FIELD NOTE // FN-007 | LOCATION: Market St. San Francisco | DATE: 2025-08-13
Freedom Riders
Even on a street as large and prominent as Market Street, in the heart of San Francisco's financial district, the roar was undeniable. It’s a sound like a supermassive swarm of bees heading your direction, a mechanical buzz that builds and builds before they rip past. Zip. Roar.
The boys (and their ladies on the back) were out for a no-holds-barred cruise through the heart of downtown. I wonder if this is our modern version of Hunter S. Thompson's Hells Angels. A nuisance to most on the outside, but for some of us, an exhilarating sense of freedom.
After a long procession of freedom riders, this couple whizzed by with not just confidence, but a style elevated well above their compatriots—and honestly, above most people milling around Market at that time. The lady on the back with her full pink outfit, hair flying back with the throttle of the ATV, big glasses... in that moment, they both owned the city. It wasn’t theirs for the taking; it was already theirs.
In my clumsiness with a new lens, not yet having the muscle memory and failing to switch my camera to its high-speed burst mode, I only managed to fire off three shots. None of them are sharp. Every single one is technically out of focus. And yet, I absolutely love this picture. The attitude, the confidence, the freedom... it speaks directly to my soul. It makes me smile.
