Rock on Sir! I love your work.
Regards,
Upde
Bob DeChiara
SK, thanks for sharing.
-Bob
(Boston)
Charles McGill
Enjoyed the insight into “behind the scenes”. Thanks.
http://www.christophertmurphy.com Christopher Murphy
Scott and crew: On behalf of Midwesteners everywhere, thanks so much for going to In and Out Burger for us! I still feel full from that vicarious eating experience. It just so happened to be my comment that started off this excellent post, so thanks for that. When my wife and I went to Point Lobos last July, land of Ansel and Edward, the fog rolled in from the time I paid my ten bucks to get in to the exact second I pulled back out on the highway.:) I know exactly how you feel!
All that highfalutin’ traveling stuff was fascinating, and I know everyone who reads this blog appreciates the work you and the crew put in to bring us all that you do. Thanks for letting us take a peek inside “The Life!” By the way next time out, eat a Double Double Animal for me!
http://kenpowellphotography.com Ken Powell
“then Dave and I headed out to a meeting with Peachpit Press about the upcoming iPad launch”
Is that why Dave appears to be reading an iPad? :)

http://www.igtamerica.com Troy Breidenbach
I believe that’s a Kindle with a black cover.

Chris
Scott, think that’s Il Fornaio, it’s a chain mostly around the Valley. Too bad you weren’t out there this week, free short stack at iHop!
Timothy Su
Scott, it’s sad to hear after so many tries, the weather was still not in favor. But thanks for honestly sharing with us all these attempts so we don’t think we are the ones that are always getting bad weather! :) I guess these are true experiences that every photographer have to live through in order to get the great moments and capture great photos!
http://www.aaronnoblephotography.com Aaron Noble
Two comments… One almost couldnt tel it was Dave without the manditory maple leaf somewhere on his cloths. 2nd How could you put all of the staff on one plane heaven forbid it had trbl and we lost everyone who would be leftto teach of photoshot Brad?
Just kidding sounds like you had a good time
http://www.jeffrease.com Jeff Rease
Sounds a little like our 30-minutes of shooting at the motorcycle races with tornado warnings last year. And then the weather cleared beautifully after I took you to the airport! :)
http://www.layersmagazine.com RC
If you guys think that’s awesome.. its just exponentially multiplied during Photoshop World!!! The great part about that is that the stories include as many fans as possible..
It was a great trip… I am blessed beyond measure to be doing what i love with my friends..
RC
http://www.danewilson.com Dane Wilson
I was at the show. Great job all. Just seeing Scott retouch in Camera Raw was worth the entire trip to SF from Sacramento. Had a great time speaking with Kathy Siler (I’m pretty sure that was her) before the show. She of course crowed about how great her job was. My only complaint… what’s up with large T-Shirts? I haven’t been able to wear a large since sometime in high school. I love the design, but will never be able to wear it. (If you’ve got any XXL laying around, let me know.) Thanks for the behind-the-scenes look. Keep up the good work. You give us all something to dream about.
http://mikelao.wordpress.com Mike Lao
Pretty nice to know what you guys are doing when you’re travelling. Russell Brown’s presentation was spectacular! That was truly truly creative!
PS – Can’t wait for your LR3 book ;)
http://www.sierrasoul.com Matt
A note about food. Any time you’re traveling for work, it’s easy to fall into a “path of least resistance” mode for dining, especially when you’re on a tight schedule. But San Francisco is one of the greatest food cities in the country. It makes me cry a little bit to know that you ate at IHOP and Noah’s, although Il Fornaio was a good call.
So, let me help you out. It sounds like you we’re staying in the Marina, maybe somewhere along Lombard. In itself, this is a great neighborhood for food. Next time around, try one of these:
Breakfast:
Squat & Gobble (on Chestnut at Scott)
Grove Cafe (also on Chestnut, near Scott)
Ella’s (on Presidio and California; my favorite, a bit further, but includes a drive through the Presidio)
House of Bagels (Geary at 15th Ave; legit bagels)
Lunch:
Pluto’s (on Scott, near Chestnut; awesome salads, sandwiches, etc. and cheap)
Q (on Clement at 3rd Ave.; mac ‘n cheese with tater tots!)
Park Chow (on 9th Ave. near Judah; right next to GG Park)
Dinner:
NOPA (on Divisadero at Hayes; my favorite)
A16 (on Chestnut; Italian done right; go for Meatball Mondays)
Garibaldis (on Presidio at Sacramento; neighborhood favorite)
Patxi’s (on Fillmore at Lomabard; best deep-dish pizza in the SF Bay Area, Zachary’s notwithstanding)
That’s just off the top of my head. This really is an amazing city for dining. Please never go to IHOP again. I’d be happy to show you around next time you’re in town. Take care.
Larry Loar
