Image: Panorama of San Francisco by Eadweard Muybridge, 1878

Description: On 11 July 1877, Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904) announced in the San Francisco Bulletin the publication of a “Panorama of San Francisco from California Street Hill.” The photographs were taken from the tower of the Mark Hopkins mansion, then the highest point in San Francisco, 116 metres (381 feet) above the harbour, which commanded an uninterrupted, sweeping view of the entire city, its harbour, and San Francisco Bay. One year later, Muybridge re-photographed the view, as seen here. Taken in April 1878, Muybridge worked with a mammoth camera using 18 x 22 inch plates. Muybridge started at about 11am and, probably with the help of an assistant, made each section within a matter of 15 minutes. The seventh panel from the left was taken last; it is a second shot of a section that was not successful on the first try. He used a 40 inch near telephoto lens, which determined the number of 20 inch wide glass negatives needed to make the complete circle. He had chosen the day for the execution of the panorama carefully; the shadows are sharp and the atmosphere clear. Published as an album and comprising thirteen mounted albumen prints, the resulting panorama exceeded seventeen feet in length when fully extended. He printed nine copies, but never advertised them.
Title: Panorama of San Francisco
Credit: Gawain Weaver
Author: Eadweard Muybridge
Permission: This is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason: The author died in 1904, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or less. You must also include a United States public domain tag to indicate why this work is in the public domain in the United States. This file has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. The official position taken by the Wikimedia Foundation is that "faithful reproductions of two-dimensional public domain works of art are public domain". This photographic reproduction is therefore also considered to be in the public domain in the United States. In other jurisdictions, re-use of this content may be restricted; see Reuse of PD-Art photographs for details.
Usage Terms: Public domain
License: Public domain
Attribution Required?: No