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Kite Aerial Photography - Sproul Plaza #1
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Notes on Kite Aerial Photography: Photo Gallery

Sproul Plaza
University of California, Berkeley



KAP fans at Ludwig's Fountain (Canon 24-mm, July 1998).



I am not sure why it took me as long as it did to try photographing from Sproul Plaza. This is the location of protests in the Vietnam War era and a daily cavalcade of  free speech advocates in our current day. I eat lunch hereabouts a few times each month and it rarely fails to entertain. Sproul Plaza does offer distinct challenges in launching and flying the kite. It offers relatively little free space for maneuvering on the ground and lies in the lee zone of Zellerbach Hall, a large structure. 

Two views of the Sproul Steps -- ground zero for the Free Speech Movement  (Canon 24-mm, July 1998).



Launching the kite requires a creative game plan in which I run madly around various obstacles while the kite goes through a 180° swing in plan -- an altogether satisfying process. It typically takes a half-hour or so of such antics to get the kite up to stable air. I've probably flown in this area around 5 or 6 times now and with each flight I  become a little more comfortable with Sproul's tight surroundings.  

A high oblique of the Sproul Steps and a view toward Sather Gate, once the south entry to campus.  (Canon 24-mm, July 1998).

 


On the left, we have a view of the Martin Luther King Student Center with Telegraph Avenue extending into the distance and, on the right, a view of the Sproul Promenade with more leaves on the pollarded sycamores. The righthand image was selected by Jenne Mowry for this year's CAL Orientation mailing -- 12,000 cards printed  (Canon 24-mm, July 1998).




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