I told Matt last year that it was a SWEET job that he has and this just confirms it! It is not often that you find a group of people who work and play so well together. You are all blessed! Enjoy the ride as long as you can. Here’s to a long ride! Larry
Bernie
Being from the Bay Area–currently at school in Salem, OR–I wanted to share something that might make your next trip out to the best place in the country even better next time: http://www.sfgate.com/weather/fog/fogsideclose.shtml
Personally, I really enjoy shooting star trails and the city at night; I can’t tell you how many times I went out and then got pissed off when I couldn’t see anything. Then I found that website and life got a whole lot easier. Having visited other cities, I know that several other places also have similar websites.
And on restaurants: Pluto’s is unbeatable! They’ve got sites in SF, Palo Alto and Berkeley. Everyone that comes and visits me at home goes to Pluto’s and becomes upset afterwards that they don’t have one closer to them. Paxti’s is also incredible–there’s SF and Palo Alto locations. Also, In-N-Out tip: 800/786.1000. Tell them where you are and they’ll stay on the phone, giving you directions, until you’re in their parking lot. Lastly, if you’re looking for more food on the Peninsula, try Zibbibo in Palo Alto.
Lorri E
Sounds like a great trip with great friends/co-workers. Scott, if it makes you feel any better about the fog, I just got back from Tampa last week. Decided to take a week to get away to Florida to escape from the cold & snow in Iowa and Tampa was experiencing 15-20 degrees colder than average temperatures. I still spent a couple days on the beach and caught the sunset one night even though my fingers were icy by the time the sun went down.
http://www.ickledotco.co.uk John
What a great report! Thanks for doing that. I watched the event on Monday evening. Very good. Well done to all concerned.
http://www.Lavonnehall.com Lavonne
Didn’t some of you photographers say never let bad weather stop you from photographing? Took the ferry to Alcatraz Thur morning & couldn’t see a darn thing except when the seagulls got closer to the ferry but photographed anyway. The images came out pretty cool because they had a nice creepy effect to them. Went to shoot the GGB a few minutes after you guys checked out of the hotel & to my surprise the sky was all cleared & the sun even came out at some point. If only you stayed a little longer :) Thanks for a great show!
http://flickr.craigthoburn.com Craig Thoburn
Just got home to Maryland from the PS20 event. You guys did an amazing job as always. Took the PCH all the way down to Santa Monica (after the event, not as foggy as what you all ran into). Managed to get a few shots. Big Sur was beautiful. Thanks again for inviting us all to participate in the celebration. It was amazing looking back at what an incredible product PS1 was and how far it has come.
P.S. Looking forward to reading your books on my iPad.
jay
Scott and Everyone -
Great to hear your trip report to our City by the Bay. This time of year the weather is unpredictable as you might expect. As someone earlier pointed out, the restaurants in the whole Bay Area and particularly SF are incredible, I just bust up knowing you guys are eating at iHOPs, now In-N-Out I totally understand. Thanks for coming out and putting on the show. It was fun to be in the audience. I was just telling a friend today that he had to go check out Russell’s performance. It was completely unleashed. I was one of the lucky few who will get to play with Ps 1.0 on the iPhone and can’t wait to play with it soon.
By the way Scott, I was in the 4th row and you didn’t look a bit nervous at all.
Suzanne
Thanks for the honest travelogue!!!! And for letting me know you drug all your camera equipment along and never got it out of the bag! I thought that only happened to me….Great post….
Pingback: Back from San Francisco & Gearing for Photoshop World! | Layers Magazine
http://www.flickr.com/nornironman David Kelly
Scott, big thanks for the sharing some insight into the ‘behind the scene’ activities that takes places in your ‘Photoshop’ work life.
For me the most interesting insight though was in relation to your nerves in hosting the show. I’m someone who gets nervous just doing PowerPoint presentations at meetings, so heck I would’ve thought that for someone of your experience regularly presenting to large trainee audiences, this was just par for the course. Guess we all have comfort zones!
I have to say though that if you felt your nerves were showing – don’t fret. All I saw, via the webcast over here in England, was the normal zany humour from the guy we’ve all come to know and love :-)
BTW As you rightly inferred, Russell ‘Doc Emmett’ Brown’s presentation was just soooo amazing, cool, funny, unbelievable and any other superlative you care to throw at it.

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San Francisco Behind-The-Scenes Trip Report

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