Story
This is one of my favorite photographs of all time. This is the palm tree at the end of F Street in Benicia.
The image came out of an ordinary routine. I had a Toastmasters meeting that evening—held near the corner of First and F Street, where we gather each week, Wed. at 7:30 PM. Around that time of year, the sunset lines up closely with the time of the start of the meeting, so I thought I'd catch the sunset with the drone.
But the wind had other ideas.
It was strong—strong enough that flying the drone didn’t feel like a good decision. Even though my DJI Mini 4 Pro handles wind reasonably well, this was pushing it (or blowing it). So I left the drone in the trunk and continued on foot.
Sometimes the backup plan becomes the better one.
I walked to the end of the street and pulled out my phone—the Samsung S24 Ultra—and began photographing the palm tree against the setting sun.
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